White Jade

Description

White Jade occurs in solid, blocky shapes, resistant to wear and damage, the earth that surrounds them as they are mined falling easily away to leave only the pure Jade. Though this is a sign of its inherent purity, ‘white’ Jade comes in an array of colours, ranging from snow white (most commonly found in The North and Northern Blessed Isle) to Ivory (often found in The South and southern Blessed Isle) to brown (more common in The East and the peripheries of the Isle). All these varieties of white jade have essentially the same properties for purposes of craft and artifice, but during the First Age and Shogunate Era brown jade was looked down upon as being less aesthetically pure than ivory or white, with thaumaturgical rituals developed to purify its colour. Many in the present era still hold this view, including Dynastic House Mnemon which favours ivory colouration. The rival House Ragara, rejects this, embracing unpurified brown jade in many of its artifacts.

Sources

White Jade most commonly occurs deep beneath the surface of the earth, or within the heart of mountains, the highest concentrations on the Blessed Isle. While the need to mine deep means white jade demands effort if it is to be mined, its veins are by far the largest amongst the various jades, meaning one who invests in a mine will see it return a bounty of jade for a long time to come.

Applications

White Jade is the standard jade used in the currency of the Scarlet Empire. In artifice, it is used for artifacts that work with stone or earth, those to protect the mind against intrusion, and those bolstering Awareness (Ability), Craft (Ability), Integrity (Ability), Resistance (Ability), or War (Ability).

Magical Material Bonus

Weapons forged primarily of white jade strike with the strength of an avalanche, granting +2 to DMG and +1 to Difficulty of rolls vs. Knockdown and Stunning.

Armour forged primarily from white jade have no Fatigue value, and environmental hazards suffered by the wearer are at -2 DMG (-3 for Earth-aligned hazards such as crossing jagged rock fields).