Overview
Plasma magic is a rare fusion-magic technique that uses extreme heat and fire spellwork. It produces superheated energy that can be shaped into bolts, balls, beams, blades, limb coatings, weapon channels, and aura-like bursts. Elite users use it to melt terrain, pierce shields, overpower ice, and create explosive heat and shockwaves in aerial or close-range fights.
Users
Ignatius repeatedly uses plasma as his specialty. He is a powerful plasma, fire, and resonance mage, uses plasma with the Glaive of Frost and Fire, and pairs plasma with resonance. The visible heat draws enemy focus. The resonance delivers deeper damage. His battlefield-scale plasma outbursts burn through shields, devastate terrain, and consume enormous amounts of essence.
Virel trains Viviana in plasma from Thalassai fire-mage principles. Plasma has a practical threshold: a lower-level fire mage can understand plasma's principles before gaining the strength to execute them. A stronger fire mage can eventually form the spellwork. Vianna refines the technique into Plasma Blades, making plasma part of her close-combat style.
During the Varnhallow tournament period, Zhang and Vianna both use plasma, and Zhang repeatedly combines plasma with lightning. Thamrielle also uses plasma. Eremion uses Plasma Rain.
Spells
Plasma Rain
Plasma rain is Eremion's large-scale plasma bombardment, a sky-filling fusion spell that drops burning plasma from above. It is dangerous enough that Zero and Thalena both make interrupting it an immediate battlefield priority.
Near Morindel, the sky turns fiery orange and golden before plasma meteors fall from the heavens. The falling spheres radiate a golden sheen. Eremion throws fire-magic enchantments through the spell, and after Zero and Kallion disturb his casting the plasma comets crash into skyship shields on both sides.
At Maraveth, Thalena interrupts Plasma Rain before Eremion can use it freely against Garrik's army. The sky shifts into a deep orange-blue haze, plasma spheres descend in golden and white hues, and Plasma Rain forces armies to rely on massed shields or direct interruption. Plasma rain is strongest when Eremion can stay above the battlefield and continue casting from his fleet.
Rules and Properties
- Plasma belongs to fusion magic alongside temporal sun spears and golden lightning.
- Plasma builds on fire mastery.
- Plasma can be white, orange-white, purple-white, blue-violet, or red-scarlet energy.
- Strong plasma output consumes heavy essence; Ignatius's battlefield-scale form has finite duration.
- Plasma is dangerous. Vector magic can redirect it in small areas, balance magic can nullify it, cosmic barriers can deflect it, and sufficient ice, divine shielding, or heat resistance can blunt specific attacks.
- Plasma often combines with other schools, including resonance, lightning, air amplification, ice traps, cosmic beams, and divine or weapon-based enchantment.
History
By the Thalassai period, Aelius uses plasma in his imperator duties and combat training. In Varnhallow, the technique remains rare enough that Aelius avoids displaying it casually. Plasma users are extremely rare, and the Order later adds a few more plasma mages.
Plasma becomes a recurring weapon for the Order and its opponents. Ignatius uses it during the Fall of Malverand against guardians and gods, including Raphael's defeat at Maraveth. Vianna carries plasma into later combat through her plasma blades, Zhang uses plasma and lightning during the Battle for Cyndarel, and Eremion's plasma rain expands the same destructive family of magic into an army-scale bombardment.