Elemancy

Elemancy refers to an aetheric energy manipulation technique created by Gallerian Morbol, circa 703-705. It involves attuning oneself with the aetheric energy of an element within the environment, allowing them to draw out the raw elemental energy from their surroundings. This energy can then be directly utilized in the casting of spells, diminishing the required mana consumption anywhere from 20 to 80 percent, depending on the specific spell being casted.

Origin of the Technique
Discovery of this technique was a direct result of a series of experiments done by the magus scholar Gallerian Morbol, from the years 703 to 705. His goal was to find a way to extract raw elemental energy from the environment, and find a way to utilize it in spellcasting instead of aspecting one's own mana. His theories were largely based on the knowledge that aspected mana was an "impure" imitation of the pure elemental energy found naturally in the world. He hypothesized that if one were to find a way to harness this energy and control it for one's own means, then they would be able to cast far more powerful and potent spells at a fraction of the mana expense. Though he experimented with many ways to gain access to this elemental energy, in the end he found that the only way to do so was to harmonize one's own aetheric energies with that of the energy around themself. Only then would they be able to identify and attract the natural energies, and thus utilize it how they see fit.

Morbol's research concluded that the most efficient way to "harmonize", or attune, with natural energy, was to first identify where one sought to pull the energy from, and then put one's hand up to it, channeling their own energy to their hand. If the attunement is successful, you will be able to pull the energy out from where it rests, and do with it as you see fit. The success of attunement rests on two factors: one's own inner mana potency, and the potency of elemental energy in the environment around you. The stronger one's inner mana potency, the stronger their pull on attuned elements will be, and thus there will be less effort needed to retrieve the elemental energy. However, the elemental energies present in the immediate environment play a much larger role in the success of elemancy. If there is too little of a specific elemental energy that you seek, you will find it almost impossible to extract any usable amount. You must always be aware of your surroundings when practicing elemancy; you would be hard pressed to find adequate Aquos energy in a dry desert, or Pyros energy in a wet marsh, after all.

Because using elemancy to access the necessary elemental energy does not expend mana in itself, the costs of casting spells is diminished to the mana cost needed to summon the magic circles, and any mana used on additional effects, such as using Umbra to freeze water. Thus the mana cost for casting spells using elemancy is drastically reduced. Alongside the fact that it also allows for more potent elemental energy -- leading to more power -- and a wider range of creativity plausible, using elemancy is an extremely beneficial tactic when the opportunity presents itself.

Where Can You Study Elemancy?
Elemancy may have been a new introduction in 705, but in the current times, it has become a well-understood and oft-practiced skill to many magi. You can find many tutorial texts in local libraries, and a number of Magus Guilds offer Elemancy classes for the more hands-on learners. If you intend to study at an academy for any period of time, you can also be assured that Elemancy is a standard part of upper year core classes, as well as a requirement on most standardized academy exit exams.

The kinds of spells one would use elemancy for tend to be somewhat complex compared to most lower-rank spells, therefore elemancy is recommended as an extended mastery subject to be learned once other similar level spells have been mastered. On average, most elemancy type spells are between rank ☆☆☆ and ☆☆☆☆☆ in difficulty, depending on how many steps are involved, and how much change the elemental energy must go through before casting. Usually, a spell that requires elemancy will also have an accompanying hand motion or movement to prompt the elemental energy to take the correct form.

If you want to practice some very basic elemancy, you can also use elemancy to gather elemental energy and store it in flasks or bottles, instead of using it to cast spells right away. Captured elemental energy is useful in alchemy and general potion brewery, so using elemancy can be an efficient and cost effective way to harvest natural materials for other magical uses aside from spellcasting.