Magic

Magic is a primal force in this world. It is as much a part of nature as grass and trees, though rather than being an unstoppable force, it molds with the world and aids in its function. Magic is *not* a sentient being, no more sentient than the wind or gravity. Individuals can interact with this natural magic, however the connection can vary between person and race. For example, elves tend to have a strong connection from birth, allowing them to manipulate themselves and the world around them easily. In the case of elves, ones that *can't* use magic are regarded as strange and abnormal, and are typically shunned by their community. On the flip side of this is humans, specifically those from Korenia. Korenian humans have a small connection to the magical forces of nature, however that connection is very thin, and very few can use it properly.

Even if an individual has a natural connection to magic, using it effectively is much more difficult. It requires tedious study and practice in order to learn the most basic of magical abilities, from spells to enchantments, even for races like the elves. Some are naturally attuned to their magical ability, allowing them almost immediate control over the magical forces, however their powers are typically weak unless trained. The original race of elves, the ones who first discovered agriculture on Irenica, had such abilities, and were able to manipulate the land to a certain extent to begin farming, however even they needed to turn to physical manipulation at one point.

Occasionally, an individual may be exceptionally lucky and discover an enchanted text, such as the Crimson Rites, which, when opened and read, imbues the reader with a magical connection. Such texts, however, are usually connected to the spell caster, meaning that if the spell caster were to die or disable the spell, the reader would lose a significant amount of their power, if not all of it. This was the case for the Crimson Cult, whose leader, Iratic Crim, experienced the imbuement of magical abilities through the Crimson Rites, and using the connection to Torment, gave others the same. When his connection to Torment was cut off during the Crimson Collapse, however, he was unable to sustain the spells enchanting the other Crimson Curators, leading to many suddenly losing a significant amount of their power, or even losing their magical abilities completely.

Magic is generally considered untrustworthy in most cultures, with the exception being elves, who treat it as the norm. Elven treatment of magic has continued to make the other races on Irenica distrust and even fear the elves. The Korenian Humans strongly distrust magic users due to the rarity and the exceptional power imbued in them, and because of this, the Korenian Empire tries to recruit any magic users to their military, and if they can't, they kill or imprison them out of apprehension. This trait continued to the Kor Empire and the Icerock Empire.

Some creatures and races, such as the Eldritch and the race that Torment comes from, are naturally adept at magic, at least compared to other races. While one of Torment's race might appear a god to those on Irenica or Korenia, they could be thought of as weak in their home world. The Eldritch, a race that was a machination of Torment's kind, were imbued with a slight amount of magic, at least compared to their masters. In reality, the Eldritch had power leagues above any other race in Irenica, more than elves or dragons, though that eventually caused their downfall, their unnatural magic from another realm being incompatible to that of Irenica.