Shield Magic in Elwynn: Abjuration at Mirror Lake

By Rethelle Starkweather, Apprentice, Mage Circle of Sarceline

Dissertation Submitted to the Library of Sarceline in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for Advancement to the Rank of Journeyman in the Mage Circle of Sarceline

Introduction

According to Firebane (n.d.), “Abjuration is the study of protective magic and one of the most important schools for a young mage to study.” This study will look at abjuration in general and abjuration at Mirror Lake in Elwynn Forest in particular. Mirror Lake is the location of a ley line that is particularly useful to abjurationists. Its potent ley energy can be focused into powerful shields that can be used to protect the caster or other targets. This most often manifests itself into what is known as a Mana Shield, “a spell that transmutes raw mana into a barrier that protects the caster from attacks. Properly executed, this spell can protect the mage against even the most formidable of attacks” (Firebane, n.d.). However, “the [M]ana [S]hield is very difficult for a novice to master. It often takes a mage months of practice to even conjure a simple [M]ana [S]hield, and thus, more basic alternatives exist” (Firebane, n.d.).

These basic alternatives take the form of Frost Armour, which increases casting speed (and thus depletes a mage’s stamina faster) and reduces the movement and casting speed of attackers; Mage Armour, which increases the caster’s mastery of that school of magic and reduces the duration of harmful magic against the caster; and Molten Armour, which increases the caster’s chances of landing a critical strike against an enemy target. Unlike Mana Shield, which requires the caster to recast the spell once it is depleted through damage or time, these armours are passive (i.e., they do not require recasting); however, they do not reduce damage taken or prevent damage (the primary purpose of Mana Shield and Ice Barrier).

Another alternative abjuration spell is Ice Barrier, which, like Mana Shield, requires the caster to recast the spell once it is depleted through damage or time. Unlike Mana Shield, however, depending on the specialisation of magic chosen by the caster, the strength of the shield can be enhanced through the acquisition of powerful artifacts. These artifacts, however, are exceedingly difficult to procure, and require a very advanced level of proficiency in mage magic.

Due to the shortcomings of these abjuration spells, research into new, specialisation-specific armours is ongoing. These new spells, tentatively named Blazing Barrier, Prismatic Barrier, and Frost Barrier, combine the effects of the minor mage armour spells with Ice Barrier. It is as yet unknown whether these new abjuration spells will suffer from the shortcomings of Mana Shield and Ice Barrier.

Materials and Methods

Materials

The materials used for this study were standard reagents used in the casting of Mana Shield and Ice Barrier. Also used for this study were scrying orbs (Tower of Azora, Elwynn Forest) to determine the effects of the testing, conjured mana food to replenish the author’s mana pool, gnomish recording equipment (Talvash del Kissel, Mystic Ward, Ironforge), and liquid amber (Ulthir, Alchemy Supplies, Craftman’s Terrace, Darnassus) for creating the ritual circle.

Methods

In order to focus the power of the ley lines in Mirror Lake for the purposes of this study, it was necessary to combine three elements of spellcasting: visualising in the mind the basic elements of the spell, creating a ritual circle (Falconheart, 31 LC(a)), and speaking the proper incantation in the proper language—draconic, which the principle investigator for this study was taught as an apprentice of the Kirin Tor (Falconheart, 31 LC(b)). The combination of the (exceedingly) complex ritual circle, the equally complex incantation, and the visualisation of the basic elements of the spell resulted in the successful testing of the proposed mage armours.

The casting of the lesser-powered mage armours is generally simple; it requires the caster to merely visualise the effects of the intended spell, as well as a minor incantation. Mana Shield, on the other hand, requires visualisation and a more complex incantation, though this combination is generally achievable for any mage that has been basically trained in the use of arcane magic. For the proposed new mage armours, however, since the spells are in the process of being invented and refined, a combination of the three techniques is required to properly focus the power of the ley lines. They should become easier to cast with practice and thus require less in the way of focus and complexity, but for this researcher, they were all necessary.

Firstly, a ritual circle was drawn. Due to the relatively unknown nature of the spells being attempted, the author decided to draw a more complex ritual circle than was her wont. The outer circle was large, at nine feet in diameter. The central triangle, drawn of the same material as the outer circle (liquid amber), was equilateral, with the vertices of the triangle touching the inner line of the outer circle. The cardinal signs were drawn next. The author typically uses the cardinal directions of north, south, east, and west, but due to the complex and draining nature of this research, she chose to use the signs of the four elemental planes, so as to seek the blessing of the elemental lords. Next came the subordinate patterns. The subordinate patterns used for this study were of the standard variety. Finally, the script was added. This script, written in the ancient draconic, was complex and held the incantations required for the spellwork.

Secondly, the incantation was constructed. This construction happens in three parts: translating the desired effect into draconic, carefully copying down the incantation on a sheaf of parchment, and painstakingly inscribing the incantation in the ritual circle. This is the most complex and time-consuming portion of the process, as inscribing the wrong incantation can lead to madness, incapacitation, or even death.

Thirdly, the desired effects were carefully visualised. Due to the experimental nature of this research, rather than try to invent new abjuration spells, the author attempted to alter the Mana Shield and Ice Barrier spells. In an effort to easily differentiate between the desired effects, the incantations were altered slightly. The aim was to create three visually distinct new spells. The results of this work were manifested in the aforementioned Blazing Barrier, Prismatic Barrier, and Frost Barrier, corresponding to the fire, arcane, and frost branches of arcane magic, respectively. This aligns well with the original experimental hypothesis that the differing spells could be combined to create new, equally powerful and more utilitarian shields. However, further research is required to refine the creation of these shields and to discover ways to increase the size (diameter) of the shields and to cast them on friendly units.

Results

Though the attempted spellwork was exceedingly complex and dangerous, the author proved to be sufficiently trained and accomplished to succeed in this task. Blazing Barrier, which combined the principle of Mana Shield and Ice Barrier with that of Molten Armour, resulted in a shimmering, fiery shield that surrounded the author. It succeeded in absorbing damage and increasing the author’s critical strike chance. Prismatic Barrier, which combined the principle of Mana Shield and Ice Barrier with that of Mage Armour, resulted in a shimmering arcane shield that surrounded the author. It succeeded in absorbing damage, decreasing the duration of harmful effects (i.e., curses and the like) against the author, and increasing the author’s mastery of arcane magic. Finally, Frost Barrier, which combined the principle of Mana Shield and Ice Barrier with that of Frost Armour, resulted in a shimmering shield of ice that surrounded the author. It succeeded in absorbing damage, increasing the author’s casting speed, and slowing enemy attacks.

References

Falconheart, V. (31 LC(a)). Ritual circles [dissertation]. Mirwood, Duchy of Westridge: Mage Circle of Sarceline.

Falconheart, V. (31 LC(b)). The languages of arcane magic [essay]. Mirwood, Duchy of Westridge: Mage Circle of Sarceline.

Runeweaver, A., & Firebane, H. (n.d.). Abjuration. In H. Firebane (ed.), Stormwind Circle mage tome. Stormwind City, Eastern Kingdoms: Mage Quarter Press.