Elements

Elements are the basic building blocks the world is built on. There are two kinds of elements: Material and Energy elements. Material elements are the physical elements which construct Cheridith. Energy elements are the incorporeal elements which change the world. Material elements are always associated with stability and strength, while energy elements are associated volatility and change. There are a total of seven elements.

Some people theorize about the existence of a third class of elements, abstract elements, but most scientists dismiss the concept as a figment of the untrained imagination. Some hypothesize dark arts could control these, but as there have been few dark arts users in the past, no one has been able to study them and their relationship to the possibility of abstract elements.

As a whole, apart from being a part of Cheridith themselves, elements are also commonly manipulated by arts. These arts are used to take advantage of the properties of elements, and boundaries are constantly being pushed. Some have used elements for great good, while others have twisted the building blocks of the world and turned them into elements of evil. Thus, when elements and arts are mentioned, there is always a mixed reaction to them.

Material Elements
Material elements are considered to have come before energy elements. They are relatively stable and are considered to never change. As a result, these are usually used within arts for defense and healing. There are three material elements.

Ground
The ground element is associated with earth and stone. It is the foundational element. Considered the oldest of elements, it is related to the origins of Cheridith, and diviners of any race always resort to ground as the most basic of elements to derive knowledge from.

Liquid
The liquid element is the most volatile of all elements and is the outlier to material elements. It transcends the boundary between Material and Energy, and some scientists argue it should be classified under energy. Related both with rejuvenation (water) and destruction (lava), liquid is present in a wide variety of applications, but it is highly unpredictable.

Verdure
Verdure is the element of nature and plants. Mostly associated with strength and endurance, verdure represents the heart of Cheridith. All life arts are related strongly to the verdure element. Verdure signifies restoration and the ability of plants and nature to return to normal after a heavy blow is the reason for its association with endurance.

Energy Elements
Energy elements are the elements of change. They would be useless if not for the presence of material elements, but with their presence are capable of wonders. These are generally considered to be more volatile than material elements, and are used with arts of destruction and modification. There are four energy elements.

Chill
The chill element complements the heat element, and is related to ice, water, death, heights and depths, and darkness. Also a difficult element to control, Chill has many applications. Most who can use arts to manipulate the chill element cannot manipulate heat as the knowledge and studying it takes to know how to manipulate these two is immense. However, those who can are some of the most powerful beings in Cheridith.

Growth
Growth is an interesting energy element because it does not really manifest itself in as obvious a way as its counterparts. Related to healing and restoration, growth also is related to erosion and wearing, forms of slow destruction essentially. Growth tends to be adaptable and fairly basic. It is present in plants and other living creatures. Arts related to growth may appear relatively mild at first glance, but have their own silent deadliness.

Heat
Heat is one of the most common energy elements. Present in fire, light, the sun, humans and some other races, animals, and lava, heat's diversity causes it to be extremely difficult to control. All arts related to heat are some of the most advanced arts and few can control it effectively.

Wind
The wind element is one of the more basic energy elements. Extremely volatile, it is usually unpredictable and can cause change very quickly. Related to air and life, those who have mastered wind completely have the ability to bring inanimate objects to life.

Abstract Elements: The Third Class
Abstract elements are hypothesized by some to exist, though their exact role is disputed. Even in its supporters there is a split over whether or not they are merely theoretical or whether they are also part of the building blocks. Essentially abstract elements are negative or inverse versions of the other elements. A list of the hypothesized ones follow.
 * 1) Void – The inverse of ground
 * 2) Solid – An unnatural version of liquid
 * 3) Wild – The opposite of verdure
 * 4) Fear – A twisted version of chill (known also to possibly cause mind-control)
 * 5) Exhaustion – Opposite to growth
 * 6) Torture – A corruption of heat
 * 7) Still – Life's absence (known to be life-sapping)

Elements and Arts
See more on arts here.

Elements in and of themselves have no properties apart from that which the world gives them. However, different races have learned to use what are termed "arts" to manipulate these elements. Through this power, elements were studied much more thoroughly and became relatively well known, until the Turn in 605 A.E.E. when many texts were destroyed by the rampaging Purists. Since then, they elements and arts have become a taboo subject, and many scientists seek to understand elements without the use of arts.