A Technical Treatise on Gems : All About Alexandrites
This page contains the text of a book that can be found in game and is IC knowledge.
A Technical Treatise on Gems : All About Alexandrites
By: Kassha Firehart
The humble alexandrite is often one of the first gems a mage will make extensive use of when they embark upon the lifetime journey of artifice. All to often though once a mage obtains mastery of the art they often discard the alexandrite for more potent and more useful gems. In an effort to speed that journey along I have penned this treatise on the humble alexandrite. While most of you reading this treatise will not obtain the mastery I have, you will find the knowledge contained with in it most helpful.
If you have not had a chance to pick up a copy of A Technical Treatise on Wands I highly recommend you do so as it will elucidate some of the terms I use when discussing alexandrites.
The first thing we need to do is sort alexandrites based on their unique characteristics. Jewelers have a whole slew of characteristics they will try to use to sell you a stone as a mage one and only one characteristic matters and that is size. As a master artificer there are only three sizes I use and that is 1 through 4. Size 1 is reserved for gems that can be used in a wooden wand, Size 2 is reserved for gems that can be used in a steel wand, Size 3 is reserved for gems that can be used in ivory wands, and lastly Size 4 is predictably reserved for gems that can be used in gold wands. Label them how ever you want, just remember there are four sizes that matter in artifice.
Wands as you know have a base number of charges that they can contain. An alexandrite of the appropriate size increases that base number of charges by 50%. But an observant mage will notice that in wooden wands larger alexandrites have a multiplier effect. A size 2 alexandrite in a wooden wand will double the number of charges a wand can contain, a size 3 alexandrite will increase it by 250% and a size 4 alexandrite will triple the number of charges a wand can contain and raise the wands base FPS ranking by 0.025. Steel wands obtain diminished returns on oversized alexandrites, a size 3 gem will only increase the base number of charges by 75% and a size 4 gem will only double them, but still raises the wands base FPS ranking by 0.025. Ivory wands have it even worse; a size 4 gem in an ivory wand will still provide the raise to the wands base FPS ranking boosting it by 0.025 but only provides a sliver of additional charges giving an increase of a mere 60%. A size 4 gem in gold wands will provided the expected increase to the base number of charges by 50% and unexpectedly provides the boost to the wands base FPS ranking giving it the coveted 0.025.
A mage can use undersized alexandrites in a wand we have a word for that, it is called stupid. I have conducted a few tests to confirm it is foolish. If you feel like continuing in my folly please feel free and let me know what the results are; mostly so I can gloat and say I told you so. Being the youngest of 7 kids I relish the chance to be able to gloat.