Enchanters
Enchanters are rare form of magician, artisans who pour their souls (literally) into their arts, and who can create masterpieces like a hauntingly beautiful goddess statue, or a priceless enchanted sword. This doesn’t mean that normal artisans cannot create spectacular works of art, it merely means that despite all the effort that they put into the works, it doesn’t have the magical essence that an enchanter’s work does.
Originally, the class distinction between an artisan and an enchanter was very slim—at one time, they may have been even of the same cloth—but enchantment is a natural born gift that was discovered in time after humans began to craft items. While most enchanters are human, race is not a factor for the talent. The ability can appear in an individual of any race, but amongst elemental races, it can be neglected as they do not often craft with their own hands, but rather their element. Some who do find they have a talent for enchantment will take to handcrafting, but their works will often be infused with aspects of their element.
Without the ability of enchanting, the soul forging aspect of the enchanter, the artisan cannot create magical items. This doesn’t mean that normal artisans cannot create spectacular works of art, it merely means that despite all the effort that they put into their works, it doesn’t have the magical essence that an enchanter’s work does. The area of artisanship differs from enchanter to enchanter, and ranges from apothecary to weapon-smith, boat builder to architect. The greater of these craftsmen are a secretive lot, and while they may work for money, they are very select to whom they share their secrets and prized creations with. They will take apprentices, but rarely those who don’t naturally have the gift.
Rarely does an enchanter chose to affiliate with “good” or “evil”, their crafts, while they may contain holy or unholy techniques, are rarely placed in such a position to be considered either. There is an adage amongst enchanters; “Whether the blade be for good or evil depends not on the smith, but on the wielder”.
The pure spectrum of items that can be crafted by an enchanter, and the numerous techniques that could be applied make it hard to give a solid definition of how it works. In essence, what happens is that while the enchanter works on their creation, they are imbuing it with magical attributes. There are also rituals involved to achieve desired effects. Generally, enchanters do not enchant pre-existing items, unless they can repair or otherwise work on the item with their hands.
