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realmslore2000
Acolyte
USA
15 Posts |
 Posted - 01 Aug 2016 : 19:28:25
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Fulgurite is the effect when lightning strikes sand and creates "sand glass"...what I'm wondering is what, if any, magical or alchemical items can be made from or by this substance?
A material component for a call lightning spell?
What would the hardness be?
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I'm an idea maker, not a writer |
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xaeyruudh
Master of Realmslore
USA
1853 Posts |
Posted - 01 Aug 2016 : 23:33:51
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Tentative responses if these questions were asked in my campaigns... with the expectation that further questions will result in more specific answers.
Fulgurites can be used in the same ways other forms of glass can. Anything that can be made of glass can be fashioned from fulgurites. So weapons and armor are fair game, using the same magical means of agglomerating and hardening that are used in making glass armor and weapons. Vials, bottles, and all other sorts of containers are also possible. Spyglasses, on the other hand... probably not very good. 
A material component for a lightning-related spell sounds like a good use, but it should be limited to particular types of storms. Given the way that fulgurites form, and the fact that sediment is incorporated into it, it doesn't suggest that a wet thunderstorm could be controlled (or not as effectively) if a fulgurite was used as the material component. In contrast, perhaps complete control over a sandstorm-spawned lightning bolt/storm can *only* be achieved with a fulgurite, with a piece of clear glass having diminished effects.
The hardness logically depends on the answer to the question of whether the inclusion of sediment makes the fulgurite stronger, or weaker, than other types of glass. I'm comfortable saying "stronger" for a fantasy world without the scientific knowledge of the facts on Earth, so for *my* games I'm inclined to say the hardness of a fulgurite is 5-25% greater than that of glass, and the hp per unit of thickness is 25-50% greater.
Just my 2 coppers. |
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TBeholder
Great Reader
2391 Posts |
Posted - 02 Aug 2016 : 09:20:43
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| Yup, the big question is whether further smelting removes any unusual qualities fulgurites presumably could have. If yes, this leaves material components and embedding into items "as is" - wand/staff tips, core of an amulet wrapped in silver, etc. |
People never wonder How the world goes round -Helloween
And even I make no pretense Of having more than common sense -R.W.Wood
It's not good, Eric. It's a gazebo. -Ed Whitchurch |
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lightning striking sand
