Special was replaced with the word precious. How does the connotation of the word precious affect the tone of this paragraph - "The Sword was passed down from one generation to the next, and as the eldest child, I was the one in line to inherit the special heirloom."

Your answer would be that:

the paragraph's meaning changes slightly. First, it meant that that 'you' were the one in line to inherit the special or unordinary piece. Now, the paragraph means that 'you' were the one in line to inherit the piece in which has great value.