Mechanics & Inner Workings
The silk is an extraordinarily versatile material. Depending on the thickness of the fabric, it can be very insulatory, or an amazing dispersant. In a rougher form, it has a very high tensile strength and is preferred for Industrial/Military/cordage production.
A chart comparison for a single thread of material
| Tensile Strength | Weight | Durability | Structural strength | |
| Zybtine Silk | ~40lbs | 0.01oz | High 100/100 | 2x length |
| Cotton | ~23lbs | 0.20oz | Medium 85/100 | 0.4x Length |
Manufacturing process
While there are many farms inside the desert, a majority are small operations that struggle to keep up with the demand for the material. This scarcity has led it to being thought of as a luxury good. That being said, the farms will typically house anywhere between a few dozen to a bit more than a hundred of the Vanesca. The large industrial farms close to the Song of Bhal have all but eradicated any competition, where they have thousands of the arthropods.
The arthropod is led into the silk house in which they are fed until they start producing their silk. This is then wound slowly around a spool. The silk at this point is dry to the touch and easily able to be handled. These spoils are at this point either dyed in whatever color the manufacturer pleases, or left in its original pale opal color state. These are sent off to a loom by which many thousands of strands are bound tightly to form the fabric. This can be sent off to any textile process for clothing, armors, industrial applications or construction purposes.
The process to make a single bolt of silk is the culmination of many thousands of spiders, days of harvesting from each of them, and the distribution to be able to handle it, is an industrial marvel that Galus and Huron are unable to compete with.
History
The silk production of the region of the Bhthic Desert is a recent development due to the migration of the Lamia
moving from the Eastern Ilroi Mountain range down to the desert region. Those Lamia brought with them a species of spider called the Vanesca. These spiders are natives of the Ilroi, they were originally thought to not be able to move locations due to their eggs being exceptionally fragile.
Despite this, the Lamia were able to bring their mainstay economic product with them to the Caliphate of Zybtine. The Vanescan silk was prized in The Northern Wastes for this smooth and insulator qualities. As the Lamia we able to ingratiate themselves inside the Zybtine economy, the Vanescan silk earned the new name of Zybtine silk.
The production of this silk took off as the Natives of the Bhthic desert took a great liking to the material. This consequently led to a rise in the population of Vanescan spiders; there are now dedicated farms to these arachnids. These dog sized arthropodic cattle have earned the endearing title of Weavers.
Silk houses on the farms have been called the milk barns of the silk world. The spiders are housed and their silk is harvested in these buildings, in the last decade or so, there have been more industrial style farms set up.
Significance
This fabric has become the staple product of the Lamia population living inside the Zybtine Caliphate, and has since earned the stereotype of all Lamia (gorgons included) being a wealthy and decadent sub society inside the desert region. Individuals such as Salandrahth are propagating this idea. She being one of the much more notable figures inside Galus for the Lamia species, has largely reinforced this idea as she wears the material with every outfit. It should be noted however, inside the Bhthic desert region, many Lamia are farmers and herders.
The much more utilitarian aspect of the manufacturing of this product is that the Vanesca are omnivorous. As the herds grow, depending on what the farmer wishes the silk to be used for, there is a massive need for meat. This had led to a rather unique industry in the Song of Bhal, that being Catchers. Catchers have all but eradicated much of the pest problems of the city and surrounding settlements, as they have all been sold to the Vanesca Farms. This has led to them branching out to Neighboring countries like The Northern Wastes, and Huron for additional sources of income. That isn't to say though, that much darker things aren't sold to the Farmers who don't ask questions...
Item type
Trade/Manufactured good
Rarity
Uncommon
Weight
20lbs
Dimensions
300ftX60in
Base Price
2500 coins for an entire Bolt, otherwise it is approx. 25 coins per yard
Raw materials & Components
The quality of the silk is entirely based on what the Vanesca eats, a diet high in proteins produces a softer silk. Higher in vegetation, the arthropod will produce a stronger silk more useful for cordage and industrial applications.
Oh, very nice article. Despite the fact that the spiders are as large as cows, this is a fun concept. Spiders being used to harvest silk. But a few questions, from the article this silk sounds very popular and common. Because the farms seem so large and plentiful, but in the sidebar it says the silk is uncommon. The second thing is that does this silk have the same abilities as a regular spiders silk? Like is it really strong and durable? Is it possible for these spiders to produce different kinds of silk? etc. But great article. Simple and easy to understand, which is always good. And good job with all the links. It helps make this aspect feel tied into the rest of the world.
To answer a few of your questions the Vanesca Farms are numerous, though to the price tag comes from the idea that it takes thousands of threads to make even a yard of this material. In my mind I imagine a single spider can produce up to a few hundred yards of silk a day (they are meant to be the size of dog, think Labrador, rather than actual cattle :) ) That being said, it would take a few thousand of these spiders to produce silk efficiently enough to actually make a bolt of cloth. The farms would typically contain a few dozen to hundred spiders, only the industrial scale ones are the ones who can out compete and shut down the smaller farms. These would produce the material at a rate the smaller farms could only dream of. The other aspect, I am basing the strength of the silk concept on real world silk that has these same properties, the harvest method from silk worms is quite prohibitive for anything beyond a luxury item. So if I had to put actual numbers to it, a single strand of silk would have a breaking force of about 40lbs, and an ability to stretch double it's length without having deformed structurally. So a cord made from this silk could theoretically hold many hundreds of pounds and stretch to an exceptional degree. I am calling it uncommon, based strictly off the price tag involved, as most of the silk resides in Zybtine in the hands of the Caliphate, anyone willing to export it can ask extreme prices for it. Precious few individuals outside the Desert region will be familiar with it beyond the Elite and well connected. Due to these very prominent figures like Salandrahth, it is a coveted item based on a desire to emulate powerful figures. I'm trying to make it sound easy to get, but if anyone wants to use it in their world, they would have to shell out the money to do so. I hope that helps, I think I answered you're questions. Let me know if you want to know more! <3 I really do appreciate anyone pointing out holes in a story, lets me know what I need to fix!
In fact, now that I build on it a bit more in the comments, I think these will be making it into the actual article sometime tomorrow! Thank you!
I'm replying a lot here... I'm calling it an industrial product. To a degree, one can get something like corn syrup with an amount of ease. But to hunt down a jug of High fructose Corn syrup is a different answer. Same general concept, I can't just walk into the store and buy a bridge support, but I can buy the material to do something much smaller.
Ah, gotcha. No, you answered all my questions. Glad I could be of assistance. If you need anyone to look of an article I'd be glad to help! Feel free to message me any time
That is a gracious offer, I appreciate you! Maybe, if you are willing I do have a few things you might be interested in, so long as you don't mind discussing spoilers and plot points!
Of course! And no, I don't mind spoilers or discussing plot points. Whatever you need!
Do you have a discord or anything like that? I am planning on many things, I don't want to just post articles that are this far in advance of the Manuscript.
no, unfortunately I do not have discord
Ah that's unfortunate, I don't actually know if there is a direct message system on WA, or really how to share something with a specific individual
Hmm, there used to be a way to do private messages, but I don't see that function anymore. But we could do a discussion boards or do messages on the guestbook. I'm used to either one.
I set up a discussions board, I'm not familiar with this feature. I says to add a group, it was made private, How would I add you to this group?
Okay, so for a discussion board, what you need to make sure is that the board is a "thread board" (It'll be right under "Type") If you don't have it listed as a "thread board" no one will be able to make threads. As for the private thing, that I don't think that is doing anything, because I can still see and sort of access the discussion board. (I say sort of because I can't really do anything on it.)
Ah, I think I have it set up now
Yup, it's working. I left a comment there already. Remember to follow the board, too. Or you won't get notified when someone comments on it.