(04-26-2017, 05:56 PM)Siliconparody Wrote: Thanks for the link, I got some reading to do!
From what I've read, aether is split into "fire, wind, lightning, water, ice, and earth." Where would "celestial" aether, as mentioned in the AST quest, fit into that?
There are more aspects than that, actually!
Yes, we have our base elements, but there's also astral, umbral, and nonaspected magic as well. Show below is our "basic" elemental wheel as described in the game. (Formerly a book in the 1.0 THM guide, now readable in Gubal Library dungeon instances or out of game).
![[Image: gallery_288_159_2046.png.bc9b54f65176a23...fde437.png]](https://www.tale-ffxiv.com/boards/uploads/gallery/album_159/gallery_288_159_2046.png.bc9b54f65176a23a72a93cc446fde437.png)
Most of the spells and skills in the game are ~generally~ going to be Astral, as it's active whereas Umbral magic/skills lean towards being passive.
As far as Astromancy goes, Gegenji's on the spot. Similar to how an arcanist will channel aether through geometries, an Astrologian channels aether through the stars and their patterns. It's why there's power each of the constellations and why diurnal and nocturnal sects will aspect spells in different ways.
But here's where things get complicated. FFXIV's battle system isn't always in sync with its lore. In 1.0, a conjurer commanded all of the elements while a thaumaturge used astral and umbral magic. (Some of those spells have been recycled and some found their way to 2.0 arcanist and others are simple not available anymore). While not available to players, it's not as if these spells or abilities have gone away. (Although we can fudge with the lore and just say it's being taught differently now or something for the really adherent people).
But then, what makes mages unique from one another aside from their job-locked abilities? Primarily their aether source and how they manipulate that aether into a spell. If we can make any assumptions about the world, it's that the stars have probably moved a bit since the Allag's time. Or perhaps some stars have faded while others have brightened or the Allags drew power from different stars and/or constellations. I think you'd probably have some room to extrapolate here.
