Æternal Chest

Utility

The Æternal Chest is valued for its unparalleled preservation capabilities, making it ideal for storing important documents, rare artifacts, and treasured possessions. Its ability to prevent decay ensures that vital records, historical artifacts, and significant family heirlooms remain intact for generations, offering peace of mind to its owners.
Because the chest's high cost and the rarity of its production limit its ownership, it is commonly used by institutions like banks, archives, and museums where long-term preservation is critical. Additionally, royalty and wealthy nobles often acquire these chests to safeguard their most valuable and irreplaceable items, viewing it as a prestigious and lasting investment.

Manufacturing

Crafting the Æternal Chest involves intricate processes due to Ætternir’s high melting point of 1,800°C (3,272°F). The Dvergar artisans, skilled in working with this challenging metal, use advanced forges and techniques to shape and mold the ore into the chest. Despite the metal's difficulty, the Dvergar's expertise ensures precise and high-quality construction.
The rune magic imbued into the chest is another critical aspect of its manufacturing. The Runeweaver family, experts in rune work, engraves intricate runes into the chest’s surface. This magical inscription is designed to protect the contents from decay and time. The runes are a closely guarded secret, with only the direct Runeweaver family possessing the knowledge required to perform this enchantment.

Social Impact

The Æternal Chest has had a profound social impact by providing crucial protection for invaluable items. During natural disasters, such as floods and earthquakes, the chest has safeguarded important documents and cultural artifacts from being lost or damaged. For example, after a devastating flood in a coastal city, key legal documents and priceless manuscripts were preserved intact, allowing the city to recover its historical legacy.

The chest has also proven vital in protecting treasures during fires. In one notable case, a royal palace consumed by flames saw its crown jewels and ancient manuscripts survive unscathed, thanks to the Æternal Chest. Additionally, institutions like museums and libraries use the chest to preserve rare and fragile artifacts, ensuring their longevity and accessibility for future generations.

Inventor(s)

Brynhild Runeweaver

Access & Availability

The Æternal Chest is exclusively produced by the Runeweaver family, who guard the secrets of its creation and rune magic. Due to its high cost, it is primarily acquired by banks, archives, museums, and affluent royalty and nobles, with some saving for generations to obtain one.

Complexity

The Æternal Chest’s technology is sophisticated but not highly complex. The challenges lie in working with Ætternir’s high melting point and the rune magic, a guarded secret of the Runeweaver family.

Discovery

The creation of the Æternal Chest is attributed to Brynhild Runeweaver, a renowned Dvergar artisan known for her intricate metalwork and rune carving. She crafted the first Æternal Chest from Ætternir, aiming to create a secure container to protect her clan's most precious belongings. She imbued the chest with protective runes, intending to ward off thieves.
Unbeknownst to Brynhild, her rune work had a profound effect on the Ætternir, resulting in a chest that not only safeguarded its contents but also preserved them indefinitely, shielding them from decay and the passage of time. It wasn't until several generations later that an Ætherian named Seraphina, married to Brynhild's descendant, Thrain Runeweaver, discovered the true extent of Brynhild's creation. Realizing the chest's remarkable preservation properties, Seraphina's revelation cemented the Æternal Chest's reputation as an invaluable artifact for the Dvergar and beyond.

Related Materials

• Ætternir

Related Species

• Dvergar