I remembered that someone on the forums mentioned that in areas with high floating sky crystal concentrations, sometimes there can be free floating rocks or entire mountains. I really like the way this mysterious material shapes the landscapes of Dardunah, and thought of some other ideas how in areas with high concentrations of certain crystals that bend the laws of physics, the landscape could look rather curious as well.
Some ideas for crystal types we already know of:
Rabíshu Crystals
Two types: Blue and Fiery Red
Example (Blue or low concentration of Red):
For instance imagine a clammy dark forest with tight foilage and small surface deposits of these light emitting crystals. The crystals would be the light source to many smaller plants that would otherwise perish on the dark forest ground... I could imagine that over time, they could even be encased in cocoons of plants reaching for the light source.
Example (High Concentration of Red):
I could imagine that many travellers come to try to mine their crystals, but they disapprove of those outsiders since the loss of these crystals would mean the fall of their city/fortress! So they fight against who wants to steal their source of life, using heat crystal maces to sear their enemies and heat crystal catapults in attempt to ignite the enemy camps.
They also use the heat from very hot heat crystals to quickly cauterize their own wounds.
It would be interesting if the ground in some places of this city was really hot, so everyone would have to wear high wooden sandals to not burn their feet.
Sittám Stones
Crystals with thaumaturgic effects that manipulate the magical plane as well, increase or decrease it's flow. Depending on the concentration of these crystals it could add a difficulty to using magical powers, cause unease and even unconciousness in magic sensitive characters.
Example Scenario 1:
A character with a lot of magical potential grows up in a village that was built atop of a vein of magic reducing crystals, thus never realizes his potential until he ventures forth into the world.
Made-Up or Unconfirmed Crystal Types:
Gravitation-Bending Crystals
Crystals that exert a high gravitational pull or push (don't negate gravity in a sense of floating sky crystals, but radiate an aura of gravity towards/away from them), I could imagine that in areas with high concentrations there'd be big holes and grand mountains in the landscape with areas where gravitation would be partly negated even, or even better:
Example Scenario 1:
Imagine a lake under which there's rich deposits of such a crystal: The water surface would form mountains and canyons, depending on the type of crystal!
Example Scenario 2:
Run in the mill "Walk on the walls", or "Antigravity" effect.
Heat Conductive/Absorbing Crystals
I can imagine that there is certain crystals that conduct warmth incredibly well or even absorb it, which would lead to stark wastelands inside rich rain forests, even frosty, icy patches in deserts.
Time-Bending Crystals
Crystals that manipulate the temporal flow. Some could speed up time, slow it down, create time-loops and pockets, or even stop time temporarily.
Example Scenario 1:
While traversing through a desert, players come upon an indestructible, impassible sphere of time-frozen air in which a piece of ancient rainforest is preserved, together with strange animals and falling rain, halted mid-air.
Shock Crystals
Piezoelectrical crystals that react to pressure by emitting electricity.
Stepping onto one can lead to a mild shock or a life threatening jolt.
These useful crystals would be rather hard to mine, but prove to be very useful for weapon builders (especially for gunpowder ignition).
Example Scenario 1:
An area where there shock crystal deposits are slightly surfacing. Kind of like an electrical minefield. Getting through an area like this would require characters to advance carefully and try to not step on any
Memory Crystals
Memory Crystals have the curious property that light, sound and magic influence can rearrange their structure, causing them to "remember" some of the impressions that they had. Some of them have the ability to "replay" these impressions. This could lead to beatiful illusions, scary sounds and other interesting scenarios. Those crystals can usually not be mined, as either the mining equipment usually destroys their fragile and sensitive structure, or the crystals simply record unpleasant sound and/or image of the mining process such as picks hacking away at them or shovels digging them out of the ground, or absorb the very simple thaumaturgic presence of a miner digging them out of the ground.
Example Scenario 1:
The players wander through a dark cave, and in one of the chambers there is suddendly a rich forest, unlike anything they have ever seen.
They will realize that this is only the image of the forest being replayed by countless crystals in that cave.
Example Scenario 2:
The players wander through a wasteland, when they suddendly hear the crack of rifles being fired, warcries, the boom of cannons and the clanging and ringing of crystal swords. It turns out that this turf has once been a bloody battlefield, and the memory crystals in the ground keep repeating the sound that this gruel scenario has created.
Example Scenario 3:
Some memory crystals could memorize a soul of which it had felt the resonance. This could lead to magic characters to feel the presence of a soul nearby, a well preserved soul memory could maybe even be interacted with on the dream plane.
Example Scenario 4:
A vile sorceror using tiny pieces of memory stone that has memorized a soul to endow objects such as statues or lifless bodies with an unholy life force.
Catalysator Crystals
These Crystals have the ability to alter other substances without getting depleted themselves. This could lead to strange gases emanating from the ground, or a curious sediment around crystal deposits (these crystals are especially interesting to alchemists).
There could be some areas where crystals have partial negative effects, like having traces of radioactive, toxic material, or just two kinds of crystal mixed in a slightly unfortunate way.
This would make them cheaper than "pure" crystals, ergo an alternative to simply low quality crystals with another drawback.
Blood Crystals
Long have Janah scholars speculated about the miraculous powers that this rare type of crystal inherits. A strange pulsing emanates from it's very structure which is said to have an effect on regenerative functions and can allegedly only be measured by the most peculiar types of lab apparatuses.
Function:
Has to maintain skin contact to work, effectivity depends on quality, size and magical treatment.
During Battle: Subtracts a number of Successes off an "Internal Damage" effect (depending on quality).
After Battle: (if received more than half Fatal damage): Significantly slows down bleeding out process, players don't die at -10 but at -15/-20/... (depending on quality).
Repulsor Crystals
They could each oscillate with a certain frequency creating sounds that have certain effects on these elements!
Blue Crystals - Repulse water
Emits a certain frequency that can be heard only slightly by the best of ears. When coming near water it dramastically increases surface tension, turning the water into a jello-like mass that can be threaded over lightly and fast.
Red Crystals - Repulse fire
Create a low hum that can be felt inside your bones. This certain frequency has a retartdant effect on fire as it alters the heat flow inside it.
Green Crystals- Repulse Vegetation
Booms with the lowest of all frequencies, blowing air away from it like a subwoofer, pushing plant life constantly away from it.
Brown Crystals- Repulse Suthra
They could oscillate with a high pitched sound that only suthra can hear, and induces great discomfort.
Some ideas for crystal types we already know of:
Rabíshu Crystals
Two types: Blue and Fiery Red
Example (Blue or low concentration of Red):
For instance imagine a clammy dark forest with tight foilage and small surface deposits of these light emitting crystals. The crystals would be the light source to many smaller plants that would otherwise perish on the dark forest ground... I could imagine that over time, they could even be encased in cocoons of plants reaching for the light source.
Example (High Concentration of Red):
Originally posted by iceage
In the highest slopes of the Kantara Mountains of Kutta legends exist of the city of Perun. It is said that here on the highest slopes this city survived without the people ever having to worrry about the cold.
Perun it seems was built on top of a vast cache of heat producing crystals. This is why it is the city of the Frozen Sun.
I could imagine that many travellers come to try to mine their crystals, but they disapprove of those outsiders since the loss of these crystals would mean the fall of their city/fortress! So they fight against who wants to steal their source of life, using heat crystal maces to sear their enemies and heat crystal catapults in attempt to ignite the enemy camps.
They also use the heat from very hot heat crystals to quickly cauterize their own wounds.
It would be interesting if the ground in some places of this city was really hot, so everyone would have to wear high wooden sandals to not burn their feet.
Sittám Stones
Crystals with thaumaturgic effects that manipulate the magical plane as well, increase or decrease it's flow. Depending on the concentration of these crystals it could add a difficulty to using magical powers, cause unease and even unconciousness in magic sensitive characters.
Example Scenario 1:
A character with a lot of magical potential grows up in a village that was built atop of a vein of magic reducing crystals, thus never realizes his potential until he ventures forth into the world.
Made-Up or Unconfirmed Crystal Types:
Gravitation-Bending Crystals
Crystals that exert a high gravitational pull or push (don't negate gravity in a sense of floating sky crystals, but radiate an aura of gravity towards/away from them), I could imagine that in areas with high concentrations there'd be big holes and grand mountains in the landscape with areas where gravitation would be partly negated even, or even better:
Example Scenario 1:
Imagine a lake under which there's rich deposits of such a crystal: The water surface would form mountains and canyons, depending on the type of crystal!
Example Scenario 2:
Run in the mill "Walk on the walls", or "Antigravity" effect.
Heat Conductive/Absorbing Crystals
I can imagine that there is certain crystals that conduct warmth incredibly well or even absorb it, which would lead to stark wastelands inside rich rain forests, even frosty, icy patches in deserts.
Time-Bending Crystals
Crystals that manipulate the temporal flow. Some could speed up time, slow it down, create time-loops and pockets, or even stop time temporarily.
Example Scenario 1:
While traversing through a desert, players come upon an indestructible, impassible sphere of time-frozen air in which a piece of ancient rainforest is preserved, together with strange animals and falling rain, halted mid-air.
Shock Crystals
Piezoelectrical crystals that react to pressure by emitting electricity.
Stepping onto one can lead to a mild shock or a life threatening jolt.
These useful crystals would be rather hard to mine, but prove to be very useful for weapon builders (especially for gunpowder ignition).
Example Scenario 1:
An area where there shock crystal deposits are slightly surfacing. Kind of like an electrical minefield. Getting through an area like this would require characters to advance carefully and try to not step on any
Memory Crystals
Memory Crystals have the curious property that light, sound and magic influence can rearrange their structure, causing them to "remember" some of the impressions that they had. Some of them have the ability to "replay" these impressions. This could lead to beatiful illusions, scary sounds and other interesting scenarios. Those crystals can usually not be mined, as either the mining equipment usually destroys their fragile and sensitive structure, or the crystals simply record unpleasant sound and/or image of the mining process such as picks hacking away at them or shovels digging them out of the ground, or absorb the very simple thaumaturgic presence of a miner digging them out of the ground.
Example Scenario 1:
The players wander through a dark cave, and in one of the chambers there is suddendly a rich forest, unlike anything they have ever seen.
They will realize that this is only the image of the forest being replayed by countless crystals in that cave.
Example Scenario 2:
The players wander through a wasteland, when they suddendly hear the crack of rifles being fired, warcries, the boom of cannons and the clanging and ringing of crystal swords. It turns out that this turf has once been a bloody battlefield, and the memory crystals in the ground keep repeating the sound that this gruel scenario has created.
Example Scenario 3:
Some memory crystals could memorize a soul of which it had felt the resonance. This could lead to magic characters to feel the presence of a soul nearby, a well preserved soul memory could maybe even be interacted with on the dream plane.
Example Scenario 4:
A vile sorceror using tiny pieces of memory stone that has memorized a soul to endow objects such as statues or lifless bodies with an unholy life force.
Catalysator Crystals
These Crystals have the ability to alter other substances without getting depleted themselves. This could lead to strange gases emanating from the ground, or a curious sediment around crystal deposits (these crystals are especially interesting to alchemists).
There could be some areas where crystals have partial negative effects, like having traces of radioactive, toxic material, or just two kinds of crystal mixed in a slightly unfortunate way.
This would make them cheaper than "pure" crystals, ergo an alternative to simply low quality crystals with another drawback.
Blood Crystals
Long have Janah scholars speculated about the miraculous powers that this rare type of crystal inherits. A strange pulsing emanates from it's very structure which is said to have an effect on regenerative functions and can allegedly only be measured by the most peculiar types of lab apparatuses.
Function:
Has to maintain skin contact to work, effectivity depends on quality, size and magical treatment.
During Battle: Subtracts a number of Successes off an "Internal Damage" effect (depending on quality).
After Battle: (if received more than half Fatal damage): Significantly slows down bleeding out process, players don't die at -10 but at -15/-20/... (depending on quality).
Repulsor Crystals
Originally posted by iceage
Nihua-Hi crystals- These variety of crystal is called the repulsor crystal. There are several types and each one repulses something. This has the effect of pushing objects away from the crystal.
They could each oscillate with a certain frequency creating sounds that have certain effects on these elements!
Blue Crystals - Repulse water
Emits a certain frequency that can be heard only slightly by the best of ears. When coming near water it dramastically increases surface tension, turning the water into a jello-like mass that can be threaded over lightly and fast.
Red Crystals - Repulse fire
Create a low hum that can be felt inside your bones. This certain frequency has a retartdant effect on fire as it alters the heat flow inside it.
Green Crystals- Repulse Vegetation
Booms with the lowest of all frequencies, blowing air away from it like a subwoofer, pushing plant life constantly away from it.
Brown Crystals- Repulse Suthra
They could oscillate with a high pitched sound that only suthra can hear, and induces great discomfort.
