Magic Magic was the ability possessed by some individuals to manipulate the ambient energies of the world to produce desired results . In the Realms , arcane magic was commonly referred to as " the Art " , while divine magic was referred to as " the Power " . The goddess Mystra controlled the Weave which was the main medium for channeling the arcane energies of Abeir - Toril . The goddess Shar controlled the Shadow Weave which flows in - between the normal weave and enables the use of Shadow Magic . Divine magic was drawn from specific deities and is not influenced by either Mystra or Shar as evidenced by the fact it continued to work when arcane magic ceased to function . Historically this made it the most reliable form of magic . History . Lord Ao created the universe . At first it was nothing but energy , with neither light nor dark , heat nor cold . Eventually the energy created two deities – Selûne and Shar . Together they created heavens and Chauntea , the embodiment of the world of Toril . Chauntea begged for light and warmth so that she could create life on the new world , but Shar opposed this vehemently . The subsequent war between the sisters created new deities – war , murder , and destruction among them . When Selûne lit one of the nearby heavenly bodies on fire to provide the light and warmth needed , Shar became enraged , trying to extinguish light everywhere . Selûne tore the energy from her own body and flung it at Shar , where it joined with Shar ' s energy and passed from both of them , thus creating the goddess of magic , Mystryl . The birth of Mystryl not only brought a truce to Selûne and Shar , but created the Weave . In the newly created Toril , magic abounded in everything , but in its raw state it was too dangerous for mortals to use . The Weave is a like a fabric , consisting of many threads , all woven together to create an intricate design . Spellcasting and the use of magic items pulls individual threads and reweaves them , creating a new design . Now both mortals and deities could use magic through this fabric that was both the embodiment of Mystryl and a conduit to raw magic . When the Phaerimm , a race dwelling under the surface of the earth , began to cast spells draining the empire of Netheril of its magic , a powerful mage named Karsus created a link to Mystryl in an attempt to steal her power , become a god and save his empire . This caused a great rift in the Weave , and Mystryl was so weakened that she sacrificed herself to save the world . Since she " was " the Weave , magic immediately ceased all across Toril . A new goddess of magic named Mystra was born , and she was able to repair the weave in a way that such powerful spells could never be used against it again . Types of Magic . Divine magic . Magic that originates from a spell - granting deity , usually through prayer , is divine in nature and is called the Power by the common folk . Cleric s , druid s , paladin s , ranger s and many prestige classes all derive their spells and spell - like abilities from a deity . A practitioner of the Power has no affinity with the Art , as their spells are planted in their minds directly by their patron deity , and they do not tap the Weave . Casting divine spells is more like an exclamation of faith that brings about a sensation appropriate to the patron deity to whom the faith was devoted . Faith magic . A small subcategory of divine spells could make use of the " devotional energy " that came from many worshipers congregated in a specific location dedicated or sacred to a deity . Once a " focus " was created to harness this energy , it could be used for protection , improving harvests , controlling weather , improving communication between diverse peoples , and improving public health . Candle magic . The mystic s of Faerûn took herbalism to greater heights and could create candles that had the same or similar effects as some spells . Arcane magic . Any magic that doesn ' t originate from a deity is defined as arcane magic . ( Note , while all magic is accessed through the Weave , which is maintained by a deity , this does not make all magic divine magic . ) The use of arcane magic is referred to in day - to - day speech as the Art , and a wide variety of people ( and character classes ) are able to practice the Art to a smaller or larger extent , though the way in which they access the Weave can differ dramatically . Most wizard s spend long years researching their art , gathering spells to their personal book , and each day they can only memorize a small fraction of these . The memory of the spell is wiped from his or her mind as it is cast . The wizard has to re - study the spell before he or she can cast it again , unless more than one casting of the spell in question was prepared . Sorcerer s , also known as innanoths ( for their innate mastery of the Weave ) are not required to research spells . They tap the Weave in a more direct manner , but because of this , the selection of spells available to a sorcerer is more limited than that available to a wizard . Bard s , assassin s and many other prestige classes access the Weave to use certain magical abilities . Schools . Schools of magic are categories into which spells were organized by general function . Spells were created by wizard s with these schools in mind , though divine spells fell within these preset categories as well . Still , there were also some spells that defied categorization within a school . Some spellcasters ( mostly wizards ) chose to specialize in spells from a certain school ; they focused more effort into these spells than any other , but at the expense of all spells from one or more other schools . These schools of magic had been in existence for a very long time and no one seemed to know who originally came up with them . They were not yet used by the arcanist s of Netheril , however , who only distinguished three schools or Fields of Mythal : Inventive , mentalism and variation . Most schools of magic also have subschools that help define the spells with even more accuracy . The major schools of magic are as follows : The rarely studied schools of chronomancy and wild magic are special cases , as they contain many spells that can be used " only " by those specializing in them . Similarly , the hishnashaper s and plumaweaver s of Maztica each use their own selection of exclusive spells , which is somewhere between a school of magic and a priestly sphere . Alternative systems of magic . Some casters organize arcane spells not into the traditional schools of philosophy , but , based on what they produce or affect , into schools of effect : Shadow mage s use twilight , darkness and forces from the Plane of Shadow , dimensionalist s employ space , time and the plane s for their purposes , while elementalist s specialize in spells of one of the four elemental schools of air , earth , fire , and water . The rare incantatrix es specialized in spells affecting magic itself . Similarly , the mages of Zakhara distribute their spells into the elemental provinces of wind , sand , flame , and sea , as well as the universal province , open to all wizards . Schools of thaumaturgy go one step further , they do not only put spells into categories different from the traditional schools , but use alternative ways to access magical energy : The school of artifice uses substances , technology and magical items to channel magic , and the school of song employs music and the power of the voice . Wild magic is also considered a school of thaumaturgy . Followers of path magic do not recognize schools of magic , but specialize in paths of power , much smaller selections of spells of increasing power unified by one topic . Casting . Verbal component Somatic component Material components Magical focus