Trade:Tattoo Artistry

Trade Name	Tattoo Artistry
School	Art and Design
Summary	The study of ink and design, as well as other forms of tattooing (burning, for example), and the ability to apply that knowledge to giving others identifying marks on the skin.

Tattoo Artistry is a very lucrative and respectable trade on Ramath-lehi. As tattoos are incredibly popular on the planet with its inhabitants, there is never a shortage of customers. Tattoo artistry is something that is deeply rooted in Ramathian society. So much so that not having a tattoo is considered to be slightly abnormal. Becoming a tattoo artist is considered to be a very respectable career by Ramathian standards.

Tattoo Ink

Tattoo pigments can be made up of various substances, however it is most common for a tattoo artist to use a Fronimium-based ink. This special ink then allows the tattoo artist to later imbue the tattoo artwork with various magical properties. The most common being: the ability to have the tattoo glow, or to change colours.

Tattoo Processes

There are two main ways that Ramathians may create tattoos. The first traditional method involves injecting tattoo pigment directly into the skin of the patient. To do this, the tattoo artist uses an electrically powered tattoo machine that resembles a dental drill. The machine moves a solid needle up and down to puncture the skin between 70 and 3,000 times per minute. The needle penetrates the skin by about a millimetre and deposits a drop of insoluble pigment into the skin with each puncture.

The second and most popular method involves the direct modification of a Ramathian’s individual hair follicles. Using a special tattoo machine, the tattoo artist is able to directly target each individual hair follicle and inject them with a special blend of Fronimium-based ink, depending on the colour that they want the hair to turn. This process is often a lot more labour intensive for the artist, and slightly more painful for the patient.

Once the ink has been injected into the follicle, it will begin to work its magic. The ink will stimulate the follicle and immediately promote hair growth. Approximately 3mm to 1cm of immediate growth is considered to be normal. All newly grown hair will be the same desired colour of the injected tattoo ink. It is recommended that you cut off any old growth hair so that only the new growth will be shown. Once a follicle has been treated with Fronimium-based ink, it is not possible to remove the ink. While colour changes can be made, complete removal also means complete removal of the hair follicle. This would leave the Ramathian hairless (although it is possible to get hair follicle transplants) wherever they chose to get the tattoo removed from.

Magic-imbued Tattoos

When a tattoo has been done with Fronimium-based ink, it is then later possible for a skilled mage to attach a magic spell of some sort to them. The permanence of the effect depends entirely on the skill and power of the mage performing the imbuing. For effects like glowing and simple colour changes, a moderately talented mage is able to imbue this effect for up to three years. For more advanced effects like rainbow, or colour changing based on temperature, a moderately talented mage may only be able to cast the effect for up to 8 months. When getting your tattoos imbued, it is best to find the most talented magic crafter that you can afford.

History

Tattoos used to be a large part of the hunting culture on Ramath-lehi. They would often signify who the leader of the hunt was, and were marks that were often used to designate position and rank. Over time as hunting became less of a thing, the desire to have tattoos did not go away. Tattoos instead became more and more popular as a means of expressing oneself. Tattoos are in fact so popular that it’s actually become a bit of a taboo to not have one.

Prominent Characters

Prominent characters who have Tattoo Artistry as a trade.

• None