Light and Dark, Astral and Umbral

[Zohar_Lahar]

So it was stated in a Lore interview awhile back that the "Light" and "Darkness" that's been cropping up in the plot direction has nothing to do Astral and Umbral polarities. But then that leads me to wonder one thing: does the Light and the Dark have polarities like the elemental wheel? Is there Astral Light, Umbral Light, Astral Darkness, and Umbral Darkness? If not.....why?

[MrThinker]

So it was stated in a Lore interview awhile back that the "Light" and "Darkness" that's been cropping up in the plot direction has nothing to do Astral and Umbral polarities. But then that leads me to wonder one thing: does the Light and the Dark have polarities like the elemental wheel? Is there Astral Light, Umbral Light, Astral Darkness, and Umbral Darkness? If not.....why?

From what I can tell, Astral and Umbral polarities only affect the elemental aspects themselves. Koji once said that Light and Darkness are 'different' forms of energy independant from elemental aether so I do not think the polarity property applies to them. But then again we have no idea what he meant by 'different' so everything is till up in the air.

[Anonymoose]

In short, we don't know everything and we can only speculate as to the missing bits.

We've seen Crystals of Light in all six elemental flavors, but we've only seen Crystals of Darkness in Abyssal Grape. We could try to reach for an explanation, but we don't have one.

Elidibus said that if the world regained "it's original form" then everything would change. Perhaps the world as it is right now is a result of Hydaelyn acting solo from the Sea with Zodiark imprisoned. If so, then perhaps the elemental wheel of the corporeal world is something that's in line with our world, the world that would change otherwise. Perhaps that's just outside of Zodiark's jurisdiction.

This would fit with the whole genesis/entropy angle people like to ascribe to Hydaelyn and Zodiark, as well. Hydaelyn would be cosmogenic, making distinctions and splitting the Light into a rainbow of ordered elements (and the polarities would then arise from those elements). Zodiark's influence would then be cosmoentropic, bringing everything together and breaking down the barriers between them until it was all just Abyssal Grape (and thus would not have polarities, either).

It would all fit thematically and would track with what we know.

Can I say it's true, yet?

...Nope.

The Light/Dark energy spectrum is entirely unknown to us otherwise. It might literally just be a binary spectrum with shades of gray determined only by the admixture.

[Iscah]

Probably the best way of picturing astral/umbral in relation to the elemental wheel is that the wheel is actually 3D and has an axle through it, with astral and umbral at the two endpoints.

[Anonymoose]

Probably the best way of picturing astral/umbral in relation to the elemental wheel is that the wheel is actually 3D

When I explain it to people, I actually use the in-game crystal shape as a metaphor, but a regular hexagonal bipyramid rather than an elongated one.



Whereby the hexagon cross-section in the middle is



When you imbalance "neutral" aether on the elemental energy spectrum, you can go in a 2D direction, giving it an elemental charge, or up and down towards the points, giving it a polarity charge. (Note: If you charge too far in an elemental direction, it'll just turn over-aspected orange and become whatever the aetherial equivalent of radioactive is.)

Of course, astral and umbral exist in all things, even the elemental wheel itself, so the "higher elements" (wind, lightning, fire) seem to more-often associated with astral charges and "lower elements" (water, ice, earth) seem to be more-often associated with umbral charges...as if, while it's not impossible to have umbral fire, fire takes more easily to an astral state for some unknown reason.