Adamantium¶
"Scholars surmise that the elemental power of a Titan is required to force the bonding of Mithis to Titanium." — from Mithis (S419)
Contested
This page is named in the open question Witchcraft's place; Mithis metals. The archive describes adamantium's colour in two ways; this page follows the newest sources and records the older reading.
Adamantium is the Mithis isotope of titanium, the rarest of the common Mithis metals and the one that comes from the bones of the Titans. It is "immune to corrosion and has the best known density to strength ratio of any known metal" (S419), and it alone among the metals seemed to shrug off the corruption of Mithis. Its place among the other isotopes is described under Mithis Metals and Gemstones; worked adamantine as a trade good is Life & Culture's.
Names¶
"Adamantium is the name used by the dwarves. Titansteel has been popularized by some scholars. Norsil is what is known by its creators (the Einar)" (S415). The worked metal and its alloys are commonly called adamantine (S010, S165, S201). The summary of 2016 gives it an affinity for Earth (S418).
Appearance and nature¶
"In it's purest form is has the appearance of a light-grey to white metal. It is immune to corrosion and has the best known density to strength ratio of any known metal. If inspected closely it has a slightly green sheen" (S415). The Mithis article repeats this description, with a Mithis saturation of eight (S419). In the Illuri Fold, the focuses attuned to three greater water lords are each "a solid pillar of metal (adamantine -- white metal with green sheen)" (S010).1
Source¶
"Titan bones are the only known source of this metal. Scholars surmise that the elemental power of a Titan is required to force the bonding of Mithis to Titanium" (S419). The herbalist's catalogue lists it among alchemical materials as "a mineral mined from the marrow of Titan bones and associated to the domain of the Titan. Collection requires special equipment (mining tools capable of adamantium harvesting)" (S224), and prices it at a hundred thousand gold among the reagents of the Fae realms (S226). The Titans are Creatures'; the Einar, who named it Norsil, are Religion's. The Blue Mountains of Dru'Bazan hold "one of Adamantium" among their known deposits (S429, S384).
Unaffected by corruption¶
When Mithis was tainted, adamantium seemed to escape. An Arcane Mage who recorded "his efforts to cleanse mithis sources ... notes that dragons, most titans and the metal, adamantium appear to be unaffected" (S142), and the party that looted a dark elven outpost in the Underdark found that "Cuprium & Adamantine & Aurumite are NOT CORRUPTED" though the armour beside them was hollowed (S165).
Where it turns up¶
- Two "bars of pure Adamantium" lie in the vault beneath the temple of Khardas at Kilmarn (S163).
- The Adamantine Shawl of Hergrett, a gift of the dwarves of the White Towers attributed to an ascendant of Khardas, guards against the elements (S201).
- Calcadyia's Crystal Lance is "a titan-forged adamantine spear capable of mortally wounding powerful creatures, especially ethereal elemental ones", forged by Khardas "for the Einar warrior Calcadyia during the Second Primordial War" (S010), and the Dawnstar of Eremhel a morning star "made of a heavy dark metal (ionized adamantium)" (S010).
- The elvish daggers Mala'thazus "are an Adamantine Alloy" (S060).
The relics are Artifacts'.
Earlier accounts¶
The 2014 compendium describes adamantium as "Very Rare. Looks gold colored, with a greenish tint. Magical glows produced from this tend to be bright green. Difficult and dangerous to smelt. Requires extremely high temperatures, not able to be produced in any kind of normal fire. Either magical fire or volcanic forges are required for smelting", with a "high concentration of Mithius (0.02% - 0.08%)" (S384, S372); the TER5 overview gives the same with "100,000-750,000 ppu" (S429). The 2016 summary gives it a Mithis value of nine (S418). The Mithis article of 2026 appends the compendium's list after its own description (S419).
Gap
No source says how adamantium is smelted from Titan bone, who first worked it, or whether the Einar forged anything from it.