2WayParadox
Sage
It's long, I know. I tried to include clarifying examples and such,so things ran a little long.
I've seen several threads where people explain their magic system and other, nice people comment on the system and give their thoughts. Putting the entire system into a somewhat brief description seems worthwile in itself. I also thought this would be fun for others who like to think about magic, so here goes:
The very basics of the Reality I'm working in are as follows: you have a Timeless dimension, similar to Plato's ideal dimension, and you have Reality which consists of Energy and Matter. When I say energy, it's fine to understand it in a more or less scientific way. It can be stored and it is used to do work. Matter is condensed energy. The main source of Energy is the Deep Earth, (crystals are charged using the heat that wells up in vulcanoes and hot water sources). Although the radiation of the sun and all the movements it causes in the atmosphere could be used by a resourceful person.
There is nothing 'magical', each being or thing in existence is made up of a blend of matter and energy. Everything that can exist, has its blueprint in the Timeless, however, nothing in the Timeless would come into existence without some force setting things in motion in Reality. This is metaphysical speak, but in essence it is quite simple in my world: a potter who makes a pot realizes the pot-blueprint that is present in the Timeless, a spellcaster who casts a spell also realizes a blueprint. The amounts of energy involved are different, but the principle is identical.
Now, to introduce the element that makes things interesting for me: complexity. Simple magic can be done by anybody who has the materials, for example: energy is stored in crystals, using one of these as a grenade can be done by anybody if they're provided with a detonation spell/diagram that destabilizes the crystal. For more complex magic, knowledge is necessary. Why? Because the use of energy needs to be guided in a way that sufficiently corresponds to a blueprint in the Timeless. The strongest magics need extraordinary amounts of stored energy, released in a way that is bound by a complex structure in order to work. Even then, a lack of understanding or energy can cause the spell to fail or explode.
Why do I mention understanding as a key factor? Spell diagrams, chants etc. are fundamentally limited in the amount of information they can reflect. In my magic system, they are merely memory tools. Anything can be used. Experienced magicians can internalize spells and activate them with simple words or symbols, if they have a sufficiently strong energy supply at hand. The more complex parts of the spell are stored in the human brain, where unconscious calculations etc. are performed. This also means that someone with brain damage cannot perform magic.
Humans can use magic because they can understand complex things, but the absolute need for energy is a severe limiting factor. That's where Magi come into play. Magi are human beings that have been submitted to a ritual that forces huge amounts of energy into their bodies, thereby changing the ratio of energy and matter inside of them. See them as human shaped batteries with superior just about everything. Any spellcaster can use the energy in his own body to fuel a spell, but the risks are huge. Magi on the other have a much, much larger reservoir of energy that they can more or less subconsciously access.
Of course, the process of becoming a magi destroys the psyche of many people. Those who go through it are changed, only the core elements of their personalities are saved. Mental fortitude is an absolute necessity to keep their being from disassembling. The creation of magi was forbidden, because they were used as the ultimate tool to perform spells. Massive amounts of energy and more importantly information could be stored in a magi, who was then sacrificed to for example create an intelligent dragon from a pile of materials that can store energy.
Now there are only some magi left, they take an apprentice and turn them into a magi that can take over their knowledge. See it as backing up a hard drive.
Thinking of magic as the wielding of energy also made me want to include something important. Sloppy magic is magic with lots of wasted energy, this energy goes astray and hits the magician, leading to disruptions in his body's make up. The accumulation of these things or a sudden high dosage can lead to 'magician's disease', something akin to cancer.
There are still more details and frankly, I haven't thought of many spells yet because I'm still refining the basics, but what I have written down here shows a lot of key features in my system. The need for stored energy, the need for knowledge, the fear for Magi, the monopolization of knowledge and energy resources, the attitude of soldiers towards magicians, their use on the battlefield,... Many things flow from what I described and I can't say I've discovered all of it.
So please, if some parts of this basic explanation are unclear, tell me. It's important that it's solid.
My thanks,
2WayParadox
I've seen several threads where people explain their magic system and other, nice people comment on the system and give their thoughts. Putting the entire system into a somewhat brief description seems worthwile in itself. I also thought this would be fun for others who like to think about magic, so here goes:
The very basics of the Reality I'm working in are as follows: you have a Timeless dimension, similar to Plato's ideal dimension, and you have Reality which consists of Energy and Matter. When I say energy, it's fine to understand it in a more or less scientific way. It can be stored and it is used to do work. Matter is condensed energy. The main source of Energy is the Deep Earth, (crystals are charged using the heat that wells up in vulcanoes and hot water sources). Although the radiation of the sun and all the movements it causes in the atmosphere could be used by a resourceful person.
There is nothing 'magical', each being or thing in existence is made up of a blend of matter and energy. Everything that can exist, has its blueprint in the Timeless, however, nothing in the Timeless would come into existence without some force setting things in motion in Reality. This is metaphysical speak, but in essence it is quite simple in my world: a potter who makes a pot realizes the pot-blueprint that is present in the Timeless, a spellcaster who casts a spell also realizes a blueprint. The amounts of energy involved are different, but the principle is identical.
Now, to introduce the element that makes things interesting for me: complexity. Simple magic can be done by anybody who has the materials, for example: energy is stored in crystals, using one of these as a grenade can be done by anybody if they're provided with a detonation spell/diagram that destabilizes the crystal. For more complex magic, knowledge is necessary. Why? Because the use of energy needs to be guided in a way that sufficiently corresponds to a blueprint in the Timeless. The strongest magics need extraordinary amounts of stored energy, released in a way that is bound by a complex structure in order to work. Even then, a lack of understanding or energy can cause the spell to fail or explode.
Why do I mention understanding as a key factor? Spell diagrams, chants etc. are fundamentally limited in the amount of information they can reflect. In my magic system, they are merely memory tools. Anything can be used. Experienced magicians can internalize spells and activate them with simple words or symbols, if they have a sufficiently strong energy supply at hand. The more complex parts of the spell are stored in the human brain, where unconscious calculations etc. are performed. This also means that someone with brain damage cannot perform magic.
Humans can use magic because they can understand complex things, but the absolute need for energy is a severe limiting factor. That's where Magi come into play. Magi are human beings that have been submitted to a ritual that forces huge amounts of energy into their bodies, thereby changing the ratio of energy and matter inside of them. See them as human shaped batteries with superior just about everything. Any spellcaster can use the energy in his own body to fuel a spell, but the risks are huge. Magi on the other have a much, much larger reservoir of energy that they can more or less subconsciously access.
Of course, the process of becoming a magi destroys the psyche of many people. Those who go through it are changed, only the core elements of their personalities are saved. Mental fortitude is an absolute necessity to keep their being from disassembling. The creation of magi was forbidden, because they were used as the ultimate tool to perform spells. Massive amounts of energy and more importantly information could be stored in a magi, who was then sacrificed to for example create an intelligent dragon from a pile of materials that can store energy.
Now there are only some magi left, they take an apprentice and turn them into a magi that can take over their knowledge. See it as backing up a hard drive.
Thinking of magic as the wielding of energy also made me want to include something important. Sloppy magic is magic with lots of wasted energy, this energy goes astray and hits the magician, leading to disruptions in his body's make up. The accumulation of these things or a sudden high dosage can lead to 'magician's disease', something akin to cancer.
There are still more details and frankly, I haven't thought of many spells yet because I'm still refining the basics, but what I have written down here shows a lot of key features in my system. The need for stored energy, the need for knowledge, the fear for Magi, the monopolization of knowledge and energy resources, the attitude of soldiers towards magicians, their use on the battlefield,... Many things flow from what I described and I can't say I've discovered all of it.
So please, if some parts of this basic explanation are unclear, tell me. It's important that it's solid.
My thanks,
2WayParadox
Inkling
