Originally this thread was posted by me to ask for help, but I was able to figure things out.

So you want to modify a spell or its visuals? Here's how.

MODIFY VISUALS - STEP 1: Get your effect
       First thing you'll be doing is locating your files to get everything set up. Note that this is not a Particle Cauldron tutorial. I will assume
that you have already created a particle effect. First, your particles by default will be saved to "My Documents\My Games\Elemental\Effects". Remember that your particle effect will not be properly named by the Cauldron unless you HIT ENTER after typing the effect's name in. Do not use spaces in the name --use underscore if you must have that king of seperation. I like to use camelCase.

This effect isn't going to do anything from this folder. Open up your Elemental install directory: C:\Program Files\Stardock Games\Elemental is the default, and COPY the effect's xml file into the Mods folder. You don't want to move it; otherwise you'll need to move it back if you want to edit it again later. Now we need to setup the game's spells to recognize and use your new effect.

STEP 2: Hook it up
       You'll need to copy the appropriate spellbook xml files into the Mods directory. Get them from Elemental\data\English. You'll need both CoreSpellBooks.XML and the specific XML file that coresponds to the spell you're trying to mod. In my case, I wanted to mod Melting Touch, so I also copied CoreSpells_FIRE_Tactical.XML. If you wanted to mod, say, Summon Nature's Ally instead, you would use CoreSpells_EARTH_Strategic.XML, and so on.

Once you have both files copied into your Mods folder, it's time to go in and hook it up. Remember: The file names do not matter, as the game handles everything using the "internal name" tags.  Here's what my Fire spellbook XML looked like.

But I'm not done yet. I now need to edit CoreSpellBooks so that my unique spell InternalName, "MyMeltingTouch", matches up. The SpellDefEffect section has EffectName set as 'BlastFlare' -- this is what I named my particle effect. By default, the particle effect's InternalName matches its filename, so I'm all set in this department.

Perfect!

STEP 3: Test it out!
       The Cauldron can only do so much when it comes to previews -- you need to see the spell in use to really see  how it looks. For the test to work properly, you MUST start a new game. I have myself a 'testign sovereign' set up with all spell books, and all of the professions/talents/equipment that gives move. With 5 move, finding an opponent quickly is easy, especially with a Tiny landmass and every CPU faction playing! Here's how my Blast Flare effect turned out!

 Not bad!

Hope this tutorial has been helpful for all aspiring spell makers and pyrotechnicians out there. Keep an eye out for my 'Arcane Power!' Mod, which will revamp and sexify most of the game's spells. Thanks for reading, let me know how it works for you.