Mana

Mana is a measure of Elemental Energy that is in a form suitable for spellcasting and the use of magic items.

## Manatoria and Mana Pools

Every Ib, even those who are incapable of casting spells, possess six latent reserves of Primary Elemental Energy stored within their Soul that is known as their Manatoria; the size of these reserves is largely determined by an individual's Spiritual Stats and each reserve, or Manatorium (MT), corresponds to a different Element. The amount of these reserves that is actually accessible to the individual to use for the purposes of Spellcasting and Magic, which is mostly determined by their Class, Level, and Skills, is known as a Mana Pool (MP). As not all Ib are capable of performing feats of Magic, not all Ib have a Mana Pool, and as a fair number of Mages possess an affinity for more than one Primary Elements, it is possible for one Ib to have multiple Mana Pools. As an example, a Pyromancer would still have Six Manatoria corresponding to the Six Primary Elements, but he would only have a Fire Mana Pool that is linked to his Fire Manatorium whereas an Auroramancer would possess Three Mana Pools, one of Fire, one of Light, and one of Dark, and an Ominmancer or Wizard would possess Mana Pools for all Six Manatoria.

It is worth noting that the Mana Pool is not a separate source of Mana from the Manatorium, but rather just represents the portion of the Manatorium that an Ib can actively utilize within themselves. On average, the ratio of a Mage's Mana Pool to its corresponding Manatorium is that of 1 to 10, as in 10% of the total Mana stored within their Soul can be used for Spellcasting at any given time.

When an Ib casts Spells, they expend Mana directly from the Mana Pool, or Pools, corresponding to the Element of the Spell; their depleted Mana Pool will then slowly draw in more Mana from its corresponding Manatorium in order to replenish itself, but notably the ratio of Mana that can be stored within their Pool is determined by the current amount of Mana in their Manatorium, not their Manatorium's Maximum (MTM). This means that a Mage who possesses the standard 1 to 10 MP/MT ratio and has an MTM of 100 would have a Maximum MP of 10 while their MT was at its full 100, but if they expended all 10 of that MP, it could only be replenished back up to a reduced Maximum MP of 9 as their MT would be down to 90.

A depleted Manatorium will gradually replenish itself overtime through naturally drawing upon the Mana present in the ambient Environment, the Mana generated from Interpersonal Relationships, or from the Mana that exists in great Ideals, Emotions, and Moments. The Manatorium can also be restored from channeling away the Mana stored within Magical Items, by Siphoning Aelectricity, or Draining the Mana of other Ib. Moreover, unless all of an individual's Manatoria are in a state of proportional equilibrium, a depleted Manatorium will draw upon the Manatorium of other Elements and convert them to its own, though notably this process is both slow and Mana inefficient.

While minor reductions to any one Manatorium have no ill consequences, once more than one third of any Manatorium has been depleted, the Individual will begin to experience symptoms of Elemental Deficiency. Furthermore, should an Individual deplete an amount of Mana greater than one third of the Combined Total of all their Manatoria (CMT), they will begin suffering from the effects of Mana Fatigue. Once they have lost greater than two thirds of their CMT, their condition will advance to Mana Exhaustion, and should their CMT ever be completed depleted, they be rendered effectively Soulless.

## Environmental Energy Sources

Mana is almost always present within ambient environment and the Manatoria of Ib will naturally draw upon Environmental Mana when they are depleted. For the most part, the types of environmental conditions conducive to specific types of Mana are fairly straightforward: Fire Mana is most abundant in areas of high temperature and low humidity, especially within the proximity fiery objects such as open flames and magma; Water Mana is most abundant in cool and humid environments, especially aquatic ones, and is drastically more abundant during weather with heavy precipitation; Air Mana is most abundant in open areas with good airflow, especially on the surface of the planet and at areas of high, but not atmospherically high, elevations, and is drastically more adundant during weather with high wind speeds; Earth Mana is most abundant in dry areas of low elevation, especially subterranean environments; Dark Mana is most abundant in cold and dark areas and is generally more bountiful during the night; Light Mana is most abundant in bright areas, especially within close proximity to light sources, and is generally more bountiful during the day.

## Relationship Energy Sources

The interpersonal interactions between Ib have the potential to generate Mana according to the type of Relationship that exists between the Ib. See Relationships for more details.

## Momentous and Emotional Energy Sources

Very rarely, at times of great emotional significance, it is possible for great amounts of Mana to be generated from the movement of the Souls of the Ib present. The most classic example is the fervor of war empowering Mages with an excess of Fire Mana during great battles, a quality which makes Pyromancers a favorite among many generals throughout The Empire and beyond. It is also possible for one individuals intense personal experiences during a pivotal point in their own life and development to generate an overflow of Mana, but such experiences are rare and, despite many a mad Alchemist's best efforts, exceedingly difficult to artificially produce. Souls can also generate more Mana on a less grandiose scale through simply existing in certain emotion spaces, and particularly well-disciplined Mages are known to train themselves to genuinely take on demeanors conducive to their Mana requirements.

## Fey Energy

Fey Energy is an odd type of Mana that does not quite correspond to the Primary Elements nor any particular combination of them. Fey Mana possesses a correlation to emotions that is far greater than that or ordinary Mana and is also strongly influenced by beliefs, ideas, and perceptions. All Fey creatures and most Ib appear to possess some Fey Mana inherent within their being, but it does not correspond to a particular Manatorium in their Soul and appears to be more closely linked to one's Mental Stats rather than one's Spiritual Stats. Unfortunately, beyond these basic principles, the characteristics of Fey Mana are very poorly understood, and while there do exist a fair number of Fey Spells that exceptionally creative Wizards have crafted and while it is known that Fey Energy is responsible for the creation of Exorloci as well as many of the peculiar properties of Dreamscapes, the Fey still is something more of an enigma than a science, perhaps by an intrinsic necessity of its fundamental quintessence.

## Aelectricity

Aelectricity is a term used to describe the system of transmitting Mana across distances, primarily used for fueling complicated alchemical machines or for allowing mundane Ib to operate arcane devices without the assistance of Mages.

The first Aelectric generators created during the Classic Era utilized Steam Engines that could produce and transport Fire, Water, and Air Mana, hence the name being derived from the element Aether. Existing technology such as Windmills and Watermills were easily converted into specialized Elemental Turbines as well, but they did not expand the breadth of functional Aelectic elements. However, as scientific knowledge advanced in the Victorious Era, new Solar Engines were created that could efficiently harness the Fire and Light energy of the Sun. Primitive Earth and Dark engines were also created during the Victorious Era as well, but they required active mines that used vast amounts of physical resources combined with the expenditure of great quantities of Aether Mana. It would not be until the Cyber Era that Omni Energy became a staple of civilized living.