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Carbuncles vary in hue between rich scarlet and
a deep, dark purplish-red. The gem can certainly be
faceted. Even in cabochon form, however, the carbuncle
shines with an intense fire at its core. The gem will
be most valuable if hints of blue are visible in its
inner fire.
Location:
Carbuncles are mined in several locations along the
eastern side of the DragonSpine mountains.
Lore:
Ancient elven records say that the carbuncle was
a sacred stone related to one of the Arkati that perished
in the Ur-Daemon War. The name of this Arkati is unknown,
but the Arkati seems to have had some relation to the
physical changes that overcome the elven body with old
age. The elven language has changed over time, making
it quite difficult to translate the few documents that
exist from the period, but Illistim scholars translate
the applicable section as, roughly, "The priest
had grown tired, and I knew that the carbuncle was in
his lips and on his brow as it wrinkled. As he had served,
so would the carbuncle's master serve him."
The elven word for the carbuncle gem is "ilaeryse",
which is also a word meaning "infirmity."
The word "carbuncle" is even less appealing
in Common, for the Common word "carbuncle"
may mean either the carbuncle gem or a pus-filled skin
boil.
Elves generally avoid wearing carbuncle, as they consider
it to be an ill-luck stone. Halflings feel that carbuncles
are cursed, explaining it simply by saying, "they
give me an uneasy feeling," or by fully discussing
the disfiguring diseases (usually painful rashes and
boils) that are rumored to will come to those who wear
carbuncle jewelry. The dwarves ignore the opinions of
both of the other races, as do the dark elves. The Dhe'nar
see no reason to avoid any sort of gem, as they are
confident in their ability to counteract the potential
ill effects of one gem with the merits of other gems,
and the Faendryl find the dark-hued jewels to be particularly
beautiful against their ebon skin.
It is said that, if someone dies while wearing carbuncle,
the gem will begin to glow with a blood-red hue if the
person's ghost ever approaches. Testing such a claim
is rather difficult, but carbuncle is useful in augmenting
certain forms of necromantic magic.
Chalcedony
Value:
Uncommon.
Appearance:
Chalcedony is a semi-translucent stone that varies
in hue between white and pale grey. It has no fire when
faceted, and most people prefer to display chalcedony
as cabochons or in small carved forms instead.
Location:
Chalcedony is mined in the southeastern and southern
sections of the DragonSpine mountains.
Lore:
Certain difficulties in translation between Common
and dwarven resulted long ago in some confusion over
what precisely the term "chalcedony" should
cover. Dwarven jewelers say that chalcedony, carnelian,
sard, bloodstone, onyx, sardonyx, chrysoprase, agate,
and jasper are all essentially the same kind of stone,
varying in hue and location, and they use the Common
word "chalcedony" to encompass all types.
Like agate, chalcedony is useful in casting spiritual
spells, providing some support to the dwarven argument.
Native speakers of Common use "chalcedony"
only to refer to the white form of the stone in question.
As the literal word "chalcedony" is elven
in origin, matters grow even more complicated when elven
definitions are included, and jewelers try to be extremely
precise in cross-culture trading to avoid winding up
with a shipment of onyx and agate when a shipment of
white chalcedony is intended.
Chalcedony is not unknown to the giantmen, either,
and it holds a place in their culture reaching into
the distant past. Ancient daggers, arrowheads, and axeheads
crafted in the giantman style have been discovered at
multiple sites in the southeastern DragonSpine, and
it appears as though chalcedony was the material of
choice before the giantmen mastered bronze.
A human legend says that if you find a chalcedony egg
in the nest of a bird, you must touch it and whisper
your name to it. Then, the egg will hatch when the other
eggs hatch, and the bird that comes from it will have
stars for eyes and lead you to your heart's desire.
In Ta'Vaalor, chalcedony is associated with the spirit
Leya, and her followers often wear amulets made from
chalcedony instead of the ivory dagger amulets that
are more commonly worn elsewhere. While most followers
of Leya agree upon the events in her life between her
birth and the hour she left Egan's tomb, the tale fractures
beyond that point into a hundred retellings and variants
between one sect of Leya and another. According to one
version told commonly in Ta'Vaalor, Leya wandered grieving
for a great period of time after Egan's death, noticing
little of the world around her, and her footsteps drew
her back to the elven lands where she had been raised.
In those lands, she encountered a Vaalorian woman who
caught her eye. Leya asked for the woman's story, and
the young Arkati learned that the young woman was a
sculptor's wife. In a sudden fit of bravery, the woman
had seized a discarded shard of chalcedony and slain
her abusive, brutal husband. Afterward, shaken with
fear and guilt over ending the life of someone that
she had once loved, the woman set out to turn herself
in to the Captain of the Guard. Not a stranger to feeling
lost and guilt-ridden, Leya purportedly asked the woman
to travel with her for a year and a day before giving
herself up to elven justice. During that time, the young
Arkati supposedly taught the elven woman many skills,
including the arts of crafting and wielding various
blades. Together, the mortal and the goddess transformed
the chalcedony shard into a crude dagger, promising
one another that it would never be used unjustly. At
the end of the year and a day, the woman did not leave
Leya's side, and myth says they traveled together until
the hour of the woman's natural death. Because of that
story, the members of one sect of Leya's Vaalorian followers
often wear chalcedony dagger amulets, and for two reasons.
The first reason is as a reminder to accept Leya's mercy
and guidance unconditionally. The second reason is to
remind themselves that even from a wrong act one can
learn the ways to right it, with good and honorable
intentions.
Chrysoberyl
Value:
Uncommon.
Appearance:
Chrysoberyl is a transparent stone that varies in
hue between apple green and honey gold, or that may
include a mixture of the two. It is quite striking,
particularly when it occurs in the cat's-eye form --
no gem really presents a greater resemblance to a cat's
living eye than cat's-eye chrysoberyl.
Location:
Chrysoberyl may be mined in various places throughout
known Elanthia, but it is particularly prevalent in
Torre.
Lore:
Some followers of Andelas, typically those who worship
the Arkati primarily as the god of cats, will carry
claw-shaped pieces of chrysoberyl or use sacrificial
daggers with cat's-eye chrysoberyl gems set into the
pommel. Other followers of Andelas, typically those
who worship the Arkati primarily as the god of the hunt,
scorn such adornments on the grounds that Andelas and
his ways are beyond such silly ornamentation.
Magically, chrysoberyl is aligned with the element
of air. Along the coastline of Seareach, it is said
that ships can be cursed or blessed by taking a splinter
of wood from the ship and surrounding it with a pattern
of chrysoberyl stones. Patterns that surround the ship
entirely will bring storms and ill luck upon it, while
patterns of separate lines will bring strong winds and
fair weather to the ship. To be properly effective,
the pattern must be placed before the ship leaves port
and remain unbroken until the ship's return or destruction.
Chrysoprase
Value:
Uncommon.
Appearance:
Chrysoprase is an opaque stone that varies in color
between a pale, misty green and a dark forest hue.
Location:
Chrysoprase is mined most extensively in a dwarven
encampment outside Ta'Ardenai, but it is also located
throughout the northern steppes and north of Ta'Illistim.
Lore:
Green-colored stones of many kinds are associated
with Imaera, and chrysoprase is no exception, though
its magical affinities seal the matter. Chrysoprase
has an affinity that enhances spiritual magics, particularly
those dealing with forest spirits, grassland spirits,
or other spirits tied to plants. Chrysoprase is extensively
used in Ta'Ardenai to honor the Arkati Imaera, the House's
most esteemed patron.
Although chrysoprase cannot be mined in the duchy of
Aldora, it is extensively imported. The traditional
practice of healing patients through application of
various gems (called stone-tending) is practiced extensively
in Aldora, and chrysoprase is noted as a sovereign remedy
for pain.
Coral
Value:
Varies with the variety. Some types are quite common
worldwide, such as blue coral and black coral, while others
are more infrequently found, such as pink and red. More
expensive varieties, such as flower coral and cat's-paw
coral, can be found along the coast of the Turamzzyrian
Empire.
Appearance:
There are many different types of coral, which vary
widely in appearance from one another. Coral stones
are composed of twisting protrusions of rock that wrap
around each other. The protrusions may be long or short,
symmetrical or asymmetrical, rough or polished, and
all of these will affect the value assigned to the stone.
One noteworthy variant is flower coral, which is pale
bluish-grey in hue and receives its name because its
protrusions are arranged like the edges of petals. Another
is cat's-paw coral, which is a milky white hue and bears
some resemblance to a group of cats’ paws. A third
is blue ridge coral, which is a distinctive pastel blue
color like a clear spring sky.
Location:
Coral cannot be mined on land, but various types
of coral are retrieved by divers from the ocean's floor
(called "harvesting" by those who practice
the art). Coral has also been known to wash ashore on
both flanks of Elanith. As well, members of the Nathala
Dai collect many varieties of coral along the shores
of the Erithian homeland.
Lore:
In actuality, coral is not a stone at all, but the
skeleton left behind by a peculiar plant that stretches
for miles upon miles underwater.
Coral is considered the sacred stone of Charl, the
ill-tempered Arkati who holds domain over seas and storms.
As a result, humans consider it bad luck to wear coral
in seaside cities unless the person wearing the coral
is a priest of Charl or Niima. All along the western
coast, human sailors will offer coral to placate Charl
before setting sail. Members of the Order of Voln have
also been known to sacrifice coral for Charl's approval
while trying to earn Voln's favor.
Unsurprisingly, coral is attuned to the element of
water. As well, it has certain powers related to the
lore of telepathy, which can be unsettling if harnessed
unconsciously rather than consciously. In Solhaven,
sailors say that carrying coral aboard a ship will attract
kraken. Multiple stories exist about foolhardy merchants
who tried to smuggle coral and attracted such an attack.
In some of the stories, the vessel is saved by Niima's
intervention; in others, the sailors save themselves
by throwing the unlucky merchant overboard.
Cordierite
Value:
Common.
Appearance:
Cordierite is currently used as the trade name for
low-quality water sapphire. See the entry on water sapphire
for more information about its appearance and properties.
Location:
Cordierite can be found worldwide.
Lore:
Before the two cultures initiated trade, "cordierite"
was the Common name for a specific gem, and "lathaer
selphare" was the elven name for the same gem.
When transcribing written records of the elven trade
goods, however, scribes misunderstood the elven term
as the Common words "water sapphire", and
one thing led to another. Eventually, it became necessary
to distinguish one from the other, and the higher quality
gem from elven territory was officially named "water
sapphire", while the lower-quality gem from human
territory was officially named "cordierite".
The dwarves are disgusted with both groups for their
imprecision in this matter. When speaking Common, most
dwarves refer to cordierite as "human cordierite"
and refer to water sapphire as "elven cordierite."
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