Elahinoor
There is no one 'official' material used by the Host
for its arms and armor: every
Elahinoor is solidified and shaped light, in much
the same way that diamond is a crystalline form of carbon; the description is
accurate enough, but neither descriptive nor evocative. To make Elahinoor one needs an authentic
artificer (i.e., one with the Enchant skill) and several specialized pieces of
equipment, including a 'Phial of Galadriel' (see below). The 'raw' light is teased out and induced to
adhere to a grid of very thin glass
threads. Once fixed, the grid of glass and
light is beaten, folded and refolded in a manner similar to the forging of
Damascus steel, with the same general result; a material that is both supple
and strong. Elahinoor is also
considerably less massive than its equivalent in steel.
In game terms, a weapon made out of Elahinoor has an
additional +2 to Accuracy. This reflects
their lightness for their strength; even a battle-axe made out of the stuff is
simply easier to control, and Elahinoor firearms have much less of a recoil
problem. Brass knuckles (or boot-heels)
made out of Elahinoor add 2 to Power, instead of 1. Armor made out of Elahinoor subtract an
additional 2 from an attacker's roll to hit, and are sufficiently light and
flexible that the wearer would not suffer from encumbrance - at least, it would
be, if In Nomine had actual encumbrance rules. All items made out of Elahinoor also have an
additional -1 to be targeted and an inherent Protection of 3; alternatively,
the GM can just rule that these items tend not to break except when
dramatically appropriate. Finally,
Elahinoor is easy to enchant; use of it gives a +1 to the roll.
'Flavored'
Elahinoor
There are as many types of Elahinoor as there are
types of light. Some of those types have
virtues that can be passed along; artificers have spent not a little time
working out which work best, and under what circumstances. The trick is gathering the right sorts; at
the least it will require a successful Enchantment roll at -2; failure means
that Sunlight Elahinoor is acquired, instead.
Below are a few of the most popular types:
Firelight
Elahinoor (Red)
This Elahinoor makes the best weapons; the bonus is
+2 to Accuracy and +2 to Power. Also, a
Firelight item may be used to start a fire, once per day. The flame will act pretty much like a match:
it will not do damage on its own, but can ignite flammable items.
Forestlight Elahinoor (Green)
This Elahinoor makes the best armor: the bonus is +2
to Protection and -2 to hit. Weapons
made from Forestlight Elahinoor also have a +1 to
Power against Servitors of Death and Undead.
Helllight Elahinoor (Helllight)
This is what Infernal artificers generally have to
work with; other types are known to the Horde, but not emphasized (the entire
quantity over quality mindset). A weapon
made out of Helllight Elahinoor has a +3 to Power and
no accuracy bonus; armor made from it has a +3 to Protection and no modifier to
hit.
By the way, there is no equivalent 'Divinelight Elahinoor', and few angels wish to research the
matter. The last holder of that Word
cast a long shadow.
Manlight Elahinoor (
This type of Elahinoor requires light that has been
taken exclusively from artificial sources.
Originally developed by Servitors of Technology - but reverse-engineered
by the Host - weapons made from this type of Elahinoor is treated as a
corporeal relic/3 when it comes to determining disturbance. Actual corporeal relics made from Manlight Elahinoor add +3 to the roll, instead.
Moonlight
Elahinoor (Silver)
This Elahinoor is prized by ethereals: weapons and
armor made from it are effective level/2 talismans (adder) for the appropriate skill,
and can be freely used in the ethereal plane.
Sealight Elahinoor (Blue)
The light to make this Elahinoor must be gathered
from what light has penetrated at least thirty feet of open water. Armor made from Sealight
Elahinoor floats; weapons made from Sealight may be
operated underwater with no penalties (this includes firearms). Possession of any item made from Sealight will add +2 to Swimming rolls.
Sunlight
Elahinoor (Yellow)
This is probably the most common,
as it is valuable in its own right and a 'contaminated' batch of another type
of Elahinoor will usually revert to Sunlight Elahinoor anyway. Weapons made from Sunlight, when used on
those with the Vulnerability (Sunlight) Discord, add the level of that Discord
to their Power. An item made from
Sunlight will also glow on command. The
item can store up to 8 hours worth of light (to recharge, place in direct
sunlight) and will illuminate a dark area about as well as a torch or small
flashlight.
Starlight
Elahinoor (Pure white)
Servitors of Lightning treasure this Elahinoor:
among other things, it is a superconductor to about 400 degrees Centigrade, and
as good as copper at about 800 degrees.
Artificers specializing in the stuff find that the demand simple wires
and computer chips (items made that incorporate Starlight Elahinoor generally
give a +3 bonus to appropriate rolls) is enough to keep them from bothering
with making weapons.
Except, of course, for the force swords (+4 Power,
+2 Accuracy, Large Weapon), which are quite
popular.
Twilight
Elahinoor (Grey)
Twilight Elahinoor is almost never turned into
weapons or armor, as it is more valuable to Sorcerers and artificers. Items made from Twilight Elahinoor give a +1
to Sorcerer and Enchantment rolls: powdered
Twilight Elahinoor gives a +3 bonus to either roll, but can only be used once.
'Phials of
Galadriel'
Even Heaven can be influenced by popular Earth
culture, particularly the bits written by one of their Saints. A Phial is simply a container of one standard
unit of 'raw' light, of whatever type being gathered. It has been long known that such containers
can be essentially short-circuited, releasing all of the accumulated light in
one blast. This will act exactly as a
successful performance of the Celestial Song of Light (roll 1d6 for the CD),
but will not cause disturbance unless the user decides to add personal Essence,
or a mortal is damaged by the blast.
Range is a 2 yard globe; Phials may be thrown.
Costs: Making an item out of Elahinoor adds 6 points
to the cost. Phials of Galadriel are 3
points a 'dose'.