Magic

Magic is a living energy that flows through all things. It can be harnessed, but like any aware being, Magic rebels against constraint. If a mage missteps or lacks subtlety in their manipulations, they might incur Magic’s ire. This is known as a miscast... power continues to flow through the mage, in ways contrary to their desired effect. Miscasts are generally dangerous. Thus, Magic must never be taken lightly!

## Spellcraft

To cast a spell is to coerce Magic into conjuring an effect. Spells require incantations and gestures. Sometimes they require offerings of blood, vitality, or rare components. A near-meditative state of focus is also needed, allowing the mage to project their will upon Magic without the interference of stray thoughts. Each species and culture practices their own distinct forms of spellcraft, with most mages taking years to truly master their chosen style.

Other names for spellcraft include (but are not limited to) sorcery, casting, magecraft, wizardry, witchcraft, and conjuring.

## Malevolent Spellcraft

Magic recoils from those seeking to pervert nature in obscene ways; enslaving minds, raising the dead, spawning illness, and so forth. Not-so demons, who willingly commit such blasphemies. Therefore mages who dabble in necromancy and other vile forms of spellcraft learn to draw upon the power of Ruin. There are deadly risks however. During a malevolent miscast, demons assert control of the spell, guiding it to cause great mayhem, or worse... riding the baleful energies into the caster themself; leading to possession, mutation, or even death.

Other names for malevolent spellcraft include (but are not limited to) malfeasance, hexcraft, ruinous/hellish sorcery, diabolism, and warlockery.

## Benevolent Spellcraft

Some mages draw upon Magic for purely positive effect. Spells cast with this philosophy in mind are never innately harmful, but instead bestow protection or calm a violent mind. In many ways, benevolent sorcery is the antithesis to malfeasance. Whilst miscasts are still possible, the serenity inherent in benevolent casting makes them less catastrophic... as though Magic is more likely to forgive the caster.

Other names for benevolent spellcraft include (but are not limited to) theurgy, booncraft, and hoodoo.

## High Spellcraft

Long, long ago Magic formed a spiritual bond with the elves, guiding them to excel in all matters arcane. In turn, the elves devised mental tricks and ritual patterns which invite (never command) Magic to create miraculously complex, far reaching, and near-permanent effects. They call this practice High Spellcraft. A form of benevolent casting, practitioners favour defensive wards, prolonging natural phenomena, advanced healing, and illusions. Magic's direct influence (and willingness) also prevents miscasts entirely, lending high elves supreme confidence with sorcery, unmatched by any other species. Traditionally, elf casters undergo centuries of training, eventually earning the title of high mage, at which point their spells can influence whole towns and last for years. Lacking elven patience or their unique connection to Magic, other species cannot attempt this form of wizardry. Also of note; fallen elves and half elves are incapable of high spellcraft. The former due to their disconnection from Magic, the latter because of their partly-human minds.

High Spellcraft is often deemed elfcraft by non-elves.

## Sorcerous Tongues

Incantations are spoken in Magicka, a language threaded with sorcery. Observers of spellcraft often hear echoes of common words and phrases within a stream of arcane gibberish. This experience is called mind-speak. Spells recorded in tomes and scrolls are also written in Magicka, making them impossible to read without entering the near-meditative state required for casting.

Malevolent mages and many priests of the Narga speak a defiled form of Magicka, called Infernum (the language of demons). By implementing this horrid tongue, they purge their spells of Magic’s benign influence.

## Loci, Null Zones, And Wild Zones

* A locus is an area where magical energy gathers in overabundance. Spontaneous supernatural effects grow rife and mages often seek these loci, wishing to leech away and harness the excess power. Elementals are sometimes drawn to loci, where they wallow in the arcane ripples.
* Some places become anathema to Magic. Within these null zones it is virtually impossible for mages to cast spells.
* In certain locales Magic seems affected by lunacy. Spells cast in such a place are far more potent than intended and have an unfortunate habit of spiralling wildly out of control, as though miscast by default. Mages call these spots wild zones. The Weft is notoriously filled with wild zones.

## Conduits

Conduits are mortals born with an instinctive ability to perceive and manipulate Magic. They need far less training than other mages to cast spells, and do not tire as quickly from the effort. Due to limited study however, their arcane arsenals tend to be smaller. Lots of raw power, but little variation. Prior to beginning their training, conduits are often plagued by random supernatural occurrences, as though Magic (or perhaps something demonic) is playfully trying to get their attention. None know how or why these gifted souls come to be.

## Elementals

Elementals are spirits attuned to an aspect of nature. They swim through Magic’s all-encompassing currents, urging it to create material changes that suit their aspect-driven whims. Most elementals create small effects, such as keeping a particular tree alive despite a drought, but the truly powerful might summon storms or manifest bodies of raw arcane energy for short periods. As mentioned above, some elementals are drawn to loci, and those tied to the aspect of life might form courts around them in imitation of mortal gatherings.

## Familiars

Many mages choose to take on a familiar; a tiny magical creature that acts as an assistant and source of extra power. Some familiars are imps or elemental sprites, some are innately sorcerous critters like pseudo-dragons and tressyms, while others are ordinary animals mysteriously steeped in magic (much like a conduit). The mage ritually bonds themself to the familiar, allowing both master and pet to feel each other's emotions. This creates a high level of non-verbal understanding between them, and in times of stress or danger the familiar will lend it's own magical potency to the mage's casting attempts. Mages can only have one familiar at a time.

## Traversing The Planes

Mortals, for a variety of foolhardy reasons, occasionally seek to leave the mortal plane and enter another. Such a choice is not only perilous, but generally impossible without deific assistance or reality-breaking spellcraft. Legends tell of powerful mages who can step briefly between worlds or teleport from town-to-town, but only the long-gone Weftyril mastered this kind of travel, and even they were forced to rely upon fixed portals. Without those ancient structures, the risk of becoming lost, trapped, or falling prey to curious demons is simply too high for modern adventurers, and none living can yet recreate or fully reactivate them!

## Prejudice And Fear

Magic and spellcraft are rarely accepted with open arms in the realms of Scy'kadia. In fact, most casters are forced to live in hiding or on the fringes of society. Some are even attacked by mobs of fearful neighbours. The same applies to beings formed from or created by Magic, such as elementari or undead. To grasp why, one must recall that Magic is an unpredictable and oft deadly force. One must also remember that the vast majority of realms are governed by humans, who were once subjugated (for almost six hundred years) by cruel wizard kings. Though centuries have passed, an understandable bias remains, exacerbated by sporadic arcane disasters and magical conflicts such as The Pharidae War. Of course some realms and peoples are less afraid of sorcery, and adventurers (more likely to work in proximity to magecraft) tend to get used to it... eventually.

## Mage Burns

Miscasts, even non-ruinous ones, can leave a caster scarred or mutated. Such marks are called mage burns, and they come in myriad forms; some subtle enough for the bearer to chalk them up as the result of a mundane injury, others so blatantly arcane that they must be concealed so as not to alarm suspicious folk. Glowing scars, pupil-less eyes, additional digits... all (and more) are examples of mage burns that can get a careless caster in deep trouble...

## The Vortex

Built in secret by dwarven smith-priests, with help from the god Fundun, The Vortex is a thaumatic syphon lodged within Ruin. Consisting of Weftyril machinery and divine runecraft, it bleeds Magic away from the mortal plane. While this does not prevent sorcerers from casting spells, it does limit the strength and longevity of arcane effects. In other words, before the construction of The Vortex, spellcraft was much more potent.