Shade-Dancing

The Art
Shade-Dancing involves several complex techniques that a mage can perform, coupled with extreme martial discipline and ability. It involves many different principles, most notably a skill in Animacation and Alteration.

Precognition
Shade-Dancing’s most demanding, intricate and dependent principle is the use of precognition in physical combat. This is done somewhat complexly, as the individual combatant has to be capable of reading their opponent, or opponents’ actions within approximately 1 second to the future. This is done consistently throughout the entire fight, and the shade-dancer must constantly maintain this level of precognition, and fight will only seeing the future in a short period in advance.

Teleportation
The second intrinsic step of shade-dancing is the use of teleportation, or, more precisely, blinking. In this effect, the practitioner will transport themself instantaneously across a short distance. A practitioner of Shade-Dancing must not only be capable of doing this, they must be able to come out of a blink with their senses fully functional, so as to make the most of the instant of surprise. It must be done seamlessly with the flow of combat.

Lightbending
The final major step in arcana to Shade-dancing is the use of lightbending techniques. The most important techniques in this are the creation of mirror images, and invisibility. A practitioner of shade dancing must be able to create an image of themselves, and be able to make it seem to move exactly as they do. It must be perfectly realistic, as a shade-dancer will create an image, turn invisible, and then enter combat whilst controlling the image.

Practitioners
Shade-Dancing is a form that can only be mastered by one who devotes their entire life to its perfection. It is extremely complex, and involves techniques that require immense discipline both mentally and physically. It requires a mage to be practiced, but one who is also gifted physically to an extent.

Initially the art was developed by the Avu’néokar, and it is still by far most commonly practiced by that species. The Avu’néokar do not teach outsiders this form, and it is often considered a grave sin, worthy of vengeance by the society as a whole. Due to this, outside practitioners of Shadow-Dancing are largely unheard of. This said, many have attempted to replicate the art.