Spellcasting

> *"Magic is power, harnessing the entropy of the universe to breathe life into your imagination."*
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**Spellcasting** is the deliberate and thoughtful manipulation of aetherization reactions to perform feats of magic.

There are two main methods of spellcasting: **warding** and **channeling**.

## Terms

### Magical expression

A **magical expression** or **spell** is the manifestation of a directive as a result of deliberate aetherization meant to modify the environment in a specific way. Mages can exploit the volatile reaction of mana and aether to create spells. A person who performs *spellwork* is called a **spellcaster**, or *caster* for short.

### Directive

The *directive* or *command* is the imagined effect desired by the caster. During the conjuration phase of spellcasting, a mental directive is conceived and assigned to a developing bolus through minute telepathy.

Practical & Impractical: The more impractical the directive, the more complex the spellwork must be to accommodate it.

### Bolus

A fetal spell developed through the spellcasting process into a magical expression. A *bolus* is simply any amount of mana condensed into a 'ball' or 'cord' and isolated from the animus to become a spell.

### Variance

A measure of how accurate the final magical expression was in relation to the original directive's intended effect. Variance describes the gaps in 'communication' between the caster's Second Estate and Third Estate, the mind and animus, respectively.

### Majesty

*Majesty*, sometimes called *eloquence* or *presence*, is defined as a mage's ability to communicate their desires effectively to a magical medium. In the simplest terms, majesty is the measure of a mage's competency in developing spellwork.

Majesty is determined by an individual's spellwork variance. High variance is indicative of a poor majesty, while low variance suggests strong majesty.

## Spellcasting sequence

The process of developing and casting a spell is performed in a sequence of stages.

1. **Invocation**\*
2. **Evocation**\*\*
3. **Conjuration**
4. ***Amalgamation***
5. **Discharge**

> *\* occurs only when channeling mana.* *\*\* occurs only when casting from a ward.*
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At resting position, a mage's animus operates involuntarily; generating mana, distributing it throughout the body, and ventilating excess through the skin. When a mage begins an invocation, he concentrates the mana of his animus into a condensed payload of mana, which coalesces closer together from the 'mixing' (rapidly directing one's mana through and around the internal circuits of their body). Then he must conceive the effect intended from the magical expression being conjured. Conjuration is the lynchpin for channeling.

The nervous impulses will impress the directive, or mental instruction, to the bolus, encoding a mental schematic that will activate upon aetherization, galvanizing the suffused aether in the physical environment and modifying the designated materials upon contact to produce the expression.

### Invocation

A mage initiates the sequence, tapping into the mana of their body and stockpiling energy into a bolus.

### Evocation

A mage initiates the sequence by activating a ward by providing a source of mana.

Evocation can occur at a touch of the hand at the proper start-point of the ward or ward sequence. The ward will activate and drain the mana from the source provided, be it a medium or a person's animus. An evocation can be dangerous, because the mana demanded to fuel the spell could be much more than the average human animus can provide. Careful inspection of a ward system and its attributes by a trained arcanist can allay fears of a potential risk, as the incautious and curious have learned to their detriment the cost of sacrifice.

### Conjuration

The mage channels the bolus back and force throughout their body, condensing it and accumulating mana to amplify effects and to refine the caster's majesty. Physical gestures often accompany this phase of the spellcasting process to localize the bolus inside the body.

Contemporary Eastern channeling was inspired by *sho aphun* martial arts techniques and philosophies observed during the [Hundred Years War] with the Tivar elves, greatly enhancing the potency of spellwork during conjurations.

### Discharge

The spell is released into the aethos, manifesting according to how it was prepared.

* An **instant spell** is immediate and low-energy.
* A **sustained spell** is a spell that is kept continuously active by maintaining a constant supply of energy. The invocation step must be repeatedly empowered, but the mage does not have to repeat the conjuration.

## Types of spells

Spells can be classified as **simple** or **complex expressions**, referring to the amount of time, energy, and resources needed to perform the spell with the least amount of variance possible.

### Simple expressions

A simple expression requires the least amount of energy and time to perform, summed up to about ten internal circuits. Most styles of channeling only create simple expressions.

### Complex expressions

A complex expression has the potential for more elaborate, powerful spells, with greater potential for the fantastic. Complex expressions require much more energy and movement to develop effectively, which is why complex expressions are usually performed through ward systems or convocations.

## See also

* Magic
* Font