Arcane Focus

An arcane focus channels the commands of the user into forces than can manipulate the physical world--otherwise known as magic. Therefore, creatures must have an arcane focus to access magic. There are several exceptions: The Faeries are an aspect of the Unseen Divinity and are inherently magical beings. Cyclopes are material creatures, but are born with arcane focuses in the form of their eyeballs. During the Age of Cyclopes, the physically-gifted centaurs found they could kill cyclopes and bind to their eyeballs. What began as a necessary activity to resist Cyclops tyrants swung the pendulum and became a tradition of power hungry Cyclops Hunters.

Students of magic must discover what their arcane focus is, usually revealing some innate truth about themselves in the process. Though there is no one scalable way to bind to an arcane focus, professors of University of Spectron and the Horaio Institute during the Age of Enchantment were particularly adept at helping students identify them, forming a substantial part of the curriculum.

An arcane focus can be any kind of item, thought they tend to be tools of the users' true passion. Consequently, many focuses are staffs, wands, instruments, weapons, and so on.

Onyx' arcane focus is her mother's neckiscope until it is destroyed. Afterwards, Onyx binds to the Eye of Occula as her new arcane focus.