Thaumite

It's hard to think about how a life without thaumite would be, honestly. We'd be able to venture the forgotten lands and forge new settlements due to non-magical wildlife. We'd have a much harder time healing the wounded. Quick and reliable transportation would be impossible! What joys innovation in the field of magics have brought civilisation.

— Johannes, High Wizard

Thaumite is a crystal-like substance used by Acatians to create spells. It is found within living things in (typically) trace amounts and in the earth in larger amounts. Thaumite can be refined into Orbs to make spell creation and casting easier.

Basic Properties

Thaumite is found as raw crystal shards all around Acate. Most thaumite is found under the immediate surface of the earth, but it can be found in sufficient quantities nearly anywhere if someone looks hard enough. Most thaumite is clear in colour, and its many facets inside and on its surface result in a rainbow of colour when looked through with light shining on it.

Thaumite is usually found in sizes from 1in³ to 5in³, and most shards are weighed on a scale that fits those sizes. However, thaumite dust can be found mixed with other soils (which is difficult and nearly impossible to separate) and rarely larger crystal shards can be found.

Thaumite, when around anything for long enough, takes on the likeness of the thing it is around. These 'Concepts' are important for making spells. For example, say a thaumite shard found its way into a volcano. After a while, it might take on the Concept of Fire, Heat, Lava, Metal, or Rock. What Concept it stores inside of itself at the time of Conception depends on its immediate surroundings and what happened to it in the time it had been in a specific area or situation.

Concepts become stronger and more solidified over time, and the longer that a crystal is in an area or situation, the higher quality it becomes. When thaumite stores a Concept, it changes colour slightly to reflect the change. It is typically still translucent when this first happens, and becomes more opaque over time. Crystals that cannot be seen through at all are incredibly powerful, old, and rare.

Larger thaumite crystals have more power within them than smaller crystals, but fractures, chips, impurities, and other damages weaken it significantly. While large crystals are rare and powerful, it's incredibly likely that they've become damaged over time. Not only that, but because of this, they become cumbersome to carry, and thus sometimes aren't valued as highly as smaller, purer crystals.

History

How it came to Acate, how it was discovered, who discovered its properties, and basic overview of uses.

Natural Occurrences

Places that have high amounts of it, creatures and sentient species known to have it in them

Refinement

How its cut into orbs, how dust is made useful, how imperfections are removed, how concepts are artificially added

Use in Spellmaking

Orbs, Concepts, spells, glyphs, energy usage, energy restoration

Industrial Use

Conjuration, heating, cooling, pushing, transport

Use in Religious Rituals

How each major religion uses it, Kumans, other cults, creation of dryads

Use as Currency

Basic trading, standardisation, weight, size, concept rarity

Laws and Regulation

Fear and banning, reinstating, creation of wizards

Wizards

Basic definition of Wizards and what they do/are expected to do/ other names for them

by Drake

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