A few things you should really know. Really...
Sometimes I get questions about the banner graphic on the Magic Pages of the new website. It goes something like this:
Dear CD Imago,
Something is wrong with the graphic banner above the magic pages. Several of the talents appear to be italicized. Can you fix it so that they match?
I do appreciate the concern for detail and the confidence that I might be able to do something about this. However, this is a somewhat inaccurate assessment of the situation, and there is a deeper lore involved. The words are not actually italicized... they are a different font.
Long ago when the stone was carved to set above the great delfaen Halls of Study, we knew these talents by different names.
So the stones were originally carved with the talents of "4-Elements", "Non-Sentient", and "Non-Life."
As our studies continued and our experts wrote great treatises on the distinctions
and potentials of the various magical talents (and their fellow scholars wrote great
treatises on why these first set were very, very wrong), our understanding of the
magical arts grew, and our terminology changed. "4-Elements" became Elemental,
"Non-Sentient" was re-defined as Animism and "Non-Life" became what we now refer
to as "Transference". (If you ever find yourself down in the Dur-Brek Library,
do check out Ealain Wellsprite's Talking Rocks and Other Misconceptions of Non-Life:
A History of the Development of Transference Theory. Fascinating read.)
At a certain point, it was decided by the curators of the halls that the engraved banner
no longer reflected the best knowledge of the age, and it would need to be altered
to reflect modern magical theory. They did not, however, have sufficient funds
(or political clout, as the case may be) for the recasting of the entire stone.
And truly, only three of the names needed changing, so they decided instead to
hire a stone-cutter to chisel out the erroneous sections and engrave the new ones.
Unfortunately, the dwarf who created the original engravings had died some generations
hence, and so the new engravings do not exactly match the old. I like to view this
discrepancy as a reminder of ages past and the changes we have undergone in our
estimable institution's unceasing pursuit of greater knowledge. However, if it
distresses you, you may donate to the Stone of Magic Upgrade Recasting Fund (SMURF)
by sending me money *grin* ... or petition CD Mac for a new graphic.
Translation: The graphic was recovered from older versions of the magic webpages
and adapted to reflect the current system. Messing about with graphics is not
high on my priority list, but you're still welcome to send me money.