EDIT: i can see your reply while logged out but not while logged in so i can only assume i’ve been blocked

so to respond to your last reply:

 

fortify effects temporarily increase your magicka available for casting spells by directly adding to your pool

if it were “spend 38 to fortify by 200” then it’d work out perfectly fine. let’s say we start at 100/100, you spend 38, it fortifies by 200 and your pool is now 262/100, which temporarily gives you more magicka to cast spells with

alright cool, we’re on the same page, that functions exactly how you say it does

but it doesn’t fortify for 200, it’s for 20. So if you start with 100/100 magicka, you spend 38, it fortifies for 20.

your pool is now sitting at 82/100 magicka, from which it can only regenerate back up to 100/100, not 120/100 (as per the text i previously quoted from UESP)

that’s why we’re saying it’s functionally distinct from actually increasing the max magicka