Focus Stones

Utility

Serves as a catalyst to reduce the energy required to transmute one element to another. Though it is theoretically possible to transfigure all elements, focus stones are purpose made to change metals. There are three metals, and by extension, focus stones that are manufacturable: Copper, Silver and Gold.
Copper Focus Stone:
Green. A murky green surrounding an orange star. A copper stone is the easiest to craft and most Tetlachihuiani sorcerers do not advance any further than this point.
Silver Focus Stone:
White. A clear glass exterior and a milky core. On the scale of producible stones, a silver stone is the second most difficult of the noble metals.
Gold Focus Stone:
Red. A pale red with a hazy yellow center. A gold stone, while veritably obtainable, requires such expertise in manipulating the soft metal during the transition stage that it is muttered that a practitioner needs 100 years of experience to get it right.

Manufacturing

To protect the manufacturing process, rival methods were spread by Tetlachihuianis of differing groups to misinform and mislead enemy combatants and spies.

Simmer Method

1. Memory Water is put to boil. Ideally, in a container made of the purest element possible related to the type of stone being made for minimum cross contamination.
2. A sample of the target element that the other elements will be transformed into is placed in the pot.
3. Wait for the bubbles to coalesce on the nucleus and harden into an outer clear shell.

Sour Solvent Method

1. Here, involves adding an acidic solution to the memory water before incorporating the sample metal.
2. Leave to set without adding further elements or initiating further chemical actions.
3. Drain the contents through a sieve, where a small stone should filter.

Stirring Method

This method is the most stringent and the most questionable as it greatly minimizes the use of memory water.

1. Instead, a solvent with properties similar to that of the nucleus is the major additive. The nucleus is added to the mixed solution in three parts solvent and one part water.
2. The mixture is sealed, then stirred vigorously until the solution hardens into a glaze.
3. Thereafter, the inner container must be manually chipped and scourged until the manifested stone is dislodged from its tomb.

Legendary Examples

Throughout the history of Mist, there have been many innovations and inventions that have pushed the limits of these stone's capabilities. Going so far as to fashion stones that change unconventional materials to non-metal. However, because of the Tetlachihuiani's secretive nature, the knowledge of how to make focus stones of unique qualities are not known to the wider world; if not lost totally.

Star Stone

It is impossible to describe the stone other than as a solid light, the size of a river stone. It is rumored by returning pilgrims that the core material of the star stone is that of the "consciousness of death". A line uttered many times by the Black Ghost himself, whenever asked how it is made.
Difficult enough to believe on its own; what really flummoxes experts is the implication in the concept of a transmutable essence of life. Because focus stones can only effect the material world; it leaves open the possibility that life, itself, is an asset, a substance, an ingredient that can be tacked onto future experiments.

Blood Gold

We are not as fortunate to be given a hint to this stone's make up. Initially a single nugget, no bigger than half a palm, this focus stone is one which breeds. It possess the divine ability to turn gold from blood. Its maker is unknown, but it is popularly believed that he died accidentally while testing its qualities; never, himself, knowing what he created.
It true the Tetlachihuiani would have been the first unfortunate victim. Once he touched the piece, it would siphon blood through his pores while simultaneously shifting its composition to drop-shaped pieces of gold coated in a blue slime. In stories told, the quickness of it causes the skin to partially explode and the person to collapse atop treasure; always lingering enough to contemplate his riches before dying.

Iron Scythe

Whereas the blood gold only effects the living, the iron scythe only effects the dead. This one is especially untraceable because many communities in Mist have fashioned many scythes from iron to aid in agricultural expediency.

Mortarion by Mauro Belfiore

However, the black shard of a focus stone would specifically turn motionless objects into iron ore, which depending on the circumstances, could be good or bad.
There are many legends of the scythe's previous wielders. The mosquito man- for one, used it to disguise his victim's bodies into piles of grey rock. To this day, there exist a few iron mining sites that reportedly host hundreds of hollow faces with obscured body outlines. As well, random iron nuggets found in the top soil is blamed on troublesome sprites who now whisk the shard over the landscape to frustrate farmers.

Keanian Bell

When the first stone was made in Mist, a curious concave metal was found on the flooded rocky shores that came from the direction of Eeat. There are engravings of indecipherable origins carved into the inner portion. There may as well been on the outer side too, but it has since degraded to a dirty grey-green.
It does appear to have any traditionally transformation properties typical of other focus stones. Instead, it has been noted to 'sing' for unusually long amounts of time when struck or at random and deliver a charming resonance which imparts varied, but unsubstantiated, magics.

Children Technologies

• War Wands

Access & Availability

Nearly every rival state understands the process to making a focus stone, save for how the memory water is coxed into copying the nucleus. This is closely guarded secret by Tetlachihuiani of the Mist.

Complexity

Solvent
It is the solvent that controls how pure the transmuted element would become.
Nucleus
The tiny bit of desired element that dictates the type of Focus Stone.

Discovery

Supposedly, instructions on material transfiguration was discovered inscribed on the walls of Eeat.

Related Items

• Blood Gold
• Eye Plates
• Star Stone
• Statuette

Related Materials

• Tepoznotztli