A fine staff core naturally deserved a fine staff cap.

Garrett eagerly attached a Primal Charm to his mallorn staff core. This component reduced vis consumption by 10% and was one of the most thaumically compatible materials.

An even better option would be the Void Metal cap, which offered a 20% reduction in vis usage. However, as its name suggested, crafting it required unlocking forbidden knowledge from beyond the world.

The “Void”… this term usually referred to places beyond Arda.

This world actually did have passages leading outward.

At the far western edge of Middle-earth stands the Straight Road that leads to Valinor. Through the Grey Havens, one could reach the Undying Lands, a realm that transcends mortal time and existence, and also the place where Morgoth was cast out.

Though the truth of this tale remained debatable.

There was only one being capable of banishing something beyond the circles of the world: Eru Ilúvatar, the creator.

And as for Morgoth, the histories state that he was thrust out beyond the Door of Night by the Valar.

From various texts and lore, it was clear that people in this world often confused the concepts of “beyond the world” and the “Void.”

The account of Morgoth being banished to the “Void” might be inaccurate.

It was unlikely the Valar possessed the power to cast someone beyond the very bounds of creation. Which meant… Morgoth was probably just drifting somewhere in the vast emptiness beyond the world, whether he still thought, no one could say.

There was a prophecy that stated: when this world falls into decay, Morgoth will return from the Void and initiate Dagor Dagorath, the final battle.

A war that will engulf all of Arda.

But by then, it might not be just the Valar and Maiar he faced.

He would also have to contend with Garrett.

Anyway, back to the matter at hand.

As a thaumic focus, the mallorn performed exceptionally well. It could store up to 150 vis of each of the six primal aspects.

And beyond its excellent storage capacity, it also came with a special property: When the staff was within Lothlórien, and its owner had sufficient reputation there, it automatically regenerated vis, this was aid from allies.

A total vis storage capacity of 150 points per aspect, double that of his previous staff. This meant that without taking up additional inventory space for backup staves, the number of times he could recharge runic shields had also doubled.

Much better endurance.

A good staff deserved a proper focus as well.

Foci were thaumic crystals that contained preset spell patterns. Once mounted on a staff, they channeled the staff’s vis to cast the corresponding spell.

For example, Radagast the Brown had such a focus embedded in his staff. Judging by its performance, that wizard’s focus was mainly attuned to healing and purification, though it might also cast some offensive spells.

However, after being corrupted by the dark forces summoned by the giant spiders of Mirkwood, that focus had become unreliable, it failed after just a couple of uses.

Next time Garrett encountered him, he might offer to help repair it…

As for the Istari’s foci, let’s set those aside.

There were ten types of wand foci recorded in the Thaumonomicon, each with different functions.

For example, the classic Fire, Frost, and Shock foci.

The Fire focused functions like a continuous flame projector, steadily emitting fire. Of course, compared to a Balrog’s flames, it was merely a candle. Due to its continuous output, it consumed vis quickly. It was decent for things like lighting campfires or torches near ancient ruins.

The Frost focus could be skipped entirely, it summoned ice shards with the destructive power of hobbit-thrown stones.

The Shock focus summons lightning, but the bolts were so weak they were no stronger than static discharge. You’d need several strikes just to kill one orc. Far inferior to Gandalf’s lightning, which can incinerate dozens of orcs in one blast.

Aside from these three, there was a more powerful focus: the Primal focus, though its damage still didn’t match Garrett swinging his sword casually.

And this focus was pure trouble.

[“It sometimes harbors outright malice toward its wielder.” – Thaumonomicon]

According to the research notes, this focus tried every means to frustrate its user. Its magic projectiles often veered away from intended targets.

If there were chests, crafting tables, or furnaces nearby belonging to the caster, it would deliberately strike those instead, destroying them.

Completely unusable. Even if you applied a Wand Focus: Warding enchantment to forcibly correct its trajectory, it remained hostile toward its wielder.

This focus must not be crafted.

Among the offensive foci, the one he favored most is another:

[Wand Focus: Nine Hells]

It allowed the summoning of creatures that exist only in the Nether: hellbats.

These small bats tracked targets and attacked continuously. They had a chance to ignite the target, and their nature was highly unstable, they might explode during an attack, dealing area damage comparable to a small firework.

One downside: they had very little health, only five points, so a single sword swing could destroy one. Their attack power was also low, just 1 point.

They didn’t seem particularly threatening, other than their special effects, they were not much more dangerous than ordinary wisps.

But quantity can lead to qualitative change. If one isn’t enough, then summon a hundred.

As a harassment and anti-air tool, the “Nine Hells” focus was excellent.

Garrett skimmed through all the foci listed in the Thaumonomicon.

Even though most of the wand foci were practically useless in serious combat, he still crafted one of each.

After all, you never know. There might come a time when any one of them proves useful.

Take the Frost focus, for instance. It was not much in battle, but it could be excellent for chilling wine or ale in the summer.

When viewed that way, it was actually quite practical.

In addition to offensive foci, there were also utility foci.

One example is the “Wand Focus: Excavation”.

In simple terms, this focus allowed you to create a passage through stone, making it easier to traverse obstacles.

According to the Thaumonomicon, it was just an ordinary utility focus, and the crafting process didn’t carry any significant risks.

But from his perspective, it should come with a “dangerous” warning. Because it was extremely hazardous to the user, and if misused, it could also cause serious damage to the surrounding environment.

“Do not use unless absolutely necessary.”

Garrett marked it with a warning label.

With that, all standard foci had been crafted.

Except for two:

One being the Wand Focus: Pech’s Curse, which was unobtainable.

And the other, “Warding”, which was simply very difficult to acquire.

The Warding focus could cast a rule-tier protective barrier over a block or area, so strong that ordinary beings couldn’t even scratch it.

Only the person who created it, using the same staff that installed the focus, could remove it.

Which raised a concern, what if, after creating such a barrier, the staff was lost, and the caster happened to be trapped inside the protected area?

In that case, they might as well be declared dead, they would never escape, and nothing from the outside could get in either.

So Garrett also labeled this one as “forbidden”. Do not use unless absolutely necessary.

Still, just because it was not for casual use didn’t mean he shouldn’t possess it.

Craft it.

The materials for the Warding focus were very expensive. It required a Nether Star, which could only be obtained by defeating a creature statistically more powerful than the Ender Dragon, the Wither.

But his response: “Simple enough. I’ll just kill the Wither.”

—

A few days later, Garrett gathered all the necessary materials at a Nether fortress to summon that terrifying, destructive entity.

He placed the wither skeleton skulls on a T-shaped arrangement of soul sand.

Boom!

As the final skull was positioned, a resonating bell-like sound echoed throughout the Nether, announcing the arrival of something ominous.

In a temporary underground chamber, a monstrous being born of death magic was awakened by Garrett’s own hands in a violent explosion.

It floated in midair, with three grotesque, massive skulls, beneath which lay a pitch-black ribcage shedding dark particles filled with the aura of decay.

[“Three terrible heads roar of birth through death, six pale eyes radiate fury from the Nether.” – Legends of the Mighty and Terrifying: The Wither]

The creature existed with a single purpose: to destroy everything it perceives, whether monster, human, animal, or even the one who summoned it.

It unleashed glowing, skull-shaped projectiles, and used its decay-infused power to bombard the surroundings. Every “ordinary” attack carved massive craters.

Any living thing it killed would, moments later, sprout a wither rose from its corpse, a beauty nourished by death.

And this beauty was lethally poisonous.

Any creature that approached the wither rose would find its flesh rotting uncontrollably, until death claimed them entirely.

Crack.

Its ribcage shattered. Its heads split open. A gleaming sword embedded deep into its enormous skeleton, cleaving the spine in two.

The massive body, glowing with malevolent energy, plummeted from the air, smashing into a patch of netherrack.

The Wither, defeated.

Duration of battle: five minutes.

“Damn, that thing was fast.”

Garrett wiped off sweat from his brow, quickly consumed a golden apple, and drank a bucket of milk to cleanse the Wither debuff from his body.

Good thing he could choose the summoning location, he had prepared a trap in advance to confine it underground.

If that creature had been allowed to fly around freely, it would have been a genuine nightmare.

As the Wither perished, something bright, glowing like a fallen star, dropped to the ground. He bent down and retrieved it.

[Nether Star]

—

Note: Maybe you’re interested in another Minecraft story?

Minecraft Player in Marvel

PS: Read the warnings first!

—

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