Hex Magic

'What if we're all living in one giant hex?!' - Madman Proselytizing from Box

Law disciplines each act on one of the three parts of being: mind, body, or soul. Hex magic affects the mind by limiting or altering perception. Hex magic is considered a difficult discipline not because the structure is complex or the verbal components extensive, but because the hexer must anticipate how a victim will react to sensory alterations. Hexers are common among scouting forces and in defensive encampments as they either neutralize enemy or enhance friendly perception. Hex magic is challenging to enact during a pitched battle.

Hex Magic Mana Structure

Hex Magic by SK Kage (via MidJourney)

The mana structure of a hex is simple, especially compared to evocation or conjuration spells. A hex consists of a single ring of mana. Though the density and consistency is important in ensuring a quality effect, there is little more to creating the mana structure. Unlike binding, the ring remains invisible to conventional sight once the chant begins, although the target's eyes may adopt a purple-ish glow after the spell completes. (This by-product can be masked by incorporating a transformation cantrip into the hex.)
When hexing, the ring is maneuvered to surround the victim's head (or wherever the brain resides), and collapsed upon finishing the verbal component. It may be targeted more precisely, but few hexers possess the skill to apply the effect to the same region of the head with every spell (and the effort more often results in mistakes). As such, hexers generally limit themselves to surrounding the individual at eye level.
The density of the ring (and overall mana content) is proportional to the complexity of the intended effect and the number of senses modified. A hex cast to muffle specific sounds requires a moderate amount of mana, but creating a sensory ghost of an enemy screaming, attacking, and slashing necessitates components for visual, auditory, and physical sensations, which all contribute to greater mana input.
Protective hexers utilize their specialty to improve senses as appropriate for the circumstances. For example, hexes can provide hawk-like acuity for archers or superior hearing for scouts. An exception is aether sight, which cannot be given to another person, which means that a wizard typically accompanies advance parties and participates in the watch rotation to properly defend against magical attacks.

Hex Magic Verbal Component

Law magic relies extensively on the verbal component, particularly the consequence and limitation portions. Proper elocution in law magic is mandatory as any mistake in the chant severely deteriorates the spell. As such, hex magic is uncommon to cast in heated situations with minimal time to react or focus. Garbled hexes either do not generate any results or are easy to discern as a magical intrusion. Even uneducated commoners easily identify poor hexes as outside interference. The mechanism for this innate knowledge is unknown.

Duration

Hexes are frequently short-term spells meant to disrupt or fool, usually lasting a matter of seconds or minutes. However, the mana efficiency of hexes is highly dependent on duration. Therefore, hexers try to draw out their spells only as long as they are strictly necessary. In a situation where the hex prevents detection, the target is unaware the hex ever occurred and there is little need for it to persist beyond the time it takes for the wizard to pass out of sensory range.
For hexes that create physical sensations, there may be a preference towards longevity because as soon as the effect finishes, the victim realizes they were hexed (assuming they are sufficiently knowledgeable and the sensation is not expertly masked). This is critically important in disrupting hostile forces. Military hexers are trained to enlarge their mana pool to consistently apply longer hexes.

Consequence

'Consequence' is a catch-all term how the hex affects the target's senses. Any sense may be affected, including the major five, but also secondary ones such as kinesthesia. Wizards retain broad flexibility, but rarely are able to extend beyond what they themselves have experienced. Convincing sensations rely on the ability of the wizard to articulate and imbue the sensation into the hex. Should the caster force a feeling they have never encountered, the hex is considerably more likely to fail. Hexers are sometimes regarded as 'unhinged' because many seek out circumstances that are objectively harmful, such as burning.
Similar to binding, a 'breaking consequence' dictates the after-effects of a broken hex. While binders may broaden their specialization into hex magic, hexers prefer to chain hexes together. A common tactic 'explodes' a visual hex into a shower glass, which the target feels as cutting.
For protective hexers, the sensory enhancement is catered to the situation. Aemark snipers are often hexed to highlight yellow or teal hues because they match the colors of Kaokut Coalition and Al'Orphic Alliance military garb, respectively. Alternately, hexes placed on scouts may emphasize the sound of speech both to communicate with a whisper over distance or to discern the chatter of the enemy.

Limitation

'Limitation' in law magic is the application of rules to narrow the capability of the target or spell. Proper use of the limitation component vastly magnifies the power of the spell without a rise in mana expenditure. Typical interpretations change the breaking condition, such as 'the hex cannot be removed by rubbing the eyes.' While possible, in practice the hex becomes more obvious it isn't real and therefore easier to dismiss. Hexers instead focus on weakening an aspect of their spell to empower another.
For example, while hexing a target with a distracting auditory sensation, perhaps the hex also improves their vision. While the intention is to distract the victim, having a component that is antithetical to that goal greatly increases the effectiveness of the primary sound. Similarly, a defensive hex could sharply decrease the efficacy of a low-priority sense to further sharpen the preferred one.

Heighten Hex

Ever thought that hex magic could make something feel even better? Elevate your sense to the limit and experience it all!
Ew. Heard enough stories to know that you should not 'go hex yourself.'

Law Disciplines

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