Rune current

Rune currents are an application of runemagic that allows magical energy to be stored and conducted quickly across great distances. Moreover, rune currents are able to speed up the flow of magical energy in nearby ley-lines, resulting in a greater influx of magic into the area than would otherwise be possible.
Rune currents are the answer to the problem of arcane infrastructure that arises when a society wields so much magic at a constant rate that the cosmic ley-lines cannot satisfy the demand of magical energy. Ley-lines flow with magical energy that replenishes over time from an endless cosmic source. Thus ley-lines cannot be permamently depleted, but their flow can be diminished temporarily.
Contents

Properties

Rune currents, in their simplicity, use the magical effects of certain runes to facilitate the storage and conduction of magical energy as well as accelerating the flow of ley-lines. Chosen runes are placed in a sequence at certain intervals, forming a chain of runes by which magical energy can skip from one rune to the next. This conductive current of magic flows faster than magic does through ley-lines.
Mere conductive currents can be enchanced by incorportaing ley-line accelerating runes into them at certain intervals. The result is a sequence of runes that both conducts magic extremely fast and also increases the rate at which magic feeds into it from the cosmos. In addition to these two effects, rune circuits can store magical energy, because every rune possesses this ability innatelyt. Even more functionality can be unlocked by adding runes with additional effects into the rune circuit.

Practical application

The high elves of Ellondoth have networked their entire nation with rune currents. Runes are etched into stone, carved into wood, forged from metal, and projected to appear as symbols made of magical light -- some applications are more popular than others, but each is effective. Rune currents connect high-elf cities and pierce the wild nature of the land as well, snaking inwards from the borders of the nation towards the center and converging at key settlements and runic repositories.
The sheer abundance of rune currents in Ellondoth greatly compounds the effect of ley-line acceleration. The entire realm is constantly flooded with magical energy from the cosmos, and the high elves gladly use this abundance of energy to fuel their many spells and arcane machines.

Benefits

Rune conduits have multiplied the amount of magic available to Ellondothans many times over. The amount of powerful spellcasting that can be performed by the high elves on a daily basis is unprecedented. This has caused not only spellcasting to become commonplace in all areas of living but also the very art of high elven spellcraft to become more and more sophisticated.
Telepathic spells and their development into the Weave has made the world of the high elves smaller. The negligible cost of simple light magic made artificial light a staple of infrastructure, opening society to nocturnal activity. Weavecrafting is the answer to all issues of production. The myriad new social and entertainment options provided by the Weave have completely changed how high elves spend their free time. Truly, rune currents and the degree of spellcasting they make possible have changed high elven civilization beyond what denizens of other nations could even dream about.

Access and availability
Rune currents are used on Amanor only by the high elves of Ellondoth, who have so far managed to keep the secrets of runemagic from other civilizations.
Utility
Rune currents are a passively functioning means of transfering magic. Thus they have no added complexity that spellcasters should learn in order for them to use rune current to fuel their spells.
Manufacturing
Runes are immaterial and thus have little to no material costs.
Complexity
Runemagic is effortless to use once mastered. All that is required for a rune to exert its magical effects is for it to somehow appear within physical reality. Even immaterial runes made with illusory magic can exert their effects despite not being actual physical manifestations of the rune. It should be noted that the form of a rune has to nearly perfect for the rune to function, thus materials that runes are inscribed upon have to very durable and resistant to erosion.

Further reading

Future development

Rune currents are not themselves being developed further, for the technology is thought to have reached its peak potential. Some high elf arcanists still dabble, however, with experiments about adding the various magic-altering effects of runes into rune currents.

Discovery

Rune currents were conceived by a group high elven mages investigating the potential applications of runemagic. The group later credited the entire discovery to one Arcanist Mirthal. Among this group of mages was also the legendary Oracle.