Magic and Mana Hounds

 

 

Mana Hounds are a real threat to any that practice magic in Obris, but all is not lost for those that wish to dabble in the Arcane or Divine arts. Below we will discuss what has been learned regarding Mana Hounds and casting, and possible ways to avoid them.

First lets discuss how a Mana Hound is alerted to a casters presence. When a spell is cast, it doesn't matter if Arcane or Divine, the caster gives off a pulse of magical energy, and it's this energy that attracts the Hounds. The lower the spell is in power, the less likely it is to get the attention of a Hound. It is estimated that the casting of the lowest level spells has roughly a 20 percent chance of attracting a Hound, and that the chances increase by roughly 20 percent as the spells power increases. 

Of course even if one does draw the ire of a Hound, all is not lost. Unless the hound is extremely close a caster should still have the chance to flee, which may just delay the inevitable, but with some luck and time, it is possible to escape a Mana Hound. The same scholars that figured out the percentage chance of attracting a Hound, also figured out that the "scent" of casting lingers on you, and therefore just simply moving across the street won't throw off a Hound. The casting of the lowest level spells seem to leave a scent lingering around the caster for roughly 10 minutes, the time seems to exponentially increase as the spells power increases. 

In some rare instances a caster will be unlucky enough to draw the attention of multiple Mana Hounds, although rare, the chances of this does seem to increase as the spells power increases. 

But all is not lost, although extremely rare, a few small shards of crystal are known to exist. When equipped by a caster they seem to lessen the chance of attracting a Mana Hound by 10 percent. It is known that at least two can be equipped by the same caster, thus lowering your chances by 20 percent, but no known caster has ever held more than two, so if more shards will continue to decrease your chances is unknown. 

There have also been equally rare reports of Humanoids and Creatures with a strange for of mind magic called Psionics. Although none have been able to be studied and therefore it isn't known exactly how this strange form on magic interacts with Mana Hounds, the few known reports show no sign of attracting a Hound.