Orichalcum

Orichalcum is a gold-colored magical material. It is extremly hard when fired properly, and was commonly used for magical armor and weapons during the Mage Wars. However, while it is a potent magical amplifier, it is not effective as armor. Unlike steel (also common at the time), orichalcum does not bend easily, thus making it poor at absorbing impact. It can withstand tremendous impact, but tends to transmit most of the energy directly into the wearer.

The material was more common and popular in weapons, where its strength and weight were ideal. Orichalcum swords and Adamantium armor were heavily favored by Battling Sorcerers.

Orichalcum is by far the most common of the high-level magical materials. It is more rare than gold and difficult to work with, requiring extremly high heat (hotter than achieved by conventional means); thus the material has not found many uses in the industrialized world. Ornamental jewellery is the most common non-magical use, as it is harder than gold and thus less prone to damage. However, the production costs make orichalcum jewellery extremly expensive.

It is still highly sought-after by mages, and the easiest to obtain. Orichalcum-clad towers were not unheard of in the Mage Wars. There is no estimate on how much Orichalcum has been mined, but new deposites of the ore are occasionally found and while expensive it is not difficult to obtain.