Archbinder

An Archbinder is a unique role for any Wavebinder. Not just anyone can do it. They are the quill that draws the path for the next generation of Wavebinders that may shape the world.

- Archbinder Emeric Thorne of the Dawnrunner Order

For every student there’s teacher. In the delicate study of the Etherwave Arcana, it often requires a teacher or mentor to guide a student safely through their studies. Where the Tuyasha is the student, their mentors is the Archbinder. A trained Wavebinder, skilled in the delicate art of channeling the Arcana’s raw power.

Like ‘Tuyasha’, the title of ‘Archbinder’ can be traced back over a thousand generations to Otherworld. There, ‘Master Wavebinders’ were called ‘Arc Benders’ in recognition of their mastery over channeling the Etherwave Arcana. Over time, the title passed through thayan, morasu, and grimling cultures until it became what it is today. The Archbinder. A title that recognizes a Wavebinder as certified to teach young apprentices of the mystic arts.

Pillar of Guidance

An Archbinder’s authority is rooted in their deep mastery of the Etherwave Arcana, and their recognized ability to teach this knowledge. Many Wavebinders can claim skill in the first, but few possess the skill, and patience, to pass on what they have learned. It’s for that reason an Archbinder isn’t just a title a Wavebinder is given. That title must be earned.

Wavebinders that aspire to teach must undergo a special training. Learning new skills from how to teach proper meditation techniques to quick channeling of counterspells. All the knowledge to both guide a Tuyasha along their path and counter any out-of-control spells they might cast.

Certification Trials

The act of earning the title of ‘Archbinder’ is a major milestone for any Wavebinder. It’s a road paved with long hours of advanced training in skills necessary for a Tuyasha’s training. Aspiring Archbinders are taught various methods of instruction for all types of learners, from written to visual. In addition, they learn delicate counterspells. Methods of ‘unweaving’ a spell while it’s being cast. A critical skill needed to save an apprentice, and Archbinder, from runaway spells improperly cast by that apprentice.

This training takes up to a year or more to refine a future Archbinder’s skill. At the end of that time, they undergo a certification test not too different from the endurance obstacle course given to a Tuyasha. Only this one is more lethal, packed with broken relics and a review of teaching methods by a council of Archbinders from a guild such as the Dawnrunner Order.

Once they succeed, they are awarded both a parchment and pin that signifies their right to take on a Tuyasha as an apprentice. The parchment is the official teaching certificate signed by a council of Archbinders that recognize the Wavebinder’s right to teach. Since a parchment certificate is clumsy to carry with them daily, Archbinders wear an enameled silver pin instead. On the pin is the engraved portrait of two owls facing each other with wings spread and an oval sapphire held between them.

Type

Magical, Professional

Form of Address

Bindmaster, Master Wavebinder. or Archbinder

Alternative Naming

Master Wavebinder

Equates to

Guildmaster in a craft guild

Source of Authority

Their source of authority is derived from the order that certifies their ability to mentor a Tuyasha

Related Organizations

• Bonewright Order
• Dawnrunner Order

Related Professions

• Wavebinder

A Matter of the Pin

Creating an enchanted item is no small feat. The Etherwave Arcana dislikes being contained in any way, much less in a physical object. It wants to be in motion. So creating an item like an Archbinder’s Pin takes time, money, and resources.

No order pays the full cost for these pins. In fact, the creation of these pins quickly became its own craft and trade. Certain Wavebinders specialize in creating these pins, working with silversmiths and other craft professionals on the materials. The cost? That money comes from the prospective Archbinder.

Wavebinders pay for the privilege to study to be an Archbinder. This money is set aside to pay for the pins. In fact, the order pays half the cost of the pin from their own coffers. The other half comes from the tuition paid by the Wavebinder who wishes to study to become an Archbinder.

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There’s a thriving business in attempting to forge duplicates of these pins. Masquerading as an Archbinder, if successful, often opens doors to halls of power and more. But to counter that, each pin is enchanted at the moment it’s awarded. The item is tied to the actual owner with a mystical 'silver cord’ that can be seen through the Arcana. Also, the gemstone is enchanted with a ‘living portrait’ of the Archbinder. If anyone else attempts wears it, the pin will glow a fire red and the living portrait will shriek and yell in alarm.

But, similar to the examination given to a Tuyasha, a prospective Archbinder can fail the examination. If they do, they’re allowed to try again after another year of intense study.

Archbinders wield great power and influence. But if they stray from the path, even they aren’t beyond reproach. Their fall is a stain of infamy and a reminder that even the mighty can fall.

- Miranda Vael, High Councilor of the Royal Academy of Arcana and Science

Fall From Grace

It’s a rare and unpleasant situation when an Archbinder is stripped of their title, but it does happen. Most offenses are academic. Aside from training a Tuyasha, an Archbinder is expected to contribute to the body of knowledge around the Etherwave Arcana. These contributions, which are often new and inventive methods to weave and twist the Arcana into spells, are rigorously reviewed.

Archbinders often adapt and change techniques from other Wavebinders. Refining or incorporating them in different ways to tap into the Etherwave Arcana. But they are always required to site their sources once they submit their discoveries or inventions. If they cannot cite their sources, or even outright plagiarize another Archbinder’s work, the order that gave them the title strips it from them. Their certificate will mysteriously char, and their Archbinder Pin will crack down the middle. Often, it shatters into charred pieces.

The worst offense of all would be to sacrifice their apprentice to channel the Arcana. This dire act does more than cause an Archbinder to lose their title. It earns them a death sentence no matter where they go.

Archbinders don’t just teach. They ignite the spark that lights the fire of wonder. Fuels the imagination of a prospective apprentice. In their hands, they hold the keys to better understand the mysteries of the Etherwave Arcana.

- Archbinder Seraphine Elara, Author of 'Whispers of the Etherwave'