Evocation History and Advanced Fundamentals of Casting IV

Evocation Magic is one of the first magic styles to be mastered by wizards; because of this it is often given the nickname "The Old Magic." The basic and fundamental manipulations of natural essences into weapons were used by early wizards to combat the Inferals in the wars of the 1st age, and were later one of the driving magical attacks used against the Syrinx in the 2nd age's great magical wars. Listed below are some of the more famous Evocation spells and a brief history of them.

Firebolt:
“Beware and discard any student whosoever explicitly wishes to be taught to cast the Firebolt. A fledgling mage, concerned more with their power to destroy than to control and understand that with which they would destroy, is among the most dangerous of creatures; more so than the most vile of necromancers.”
Excerpt from the Art of Magic
Balthazar Longpipe
Mage of Candlekeep

Introduction
Firebolt is one of the most commonly learned spells in all of Nefetria. This little cantrip is more powerful than one might first assume and is quite applicable.
The concept of Firebolt is as elegant as it is simple. The caster does nothing more than summon a small, easily contained portion of liquid fire, often called dragon’s blood or magma. This solid form of elemental fire allows the caster a surprising measure of control over an element often considered quite unstable. Once brought forth into the world by the caster, the sphere, this being the shape most naturally assumed by the material, is hurled forth by the caster under the power of basic magical manipulations learned by most apprentices.
A thin, but remarkable streak of flame is left in the dragon’s blood’s path. Many assume this to mean that fire is being projected, however, as many alchemists know, the iconic bolt of fire is not being projected, as is done with the much more powerful Scorching Ray, but is instead a tail of flame created by the interaction of air and fire elements.



Casting
Though the casting of Firebolt gives the appearance of fanciful magics, it is, in fact, quite straightforward. The caster cups one hand, the palm facing up. Doing so, the other hand is held a reasonable distance directly above the first. Reciting the incantation ("Mul altha," Draconic meaning "Water Flame"), the caster uses their second hand to mime the act of pulling directly up, in essence pulling the liquid fire from below the earth as the Sahkra do with oil.



Effects/Failure
The result of the impact of liquid fire against a living creature is neither surprising nor complex. The creature at which the Firebolt was aimed suffers severe burns at the point of impact, often resulting in blisters akin to those brought on by handling a much too hot cooking pot.
As the Firebolt does not project true fire, but rather a liquid fire, the effect is spatially focused. Said focus is the primary cause for the cantrip’s intensity, however, the small area of impact makes the extinguishing of the flames very simple for any sentient creature. This, of course, does not prevent the spell from lighting aflame inanimate objects, should they be unattended.

Thunderwave:
Thunderwave did not start out as a spell to be used in battle. Originally having a wave of pressure of sizeable width and height burst from the user had more practical effects. The Riverforge clan of Sahkra, a small clan that has since been wiped out, used to mine in rather difficult terrain. The spell’s exact origin within the clan is unknown, but it is believed an apprentice of magic was angered at the recent deaths in one of the mines at the hands of poisonous gas, sudden floods, fireballs, and all other variety of sudden, painful deaths. She worked on a way to push items away with a wave of force over many months of experimentation. She showed it to no-one, until one day she was being shown through the mines. She saw a glint of orange in the distance, a wall of fire rapidly approaching the group. After all the months of practice she let out the spell instinctively, and stopped the flame cold. She saved many lives with that one spell. The spell was quickly adopted by the arcanists that helped in the mines after it was shown to be as effective as it was, using the Draconic incantation "Gul-althas," or "Clap-Push". Over a hundred years later, that same apprentice, now a much older, more powerful mage, was the witness of an ogre attack on her camp. Most of the strong fighters in the small camp had been knocked out or killed by the time she arrived out of the mine. It had been a long day, and she had used many of her spells. As soon as she realized what was happening, she ran toward the ogre, and unleashed the spell with an unprecedented level of fury. After a less specialized use of this spell had been shown to be useable, it gained popularity among beginning arcanists, especially those that like nature, (the druids, due to the thunder aspect of the spell,) and those that dealt with sound (typically bards). It is now a staple in many beginning adventurer’s spells.
Observations and Notes on Thunderwave’s Effect.

Thunderwave is a fairly simple spell in terms of the effect. It has a clearly defined area which it affects with a large amount of pressure. The real technical difficulty comes in when you try to spread it over such a large area, maintain the pressure in a consistent shape and area. Thunderwave can vary from caster to caster, often even between each use of the spell. Being a spell of pure energy, it can change its effect depending on the caster’s mood. This means the spell can vary from a sharp crack that shatters any solid object in its path, to being more of a sudden gust that knocks enemies back. It leaves the smell that you get after a strong storm in the area that it passes through. The exact reason for this is still unknown, but many bards believe that a very weak form of Thunderwave can be used to make the olfactory aspect of one's room more appealing.
Further Uses, Expansions, and Possibilities of Thunderwave

While somewhat limited at first glance, thunderwave can be used for a variety of uses, such as attempting to break down a door, destroy a wall, and a more efficient way of killing someone, if they are near the edge of a precipice of some kind. It can also in theory be used as method of diverting something, such as an approaching fireball, or projectile of significant bulk, as something like an arrow or javelin travels through the air with little resistance, so Thunderwave would have little effect on them.
Other uses of Thunderwave are yet to be explored, but with such a simple spell there is much room to experiment and develop, as with many simple spells there are more ways to improve and/or change it rather than just funneling more raw power into it. Especially now that more people are pushing the borders of what can be done with magic, I believe that there should be more focus on the basic spells due to the amount of flexibility that they have.

Fireball:
”When I started this job, I was full of ideals and codes. Regulations on how our power was supposed to be used, and under what circumstances. There is none of that left in me now, the fire burned it away. The fire is as indiscriminate as it is unforgiving; the weak is consumed and the strong remains. We weren’t just destroying our enemies, we were destroying ourselves alongside. I don’t regret what I’ve done, I can’t. It was necessary, our fight. We had to show the world that what we do is no joking matter. For all the flame we create, there is little light. Now I have lived too long, through war and ruin and ash. Perhaps I’ll take up gardening, try creating something for a change”
Yor of Colt, (“Yor the Blazing, Drake of Men”) First War-Magnus of The Owl Wars. Age 23
Spell History:
Unlike most common spells, the origin of the Fireball spell is well documented and the subject of great study. Credited to the first War Magnus of the city-state of Alexandria, Yor of Colt, the Fireball spell was developed for the sole purpose of combatting the Syrinx of the surrounding area. Surrounded on all sides by harsh arctic terrain and aggressive nomadic tribes, the initial colonization of the state of Alexandria faced nearly overwhelming opposition. The numerically superior Syrinx outnumbered city forces several hundred to one. Facing annihilation, the guards called on the College of Magic the city was founded for. An ambitious evoker, Yor of Colt, was chosen to lead the city’s forces despite crushing odds. Throughout the war, Yor led a specialized team of magic users to great effect against the white feathered northern tribes. The battles won by Yor and his apprentices ensured that the sovereignty of Alexandria would never again be challenged in all the centuries to come, until its economical collapse late in the 2nd age. Since then, the spell has seen widespread adoption by any magic user seeking to defend themselves from a large number of foes.
Casting the Spell
The casting of the Fireball spell requires verbal, material, and somatic components of varying degrees of complexity. As such, this spell makes for a wholesome exercise for arcane students with at least several years of instruction. It is important, however, to teach this spell early enough in a mage’s education to leave the student with a sense of responsibility for the power they wield. Few low-level spells can be so irreparably devastating, and more than one hard lesson has been learned by apprentices who failed to comprehend the true weight of their actions.
-Verbal: Students are initially taught that the verbal component for this spell is the infernal word for spark, or weirc. Historical records suggest that Yor came to learn this word upon defeating a demon in magical combat. Other sources depict Yor summoning a demon and bartering for the word, but it is not suggested what was exchanged in return. As students become more familiar with the spell and evocation in general, they may find that the casting of this spell requires no more than a strong exhalation, much in the same way a martial artist punctuates their strikes with breaths. While research is inconclusive on the functional practicalities of this type of casting, a disciplined and experienced mind should have no trouble in utilizing this method so long as the breaths are short and sharp.
-Material: It is perhaps a great cosmic joke that such a common spell should have such exotic material components. Or perhaps it is another test, forcing the would-be spellslinger to go to great lengths to achieve the ability to cause widespread devastation. In either case, both ingredients occur in selective and usually separate environments, requiring significant commitment to locate. Instructors in the arcane arts will commonly force students to gather the necessary Sulphur and bat guano themselves rather than allow them to purchase or otherwise easily acquire the materials. Incidentally, the noxious nature of these components often provides the motivation for students to construct their first magical foci. These can take many shapes, from the specific Wand of Fireballs to the more general purpose Blasting Rod.
-Somatic: The somatic component of the Fireball spell, like the verbal component, evolves as the caster becomes more experienced. As outlined in a mage’s initial study of thermokinetics, extraneous movement in the somatic gestures are a major source of spell energy inefficiency. It is this reason that precise spells such as Disintegrate and Lightning Bolt have minimal “pointing” gestures while the Fireball spell (and most fire-based evocation in general) utilizes more sweeping gestures with greater rotational motion. The basic gesture required begins with a curled, loose arm forming a lazy loop with the caster’s head. The palm of the caster’s hand should be facing the caster’s head, with the fingers relaxed. As the caster completes the incantation and finishes collecting the desired levels of arcane energy, the caster extends their hand outward, keeping the palm and arm facing up. Once the arm reaches full extension, the relaxed fingers of the outstretched hand curl into a loose fist as the arcane energy is sent flying towards its target. Upon reaching its destination, the mage simply need snap their fingers to spark the ignition of the spell. In total, this procedure should form one fluid and concise action, lasting no more than a second. Some observers have compared this motion with the allonge found in classical dance, however any similarities are denied by most high-society mages. Practiced evokers can streamline this process, producing equal or greater fireballs with stricter and faster motions. At the Second Battle of Farharbor, witnesses observed Yor’s pupils each casting no less than 30 Fireballs in the initial minute. So disciplined and relentless was their barrage, that the hostile tribes they faced surrendered within the hour.