~Iron and Steels~
Common IronWhere better to start then with the metal that be in our very blood, iron. We have over thirty words for iron that I can count in our tongue. Good iron, poor iron, rusted iron, forged iron, cast iron, cracked iron, bent iron, fine iron, burnt iron, hot iron, cold iron, the list goes on. It goes to show how entwined iron is in the lives of our people. The everyday things we use be made from one kind of iron or another, alloyed or pure. It nay be just the dwarves, iron be used all over the surface lands by many races as their primary crafting metal. Iron be one of the most common found metals in the earth, both close to the surface and throughout the underdark. It can be found in large veins of sedimentary ores mainly being formed of hematite and magnetite which must be smelted and beaten to separate the rich iron within. The largest known source is of course found below the Ironmaster hold in the Frozenfar.
Iron a most versatile of metals can be either cold forged or hot forged, both malleable and strong. It be easily crafted by even novice smiths into almost any form they desire and has a higher melting point then all other common metals. It also be a fine conductor of heat and lightning. Iron has its drawbacks however, it be easily corruptible when exposed to air and water after smelting in all but the driest conditions. A forged iron weapon will start to rust after a day if not kept well. It must be oiled, bushed and sharpened daily to hold back the corruption. When used actively in combat you will notice your iron blade dull very quickly for iron will loose its edge, blunt or knick after but a few impacts. If used for weapons it be best kept for bludgeoning ones such as hammers or maces. For amours, it will deflect a blow well enough but you'll find yourself working hard to keep back the bite of rust from your plate. For best working conditions, heat until red hot. The metal will become a most malleable and somewhat ductile state. For enchantment purposes iron takes magiks readily, ask your local runesmith about this. It be the favourite metal to hold strength and protection runes I be told.
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Cold IronDo not be fooled into thinking this iron be of a cold nature. Cold iron gets its name from the low temperature for which it must be worked. Ye work this in a hot forge it will turn into a lump of common iron. So why would that be so bad? Because cold iron has got its uses. Only found deep within the earth's depths, it be said that cold iron be somehow altered by the mystical forces below. Weapons forged from this iron are greatly effective against faerie creatures and certain demonic fiends. During the blight of Caraigh on the Islands of Ruathym when the demon lord Orcus attempted to rise and bring destruction to the lands. The defenders of the Caraigh used cold iron arrow heads to prick the figures of those entering their encampment to see if they had been corrupted by the demonic influence. Those tainted would have a sour reaction to the cold iron's bite. Cold iron is also often used as the metal of choice for those armours which are enchanted to resist magiks due to its natural affinity to these sorts of protective wards.
Cold iron be difficult to work for all but the most skilled smiths it can nay be cast forged for quick production, or heated to a soft state like common iron. It must instead be beaten, grinded, chiselled or otherwise shaped by the strength and will of the smith working it, while it still be very much solid.
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Black IronA rare dark iron found in the deep within veins of magnetite. Its blackish hue lends it, its name. Black iron be extremely brittle and nay worth mentioning much for use in arms and armour craft except for decorative work. Its main value however is in alloying, and most famously into the once legendary darksteel which be followed below.
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Meteoric IronStarmetal in the old tongue, thought to be the remnants of dead stars which fall from the night sky by some odd grey beards. Others say it be cast-offs from the great soul forge itself, which towers above the living realm in the great mountain of Dwarfhome. Either way this iron be very rare indeed and only found in small amounts in rocks which have fallen to the ground in the blazing flames which sometimes appear from the sky. I had the blessing only once to examine one of these rocks myself, brought by a human paladin to our halls. It was indeed iron in weight, look and feel abate a bit darker and duller but had properties akin to cold iron in the way it resisted magiks. However, even better then cold iron it could also withstand the curse of rust which common iron be afflicted with.
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Fever IronOnce ever so rarely for those with the right nose for such things, can a special type of iron be found in a natural molten state within the earth fire flows of a volcano. This liquid iron for what ever unknown reason can attract and absorb magiks from the weave. This iron be known as fever iron because once extracted from its source, refined and then worked like common iron it grants the finished weapon fire like properties when striking a foe. In armour it offers protection to the wearer from both natural and magikal fire based attacks.
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SteelOur kin were the first to be blessed with the knowledge that mixing black rock with iron to make steel. Nobody knows truly how long it has been, but the sages say it dates back to the first kingdoms. Dwarves brought the knowledge to the world and still make the finest steel known to the realms. Black rock be always preferable for its richer carbon content and found mainly below ground. For those that must make do on the surface, wood can be burnt into a dense charcoal and this be added to iron.
Steel be as common as iron in use by all races. It be the metal of choice for most weapons and armours. Since iron be easily found and wood be plentiful, its use spread far and wide. Steel has many advantages over iron. To name a handful, one it be stronger, two it will hold an edge far longer, three it be much less susceptible to corruption, four the amounts of carbon added during alloying can be varied so that the strengths of the steel can be changed depending in its use. More added to make it harder but brittler, less added to keep it flexible but softer.
Be warned about the source of ye steel however. The quality of alloying can vary with the quality of the refiner making it. Poorly made steel will make a poorly made weapon nay matter how good a smith ye be. A general rule of thumb be, the bluer the steel the finer the quality. In the lands of humans they be mostly content with lesser quality grade steel, which they call sword steel. It be nay their fault their lives be too short for them to master the craft. I did hear rumours though of manfolk in the distant east that can make steel of a fine quality close to that of our own kin. Some elves can forge a fine piece of steel, those that are dedicated to the craft. They tend to mix steel with mithral to make elven steel which they make light weight armours for their finger wigglers who be too weak to wear full weight armours. Dwarven steel being the original and finest made of all steels, combines the purest of mined iron with the age old skill of master refiners to blend the right amount of black rock to create a steel stronger and long lasting then none other. Dwarven steel be traded in high demand all throughout the north, reaching east out of Citadel Adbar to beyond the Silver Marches and west from the mines of Mirabar into the Sword Coast.
Steel be always worked hot. It resists heat better then iron due to the added carbon so ye will have to work it hotter to make it malleable to crafting. Once forged, steel will only require oiling once every tenday to fight the effects of rust and infrequent sharpening to regain its edge after combat.
There be plenty of variations on steel alloys, metal smiths have found many inventive ways of enhancing the metal's strengths. It would take ten books to list all the different combinations of alloying steel so the more common blends be as follows:
Chromium Is refined from chromite, a rare ore mined from widely scattered deposits in the south and east surface lands and areas of the underdark. Chromium be seldom used in pure form, due to its rarity but mostly because it is far more useful in the alloying process. Chromium is primarily used when fired with carbon to harden and give corrosion resistance to steels, even so far as protecting them from the curse of seawater damage. It also be a prime component in the everbright treatment process.
DurangBe a lustrous white metal, very nice indeed. Durang is mined from earth fire ore bodies, from the minerals limonite, rutile and sphene. Our kin hold most of the known deposits of durang for good reason. It be prized for principal use in a range of steels to impart strength, heat and corrosion resistance for weapons and armours.
ManganeseCan be added to increase steel's impact strength and workability and is often for use in armour plating and thin bladed weapons such as rapiers. Manganese is a light, brittle, hard grey metal found in ore formed in nodules all over the beds of seas. It is harvested by undersea races, and sold to surface traders. Gnomes can be also found mining some manganese from pyrolusite ores.
MithralAlloyed to retain strength while lightening the weight of steel. Mostly used in elvish armours and war blades to increase speed and agility of their warriors. Helps with certain enchantments too which confer magik energies. But more on this grand metal to be discussed later.
MolybdenumUsed for heat treatments, and to improve the hardenability and toughness of quenched and tempered steels. Such steels be grand for withstanding high temperatures from movement heat, therefore mostly used in facing for machinery parts, especially in war machines. Also so ye know, molybdenum ore mixed with greases increase the resistance to heat of moving machinery parts. Molybdenum is a very hard white metal, found in natural state as an ore found hiding in granites and pegmatites. The ore also called blue-lead flower occurs as 'rosette' shaped crystals. It is mined in small deposits, sometimes with zinc or copper veins.
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PurpureNay a metal onto itself but worth a mention as a rare variety of normal iron ore, which naturally has a purple metallic sheen to it. This sheen be retained when purpure is processed into steel. Purpure steel weapons are the arms of choice for the gold nose manfolk nobility of the Sword Coast. It costs up to five times the equivalent of quality steel, and seems more readily enchantable according to those in the know. Purpure be mined from shallow deposits on some of the islands in the Trackless Sea.
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DarksteelDarksteel can be identified by its silvery hue when polished or cut, and it's exposed surfaces have a deep, gleaming purple lustre. It be harder then common steel but slightly lighter, making it a fine choice for weapon and armour making.
The secrets of refining darksteel were guarded jealously by clan Ironstar in the old kingdoms, generation after generation until one day their hold was overrun by raiding orcs. The knowledge of making darksteel was thought to be lost with the hold after all of the Ironstars were believed to have perished in the defense of their home. However, by the intervention by Moradin himself at the famous battle at the Stone Bridge, some of the Ironstars were protected and saved. The knowledge was once again uncovered in some ancient texts from the Fallen Kingdom where the remaining Ironstars were thought to have settled and the knowhow of refining darksteel was spread throughout the realms.
Black iron, while in its raw state seems to keep some wondrous properties dormant. Only after the kin of the Ironstar clan unlocked its secrets after discovering the recipe for alloying it into a steel did black iron's true utility come into knowledge. Darksteel be black iron refined with carbon as like common steel, however it be the impurities in the dross which make it what it is. Unlike iron which a metalsmith would seek to purify as much as possible during the steeling process so to lessen the opportunities for uncontrolled alterations. Black iron instead be enhanced by its impurities when mixed with carbon. Some say it be the magnetite ores which it be found within, but whatever it is grants darksteel an uncanny ability to hold enchantments. Once enspelled, darksteel can be fully melted down and reformed without destroying the enchantments. Even already dweomer-laden darksteel items can be further enchanted beyond what most other metals can hold. Darksteel be most prized by those races dependent on magik for thier craft. Another unique property of darksteel is its ability to absorb naturally or magikally occurring lightning, making it a useful metal for the protection of such energies. An even greater bonus to this metal is that elves seem to have a natural aversion to it. Only the gods know why darksteel is blessed so.
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ShadesteelThis be a product some kind of cursed process involving iron mined and forged on the plane of shadow. I do nay know the details nor do I wish to, I just know the product. Weapons and armours crafted from this metal to reflect nay light at all, but instead seem to absorb it. Useful for those who do nay wish to be seen.