I think Elven Steel uses Mithral but I think it's an alloy.
And, as Wyrmbane has mentioned, Volo's All Things Magical has a good ammount of detail on mithral. Also, PO:S&M mentions that mithral alloys can typically hold upto a +4 enchantment.
So, exactly what detail does it give on mithral and other metals? (Volo's Guide, I mean)
Like, what items can be made of it, or such?
And also, where did you get that info on Elven Steel?
Thanks for all replies.
So, exactly what detail does it give on mithral and other metals? (Volo's Guide, I mean)
Like, what items can be made of it, or such?
It explains the unpredictable effects of magic on mithral as well as it durability/bonuses to item saving throws.
The book is a free download at Wizards out of print area.
And also, where did you get that info on Elven Steel?
The Arms and Equipment Guide.
Also, steel, by definition is an iron alloy.
I downloaded it, and I must say that this book was a little bit of a disappointment.
The section for those materials was minimal and they lacked detail like weight and cost, plus I dislike using certain campaign settings, but thats not too important.
I will seriously consider before getting this book (I like to own material versions)
as there was some good material in it.
Though, it seems this book is quite hard to find on the internet, the cheapest I can find is on Amazon...
Personally, I consider mithral to have half the density of steel, as armor made from elven steel (which clearly contains a very large quantity of mithral) is listed as weighing half as much as steel armors. Now, realistically, such an alloy would likely have higher density than the least dense of it's component metals, but im assuming that the added strength (and the elven propensity to make things as light and flexible as possible) means that less material is used to achive the same protection.
As for cost, I put it half-way between standard and that of adamantite, meaning that mithral objects in my games 250 times that of a normal steel object. This reflects the rarity of the metal, and also the rarity of those with the skill to forge it.
Oh, yeah, does the Arm's and Equipment Guide state what special elven processes are needed to make Elven Steel?
Or is that just irrelevant?
It's so secret, the elves won't tell you. If you do find out, they'll probably kill you. Although suggestions state that rituals must be performed under the light of the moon.
Vampirelord,
It's so secret, the elves won't tell you. If you do find out, they'll probably kill you. Although suggestions state that rituals must be performed under the light of the moon.
Lol, that wasn't serious, eh?
But I take that as a "no"
But what if I am an Elf?! Lol
Indeed. Thank you, you've been very helpful.
You're welcome.
Oh, yeah, does the Arm's and Equipment Guide state what special elven processes are needed to make Elven Steel?
Or is that just irrelevant?
The Arms and Equpment guide does not go into much detail.
As for relevance, it's as relevant as your game needs it to be. If "special elven process" is all the detail you need, fine. If you need a bookfull of material on it so you can run an entire campaign around the creation of a suit of elven chain, that's also fine.
My comment wasn't too serious, although the elves would see it differently.
Your campaign could be different, but I believe the books say that only very rarely does an elf armorer (with the knowledge) ever take a student (maybe once in a lifetime). Perhaps the training time would be in the hundreds of years before he passed on this alloy's information. This is how the secrets have been kept from the rest of the world.
Some of the secrets would include the manufacture of the special combination of metals. Perhaps there is a certain phase of the moon(s) that need to be just right. Elven magics may be involved as well. There may be religious rituals involved, including sacrifices and invoking a deity's aid.
Now the secrets could be stolen, but it should be difficult. I would suggest using a Wish spell. But even so, depending on the exact recipe (such as divine aid), it may not be possible to duplicate.