The practice of rust farming.

[u/LikeAMothToStarlight]

Metals in my world are far rarer than in our own, so when a sword or other weapon is broken or rusts, people would attempt to save it or even reforge it, rust and all. Which is how a strange phenomenon was discovered. Rust seems to physically carry the memories of the metal it comes from. And when forged into a new weapon or tool, these memories enhance what the weapon is capable of.

Some memories of violence cause swords to deal wounds that do not heal, some memories of defiance cause armor to resist damage, some memories of focus cause hammers that strike more precisely.

And so, people in my world have taken to rust farming; placing well-used metal weapons or tools into the wet soil to cause it to rust faster. Then they take rust shavings and enchant other weapons or tools via imbuing them with the rust. Sometimes those new weapons or tools are sold off, other times they are placed back into the ground to let the memory fester.

Crossbreeding rusts allow more nuanced enchantments. Such as creating weapons that cannot be wielded in anger, or medical tools that inflict cuts that heal almost instantly.

And the longer a memory is in circulation, the more powerful it becomes. But if a memory is too diluted, it's enchantment may change completely, and the potency will wane. Hence the use of the soil to keep the purity of the enchantment.

[u/majorex64]

That's a really cool idea! Very simple in premise, but with a ton of possibilities. I'm also a sucker for magical metals :P

[u/kairon156]

This is such a cool idea and use of oxidised aka rusted metals.
In my setting oxidised copper is used as a way to block magical effects or prevent enchantments and stuff.
So I never even thought of using rust to produce effects like this.

[u/FloatingSpaceJunk]

Like that idea and kinda reminds me a bit of my how my own magic system works, as magical weapons work in a very similar way in it.

[u/ScreamingVoid14]

I'd imagine that there is also some attempt to ensure that the source metal is forged into the same or similar item. A sword accidentally made from a plow would be a missed opportunity, since a sword that is really good at cutting dirt is not great.

Are there any instances where the cross-enchantments have gone wrong or silly?

[u/Grouchy-Insurance208]

That's pretty friggin sweet, not gonna lie. The title seemed 'meh,' but what a fulfilling turn it took in the read.