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Old 06-16-2020, 10:26 AM   #41
Anders
 
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Default Re: Meteoric iron immunities

Detect Meteoric Iron
Information

Cast this spell on an object. If you don't get any information, that's meteoric iron.

:)
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Old 06-16-2020, 11:10 AM   #42
malloyd
 
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Originally Posted by Anders View Post
Detect Meteoric Iron
Information

Cast this spell on an object. If you don't get any information, that's meteoric iron.

:)
No need for a new spell. Lots of chemical identifications involve indicator dyes, and you can use that principle here too. Cast Dye to turn the thing bright orange. Positive response for Meteoric Iron is it stays black.
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Old 06-16-2020, 11:45 AM   #43
Anaraxes
 
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Default Re: Meteoric iron immunities

Finally, a non-vanity, practical economic use for the "color" option of the Prestidigitation spell :)
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Old 06-17-2020, 12:12 AM   #44
Evil Roy Slade
 
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Originally Posted by Kromm View Post
The adjective "meteoric" is a fanciful one applied by simple folk blindly struggling and reaching to explain the weird properties of an otherwise normal-seeming material. It falls into the same category as "fairy" and "dragon's" and a bunch of other words thrown around with abandon. .

When I play, within the game it is usually called "cold iron."
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Old 06-17-2020, 05:51 AM   #45
Kromm
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Default Re: Meteoric iron immunities

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Originally Posted by Evil Roy Slade View Post

When I play, within the game it is usually called "cold iron."
Ah, "cold" is good! Is the iron itself cold? Was it worked cold? Who knows! That's the kind of fun with adjectives that fantasy settings need.
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Old 06-17-2020, 06:50 AM   #46
malloyd
 
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Ah, "cold" is good! Is the iron itself cold? Was it worked cold? Who knows! That's the kind of fun with adjectives that fantasy settings need.
Other similarly ambiguous options include "dead" iron and "grey" or "heavy" lead. GURPS other choice is "depleted" in depleted necronium, and that might not be a bad choice for the iron either. Depleted in what you say? Who knows.

Not that anti-magic stuff needs to be made of the metal used in its name, just look at tin foil hats. Maybe "cold iron" is a kind of bronze.

Edit: Incidentally the common traditional name for actual meteoritic iron fragments is "thunderbolt iron", which I think would make a pretty cool name for the antimagic stuff. Tibetan mystical iron is called "sky iron" (thokcha), which works too if you want to keep the implication that it actually fell out of the sky without linking it to the lights in the sky that are meteors.
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Old 06-17-2020, 08:03 AM   #47
Fred Brackin
 
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Other similarly ambiguous options include "dead" iron and "grey" or "heavy" lead.
In Chivary & Sorcery's OCD alchemy system (1e and 2e) there were alchemical operations that separated the 7 metals into their essence and their quintessence. The quintessence was known as the "mercury" (and yes, you had a mercury of quicksilver) and was used for futher alchemy such as mixing the ultimate solvent and making the Philosopher's Stone. This was the "product" of the alchemical operation.

The substance that was the magical essence of the metal was the by-product and was not used in further alchemy but had numerous magical uses. This was usually called the "Star" of the metal (i,e Star of Iron) except for lead which became True Lead and this was the anti-magical metal.

Star of Iron was necessary for all arms and armor beyond +2 and Star of Silver was good for enchanted crosses to repel the undead.

In my college-era homebrew (c.1980) that grew out of attempts to patch the cracks in C&S 1e there was an enchantment that "refined" a substance (yes, it didn't care about alloys or even non-metals) and enhanced its' magical properties. It could be done three times and the thrice-refined version was the "True" form of the substance. True Steel was almost indestructible and so on.
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Old 06-17-2020, 08:16 AM   #48
AlexanderHowl
 
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I am curious how meteoric iron became associated with antimagic. In folklore, it is supposed to be inherently magical, which was why it was capable of overcoming magical defenses, as its divine magic was stronger than the mortal magic of sorcerers and witches. The idea that meteoric iron is antimagic is much more of a modern conceit.

In general, I think that meteoric iron should instead form gadgets with the Cosmic Enhancement. For example, a sword of meteoric iron would function as a gadget with +2d cutting/+1d impaling (Can Be Stolen, Contest of ST, -30%; Cosmic, Irresistible Attack, +300%; Melee, 1-2, ST-Based, +80%; No Signature, +20%; Unique, -25%; Variable, +5%) [63 + 8]. For 71 CP, you have an indestructible sword that is capable of cutting through any defenses like a hot knife through butter.
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Old 06-17-2020, 09:02 AM   #49
Celjabba
 
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Default Re: Meteoric iron immunities

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Originally Posted by malloyd View Post
The idea that meteorites were rocks that fell from the sky and were associated with meteors in some way is an early 19th century concept, though the assortment of holy stones (bethels) that supposedly fell from heaven, some (though not all) of which actually are meteorites allows you a little leeway on that if you insist.
While western medieval opinion following Aristote was that rocks don't fell from the sky, some earlier concept (and probably some eastern one too) where in favor (Anaxagore theories, for an exemple).

Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
I am curious how meteoric iron became associated with antimagic. In folklore, it is supposed to be inherently magical, which was why it was capable of overcoming magical defenses, as its divine magic was stronger than the mortal magic of sorcerers and witches. The idea that meteoric iron is antimagic is much more of a modern conceit.
Indeed, Sir Terry Pratchett "thrown in several pieces of meteorites — thunderbolt iron, you see — highly magical, you’ve got to chuck that stuff in whether you believe in it or not" when he forged his knight sword from scratch.

I would guess the "anti-magic" come from Tibetan and Arabic protective amulet and charm ?

Or more likely, from some RPG author who liked the name and did not need any more reason :)
Quite possibly Castle Falkenstein, if I remember correctly. Star Iron break spells because it is devoid of magic and therefore absorb it.

Last edited by Celjabba; 06-17-2020 at 09:13 AM.
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Old 06-17-2020, 09:38 AM   #50
AlexanderHowl
 
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Default Re: Meteoric iron immunities

Protective charms could be gadgets that give Immunity to Magic (Can be Stolen by Stealth, -20%; Cosmic, Impenetrable Defenses, +100%; Unique, -25%) [47]. The celestial nature of the meteoric iron would counter the terrestrial nature of mortal magic.

In order to make meteoric iron into a gadget, it should require 200 hours per CP. Every 200 hours of work, the artisan rolls their crafting skill. On a critical success, they finish 2 CP worth of work. On a success, they finish 1 CP worth of work. On a failure, they have not made any progress. On a critical failure, they cannot make any further progress (the gadget may have partial functionality).

So, the protective amulet against magic would require 9400 hours of work (nearly five years) while the previous sword would require 14200 hours of work (over seven years). Such gadgets would be quite rare though (thus the unique limitation) and would not be for sale except under the most extreme of circumstances.
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