Mysteries of the Orichalc Tower

By Jhatloreh af-Balena, scholar the No'Raqqi Sisterhood of Ra-Yoku'Iquizzi

The Orichalc Tower is known as the greatest structure of lost Yokuda, and it was the location where Diagna first heard the slaughter-song of HoonDing. Despite being one of the most important locations in Redguard history and culture, very little is known about this structure. We know almost nothing about the Orichalc Tower's origins, but an ancient Elven poem that was recently translated and made public by the Sapiarchs of the Crystal Tower seemingly mentions it. Below is a part of the poem, which is titled "Stars of the Heartland".

"We then entered the great Spiral of crystal and of gold

We looked to the horizon, north, east and west

To the north and east was nothing but death, beasts and men

But to the west there was something, a Star that was orichalc-green

Laarudil stepped onto his ship with a great and mighty crew

He set out to explore the mysterious far-west, and to Summerset he never returned"

This tells us that the Orichalc Tower already stood on Yokuda when the Aldmer had finished constructing their Crystal Tower on Summerset. That could either indicate that the Lefthanded Elves of Yokuda did not construct the Orichalc Tower, or that the Lefthanded Elves were not descended from a group of Aldmer who left Summerset shortly after the Crystal Tower's construction (which is commonly accepted as fact among my fellow sisters). As ships have long since stopped sailing between Tamriel and Yokuda we cannot ask the Lefthanded Elves themselves (that probably wouldn't be a good idea anyways, sometimes Elves can hold grudges as if they were Orcs), so we have to rely on the information we have available to grant us the answer. Sadly I haven't found any sources on the Lefthanded Elves' origins other than Hazhib the Seafarer's "On Pirates, Bandits and Elves", in which he (among other, more vulgar things) describes them as "boodthirsty Elves from Aldmeris". Another theory is that the Wandering Ones, who would later become the men of Yokuda, built the Orichalc Tower in the Dawn Era. That theory is however contradicted by many ancient Yokudan tales, both written and oral ones.

Many scholars claim that the Orichalc Tower is an "essential shard of creation", built to be another Adamantia (much like the White-Gold Tower). That theory is supported by the stories of Diagna's legendary blade, Bahr'maaran, which is said to have a special connection to the Orichalc Tower and supposedly looses its magical powers when taken too far away from it. Bahr'maaran would, if the theory of Orichalc as a creation-shard is correct, be the Stone of Orichalc (a Stone being a sort of "heart" of the creation-shard, something present in all such Towers of Creation). Other examples of such creation-shards are the White-Gold Tower, the Crystal Tower, the Green-Sap Tower of Valenwood, and of course Adamantia.

That is about as much as I have been able to figure out about the Orichalc Tower, aside from that the Lefthanded Elves supposedly worshipped it as a God in and within itself. This is because the writings about Orichalc not destryed during one of the many wars between the Yokudans and the Lefthanded Elves were left behind by the Ra Gada when fled to Tamriel. The vast majority of the writings that the Na-Totambu did not bring with them were likely destroyed when Yokuda sank. It is unknown if the Orichalc Tower survived the sinking of Yokuda, as no one has traveled to Yokuda and returned since the Third Warrior Wave still ravaged Craglorn. One day we may be able to return to Yokuda and find out, but as of now that seems like a far-fetched dream.