Spell Tome: Courage

Alaro of Firsthold, Master Illusion Instructor, Bravil Mages' Guild

Before you start with this tome, be aware that it is the final entry in my series of beginner Illusion spells. The previous tomes must be read in order and in full before this one is attempted.

In this lesson, we will talk about courage, and its status as an Illusion spell. If you've read my last book, you will know about the two categories of Illusion magic, and have probably guessed by now that courage falls into the first of the two, The Offensive, as it is cast on others. What this means for you is that you must follow the core principles of Illusion and enhance specific feelings in the minds of others.

Courage, as per the name, will cause the target to gain or keep the will to fight. In most cases, the target will be an ally, though the perceptive mage might find it useful in certain situations to cast it on an enemy. This may not be ideal, however, as I will explain later.

Courage is successfully cast by causing the target to become rallied. The caster must dull fear, anger, anxiety, etc. and make the target focus on fighting their enemy. Because of this, courage cannot be used in conjunction with fury, or any other Illusion spell. Indeed, each target may only be under the effects of one mind-altering spell at a time. Also know that this spell tends to evoke an adrenal response in the target, which causes them to tire and take damage slightly less easily. Be wary of this if you have any reason to cast it on an enemy.

Physically, courage is cast in the same manner as fury, simply ready the spell within your body, extend your arm, and release the spell at your target. This is not an "area of effect" spell, which will be covered in later lessons, so this is safe to cast on an ally who is standing near an enemy.

As this is the final lesson in the beginner series of Illusion, I must again urge you to seek out the previous two tomes, Clairvoyance, and Fury. And once again, I will strongly recommend finding a teacher to help you learn correctly. Once you have mastered this course, and I do mean mastered, you may begin reading the next level up, which begins with Calm.