Ear Horn

Ear Horns are conical devices designed to help an individual who is hard of hearing. At its simplest, it is a conical device with an opening that is positioned at the entrance to the ear canal - often with a cotton or wool pad around the outside for comfort - simply amplifying sound captured by virtue of its shape. Various magical enhancements have been developed to clarify the sound, enhance amplification for certain pitches, or filter out certain sounds.

Availability

Mundane ear horns are commonly available in many cities, and can be crafted by most skilled blacksmiths well enough to avoid distorting the sound. Most smiths will use a preset design in 5, 10 or 15 centimeter sizes based on the required amplification. Most major cities also have a skilled artificer who knows how to test an individual's hearing, determine an appropriate size for the horn, craft it and apply magical enhancements, though the services of these individuals are more expensive than those of a common blacksmith and can reach as high as several dozen platinum Laurels depending on the complexity of the required enchantment. These specialized horns can be made in pairs as small as 3 centimeters long, relying on the magical enhancement to provide the necessary amplification; these are commonly fitted to the ear itself so they can be used while leaving the hands free. More expensive horns are available to the upper class, though this is mostly to allow for more cosmetic designs and for the name of the handful of prestigeous craftsmen.

Magical Enhancements

The most commonly requested magical enhancement is a simple enchantment that removes any echo produced by the horn itself. While all of the horns are designed to minimize the distortion they cause, it has proven impossible to completely eliminate this effect through purely mundane means. This basic enchantment also includes a peak level of amplification for the user's safety and comfort. Other more sophisticated enhancements are available to meet a customer's needs, including the following:

• Pitch Amplification: Pitch amplification allows users to compensate for a hearing deficiency in a specific pitch range. For example, it is common for people to suffer from loss of hearing at high or low pitches, or they may have trouble filtering out voices from background noise. Variations in this enchantment allow the user to compensate for all of these problems, and can additionaly cancel out the horn's natural amplification for unaffected pitches.
• Sound Cancelling: A less common but still useful enchantment allows for the reduction of volume or elimination of troublesome sounds. This is particularly useful for users working in a noisy environment, as it can allow them to hear others at conversational tones simply by removing the sound that would otherwise drown out the other's voice. A more complex variant allows even the filtering of "subconscious" sounds - sounds heard by the individual alone, such as a high pitched ringing sound that is a common complaint after long term exposure to very loud sounds.
• Directional Filtering: Some customers prefer to have the ability to focus on a specific source of sound, which can be achieved through an attachment that amplifies sound coming from a source the user is looking directly at, while simultaneously reducing the volume of sounds from other sources. The standard version of this is very useful in ordinary circumstances, but more powerful versions can also be acquired, allowing one to hear a conversation from several hundred meters away. Both versions are typically specific modes for the horn, triggered by tapping a triggering rune on the side of the horn.
• Translation: Customers may also make use of an enchantment to adjust the language, diction, and/or tone of the speaker. This is a common request for diplomats and negotiators, as magical translation of other languages is a great improvement over the use of sapient translators, though most artificers will caution that there may be some errors with idioms that may still produce some confusion. A less common use of this is a translation within the language, such as filtering out offensive curse words or adjusting a speaker's tone of voice to be more comforting than was originally employed. This enchantment was in fairly common use among nobles when dealing with commoners prior to the Kinilan Revolution, and it has been suggested that this may have been a contributing factor to the nobility becoming out of touch with the common people, as it would have had the side effect of artificially reducing the intensity of their grievances until the outbreak of violence made their true severity abundantly clear.
• Hazard Reduction: An enchantment for the adventerous individual. Several magical hazards, both in the form of spells cast by an adversary and marauding monsters, use the power of sound to enthrall or otherwise influence the unwary listener. With this enhancement, an individual may find it easier to shrug off these effects than they otherwise would be.