susitsu

Not at all. It's an element for storytelling and backstory. As well, "nearly impossible amounts of mana compared to his normal amount," meaning much more than he could normally make. It's a storytelling element. You seem to be misunderstanding this as a new mechanic or ability of some sort, this is just an option for what happens when you over-use your mana. Nothing in it says you use life-force, in-fact, whatever it uses is extremely undefined and for a reason. If this involved any of what you think it does, this would be in lore, not roleplay ideas. If you read the last part of the post, it's literally a method to have a weaker character with a bit of backstory.

It was surprising to find out the fate of my apprentice. He had been an ambition boy, seeking to learn magic at such a young age, but I did not realize once that he would go so far against all I warned him of. However, it does answer many questions I once had. Kalameet Izalith was the one whom brought my attention back to him. Spoke of the red mage whom had so severely suffered for the mistakes of his past. However, what struck my memory was talk of a ‘red mage.’ Namely, recalling him, ‘Red.’ The danger in casting beyond your possessed mana. I pondered whether one would simply pass out or if you could will yourself past such a point. You expend yourself to continue the casting of your spell, but not in the same way a Necromancer may with life-force. Upon visiting my young apprentice, I saw he was far from the image of the boy I saw off. He could only be the age of twenty six, maybe. But he appeared sickly and drained of life. Not necessarily old, but he had signs of advanced aging. He explained to me he realized his mistake, but spent no time focusing on the past. His future was short, so he would simply spend it as lazily and comfortably as he could. But this was not where my interests laid. Just as everything else, he was another experiment, another way to gain information. And truly, he was successful. He finally helped me answer a question I had wondered for so long, and with details too. What he experienced was akin to burning his very life away as a method to fuel the spell in place of mana, but in a horrid pain. Keeping focus was nearly impossible in the horrid pain. The aura that would normally be unseeable in most cases was burning out wildly, as if he was producing nearly impossible amounts of mana compared to his normal amount. Rather specifically, he couldn’t even stop now. Almost everything he could focus on burned. Including his own strength. He soon learned that his own health had been severely damaged. A constant need for visits to alchemists or clerics just to sustain his health. Coughing of blood after too much physical exercise and difficulty moving at all when using any form of magic. His physical health was entirely destroyed for the remainder of his life. As well, he seemed extremely aware of how short his life was. A disturbing aspect, he could seem to feel his life weakening and waning. The best term I can think of for this is...Mana Burn. When using yourself as the fuel for Void based arts. --The journal entry is unsigned.-- ((Basically, I thought of this idea a while back for my character Castor when I read the part of the Void magics guide posted by Elindor as an interesting way to have a weaker character. As well, it gives more options for people to choose from when casting beyond their capabilities. Also, style of post is absolutely stolen from Moot. I’m sure there isn’t really any more explanation needed.)) Edit: To be more specific,