Matsu Xiangu
The Haruspex
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Intent | To create a variation on a canon item that allows for new and unique story elements and tradables for those scummy criminal elements and factions without scruples.
Image Source | HERE | HERE | HERE
Restricted Missions | N/A
Primary Source | HERE
PRODUCTION INFORMATION
Name | Obsidian Nova Crystals
Manufacturer | Maena
Homeworld | Maena
Production | Limited
Affiliation | Open Black Market
Modularity | No
Material | Obsidian, Nova Crystal
PHYSICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Classification | Gemstone
Weight | Heavy
Resistances
- Blasters/Plasma Weapons - Unrefined: None / Refined: Average
- Kinetic - Unrefined: None / Refined: Low
- Lightsabers - Unrefined: None / Refined: Low
- Other - Heat Resistance: High when both unrefined or refined.
SPECIAL FEATURES
- Very useful in both unrefined & refined forms.
- Unrefined forms are incredibly dangerous and volatile in wrong conditions.
- Refined forms are completely inert as long as the process was completed properly.
- Incredibly dangerous and useful explosive weapon.
- Can be used as lightsaber crystals (see strengths & weaknesses.)
- Can be used as jewelry or high-denomination currency in refined form.
STRENGTHS
- Ka-BOOM! - If you are looking for a weapon to eviscerate your enemies, look no further. When unrefined and exposed to light or cold, Obsidian Nova Crystals explode with devastating force. Breaking apart in to long, razor-sharp pieces, it will tear apart anything in its vicinity. The larger the crystal used, the larger the blast radius. It is truly a terrible thing to behold when an Obsidian Crystal detonates. The sheer number of pieces also makes them highly effective against Force Users who will have to work hard to stop every glass-like shard from reaching them.
- Heatmiser - As suggested by the environment in which they are produced, these crystals are extremely resistant to heat and flame in both refined and unrefined states. The hotter they are when unrefined, the safer they are to handle (relatively). Unrefined crystals also produce heat damage when they detonate, lighting things on fire by the sheer flashburn of their implosion. And when refined, they can be used to absorb heat and protect from flames in all manner of shielding and building applications.
- Check This Out - For the particularly brave, unrefined Nova gems make exceptional lightsaber crystals. Producing black blades shot through with the multi-faceted colors the crystal may also contain, these blades give off enough heat to light enemies on fire, unlike the standard plasma blade. These blades, due to their slightly increased weight and heat, cleave through light and medium armors with ease. However, they come with significant trade-off’s. (See weaknesses below.) They can also be used in plasma and blaster weapons, with the same trade-off’s as seen below.
WEAKNESSES
- Ow, my Eyes! - Obsidian Nova crystals are wildly sensitive to light. Grown and mined in the very depths of Maena’s earth, these crystals flourish in complete darkness. Miners can only use nightvision equipment running off the weak light of the crystal’s glowing veins to find and extract them, and they must be transported and stored in light-tight containers lest they explode on the way to refinement or weapons production.
- Is it Cold in here? - Growing near the magma floes churning underneath Maena’s surface, these crystals love the heat. The hotter they are kept while unrefined, the happier they are. Temperatures under 70F are approaching dangerously unstable territory, and below 50F they will detonate. When used as a weapon, it must be kept in a heat-controlled, light-tight unit.
- Do You Even Lift? - Obsidian crystals are extremely heavy, far heavier than they look like they should be. This makes mining them in large quantities difficult, and possible only through sophisticated means, or by the foolhardy. This also makes their use as weaponry difficult in some situations. Large explosives must be placed by teams. Smaller, hand-held versions are absolutely possible, but typically have smaller blast radiuses simply due to the necessity of carrying less of it to not be weighed down.
- Look Ma, No Hands - Those seeking to use the Obsidian gem as lightsaber crystals must make the hilt in complete darkness, and once complete the hilt must be completely light-tight and heat-controlled to keep the crystal at a temperature at which it won’t explode. It is almost exactly like holding a bomb in your hands. In addition, the weight they add to a saber blade takes practice for any new wielder in order to keep up their reaction times.
DESCRIPTION
Grown deep in the very darkest parts of Maena’s huge mining systems, Obsidian Nova Crystals grow within hard outer crystal-shell casings nestled in the dangerous rifts in the earth nicknamed ‘The Scars’. Mined in complete darkness and in brutal heat, these crystals make strange creatures of the men and women who mine them. Scarred by the knife-like surface of the cracks in the earth they must crawl through to harvest the crystals, they are pale and twisted and wide-eyed. Few of them ever see the sun again, ruined by their work.
But their use and worth drives their harvest despite the trouble and expense.
A rarer form of already sought-after Nova Crystals, these obsidian beauties once refined are the pinnacle of ostentatious wealth. Their mysterious color and the way they glitter make them perfect for the statement jewelry of the elite. In Shadow Ports they are the currency of choice, as much as status symbol as a form of payment. As with anything couture, the rarer the more sought after.
They can also be used as focusing crystals in lightsabers, or in plasma and blaster weapons.
But even more valuable is their potential as weapons of horrible destruction. For criminal groups at war, jilted lovers looking to make a brutal statement, or factions big and small looking to deal unimaginable blows against their enemies, Obsidian Nova Crystals provide the answer. Upon exposure to light or heat, the crystals explode in to hundreds of smaller, razor-sharp shards that eviscerate anything in their blast radius. For those groups capable of transporting and placing these crystals on a large scale, the damage they could do is unthinkable.
But anything so dangerous comes with its catches. When refined, these crystals are as safe as any ruby or emerald, if more expensive and rare. But when unrefined, they require the utmost care when being transported or handled. Exposure to cold or light will cause them to detonate at unwanted times - including the hands of its purchaser. In addition, they are excessively heavy gemstones and can only be mined in dedicated operations. When used in lightsabers or blasters they must be kept in heat-controlled, light-tight hilts or casing, and their weight takes some getting used to and slows reaction times in the untrained.
