Guild Wars 2

This stuff is harder than steel and more precious than platinum. It keeps an edge well enough to be used in weapons, is malleable enough to be fashioned into armor, and is a key component in the most valuable jewelry in the known world. It’s even useful in the brewing of magic potions! Is there anything this miracle metal can’t do!?

It apparently can’t be found everywhere. That’s something it can’t do, I think. XD

Most of the metals in the game are “harder than steel” and Mithril’s also “more precious than platinum” mechanically, and all metals are more or less able to be used in potions, jewelry, etc.

Mechanics of weapon/armor rarity aside, Orichalcum is just a very rare metal. In lore, gold is quite conductive for magic – and in its mythological origin, Orichalcum is described as a copper/gold combined metal – so Orichalcum may simply just be “very rare, and very conductive for magic” thus making it both rare and powerful (but not necessarily without magical influence), which would explain its top-of-the-line placement in mechanics.

Though the real top of the line metal in lore is Deldrimor Steel.

Actually, the myths regarding orichalcum never specified what it was beyond being a metal associated with Atlantis – it’s been scholars since that have speculated that it’s a gold-copper alloy. Its position as better quality to mithril suggests that it has superior properties – whether that’s that it’s stronger, better able to absorb magic, or a bit of both is anyone’s guess, although in most settings that have used orichalcum, it’s generally a case of being strong enough to use in weapons but still used primarily for its magical properties.

To be honest, the one i find to be strangest is darksteel – presumably, the primordium is introducing some magical essence that makes it not only suitable to make weapons and armour out of an alloy of platinum, but makes said alloy stronger than steel made from iron and coal.

draxynnic.3719:

To be honest, the one i find to be strangest is darksteel – presumably, the primordium is introducing some magical essence that makes it not only suitable to make weapons and armour out of an alloy of platinum, but makes said alloy stronger than steel made from iron and coal.

Although its real-world rarity makes doing so impractical, platinum-iridium, platinum-ruthenium, and platinum-tungsten alloys can be very tough, high-density, nonreactive materials. So that one’s not actually as unusual as it looks.

Konig Des Todes.2086:

in its mythological origin, Orichalcum is described as a copper/gold combined metal

I think Orichalcum was described at first by Plato when talking about Atlantis. According to Plato, Orichalcum was a metal “shining like fire.”
Well… not that I red Plato; I remember about it for playing the LucasArts video game Indiana Jones and the Faith of Atlantis. In the game it was mentioned Plato’s dialogue Hermocrates as source for Atlantis and Orichalcum (though I am not sure it really exists… although Plato really wrote about Atlantis). Moreover, in the game you got the chance to craft an orichalcum pearl using a ancient Atlantic machinery processing lava.

Orichalcum’s power comes from it being made entirely from Toblerones!

http://imworld.aufeminin.com/dossiers/D20120801/9-Toblerone-D-AFsuisse-104459_L.jpg

Yes, my bad, the gold-copper bit came from a misremembrance about the Roman translation of it. From wikipedia: The Romans transliterated “orichalcum” as “aurichalcum,” which was thought to literally mean “gold copper.”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orichalcum

gattsuru.4712:

draxynnic.3719:

To be honest, the one i find to be strangest is darksteel – presumably, the primordium is introducing some magical essence that makes it not only suitable to make weapons and armour out of an alloy of platinum, but makes said alloy stronger than steel made from iron and coal.

Although its real-world rarity makes doing so impractical, platinum-iridium, platinum-ruthenium, and platinum-tungsten alloys can be very tough, high-density, nonreactive materials. So that one’s not actually as unusual as it looks.

Really? That one I didn’t know, and while not an engineer I generally know my metals.

Still, that may well give us a starter in figuring out just what ‘primordium’ actually is – possibly an ore bearing one of those metals for producing such an alloy?

In Latin orichalcum translates to brass. It is simply a fantasy ‘wonder metal’ such as adamantium in other fantasy universes.

darkace.8925:

Is there anything this miracle metal can’t do!?

It cant stay in the same kitten place.