That may be true, but you should never have a single spell that does the work of two other spells, does it better, and for less Drain.
This is why I would stat it out at F/2+5 as a minimum.

The Drain I suggested is for a single sustained area elemental effect (a self-centered Elemental Cloud), with the Elemental Aura like effects (bonus to melee damage, damge to attackers) completely removed. If those stays in, I fully agree it should add at least +2 extra drain, and probably more.

I think everyone thinks that. If he wants Aura, cast that in addition. I'm not sure combining 2 spells is even possible RAW.

So, I declare this thread Solved: Element Cloud (-Caster Only, +Caster Safe) = standard drain, and Element Aura remains untouched.

If he's still set on mobile Mana Static, make a Caster Only, Mobile version of Mana Static; the fact that normal Mana Static can be moved as a Complex Action is adequate precedent. (Assuming it can be moved as a Complex Action?)

Mana Static cannot be moved once it becomes permanent. Which don't take all that long.

So you have a spell that's useful (as intended) for (2F+8 ) Combat Turns. Should be plenty for actual in combat use.

Wether you slap the character with permanent, potentially worse Astral Hazing, or have the BC remain in place when that times runs out might be a fun question.

Heh... Indeed.
But why 2F+8 Combat Turns. It Only takes 2xDV in Combat Turns to become permanent. Should that not be F+8 Turns (2*(F/2+4))?
And assuming a Permanent Spell, the Background Count then reeduces by 1 point per Hour.

Ah, well then there you go. MS is immobile, so there can't be a mobile version. Element Cloud *is*, so my previous 'Solved!' conclusion was right.

Ah. You're absolutely correct. Forgot about the today-every-Drain-half-off*^{(Excluding non-Force factors)}! offer.

Proposals:

Elemental Area
Duration: sustained
Range: self (casting Mage is centre of the spell)
Damage: like elemental aura
In game effects: like elemental aura. Replace (attacker must make resistance test) against (everybody in range of spell must male resistance test)
Drain: (F/2)+4 (fluff-wise)
Additional information: like for a ranged attack, you can make a dodge test to prevent getting out of range of the spell. This works for the moment the mage casts the spell, as well as for the attempt of the caster to bring you in the range of the spell willingly (e.g. moving towards target).

Background-count Aura
Duration: sustained
Range: self (Casting Mage is centre of the spell)
Effect: creates background-count with a force of hits, caster is fully affected
In game effects: like astral static.
Additional information: AOE can be moved with a complex action (for slow retreat), even if dropped, spell is still affecting caster for (force) minutes.
Drain: (F/2)+3

Oh man, the gay guys are so screwed.

I thought we'd covered this.

#1. That's not 'like' Element Aura at all. It's like Fireball, or Element Cloud.
#2. Again, it's not that it's imbalanced per se, it's just counter how BC works.

Re-reading the spell design section in "Street Magic", you're basically reshaping a physical manipulation spell into an environmental one (see p. 164). It also raises an important question: What happens to the caster's surroundings? Does he have to see something to have it affected by the spell (read: torn apart)? Do walls stop the elemental effect? This comes pretty close to disinguations between combat spells...
Do area spells work in three dimensions? I cannot recall a word on this from the source books, sadly. If so, the caster of this spell should be really, really careful. Goes for elemental aura as well, always remember

Wait a minute. Is the spell now permanently centered on the caster or only right when he casts it? If it's the former, then why move it with a complex action, the latter, why cast it adjacent to the mage anyway - only for purpose of reduced drain? Or does the spell break whenever the caster is no longer in the center of it?

The whole thing comes down to this: Who's the target of the spell now? In my opinion, you either select a specific target (classic LOS) or you select an area (LOS(A)). Now selecting a target to influence an area seems off to me. I think it is an interesting idea, I just haven't seen anything like this before anywhere in the magics section of shadowrun.