Hepatizon

Hepatizon is a reddish-purple metal abundant in the Northern Safe Zone and less common elsewhere. Although softer than iron, it takes enchantment more easily and is widely used in magic items and magic weapons. Its main drawback is how prone to corrosion it is.

Properties

Material Characteristics

Hepatizon's propensity for corrosion, in water and humid air, is notorious. Maintaining a hepatizon weapon requires constant cleaning and oiling. Armour is even more troublesome to keep in good condition. However, the inconvenience is deemed worth it as hepatizon is considerably easier to enchant. As far as such things can be measured, an equivalent weight of hepatizon can maintain four to five times the strength of enchantment as iron, and seven times as much as bronze.

Geology & Geography

Hepatizon can be refined from a number of ores. Many iron ore deposits contain hepatizon in small quantities and magical means are used to sieve it out of the molten iron during processing. The richest sources of the metal, however, are the great hepatizon mines of the north. These are the principal sources of maletite, a poisonous ore with a high concentration of hepatizon. Although maletite is found elsewhere, the northern mines are the only places where native hepatizon has been found, running in veins through the strata of ore.

Distribution

Trade & Market

Corrosion issues mean that magic items made from hepatizon occasionally become unusable. Although a lot of the metal can be reclaimed, there is a steady demand for replacement metal to maintain the existing supply of enchanted items. Further, the rapid growth in the number of adventurers in both the Central and Coastal Safe Zones means increased demand for entry-level magical equipment. Hepatizon is not quite entry-level, but has seen a bump in demand along with this growth.

Storage

Where space allows, bars of hepatizon are stored under oil, to preserve them. Less expensive solutions to keeping it dry include covering with waxed cloth or storing in barrels of rice. In the Northern Safe Zone, it is traditionally cast into yuanbao, which tessellate tightly together to minimise the exposed surface. The exterior of blocks of yuanbao are usually painted with oil pigments as a water seal.

Type

Metal

Color

Reddish-purple

Melting / Freezing Point

1700°C

Density

8.1g/cm³