One of the more specialized forms of magic that was  studied, was trying to
find a way to defeat armour. While  most attempts involved conjuring forces
that would either disregard, or overpower any type of physical protection 
worn by the target. However, a small group of mages who studied alchemy,
dwelved into conjuring acidic attacks that would not only cause damage to the
target, but damage  to his armour as well. The spell disruption, while not a
true acid forming spell, shows the basis for the magic studies into this
field. By magically attacking the  structure of the target and disrupting it,
it could be  made unstable, and weak.