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Bloodstone is an opaque, sea green stone that is
liberally speckled with reddish-orange spots. The contrast between
the green and the red causes the stone to look as though it has been
splashed with blood. Bloodstone can be found
worldwide.
According to dwarves, jewelers, and most
alchemists, bloodstone, by rights, should be nothing but chalcedony
and jasper. No matter how much skeptics may protest, however, the
undeniable fact remains that bloodstone does not act magically like
chalcedony, jasper, or anything expected from a combination of the
two. Bloodstone possesses powerful warding magic that, when properly
keyed, will protect the spirit of one who wears bloodstone from a
direct attack.
Among the odder legends attached to bloodstone is
one dating from a cult of Mularos in Mestanir. These servants of
Mularos claimed that bloodstone redirected spiritual attack, rather
than absorbing it. Supposedly, the stone is sacred to Mularos
because it channels spiritual pain from the person expecting it to
an innocent party who is unaware of its arrival. No outside
experimentation ever confirmed this claim in a satisfactory fashion,
and the cult itself was destroyed when Jantalar occupied Mestanir.
During the war between Baron Hochstib of Jantalar
and Baron Malwind of Vornavis, one of the greatest weapons in Baron
Hochstib's power was the legendary Mandis Crystal. The Mandis
Crystal was an artifact of the Turamzzyrian Empire that had the
power to prevent spellcasting of all kinds and to drain the very
mana away from those attuned to its flows. In close proximity, the
Mandis Crystal would drain not only the mana but also the very
spirit away from those in its vicinity, resulting in hideous death.
Jantalar successfully occupied Wehnimer's Landing, but the tide of
the occupation turned when a group of local militants snuck into
Mestanir and destroyed the Mandis Crystal. During the onslaught, the
militants protected themselves from the crystal's ravaging effects
by wearing bloodstone jewelry.
A gift of bloodstone warns the recipient of
spiritual danger. If given to a priest, it suggests that the
priest's faith is ailing -- under most circumstances, a grievous
insult.
Bloodstone, green jasper dotted
with bright red spots of iron oxide.
It is also called heliotrope which refers
to turning towards the sun, inferring that the reflection of the sun
is blood-red.
Bloodstone was said
by the ancient scholar, Pliny, to have been used as a mirror for
viewing an eclipse of the sun.
One legend of the origin of bloodstone says that it was first
formed when drops of Christ's blood fell and stained some jasper
found at the foot of the cross. Medieval Christians often used
bloodstone to carve scenes of the crucifixion and martyrs, causing
bloodstone to be also called martyr's stone.
Bloodstone was once used as an amulet in the belief that it could
stop bleeding. It was also said to be able to turn the sun red and
to make thunder and lightning occur. It was supposed to give the
wearer clairvoyance while preserving his faculties and health.
Bloodstone was well known to Aztecs that used it to regulate the
blood flow. Even today, finely powdered bloodstone is used as
a medicine and aphrodisiac in India.
Bloodstone alternates with
aquamarine as the birthstone
for March. |
