Clad in gossamer robes resembling pure twilight, the mage emanates a celestial glow. One arm cradles a grimoire the size of an anvil, while the other wields a yew staff crowned with a rough-hewn topaz. A golden amulet, bearing a dragon's roaring visage, hangs on a silver chain. As the mage reads from the grimoire, the amulet's eyes glow, and their incantations command the very elements of creation.
Archmages are powerful (and usually quite old) spellcasters dedicated to the study of the arcane arts. Benevolent ones counsel kings and queens, while evil ones rule as tyrants and pursue lichdom. Those who are neither good nor evil sequester themselves in remote towers to practice their magic without interruption.
An archmage typically has one or more apprentice mages, and an archmage's abode has numerous magical wards and guardians to discourage interlopers.