Mages

Mages are any person that is able to control some type of element or energy at a molecular level. There are three categories of mages: Material, elemental and metaphysical.

ALthough many mages are extremily powerful, all ahve a limited amount of power--the most commonly used metaphor in this case is a bucket. You can only fill a bucket so much, although some can be larger than others. A common sign that a mage has reached their limits is losing consciousness, or being unable to use magic for a short period. Additionally, if gone unused for very long, mage magic can 'atrophy', so to speak--it may take a time for any mages ability to return at full strength if they haven't used it for a very long time, similar to a muscle.

Any race can be a mage, so long as there is some mage blood in their bloodline- nobody can spontaneously become a mage. However, no pureblood human can become a mage, as there aren't any recorded racially pure humans that have mage blood in them. it is more likely to be a mage if there is already magic in your species or immediate family- Shapeshifters, for example, have about a 50% chance of being a material mage, and someone's mother who is a mage has a 25% chance to be one.

### Material

Material mages have the ability to alter composite minerals, chemicals and other materials, and some may have the ability to slightly change their or others' appearance (known as Changelings) using minerals and cells in the skin. Material mages are able to combine or separate chemicals on a molecular level, which makes them excellent chemists or inventors. Additionally, they are able to control the physical state of some materials- they can make a solid into a gas, a gas into a liquid and a liquid onto a solid without altering the temperature in the slightest.

Material mages often become tailors, jewelers, metallurgists or sculptors due to the fact that their powers are often not useful in combat. Changelings are often hired by dubious organizations to use their powers to disguise themselves or other people.

Shapeshifters are technically a type of material mage- they are able to control their appearance (to a certain extent). However, shapeshifters are not regarded as true material mages due to the fact that they can only control how they shift, and they cannot alter their forms other than that.

### Elemental

Elemental mages are the most common types of mage, and can be divided into four categories: fire, water, air and earth.

#### Fire/heat

Fire mages can be divided into two categories:

Heat mages, which can control their body temperature and the air temperature in a limited radius around them, and fire mages, which can control fire in of itself.

The two are often mixed up due to the fact that certain heat mages have the ability to ignite oxygen in a controlled radius, which can be confused for fire mages. Additionally, fire mages have the ability to control fire outside the visual light spectrum for most species, which might be mistaken for a long-range heat mage.

Temperatures of heat and fire mages have been recorded to reach upwards of 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Fire and heat mages are often partnered in combat due to the fact that fire mages can only control the fire after it has been lit, and it is very rare for a heat mage to be able to combust oxygen--for this reason, heat mages ignite a substance while fire mages control it.

Heat mages are often used in metallurgy for their precise abilities, and have the limited ability to absorb heat energy. Both heat and fire mages can be (ironically) used as firefighters for the heat mages ability to snuff flames and gain a small boost of energy from doing so, and fire mages ability to control the flames themselves.

#### Water

Water mages have the ability to manipulate mater on a molecular level, and can densify or lower water pressure. Although they can create an ice-like substance, ice created by water mages is not true ice, as it is more compacted water. They can control water in all forms, and they may be seen 'summoning' water, although water mages cannot truly create water and can instead pull water out of air or ground.

#### Air

Air mages have the ability to raise or lower air pressure to create gusts of wind or storms. Often in combat, they will work with fire mages to effectively project fire even further, or heighten air pressure to densify oxygen molecules, heightening combustion power. Although they cannot manipulate gasses on a molecular level, some are able to manipulate air pressure into making some gasses (such as methane) more readily available. In addition, Air mages are able to use this ability to control and manipulate specific spots of air within a 150-foot radius.

#### Ground

Ground mages can be divided into two subcategories:

###### Plant mages

Can control plant growth and plant death, as well as absorb energy from killing plants. Plant mages are able to control the cellular movement and growth of plants and move them at rates much faster than typical. In addition, they can 'communicate' with plants to an extent, although this is typically done though an existing mycelium network and is more like they can decode the chemical signals the plant sends out. they cannot manipulate mushrooms, but they can communicate with them better than they can with plants.

Many plant mages have the ability to 'wither' plants, whereupon they will gain a boost of energy lasting for a short period before crashing, similar to a sugar high/crash.

###### 'True' ground mages

Can manipulate almost all nonliving mineral substances at a nonmolecular level. True ground mages are separated from material mages due to their less precise manipulation ability, as they cannot manipulate materials at a molecular level. Ground mages are often used in construction due to their ability to manipulate materials commonly found in the ground such as clay, chalk, coal, and stone. Although they cannot as precisely manipulate these materials, they can also be separated from material mages due to their immense strength when it comes to moving materials--the record has been clocked in at over 40 stone.

### Metaphysical

Metaphysical mages are the rarest types of mages and are the only mages able to strengthen their power over time. Metaphysical mages can be put into three categories:

Mindreaders, which are able to feel others' emotions, and can further strengthen this ability to be able to read thoughts and see images from others' minds,

healers, which are able to manipulate living cells to repair and rearrange themselves and can strengthen this ability to kill off living cells,

and timeseers, which are able to see vague 'threads' of a timeline and can strengthen this to being able to see any and all possible timelines (although this is often seen as a curse, as many strong timeseers have gone insane due to their countless and typically futile attempts to change the future).