Razorwheat

“The grain that fights back.”

Razorwheat is one of Everwealth’s most brutal and resilient crops, a grain both feared and relied upon by those who cultivate it. It thrives in rocky soil, highland fields, and storm-beaten coastlines, where more delicate crops fail. While its dense, obsidian-colored grains provide rich, long-lasting flour, its razor-edged stalks tear through flesh, cloth, and even leather gloves with ease. Harvesting it is a dangerous ordeal, and those who work its fields often bear scarred hands as proof of their toil. Despite its dangers, Razorwheat remains a staple grain in Everwealth’s harsher regions, where it is sometimes the only reliable food source.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Razorwheat grows in thick, bristling clusters, its stalks lined with jagged, needle-thin barbs that make harvesting it a painful affair. The grains are small, black, and unnaturally hard, requiring prolonged grinding or boiling to become usable. When the wind passes through a field of Razorwheat, the stalks clash together like whispering blades, giving rise to superstitions that the grain is alive, watching, waiting for its next reaping.

Genetics and Reproduction

Razorwheat is extremely self-sufficient, spreading through burrowing roots and windborne seeds. Its stalks grow back thicker and sharper after each harvest, leading many to believe that it “remembers” the scythe and hardens itself in response. Unlike most grains, it does not die in winter, instead entering a dormant state beneath the soil, waiting for the first sign of warmth to burst forth anew.

Growth Rate & Stages

• Seedling Stage: Sprouts within a month, appearing as thin green blades with barbed edges.

• Maturation: Reaches full height in four to five months, its stalks blackening as they harden.

• Reproduction: Spreads through airborne seeds and underground root systems, overtaking weaker crops.

Ecology and Habitats

Razorwheat is most commonly found in frontier settlements, highland farms, and wind-beaten coastal fields. It thrives in poor soil where softer crops fail, making it a necessity for those who cannot afford to import food. The thorns on its stalks deter most animals, though some hardened beasts have adapted to its presence, including iron-jawed mountain goats and certain breeds of wild boars.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Despite its merciless nature, Razorwheat is a nutrient-rich grain, forming the base of dense, dark breads, thick porridges, and long-lasting trail rations. Its flour is coarse and slightly bitter, often mixed with softer grains to make it more palatable. Some brewers ferment it into a black, bitter ale, which is favored by laborers, mercenaries, and those who need warmth in the bitter cold.

Biological Cycle

Razorwheat follows a perpetual cycle, its root system persisting even after heavy harvesting. If left unchecked, it spreads aggressively, choking out gentler crops. Farmers must control its spread with fire, crop rotations, or allowing livestock to graze on younger stalks before they become too dangerous to consume.

Behaviour

Razorwheat is as much a trial as it is a resource. Those who cultivate it do so out of necessity, not choice, as it is one of the few reliable grains in Everwealth’s harsher regions. In many villages, young farmhands must harvest their first batch as a rite of passage, proving they can endure “the bite of the field.” Millers often offer “blood-for-bread” discounts, selling flour at a reduced price to those who harvest and bring in their own grain, willing to suffer the cuts and scrapes themselves.

Additional Information

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Razorwheat’s stalks react sharply to disturbance, bending and lashing back when cut, making scything it down a dangerous process. Some believe it "remembers" previous harvests, growing thicker and sharper each season, though scholars insist this is merely an adaptive trait.

Scientific Name

Triticum spinae ferrum

Origin/Ancestry

Razorwheat’s true origins are lost, though many believe it sprouted first on battlefields, fed by the blood of fallen warriors. Others claim it was a cruel experiment by ancient alchemists, designed to feed the masses but keep them in perpetual struggle.

Conservation Status

Razorwheat is not widely cultivated, as most farmers prefer less dangerous grains. However, it remains a crucial resource in Everwealth’s remote settlements, where the choice is often Razorwheat or starvation.