Rules:Mysterium Library

The Mysterium of the Compass Guard possess a great library of magical knowledge, which contains an ever-expanding volume of spell descriptions, research, arcane relics, and other items that mages both inexperienced and veteran can draw upon to improve their understanding of the craft. This library is off limits to the public, as some of its contents can be quite dangerous. Even the Mysterium wizards who plumb its depths are allowed to access only those items whose danger, if any, they have been cleared to face.

On an out of character basis, the library is a pool of magic spells that Mysterium mages both contribute to and learn from. It provides the primary method for Mysterium mages to rise in rank, and is an exceptionally efficient way for mages to grow their arsenal, especially for those who have been initiated.

How to Learn

Spells catalogued in the library can be found in the Library Spells category. Each entry has a header that includes the requirements of the spell. You must meet those requirements in order to learn it. This may include both spell knowledge requirements as well as being of a certain rank.

If your character meets all the requirements of the spell, you need only to contact a staff member to let them know you are starting work on the spell. Have a link to the wiki entry ready, in case they are unfamiliar with the spell. Also make sure you declare whether you will be learning the spell as a Basic spell or and Advanced spell. They will double-check that the character meets the requirements, and that it is something you can simply ask to train. Once you secure permission, you can add the spell to your character's techs-in-progress list and begin working on it. If you have Research Credits (see How to Contribute, below), you may immediately apply them to the technique (though you do not have to). If your character is initiated (has gone through Mysterium Initiation and gone through a training RP, and is one of no more than two CG Initiated characters), you may take the listed discounted price. Otherwise, you use the normal price.

Bear in mind that if you use Research Credits toward the progress of a spell, you may not then remove those tech days from the spell and put them on a non-Library spell. Tech days derived from Research Credits become Research Credits again when pulled off of a tech. Research credits and Initiation discounts may not be used on spells or upgrades that character already catalogued. However, if someone else catalogues an upgrade to a spell that your character catalogued, your character can use those benefits on that upgrade, if they apply.

You can also apply for your own independent, unique upgrades to spells learned from the Library. However, these upgrades are neither subject to discounts from Initiation, nor can you use Research Credits on them. However, you can catalogue your custom upgrades (see below for details).

How to Catalogue

In order to contribute a technique to the Library, the following criteria must be met:

• The technique must be a spell, or an upgrade to a spell (or an upgrade to an upgrade to a spell, etc.)
• The cataloguing character must be a member of the Mysterium (Initiation is not required)
• All of the spell's requirements, either listed in the description of the spell or in its credentials, must be accessible either through the Library or through other means openly available to all Mysterium characters.
• Your character must have completed the technique in its Advanced form. For repeatable upgrades, you must have completed at least one level of it in Advanced form.
• The spell must not already be in the Library, nor must it be a part of any other society, including non-Library Mysterium spells.

Once these requisites are fulfilled, a character may begin cataloguing the technique once you notify Icebreed of your intentions. Cataloguing requires the character to spend tech days equal to one quarter of the technique's base days, before tech bias application. After cataloguing is complete, you need to log into the Offsite Board (see Icebreed if you don't know how, or need access to the Compass Guard area), navigate to the Compass Guard forum, visit the Mysterium Library Submission thread, and reply to it with the following information:

• Name of the technique/upgrade (and the name of the technique the upgrade is upgrading, if applicable)
• The name of the character cataloguing it
• Number of BASE tech days required. This is the tech day cost of the technique before tech bias, enlightenment, Basic form discount, and anything else that modifies the cost for your character.
• Full description of the technique. If copying and pasting from a conversation with staff, make sure you manually add in anything changed after you wrote the original description.
• Any and all requirements to learn and use the technique. If you are unsure of what your technique requires, consult a staffer.

Once Icebreed has reviewed your entry and accepted it (by turning it into a wikipage), your character is entitled to a number of Research Credits equal to the tech days the character invested in cataloguing, and gains an equal amount of Prestige. Research Credits are used like tech days to learn other spells in the Library. Prestige boosts a mage's rank within the Mysterium.

Upgrades that are repeatable and require the same amount of tech days for each level may be catalogued as a whole, while only knowing the first level of it. Cataloguing time, Research Credits, and Prestige gained from them are all based on the first level of the upgrade, however. Other upgrades must be learned before cataloguing them, but provide proportionate amounts of benefits for it. You are allowed to catalogue one level of an upgrade at a time for this.

Bear in mind that Icebreed may add requirements to spells you catalogue that did not originally exist, usually in the form of a rank requirement. This happens most frequently because of the potential danger or extreme power in a technique. If a powerful spell proves especially popular, Icebreed may increase the rank requirement.

TL;DR

To learn a spell in the Library, be a Mysterium member, qualify for it, tell a staffer, and have at it.

If you have Research Credits from cataloguing stuff, you can use them like tech days here. Initiated Mysterium get discounts, too.

You don't get any kind of discounts on your character's own stuff.

To catalogue, the character has to be in the Mysterium, it needs to be a spell that anybody in the Mysterium could eventually use, or an upgrade, and the C has to know the tech in Advanced form.

Then you just tell a staffer what you're doing, train 1/4 of the tech days, post it to the OSB, and wait for Ice to stick it on the wiki. Once that happens, you get Research Credits and Prestige equal to how many tech days you put into cataloguing it.

Prestige is how you rank up, mainly.