Crystal Infusion

Crystal Infusion is done through the use of a device called a crystal infuser. Although many designs exists throughout the world, the term Crystal Infuser is generally given to devices or sets of tools that are used by Gemchanters to imbue magical properties into gems and crystals. Crystal Infusers are used for Enchanting and are mostly associated with the arcane arts of Crystallomancy and the school of Transmutation.

General Workings

Crystal infusers focus energy into a gemstone by forcing or projecting the energy through a combination of lenses and metal rings commonly called the 'flow focus'. Sometimes cloth or metal mesh is stretched over the rings to filter the energy and reduce the intensity. This filtering prevents the gem from shattering due to an overload of magical energy but is also sometimes used to filter out any unwanted effects within the resulting enchantment. Different arrangements and configurations of the same parts lead to very different results.

The gem is placed at the focal point of the flow focus. The most basic crystal infusers have the gem placed on a slab of porous stone but in more sophisticated devices it is held in place by a grabbing mechanism made of silver or gold so that the angle can be properly aligned with the flow focus. Simple crystal infusers use non-magical parts and may consist of only a few parts, but elaborate versions might have many lenses and rings, and even feature crystal or diamond lenses that have been infused with magic themselves.

Source of Magic

The outcome of the enchantment is highly subject to the source of the magic and the skill of the person using the crystal infuser. While some crystal infusers can only be operated by those with magical abilities of their own, there are also devices that are able to focus wild magic or other sources of energy. No matter if the source is external or internal, it requires a thorough understanding (and usually many years of study) of the source to be able to focus it through a crystal infuser. It has to be said, that sometimes good results can be acquired through sheer luck instead of research, but to reach consistent results and prevent disasters, it is advised to experiment with caution.

Specialized and Personalized

How to use a particular crystal infuser is quite often only known to the person who made it. Although some of these people have passed on their knowledge to an apprentice or an heir, many crystal infuser parts and flows have been lost to history. Gemchanters that use these types of devices are often creating new parts, improving their device or coming up with new and improved flows. Because of the endless possibilities of magic, and the adaptability of a crystal infuser, there's countless of parts and variations of the device to be found across the world.
  In many instances the metal rings of the flow focus are inscribed with runes or otherwise enchanted to improve the quality of the enchanting process. Some feature multiple flows, moving parts and timed mechanisms. In some specific parts of the world, gemchanters use Alchemical Transferenceby letting the flow pass through filters that are translucent containers filled with liquids.