“Now, before ye get all weak in the knees like the royal pyro did, there are some important pieces o’ information ye should know,” Bragden said, tossing a bag onto the too tall chair he had pulled over before hopping into it. Glade couldn’t help but notice Bragden’s feet dangling a couple of inches off the ground.
“Slaggin tall folk and their bloody tall chairs. Why couldn’t the blasted settlement magic make things the right size?” the dwarf grumbled, settling into his seat before turning his attention back to Glade. “First and foremost, my attunement be that o’ the astral sphere o’ magic, which be the realm o’ the mind, spirit, enchantment, and the like. I canna shoot lightning bolts out o’ me eyeballs or throw mana blasts from me backside. To do those feats o’ magic ye need entirely different attunements and a practitioner who knows the proper paths and techniques to train ye. I specialize in enchanting, more specifically, theoretical astral application o’ mana transference. Are we clear so far?”
Glade nodded along, though the last bit sounded like Bragden was trying to prove his importance by using bigger words.
“You specialize in Astral magic and can’t teach specifics in other magics. And if I understand correctly, you have a strong theoretical understanding of mana as a whole.”
“Good enough,” Bragden said, giving Glade an appraising look. “Ye might be worth teachin after all.”
“First question,” Glade interrupted, not letting the smugness he felt touch his face. “What is enchanting?”
“I take back what I said,” Bragden scowled. “But I suppose that be as good a place to start as any. Enchantment be the art o’ making mundane items magical. Like if’n I was to take one o’ yer daggers and enchant it so you’d never have to sharpen it again, or make it fly on its own, or come back after ye’ve done thrown it at someone.”
“You can do that?” Glade asked, his eyes widening in surprise.
“Sure, I can,” Bragden said, puffing out his chest ever so slightly. It was easy to tell the dwarf was proud of his craft. “Ye’ve seen some magic items before now. How’d ye think they got magical in the first place? It takes an enchanter like me to make those items right and proper.”
“Then why haven’t you enchanted all the weapons we took from the Gnolls?” Glade asked, genuinely curious. “That could mean the difference between life and death for our people. It would even help Krazzik’s team on their scouting detail.”
“Ye sound just like Krazzik,” Bragden sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I canna enchant just any old piece o’ equipment. Here, let me give ye a demonstration seein as this conversation will go in circles if’n I don’t make ye understand.”
The dwarf pulled out one of the pitted daggers they had liberated from the slavers.
“This here dagger be o’ shoddy construction and poorly forged iron,” Bragden said, holding the hilt of the dagger with his left hand as he traced symbols on the poorly made blade with his right index finger. Wherever his finger touched, an ethereal blue line followed, like a magical pen leaving behind glowing symbols. “I be tracing the most basic o’ enchantments I know, which increases an item's durability. It don’t cost me much mana seein as the enchantment itself be temporary.”
Bragden had started on his third traced symbol when the metal of the blade cracked before dissolving before his eyes.
“As ye can see, the blade canna hold even the barest hint o’ mana. That’s because the material be a whisker above sharpened sandstone.”
Bragden waited for the blade to completely dissolve before brushing the remains off his lap and onto the stone floor.
“So, the quality of the material needs to be taken into account,” Glade said, nodding in understanding. He also made a mental note to ask Bragden to clean up later.
“That not be all,” Bragden said, “ye already know ‘bout the eight basic spheres o’ magic. But did ye know that the various types o’ magic typically don’t like bein forced to interact with each other?”
Glade shook his head. He supposed that made sense.
“Let me provide a quick demonstration,” Bragden said, pulling out Glade’s star silver and carbon steel daggers.
Glade started in surprise, reaching down to his belt out of reflex.
“When did you…”
“Now afore ye get all hot an bothered that I have these,” Bragden interrupted. “Kedryn gave me permission so I could study them up close like seein as ye weren’t using ‘em. I’ll give ‘em back after me demonstration.”
“To understand how complex enchantments really be, ye need to understand how mana interacts with each other. Take this here star silver. It was part o’ a mandible from a Magma Beetle, true?”
Glade nodded but was already planning a conversation in his head with the Kid about lending things that weren’t his. He wasn’t upset per se but didn’t like being the last to know.
“That means it be grown by a monster that uses fire and earth attunements instead o’ being forged. If’n just any old enchanter tried to use other types o’ mana outside o’ those attunements to enchant the blade, it would likely be nothin short o’ disastrous. For example, placing a basic water-based enchantment on the blade would be like a smith continuously quenching heated metal in ice cold water. Sooner than later, the metal would crack, or worse, explode.”
“That sounds… extreme,” Glade said, already deep in thought. “I’m confused though. You said the spheres of magic don’t like to interact, but the star silver dagger was made by both fire and earth attunements. Come to think of it, several of the shards I’ve collected have dual attunements.”
“Good question, even the royal didn’t pick up on that one right away,” Bragden smiled. “What I done said was that various types o’ magic typically don’t like being forced to interact with each other. Most shards have dual attunements, and sometimes more, because they be balanced and blended naturally. There be more’n a few enchanters and practitioners that would sell their own mother for the secrets to blend attunements into a technique or spell. Most can only use one attunement, which limits their flexibility as a mage. Anybody worth their salt though in enchanting or casting magic can blend one or two dual attunements to create a unique spell or desired effect. True masters can blend even more. But when it comes to enchanting, it don’t matter much unless ye can also blend the enchantment with compatible materials. For instance, if’n I place a temporary enchantment o’ fire on this blade…”
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Bragden traced two runes on the star silver dagger, which Glade assumed were for fire.
The blade immediately burst into flame, stopping before it reached Bragden’s hands.
“Ye get a blade that encourages the physical manifestation o’ one o’ its attunments, namely, fire. This here be another temporary enchantment,” Bragden explained. “The resonance between the blade and the rune help with managing how long the flame lasts. In this case, just a few seconds seein as I didn’t put much mana into the runes. Too much can overwhelm the durability o’ the metal, warping it or flat out makin it explode.”
“But what if you don’t know the material’s origins?” Glade asked as the flames began to die down. Interestingly, the runes faded at the same rate as the fire, until both were gone.
“Now that be a right good question,” Bragden said, setting the star silver dagger aside. “Another reason why astral mages be the principal enchanters is because o’ our identify skill, Aura Sense. We can see and read the auras o’ most anything. The higher yer skill level and broader yer knowledge base, the better ye can read the aura o’ somethin, which helps ye see what attunements would work well and those that wouldn’t. Which takes me to this here other dagger o’ yers. It be truly unique. Do ye know why?”
“It’s from home,” Glade said with a shrug. “It’s a carbon steel combat knife. Quite common where I’m from.”
“True, but what ye likely didn’t know was that this here blade was forged without any mana interference whatsoever, and it be o’ exceptional quality. I’ve never seen so much folded steel outside o’ the Crag. In other words, it be a prime candidate for just ‘bout any type o’ enchantment because it be well made and there be no existing mana to cause interference.”
Bragden traced the flat of the blade with his finger, writing four concise sigils with the ease of one who had done it thousands of times. The blue glow from where the dwarf traced his finger illuminated his combat knife in a small haze of power.
“This here be a temporary enchantment o’ sharpness, and typically lasts ‘bout an hour on a well made weapon. But from me previous tests, I can tell ye that yer blade holds the magic for up to three hours without stressing the metal. I canna emphasize how incredible that truly be. It's like… the blade wants to be enchanted…”
Bragden’s voice trailed off into a whisper, simply staring at Glade’s combat knife, like the dwarf was looking for the answers to the great mysteries of the universe. And Glade thought that Gird, the smith, was obsessed. Bragden was taking that weirdness to a whole new level!
After an extended period of awkward silence, Glade decided to bring Bragden’s attention back to the topic at hand.
“If I understand correctly, the material matters, but understanding the history and makeup of the material matters more.”
“Aye, ye have the right o’ it,” Bragden said, shaking his head to clear it. “Now pay attention. I’m going to show ye the power o’ enchantment when ye can properly align the energies and material into something compatible.”
Bragden pull out a thick branch from his bag, grasping the blade in the other. With a flick of his wrist, the dwarf sliced cleanly through the three-inch thick branch with the magically sharpened blade. Glade’s eyes widened in shock from the casual display of raw power as Ember tried to get his attention to explain the significance.
“This is a temporary enchantment?” Glade asked.
“Aye,” the dwarf said with a chuckle. “I canna tell ye how many times I’ve done this over the years, but truth be told, it never gets old. Though I did add a bit more mana than usual seein as the blade can take the load. Sharpening runes also be among the first spells enchanters learn to work, seein as it forces ye to power enchantments yerself. Helps with understanding mana density ratios so ye don’t end up killin yerself later down the road. After that, we learn how to incorporate mana shards, mana stones, mana gems, and mana cores to create permanent enchantments.”
“Mana cores, like the one we found in the Golem?”
“Aye, but that would be a right waste to use such a powerful resource to enchant a mundane item. Mana cores o’ that quality be better used in other ways.” Bragden explained as he sheathed the knife and pulled out the large blue lapis core and a number of mana shards. “This actually be a good moment to bring up another teaching point on magic that be key to all practitioners o’ the art. Namely, what ye need to know so you can advance yer skills.”
“I take it Kedryn also lent you the mana shards?” Glade sighed, finding that the pouch was no longer on his belt.
“That’s one o’ the reasons I like ye,” Bragden said as he arranged the shards and core on his lap. “Yer not someone who blindly trusts.”
“You didn’t answer my question.”
“No, I didn’t,” Bragden said, holding up one of the smaller pure shards. “And I taint goin to either. Ye’re gonna have to trust that I’m not idiot enough to steal from ye and then show ye what I’ve done stolen. Now, pay attention. Mana shards be among the weakest form o’ the various physical representations o’ mana we practitioners can use. Do ye know why?”
“Riya mentioned something about how shards have finite mana,” Glade said, resolving to keep better accountability of their things. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust the dwarves. He did. Mostly. Though, they did seem to take a few more liberties than he was comfortable with regarding what he considered personal property. It was far past time to ensure their newest companions knew the boundaries of his generosity.
After the lesson.
“Aye, that be correct. Shards are a one time use resource. Once ye’ve done expended the mana, its gone. Take gnomish wands for instance. They typically use shards as the power source, a terrible waste if’n ye ask me, but so are piddly little wands. They only have a limited number o’ charges before the thing is useless. Then ye have to find the right kind o’ shard to replace the old one with or throw the entire thing away. Can ye guess why?”
“You mentioned earlier the importance of using the right mana with the right attunement. I’d assume that using the wrong mana shard wouldn’t work with an already attuned wand.”
“Good on ya, lad! Ye’ve been paying attention!”
“But what would you recommend using a shard for then?”
“With enchanting? If’n the shard be large enough then I’d use it for makin a permanent enchantment, like increased durability, sharpness, enhanced strength and the like. It all depends on the type o’ attunements that be in the shard and what material yer tryin to enchant. Though, using shards for permanent enchantments generally means they’ll be on the weaker side. But most o’ the time, shards, along with other natural treasures, be used for personal advancement within the various sphere’s o’ magic.”
Glade had been interested in this topic before, but now he was absolutely riveted.
“How?”
“It be simple to explain, but harder to do than smacking a drunk gnome while blindfolded. Ye take in the mana from the shards and direct it to any number o’ things, like refilling yer mana pool, increasing yer magical resonance, or what we call attunement, leveling up yer mana channels, and lastly, clearing yer mana channels so ye don’t tear ‘em open and kill yerself.”
The last he said while giving Glade a pointed look.
"That... sounds like a lot," Glade said, deciding to ignore Bragden's insinuation.
"Ha! What did ye think? That learning to control the energies and matter o' the world would be easy?" Bragden laughed. “The first challenge be, ye need to have the right kind o’ shards. Our attunements be o’ the astral sphere, true?”
Glade nodded.
“So, what type o’ mana shards do ye think we be needin?”
“Astral shards,” Glade said.
“Aye. Astral shards be the obvious choice. What else can we use?”
Glade thought for a moment, until he realized the answer was literally staring him in the face. More specifically, the pure shard Bragden was still holding up.
“Pure shards.”
“Aye. That be why pure shards be so slagging expensive. Anyone can use them to advance,” Bragden gave him a wolfish smile. “Just so ye know, Kedryn didn’t need that there hint. The royal might be as excitable as a squirrel in springtime, with the attention span o’ one to boot, but the man be faster than a dwarf at an open bar when it comes to grasping magic.”
“I can believe it,” Glade chuckled. “Did he already figure out how to take in mana?”
“Bah, I never got that far with the royal. I was too busy answerin all o’ his slagging questions. We’ll be coverin that soon enough, don’t ye worry. It be a wicked hard set o’ skills to learn though, so don’t set your expectations too high. It requires a measure o’ will and patience to apply it correctly. We’ll start training after we get through with educating ye on the other types o’ stones.”
Glade eyed his two available will points he had regenerated overnight. He had a feeling that learning the necessary skill wasn't going to be too much of an issue.