Entropic Bond/Entropomancy

"So next to consider is those of the Amethyst Order, wielders of the manna of Lobhadh, and compared to our friends of the Ruby Order, it is night and day as to how their bonding, the Entropic Bonding, effects them by comparison to those of the Ruby Order. Those of you so....altered will be among some of the most notably different among your peers, for your connection to that unique energy, the energy and manna that dictates the ending and renewal of the cycle itself, will have some very noticeable effects upon you. It is also important, for any of you whom may have to come to terms with such a testing when we get to checking each of your talents...You will need to realize you, out of all of us, will deal with misgivings and mistrust from the regular folk outside. Magisters of the Amethyst have many unfair monikers in regular society. 'Death Mages', 'necromancers' and other worse titles are tied to you. You must have great patience with these people. Death, the concept of the end and renewal, scares those less....wise. So with that in mind, let us now turn to discuss how those of our brethren whom are marked with the Entropic Bond by the Aether are affected by this."

First Arcanist Theresa Lindlewood, giving the introductory lecture to the a hall of several dozen newly marked magister hopefuls in the Academia of Octi, the largest campus of the Magisterium, in the city of Valenwood.

Magisters of the Amethyst Order are a night and day experience from those of the Ruby Order in how they are trained. Whereas hopefuls of the Ruby Order are pushed and trained day in and day out for the time frame that they may not wield or weave any lick of magick without supervision and guidance from a fully licensed magister, the Amethyst Order is the exact opposite. Sure they have a bit of martial training, all eight schools indulge in a bit of that, as well as a little skill based learning. But a great deal of the time of an acolyte hoping to become a fully fledged apprentice is spent in quiet contemplation and solitary confinement. By choice no less, well as much 'choice' as one can be said to have when the alternative is flunking out and being branded a heretic for your ability to weave magick unlicensed and then being executed for that crime. However the reason for this is that a great deal of wielding and manipulating the manna flow of Lobhadh is patience and emotional stability and peace. So meditation, quiet contemplation, and becoming very comfortable with one's own mind, even in the quietest and seemingly slowest of moments, is a key attribute to success. You are taught that everything follows a cycle, a pattern, no matter how complex it may seem, and that this is the most true for the sort of magick you wield. Everything is pre-mapped out, a pattern of motions, phrases, commands, and smooth, calm, patient directions. It is through such methodical, patient studies and self reflection that an acolyte grows to become comfortable with the Entropic Bonding and what that will do to them.

Manifestation

Like any of the elemental magick bonds, the Entropic Bond manifests in a wide ranging variety of ways, effecting the body physically and physiologically, as well as effecting the mental and emotional state of the magister. It will again effect everything from dietary choices to training methods, and discipline/behavior to simple matters of taste in literature and artwork.

Physical Changes

So for those whom experience an Entropic Bond to the Aether are effected in two distinct fashions. The first of note is that they will always be an almost ghastly pale in complexion, even in the most tropical of climates, even if that was not their original skin tone, that is what it shall become. The second, and perhaps most remarkable will be how they age. A magister of the Amethyst ages exceedingly slowly, in most cases their lifespan by comparison to their racial life expectancy almost doubling. This phenomenom is often credited as some sort of complex Aethyric balance to the fact that Entropomancers are the second rarest and least common of magisters/magister hopefuls, only making up about 6% of all magisters across Valerick. Only those of the Diamond Order can attempt to claim to be rarer, likely only making up around 4-5% of all Magisters.

Besides these two changes, a Entropomancer will experience generally at least one of the following three changes;

• The rapid receding of their hairline if male, or the rapid silvering of their hair if female. It is not known why this discrepancy in the behavior of Lobhadh exists.

• Dull almost blue rings around the irises of the eyes, which when in the throes of weaving a spell-form will slowly light up, seeming to cast an amethyst pallor over your natural eye color.

• A heavy ability to resist, or a complete ability to shrug off and be immune to, any sort of disease or infection.

• In some cases, a change in dietary nature that manifests in a few ways. First off, an immense drop in appetite or need to eat as their metabolism slows right down immensely. Also a taste for simpler foods and ingredients, preferring as little mixing as possible. Also an absolute distaste for and disgust for alcohol or other narcotics.

Emotional Changes

"With the Amethyst Order, the emotional change is quite an easy one to see, and does not need heavy definition or explanation. This is because a large part of their magick requires the cold acceptance of the reality of life and death, creation and destruction and for that to work, to accept that moment of entropy, that moment of ending....well emotions can get in the way. They can cloud the response, the process, and the system. A magister of the Amethyst Order is marked by their....very limited ability to be read, emotionally. Oft they are described, unfairly, as having simply no emotions. This is an unfair statement. They...we feel emotions just like every other magister. Well perhaps not quite like our Ruby brothers and sisters, but besides that we do feel them. We just know how to properly compartmentalize, control and vent our feelings when there is no danger of interference in the weaves of the Aether."

An unknown magister of the Amethyst Order explaining to a travelling companion, the difference between being 'emotionless' versus in total control of one's mind.

Physiological Changes

Magisters of the Amethyst do seem to have an altered biology as well. Their body temperature has been noted to be almost infeasibly cold, their heart rate implausibly low at all times. They never seem to rise with stress, they never seem to rise with anxiety. This is known to be a side effect of manipulating and working with the energies of Lobhadh, though how or why it happens is not fully understood.

This does create a similiar effect to their pyromancer brethren, for different reasons. They despise seeking aid from medical personal with no baseline of arcane understanding because of how easily they will be misdiagnosed. They could have a fever, and a regular medic or priest would foolishly misdiagnose them as needing to get warmed up. So like their Pyromancer brethren, they prefer to seek medical care if they need it from those of their own kind, namely a Diamond or Emerald Magister.

by Keon Croucher (discord name, drizzt103) was the input operator, Midjourney AI took those inputs and put the image together.

Magicks of Entropomancy

The art of Entropomancy begins within your own mind. To communicate with Lobhadh, you must be calm. You must be at peace, patient and at ease with your own place in the world. Fundamentally, the art of Entropomancy is simply mortality itself. It is finding an absolute peace and sense of identity within one's own mortal existence. Comfortable enough to distance one's self from it, to have it tickle and flow about you, through you, and yet not trip you up in the slightest. You cannot rush anything with Lobhadh. The patience of death. That is the true art of Entropomancy.

The source of an Entropomancer's power comes from the amethyst manna current, Lobhadh, the manna of Entropy. This manna requires patience, and timing to manipulate and work with, given the natural cycle of decay and rebirth this manna goes through. Lobhadh is all around us and everywhere, however it is a transitional energy, always in flux, dying to cycle into another essence or energy. Such is the nature of its essence. All manna becomes Lobhadh in its life cycle and is also born from it. Such is its place in the natural order. Entropomancers are thus uniquely skilled magickal duelists as well, as the very essence of manifesting spells from other types of manna unleashes the energy of the spell, but also sees some Lobhadh created as well, which the Entropomancer can utilize to react or respond. Patience and timing, a calm and balanced approach, the true difficulties and mastery of Entropomancy.

A entropomancer can manifest their mastery of their connection through various spell-forms listed below;