Gex
Gex (Officially: Gexium. Plural: Gexes. Shortened: G or G.) is the term used for the common currency of Auria. A Gex is a coin-sized cut of six widely appearing gemstones ranging in rarities and worth with the Emerald Gex being the most common and least valuable and the Diamond Gex the rarest and most valuable.
Each piece of Gex holds concentrated elemental properties inside of it that correspond with their colour. Gex is mined from the Shimmering Halls, an ancient and magical underground city in north Okramm. Gexium Deposits within the Shimmering Halls regrow at a more rapid pace than other minerals, but the harvesting of it is tightly regulated by the Swe'Zela.
Emerald - 1 Gex
Topaz - 10 Gex
Ruby - 20 Gex
Amethyst - 50 Gex
Sapphire - 100 Gex
Diamond - 200 Gex
References for prices in Auria can be found here.
The Merchants' Oath
Prior to the Era of Magic trading across Auria varied from culture to culture. Nomadic people would see trades purely through favours to one another while the few kingdoms that existed back then had developed a system using coins to trade goods. Unfortunately the though minerals used to make these coins, Gold and Silver, were and still are rare. Some nations would switch into using other forms of trade when Gold and Silver became impossible to find, using other resources or making attempts at establishing laws to regulate trade but nothing would ever be set in stone.
The year 1312 would mark the year when an Enkhulu-Senkh Hybrid named Ma'Nanz Musa of the Urol empire discovered the Shimmering Halls beneath his gilded palace. Here he would find clusters of gemstones that form in unique hexagonal-shapes as well as the Swe'Zela Cobros, ancient sworn protectors of those halls. After an 8-week battle between his forces and the Cobros, a treaty was reached that allowed Ma'Nanz Musa to collect Gexium from the halls and use it for his endeavours.
With the companionship of Nova Voltex Diplomat Cornel Wander and Andren Ado Bronzehammer of Mor Kardia, Ma'Nanz Musa swore the Merchants' Oath. Travelling to the three winds, they introduced coin-sized Gexes in their trade with others. Trade with Gex caught on fast through skilled negotiation and boundless charisma, allowing Ma'Nanz and his comrades to convene later and form the Merchants' Oath Guild, Auria's de jure faction for commerce and currency. To this day the guild operates galaxy-wide and works with other neutral factions in developing convenience and good, honest trade.