text: Many compounds with luster and electrical conductivity maintain a simple stoichiometric formula, such as the golden TiO, blue-black RuO or coppery ReO, all of obvious oxidation state. Ultimately, assigning the free metallic electrons to one of the bonded atoms is not comprehensive and can yield unusual oxidation states. Examples are the LiPb and  ordered alloys, the composition and structure of which are largely determined by atomic size and packing factors. Should oxidation state be needed for redox balancing, it is best set to 0 for all atoms of such an alloy.