13th of Ymiden, Arc 718
"Bolster is..." Alistair trailed off, uncertain of what the ability - or spell - was, though he knew it was a technique labeled as the tool of a competent Transmuter.
"A spell," Damien started, staring apprehensively at the other mage.
"A spell... and?" Alistair questioned.
"One that reinforces the reality of an object with ether, essentially adding a dense outer layer to it. Think almost like Abrogation, except... without replicated layers of reality, material or air, but instead a dense shell of ether itself. Like so," he demonstrated, holding up a sheet of parchment drawn from Alistair's mahogany desk, beckoning him with a twitch of his fingers to attempt to... rip it, Alistair presumed.
The mage took the sheet into his palms and pulled on the paper, holding one side with a curve above the other, peeling down the center in an attempt to rip it cleanly in half. It was... certainly far more difficult than with other parchment. Though as he focused his pure muscular force into the tearing, the paper did slowly and hesitantly rip - Bolstering was certainly a strong reinforcement, but it was not impervious.
"Wow," Damien responded. "I sometimes forget how strong you are. Never had anyone manage to rip the sheet before, without resorting to magic or foul play."
The mage rose his arms up and flexed, playfully. Then, the two of them proceeded forward into the discussion - Damien's... educational section. Alistair stared quietly as he explained how it fully worked.
"You implant ether to it as a layer, regardless of how you shape it. A sheath, a sleeve, a frontal barrier - it doesn't matter. The more area you cover, the more ether you may need to expend. This is what I like to call a persistent ability - it remains for as long as you desire, but equally, it drains your ether for as long as it remains. If you wish to have truly impervious armor, you may Bolster it for an extended period of time - but eventually, that will drain on you. It's better, I think, to do it when you need to do it - as a reaction. For true extended defenses, Abrogation is considerably better," he stated.
But that made sense. Protection was the purpose of Abrogation. Transmutation, on the other hand, had many purposes. Fractures, ethereal mastery, enchanting, absorbing, harnessing ether to carve, craft and rend; an artificer's tool or a weapon. To add bolstering to the list was only impressive - it was certainly a useful tool for what he had already begun to consider the most diverse of the magics.
"Try. It's not altogether complex - focus your ether, harness it, make it dense. Focus on, almost, the quality of thickness and durability." Damien instructed him, and Alistair nodded. He wasn't entirely certain as to how to envision it, mentally. Alistair attempted to picture the layer of bolstered ether - he saw it as a blue layer with indigo tints, swimming in an ocean of gradient and color. That layer sat around the handle of his spear almost like a sleeve. But was it fair to call it an outer layer, or a reinforcement within the very materials of the object?
That was his uncertainty - and he supposed he could only try, in order to find out.
"Bolster is..." Alistair trailed off, uncertain of what the ability - or spell - was, though he knew it was a technique labeled as the tool of a competent Transmuter.
"A spell," Damien started, staring apprehensively at the other mage.
"A spell... and?" Alistair questioned.
"One that reinforces the reality of an object with ether, essentially adding a dense outer layer to it. Think almost like Abrogation, except... without replicated layers of reality, material or air, but instead a dense shell of ether itself. Like so," he demonstrated, holding up a sheet of parchment drawn from Alistair's mahogany desk, beckoning him with a twitch of his fingers to attempt to... rip it, Alistair presumed.
The mage took the sheet into his palms and pulled on the paper, holding one side with a curve above the other, peeling down the center in an attempt to rip it cleanly in half. It was... certainly far more difficult than with other parchment. Though as he focused his pure muscular force into the tearing, the paper did slowly and hesitantly rip - Bolstering was certainly a strong reinforcement, but it was not impervious.
"Wow," Damien responded. "I sometimes forget how strong you are. Never had anyone manage to rip the sheet before, without resorting to magic or foul play."
The mage rose his arms up and flexed, playfully. Then, the two of them proceeded forward into the discussion - Damien's... educational section. Alistair stared quietly as he explained how it fully worked.
"You implant ether to it as a layer, regardless of how you shape it. A sheath, a sleeve, a frontal barrier - it doesn't matter. The more area you cover, the more ether you may need to expend. This is what I like to call a persistent ability - it remains for as long as you desire, but equally, it drains your ether for as long as it remains. If you wish to have truly impervious armor, you may Bolster it for an extended period of time - but eventually, that will drain on you. It's better, I think, to do it when you need to do it - as a reaction. For true extended defenses, Abrogation is considerably better," he stated.
But that made sense. Protection was the purpose of Abrogation. Transmutation, on the other hand, had many purposes. Fractures, ethereal mastery, enchanting, absorbing, harnessing ether to carve, craft and rend; an artificer's tool or a weapon. To add bolstering to the list was only impressive - it was certainly a useful tool for what he had already begun to consider the most diverse of the magics.
"Try. It's not altogether complex - focus your ether, harness it, make it dense. Focus on, almost, the quality of thickness and durability." Damien instructed him, and Alistair nodded. He wasn't entirely certain as to how to envision it, mentally. Alistair attempted to picture the layer of bolstered ether - he saw it as a blue layer with indigo tints, swimming in an ocean of gradient and color. That layer sat around the handle of his spear almost like a sleeve. But was it fair to call it an outer layer, or a reinforcement within the very materials of the object?
That was his uncertainty - and he supposed he could only try, in order to find out.
