Strategic Resources

Strategic Resources are used to create weapons, armor and accessories that increase the effectiveness of heroes and units, and are also required to create some of the more advanced City Improvements and Expansions. The Vaulters can use Strategic Resources as a special booster, similar to Luxury Resources, making the selected strategic resource the Holy Resource for the duration. Strategic Resources current totals are recorded in the Empire interface.

Strategic Resources are obtained either by constructing Extractors on resource deposits found on the map, or by direct purchase from the Marketplace. Extractor construction is unlocked in specific Eras by technological research, whereas the ability to purchase resources from the Market is unlocked by the Era II technology Imperial Coinage.

Having a Strategic Resource on a terrain tile adds an additional +1 Science to the terrain tile.

Image	Name	Era	Booster effect	Lore	Artwork
	Titanium	I Alchemist's Furnace	+20% on Cities	Occuring in mineralized form, the extraction of titanium is a complex process for an alchemist, but the effort is worth it. Light, strong, and resistant to water damage, this metal can transform armies.
	Glassteel	I Alchemist's Furnace	+20% on Cities	Sprouting in tangled fronds, the vines, when heated in sealed vats with sundry chymicals, can be drawn out into incredibly strong filaments that have myriad uses, such as garroting wire.
	Adamantian	III Smelting Station	+20% on Cities	No material except diamonds comes close the the unbreakable nature of adamantian. Recent advances in smelting now allow craftsmen to extract this metal for many uses.
	Palladian	III Smelting Station	+20% on Cities	This roseate mineral which expands in geometric-shaped waves, grows from patches of earth rich with fossilized remains. Clever treatments allow the mineral to be transformed into a light, regenerative mail.
	Mithrite	IV Rare Metal Foundry	+15% on Cities +15% on Cities	Mithrite, or "Emerald Lances", once purely used for decorative flourishes in the halls of the exalted, is now understood to be a powerful Dust-enhancing substance when prepared in a special crystalline form.
	Hyperium	IV Rare Metal Foundry	+15% on Cities +15% on Cities	For long ages, perhaps because of the noxious clouds that hung over deposits, Hyperium's amazing fertilizing powers were unknown. Now, by using sophisticated filtering masks, this miracle substance can finally be exploited.