User blog:Promestein/Agency - Absolute Barriers

From The World and the Mechanics of the Soul…
 * The outermost layer of the soul acts as a protective layer that shields the rest of the soul from harm and attack. This is often called a distinction barrier, though many other terms for it exist. A distinction barrier helps to keep a soul together, like a shell. Its strength depends on the individual’s willpower and magical strength, and it is instrumental in keeping a soul in one piece for long as possible after death.


 * While the distinction barriers of normal beings are generally far too weak to offer any notable defense against physical or magical attacks, powerful mages form very strong barriers, strong enough to protect them from magical harm and even affect the physical world to protect them from physical harm as well. In this state, a distinction barrier often becomes visible as what is often called, among many other things, an aura; it may be faint and colorless, or it may be easily visible and glowing brightly. All personal magical barriers, protection and defenses are located within the distinction barrier, making it even stronger.


 * Eventually, through enough magical work and willpower, this barrier is enhanced to such a level that it keeps out most attempts at physical or magical attack and manipulation. At this point, it is known as an absolute barrier. It protects them on every level of existence, and is akin to a magical immune system, protecting the mage from threats and adapting to future attack.

An Absolute Barrier is a Agency character's primary form of defense, a barrier that protects their body and soul, along with every other level of existence, from harm and other unwanted effect. It's similar, in essence, to Dispel Bound in Bastard!!, and, like Dispel Bound, a powerful enough opponent can tear down someone's barriers to get their abilities through.

In Agency itself, Absolute Barriers are most useful against opponents on one's weight class and their power is derived from the user's willpower; a stronger will results in stronger defenses. Significantly stronger opponents can force themselves through these barriers outright, and those with potent enough abilities or extensive knowledge can circumvent them. Even with a strong will, if one has little to no magical energy at their disposal, their barriers will be easy to break.

Comprehensive Resistance List
Not every Absolute Barrier resists all of these by default; while they provide a baseline level of resistance to mental, spiritual, and conceptual attack, the rest must be developed over time. This typically happens as a result of being exposed to new forms of attack and evolving to deal with it, or through actively altering and building upon your barriers to provide such defenses.

Strong Absolute Barriers will have more powerful innate defenses and are possessed by those with very powerful wills; the most notable of these are EQUINOX, Harahel, Jophiel, Lucifer, Mastema, Minna Yamane, Observer, and SOLSTICE. People with such strong wills will also be harder to effect even if their Absolute Barriers are torn down, as their sheer willpower still remains.

Specific examples for all of the above will be noted on the pages of any relevant characters. Their resistances are not all uniform and I don't want to make even more blog posts and divisions for what each has specifically displayed resisting.