Every orb is one of five elements, and every recipe is three of them. Each element appears in 15 of the 35 recipes. The tables list them, so you can see which spells you can reach from an element you already have on your orbs.
WindOne of the five orb elements; 15 of the 35 recipes use it.
Wind is moving air and the forces it carries: currents, lift, draughts and pressure.
Air currents and lift: pulls (Draw), weight relief (Lighten, Buoyant support), level decks (Span), springy beds (Spring surface), droplet mirrors (Redirect light), the moving clouds and tones of Obscuring veil and Place sound, and every spell that moves the student (Boost jump, Rising draught, Hasten). It also cools Join's weld and resists motion in Stilling ward.
Old buttery: once the spit hearth burns, any aimed spell carrying Wind spins its vane (pale Wind seal). The four personal spells do not count.
When a spell led by Wind reaches nothing, the game says: “<Spell> stirs the air, finds nothing to carry and disperses.”
The 15 recipes with Wind
| Spell | Orbs | Shape |
|---|---|---|
| Draw | Wind · Water · Will | Three different elements |
| Lighten | Wind · Wind · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Draw off liquid | Wind · Water · Water | Two of one element and one of another |
| Join | Wind · Fire · Fire | Two of one element and one of another |
| Span | Wind · Growth · Growth | Two of one element and one of another |
| Spring surface | Wind · Growth · Will | Three different elements |
| Redirect light | Wind · Wind · Water | Two of one element and one of another |
| Obscuring veil | Wind · Fire · Growth | Three different elements |
| Reveal traces | Wind · Fire · Water | Three different elements |
| Place sound | Wind · Growth · Water | Three different elements |
| Stilling ward | Wind · Will · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Boost jump | Wind · Wind · Fire | Two of one element and one of another |
| Rising draught | Wind · Wind · Wind | Pure: three of one element |
| Hasten | Wind · Fire · Will | Three different elements |
| Buoyant support | Wind · Wind · Growth | Two of one element and one of another |
FireOne of the five orb elements; 15 of the 35 recipes use it.
Fire is heat and light. It warms, burns and flashes water to steam, but it cannot take heat away.
Heat, light and cutting: Heat, Sever, Join's weld, Expand's steam, Place light's blossom, Cleanse surface's hot scour, Grip surface's setting flash, Repeat motion's piston. With Will it becomes force (Directed impulse) and speed (Hasten).
Silent refectory and Old buttery: any aimed spell carrying Fire lights the Cold hearth, the Cold spit hearth and the opened brazier (ember seals). Boost jump and Hasten carry Fire but act only on you.
When a spell led by Fire reaches nothing, the game says: “<Spell> flares, finds nothing to catch and sputters out.”
The 15 recipes with Fire
| Spell | Orbs | Shape |
|---|---|---|
| Directed impulse | Fire · Fire · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Repeat motion | Fire · Will · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Heat | Fire · Fire · Growth | Two of one element and one of another |
| Slick surface | Fire · Growth · Will | Three different elements |
| Grip surface | Fire · Growth · Water | Three different elements |
| Sever | Fire · Fire · Fire | Pure: three of one element |
| Join | Wind · Fire · Fire | Two of one element and one of another |
| Expand | Fire · Fire · Water | Two of one element and one of another |
| Place light | Fire · Growth · Growth | Two of one element and one of another |
| Obscuring veil | Wind · Fire · Growth | Three different elements |
| Decoy | Fire · Water · Will | Three different elements |
| Reveal traces | Wind · Fire · Water | Three different elements |
| Cleanse surface | Fire · Water · Water | Two of one element and one of another |
| Boost jump | Wind · Wind · Fire | Two of one element and one of another |
| Hasten | Wind · Fire · Will | Three different elements |
WillOne of the five orb elements; 15 of the 35 recipes use it.
Will is directed control: it holds, turns, binds and repeats, and can push with deliberate force. It cannot conjure matter out of nothing.
Control: holding (Suspend), turning (Orient), shoves (Directed impulse), guided pulls (Draw), repeated strokes (Repeat motion), shaped growth (Tether, Climbing growth, Conduit, Short traverse), the Decoy's figure and the Stilling ward's field.
Silent refectory: the violet seal belongs to the trolley, which only the four moving spells shift (Directed impulse, Draw, Suspend, Lighten).
When a spell led by Will reaches nothing, the game says: “<Spell> tightens around nothing and slips away.”
The 15 recipes with Will
| Spell | Orbs | Shape |
|---|---|---|
| Directed impulse | Fire · Fire · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Draw | Wind · Water · Will | Three different elements |
| Suspend | Will · Will · Will | Pure: three of one element |
| Orient | Water · Will · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Tether | Growth · Growth · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Lighten | Wind · Wind · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Repeat motion | Fire · Will · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Slick surface | Fire · Growth · Will | Three different elements |
| Climbing growth | Water · Water · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Spring surface | Wind · Growth · Will | Three different elements |
| Conduit | Growth · Water · Will | Three different elements |
| Decoy | Fire · Water · Will | Three different elements |
| Stilling ward | Wind · Will · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Hasten | Wind · Fire · Will | Three different elements |
| Short traverse | Growth · Will · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
GrowthOne of the five orb elements; 15 of the 35 recipes use it.
Growth is living plant matter: roots, vines, reeds and woven structures, grown within limits.
Living structure: root cuffs (Anchor), vine lines (Tether), struts (Brace), woven decks (Span), reed tubes and whistles (Conduit, Place sound), resin films (Slick and Grip surface), flame blossoms (Place light), float pods (Buoyant support) and the cold wick of Chill.
No teaching fitting answers to Growth alone.
When a spell led by Growth reaches nothing, the game says: “<Spell> reaches for something to root in and withers.”
The 15 recipes with Growth
| Spell | Orbs | Shape |
|---|---|---|
| Anchor | Growth · Growth · Water | Two of one element and one of another |
| Tether | Growth · Growth · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Heat | Fire · Fire · Growth | Two of one element and one of another |
| Chill | Growth · Water · Water | Two of one element and one of another |
| Slick surface | Fire · Growth · Will | Three different elements |
| Grip surface | Fire · Growth · Water | Three different elements |
| Span | Wind · Growth · Growth | Two of one element and one of another |
| Brace | Growth · Growth · Growth | Pure: three of one element |
| Spring surface | Wind · Growth · Will | Three different elements |
| Conduit | Growth · Water · Will | Three different elements |
| Place light | Fire · Growth · Growth | Two of one element and one of another |
| Obscuring veil | Wind · Fire · Growth | Three different elements |
| Place sound | Wind · Growth · Water | Three different elements |
| Short traverse | Growth · Will · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Buoyant support | Wind · Wind · Growth | Two of one element and one of another |
WaterOne of the five orb elements; 15 of the 35 recipes use it.
Water is flow and buoyancy, and water as liquid, ice or mist. It brings ordinary water, never other substances.
Water itself and its phases: doses (Supply liquid), lifting it away (Draw off liquid), ice holds (Climbing growth), frost (Chill), steam (Expand), mist (Decoy, Reveal traces), hot scouring (Cleanse surface), and the water that swells Anchor's roots and balances Orient's turn.
Silent refectory: only Supply liquid fills the Dry rinse basin (blue seal). Old buttery: any aimed spell carrying Water, except Chill and Draw off liquid, soaks the flagstone's seam; then only Chill heaves it (frost seal).
When a spell led by Water reaches nothing, the game says: “<Spell> gathers, finds nothing to wet and splashes apart.”
The 15 recipes with Water
| Spell | Orbs | Shape |
|---|---|---|
| Draw | Wind · Water · Will | Three different elements |
| Orient | Water · Will · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Anchor | Growth · Growth · Water | Two of one element and one of another |
| Chill | Growth · Water · Water | Two of one element and one of another |
| Supply liquid | Water · Water · Water | Pure: three of one element |
| Draw off liquid | Wind · Water · Water | Two of one element and one of another |
| Grip surface | Fire · Growth · Water | Three different elements |
| Expand | Fire · Fire · Water | Two of one element and one of another |
| Climbing growth | Water · Water · Will | Two of one element and one of another |
| Conduit | Growth · Water · Will | Three different elements |
| Redirect light | Wind · Wind · Water | Two of one element and one of another |
| Decoy | Fire · Water · Will | Three different elements |
| Reveal traces | Wind · Fire · Water | Three different elements |
| Place sound | Wind · Growth · Water | Three different elements |
| Cleanse surface | Fire · Water · Water | Two of one element and one of another |