Explain Your Magic System

[Gavrill]

my magic system is not done yet. I'm constantly adding and removing stuff. I'll ty to explain the main principles I have right now.

1) Spells are powerd by arcane energy which is absorbed from the surroundings and processed by the soul or by a very expensive type of glass.
2) When using the arcane energy from the soul to power a rune, the sorcerer has to deplete his own soul, which can lead to insanity when passing a certain threshold from which you cannot return.
3) sorcerers can also draw power from the souls of other beings, which allows the caster to stay clear of any harm to his own soul.
4) To cast spells a sorcerer has to draw the corresponding rune (and/or its adaptation) in the air (for direct casting) or on any other medium (which makes the spell more stable or allows for multiple uses depending on the type of medium).
5) the glass that absorbs arcane energy are mostly used in capital cities to power facilities like street and home lighting, running hot and cold water, elevators for the larger buildings, trains (connecting larger cities), airships, advanced sewer systems, etc...

So nothing 'groundbreaking'

 

[pmmg]

I've seen this thread float by a number of times and never responded. I do have a magic system of sorts, but I am not sure if it will be explained to readers, and at least so far, no one has been in a position to explain it. There are some characters who could, but I am not sure they will.

Five sentences or less.

The magic system consists of something similar to mana and ley lines; However, the world is young and so mana is prevalent and ley lines are strong. There are two (known) forms of energy in this way, and all capable can use either, but the usage of one or the other is corrupting and shaping. Too much dark and one becomes more dark, too much light and one becomes more light. Some areas are less formed than others, and raw creative energy is more present, it bleeds out like radiation, sometimes dark, and sometimes light, affecting the areas and beings about them. Some creatures can make use of this; some can make heavy use of this, and some not at all.

And that is five. Seems to work to me, Could add more, but...that is about the gist of it.

 

[Dee]

Terence McKenna thought reality itself was made of code. The Matrix is made and sustained all the time by mindedness of various types, embodied or not.

 

[EarlTheRed]

I haven't really thought too much about my magic system, but let's see what I have anyway.

1:Magic is drawn from the Spirit Realm, so only those connected to the Spirit Realm can use magic.
2:Spirits, of course, can use magic, but each one only has one power, such as illusions, or telepathy.
3:Mortals that can do magic, called Connected mortals, can do all sorts of different magic, but they have to use things that are more connected to the Spirit Realm, such as an ancient language that is connected to the Spirit Realm and familiars.
4:Familiars in my world are spirits that were summoned, willingly, by Connected mortals and have to work for them until they are released or the mortal, or they I guess, dies.
5:Only Spirits can go and bring things from the Mortal Realm to the Spirit Realm and only Connected Mortals can go and bring things from the Spirit Realm to the Mortal Realm.

 

[Dragonmaster_Dyne]

I will try to explain my world's magic system. Five sentences or less, huh? Here goes.

The world has natural energy that flows from within and all around, essentially mana at the core of its being. In order to focus the world's energy into spells and the like, the user will suffer fatigue since it requires significant energy to manifest the mana. Due to this fact, everyone isn't capable of using spells and incantations as freely as others or at all. Certain species have a higher stamina to wield spells such as dragons for example though overexertion is something to be cautious of regardless. People of different regions are more affiliated with certain elements such as ice, fire, or light magic but through intensive training users can wield several other elements.

 

[ThinkerX]

I don’t want the reader to understand it, and I don’t explain it, because the characters don’t understand it. But it is a system, and a nuanced one with specific rules for magic’s interaction with metals, compared to gems, compared to dead organic materials, compared to living organic materials...

It’s all elemental, my dear Watson. And every culture sees it a bit differently. That’s my 5 lines or less, anymore starts down the rabbit hole.

I’ve had readers say its a system based on prayer, but nope, that’s just one culture’s view... prayers is based on the power of the gods, and the power of the gods is based on the elements. And more than earth, wind, fire, water.

Eve of Snows?

 

[Akira444]

In my world, magic is the practice of manipulating the elements. There are seven elements in magic: five "physical elements, fire, water, earth, air and lightning, and two "abstract" elements, light and darkness. Every person has an affinity for one of the seven elements, and a mage's powers and abilities vary on their elemental affinity. Each of the seven elements has their own set of powers and abilities related to its philosophy or what it represents. For example, fire magic encompasses spells of fire, warmth, rage, passion, affection, destruction and transformation. Light magic encompasses psychic abilities, light, illusions and communications with spirits. Dark magic deals with darkness, space, gravity and curses. Elemental manipulation is the simplest forms of magic, and a mage can branch out to learn other skills related to their element.
Magic is fueled by mana, life energy found in all living organisms. One of the first lessons of magic is for a mage to control their mana. If they can't do that, then forget about using magic, because lack of mana control can cause one to lose control of their element and have their spells fizz out or blacklash. Magic can be learned by anyone, but like music and art, not everyone has the skill or talent for it, even with training. Some people are just better at it than others.
I designed this magic system to be a combination of what I love about fantasy: the simplicity of elemental magic systems, and my still strong love for traditional magic systems like in Harry Potter. It's diverse, but not too complicated or simple.

 

[Akira444]

Another magic system that I had been working on when I first started writing fantasy was of a more traditional sense. Magic was the practice of using energy to manipulate aspects of reality. The basic concepts behind magic were simple enough that a child could perform rudimentary magic with practice and training, but lack of training could result in one's magic backfiring or not working at all.

All magic in the world relied on mana, metaphysical energy present in all forms of life, from humans and animals to the environment itself. It is the source of one's magic, and magicians first start out learning how to control their mana before learning anything else. Anyone can learn magic, but only a few have the talent, skill and training to do magic on a practical level.

Most magic is grouped into seven branches called Disciplines (I know, I borrowed the idea from The Magicians, but I thought it was a good way to categorize magic in my universe). There are seven disciplines that modern magic is grouped under: Physical, Natural, Elemental, Knowledge, Healing, Illusion and Psychic. There are also numerous exceptions to this, such as Idol magic used by many religions, and spirit magic utilized by shamans. All mages use their own varieties of magic, but some are better suited to certain types of magic than others.

Spells are cast using hand gestures followed by spoken incantations, but the more powerful the spell, the more complicated the casting process is. Many powerful spells that can cause massive amounts of damage over a large area requires external elements to help direct the energy used to fuel the spell, such as wands, animal skins, powders and fluids. These high-level spells also need to be cast under favorable conditions, such as the time of day, environmental factors, the time of year, the location, and many other things, hence why spells of mass destruction are rarely used unless absolutely necessary.

Magic doesn't happen at random. All spells and techniques have a certain method to them that must be followed in order for the magic to be cast properly. Seals, barriers, runes, even necromancy have certain requirements and methods that a mage needs to adhere to, lest their magic doesn't work at all or misfires terribly. At the heart of all these types of magic is the intent, focus, and will, which empowers the magic and makes it work. It's because of this psychological factor that mages who have suffered mental trauma are unable to do magic.

Magic has numerous limitations, from how much energy a spell requires to be cast to the strain its extended use can put on a mage, but its most defining limitation is that magic is bound by the laws of nature. Though magic can change reality, it is also bound by reality. Attempting to break the laws of nature to perform magic such as resurrection or time travel will result in serious consequences that could leave lasting effects on the world or the caster himself.