"There are older wrecks beneath the sea by far than Sigmar's petty kingdom. Good yellow gold from the Vampire Coast or the far seas that sweep the beaches of Tilea or Ind. All men love gold, young Eel."
- —Captain Erkhart Dubnitz to Hermann Eyll[11]
Gold is a precious metal of a lustrous yellow colour, used in many different cultures of the Known World to produce coins and jewelry.[1a] Yet few people can afford the expense of a gold ring, or a torc made of this material.[1b]
In recent years, unadorned nuggets of gold have made their way from the faraway continent of Lustria, but these are quickly melted down and minted into regular coins of the land. One can always tell a coin originating from Lustria by its reddish hue. A same destiny is shared by the Tilean talents that regularly surface in old vaults, tombs, wrecks on the bottom of the sea, or in ancient ruins.[1b]
The most reliable way to find gold is still to unearth it from the ground using mine works. This is still the case, despite numerous attempts by the Gold College of wizards to transmute it from lead. Even the Supreme Patriarch of the Colleges of Magic, Balthasar Gelt, cannot make gold this way, although he has been known to place a glamour on lead to make it look like gold for a short time, when needed.[10d]
Gold Mining[]
Gold has ever been lusted after by both Men and Dwarfs. Small mines dot the Old World, their owners hoping to strike big. The Dwarfs remain the masters of extracting it from rock, although man-made mines have found plenty of rich seams in recent times. On discovering a substantial seam of gold, a small mine gets larger and often needs fortifying against other treasure-seekers.[10d]
Once recovered from the mountains, gold is smelted into bars or minted into coins of the realm. Like any forge, a gold smelter is a hot and horrid place to work. Unsurprisingly, the Dwarfs are better at it than most, able to withstand the temperatures and still produce gold bars free of imperfections and uniform in shape. A seasoned Dwarf smelter will easily find employ beyond the Karaz Ankor, in the realms of Men.[10d]
Magical Uses of Gold[]
The magical wind of Chamon is attracted to metals in both ore and refined forms much as metals themselves are attracted to magnets. The heavier the element or metal, in its natural state or otherwise, the more Chamon is drawn to it. It has been suggested this attraction of Chamon to certain metals accounts for the almost magical effect gold has on even the most intelligent races of the mortal world, inspiring greed, violence, and sometimes war.[7a]
Of all the peoples of the Known World, the Dwarfs seem most affected by gold, and some wizards of the Gold Order have wondered whether the Dwarfs have some unknown racial affinity with Chamon. Dwarfs do, after all, pursue many of the same goals and interests as the Magisters of the Gold Order. The issue remains unresolved.[7a]
Some question the potential abuse the ability to create gold from base metals, even temporarily, opens to the Gold Order. But for a Magister Alchemist to do such a thing would break several of the Articles of Imperial Magic and would doubtlessly, if actually used to purchase goods, lead to public outcry when it eventually transmuted back into its original form. This dishonest act would defame the good Orders of the Colleges of Magic, a serious crime indeed.[7a]
Any Gold Order Magisters found guilty of abusing their skills by swindling retailers with gold that will change back into lead after a few days, are punished publicly. Although they are unlikely to be exiled or Pacified for such a crime, they will be flogged in a place and at a time where the public can view the punishment. Such things are incredibly rare, with only the occasional apprentice, and even rarer Journeyman Wizard, trying to con people with fake gold.[7a]
Gold in Bretonnia[]
Gold in Bretonnia is officially used only amongst the nobility, usually as tax and tithing unto the royal treasury. Any gold received in trade must be declared and handed over to a merchant's noble master, this being done each tithing day, and at an exchange rate that is considered criminal in nearly all other countries of the Old World.[4a]
The sumptuary laws of Bretonnia are most strictly applied to the peasants, with gold and certain gems forbidden to be worn publicly.[4a]
Lizardmen Gold[]
Lizardmen find it peculiar that Human settlers prefer scraps of gold over food and raw materials for their settlements.[3a]
Yet the Slann mage-priests direct their vassals to find the missing gold plaques to complete the sequence of the Old Ones' Great Plan. This is perhaps the only consistent interaction with the mortal world common to all Slann.[3c]
These plaques are inscribed with assignment, portent, and prophecy. Sacred to the Lizardmen, these are the sole remnant of their gods' instructions. The Slann pore over them to determine what they must do to complete their masters' designs.[3d]
Gold in the Dwarf Holds[]
"It was perhaps typical of my companion that for no more than this slim provocation, he was willing to risk life and limb in the wildest and most barren places imaginable. Or perhaps it was typical of the effect of "gold fever" on all his people. As I was later to see, the lure of that glittering metal had a terrifying and potent power over the minds of all of that ancient race. In any event, the decision to travel beyond the Empire's most southernmost borders was a fateful one, and it led to meetings with adventures the dreadful consequences of which haunt me still..."
- —My Travels with Gotrek, Vol. II, by Herr Felix Jaeger (Altdorf Press, 2505 IC)[5a]
The Dwarfs discovered gold long ago when the Karaz Ankor was still young.[10d] They have a particular fondness for gold, which borders on the pathological. Sometimes called "Gold Lust," "Gilded Fever" or "Gorl Fever," it is most common amongst Dwarf Miners who reap seams of the lustrous metal from the earth itself. Symptoms vary: Insensibility, coveting, desire for physical proximity to gold and even violence are all supported by accounts from the Dwarfen Miners Guild.[2a]
Even now, gold has a strange hold over Dwarfen hearts, infecting them with an interminable greed or "gold sickness" in extreme cases. Yet they remain the masters of extracting it from rock.[10d]
When Dwarfs gather for an evening's drinking, which is most evenings, a popular entertainment is the Gold Song. During the Gold Song, the Dwarfs sing about gold and each drinker sings a verse in turn. Dwarfs have many words for gold in their language of Khazalid, reflecting the value, weight, lustre, colour and even the gold's history. It would be impossible to document all of them, but the following are among the most common.[2a]
- Bryn - Gold that is particularly shiny and lustrous.[2a]
- Frorl - Lucky gold, known to bring good fortune and prosperity.[2a]
- Galaz - Gold of decorative and ornamental value.[2a]
- Gorl - Gold that is soft and yellow in colour.[2a]
- Gorlm - Old gold, passed down through many generations and left undisturbed in guarded treasure vaults.[2a]
- Konk - Gold that is ruddy, reddish in colour.[2a]
- Kurz - Unlucky gold, that which has been used in misadventure or in which the recipient has fallen foul of circumstance, such as gold that has been used to pay for inferior goods.[2a]
- Ril - Gold ore or new gold, recently minted.[2a]
Gold Among Dragons[]
Dragons have a strong connection to gold. Among Dwarfs, it is believed that gold is the source of their longevity or that they use it to attract mates. Some Runesmiths claim that gold "sings" to Dragons, with their hoards being a "chorus" of staggering beauty. This is also the reason why the loss of even a single coin enrages them, as it distorts the music of their hoards.[6a]
Gold Among the Ogre Kingdoms[]
"The only forms of currency Ogres will accept are food and gold. When many tribes are working together, agreeing on a standard is vital if healthy relations are to be maintained."
- —Gold Standard (Ogre Kingdoms technology) Total War: Warhammer III (PC Game)'[9a]
In -1957 IC the Dwarf holds along the Worlds Edge Mountains discovered, to their great surprise, that the Ogres raiding their holds were not interested in gold or jewels. Rather, they were after ale, foodstuffs, and Dwarfs.[8a]
This endeavour changed just recently when in 2475 IC a retired mercenary convinced a sceptical Ogre Tyrant Greasus Goldtooth that gold can be used for more than just ornamentation. Once the inspired young Ogre rose to become the Overtyrant of the Ogre Kingdoms in 2487 IC, gold was officially recognised as being as valuable as red meat throughout most of the Ogre realms.[8a]
Now the promise of gold to plunder and exotic animals to eat has lured many Ogres across the Great Sea to seek fortune in the New World.[3b]
Gold Among the Orc Tribes[]
For as long as the Greenskins have been invading the Karaz Ankor they have taken the mining outposts and most prosperous shafts from the Dawi. However Orcs aren't that attracted to gold as they mainly use their teef as a currency, so they don't have the same thirst for gold that their Dwarf and Human foes do. However, they do appreciate shiny stuff and attribute some value in teef to it, especially as they can often exchange it for "bigga an' betta choppas," and 'arder armour." But it's mainly because they know that it really winds up "da stunties" when they take their mines and "nick all da shiny rocks in 'em as well."[10a]
The problem for the Orcs, however, is getting to it as the gold-bearing rocks and sparkly bits will often be at the bottom of a mine. The Dwarfs use lifts and "cleva gubbinz" to extract the loot, while Greenskins have more brutal methods. The shiny rocks are hacked out by Snotlings and misbehaving Goblins to supply their bosses.[10a] Gold collected this way and other shiny stuff gained from raidin' is gathered into a pile of shiny stuff. An Orc warboss may fling some to his Big 'Uns and closest mates, with the rest used as a status symbol. The bigger the pile of shiny stuff, the more successful the boss is judged to be.[10b]
If a warboss gets a whole heap of shiny stuff then news will travel fast and other Orcs and Goblins may think it's worth having a gander to see just how rich this boss is gonna get. However such hoards are rarely just left in the open, they'll be put in a vault or, in the absence of such a secure area, the boss may well place his "throne" (normally just a big chair) on top of the hoard so he can look down upon supplicants who come before him.[10b]
Gold in Sylvania[]
Gold can be found in Sylvania's mountains but it is always tarnished, as if ruined by its proximity to warpstone -- far from the pure element so beloved by Dwarfs. Even so, tarnished gold has value and can find markets further into Stirland and even Ostermark. Additionally Sylvania is bordered by the Worlds Edge Mountains, near to those very same seams where Dwarfs find their own gold and gems.[10c]
When a Vampire Count discovers a large seam of gold, they will send their Undead minions forth to scour it clean. Larger seams of tarnished gold benefit from a grander infrastructure, with dank mines being established and run throughout the day and night, as Zombie workers tirelessly hack into the mountain to bring the black-hearted noble their mound of tarnished gold.[10c]
There are a few smelteries within Sylvania, with the vast majority of its blackened gold being shipped out to provinces where skilled goldsmiths are able to make the best of it. Even so, Sylvania does have its own Balefire Gold Smelteries, which make use of great furnaces with an ornate, brazen face and yellow-green balefire burning within its sneering mouth. These smelteries under the Vampires' dominion produce a gold with a unique greenish sheen. Dwarfs reject such material outright, but Vampires enjoy the aesthetic, and even take pride in it.[10c]
Sources[]
- 1: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 2nd Edition: Old World Armoury (RPG)
- 2: Grudgelore (Lore Book)
- 2a: pg. 27
- 3: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition: Lustria (RPG)
- 4: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 2nd Edition: Knights of the Grail (RPG)
- 4a: pp. 34-37
- 5: Gotrek and Felix: Trollslayer (Novel) by William King
- 5a: Ch. 2: "Wolf Riders"
- 6: Storm of Magic (8th Edition)
- 6a: pp. 120-121
- 7:Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 2nd Edition: Realms of Sorcery (RPG)
- 7a: pp. 89-94
- 8: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition: Archives of the Empire Vol. II (RPG)
- 8a: pg. 10
- 9: Total War: Warhammer III (PC Game)
- 9a: Gold Standard (Ogre Kingdoms tech tree)
- 10: Total War: Warhammer (PC Game)
- 10a: Cave of Shinies, Shiny Pit, Stunty Mine (Orc buildings)
- 10b: Pile of Shiny Stuff, Heap of Shiny Stuff, Da Hoard (Orc buildings)
- 10c: Tarnished Gold Shaft, Tarnished Gold Mine, Balefire Gold Smeltery (Vampire Counts buildings)
- 10d: Gold Mining Pit, Gold Mine, Gold Smelter (Human realm buildings)
- 11: Dead Calm (Short Story) by Josh Reynolds