Catalogue of All Known Nirnic Metals

Xios, Echmer Sentry & Metallurgist

After spending some time down at my dear friend Helga Hale-Heart’s forge in Imperium and listening to her speak about the different types of materials she has handled over the years I was suddenly struck with renewed interest in a project that I had started on two years previously but never finished. Having spent the years of my youth as an apprentice of an intelligent yet abrasive blacksmith I became incredibly interested in the different types of metals of Nirn. After I grew up I began accumulating as many metallurgy texts from the libraries in the Institute as well as importing several from Tamriel.

Yet even after months of intense study I never wrote the small report that I had originally set out to do and ultimately forgot about it after becoming Captain of the Sentries in Port White-Gold and marrying my beloved. But now that I am retiring from my fifty years of service to my people I thought it was fine time to finally blow the dust off those books and finish that report, which I have. Here is my list and descriptions of all the primary metals (and non-metals, in some of their cases) that the citizens of Nirn use in the creation of their weapons and armor.

To aid a non-Yneslean understand some of the Echmeri terms used in this book I have included a key to help them (apologies for not placing them in alphabetical order):

AEDR = The group of immortal beings that Tamrielics refer to as the Aedra.

ALORKH = The ATEDA of Space. On Tamriel it usually manifests as the entity known as Lorkhan.

ATEDA = The ‘Oversoul-Sphere’ of an immortal being of a divine nature, what Tamrielics refer to as the gods.

CATH = The ATEDA of Corruption/Curses. On Tamriel it manifests as the entity known as Malacath.

CHAOS NUMEN = The seventeen most powerful DRA that live in Oblivion, what Tamrielics call the Daedric Princes.

DRA = The group of immortal beings that Tamrielics refer to as the Daedra.

TOSH = The ATEDA of Time. On Tamriel it usually manifests as the entity known as Akatosh.

KYN = The ATEDA of Growth. On Tamriel it usually manifests as the entity known as Kynareth.

NEDARR = The ATEDA of Wrath. On Tamriel it usually manifests as the entity known as Stendarr.

TRINAK = The ATEDA of Purity/Blessings. On Tamriel it once manifested as the entity known as Trinimac.

GANUS = The ATEDA of Magic. On Tamriel it once manifested as the entity known as Magnus.

GE = Term for ATEDA that live in Aetherius, as well as those that helped Magnus construct the Mundus.

AETHERIUM: A blue, luminescent crystal that can be found underground, Aetherium is as powerful as it is mysterious. Not even the Dwemer, our Begetters, seemed to completely understand its properties – although that never stopped them in their pursuit of unlocking its secrets. Aetherium is alchemically inert and cannot be smelted, broken, molded, bound, or enchanted by normal mortal means. The material also has a musical element to it; depending on how you tap it a beautiful note will play out from the center of the Aetherium piece. According to notes left behind by the Noraken Clan our begetters believed that the crystal was created by GANUS and his GE in order to help him construct the Grey Maybe back during Aeon Null (the Dawn Era), giving the mechanisms beneath the world a stronger structure to avoid cracks or damage. Some notes describe them as the closest things to ‘crystalized stars’ (which explains the powerful magical aura they exhibit) that a mortal can touch, and that overtime Aetherium began to shift into large deposits beneath the world near these mechanical structures. The secret of smelting Aetherium seems to rely heavily on the use of magma as a natural heating source and the use of several unique apparatuses; it has been suggested that the crystal will only allow itself to be smelted deep underground due to its connection with Nirn’s underbelly. The ancestors of my people, the Protoechi, figured out a way to create Aetherium powder to use for the ritual known as Aetherium Amalgamation, but that process has been lost for many centuries. Forging weapons and armor out of aetherium is a hard and lengthy process, mostly because deposits of the crystal will unpredictably shift to a different area of the Depths while mining, but tools created out of the substance are said to have untold power. Akhiyĉakkaa the “War-Ender”, the legendary blade that ended the Battle of the Dweech and united my people so many years ago, is the only Echmeri weapon in history to have been created from Aetherium. Malachite was also forged with the Aetherium to better stabilize the blade, giving it the unique appearance of a blue-version of glass. Sadly, the weapon itself is lost to the ages.

ADAMANTIUM: A shiny, grey metal that is extremely rare and can only be found in Tamriel (and even then only in the provinces of High Rock and the Summerset Isles), adamantium is a highly prized metal valued by the Altmer and the avatar of TOSH known as Akatosh the Dragon-God. The most oldest structure in the entire history of Mundus, the Adamantine Tower, is built entirely out of the substance. Extremely heavy, it can be used to craft very high quality medium armor and weaponry. It is popularly believed amongst fellow metallurgists and blacksmiths that the reason why adamantium can only be found in High Rock and Summerset Isles is that it is associated with TOSH (sometimes called his very ‘skin’), and is only created when he violently manifests on Nirn. This has occurred only twice in Tamriel’s history: when TOSH slammed into Nirn within Adamantium Tower, and when he left Nirn by ascending back to immortality in the Summerset Isles. There are rumors that some deposits have been found in Morrowind, but the only way adamantium would have been able to find its way there is perhaps when TOSH fired the Heart of ALORKH from his bow during the Dawn Era.

CORUNDUM: Although considered insignificant and bland compared to the other metals on this list, the brown and green ore known as corundum is essential in the creation of steel (where it is combined with iron ore) armor and weaponry, which are usually low-tiered heavy oriented equipment. When used on its own corundum is capable of creating low-tiered light armor and weaponry. Many suspect that this ore has much more to it on than it seems – legends state that the some factions of the Ehlnofey once wore legendary suits and tools made out of the ore. But if there is some way of unlocking that ancient secret potential for modern smithing of the ore no one has discovered it yet. Despite this, corundum is often held in high regards amongst the known races of Nirn because it helps miners and blacksmiths make a stable living.

DWEMER METAL: What we simply call Dwarven metal (no one remembers its actual name, or if it even had a name), sometimes mistaken for traditional brass and bronze (of which it has a remarkable similarity with and is often smelted), is a special metal that for all accounts isn’t natural or should be real. If translations of their records can be held in the highest account, the metal was created by the tonal architecture of the Dwemer – literal sound made solid. The exact process is unknown (the closest my people came was euphrite, which is described below) and therefore cannot be replicated, but there is plenty of Dwemer scrap lying around in their ruins to be smelted down to create their medium-tiered armor (traditionally in heavy style, although light and medium are not uncommon).

EBONY: Actually not a metal but a rare volcanic glass, ebony is the crystalized blood of ALORKH that dripped down to Nirn when his Heart was shot across Tamriel and eventually slammed into the eastern sea, where it formed the island of Vvardenfell. Because of this it can only be found on this trajectory line, which travels from High Rock to Hammerfell to Skyrim to Morrowind. An extremely hard and durable substance, ebony is pitch-black in colouring and can be used to create high-tiered heavy armor (with light and medium styles being virtually nonexistent). This is possible through the use of repeatedly folding the material into strips to reach the desired shape. Strangely, the often scorned Daedric style weapons and armor are usually only created from ebony although different metals (like silver, iron, etc.) can be used. Some attribute this to the fact that it is easier to attune a DRA vestige bound to an equally Padomaic substance rather than a mundane/Anuic source, which it might reject.

EUPHRITE: A milky-aqua in appearance, euphrite is an ore created by echolalia fantasia – my peoples’ variant of tonal architecture that utilizes echolocation. We use it to construct the buildings within our underground Urbs as well as the shells for our auralmata, automatons. It is virtually indestructible, and is resistant to frost, fire, shock, and other elemental forces. However it can be destroyed by being dissolved with acid, dented despite its durability, or disintegrated in its entirety.

GOLD: Bright yellow but naturally weak, gold ore is namely used only for the creation of currency and jewelry. In ancient times (due to the abundance of gem geodes and gold ore within the Dweech) the Protoechi once created armor out of the metal, but it was weak and flimsy and was quickly replaced with solarite upon its discovery. For those that wish to make gold weapons and armor, if only for the awe factor, they are considered low-tiered equipment.

IRON: Misty greyish-black, iron is one of the naturally abundant ores of Nirn. Weaponry, armor, and everyday tools utilize iron and it is one of the ores (the other being corundum) that is needed to create steel ingots.

MALACHITE: A rare volcanic crystal, malachite is a milky-green in color and is more commonly referred to as ‘glass’ because of its appearance after being forged; other than that it bears no relation to the brittle, everyday glass used in windows and tools. It is used to create high quality light armor. Malachite is less durable than ebony, but is able to absorb and dispel shocks from blows pretty well. Glass armor and weaponry take much precision while crafting, as one wrong hit with a hammer can break them apart. But if forged correctly they can be unnaturally sharp tools useable in battle, although they do wear easily and require frequent repair. Some say that malachite is actually the sweat of TRINAK that dripped down to Nirn during his great battle with ALORKH in the Dawn Era, but this remains to be certain.

METEORIC IRON: A type of Aetherial fragment that is still very misunderstood, meteoric iron is a type of rusty-brown metal that falls down from space unpredictably from time to time. It is highly sought after for its use in creating medium to high tier weapons and armor, but it is unknown if anyone actually has a complete set. The Ayleids of Cyrodiil were well known for using meteoric iron in the construction of their ruins. The elusive and annoying Spheriphem – whenever those strange spirit-automatons decide to speak with us ‘lowly downworlders’ – state that their shells are created from meteoric iron, but it can be safely said that no one should ever trust a Space Sphere.

MOONSTONE: A pale yellow in color, moonstone is a type of ore commonly used (just like quicksilver) in the creation of Elven armors. Its exact origins are a mystery, but its name suggests some connection with the moons. Ancient Altmeri tales say that the Aldmeri gods Jode and Jone (Masser and Secunda) brought moonstone to their ancestors to aid them, but if the moons are ALORKH’s rotting corpse than how can this surely be right?

ORICHALCUM: Dark greyish-green in color, orichalcum is a metal that can be found primarily all over Nirn. It is primarily associated with the Orsimer (or the Orcs as most call them), who use it to create medium-quality weapons and armor (usually heavy armor, although orichalcum light and medium styles are forgeable as well). The lost Orichalc Tower of Yokuda was supposedly made out of the material after that continent sunk back in the First Era. According to the fables, orichalcum is the malachite ore that changed alongside TRINAK when he became the Chaos Numen known as CATH, similar to how the Aldmer that followed TRINAK became the Orsimer during that transformation. Why all malachite ore didn’t become orichalcum ore is a mystery, but like the Orcs themselves the metal seems to be a pariah amongst metals, a strange cross between an alloy and a glass.

QUICKSILVER: Dull and dark, quicksilver is an ore whose true nature is still an enigma for metallurgists and blacksmiths everywhere. It is much more malleable than ordinary silver, but when struck it instead absorbs the force and disperses it quickly (but in no time you’ll be left behind with a severely dented quicksilver tool). It has an extremely low boiling point, therefore making fire one of its greatest weaknesses. Weapons and armor created from quicksilver are usually medium to low-tiered equipment. Strangely, the ore isn’t able to hurt lycanthropes, ghosts, vampires, or different types of undead like normal silver, but legend states that there is something about the metal that makes it particularly deadly towards dragons.

SILVER: A light and shiny grey metal that is popular for its use in the creation of jewelry or currency, silver is a metal that has a variety of uses. However, what makes silver so sought after is that it is one of the few natural and easily accessible metals that can hurt ghosts, vampires, other forms of undead, and lycanthropes. Why this is the case is uncertain, but whenever a silver weapon injures one of the above creatures it inflicts extra damage and is said to burn the point of impact. Likewise, the above creatures are reluctant to fight individuals wearing silver armor for the same reasons. Equipment forged from silver are traditionally low to medium-tiered quality items.

SOLARITE: Bright, shining silverish-white in color, solarite is a rare glass-like metal that is mainly found on Yneslea but can also be found in extremely rare and small deposits in Tamriel and other islands in the Padomaic Ocean as well. According my peoples’ legends, solarite is literally the tears of GANUS – solidified sunlight – that fell down to Nirn during the Dawn Era after he escaped Creation. Credence to this millennia old theory is that solarite ore veins can only be found in areas where sunlight can be found in unnatural abundance, meaning that it cannot be found anywhere underground. The secret of forging the tears of the sun has been a closely guarded Echmeri secret, and one I will certainly not state here. But almost all of our modern day weapons are forged from solarite, as well as our chainmail (light), laminar (medium), and plate (heavy) armors. They are considered high-tiered equipment, and seconded only to ebony.

STALHRIM: Once a material used profoundly by Nords, the rare enchanted blue ice known as stalhrim can now only be found on the small island of Solstheim. Actual reports state that the material was first used back during the First Era in ancient Nordic burial customs, where the ice was created with injury from the land itself to create tombs impenetrable to grave robbers seeking to recover treasures from the diseased. Legends from the Merethic Era have it that KYN created stalhrim to help the arriving Atmorans combat the Falmer, exhaling her breath in power and when it froze it became stalhrim. Regardless of its origins, the ice is tied to the lineage of the Nords and only they know how to mine and forge it. Weapons and armor (typically medium in style) are considered high-tiered equipment, and are a rare find indeed.

STEEL: Grey and hardy, steel is one of the most useful and abundant metals on Nirn. It can only be created by smelting corundum and iron ingots together, where it can it can then be used to create medium-tiered heavy armor. Although not the most mystical or tough of all the metals, steel is undeniably the most easy to attain and can therefore be the more reliable to locate and repair.

TITANIUM: One of the rarest metals on Nirn, little is known about titanium other than the fact that is widely considered the blood of NEDARR. It is also considered the strongest metal, and legend has it that it can tear through ebony and solarite armor with ease. It is unknown if weapons or armor has ever been crafted from it, but if they have they would be considered very high-tiered. Noraken schematics state that they planned on constructing drills out of the metal for the use in mining operations, but whatever happened to their stock of titanium remains a mystery.