Ferrusyryte

The richest people in the world build monuments from this stuff. Where do you get it and what special properties does it have?
Ferrusyryte is the general term for a unique classification of metals found in small pockets around Elsinya.  There are currently roughly 10 known forms of Ferrusyryte found across Elsinya.  The amount of each type of Ferrusyryte can vary greatly, depending on the number of deposits found of that type of metal.  Each variety of Ferrusyryte has a unique hue to the metal.  The metal is highly coveted for its property to become highly invested with arcane energy.  The metal seems to act as a natural attractor for arcane energy as well, able to invest itself with massive amounts of energy.
During the third age, the metal was highly coveted as conduits in magical devices as well as power sinks for forged weapons.  Smiths of the age were able to craft weapons of the metal capable of storing and releasing massive bursts of arcane power.  It is also thought that the shardic weapons forged by the gods during the second age were crafted from Ferrusyryte.  Currently, it is nearly impossible to forge any type of arcane weapon from Ferrusyryte.  When the metal is heated in excess of 2500 °C, it enters an extremely ductile form.  While the metal can be shaped in a multitude of ways, any attempt to inscribe arcane symbols on the metal fail.
While the unique arcane properties of the metal cannot be harnessed, its more mundane properties certainly make for effective weapons.  The metal is nearly indestructible, with weapons made from the material not bending under even the most immense loads.  Additionally, due to how the metal cools, when formed into a shape while ductile, the metal cools to form razor-sharp edges.  Due to its sturdiness, the weapons never lose their edge or break.  Ferrusyryte also appears to be completely inert when exposed to air.  Where items made from it thousands of years old show no signs of degradation.
When not used to make weapons, Ferrusyryte is used as accentuations to large-scale artwork or architecture.  Small veins of Ferrusyryte are often incorporated into the designs of buildings of monuments.  The inclusion of the metal seems to affect the structure.  For example, a monument constructed at the founding of Orvulia, the capital of the Orvulian Empire, built-in 1723 4E, has shown no signs of aging.  The structure has also completely resisted any forms of damage.  Certain types of Ferrusyryte can also affect the temperature of the material into which it is formed.  Some types can warm a structure while others cool the material.
At the current time, Ferrusyryte is perhaps the most valuable raw material in Elsinya.  The applications it presents in a variety of fields are only now being discovered.  Potentially the metal could usher in a return to the heights of the third era.

Properties

Material Characteristics

Some types have a strong blue tint, while others appear white, pink, or green. The main color of all these metals is silver, with the unique tint being most noticeable at the edges of the material.

Compounds

Each type of Ferrusyryte is able to form alloys with a select number of metals.  Currently, all known forms of Ferrusyryte are able to alloy with Iron, Copper, and Tin.  These alloys lack the nearly indestructible nature of pure Ferrusyryte.  Currently, it is unknown why only these three metals form alloys with Ferrusyryte or what properties they may have that the pure variations do not.

Geology & Geography

The locations in which Ferrusyryte is found have provided no clear connections to what broad geographical locations produce the metal.  Deposits have been found in mountains, buried beneath the sands of deserts, covered in the growth of forests.  Deposits of the metals have been found on every major continent.  While the metal has no common factor in a broad scale, it retains similarities on the local scale.
All deposits of Ferrusyryte are found near the surface, usually, deposits will have a portion directly exposed to the environment.  Each deposit will then continue into the earth for several dozen yards.  Each deposit has a central vein from which several small veins diverge.  The entire structure can resemble that of a root system.  This structure can vary itself, some deposits have had only a single vein the delves deep into the earth, while several have had many that stretch just beneath the surface.
Another feature found on all deposits of Ferrusyryte is found at the uppermost portion of the deposit.  Each deposit of the metal has a dome-shaped depression.  The depression usually ranges from 10-15 feet in diameter and can reach a maximum depth of 8-12 feet.  This depression is nearly uniform and this portion of the deposit contains no impurities.

Distribution

Trade & Market

The different types of Ferrusyryte are usually traded between governments of extremely powerful noble families.  A single gram of the material is often enough for an individual to purchase an entire town.  Few things require a higher level of protection than Ferrusyryte does when it is transported.  The Orvulian Empire is known to have entire fleets guard single shipments of the metal.

Type

Metal

Value

Priceless

Rarity

Extremely Rare

Color

Varies from type to type

Melting / Freezing Point

> 2500 °C

Common State

Solid