Imagery and Mirror Fundamentals: A Compilation (SPOILERS)

"Reflect" on Stephen Donaldson's other epic fantasy

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Krilly
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Imagery and Mirror Fundamentals: A Compilation (SPOILERS)

Post by Krilly »

Mmkay, here we got some general information regarding Imagery and mirror-physics... just incase you read
Mordan'ts Need and find yourself confused on either the entire matter or a small specific one. :screwy:

EDIT: Slight updates to wording. Added Augery.

Basic Vocabulary

Mirror: In the world of Mordant's Need, mirrors are physically identical to ours, though they behave quite differently (see below).

Imagery: A magic and practice that involves creating mirrors which, instead of reflecting as they do in our world, become "windows" to other worlds and locations.

Imager: One who has the natural born talent to use Imagery.

Image: The location seen within a mirror. Most images seem to be completely random, with no way to predict what will be displayed. Anything found within can be translated (see below).

Translate/Translation: Causing the mirror to open as a portal and passing something through it or drawing something out. Objects caught part-way through when translation ceases will shatter the glass. There is no universal technique to translating, rather it's intuitive and varies between Imagers ranging from hand gestures to chanting--whatever works to help the Imager concentrate. Normally only the maker of a mirror can translate with it (see below).

Adept: One who can use any mirror, even if they themselves did not shape it.

Arch-Imager: One who can pass through flat glass without losing their mind. Normally a person being translated through a flat glass image results in madness.

The Congery: After King Joyse unified Mordant and gathered the Imagers, he banded them together in Orison (his capital) and they formed this group. It's purpose is to keep Imagery under control and research the technical and ethical aspects of Imagery. A single leader presides over the group.

Master: A full member of the Congery.

Apt: A student in training with the Congery.

Augery: A divination technique to see future possibilities. To cast an augerie an imager shatters a flat mirror reflecting the subject in question. Snippets of future events can be seen within the shards, though it is difficult to accurately interpret what is seen.

Imagers & Their Talents

(Imagers loosely listed from least to most powerful.)

Normal Imager (Quillon, Xivex, Harpool, Barsonage, etc): No unique talents. Can create images and translate. Will go mad if they step through a flat glass.

Master Gilbur: No special abilities, but can create mirrors very quickly.

Master Eremis: It was believed that mirrors, themselves, were not able to be translated. Eremis invented a special oxidation process that allows a mirror to pass through another without shattering. Cunning in all Imagery aspects.

Adept Havelock: Able to open and translate with any mirror, even if they are not of his own making.

Arch-Imager Vagel: Can create his desired images with frightening accuracy, where usually it's completely random. Can also step through flat glasses without going mad.

Adept Geraden: Has mastered curved mirrors, being able to not only translate with any curved mirror but also cause the portal to lead to any different location (or time?) he can imagine in clarity (even though the image remains the same).

Adept Arch-Imager Terisa: She possesses all of Geraden's abilities except instead of with curved mirrors it's with flat ones--which she can also pass through safely. Terisa also has the ability to alter the very image shown within the mirror provided she's nearby or can establish a link via the point the image is showing. It must also be noted she does not need to know the location in clarity to be able to change a mirror to that image.

Mirror Mechanics

The primary elements of a mirror are the sand, tinct, oxidation level (these 3 make up the glass), the glass' shape, and frame itself.

Sand: The basic ingredient to form the glass.

Shape: Flat glass will show images within the world it was made (local), while glasses with curved textures will show other worlds (non-local). Changing the shape affects which world is shown within the image.

Tinct: Theorized to fine-tune the exact location of the image within a world. For example, a flat glass without tinct would be a normal reflecting image, while various tincts would alter the image's location within that world.

Oxidation: The process of adding Oxygen to the glass formula. Unknown effects, though a certain amount allows one glass to be translated into another without shattering.

Frame: The frame allows the image to be slightly altered (panned and zoomed). An Imager can manipulate an image viewport to some degree by adjusting the frame's orientation.
Last edited by Krilly on Thu Apr 11, 2013 9:23 pm, edited 11 times in total.
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Usivius
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Post by Usivius »

good list, but I don't think Teresa has the same ability with curved glass, just flat. I think that's why they made such a good 'team'...(correct me if I'm wrong...)
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Post by matrixman »

Thanks for sorting this out, Krilly. I think Usivius is right about Terisa not being able to affect curved mirrors: if I recall correctly, in the scene where she was trying to shift an image of a sand dune to that of Esmerel, the dune image happened to be in curved glass. After she had constructed Esmerel in her mind and opened her eyes, the curved mirror in front of her remained unaffected and still showed the dune. It was a flat mirror off the side that had changed to show Esmerel in response to her.
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Post by Usivius »

great recall, matrixman...
my memory serves in regards to general information, not specifics. How sad is that.
At that same time, it makes it easy to reread a story and be amazed second and third times.... :lol:

how sad am i... :roll:
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Krilly
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Post by Krilly »

Oh yeah! I remember that now that she tried to, but instead the flat mirror behind her changed. Thanks.
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matrixman
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Post by matrixman »

Okay, you guys are gonna kill me. Or feed me to a firecat.

After checking AMRT, I've realized that my recall ain't that spectacular after all. I got the right scene, but the wrong person: it was Geraden focusing Esmerel, not Terisa! She was at that point being held prisoner in Eremis's lightless dungeon, and Geraden was trying to locate her at Esmerel. Obviously, I also got the mirror business backwards: the sand dune Image was in a flat mirror, which Geraden couldn't affect, but a curved mirror behind him changed to show Esmerel.

:oops: Sorry if I confused things for you. I actually reviewed the chapter that contained this scene (Ch. 41: The Uses of Talent) for the Mordant Dissection, so I should've remembered better.

I still think Usivius is right that Terisa's talent is only for flat glass, not curved...but at the moment I can't seem to find the scene that definitively shows that, and it's bugging me. So this may still be an open question, folks. :?
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Krilly
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Post by Krilly »

I know for sure she can't change curved glasses... but what about translating with them? I can't think of a time she tried... the only instance I remember her actually translating was bringing army supplies from Orison and when she destroyed the last catapult--but of course those were both flat. I suppose it's pretty obvious that Geraden=Curved and Terisa=Flat. :?

Anyhow I finished the book and will make changes if necessary.
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Post by shadowbinding shoe »

There's also the matter of Auguries - predicting the future of a place or person by shattering a flat glass that shows it/him. You get images of instances of the future within the shards. It's not clear how you interpret it. Something about finding the common flow (narrative?) of it.

Possible ways to determine the different shards' importance could be their relative sizes, their contours, their origins (whether from the center or the edges).

It takes great skill to cast an augury successfully though we never learn exactly how it's done beyond putting the subject in the frame while shattering the glass.


This along with other snippets from the books strongly implies that Imagery works through snady FTL technology.
A little knowledge is still better than no knowledge.
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