User blog:Njalm2/Nanja's Grimoire: Abjuration

Greetings everyone, and welcome to another installment of Nanja's Grimoire. In this series I'll detail the Eight Schools of Magic. Each of these articles will include a hopefully enlightening explanation of what exactly constitutes a spell within each school. As well as going into depth exactly what that kind of school is all about, I'll also provide canon examples of such spells and noteworthy onsite practitioners. Where it's possible at least.

A couple days ago I talked about the School of Conjuration, and this time it's the School of Abjuration. Less-known than the far more common schools of Evocation and Conjuration, Abjuration nonetheless has extraordinary uses. Those knowledgeable of tabletops know that Abjuration is largely considered the school of protection. However, it is far more than mere protective spells and effects, because the concept of the School is broader than many realize.

In the Bleachverse, defensive spells are only rarely spells of Abjuration. In fact, the sole spell I can think of which is in all certainty an Abjuration would be which is a counter spell for illusory effects of various types.

School Information
So, at this point, I'm certain some of you are curious - what exactly constitutes an Abjuration spell? Well, the simple answer is that Abjuration deals with interference, at it's core, such spells do not seek to limit the damage or injury, they seek to outright prevent it from ever occurring. Whether it banishes, rescues, protects. negates or blocks, an abjuration spell is wholly dedicated to preventing or ending some other effect. Abjuration spells can dispel magical effects around where they're cast, prevent or interfere with a technique, spell or even an idea or location - and in the case of opposing magics, turn them against their source.

Ironically, the kind of effect abjuration is most effective at preventing, negating or ending would be that of other spells, particularly those of the Transmutation, Conjuration and Enchantment Schools, although all magic is quickly felled by powerful abjurations, these four are particularly vulnerable to the efforts of a skilled Abjurer, and as result of this, there tends to be a rivalry between these and Abjurers.

This is not to say that abjuration is less effective at dealing with physical attacks or techniques, no, far from it - it's dubbed the School of Protection for a good reason. Perhaps the most popular pieces of abjuration on this site are Wards, and yes, all wards fall under the umbrella of Abjuration, for they're all bound around the concept of preventing damage before it ever occurs. That Wards are also fairly easily customizable by any roleplayer and author further lends credence to their popularity.

Another facet of Abjuration are Counter spells, which are spells that directly oppose and strangle other spells, negating their effect and leaving the caster wide open. Such spells are widely used by some of the premier magic-users onsite, although I believe they're not appreciated as much as they should be.

How to Recognize Abjuration
There's two types of honestly protective spells in Bleach, there's actual magical barriers and there are conjured physical objects which are placed in front of incoming attacks to serve as obstacles to block them. You'll find that true barriers are exceptionally difficult to find in Bleach as most of them are in fact Conjurations, physical constructs erected by Kidō Masters which can be torn and broken if struck with sufficient force.

It's for that reason that I chose to include Noren Mekuri as an example spell, rather than any other protective spell, because truth is, Abjuration is otherwise rarely employed. So how to recognize it?

Rule of Touch: Abjuration spells are often dormant until they take effect or a threat is made. Even if they're erected into barriers they're never physical obstructions, they cannot be touched like the conjured ramparts of reishi can.

Unique Effects: To someone familiar with the concept behind Abjuration spells, there is simply no comparing them to any other school. Their effects are one of a kind and provided you know the basics, they should be easy to distinguish.

Abjurers
You might be surprised to hear that the premier Abjurer in Bleach isn't a master of Kidō. Heck, she's not even a Shinigami, I'm of course talking about. So why her, what makes Orihime so special? Well, her special ability is an extremely powerful abjurative effect - as cemented when Hachigen recognized it when she met him. Orihime has the ability to outright reject events and phenomena, which is by definition an effect of Abjuration. Indeed, she's even capable of healing through the use of it.

But what about onsite, are there any dedicated Abjurers on this fanon? Yes, in fact, there is. So who is this mysterious individual, you might say, well, the answer might actually surprise you. Because this Abjurer is none other than the current head of the 7th Division Hein Ueda! Like most Abjurers do, Hein uses his magical powers to dispel, destroy and quell magical effects around him. He's particularly interested in quelling the effects of Enchantments, which are some of the more insidious forms of magic out there. He's also sure to be a threat for any lone mage with his ability to counter their magic with his own. Hein is a good example of someone who is uniquely suited to fight mages, and he'll probably be useful against the Coven for this reason.

Abjuration in Bleach
Far rarer than either Evocation or Conjuration, Abjuration is most commonly found scattered all around the place but it's primarily used by powerful users of Kidou such as Hachigen. Interestingly, Abjuration within the context of Bleach is actually a very powerful method of healing by advanced spellcasters.

In case you need more examples. Here's some keywords for abjurative effects seen in Bleach: Dispelling Effects, Seals, Wards and Intangible Barriers.

Conclusion
Whew, this one was a bit longer than the previous guides, but that's because Abjuration is a bit more nuanced than most of the other Schools. Next time I'm going to write an article about the fourth School of Magic: Enchantment. Till then, ta-ta!