The Bigger Picture to Herbomancy

# **Taking a look at the bigger picture**

Written by Valindra Iliven

*"Herbomancy is the direct manipulation of flora, able to harness plants, herbs and nature in its wildest form."*

Herbomancy follows intrigued farmers, tree-huggers, and more. Whether they utilize this mancy as an expedient for their own individual use or for more advanced opportunities. A mundane misinterpretation of herbomancy is that it’s weak, and ‘strong’ spells are for vines and branches, the more sturdy and 'reliable' sources. However, this isn’t essentially accurate. *Like any other mancy, herbomancy can be dangerous if utilized correctly.*

When a person looks at herbomancy, their first guess is that the main spells that are utilized by herbomancers are ones that relate to vines, flowers, and branches. This is normal, and for the most part, is true, many herbomancers learn the simple spells and some even maintain these generic spells throughout their attunement. *Let’s be real here, has anyone ever genuinely looked at the bigger picture within the construct of herbomancy?*

Herbomancy is the usage of PLANTS, which can mean specific pieces of flora and their sub-categories. For example, we have trees, which have the sub-category components such as leaves, vines, roots, and bark, though in some cases even sap. For flowers, there are pollen, thorns, and petals. Plants have more uses than people originally believe, which leads to claims such as herbomancy being a very impotent and ‘bad’ mancy. Though, once people take their time to acknowledge the more preponderant advancements with such mystic arts can it be properly discerned as a mancy with great opportunity.

## **NOTES SO FAR**

An example of why herbomancy is good is to look back on certain types of plants. Particular ones emit flammable gas which in this case, can be used for two different things. The first can be to set something ablaze to use for protection against creatures that do not like fire. The second can be for generic light, using the base of a torch and growing the plant in the center of it before lighting it on fire can allow for it to burn brightly like any other light source. Of course, if you do not carry a torch base, there are more ulterior motives such as branches, using water to wet beneath where you are placing your seed so that the fire cannot spread below the damp parts of the makeshift torch.

Demonstrations for how such sub-categories were noted and brought into the light were simply, *can anything really be complete if not every rock is turned over*? The advanced realization of such sub-categories for the variety of plants mainly used gives more general ideas for spells and future spells that may not even be used just yet.

All that’s been written down here has been gained through mostly individual examination across the vast variety of plants that grow in our native areas. For over twenty years I’ve taken note of whatever I can find while on studying trips that I can now shape into a book to hand out for others to read and understand as well.

While casting, you can bend branches to your will, utilize roots as shields, cover your scent with a vigorous smell of a certain plant or even utilize the environment around you as an expeditious way for travel. Bushes can become temporary jail cells, trees can be manipulated for transport, grass can be used for medical needs such as bandages and you can even utilize the bark from trees as weapons if need be.

Besides casting, all types of flora are useful, no matter what it is. Wild plants are described to obtain more effective medical use as they are in their natural habitat or where they are required most. So acquiring these certain plants can help create alchemy potions and medicine. [It's good to get maps and pinpoint certain locations for where ingredients are.]

Another thing that can be looked at as useful is what you’ve been given! Vines are something e

very mancer and most people are aware of. Vines can be utilized for climbing and in lots of cases — for example, tough jungle vines — have the capabilities to mimic rope. Though of course, it ranges in use, whether those be to produce tubes, ropes, or even binding things together. If used correctly, vines can even be manipulated for lightweight armor. Things to do can be such as wrapping vines around themselves in coils like one might do with a length of rope, offering some lightweight protection while keeping it at hand in case of sudden incidents.

Something that should be commonly known amongst herbomancers is that not every place is designed for flora. The mountains are a commonplace for this, as well as the Aridian deserts. Both lack an abundance of plant magnification, though that doesn’t mean that plant use is completely out of the question. An expeditiously shrewd conception for going into such perfidious areas is to find a way to bring subsidiary plants and seeds along with you, bringing a moderate belt-pouch or a backpack that is filled with rich soil.

Another common misconception is that herbomancers can additionally cast upon fungi, but this is incorrect. Fungi are discrete from average plants and to be able to authentically cast upon them would if anything require a submancy. Remember that this doesn’t mean you’ve just lost something that can be useful. Things such as spores have cousins, most commonly known as pollen. Spells regarding pollen can be utilized in a cloud, which can temporarily affect one's vision or cause intense choking, coughing, or sneezing. In most cases, these are not lethal like spores, though still should be given care, especially if the person inhaling it has a breathing issue.

## NOTES PT.2

Regarding the first paragraph after the notes, it can be seen to hold the words of “*bend branches to your will, utilize roots as shields, cover your scent with a vigorous smell of a certain plant or even utilize the environment around you as an expeditious way for travel*”. All of these are actually spells of mine, which have been found through different experiences. Some were out of sudden ideas, others while being put on the spot in dire situations.

My own scent appears to change with each encounter with a person, though this doesn’t originally stop tracking animals, at least not entirely. While carrying flowers on me, either on a belt, hat or literally on my shoulder, the scent radiates about, and for a while has the ability to mask my scent.

The way I found out about using vines as a way for transport was, quite literally, from watching how animals traverse the treeline. Certain creatures used the branches to propel themselves while others literally just jumped. This led to my idea of connecting vines together and utilizing them in a way to move across from trees, of course, those that are in range with each other.

Utilizing roots as a shield is a part of one of my many spells, with being on the ground the wielder can raise roots from the ground to act as a protective shield. This was created during a study trip, taking most time in examining flora in the swamps to identify any ways of manipulation I may have skimmed over.

Most things documented, yet again, have been gained through my research. While remaining in the swamps for countless days for my own studies I came to a branch in plant use.

While venturing out to check on a friend's grave, or simply adventuring through snowy plains, I always carry plants with me, usually seeds. With this, I came to the idea of trying to enhance myself in the cold by utilizing vines and flower stems as a durable and stable jacket.

In the Aridian desert, you have plants such as seaweed besides the shore, cacti, and pine trees. Plants take more to grow and usually consist of requiring water to grow properly without forming in a way you don’t want it to.

Fungi are quite literally not the same as plants, their common difference is that plants use photosynthesis to grow while fungi take nutrients from the soil.

Pollen is clearly something that can be struggled with, especially

if a person is walking through a field of flowers and they happen to inhale some floating pieces. It’s a real treat to experience what happens from it, totally.

You need to realize that you have not only base plants but their subcategories to stand by your choice in spells and preferences, just because something was ticked off the list doesn’t mean you’ve lost it all. You still have plenty to choose from.

Something that has crossed through a herbomancers mind at least once is the intricate scent of flowers. Funny enough, even flowers can be useful as spells, especially their scent. It's been documented and experimented with that certain types of bugs can be magnetized to concrete types of flowers, which can additionally be created as an advancement. Unfortunately, I cannot back up that manipulating a flower to smell like rotten flesh will virtually immediately lure out bugs to swarm the unsuspecting victim or attacker before you. Unless of course there is a subsisting submancy for the control of a flower's scent to more expeditiously attract bugs for your own use.

As herbomancers exist, there are particular individuals — such as myself — who employ their knowledge not only to grow said plants but to enrich the world around them in a multitude of ways. Combat isn’t something that is a requirement, it’s always good to check for ulterior motives for things. Even if something seems impossible for non-combative motives, there will inevitably be a certain rock to turn over and interpret. You don’t need to kill an ogre because it walked up on you so you come to the conclusion of there being ‘no other way to dispense it.’ Remember your mancy, its uses. You can make an ogre move away without even having to raise a sword. *For example, flowing your vitor through a tree to act as if it's alive to frighten it off.*

## CLEARING STUFF UP / NOTES PT.3

* Flowers are your basic herbomancy spells, if you haven’t used them at least once, then you’re really going places. As any mancer knows, it’s great to build up bit by bit. This is where I add in the talk about flowers and their scents, which I hope can help develop the usage of flowers for greater means in the near future.
* My aspiration for flora has transpired since my youth, this has greatly impacted my studies towards plant matter and every bit of information I’ve gained throughout the years. **I seek to employ and hand out my knowledge so that others may gain and learn from it in return.**
* Again, like listed above, combat isn’t the only way to solve something. I myself am a general non-combative person unless required to or for spars, which has led to my ideas of **ulterior methods**. The example of an ogre was something that had quite literally *happened to me*, and in my experience, I acted in a passive way to drive the ogre away. I hid behind a tree, casting my vitor into it to allow the branches to wave around to bewilder the ogre into believing it was an ent, which after a while of convincing allowed it to walk away.

Some things that I’ve seen to be good for using, even those deemed little in their importance, can be documented down here.

* *Scents* are important and can be manipulated in many ways. A **passive** use can be to **ease the mind**, using sweet-smelling flowers such as camomile or lavender. Other uses can be for more **vile needs**, changing the way a plant is formed to radiate a putrid smell like few plants give off naturally.
* Wild plants are important! They hold many medical components, much more than plants that are grown in a garden.
* Sub-categories for plants are **useful**, growing fruit or thorns for anything a person may need. *Both passively and violently.*
* Plants are your **friends**, use them in ways that can benefit both sides. Of course, this isn’t a **MUST**, more so a hopeful request. Using a plant that is battered up, without trying to enhance its current qualities, can end up with a **rather poor end** of the stick. Make sure the plants you are using are healthy, and if not advance their health so that your spells aren’t sappy and weak, but durable and strong. *(Of course, depending on your level, a plants ‘strength’ will vary.)*

I hope that reading this gave a better understanding of herbomancy and its various enhancements. If more is discovered then a second book will almost definitely appear somewhere in the future. . .