Lithomancy

Shiny and Dangerous

One of the many branches of Imbuing, lithomancy is the act of storing spells into stones and gems. While any spell can be placed in almost any gem or stone, some spells and receptacles have a higher affinity for each other. In example, fire spells imbued into a garnet will have greater efficacy and will be able to be used more times before deteriorating the receptacle than fire spells imbued in a sapphire. There are two common uses for lithomancy that involve offensive magic and defensive magic.

Offensive Lithomancy

When used for offensive means, imbued gems and stones are generally affixed to weapons. The most common use are staves where a large gem is crowned on one end of the tool. Castors use these staves for quick and efficient layering to increase their spell potencies or to alter their spell makeup altogether. Other known uses are to affix the gems and stones into non-magic weapons such as bows and swords. People who wield such weapons can use the stored spells to launch creative attacks mixing the mights of the arcane and the mundane.

Defensive Lithomancy

When used for defensive means, imbued gems and stones are affixed to accessories such as rings, bracelets, and necklaces. These imbued stones act as wards that constantly burn at low rate to protect its wearer from potential danger. Having a ring with a fire stone attached can prevent the wearer from being burned.

Although these are common uses for lithomancy, there is no real restriction on what you can do with imbued stones. A ring can be as dangerous as a sword if imbued with the right spell.

Side/Secondary Effects

Lithomancy like other imbuing spells causes wear on the receptacle which breaks it down with every use. Precious (and expensive) gems and stones tend to have a higher efficacy for imbuing and last longer than any other form of imbuing. Defensive lithomancy, however, begins burning up its receptacle as soon as the items are worn and don't stop till it is removed or until the receptacle deteriorates completely.

Material Components

Gems and Stones are all you need for lithomancy. Rare and pure receptacles are the best material to use as they have higher efficacy and lower burns rates.

Gestures & Ritual

Like imbuing, the castor needs only to gather quintessence into their body and focus it on their hands. They need only touch the receptacle with one hand and let the aether flow through chanting, signing, or engraving the spell they desire. Once the desired spell is stored within a receptacle, an imbuer will give it a switch of sorts such as a finer snap or whistle. This allows whoever is in possession of the receptacle to cast the spell at a moments notice with little to no preparation.

Effect Casting Time

The casting time for imbuing depends on the parent spell being imbued. The casting of the imbued spell is almost instantaneous.