There is a common misconception that Warders can block just about anything, and thus make themselves virtually invincible. This is not entirely true. While Warders can form their Wards to block something specific, it can only be a single thing – and the more specific it is, the less dangerous to the Warder. As a result, a Warder cannot simply sit back and block every attack that comes his way. Even against a single opponent, a Warder must be extremely observant and quick with his Wards.

Allow me to explain. Magic in the world of Osterin is based on the Madness. If you’re reading this, you probably knew that already. In order to create a magical effect – say, a fireball – you need to request it from the Madness, who will grant your request if it is within your ability. Usually, this is done instinctively, but for a Warder, it’s much more explicit.

A Warder can create a Ward that blocks a single thing. This thing can be, as mentioned, nearly anything. A weapon, air, light, magic – the Ward at the Asylum is a perfect example of this. In order to provide a sanctuary of sorts to Madmen, the Asylum is surrounded by a massive Ward that blocks the Madness.

But back to Warders. In a fight, a Warder can choose to block, for example, weapons. But not only does this prevent the Warder from attacking anybody else, but the definition of ‘weapon’ can change. Is a table leg a weapon? It can be, if wielded as such. But then, air can be a weapon in the hands of an Elementalist. Does the Ward then block these as well as swords? It depends on the mind of the Warder and how the Madness interprets the request. Better then to customize your Wards to the situation. If the enemy attacks with a sword, block steel and attack with a wooden hammer.

The best way to fight a Warder is to attack with two different types of weapons. A favoured approach by Quis is a sword/club attack, or a glass/obsidian dagger, or to occupy the Warder with a swordsman while an archer fires bone-tipped arrows.

The best Warders can perform a technique known as ‘flickering’. All this is is an impressive feat of mental dexterity, where they switch quickly between two different Wards. This provides an extra layer of defense, but requires great concentration. There have only been a handful of Warders who could do this successfully. Most require a second or two between switches.

Update on edits – about a third of the new beginning is done.

A Ratan is the result of a Madman snapping – and is the expected result for all Madmen. Their mind has become so degraded that the link between mind and body is severed, leaving the victim without a conscious will of their own. This process is often accompanied by an explosion of magical power as the filter for the Madness has disappeared. This is the main reason the Quis were formed.

One odd thing about Ratans is that there is no record of them before about 500 A.C., despite Madmen existing long before then. In fact the term ‘Ratan’ comes from the name of the first Madman to snap – Ceodore Rattan.

Despite the often violent and potentially deadly nature of their formation, Ratans were a highly prized commodity for many years after they first began to appear. This was due to the way they could be used. A Ratan could still access magic, and would perform any command mindlessly. There was also no danger of them snapping – a Ratan who drew too much power would suffer from a slow corruption of the body, followed by a sudden and silent death. This made them ideal tools for the rich and powerful.

Of course, there was backlash. Some of the more power hungry and morally bereft people attempted to create Ratans from Madmen by forcing them to draw on their magic. This often did not end well, but it was still attempted. Eventually – for this and other reasons – the Madmen drew away from Attarnon and through the mountains to form their own country – Brochus. There, any Ratans that were created were sold to the neighbouring country of Darill, where they were brought to the capital of Ganyan, treated well and used for magical research – which was then sold back to Brochus for more Ratans.

Meanwhile, a public revolt formed in Attarnon against the use of Ratans, and eventually the practice became illegal. This was the basis – officially, at least – for the War of Magic that Attarnon waged against Brochus.

Ratans are now rarely seen, as the main function of the Quis in Attarnon is to prevent them. Brochus has been destroyed, and the Ratan trade with it. Towering spires and intricate woodwork in Ganyan still stand as a testament to their power. Even horses and cows were manipulated in Ganyan by Ratan Druids to be faster, more obedient – in some cases, nearly mindless – or to produce better meat and milk. The prices of such animals has skyrocketed, and are now only in the possession of the very few who can afford them.

Much of the research that was produced in Ganyan was destroyed in the War. Some copies may still exist in Ganyan, but travel beyond the mountains is rare, especially with the Quis keeping a close eye on their Madmen.

One has to wonder, however – how does the Asylum keep their Ward going over the entire area if the powerful Ratan Warders are illegal?

Writing update – haven’t had much time this past week, thanks to real work, but this week looks slower. My goal is to finish the new beginning this week.

When the world of Osterin was being populated, life was created in three stages. The first form of life consisted solely of a Body – the part of a being that interacts with the physical world. These were plants.

The second form of life consisted of a Body and a Spirit. Not only could these creatures interact with the physical world, but they had instincts and reactions drawn subconsciously from the spirit realm. They were not, however, capable of conscious thought. These were the animals.

And the third form of life was created with the trinity of Body, Spirit, and Mind. These creatures had conscious thoughts, could reason and plan – and they could use magic. They were, of course, the humans.

It is theorized that, as there is a physical realm and a spirit realm, there must be a realm devoted to the Mind as well. Further, this must be a realm of great power, as it is where all magic is drawn from. Great effort has gone into attempts to discover this realm, but with no success. Some believe that Mentalists hold the key, as they can catch glimpses of another’s conscious thoughts.

This is also why a Madman’s mind deteriorates the more he uses magic – the power needs to flow through the mind and into the physical realm through the body. In truth, when a Madman snaps, it’s not his mind that breaks. If it was, Ratans wouldn’t be able to use magic. Rather, it’s the connection between mind and body that gets eroded away.

Of interest is the fact that animals have spirits. This is important for two reasons. One, it means that anything a Necromancer can do with a human spirit, he can do with an animal’s. This includes something as simple as returning it to its body, or something as complex as fusing the spirit to another object.

The other reason is enchantments. Enchantments are something that can only be performed by a Ver, and they require the use of spirits. This usually involves a sacrifice. If animals didn’t have spirits, a human sacrifice would be required. While this is done on occasion – human spirits produce the strongest effects – it is frowned upon for obvious reasons.

Editing update – done with the first scene of the new beginning. There should be one more scene left, and then it’ll get into where it started before, which was a bit too abrupt.

The Quis first established a presence in Attarnon with the arrival of Jarem Nebriah. Jarem was a Qui trained in the old way, and he became influential with Attarnon’s King at the time. He was instrumental in establishing the Asylum, and leading the war against Brochus.

Since that time, the Quis in Attarnon have been on a downward spiral. There are several reasons why they are weaker now than they ever have been in the past. The first is simple complacency – Madmen have been conditioned to believe that the Quis are more powerful than themselves, and so fall easily when caught. In truth, there are ways to resist the Quis, but these methods have been suppressed. And so the Quis don’t need to keep themselves in top condition.

The second is their training. The old method – the one Jarem Nebriah undertook – was extremely slow. It took, on average, ten years for Quis to learn how to master their skills. The new method – the one developed and now used exclusively in the Asylum – can be as quick as a month, most of which is spent training in combat abilities. I can’t go into the details of how this works at the moment, as that would be a minor spoiler, but suffice to say they don’t get the chance to truly hone their skills. In addition, there are more subtle uses of their abilities that are ignored completely.

And the final reason is a lack of understanding. Most Quis in Attarnon do not know their true purpose, what their powers are, or where they come from. All they know is that they’re stronger, faster, and they can block Madmen. I won’t explain this right now, but there is a reason why Quis take oaths to keep the law, and why some see themselves as peacekeepers.

There are Quis in the world that do not share these weaknesses, but most of them are in the eastern lands, and rarely venture west. In Attarnon, a particularly determined group of Madmen would likely be able to defeat a group of Quis.

There won’t be much information on the Quis – or Resses, or Vers – until the second book, which ventures into the eastern kingdoms of Darill and Aridia.

Editing update: Finished the new beginning and the edits on the Prologue and Chapter One. Then I spent a large portion of time on “fantasy research” in the form of Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson and Skyrim.