geology
Zalanthas is a harsh desert planet that has a severe shortage of metals. These topics cover the geology of Zalanthas and what is in the world.
Minerals
The following minerals are found in Zalanthas.
Alabaster
Rare by most accounts, this rich white stone is soft and beautiful. Its semi-translucent, creamy white appearance is refined through easy polishing.
It is valued by crafters for jewelry or delicate eatery, as the softness of the stone allows to be easily cut, carved or otherwise worked. Combined with its rarity, being found mostly in mountainous and cavernous regions of the known world, it is a rather expensive mineral. Alabaster, unlike jasper, has more aesthetic than utilitarian value.
Granite
A common, coarse-grained, light-colored, hard igneous rock. It is found in most places around the known world, though due to its density and hardness it is valued as a step up from sandstone in almost every aspect the prior could be used in. However this also makes it harder to work, and substantially more costly for its durability and wide variety of uses. It varies in color, but tends to stick to greys and is often flecked with smaller bits of stones such as quartz.
Obsidian
Obsidian is a dark, glassy mineral mined from all over Zalanthas. Its relative abundance in certain areas has led to the material being used in many crafts, such as arrow-heads, ornaments and even some types of armor. However the most widespread use of obsidian is in coinage.
Originating in Allanak and commonly known as 'sid, obsidian coins form the standard currency of Zalanthas and are used by most cultures. In fact banking services are available in the more civilised regions, provided by House Nenyuk.
You will often find it useful or necessary to give others coins, and to use containers to store and retrieve your funds.
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give <amount> coins <character name>
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put <amount> coins <container>
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get coins <container>
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give 50 coins nessalin
Basalt
A hard, dense, dark grey rock often having a glassy appearance. Basalt is much like obsidian in appearance and consistency. However, it is denser than the former and doesn't chip as easily, making it harder to work and as a result more valuable as tools. It is found deep beneath the sands, sometimes coming out in deserts in large deposits. Its rarity adds a bit to its worth, but its lack of uses makes it lesser so than obsidian.
Jasper
Most commonly, Zalanthan jasper bears a rich reddish tint, though swirls of other color work through it. It is claimed from a majority of the known world's wastes but its properties give it an added value over sandstone or granite. When polished and shaped it can serve easily as jewelry, but its density gives it obvious uses as various tools and parts.
Onyx
An extremely hard, black stone. Onyx is rare and illustrious for its purely black appearance. Darker then even obsidian, it is used primarily in utilitarian applications. Recently it has found places in many a jeweller's repertoire, as when polished and even simply shaped it can appear extraordinary. Onyx is found only in remote places of the Known World, driving up its cost and making it a covetable commodity among those that can find it.
Flint
A very hard, fine-grained quartz, found commonly in the deserts and wastes of the Known World. Its semi-crystalline nature makes it appear mostly in shards or slivers, with the most common usable size being no larger then a human head. Its hard, easily chippable nature makes it a prime candidate for simple tools and weapons in most of the world.
Marble
A hard, extremely dense and heavy stone found predominantly in the mountains and the caverns deep beneath the surface of the Known World. Zalanthan marble is predominantly green though it does appear in many other colors. Regardless of color, it is extremely rare. Most like jasper, marble often has bands of other color running through it, giving it a mottled and sometimes multi-hued appearance. Through skillful crafting the stone can be refined and shaped to both beautiful and useful constructions.
Sandstone
A sedimentary rock formed by the consolidation and compaction of sand and held together by a natural cement, such as silica. Sandstone is found in most reaches of the known world, formed from the dense compacting of layers and layers of sand over the years. It ranges in color from yellow to red, hitting hues such as sandy-brown. Sandstone varies in uses from cheap jewelry to simple tools, but primarily large blocks of the stone are used as a common building material around the Known World.
Gems
Valuables stones, even gemstones, can be found in Zalanthas.
Precious Stones
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Sapphire
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Ruby
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Topaz
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Diamond
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Emerald
Semi-Precious Stones
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Onyx
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Tourmaline
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Quartz
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Lapis Lazuli
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Moss Agate
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Blue Lace Agate
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Sunstone
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Aventurine
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Spinels
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Temboeye
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Jade
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Obsidian
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Amethyst
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Turquoise
Ancient Stone Cutting
Precious stone cutting technology was available in real life as early as 1000 BC. however, it was crude - having only a few sides. As the centuries slowly progressed, they succeeded in adding facets. Death's Omens gemstone technology falls on the early end of this progression..
Tumbled Stones
There are a few techniques to this, but the most basic one is taking a container and filling it up with sand, pebbles and small stones as well as the gems you want polished. Then turn it onto its side and roll it around for days or even weeks. You'd change the contents with progressively finer pebbles and sand as your stones became more rounded and smooth.
You end up with a lumpy, smooth gemstones. The edges will have been worn away and it won't be perfectly round, but the product will be attractive and useful for jewelry.
Cutting and Polishing
Cutting and polishing involves taking a few pretty stones, cutting them down to size, and chipping and sanding it until round (or whatever shape you want it to be). If needed a hole can be drilled through it. This can create crude, rough shapes, such as cubes, triangles, and so on. Intricate or complex shapes are difficult for a majority of crafters, due to the crudeness of Zalanthan tools, and often it takes many attempts to get the job done without breaking the subject.
Other Uses
Occasionally large, semiprecious stones such as quartz are used in tools and weapons. The more precious the stone, the less likely this would ever be plausible, due to the smaller sizes of the subjects and risk of using them in this way.
Silt
Denizens of Zalanthas have a multitude of terms for sand, grit, and dust, and silt falls within that vocabulary. An ashy residue, it is found in vast lakes in the south, forming the perilous Sea of Silt, where few dare travel.
No one lives too close to the Sea of Silt, because of silt's ill effects on the body: it chokes the lungs, clouds the eyes, fills the nose and mouth, and at times exhibits mildly hallucinatory qualities.