The Merethic Scale
“From dust to corona, the crystal sings the same song—only louder.” – *Arch-Magus Aurelia Mereth, 511 A.M.*
The **Merethic Scale** is the standard system for weighing, grading, and pricing Shardisite across all civilised regions of the modern era. Adopted by the Pan-Arcane Guild in 512 A.M., it is named for **Arch-Magus Aurelia Mereth**, whose seminal Codex Crystallum first formalized Shardisite handling procedures after a series of lethal refinery accidents.
Contents
Overview
At its core the scale measures Shardisite in **Mereth Units (MU)**. One **Mark**—1 MU—equals precisely four grams of refined crystal, the amount Mereth famously used to cast Template:Fireball without expending a spell slot. Successive tiers increase by powers of ten, each with a colloquial name still used by miners, merchants, and mages alike.
| Tier | Name | Symbol | Mass (approx.) | Typical usage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ⅛ MU | Chip | ᵐc | 0.5 g | Cantrip foci, charm tokens |
| 1 MU | Mark | ᵐ | 4 g | Scroll ink, 3rd-level spell catalysts |
| 10 MU | Rod | ᵐʳ | 40 g | Portable power-cores, mutagen vials |
| 100 MU | Stone | ᵐˢ | 400 g | Forge crucibles, golem hearts |
| 1 000 MU | Heart | ᵐʰ | 4 kg | City-grid nodes, airship engines |
| 10 000 MU | Corona | ᵐᶜʳ | 40 kg | Cathedral wards, ley-bombs |
- Raw ore is traded by **equivalent MU** once inert gangue is deducted.*
Purity grading
Every shipment carries a **Purity rating** from **P-0** (dust, ≤5 % crystal by mass) to **P-5** (artifact-grade). A universal pricing guideline derived from Mereth’s tables is:
gp value = MU × (Purity²) × 2
A single Rod at P-4 therefore fetches ≈ 10 × 16 × 2 gp = 320 gp on Europa’s open market.
Handling & safety
Mereth’s original trials produced the modern containment code:
- Hourly exposure DC = 10 + (MU ÷ 10).*
A bare-handed handler carrying a 10 MU Rod must save vs. **DC 11** each hour or gain a level of Template:Shard Blight; a 100 MU Stone pushes the DC to 20 and is generally fatal without shielding.
Specialised tools—**shard-balances**, **resonance wands**, and lead-lined **containment bands**—are stamped with their maximum safe MU load.
Economic impact
By the late 700s A.M. the Merethic Scale had replaced weight-by-guesswork in every major exchange, underpinning the modern gemstone market and allowing cross-regional futures trading. The post-Angel era saw a brief price shock (941–943 A.M.) when theologians speculated that angelic manifestations might transmute Shardisite, but purity assays soon proved otherwise and prices stabilised.
Industrial & military applications
- **Marks** and **Rods** power everyday enchantments, artificer tools, and low-grade firearms.
- **Stones** drive furnace-forges and locomotive hearts.
- **Hearts** are rare strategic assets—licensing requires Choir oversight in most nations.
- A single **Corona** is considered a catastrophic device; legal possession is restricted to recognised state actors, and even then only under Choir charter.
Cultural notes
- “Counting Rods” is a common euphemism among refinery workers for gauging a payday.
- The dwarves of Hammerfest inscribe a stylised ᵐʰ on memorial anvils commemorating the Shard-Smiths lost in the 821 A.M. blast.
- In popular speech, calling someone “a full Corona short” questions their sanity.
See also
- Shardisite – properties, refinement, historical events
- Shard Blight – symptoms and cure lore
- Pan-Arcane Guild – governing body behind the Codex Crystallum
References
- Mereth, A. Codex Crystallum: A Treatise on Crystal-Arcane Energetics. 511 A.M.
- Guild Ledger 742 A.M. “Standardisation of Purity Assay Markers.”
- Collier, T. Trade & Transmutation: A Modern History of Shardisite Economics. 938 A.M.
Page last updated 18 Fleuris 1105 A.M. by Archivist V. Harrow
