It kind of bugs me that there has never been any lore released about Elethium, as far as I can tell. Not one bit. It’s everywhere in the Shadowlands, including the Maw.
It’s generally a complaint I have about a lot of Shadowlands gathering items because there’s so much potential here. But Elethium kind of ‘bugs’ me the most.
So, has anyone come across any canon for it? Or if not, what would be your head canon for its lore?
Elethium is mad mineral. It is a mix between iron susphate and ox. It is stronger than steel but not as strong as titanium. It is found in the banks of Scotland and also in Norway. Elethium miners have to use machinery to get it. If you want “lore” try reading a geology book. I’m just joking. But why have lore for a metal?
Lore and immersion, but results may vary. Generally the game designers have been pretty good about having reasons for different crafting materials between expansions - and now that we’ve generally run through the metals on irl periodic tables, we need to start looking to the fantastic on why we cant just make the new gear using good ol’ Iron. There was some decent bits in Legion to help define the crafting mats, BFA to some degree, but because we dont have the ranking quests in Shadowlands, there really isnt any context on what makes Elethium and the ores from each zone all that different from each other, or from mats available on Azeroth.
As to the original issue, considering the Elysian Thade is avail in all zones as well, I would imagine the Elysian moniker (I’m assuming thats what the Ele is meant to be shortened form of) is attached to some Shadowlands general quality of materials or is just a term for sourcing. it might technically be a proto-material, but it might just be one step of evolution after being the proto building blocks of the Shadowlands.
Another potential naming source is the river lethe from afterlife mythology, which was said to make one forget their life. Perhaps it is a mineral that has been forgotten, or that has itself ‘forgotten’ or lost some aspect.
Edit #1: In general, my theory is that minerals in the Shadowlands operate on an unclear half-life decay/fossilization principal. Things start in their proto-form and then their anima decays and is expelled, taking on environmental anima to replace the lost anima. Things start as proto, decay into something more generic (Like Elethium) and then as anima is exchanged, it becomes aligned with the specific afterlife.
Edit #2: My second theory is that this is part of why Shadowlands equipment wont be the pinnacle of materials in the living world. The artifact crafting is where we pack more and more anima into an object, using materials that are intended to be concentrated soul/anima energy extracted through various methods, such as the soulforging of the Maw. In the living world, the anima leaks out as it doesnt have the ambient anima energies of the Shadowlands to keep it packed in there, thus it escapes and removes the thought/reality altering properties that anima has in the Shadowlands. In essence, in the living world, anima infused/crafted materials quickly expel their anima to become inert and normal goods.
Ah man I actually really dig your edits #1 and 2 there! And the aspect of kind of ‘forgetting’. Elethium…kind of works.
Yeah…truly love what you’re getting at there and gives me some food for thought. Maybe I’ll circle back to this some day. Thanks man, genuinely great stuff!
In Wraith: The Oblivion the only substantial material available for crafting are the souls themselves beaten down and smelted in soulforges. That’s the material used for everything, the coins, the bricks, the weapons, anything that hasn’t been brought forth as a shadow presence from the living world.
Elethium can be thought of as essentially ore made from the essence of dissipated souls. If you listen closely to a chunk you just might hear the sound of a soft sigh.
That certainly goes well with the whole ‘forgotten’ angle…