Waw Crystal

No, you don't get it. Waw Crystal ain't like any other crytsal, alright? It's etherial. Growing from the ground in droves, reaching up to the sky with glittering blanches. and when the sun hits it--Vekeko, it's like the world fades away. Rainbows don't even begin to describe the sheer amount of colors it produces, all swirling together in a glorious visual cacophony, catching the sands in it's wonderous beauty.
Then the wind comes, and the whole world Sings

Characteristics

Waw Crystal looks like most other crystals, espceailly after being harvested. It grows mainly smooth, with some texture on the more weathered sides where sand and other minerals may have been embeded durring growth. On the whole, the crystal is transparent, if a little foggy in places where refinement and polishing are needed.
It tends to be both reflective and refractive, creating intricate, beautiful arrays of color when helf up to the light correctly.

Touch Sensitivity

What makes the Waw Crystal inherently unique, however, is it's reaction to touch. When touched, Waw crystal Sings. with each touch, a note is produced and can be manipulated and changed depending on where and how the crystal is touched. Through refinement, this quality can be used to create beautiful instuments, warning systems, and personalized soundtracks upon entrance, if it is desired.
In its rawest form, this music seems to have a hypnotic quality to it, much like a Siren's Song though less potent. Listening too long can lead the listener to be Song Struck, which, if left to develope futher, can have some dire consequences.

Geography

Waw crystal is exclusivly produced by Waw Trees, which grow mainly in the Nuoj Desert, Waw Forest, and surrounding areas. They seem to thrive in sandy, dry places with saltwater somewhere nearby in large quantities, making a desert on the coast the perfect place to grow.

Origin

It is commonly believed that Waw crystal and

Waw trees are somehow connected to the coastal Cave of Mirrors and surrounding crystalized rock and Glass Cliffs, even if the minerals in these areas seem to lack the same touch sensitivity and auditory qualities that Waw crystal posses.

Usage

Over the years, the surrounding cultures have found many uses for this beautiful crystal, from decorative accents to muscial instruments to cooking and medical aplications.

Harvesting

First, The crystal must be harvested. This is an arduous process Crystal Harvesters take up.

Tools

The most basic tools needed to correctly harvest the Crystal is as follows: a serated saw, some sort of sound blocker such as ear muffs, music, or wax ear plugs, a chisel, brushes, and a carrying apparatus of some sort.
Professional harvesters are much better

equiped than this barebones list, but the basics work to get by.

Process

A

Workplace Hazards

This job does not come without it's dangers. Being Song Struck the largest and most pressing, though danger of th crystal collapsing and tool misuse are always on the table as well.
Every harvester is required to have multiple safety measure in place at all times, including a spotter, to check for crystal damage and mental clarity.

Manufacturing

The manufacturing process is significantly more complicated than havesting, though the dangers and safety protocals remain the same.

Refinement

after harvesting, Waw Crystal is taken directly to refinement facilities that are suited to treat the crystal, carving, grinding, and polishing it to perfection until it is ready to be shipped out.
Durring the refinement process, the more a piec of crystal is worked on, the more it's sensitivity is dulled, creating a smaller risk of hypnosis from the music. This process is refered to as "dulling" the piece until it is useable by the public without hazardus byproducts.

Products

Waw crystal has 4 main forms that get shipped out to artisans and turned into works of art incorporated into daily life: Raw Crystal, Refined Crystal, Powder, and Melted Crystal.

Raw Crystal

Raw crystal is, as mentioned before, very dangerous to use. as such, it is typically reserved for those qualified to actually use it's muscial abilities. The crystal is only tempered slightly, bring it in from the brush sensitive state it is in the wild to a tap or press sensitivity.
This crystal is then used in its raw state to aid with therapy or add omff to the occasion ochestral piece. There are a plethora of restrictions placed around it's usage and who uses it, making this for the hardest and most expensive to come by.

Refined Crystal

Refined crystal is the most common form to find Waw Crystal in. This crystal is processed to the point of a pleasant yet un magical hum

Byproducts

Waw crystal and it's development have few byproducts, though those that do exist are used and considered valuable.

Crystal Dust

When carving the crystal, parts of it are known to errode over time to create a shimmering dust of sorts. This dust has an almost undullable sheen to it, even when mixed with other materials such as paint, makeup, or oils. It is often encorporated into other things to give it that glimmer krekkonians love so much.
As far as they are aware, this dust does not have any health or enviormental risks attachted to its use.

and beautiful, subdued colors. The refined crystal is then sent out to most artisans to craft their works of art, architectual pieces, or other products out of.
While it is a lengthier process to create, Refined crystal is one of the cheaper versions of Waw crystal, averaging about 50-75 gp per piece without any restrictions on it's use.

Powder

On some occasion, the Waw crystal is sent to a specific location to grind it into a thin, white powder for medicinal and cooking purposes. This powder caries little of the crystaline sheen one would expect from a waw product, but after some processing, it can be regained, along with several other waw properties.

Liquid

Creating Liquid Waw is an expiremental process that began in the late 1200's and is still being developed to this day. The desireed effect is very similar to glass glowing, though the end result is far suppirior. In theory. As it stands, there have only been a handful of successful meltings over the last 300 years.

Enviromental Impact

Waw crystal, being a natural material, has little enviromental impact when discarded. There are procedures in getting rid of a Waw Crystal piece, hiring professionals to dispose of it near the waw forest so it may be reclaimed and incorporated back into the growth process. Beyond that, however, there is little effect.

recycling/Reuseability

Unfortunately, once Waw Crystal is refined and put to use, it is very difficult to use again for something else. If the chunk is large enough, the crystal can be carved again, though once separated it can not be put back together without the aid of a bonding agent. Even then, the result will likely not be perfect.

Common Uses

The Crystal has been in some form incorporated into almost every aspect of krekkonian life at this point including Architectural accents, Musical instruments, and Silfys.

Architectural and Decorative Accents

Waw Crystal is, understandably, a symbol of status and beauty. This makes it a stapel in almost every Krekkonian home, especially those of Higher Class. It is very common to see works of art carved out of Refined Waw positioned on tables and in corners of waiting rooms.
The bousier of these people may even include it in their room's sturcture, such as a window sil or ceiling crown to even better show off their wealth. In 1250's it was very fationable to have Waw crystal embedded into rooftops to that their colors and song may alert all who pass on a windy day to their wealth. It only took 10 years till the increase in hollows cases proved the refinement process only so effective and removed this style from legality.

Musical Instuments

Unspurprisingly, Waw Crystal was siezed by the muscial communities and incorporated as swiftly as possible. The combination of the lilting, magical music it creates witht eh corosponding arrays of color provide the perfect base for several instuments.
It didn't take long for instruments of all kinds to be made out of this crystal. Some worked remarkably well, such as harps and flutes

which rely on gentle contact as well as a loftier sound in their music, while brass intruments didn't fare nearly as well.
Not much later, a Kohed’egyo was created and incorperated into every Krekkonian ochestra.

Silfys

Silfys is probably the most influential product of Waw Crystal. Silfys, as is well known, has many uses most being medicinal. It can be used as a pain killer or anesthetic, as well as a tool to assist in therapy to unlock deeper emotional levels.
Unfortunately, most people tend to use Silfys for it's recreational properties which is far more dengerous.

Uncommon Uses

As with such a versatile matieral, there are many ways to use it. Some are more common than others, but that doesn't make the uncommon ones any less useful or significant than the common ones.

Weapons

Once the crystals hypnotic qualities were discovered, there was talk of weaponizing it in some way. However, since the Hollows Outbreak in 589, This development has been put on a standstill as reasearch commences. Still, some may be looking into it even now.

Flooring

Severly processed Waw Crystal can be lain down to create the most perfect flooring for a dance hall or ball room in the history of floorings. with each step, a beatiful hum and color explosion to round out a memorable expirience that will have everyone dancing.

Cultural Impact and Significance

Trade

History

Discovery

Type

Mineral

Value

50-100 gp per trunk

Rarity

Rare

Odor

None

Taste

Vaguely citrusy

Color

Translucient, prism, crystaline

Common State

Solid

Related Locations

• Waw Forest