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Harmonium

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Harmonium
Ettmetal.svg
Ettmetal (Feruchemy).svg
by Isaac Stewart
Metal type God Metal (Harmony)
Properties Power Metallic Arts technologies
Explode when mixed with water
Universe Cosmere
This page or section contains spoilers for The Lost Metal!
This information has the ability to potentially ruin elements of the plot for the reader. Proceed with caution if you have not read this book.
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Ettmetal, also known as harmonium, is the God Metal of Harmony. It is used in some of the Southern Scadrians' Metallic Arts technologies.[1][2]

Properties

Harmonium is the condensed elemental form of Harmony's power. Alloying atium and lerasium will not give harmonium. While difficult, it is possible to obtain atium and lerasium from ettmetal, but not through mechanical means.[3]

Chemical Properties

Due to the merging of Ruin and Preservation's intents into Harmony, ettmetal's Spiritual aspect is in opposition with itself, leading to effects on the metal's Physical aspect, which makes it extremely reactive.[4][5] It reacts violently with water, similar to alkali metals. After reacting with water, residual ettmetal hydroxide is left behind, though the substance's properties are unknown.[6] The Southern Scadrians use ettmetal to create powerful bombs,[7] which the Set have been trying to replicate with limited success.[8]

Metallic Arts

by Isaac Stewart

The Allomantic, Feruchemical, and Hemalurgic properties of ettmetal are unknown.[9] Because of its volatile nature near water, ingesting ettmetal is likely to be fatal for Allomancers, though a full Mistborn who is also able to heal through the explosive damage (e.g., by Compounding Feruchemical gold for health) could burn it for some effect.[10] Hemalurgic spikes would also likely be difficult to create, due to the metal's reactivity, however, it is not impossible.[11]

Mechanical Uses

In conjunction with Southern Scadrian technology, ettmetal can reproduce Allomantic or Feruchemical powers within its vicinity.[12][13] The Southern Scadrians have also used the metal in primer cubes which can somehow regulate ettmetal's effects with the flip of a switch.[12] When used Allomantically, the metal is said to burn "with a pure whiteness" and will slowly be consumed,[7] in the same way it would be by a Misting or Mistborn. It is used to fuel Southern Scadrian Allomantic technology, including their airships that run via steelpushing.[7] It is theoretically possible to use a primer cube to reproduce other Investitures, such as Surgebinding.[14]

Reaction to Trellium

When Ettmetal has eletric currents moving passing through it the metal softens and can be split in half.[15] If, during this process, Trellium is inserted between the two pieces a violent reaction occurs as the matter of both metals are converted into pure energy.[16] The blast is powerful enough that not even Autonomy or Harmony are aware as to how strong an explosion of it can be.[17] Minor fragments of Lerasium and Atium are also produced by this reaction.[18][19]

Trivia

  • If harmonium followed the naming conventions of the other God Metals it would have been named Sazedium. However, Sazed didn't like the sound of it.[1]
  • Brandon Sanderson has described harmonium as "super-cesium" in reference to its violent chemical reaction with water.[2] Cesium, like other real-life alkali metals, is extremely reactive and will cause an explosion with water even at sub-zero temperatures. He later clarified that cesium was not intended as a direct analogue; ettmetal would theoretically be classified as an alkali metal, although it has a different melting point.[20]
  • The Mistborn Metal Dice Set from Crafty Games lists a non-canonical description of harmonium's properties, stating "Unknown in the Classic Era, Harmonium replicates the effects of nearby Allomantic or Feruchemical metals." It also lists harmonium as an Internal and Pushing God Metal.[21]

Notes

  1. ↑ a b /r/books AMA 2015
    — Arcanum - 2015-07-06#
  2. ↑ a b Arcanum Unbounded Hoboken signing
    — Arcanum - 2016-12-03#
  3. ↑ Skyward Houston signing
    — Arcanum - 2018-11-19#
  4. ↑ Boskone 54
    — Arcanum - 2017-02-19#
  5. ↑ Arcanum Unbounded Hoboken signing
    — Arcanum - 2016-12-03#
  6. ↑ Stuttgart signing
    — Arcanum - 2019-05-17#
  7. ↑ a b c The Bands of Mourning chapter 22#
  8. ↑ The Bands of Mourning epilogue#
  9. ↑ Hero of Ages Q&A - Time Waster's Guide
    — Arcanum - 2008-10-15#
  10. ↑ Emerald City Comic Con 2018
    — Arcanum - 2018-03-01#
  11. ↑ Emerald City Comic Con 2018
    — Arcanum - 2018-03-01#
  12. ↑ a b The Bands of Mourning chapter 17#
  13. ↑ The Bands of Mourning chapter 29#
  14. ↑ YouTube Spoiler Stream 4
    — Arcanum - 2022-06-16#
  15. ↑ The Lost Metal chapter 15#
  16. ↑ The Lost Metal chapter 17#
  17. ↑ The Lost Metal chapter 69#
  18. ↑ The Lost Metal chapter 71#
  19. ↑ The Lost Metal epilogue 4#
  20. ↑ General Reddit 2017
    — Arcanum - 2017-01-02#
  21. ↑ Harmonium dice description
    — Crafty Games #
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