Sphere (art)

Art Statistics
Focus:	none DreamSoul
Cost:	0
Orbit Required:	N/A
Affected:	Target
Duration:	Instant

Description

Advances a dreamer to the next sphere level.

Plateau Effect

Allows the teacher to increase students to higher sphere levels.

Art History

"Aerin's Blessing" by tux

Shortly after our ancestors founded the city of dreams, they wasted little time in discovering that they had the ability to form solid matter of the essence around them. Discovery after discovery soon followed. Focal awareness and arts as we know them today also became available to these Originators of the City of Underlight.

The young city of dreams began to grow and flourish. The most learned of the early Dreamwrights noticed that as they transcended deeper into the dream a powerful external force began strengthening their Dreamsoul. With each of these subtle but definitive nudges they became more perplexed and began channeling all their dream energies into seeking answers. They turned to Aerin of Tolat whose studies of the protective shell, which protects the Dreamsoul, were unparalleled.

Aerin and his disciples drew from their Cloudsbreak experiences to form a conclusion. That being, in this dream sea of intangibles, we must find the tangible way to recognize and acknowledge advancement. That simple statement spawned further research which lead ultimately to the harnessing of a great unknown force beyond their comprehension and eventually the system we know today called Spheres.

The task at hand seemed insurmountable. The Cities inhabitants grew weary of those who wished to control the seeking of knowledge. Aerin and his followers became reclusive in their dreams, hiding in the the mostly unexplored far regions of the city. And whispering in hushed tones when the need arose to share the knowledge with each other. Aerin himself took a pure academic approach to all of it and secretly gathered scholars from every shard of Cloudsbreak. At his request they began to submit to Aerin and his followers scrolls from their shards which gave the researchers more insight into how they could pass understanding of this advancement system on all the inhabitants of the City of Dreams.

But still the work was slow and painstaking. Some dreamers knew nothing but servitude as a way of advancing themselves. Others felt status in Cloudsbreak should earn them advancement in the City of Dreams. Still others cared only to advance themselves in their focal art, which they felt was more reflective of their needs in the dream. Another group became fervent in their belief that no tangible system was necessary. And yet another felt that longevity alone in the City should earned advancement.

Their leader and mentor, Aerin had begun spending countless hours dream days and nights near a great river in the city. He watched with awe as the sailing vessels traveled up and down stream. No one could claim having reached the huge sea that the water flowed into as of yet. He chuckled in amusement as some ran around leaving their passengers cursing the waterway. Of particular interest to him was watching small sailboats dart through the water and take side trips up and down the small water arteries which fed the river. When they took those journeys, he noticed how much more knowledge they gained by avoiding the sandbars and obstructions. Some stopped for prolonged periods of time in these liquid pools and just meditated, apparently drawing even more nautical knowledge into their Dreamsoul.

As the dreamscape became more populated, some dreamers wove a series pf locks and dams to control the flow of water and boats. He referred to them as the Keepers of the Waters and noticed how the highly trained ones were able to safely aid the downstream navigation of the water traffic. Lesser-trained Keepers were not as successful guiding the flow of the boats down the river. He shook his head in sadness as some boats floundered in the locks, unable to pass. Others were lost in the white water and in some instances actually tossing the misguided dreamer and the Water Keeper from the City, never to be seen again.

After a particularly long session near the river he returned to his followers and made an alarming declaration to them, I shall travel the great river to its end. Gather all the scrolls of our studies and place them on my craft. Chest fallen that their mentor would surely perish they begged him not to go. He smiled and said to them Like the great river of water, does the knowledge of the dream flow. To find the answers we must travel it. Continue our work. I am with you always.

Experiments were conducted. Some succeed , some failed with disastrous effects upon the volunteers. Aerin's Disciples began to worry he would never return. What had happened to him? Surely he had become lost in the endless sea, they concluded. Suddenly one dream he reappeared before them. An odd circular crest was visible on his chest. Questions flooded the room. He asked them one by one to explain in detail their accomplishments while he was gone. He remained evasive about his journey and the strange crest he wore.

Then he sequestered them and began assigning tasks of knowledge gathering. His students returned one by one, some taking many dreams to complete the task given. As they returned he listened to the results of the various tasks. If he approved, he touched the student atop the head with both his hands and a sphere appeared on their chests. He told them they had been ascended to a higher level or sphere. Among st themselves they referred to these crests as, Aerins' Blessing.

This went on for many dreams. Some of the students doing task after task and with each one approved a new and more decorative crest appeared upon their chest. He then took that group away from the others and began further training. When they completed the training, they now had the same ability as he. They in turn were sent back to the others to gauge their and crest even more. The city watched this strange group who walked about with these new symbols upon their chests. Problems arose, but Aerin's followers held firm to the method of advancement they learned from the great sailor. Eventually the entire population of the young city accepted the process. It was refined and made adaptable as more and more arts were discovered and advanced. And as for Aerin of Tolat? Some of the great Master Dreamwrights claim he still sails the calm seas of eternal wisdom in a smallish boat identified by a sail with the emblem of a tenth sphere dreamer.

Notes

Only available to Teachers.

Teachers must have the required number of Support Sphere Tokens in order to use this art.

Sphere Level	XP Required	Number of Tokens Required
Ascend to Sphere 1	9,999 XP	No Tokens Required
Ascend to Sphere 2	59,999 XP	No Tokens Required
Ascend to Sphere 3	159,999 XP	No Tokens Required
Ascend to Sphere 4	659,999 XP	2 Tokens Required
Ascend to Sphere 5	1,659,999 XP	4 Tokens Required
Ascend to Sphere 6	4,159,999 XP	6 Tokens Required
Ascend to Sphere 7	9,159,999 XP	8 Tokens Required
Ascend to Sphere 8	19,159,999 XP	10 Tokens Required
Ascend to Sphere 9	119,159,999 XP	12 Tokens Required