Archetype - Dark Magician/Black Mage
When I was a kid I loved playing Final Fantasy (7 and 9 mostly), and when I got older, I started collecting Yu-Gi-Oh cards. The archetypes I was drawn to in both these things were usually magic-based (spellcasters). I preferred rogue/assassin/thief/hermit in MapleStory, but that's another story...(R.I.C.O.) [Hint: I preferred Zidane's dexterity/thief build in FF9 over Cloud's fighter build in FF7.]
Anyway, the theme/archetype of black/dark magic has always been interesting to me. Alchemy also drew me in (Runescape high alchemy - sacrificing short term profit in favor of long term skill development).
Archetype - Alchemist
So what does this mean? Magic, let alone black/dark magic doesn't exist, right? And alchemy was some ancient tribal shamanistic thing that's outdated today...right? Well on some level, yes of course. But whatever the case, you can still look at it metaphorically and apply concepts to today's modern world. Magic and technology are no different depending on who you're showing or when you're showing it.
Real-world application - Business (Web3/DAO)
In 1962, in his book “Profiles of the Future: An Inquiry into the Limits of the Possible”, science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke formulated his famous Three Laws, of which the third law is the best-known and most widely cited:
Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. - Arthur C. Clarke
Therefore, magic can be broadly seen as technology, and more specifically, a highly advanced tool for creating new things to solve the world's problems (old and new).
In a fictional medieval world (like the Excalibur story with Merlin and King Arthur), solving these problems would fall to the king and his royal servants and trusted advisors.
5/12/24
Alchemy/MBA: Modern Business Applications
Alchemical Annealing
I'm writing a book on Alchemy. This could be considered my version of "Rich Dad Poor Dad".
One of my earliest experiences with this topic, though I didn't realize at the time, was when I played Runescape with my friend H when we were kids. (I'l refer to all my friends as letters in this book: H, A1, A2, A3, M, T, H2)
H and I started the game about the same time, and A3 joined a little later on, but he didn't get as far as we did, level-wise and experience-wise. (e.g. We lured him out into the "Wilderness" pvp zone once and ran off back to safety leaving him by the church around the level 45 Wild zone.)
Woodcutting (WC)
Anyway, H and I started our journeys at the same time, doing quests and leveling up certain skills as we progressed through the early levels. We earned gold and acquired items as we leveled up. After completing a bunch of quests, most players choose to farm for certain materials to make more gold to buy better gear. This is where H and I started going down different paths. We would both level up our woodcutting levels by cutting down the same trees and store the logs in our banks, but H would eventually sell them to other players for a flat rate (1k yew logs for 300g, if I remember correctly), but I would keep the logs. I would use them to level up more skills: fletching and magic - alchemy.
Magic
I would fall way behind H in my bank balance as well as woodcutting level. I think he reached 80 faster than I could level any other skills (my woodcutting was probably around 60 when he hit 80 IIRC), but I had more skills at a higher level than he did. (master of one vs. jack of all trades)
Runecrafting (RC)
I would save up the logs while I got my magic level high enough to cast my first most important spell, low-level alchemy (magic level 21). To do this, I had to spend hours collecting rune essence to then level up another skill: runecrafting. This would cost me in the short-run but would save me immense resources in the long-run. It did take longer using this approach though.
Alchemy I (low-level)
Once my magic and fletching levels waere high enough, I started casting low-level alchemy on my strung yew longbows. This would go on until my magic level reached 55.
Alchemy II (high-level)
Once my magic level got high enough (level 55), I continued the same approach, but started casting high level alchemy instead. This resulted in more gold per cast, but IIRC used up more runes/ resources.
Basically I was almost always broke, while H was stacking gold and WC levels, and then eventually move on from cutting yews to magic trees, which were probably around 1k each at the players' market. I was entirely self-reliant with my approach. H would be bound by the market fluctuations and possible inflation, but I would consitently get the same results and level up my character across the board. I remember considering this option, but there was something about my approach to the game that stuck with me even years later.
Real World Applications
The way people work today directly follows H's approach and equally opposes my own. The thought of exchanging my time for someone else to accumulate some type of resource, when you could be harnessing those resources for your own gain always perplexed me. Why don't more people start their own businesses built around their skillsets? Is it because they spent so much time simply stockpiling wood in their bank accounts and all their other skills are too low level to cast even low level alchemy?