Shamans are geomancers, which means that they make use of gifts, raw energy channeled from the elemental tapestry that binds all of existence together. As geomancers, shamans tap into this tapestry of elements to acquire flux, which they can turn into gifts. However, nature demands balance, and as shamans gather flux, they also accrue stress, inhibiting their ability to draw more flux over time.

As a move action, the shaman can tap one of her elemental suites. When she does so, she rolls her flux die, and acquires that much flux, while also accruing the same amount of stress. If you have more stress than your stress limit against an element, you cannot tap it (but see below); likewise, you cannot have more flux for an element than your stress limit. Even if you have multiple actions, you can only tap a given element once on each of your turns.

When you tap an element, if the amount of stress you acquire would put you over your stress limit for that element, you instead only gain enough flux and stress to put you at your stress limit.

If you currently have a called eikon (see below), you can always tap the element associated with that eikon, even if your stress for that element is at or above your stress limit. When you do so, the eikon gains the amount of flux you gained or would have gained if not for your stress. Eikons do not accrue stress and have no stress limit. An eikon's flux dissipates after 5 minutes.

If you tap an element and have access to the suite of it's opposed element, you reduce your stress for the opposed element by the amount of flux you gain for the element you are tapping.

You can never have more flux than your current stress for a given element. If you do, your flux is immediately reduced to equal your stress.

If you are in an environment associated with an element you tap, you gain double the amount of flux. If you are in an environment associated with the element's opposed element, you instead halve the amount of flux you gain.

Flux is a powerful but relatively short-lived energy, and dissipates naturally over time. You lose all flux of an element after 5 minutes.

You can meditate to alleviate the stress you have accrued against the elements. Doing so requires 1 round of concentration, at the end of which you reduce your stress against all elements by half your level bonus, rounded down (min 1). You can automatically remove all accrued stress with a short rest.

To use a gift, called bending, you must spend an amount of flux - dependent upon the gift's grade - of the element associated with that gift. If you have access to a suite and are in a terrain associated with that element, you can use that suite's basic gift at will, which costs no flux.

The shaman begins with four known gifts. She gains knowledge of additional gifts each level, as per the class table, above. At fourth level and every four levels after, she can trade out up to two gifts for new gifts from any suite she can access, of any grade she can access.

If you would gain access to a suite, you can choose to instead gain a bonus feat, which must be a feat for which you qualify. If you would gain access to a suite and already have access to six suites, you gain a bonus feat instead.

The shaman gains a bonus to her stress limit for each of her suites equal to her Charisma modifier.