I have read this kind of idea before, and the one huge problem I see is that when it comes to cabal wars, mages are going to get ####ed. People will exploit weaknesses, and they will do hit/run until they know the protection is gone and the timer is up, then they will steamroll. I know I would. With rods it is a gamble for them too because they don't know how long you can sustain your protections. Granted that, it's very common for people (ragers especially) to walk up and smack an outer, get into a skirmish, flee, let your protections dissolve, and then attack. That's fine. That's smart. But, this would make that a lot more effective and, as I said, #### the mages.