Imperial Shards

A broken mirror might bring bad luck, but a handful of Shards certainly hasn't hurt anybody.
~ Common saying of Shardcross Captains

Also known as "Mirror Tears" and "Ballcoins", Imperial Shards are the official currency of the Vitreous Empire. Unlike other common currencies, they are not made from metals or rocks but are instead formed from alchemical glass, which has been treated with a reflective coating.

History

The first versions of what would later become the Imperial Shards were produced towards the end of the Great Advancement when the great increase in population together with the establishment of the first colonies made the previous system of Ration Cards more and more ineffective. Given that the industry of the Empire had not yet shifted towards the production of non-military products, the Imperial Senate decided to repurpose some of its munition factories as makeshift mints.
While these so-called "Slug Coins" were only intended as a stop-gap measure until a dedicated coin factory had been built, they proved so popular with the empire's citizens that it was soon decided to keep them as the empire's official currency.
While the overall size of these Proto-Shards remained relatively consistent over the following years, their cylindrical shape was gradually changed towards their modern spherical shape in order to reduce their material requirements and further streamline their production process.

Manufacturing process

Glass ingots are melted within a Glass oven after which the molten glass mass is pressed through a small tube at whose end a rotating blade cuts it into equally sized pieces. These so-called "Shardlings" are then shaped into marbles via a Marble-Caster, before being quenched in a premixed solution of Dullchalk and "Liquid Mirror".
Depending on the exact mixing ratio of these two substances the resulting coating possesses different reflective properties, which determines the monetary value of the Shard. Shards are produced in a total of four different mixing ratios, which are generally denoted by the percentage of "Liquid Mirror" that they contain.

Types of Shards

Grit-Shards (1 % LiqMi)

The least valuable Shards, "Grits" are mostly dull marbles that only possess a few patches of reflective coating.
While they are by far the most common type of Shards, they are generally only utilized for small scale transactions, as their small value could very well turn any purchase larger than a children's bibelot into a logistical problem.

Smoke-Shards (10 % LiqMi)

Smoke-Shards are see-through marbles that get their name from the various dark patches on their surface, which gives them an appearance similar to the smoke-filled sky which hangs above most cities of the Empire.
They are the go-to Shard for most members of the Empire's middle class, given that they allow the purchase of minor luxuries such as Bitter Water or Velvet Linen.

Ribbon-Shards (50 % LiqMi)

Ribbon-Shards are shimmering marbles whose surface contains numerous bands of fully reflective coating. They receive their name from the iridescent Sunray-Ribbons worn by the priest and priestesses of the Empire's Sungoddess Sunya.
While are regarded with a great deal of reverence by the Empire's middle class given that they are the most valuable type of Shard they will likely ever possess, they are seen as little more than pocket change by the upper classes.

Mirror-Shards (100 % LiqMi)

Originally the most valuable type of Shards, Mirror-Shards are -as their name already implies- fully reflective marbles.
While the nobility uses them with the same carefreeness as the middle class uses Smoke-Shards, their value is equivalent to the lifework of thousands of Mudcross workers.

Star-Shards (100+ % LiqMi)

Star-Shards are Mirror-Shards that received an additional alchemical treatment, which imbues them with strong fluorescent properties when exposed to an adequate light source.
Considered valuable even by the standards of the Starvein Nobility, their monetary value is of such a scale that most imperial citizens simply can't imagine the existence of such a concentrated piece of wealth.

Significance

Economic

While they were initially only utilized for the intra-imperial trade between the Shimmering Metropolises and their colonies, Imperial Shards soon become a widely accepted currency thanks to the efforts of the Yinmoujia Trade companies, which established controlled exchanged rates between the Shards and other common currencies in Cenorad such as the Xur'c ("Cross-Iron") and the Yinmoujia's own Yingbi.
Due to this, the Empire gained access to the vast trading network of the Yinmoujia which resulted in a great influx of rare and exotic products into the Empire. While most of these products naturally remained only accessible to the upper classes of the Empire, some of the less valuable items managed to even reach all the way down towards the very bottom of the Empire's social hierarchy, where they were received with as much reverence as if they had been a gift from the Imperial Gods themselves.
Given the colossal industrial power of the Empire and the continuous effort of the Purple Aristocracy to negotiate new trade agreements with various non-imperial factions and species, the demand for Shards has increased to such a degree that the Mirror Ministerium was forced to adjust the value proportions between the various Shard types and also introduce the Star-Shards as a form of Super-Mirror Shard in order to prevent larger transactions from becoming too cumbersome.

Cultural

When the first Shards were created, the value-linked increase of their reflective properties was meant to symbolize the approach of a brighter future, which was currently being built upon the dark days of the Great Advancement.
Due to this, even member of the Nobility still valued the Grit- and Smoke-Shards in their possession, as while their monetary value was of no real use to them, they still served as a constant reminder of the struggle and sacrifices upon which the Empire they now resided over had been built.
Following the events of the Nightskin Rebellion and the subsequent passing of the Preservation Bill, the cultural meaning of the Imperial Shards was radically changed in order to better fit the corrected history created by the Truthspeakers of the Impure Cathedral.
Nowadays the reflective hierarchy of the Shards serves as a mirror to the empire's social hierarchy, with the shimmering pieces residing over numerous dull pieces, just as the members of Starvein Nobility rule over the dull-veined population of the Empire.

Item type

Currency & Deeds

Manufacturer

The Vitreous Empire

Owning Organization

The Vitreous Empire

Rarity

Varies depending on the type of Shard.

Weight

4 g

Dimensions

14 mm (Diameter)

Raw materials & Components

Alchemical glass ingots, Dullchalk & "Liquid Mirror"-Solution

Tools

Glass oven with added Marble-Caster, Alchemical reaction vase

Monetary Ammunition

It costs 12,391 Shards to fire this gun for a single second, so you better aim properly or we might have to pawn some of your possessions.
~ Lady Bertamia, Artillery instructor

Given that Shards originated as painted glass-slugs, some members of the Alchemist Guilds decided to created modified magazines and ammunition loaders in order to be able to utilize actual Shards as ammunition for their various contraptions.
While primarily intended as a joke, this idea was well received by numerous high ranking Alchemists, which lead to the practice of measuring the fire rate of alchemical weapons such as the Meteor-Rifle or the Needle-Assaultgun in "Hectoshards/Minute" (Hs/min).

Special Shards

All Shards are created by the same process, but not all Shards are equal.

Blind-Shards

Blind-Shards are a waste product of the Shard production, which don't possess any reflective properties and therefore also don't hold any monetary value.
While worthless as a currency, they are still utilized for recreational purposes as well as the creation of a specific type of jewelry known as Nightgems. Some traders also use them to fill so-called "decoy purses", in order to distract pickpockets from their real purses.

Monnon's Eye

Named after the Empire's Moon-god, an Eye of Monnon is a Grit-Shard whose reflective coating has formed into a singular reflective spot, which gives the Shard an eye-like appearance.
While they officially posses the same monetary value as a regular Grit-Shard, they are regarded as a very powerful protective charm by the Empire's citizen and therefore traded for up to a hundredfold of their nominal value.

Smart Shard

"Smart Shard" is the name given to the very first Ribbon-Shard a new member of the Educated Scholar-Nobility receives after their graduation from the Imperial Academy.
While most Educated will own tens of thousands of Ribbon-Shards during their career, this special Shard will always hold a great deal of sentimental value to them as its acquisition marked their transition from the middle class into the Empire's upper class.
Due to this, the loss of one's Smart Shard is seen as a great personal shame and a notable number of Educated even committed suicide after losing their Smart Shard.

Inner and Outer Star

The two very first Star-Shards created the Inner and Outer Star are currently fitted into the Twin-Crowns worn by the current Emporer and Empress.
Given that they are believed to be blessed by the two gods Kyr and Bisak, they naturally don't possess a monetary value as the mere thought of assessing the value of a deity's blessing would be blasphemy of a sheer unimaginable scale.