Giodes/Gem Cutting

Gem Cutting, or Bijou, as it is called here, is the art of cutting raw gems with unique flaws into different predefined patterns. The Test of the Bijou is about creating a Scholar's Gem Cutting Table, where you can try to cut a certain raw gem over and over again until you figure out how to produce the so called Challenge Cut, which is defined by the builder of the table. In 7L, there is a compound at 1347, -1056 where 27 Scholar's Gem Cutting Tables have been created, one with a gem of each pattern in the gem catalog, where you can practice all possible cuts. Note that each table will always start with the same flaws on the raw gem, and it's always possible to create the challenge cut of that table. When using real gems on a standard gem cutting table, the challenge is to determine before starting what patterns might be possible to cut from this particular raw gem (all of them have different flaws), and then try to achieve this. Some cuts, like Lens, is possible to make from pretty much any raw gem, while others, like a Mask or Bridge, takes dozens of raw gems to make. It is therefore more efficient to always try to go for the rarest cut possible when cutting a gem, and only fall back to the easier ones if the rare, or more difficult one, fails.