Mage or Not to Mage

Xelor is going to use Axel for quite some time as this weapon increases her ability to act. But she is also a hunter and wants to have a hunting weapon.

We consulted with a master shovel smith, and she said it was possible to make Axel a hunting weapon. However, it could be risky and expensive. Right now xelor’s shovel is maged to almost perfect condition, therefore its capacity is almost used and no one is sure if it will accept a hunting rune without losing current bonuses. On the other hand the power of the modern hunting runes is lower than it used to be — sram managed to mage her new daggers to almost perfect condition even after making them a hunting weapon.

I think the most reasonable will be forging one more Axel and try a hunting rune on it. If something goes wrong xelor still will have her good shovel.

Or maybe we should Axel maging idea altogether and wait till xelor is capable of wielding a metal hammer. This hammer is so much easier to mage. But I’m not sure she is going to switch to it: the damage is much higher, but she will lose the ability to cast that additional Slow Down spell she is so fond of…

No Means No. One Way or Another.

— Hey, I need something maged.

— Sorry Sir, but maging services are closed.

— But I need my stuff maged and there is no other mage available.

— Sorry, but I can’t help you. We do not mage anymore.

— What do you think about yourself? I’m going to pay 5’000 kamas and you refuse to mage?! Bitch!

— Sorry for the inconvenience. Have a nice day.

*ignores further words*

This was my normal conversation with customers until recently when we decided to change the tactics. But before I tell about our new method to reject maging requests just a few words why we decided to close maging services.

Some time ago maging changed drastically. Everything can be repaired or improved, but at high runes and time costs. Where earlier one had to rely on luck, now time, patience, and tight-filled wallet will be of more use. However, the prices on maging and customers’ attitudes stayed the same. We are busy people, so cra decided there would be no maging services. It was the first time her decision was adopted unanimously. What we failed to foresee was the reaction of customers — sometimes neutral, but more often very negative and accompanied with insults.

And finally we found a method that worked perfectly. High fees — simple yet almost 100% reliable solution of the problem.

Nowadays I ask customers requesting maging whether they are familiar with the maging fees. Then I advise them of 100’000 kamas immutable fee for the first 30 minutes of the maging session and additional 75’000 kamas payment for each additional half an hour. Not all people react politely, but the majority of them just go look for another mage. And if they agree to pay this money we will be glad to provide service!

Notes on Gelano Maging

Probably, one of the most wanted items in the World of Twelve is AP/MP Gelano. Of course, it is possible to create much more powerful items, but it’s very-very time and money consuming thus discouraging for many. And Gelano is relatively cheap and easy to aquire. However, one needs some patience and knowledge to make it.

Patience is a virtue when it comes to any maging, but when we are talking about creating very powerful items with the characteristics unnatural for them patience is more than just a virtue, it is one of the most important and prerequisite qualities for the success. Maging is more or less like gambling, not the casual gambling where you rely only on luck, but its professional version  where knowledge of mathematics and psychology is the key to the win. One loss doesn’t mean a forfeit, in many situations it’s the first step to the victory, but one should be patient to get there.

Knowledge is the second ingredient needed for successful maging. Probably, one day I will write an introduction to maging, but today I will limit myself to the things needed to create AP/MP Gelano (or in fact any Gelano with the unnatural characteristics).

First of all, it will be wise to get ready for the maging session beforehand. All runes should be made or bought prior to it with the exclusion of the most expensive and the least used runes (in this case Ga Pa) as usually they can be bought when they are needed. Also it is better to schedule a maging attempt for the most calm time to reduce interference and disturbance by others.

Ok, what runes are needed? At least 60 Ga Pme (better 100 to be on a safe side), 1 Ga Pa, and about 100 small power runes (Vi, Cha, Ine, Age, etc.).

After all runes are collected it is time to proceed to maging itself. The described method includes three steps and for now is considered as the best of all. It also assumes that a regular Gelano with the intact AP will be used, blank Gelano or Gelano without AP but with some unnatural characteristics can’t be used.

The first step is the creation of the sink.

Sink is a temporarily added power that appears when the powerful characteristic is lost. Sinks significantly facilitate the maging as they absorb failures and create additional room for unnatural characteristics. So, this step is essential for decreasing the number of needed runes and increasing the overall chances for success. It’s important to keep in mind that sinks are only temporary and will disappear when the item is traded or put on sale. It’s also not known whether the sinks stay intact between the maging sessions, so for the best results it would be better to do all the maging in one go.

How to create a sink? It’s really very easy: Gelano should be maged with the runes of small power till AP is gone. When AP is no longer on the ring, the sink is created.

The second step is maging MP to the ring.

This step is very straightforward, no secrets, no tips and tricks, just add MP runes till MP lands on Gelano. It is better to use runes one at a time and don’t use mass-maging option.

The last step is maging AP back.

Probably, the most exciting moment of the whole maging session is this step. I always hold my breath and cross fingers when I see Drelas (I specialise in theory and she is a practician) performing this last act.

The chance that AP will land without loss of MP is about 1/2 or even higher if all the previous steps were followed, but there is also a chance that AP will replace MP or it will fail and we’ll be left with the blank Gelano. If AP replaced MP sink is gone and all the steps should be repeated anew. If MP stayed intact but AP didn’t land only third step should be repeated. In case both MP and AP were gone there is no other choice but to rely on luck and try to add MP then AP.

For all other unnatural characteristics the procedure is the same but instead of MP runes should be used runes of the highest power for the desired characteristic, i.e. for strength should be used Ra Fo, for critical hits bonus –  Cri, for range – Po, for prospecting – Pa Prospe.