An object that survived when everything else didn’t. Handle accordingly.
Relics are magical artifacts from the previous Ages of the world - objects imbued with power during eras when magic and technology were far more advanced than anything that exists today. They are the primary objective of every Guild expedition, and the reason Hearth is still alive.
What They Are
A relic can be almost anything: a device, a weapon, a container, armor, a piece of infrastructure, an object whose original purpose is completely unknown. What they share is that they carry residual magical energy from the Age that produced them - energy the Hearth Engine can convert into warmth.
Often, relics recovered from The Wastes date to Age IV, when magical technology was at its peak. Older relics - from Age II or Age III - are rarer and typically more powerful. Age V relics exist but are more common; the Cydonian Bureaucracy, or artificers from the time, didn’t produce much of lasting magical value.
Why They Matter
The Hearth Engine consumes one relic per expedition to maintain the Thermal Sphere over Hearth. Miss a feeding and the Sphere begins to degrade. Let it go long enough and the cold comes back.
This is not theoretical; it is the reason the Guild exists!
Finding Them
Relics are recovered from relic sites - ruins, vaults, laboratories, and other remnants of previous Ages buried across the Wastes. Each site is different. Some have been picked over already, while others have never been touched. What you find depends on where you go and how thoroughly you look.
See the Mission Hub for active leads.
Bringing Them Back
Recovered relics are delivered to the Engine Chamber in the Guildhall. Nyla Vexorian, the Guild’s Seer and Engine Keeper, appraises each one: its Age of origin, its estimated fuel value, and whether it has properties worth noting before it goes in.
The Guild logs every delivery.
Burn or Keep
Now obviously, not every relic HAS to go into the Engine… Some carry properties that make them useful as equipment - a weapon, a piece of armor, a tool with an active magical effect. Guild members are trusted to manage which relics they keep and which they burn.
Manuscripts
Manuscripts are a secondary fuel source - written records, logs, and texts from previous Ages that carry enough residual magical charge to be useful. They burn less efficiently than relics: two manuscripts equal one minor relic in fuel value. They are worth recovering, and in high enough quantity can substitute for relics, but relics are more potent.
See Also
- The Hearth Engine - what the relics feed
- The Six Ages - where relics come from
- Mission Hub - where to find them
- Hearth Market - what merchants carry before you head out