Starmetal

Daoff turned his attention to their Commander, a hook nosed gentleman with stern ice blue eyes. While his subordinates carried a full arsenal between them he stood unarmed, his only adornment a thick hinged belt of carefully crafted Starmetal. Void Mage.
Cursing under his breath, Daoff held his ground. "I am not leaving."

— Blood and Water

Starmetal refers to any alloy comprised entirely of metals mined directly from a star or its subsequent supernova, provided the metal currently retains the cosmic magic of the star from which it was harvested. This power can then be harnessed by the Cosmically Attuned, allowing a mage to cast supercharged spells without requiring them to orbit a star in order to do so. Once the cosmic magic contained within the starmetal is consumed the metal is no longer of use to strengthen spellwork, but still retains all its more mundane properties.

History & Usage

Everyday use

Starmetal can be used by Cosmically Attuned mages to amplify the power of their spells by drawing upon the cosmic power held within the metal itself.
Mixing starmetal with inert terrestrial metals dilutes the contained magic to a surprising degree, more than would be expected. As a result all starmetal is kept pure until fully depleted, with portions often divided into separate metal pieces to allow the mage to deplete the starmetal's cosmic powers in concentrated by limited portions.

Hazards

Starmetal can only be harvested from star material. While refinement methods have been developed to rework starmetal harvested from supernovae the cosmic power retained within the metals is strongest when harvested from an active, healthy star. For this reason most starmetal mining operations focus on the hottest WR stars toward the end of their life cycle, to ensure both the most potent cosmic magic and the most efficient mining of metal. Space stations such as the Garnell Orbital Solar Study, built to wrap around the star itself to allow for full access, remain the most popular methods of solar mining despite the inherent risks.

Reusability & Recycling

Once the contained power is depleted the metal is of no further use magically, but still retains the other features of its respective metal type. Starmetal is therefore repurposed and refined for more mundane purposes after use.

Type

Metal

Further Reading