A Nord Blacksmith Talks About Malachite

Malachite is a greenish crystal found in volcanic areas like Vvardenfell, the Velothi Mountains of Skyrim and the Wrothgarian Mountains in High Rock. Wonderfully light and strong, malachite armor, better known as glass armor, offers the best weight-to-protection ratio you'll find in light armor. A set of glass armor with the same size and thickness as a set of steel armor weighs a third as much. Glass blades are also highly prized because out of any material I've worked with, Malachite cuts the best. If you sharpen any metal weapon to its maximum cutting potential, glass will beat them all. It's very shiny and glittery, too, if that's your thing.

These amazing qualities come with a few drawbacks, though. It's kind of like ebony in that it is very finicky and aggravating to work with. Malachite is not a metal; don't treat it like metal. It is a crystal, and treat it appropriately. All malachite has a grain that you need to work with, if you repeatedly strike against the grain with your hammer, it'll eventually shatter and won't you look like an idiot for ruining your customer's five hundred septim helmet. Keep the grain in mind when forming your armor. Weapon blows should strike with the grain, where the crystal best absorbs and deflects impacts. That same knowledge can help you wear it better, too. Next, never, ever cool your hot Malachite with water. If you do that, It’ll shatter quite explosively, earning you a trip to the healer and the everlasting derision of your smithing peers (even though I’ve never heard of one who didn’t make that mistake at one point). Glass weapons must be air cooled on specially made racks to retain the desired shape, making sure to keep them well out of reach of any children or idiots who want to touch the pretty armor while it’s still hot. Malachite weapons and armor also wear out much faster and chip very easily, requiring much more maintenance and repair, which mitigates its impressive cutting and protecting power somewhat.