"Firestorm," Elena chanted, and a storm of fire appeared between her and Amelia.
It was powerful enough to melt part of the stage where it appeared, but Amelia remained calm.
To counter a spell, you needed to respond with equal or more powerful magic. However, there were many factors that affected how effectively you could counter a magic spell.
One of these factors was understanding the structure of the spell used and finding a weakness in that structure.
It was difficult to do unless you had studied the spell yourself. If you didn't understand the structure, the only way to counter was to use even more powerful magic against it.
Up to Tier 3, all spells behaved predictably, meaning some elements were naturally stronger against others. But this changed from Tier 4 onward, where magic became more complex.
No one in the First Year, including Asher, could cast a Tier 4 magic.
