Inside Borin’s office, RIku took a piece of charcoal and began to sketch on a fresh piece of parchnt, not the talisman formations this ti, but a diagram of a sturdy, powerful-looking press with a large lever and a heavy plate.
"Imagine this," Riku explained, pointing to different parts of his drawing. "This is a powerful press. We would first create a ’master die’..."
Borin leaned closer, his brow furrowed. "A master die, Master Riku? Like a seal, but for tal?"
"Exactly like a seal, in principle," Riku affird. "But this master die would be incredibly hard, perhaps made of specially treated steel. And the crucial part is, the runic formation on the die would be engraved as a negative image – like a mold. So, where we want a raised line on the talisman, the die would have a recessed groove, and where we want a groove on the talisman, the die would have a raised ridge."
"Ah, I see!" Borin’s eyes lit up with understanding. "So when pressed into softer tal, it leaves the positive, raised pattern of our runes on the talisman itself! Clever, very clever."
"Precisely," Riku continued. "Then, we would need ’blanks’ – simple, flat pieces of copper or silver, cut to the rough shape and size of our talismans. Your smiths are already skilled at producing such basic forms, I imagine?"
"Aye," Borin nodded. "Cutting and flattening tal into uniform shapes is simple enough work for any apprentice. We can produce those in quantity. We had no challenges when we did that for the earlier talismans."
"Good. Now, before we can use the press," Riku went on, "these blanks need to be heated to a certain temperature and then cooled down to make the tal softer and easier to work on. Do you understand what I am saying, Elder?"
Tharin stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Hmmm.. Normally, we would just work on the heated tal as it is easier to work on."
"You’re right, Elder Tharin," Riku said, "That is one way to do it."
"However, this process of cooling down after heating the tal is sothing called annealing. Annealed tal is easier to shape than simply heated tal because the annealing process increases its ductility and reduces its hardness, making it more pliable and less prone to cracking or breaking during forming operations."
"If we tried to press the hard die into unannealed tal, the blank might crack, or the impression wouldn’t be deep or clear enough. But an annealed blank will take the impression of the runic die perfectly under the pressure of this press."
Borin and Tharin looked to be in deep thought, processing Riku’s words. Tharin then exclaid in wonder. "So that is why sotis, cracks would appear on the tal! I always thought that it was a skill issue."
"Haha, it still takes skill to forge, Elder Tharin. However, annealing makes the process easier."
Riku laughed and then continued with his explanation. "So, we take our annealed talisman blank, place it under this press with the master die, and with a strong, even pressure, it imprints the entire runic pattern onto the blank in a single action. Perfectly, every ti."
Borin leaned back, looking impressed.
"Master Riku, if this process really works, then we would be able to create the talismans at a much faster speed. We might even be able to make all of them within 7 days!"
"Exactly," Riku confird. "It would be incredibly fast and ensure every engraving is identical, maximizing the enchantnt’s effectiveness. The Dwarves would still need to prepare the blanks, anneal them properly, and perhaps do so finishing work after the imprinting, but the most ti-consuming and intricate part – the runic engraving – would be dramatically sped up."
Elder Borin stared at the sketch, his mind, steeped in centuries of traditional Dwarven smithcraft, now buzzing with the implications of this new technology. "A press... that stamps runes... with force and precision..." Borin murmured, tracing the lines of Riku’s sketch with a calloused finger.
"But we would still need a machine that can produce adequate pressure," Thrain mused, his practical smith’s mind identifying the challenge. "Such a press would need to be imnsely strong. That might not be such an easy task to build from scratch."
"Don’t worry about that, Elder Thrain," Riku said with a confident smile. "I have just the thing for that. Can we go to the forge now?"
"Sure, right this way, Master Riku."
-------------
Soon, the group reached an open part of the forges. Riku took a look around and nodded.
"Right here would be good. Stand back a little, Elders. And do not be surprised. I am just using a magic spell to produce so things that I have prepared."
Borin and Thrain exchanged curious glances but did as he asked. Riku closed his eyes for a mont, calling out to the system.
System, materialize the components for the ’Imprinting Press’ and the master die blank.
Ding!
[Done, host]
Following his command, a collection of precisely machined tal parts appeared on the stone floor. There were heavy gears, polished pistons, thick plates of dark, unknown tal, gleaming copper coils, and a solid, rectangular block of hardened steel – the blank for the master die. The components looked incredibly advanced, far beyond anything the Dwarven forges had ever produced.
Elder Thrain, his smith’s eyes wide, approached the materialized components almost reverently. He ran a calloused finger over a perfectly smooth piston. "By the First Forge’s fire... look at this craftsmanship! The tolerances... the finish... this is not the work of any mortal hand I know."
Borin was equally stunned. "Master Riku... these parts... they are flawless."
"These are the components for our press," Riku said. "The blueprints are in my mind. With your expertise in assembly and talwork, Elders, I believe we can put this together relatively quickly."
What followed was a marvel of collaborative effort. Riku, guided by the system’s blueprint in his mind, directed Thrain, Borin, and a few other skilled Dwarven smiths who had gathered. The Dwarves, with their innate understanding of chanics and tal, worked with a speed and precision that impressed even Riku.
Heavy components were lifted into place, gears shed smoothly, and arcane accumulators (which Riku explained would help provide consistent pressure) were carefully integrated into the fra.
Within an hour, the ’Imprinting Press’ stood assembled – a robust, formidable machine that humd with a quiet, contained power.
"Phew. That completes step one."
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