(Excerpt from A Tsethem’s Guide to Empai Tirkosu)

Arcane crystals are minerals that form in a highly concentrated area of planar flow. For example, you might find earth crystals buried deep beneath the surface of the island, or fire crystals forming in the volcano’s crater, or even air crystals floating on top of the clouds. Their size ranges from 2-3 millimetres to 4 inches tall, and each crystal last about a day of constant usage (two weeks of intermittent usage). Arcane crystals are one of the most valuable resources on the island.



(Vanella illustrates an arcane crystal and a runecard producing a Ray of Frost cantrip)

Runes are the means through which arcane energy is focused and controlled; Without them, using EPEs and arcane crystals would cause effects similar to that of a wild magic surge. A rune is a 2-dimensional shape welded through a flat piece of metal called a runecard, through which arcane energy is focused. The shape of the rune converts the energy into either raw force, or a spell (which is cast when it exits the runecard).

There’s a bunch of interesting fluff concerning arcane mechanics. This is just a sneak peak of what’s to come. [;)]