Dalaikor Loithos

Dalaiakor Loithos "Red Powder from Dalaia" in the language of the A'Drekh is a beautiful, lustrous ruby-red powder produced in small amounts by the settlement of Dallikton. Its vibrant color and brilliant luster makes it an incredibly valuable substance for use in cosmetics and as a pigment for inks, paints, and dyes. Though the annual production is, at present, less than 1.5 kilograms in total, this much is enough to pay for a sizable chunk of the settlement's per-annum costs of operation.
Dalaiakor loithos is harvested from a species of snail native to Noltêrrë, unlike the snails used for typical loithos, which live along the beaches of the northern Pāll-tanír, the snails used in Dallikton normally live on the sea floor. This means they can only be safely harvested in the spring, and even then only in the narrow window of time between the retreat of sea ice around Noltêrrë and spawning season for the snails. Some attempts have been made at cultivating the snails but the industry is in its infancy and loithos harvested from the cultivated snails is inferior in every respect to loithos produced from wild-caught snails.
Dalaiakor loithos is harvested from a tiny gland in a destructive process where the gland is excised from the snail, boiled until the pigment is released, fermented for at least a month, and then gradually and carefully dried. The largest snails yield approximately 5mg of dye, with most producing far less at an average of 1-2 mg each. The average annual production in Dallikton requires around 1 million snails to fulfill. In order to satisfy the appetite of the industry, snail harvesters must work around the clock during the height of snail season just to meet the quotas in a way that comports with the Dominion's environmental regulations.

Type

Biomaterial