Earth Magic

Earth magic has for a long time not been that common on the surface. We, however, know that it had great importance for those ancient underground nations. It is after all much easier to use magic to excavate areas then doing everything by hand.

— High Sage Syronikir

Earth magic was for a long time one of least commonly used types of elemental magic. This was of course mainly because most casters and Tremor Falls could only be found deep underground. Nonetheless it can offer some strong defensive and offensive abilties. The most skilled casters can even create small localised earthquakes

History

Farlis

In Farlis the use of earth magic was very limited among the surface living species. Not many of the surface folk were born with the ability to cast earth magic and Tremor Falls were also not that common there.
However, it is likely that the Dwarves and Daski were already heavily using this type of magic. This allowed them to create cities deep underground at astounding speed. But as most of these civilizations lived in the Lower Realms very little was known about them. What we do know is that the lost Deep Gnome Empire made heavy use of them and even used them to create various golems that protected their cities.

Other Continents

A little bit more is known from the earth casters living in Oneraga and Pavanor. As these were living on the surface their use of this type magic was not as important as for those living underground. Nonetheless the use of this magic can easily be seen in their earliest constructions.
The ORCs were especially known to make good use of the offensive abilities that this magic offered them. The Gnomes of Oneraga on the other hand used earth magic to create great strong walls of which some are still standing to this day. The most famous of these is the Kanshin wall which is still protecting part of the border.

Resurfacing

The largest amount of earth casters came to the surfaces when the Daski Elves migrated in great numbers to the current Deldirom. They showed great skill in the use of this magic and the various abilities that they learned quickly spread among the earth casters of the surface.

Tremor Falls

Although it is not verified, many belief that the vast majority of Tremor Falls can be found deep in the Lower Realms . This theory is difficult to verify as expeditions into the Lower Realms is rarely undertaken by those living on the surface. One thing in favor of this theory though is that quite a large amount of Daski Elves have a gift for earth magic.
There are, however, other places where Tremor Falls can be found. Some Dwarven communities in Farlis are known to have quite an amount of them. In Oneraga there is quite a large amount of Tremor Falls in the Crystal Valley and the other mountain ranges there.

Uses

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Earth Control

Earth casters can use their magic to use the ground around them for various purposes. Soft ground and sand can be used to blind enemies whereas rocky surfaces can be used for offensive uses. As earth casters can choose the shape of the earth they control they can make rock as sharp or large as they want and then hurl it at their enemies.
Advanced casters can move and shape large amounts of rock and earth. This makes it quite easy for these casters to create new walls or excavate large areas.

Tremors

Another type of magic that earth casters can use is the creation of vibrations in the earth. These can be small local effects that are meant to knock over a few people but can also be larger. The most powerful casters can create localised earthquakes that can be devastating to buildings around them.

Protection

Earth magic also has quite good defensive qualities. It can be used to create layers around the skins that can protect the caster or others. Advanced casters can create quite large armors which essentialy become a sort of suit that grants new abilities. Trying to get to an earth caster in this form is quite difficult.

From the Ground

More skilled earth casters are able to control all sorts of minerals and metals even when they are outside of the ground. Something that most beginning earth casters can is sensing where certain materials, such as iron or gold, could be. This is a great benefit to miners and is also one of the reason why the Dwarves are very fond of earth magic.
More advanced casters are able to move these materials themselves even when they are in a processed form. This allows an earth casters to bend metal swords or armor or hurl metal at enemies just like they would normally do with rocks.

Conjuration

As earth casters have a close connection to the Earth Realm they are able to perform limited conjuration. This can vary from small earth familiars to larger earth elementals. Very advanced casters can even conjure a giant rock worm.

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Elemental Combinations

Elemental magic can sometimes be combined by experienced casters. So far there have only been combinations of two elements at once as it is quite difficult to cast this kind of magic. Air magic is no different in this regard and has been used as a basis to create new effects. In most cases air is used to create gigantic storm with another element added to them.

Earth and Water

The combination of water and earth is often used to infuse the ground with water. This can be used to trap enemies as they get stuck when the ground beneath them suddenly turns to deep mud. The magic can also be used to create great mudstreams which destroy everything in their path.

Earth and Air

The combination of air and earth magic can be used to create storms. In the case of earth and air this is done to create magnificent sand storms with great power. It can however just as easily be used to create floating motes of earth and even hurl these and an enemy. Smaller earth spikes can also be catapulted at great speed by using air control.

Earth and Fire

Combining fire and earth is another powerful combination as it allows a caster to change the earth into searing hot lava. Although not so destructive as plasma it can still be a real menace to any defences a city might have. It is not the easiest combination to pull off but it still within reach for any advanced caster.

Further Reading