At the Ringing Anvil: Chromium, the King's Steel

[written up by Joel, player of Durham of the Ringing Anvil, expanding the scope of the setting--thanks, Joel!]

As the work on Fa Mei's magical khopesh sword is finished (project noted in the middle section here), it seems appropriate for the scribes to make an entry about this metal’s history, properties and where it could be found.

Chromium's first recorded appearance was roughly 250 lunar years ago, In a small city of the Vermilion Mountains, ruled then by Idris, first of his name. Located many leagues west of Cothon and Gadeed. A vein of the ore was found and smelted, producing orange colored ingots. After some experimentation by the King’s smiths it was discovered when forged with steel the metal itself took on a golden sheen and color.

King Idris ordered a sword made for himself and for his guard as protection of the mine fell to the king and his men. It is recorded that the warrior king’s weapon started to take on magical properties, shining light in dark caverns and warding away evil spirits. The popularity of chromium grew due to its ability to take on magical enchantment and the alloy became a status symbol within noble and wealthy circles. Decades passed and it was not uncommon for those of great wealth or social status to have some item forged with chromium, mostly weapons or armor, though not always the case. Many of these items were passed down through family lines, while others were lost in battles with Sro, demons, or in the wars of man. Chromium started to lose its glory after a few generations; rumors swirled that chromium magical items would lose the power they had by the time the grandchildren of the original owner inherited them; others simply state it was no longer the status symbol it once was.

The small city eventually became the great city Idris, one of the ten in the Ten Cities League. Those close to the royal family swear that there is a secret chamber where the sword of Idris the first is kept and that the sword itself speaks providing the wisdom and counsel of the former King. Such rumors aside, it is no secret that the city Idris has some of the best smiths in the known world and developed most of the techniques used for making chromium.

Chromium is almost exclusively forged with steel to give it maximum durability. Often the two metals will be layered on top of one another creating a pattern (damascus), which can be further manipulated to provide more unique patterns. After being forged this new alloy gains some new properties. First and foremost it makes the metal easily enchantable; it also allows the steel to be worked much more easily, removing problems such as shrinkage and porosity during the forging process. Pure chromium is a rare thing to see as it is brittle and likely to break.

Where can chromium be obtained? Idris of course is one such place, it is also said the far northern lands is another. There is unconfirmed rumor that the Fremen have access to chromium as well but most would rather believe that those barbarian tribes traded for it. The metal is more common than the fabled zortrium of legend so it would not surprise anyone if a merchant vessel had some to sell. An adventurer who is brave enough could very well come across some in the lair of a Sro or the tomb of a king.