Lunarite
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Lunarite is a metal found exclusively in meteorites fallen to the mortal plane from the heavens. It is an uncommon find, which is usually retrieved from the very centre of the meteorite, requiring the hopeful prospector to dig deeply within. The raw ore has a silvery-gold appearance, perhaps rapidly oxidised during the space rock passing through the atmosphere at tremendous speed and heat.
Contents
History
Among the Starbreaker Dwarves, they speak of a legend of their progenitor Gotrek, who took a star to his forge and with Yemekar as his forgemaster, together wrought it into a blade of starlight. Gotrek inscribed runes into the sword, which burned brightly and gifted it to his son Skalfar, and it is said that when he took to the field to do battle with Khorvad and his minions, the runes flared with the light of the Sun and blinded the undead. It was only when wrenched from him by the undead during the siege of Kaz’ad’Rikkaz, that the sword was destroyed. Other Dwarven stories speak of Urguan’s hammer blazing a trail of light when he, Krug, Horen and Malin fought together against Khorvad.
Among the children of Malin, the stories of the battle against Iblees recall Malin’s arrows streaking through the night as if shooting stars. Even long after his departure from the world, many Elven Princes and Princesses would wear crowns said to gleam under the Sun and Moon, as if magical. To this day the Warhawkes fashion gifts and jewellery from the other materials of fallen stars, though they lack the lustre attributed to other goods fashioned from the star’s heart.
Whatever remarkable material Gotrek’s sword, Urguan’s hammer or Malin’s arrowheads were made from, there are no tales which name it, and none alive to this day know of it to tell. Its secrets lost to time.
Appearance
Raw lunarite glistens much like the ores of precious metals, usually seen as pale goldish streaks or blots through the stone ‘heart’ of the meteorite. It takes an experienced eye to determine that the ore is that of lunarite, rather than gold, nickel or the like.
Rarity
The mineral can be found only at the very centre of a fallen meteorite.
Usage
Starsmithing
The extracted starstone ore may be broken down with a hammer and chisel to remove excess stone and thus impurities. Any resulting goldish nuggets of metal can then be smelted down and refined much like gold or other soft metals, though its melting temperature is slightly higher than that of ferrum(approx. 1700°C). This works best in a crucible, but will require experimentation to discover the most efficient methods.
In its molten state, lunarite is a very bright silver colour, the brightness of which reduces upon cooling, but remains very beautiful. Slag must also be skimmed off from the molten metal to further remove impurities, the more stone removed prior to smelting, the less this is required. Casting the molten metal is not ideal and the best results come from ingot and billet casting, to later be shaped.
Once solidified and cool, the refined lunarite can be worked much like iron and steel, in that one may heat it to make it more malleable then beat it into shape. It is also receptive to quenching and tempering techniques, and if tempered correctly can become much softer for less combative wears such as jewellery- although upon reaching this point it is irreversible.
Starsmithing Redlines
-Lunarite may be refined by removing waste stone from the ore chunk, then smelting it in a crucible at ~1700°C.
-Slag must be skimmed off the top of the molten metal, before it may be cast. It does not cast particularly well, so it’s best to cast into ingots or billets and then worked into shape.
-After the cast has set, a smith may heat the refined metal until glowing red at about ~1300°C, to begin beating it into shape.
-A smith may use mundane tempering and quenching techniques upon refined Lunarite to harden it for tools and weapons.
-If Lunarite is tempered to become soft like gold, it cannot be quenched back to its prior strength and hardness.
-The process for refining and working lunarite is not well-known and one may not merely assume their character will know how to make use of it. Players are encouraged to experiment in RP.
Starsteel
Refined lunarite demonstrates similar hardness, density and tensile strength to that of ferrous alloys, particularly when adequately quenched and tempered by a smith. In the recent ‘goldrush’ for lunarite, those who have discovered and worked with this highly-valued metal have come to name it ‘Starsteel’ and “Moonsteel.”
Its more interesting properties however, are that lunarite neither rusts nor tarnishes, even after centuries of neglect, left forgotten in hoards or discarded upon a battlefield. It will still gleam as beautifully as the day it was forged.
The most remarkable and by far its most prized quality, is that under the light of the Sun or the Moon, refined Starsteel will exhibit a soft silvery glow. This is likened to the glistening of distant stars, or the reflective light of the Moon by some, and similarly to its impervious nature to rust and patina, will not fade with age.
Starsteel Goods
In the hands of a practiced smith, lunarite can be worked into tools, weapons and armour, as a lavish substitute for mundane steel. When quenched and tempered with the same techniques, lunarite is on par with high quality sword-steel, and can be worked to produce harder or ‘springier’ qualities when treated correctly. By and large, it's no different to steel in such applications.
While some may rightly scoff at the idea of steel jewellery, lunarite can be tempered to reduce its hardness and strength to somewhere around that of gold and thus substitute such precious metals also. When worked by a jeweller using the same techniques to that of gold or silver, lunarite can be polished to a smooth glossy texture and a mirror finish. It will still exhibit its silvery glow, making it particularly lustrous for necklaces, rings and earrings.
Starsteel Redlines
-The glow of lunarite is not substantial enough to blind or disorient, it’s purely aesthetic.
-Armour, weapons and tools created from lunarite must be mechanically represented by their iron counterparts.
-Jewellery or other small goods containing lunarite should ideally convey the silvery colour of the metal, but some deviation is allowed.
-All lunarite RP items require ST signing.
-Lunarite is equal to ferrum/steel in terms of its strength, durability, toughness etc. Armour, weapons and tools created from lunarite are not immune to damage, wear etc.
-Refined lunarite is non-magnetic.
