Category:Artifice

Artifice is the school of binding a static, repeatable magical effect to a fixed object. Benefits of this practice include greater stability from outside magical interference, greater reliability, ease of use, in the form of a greatly simplified trigger, and broader use, even those lacking magic.

Artifice, however, is used by all branches of magic. Practitioners who focus solely on this magic are called artificers.

Local Use

The local school of artifice is largely non-existent. What few examples of true artifacts that do exist on the island include the Jusenkyou Masks, the Wands of Faerie Summoning, and the Cursed Plushies. It is noted, however, that due to the rather pervasive nature of magic in Yuriba, artifice loses a good deal of prestige, due to the fact that many things, even plushies and bags have magic in them, lowering them from "artifact" to "thing".

Comparisons to Other Schools

Artifacts are used by all schools of magic. While the means and rituals are different, the underlying principle is the same: to combine a static spell with a physical form and a power source. Divine magic refers to this process as "blessing an object", Druidic magic might call it "calling upon the spirits to take up residence within an item", elementalism might call it, "focusing the element within" an item, et cetera. Artifice's categorization is indistinct, and in some magical systems, is categorized as a subdiscipline. For example, Elementalism classifies Artifice as a tenet of the Metal element.

Various examples:

• Divine: The Two Crosses of Isteria: Frequently used by even the non-clergy to bless water.
• Druidic: The Amulet of the Lady of the Lake: Carried only by Her direct descendants, the Amulet seals away Her presence that She might watch over all Her progeny.
• Elemental: Shard of the Crystal Desert: A living flame, entrapped in a large rough diamond shard the size of one's fist. Cutting the gem focuses the power of the fire within.
• Arcane:Ring of Protection: Depending on the quality of the ring, this ring generates a barrier that deflects incoming attacks ranging from arrows and stones to dragonbreath.

Conversely, Artifice, when pursued as an separate discipline, functions with artifacts of all schools. Their spells, being non-school specific, are referred to as "infusions."

Artifice also consumes far more energy to effect magic, compared to formal disciplines of magic. The appropriate metaphor would be using brute strength to move a massive object, in place of levers and pulleys.