Alacinta
A trial designed to determine if someone has the potential to become a druid or spellweaver
History
Millennia ago those wishing to train as druids or spellweavers were given fairly simple tests to determine if they had the aptitude for manipulating natural energy. At the time it was assumed that anyone who could use this energy would have the appropriate temperment as well. Unfortunately, this wasn't always true and one spellweaver betrayed the kingdom of the forest after being corrupted by the ambition of humans This unprecedented event shocked everyone in the forest and all training of spellweavers was stopped for over a century while the leaders of the druidic circles worked to develop a more rigourous trial to weed out those who would succumb to impatience and ambition.
Execution
Potential candidates for becoming a druid are brought to a small settlement run by an experienced member of a circle and houed together. The candidates are given duties to help support themselves and the settlement as they would have anywhere else, but they are also tasked with looking after a small grove of nicaldars. Each candidate is given one of these tiny trees to care for, with their success or failure dependent on if the tree thrives under their care. The testing lasts for decades for successful candidates, and those who fail in their first attempt may try again if their failure was down to a lack of knowledge or a simple mistake.
Those who are successful in caring for their nicaldar will be accepted as apprentices in a druid circle or in some cases may be selected for training as a spellweaver. As a sign of their acceptance the person overseeing the test grows a small talisman from the new apprentice's tree. As the tree has spent decades being infused with the apprentice's magic this talismans makes a very effective spellcasting focus for them.
Components and tools
The core of the trial is the nicaldar tree. These trees are naturally small and their size is limited further by subtle manipulation by a druid and careful pruning. These trees are highly senstive to changes in their environment and require constant care. They also require a small infusion of energy such as druids use to be able to grow, and part of the trial is for the candidates to be able to identify the amount and type of energy to supply. One of the reasons for restricting the size of the trees is to ensure the candidates don't exjhaust themselves in trying to supply too much energy. Larger variants of these trees are used to anchor the protective spells created by the spellweavers, which is why they monitor these trials to find candidates who show exceptional promise in looking after their tree.
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