Okay so this is something that's bugged me in Exalted. In exalted the raksha are weak to weapons made of 'iron' but not weapons made of steel or other alloys. Apparently cast iron or wrought iron qualify as 'iron'
So first, let's discuss real world definitions.
pure iron: No alloy material. Not quite as bad as making a sword out of lead, but similar. Pure iron is a terrible material. It's soft, it's weak and it would be about as effective a weapon as a butter knife.
Wrought iron: Extremely low carbon content by weight ~ 0.08% carbon. Also is alloyed with slag (up to 2% by weight). Slag is a byproduct of the transition from iron ore to iron. Better than pure iron, but only because the slag gives it some kind of structure. The carbon here provides some structure but not a whole lot.
Steel: ~0.1% carbon by weight - 2.1% carbon by weight - Most people know what steel is. What most people don't realize is that 'steel' encompasses thousands of materials with distinct properties based on the exact carbon content and the heat treatment it undergoes. Some steel is also slightly altered by small amount of other alloying materials. In general, higher carbon = stiffer, harder steel while less carbon generally indicates softer steel but due to heat treatment you can get a some steels that invert this. All historical swords (and most other weapons in the iron age and beyond) that comprise iron of any type live in this range.
Cast iron: 2.1%-4% carbon content by weight - Once again, multiple different types of cast iron with different properties. Pretty much the defining characteristic is that cast iron is hard and brittle. It does not behave as a ductile material. Once again, this range is terrible for making weapons out of. Here, though it's a matter of your sword shattering the first time you use it. This is the same problem as forging a sword out of steel, quenching it and then forgetting to temper it.
So this is why I have trouble with the whole Raksha are weak to 'iron' but not 'steel' thing. Steel and cast iron are literally just iron+carbon with heat treatment and wrought iron throws in some extra slag for good measure. The range of steel that's closer to pure iron than wrought iron is huge. The range of steel that is closer to pure iron than cast iron is all of it.
So reality aside, how does this work in Exalted? Because I'd love an explanation and I know too much about real world steel to just brush it aside (I had an entire engineering class dedicated to just steel and cast iron. I'm not a metallurgist, but I'm not a layperson either).
So first, let's discuss real world definitions.
pure iron: No alloy material. Not quite as bad as making a sword out of lead, but similar. Pure iron is a terrible material. It's soft, it's weak and it would be about as effective a weapon as a butter knife.
Wrought iron: Extremely low carbon content by weight ~ 0.08% carbon. Also is alloyed with slag (up to 2% by weight). Slag is a byproduct of the transition from iron ore to iron. Better than pure iron, but only because the slag gives it some kind of structure. The carbon here provides some structure but not a whole lot.
Steel: ~0.1% carbon by weight - 2.1% carbon by weight - Most people know what steel is. What most people don't realize is that 'steel' encompasses thousands of materials with distinct properties based on the exact carbon content and the heat treatment it undergoes. Some steel is also slightly altered by small amount of other alloying materials. In general, higher carbon = stiffer, harder steel while less carbon generally indicates softer steel but due to heat treatment you can get a some steels that invert this. All historical swords (and most other weapons in the iron age and beyond) that comprise iron of any type live in this range.
Cast iron: 2.1%-4% carbon content by weight - Once again, multiple different types of cast iron with different properties. Pretty much the defining characteristic is that cast iron is hard and brittle. It does not behave as a ductile material. Once again, this range is terrible for making weapons out of. Here, though it's a matter of your sword shattering the first time you use it. This is the same problem as forging a sword out of steel, quenching it and then forgetting to temper it.
So this is why I have trouble with the whole Raksha are weak to 'iron' but not 'steel' thing. Steel and cast iron are literally just iron+carbon with heat treatment and wrought iron throws in some extra slag for good measure. The range of steel that's closer to pure iron than wrought iron is huge. The range of steel that is closer to pure iron than cast iron is all of it.
So reality aside, how does this work in Exalted? Because I'd love an explanation and I know too much about real world steel to just brush it aside (I had an entire engineering class dedicated to just steel and cast iron. I'm not a metallurgist, but I'm not a layperson either).
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