AcolyteCleaned this up alot. I am happy with it but I would just like to know peoples thoughts. I feel like I could make a lot of fun societal ramifications for all of this. But at the moment just looking for thoughts on the system iin a vaccume.
The Clockwork Plane, a sub dimension created by the Machine God, has the Leximecanium. A structure upon which the Reef’s reflections all tools and machines can be found. It is here that the deeper meaning of runes can be found and intrinsically understood. Fundamentally Runes only work because their meanings are being translated through the Leximecanum. It is perhaps the fastest way to learn, but the most dangerous, requiring one to brave either the Clockwork Expanse or the Reef in order to get to the Clockwork Plane, then venture the dangers of the Clockwork Plane itself. This magic was created to be given to a machine race of this Machine Gods creation. However humans accidentally obtained it, leading to unintended results.
Upon obtaining magic a human is metaphysically changed. Through special augmentation stations a person can have their soul ocean converted into an “engine” responsible for taking latent energy from the Reef and converting it into a more physical energy that takes the form of a force. The second way is that once someone has an Engine there is a chance that they pass down this trait.
When using an engine a person will find themselves a little “better” than your average person. Seeing small boosts in strength, speed, cognitive ability. Its not much, and a trained or simply lucky regular person could still overcome these differences. As the mage is pulling this energy from an essentially endless source, a mage could hypothetically sustain their magic indefinitely. However like any machine, there is always a byproduct. In this case a mage will begin to generate heat while performing magic. While obtaining an engine does increase one's heat tolerance and resistance, it is still possible to fry oneself by using too much.
Once a user has an Engine they can find other Stations in the Clockworks that will bestow them with Gears, or the metaphysical representations of machines, parts, or tools. These manifest themselves as ethereal gears, starting at the square of someone's back and branching outward the more gears that are obtained.
First Gear: The first gear defines the kind of force the mage will have control over. Whatever this force is, it's tactile, meaning they can only use their abilities on things they are touching. This control is rough and unrefined. The user also develops a sixth sense with their given force. A gravity mage to sense mass etc.
Second-Fifth Gear- Every Gear afterward adds definition and refinement to the power. Each Gear is associated with a kind of tool or piece of a machine. This could be the Lens, Shovel, or Resonator. A mage then gains the knowledge of the rune that the machine or part would produce. A Lens gear for example, the purpose of a lens is to focus or magnify. Thus the mage learns the runes for focus and magnification.
On to runes them selves, there are three kinds. Function, Form and Meta. Function runes, sometimes referred to as Greater Runes, inform the action the magic is going to take. Form Runes are incredibly hard to obtain and cannot be taught. In the absence of one the function of an item is inferred by how the item would work normally without runes. Form Runes or Lesser Runes are all the things direction the Function Rune. They are parameters for the effect. These runes can be obtained, but also taught. Meta Runes are exceedingly rare and are most often tied to the concept of a thing. For example a Meta Rune of focus, rather than focus energy or light, refers to the concept of focus. A mage utilizing this may get unnatural mental focus as a result.
As a mage learns new runes they must meditate on its meanings and visualize its symbol inscribed upon one of their gears. As the mage learns the rune and becomes closer to it, it becomes more defined upon their gear. When they manifest their gears it can be seen. To a regularly individual a learned mages gear looks like a complex tapestry of alien symbols.
Due to all this most mages carry on them a variety of enchanted items, or things inscribed with runes to create certain effects. Due to the limitations of knowledge most mages join Conclaves, a group of mages that band together with a common purpose to share runic knowledge that helps in the pursuit of those purposes. In these Conclaves favors to inscribe or maintain ones known runes as used as a form of currency.
Lets say for example we want a bell, that when rung, finds hidden passages. First we inscribe a light or illuminate rune onto the bell. Now when the bell executes its function, to ring, it will also trigger the
Illuminate Rune causing it to light up. Not super useful on its own but let's combine that with a target, material, shape, and limitation. If we define our target as open space, material is air, the shape of our light is a sphere, and the limitation of this effect is the room we are in. Now when ringing the bell it will shoot orbs of light at any way out of the room as long as that way out could be reached by the sound of the bell. This would mark the hallway you came in. But wait, it also is shooting an orb of light at a blank wall, perhaps denoting the fact there is a passage behind it.
Runes must create some sort of geometric shape. Lets look at another example.
As we see here the Second image is using rune on a Buster Gauntlet. But its not very symmetrical. A dam is placed between sphere and amplify to prevent energy from flowing in that direction, otherwise the sphere would become to large. The first image makes the rune much more balanced in terms of flow.
Repeating rune types will amplify its effect, but this boost will never be as large as using the amplification rune itself. So with the first set up we do loose some thrust power as the amplification itself is being amplified. But the rune array is much more balanced meaning misfires are much less likely to happen, the wielder will be pouring less energy into the rune for the same effect, and the runes will warp less from constant use.
Runes always infer from the original use of the item. So the above rune works better on a gauntlet if one is punching with it, Unless a Meta- Trigger rune is attached allowing the use of an item as if it was being use for its intended purpose even if it is not.
Finally the mechs themselves. As this magic was initially meant to be inherited by the denizens of the Clockwork Expanse, a similar machine form is needed to use magic. As such a human mage piloting a mech forgoes the limitation of tactile casting and can now cast their magic at range. Their other gears determining how that power can be used. To put this to application, a gravity mage with one gear can increase or decrease or change direction of gravity affecting the things they touch. A lens is a part of a machine meant to focus or magnify light. In this case getting a lens gear would allows the user to focus or magnify gravity with greater control. In a mech with only their first gear they could roughly define an area where the lens gear would allow more precise control. Then they could magnify the effect, greatly increasing gravity.
An earthmover gear would give the user very strong control over gravity, when its the gravity of pieces of earth, combined with the lens gear they could focus on the chunk of earth they have in their gravitational grasp, then crush the earth into a shape. For example they could lift a boulder, reverse gravity harshley in several places to compress the boulder into a spear shape, then reorient its gravity and send it “falling” at an opponent.
The Clockwork Plane, a sub dimension created by the Machine God, has the Leximecanium. A structure upon which the Reef’s reflections all tools and machines can be found. It is here that the deeper meaning of runes can be found and intrinsically understood. Fundamentally Runes only work because their meanings are being translated through the Leximecanum. It is perhaps the fastest way to learn, but the most dangerous, requiring one to brave either the Clockwork Expanse or the Reef in order to get to the Clockwork Plane, then venture the dangers of the Clockwork Plane itself. This magic was created to be given to a machine race of this Machine Gods creation. However humans accidentally obtained it, leading to unintended results.
Upon obtaining magic a human is metaphysically changed. Through special augmentation stations a person can have their soul ocean converted into an “engine” responsible for taking latent energy from the Reef and converting it into a more physical energy that takes the form of a force. The second way is that once someone has an Engine there is a chance that they pass down this trait.
When using an engine a person will find themselves a little “better” than your average person. Seeing small boosts in strength, speed, cognitive ability. Its not much, and a trained or simply lucky regular person could still overcome these differences. As the mage is pulling this energy from an essentially endless source, a mage could hypothetically sustain their magic indefinitely. However like any machine, there is always a byproduct. In this case a mage will begin to generate heat while performing magic. While obtaining an engine does increase one's heat tolerance and resistance, it is still possible to fry oneself by using too much.
Once a user has an Engine they can find other Stations in the Clockworks that will bestow them with Gears, or the metaphysical representations of machines, parts, or tools. These manifest themselves as ethereal gears, starting at the square of someone's back and branching outward the more gears that are obtained.
First Gear: The first gear defines the kind of force the mage will have control over. Whatever this force is, it's tactile, meaning they can only use their abilities on things they are touching. This control is rough and unrefined. The user also develops a sixth sense with their given force. A gravity mage to sense mass etc.
Second-Fifth Gear- Every Gear afterward adds definition and refinement to the power. Each Gear is associated with a kind of tool or piece of a machine. This could be the Lens, Shovel, or Resonator. A mage then gains the knowledge of the rune that the machine or part would produce. A Lens gear for example, the purpose of a lens is to focus or magnify. Thus the mage learns the runes for focus and magnification.
On to runes them selves, there are three kinds. Function, Form and Meta. Function runes, sometimes referred to as Greater Runes, inform the action the magic is going to take. Form Runes are incredibly hard to obtain and cannot be taught. In the absence of one the function of an item is inferred by how the item would work normally without runes. Form Runes or Lesser Runes are all the things direction the Function Rune. They are parameters for the effect. These runes can be obtained, but also taught. Meta Runes are exceedingly rare and are most often tied to the concept of a thing. For example a Meta Rune of focus, rather than focus energy or light, refers to the concept of focus. A mage utilizing this may get unnatural mental focus as a result.
As a mage learns new runes they must meditate on its meanings and visualize its symbol inscribed upon one of their gears. As the mage learns the rune and becomes closer to it, it becomes more defined upon their gear. When they manifest their gears it can be seen. To a regularly individual a learned mages gear looks like a complex tapestry of alien symbols.
Due to all this most mages carry on them a variety of enchanted items, or things inscribed with runes to create certain effects. Due to the limitations of knowledge most mages join Conclaves, a group of mages that band together with a common purpose to share runic knowledge that helps in the pursuit of those purposes. In these Conclaves favors to inscribe or maintain ones known runes as used as a form of currency.
Lets say for example we want a bell, that when rung, finds hidden passages. First we inscribe a light or illuminate rune onto the bell. Now when the bell executes its function, to ring, it will also trigger the
Illuminate Rune causing it to light up. Not super useful on its own but let's combine that with a target, material, shape, and limitation. If we define our target as open space, material is air, the shape of our light is a sphere, and the limitation of this effect is the room we are in. Now when ringing the bell it will shoot orbs of light at any way out of the room as long as that way out could be reached by the sound of the bell. This would mark the hallway you came in. But wait, it also is shooting an orb of light at a blank wall, perhaps denoting the fact there is a passage behind it.
Runes must create some sort of geometric shape. Lets look at another example.
As we see here the Second image is using rune on a Buster Gauntlet. But its not very symmetrical. A dam is placed between sphere and amplify to prevent energy from flowing in that direction, otherwise the sphere would become to large. The first image makes the rune much more balanced in terms of flow.
Repeating rune types will amplify its effect, but this boost will never be as large as using the amplification rune itself. So with the first set up we do loose some thrust power as the amplification itself is being amplified. But the rune array is much more balanced meaning misfires are much less likely to happen, the wielder will be pouring less energy into the rune for the same effect, and the runes will warp less from constant use.
Runes always infer from the original use of the item. So the above rune works better on a gauntlet if one is punching with it, Unless a Meta- Trigger rune is attached allowing the use of an item as if it was being use for its intended purpose even if it is not.
Finally the mechs themselves. As this magic was initially meant to be inherited by the denizens of the Clockwork Expanse, a similar machine form is needed to use magic. As such a human mage piloting a mech forgoes the limitation of tactile casting and can now cast their magic at range. Their other gears determining how that power can be used. To put this to application, a gravity mage with one gear can increase or decrease or change direction of gravity affecting the things they touch. A lens is a part of a machine meant to focus or magnify light. In this case getting a lens gear would allows the user to focus or magnify gravity with greater control. In a mech with only their first gear they could roughly define an area where the lens gear would allow more precise control. Then they could magnify the effect, greatly increasing gravity.
An earthmover gear would give the user very strong control over gravity, when its the gravity of pieces of earth, combined with the lens gear they could focus on the chunk of earth they have in their gravitational grasp, then crush the earth into a shape. For example they could lift a boulder, reverse gravity harshley in several places to compress the boulder into a spear shape, then reorient its gravity and send it “falling” at an opponent.
Myth Weaver
