Hannah is a speculative fiction writer who loves all things strange and surreal. Really sorry about the length but Im really happy with this magic system and am wondering what other people might think of it- and the people here seem like they know what theyre talking about and are enthusiastic to hear more. In Brandon Sandersons Mistborn Series, characters acquire magic by imbibing small amounts of metals and burning them once theyre consumed. Although they would have to learn it (Nullifying). But we know some things. Group C can use magic although they have to learn to use it and still have to have enough counsciousness to grab this feeling and utilize it. Kathy Ferguson At least not on earth, as far as we can tell. Real transformation would be something like lead to gold, influencing the molecules to give up their bonds and settle into a new configuration (gods, it has been ages since my last chemistry lesson). Many fantasy authors incorporate magic into their stories simply because fantastical abilities are a fun means of escapism. Hey! Magic that powerful would leave a large fingerprint on the world, and if you dont avoid ultra-powerful characters, it can also break your plot. Witches and wizards need to learn each spell individually and practice speaking their enchantments in exactly the right way in order to achieve the intended results. The system makes no sense so I cant possibly reason that theres a reversal of this! Magic can be taught and learned, but like the Arts or sciences, whether someone is good at magic or not depends on their inherent skill, talent, and dedication to their training. I think Ill go for having multiple types of thread that rule certain areas of magic. There are plenty of stories where power just keeps building and building, which eventually makes the characters at the beginning of the story weak in comparison even though they were seen as incredibly powerful at that time. I know it could use some work, but a lot of this came out in the very act of me writing it in this post! Trying to do anything that involves pushing against or even breaking natural law will require aid from outside forces. Random Magic Shop Generator. Ive been working on a magic system in my head, but would like help on a few things. Some ideas are more fleshed out than other, if thats saying much. It cant summon rain or make someone invisible, for instance. The Given is normally in for 3-7 year. However, while I do hope to write something that others enjoy, it is also for myself, and I like thinking about things and would not want to write something logically impossible. As just one example, she talks about choosing only one source of magic but I think its possible to have multiple sources and still have well-thought out and limited magic systems. There are pros and cons. Lastly is the effect both our Perceived World and the World of Energy have on each other. After all the Vibrations have finished their process, they Ripple and then whatever combination the Vibrations have will affect our world. Theyre part of a task force to reweave the knots. It has been decided that the human body is too impure of a vessel, being asynchronous with the rhythms of nature, to successfully accomplish this with sunlight. Thats a neat trick you used for replying even when the thread space has run out. For Interferers to use magic energy, they have to maintain physical contact with a Condit, and if they lose contact they have to use up their remaining energy quickly, as it will burst out of them randomly otherwise (in a few minutes). If you want to create a soft magic system, I have some good news: you dont need to come up with a set of systematic rules, or even an underlying logic. Korra did it but that was more so of Avatar state then an Airbending technique. We learn the limits of the hard magic systems in the series, such as Sympathy and Sygaldry, while we never learn the limits of Naming. Magic system generator the magic system's origin is (1d? To craft your framework, just answer these questions. Harry Potters magic is not irrational. In time cities arise around these safe harbors, and ever so slowly life begins again. Potion-making probably would make more sense, if there was more talk about the properties of the ingredients and what they do. All you need are the right ingredients, follow the right steps, and have the right mindset. Mana is the clean energy, without any attunement. Its way too easy for me to make everything very logical with a specific and predictable reaction to every action, which is why Im trying to challenge myself with a more whimsical(?) Otherwise you have near-god mages with no limits, who will hurt your story more than they will serve it. Or maybe growing up with it has shaped my perspective. Color: the type of color determines what kind of effect the Vibration will have on the Physical World. Thats not a rational system, because theres no understandable rules to it. Whatever you figure out, it should have an internal logic. I do hope that this comment will help you understand the angle Im coming from. (In this case, dispelling the Spiritual (Emotional) aspects associated with Fire in this case Anger/Passion. Robert Asprins MYTH novels actually do a good job limiting magic in a similar way. Could perhaps some or all of them be elements alongside the classic four? Now I think I covered everything, please comment, I accept anything you want to contribute, thank you. As a general rule, antagonists can use soft magic to solve problems, even though protagonists should only use hard magic. Dryads are usually depicted as tree spirits, or tree nymphs. Are there different types of magic, or did magic diversify over time? Mistakes as huge as that one turn people off reading your stories. Many possibilities). Further into the future two young men of solitude manage to unlock the greatest fighting potential by breaking mental barriers making them the strongest people to exist since Black and White but they have a fight on morality causing a great war. Maybe death magic is evil and life magic is good, and both fit the theme of controlling peoples lives. They already have enough problems with inter-house violence. In some cases, the answer might already be obvious given the world your story is set in. Magic is the practice of harnessing energy to manipulate aspects of reality. To build this logic, start by thinking about three things: the effects, sources, and costs of magic. Taking this further would logical lead to even more powerful techniques, using vacuums to burst eardrums, rupture lungs, and using air pressure to launch objects in ways similar to the people that build vacuum cannons that launch ping pong balls at supersonic speeds. All of nature is in motion and all of natures motion serves to restore its own balance. When it comes to telepathy have you considered that connecting to another mind might simply mean making changes in their neural system (which runs on small amounts of electricity created by the body)? Id love to hear more about what the magic can do. Or does it speed up molecules/atoms to heat up an object (if we have mostly realistic world)? In the Shadow and Bone series by Leigh Bardugo, all Grisha have to serve the King. So eventually, after a little Silly Putty work with words and concepts, I wound up with a magic system where believing something was considered a form of observing it with your mind in the state that you want to be so; that all that I read in the quantum physics book was true and intermeshed perfectly with the various descriptions of magic as being any system where a strong mind or majority of minds is able to influence reality through the strength of its being perfectly itself (e.g. Like it doesnt work on them or around them? In a world where the entire population can wield magic you might not have this conflict, not unless some are worse at wielding magic than others. And those explanations would make sense within the storys universe and would always be true. It could range from absolutely anything to a single effect such as moving objects or pausing time. WESTERN VOLCANO, based off of western dragons in design, very likely chance of getting weak to strong Combustial magic, very rare chance of getting another type of magic as well. From the other side, putting lot of fire energy into single point will produce real fire, moving air energies will make air blows. Fortunately it's not that hard to create a magic system, so this guide will be relatively short, but the amount of work you'll have to put into the creation of your magic will depend entirely on how detailed you want to get. In a superpower system, spells are unique to each individual. These small but significant changes in their functionality causes untold chaos; billions die and the climate is thrown off by the massive amount of metal particulates now in the upper atmosphere. Though I have some questions mainly concerning what allows some to manipulate this balance for a certain time? The other faction I mentioned that mainly used defensive magic was based on the fact that they get into more close quarters combat situations so would need magic that would keep them alive and in one piece, if they can help it. Making sense in case of magic means being constant. Weve seen them move and break rock, so it follows that they could make a hole through a mountain. However, you still need to put in the work to create a unique and compelling system that will serve the needs of your story. . Forms of magic include water magic, healing magic, potion making, and purification. Worldbuilding, Avatar, Magic Magic Systems Magic systems vary from colorful bears with tummy badges to ritual blood sacrifices. :). Or maybe have subtypes based on the seven deadly sins and heavenly virtues? also just a thought, you also could have mentioned the Eragon series which uses language as the limitation for casting, and physical energy for fueling spells. Basically the spirits want more knowledge of the human world, to experience it through human eyes. Furthermore, mages can form contracts with faeries (another race in my world) to harness their powers. Oreads are nymphs of Mountains. This would involve a preferred reference frame, breaking relativity (for a specific class of phenomena only) but disallowing time travel (I dont have anything against time travel stories; I just didnt feel like including it in my universe). If youd like I can send you a link and you can follow along as I figure stuff out (dont want to clog up your comments section). Are there any natural elements which are home to magical powers or are there any which could house magical powers? Another option is that there is a background magic field (see the TVTropes article) present everywhere that psychics draw on. There are many assumptions in this article, it only focused on a small, known part of magic. This article is very normative and I think its furthers clich. Sanderson recognized that the hard magic system is a fashion, just like soft magic was before and this article doesnt acknowledge this. ), Given how late it is, I hope this makes SOME sort of sense :-S. Thanks alot for your thoughts, it looks interesting! Magicians have no power of their own except through the spirits they command. Can a magic user be identified by their clothing, appearance, or some other distinguishing physical factor? This is where Im stuck for, to the moment. The Living Mother may hardly notice a tiny imbalance such as this. Offensive like elemental magic and short time manipulation magic etc. I understand your point. When youre deciding which type of magic system to use, ask yourself: Do you want magic to solve conflict for your protagonist (hard magic) or to create conflict for your protagonist (soft magic)? The Lord of the Rings is a low magic setting, but it is a high fantasy setting. Theres not much description sticking in my mind about the details of the contest, which tends to indicate to me how orders-of-magnitude outclassed of a mismatch Tolkien considered this one on the spiritual level he viewed as most important, since if theres one thing Tolkien excels at, its birlliant and poetic description of the details of those elements he viewed as important to convey in his work, which he approached with the carefully thought out professionalism he drew from his years in the academic world as professor and often chair of various university departments, most I believe relating to linguistics and literature, in particular of the Anglo-Saxon and Norse cultures (though the Welsh Mabinogion seems also to have influenced the development of Middle Earth and in fact some of the names, particularly of the Dwarves, were lifted directly from there check the Mabinogi of KILHWCH AND OLWEN; OR THE TWRCH TRWYTH, which basically explains the collection of the legendary royal treasures in terms of a pig hunt which in turn was demanded by the Bad-guy Ogre Father of the Heros Love Interest (basically because he was prophesied to, um, you know, DIE when his daughter was married, so he was REALLY interested in being as difficult a crusty old bastard as possible in terms of legendarily impossible tasks he was going to demand of his prospective son-in-law as the bride price. How does a user summon magic, and how does that magic manifest (i.e. If your mage has no limits to their powers, where would the conflict be? A damned if you do, damned if you dont scenario. Magicians summon magical spirits, like djinni, and command them to do their bidding. And the way they fight has to do in part what magic they use. A glove that gradually eats away at their flesh, or every spell they cast they have to pay a price to a demon, or something. Yes, first drafts are for your eyes only. If your loved one is dying from a gunshot wound, youve a lot less time to bargain. Every person who attempts this dies, without fail. You can also read his books to see his systems in action; personally I recommend Elantris. Thats cool. If youre at a loss, take a page from Brandon Sandersons Mistborn series. It wasnt meant to be a rational system (although the EU developed it into one and, no, Im not going into the midichlorian desaster), it was simple old-fashioned fairy-tale magic, the kind which does exactly what the heroes need it to do. Other beings and worlds exist on the other higher planes, essentially are in a higher state of Existence, or State of Being, determined by Spiritual Awareness, beyond what a mortal of our Plane can even fathom. Varren slumped into his chair, a curse leaving his lips as he had forgotten to blow out the torch in the hallway. You will always need to wing it there, because you introduce something which has no base in our worlds reality. Magic would be cheaply acquired from soil the plant cant grow in, and they wouldnt have to worry about getting sick from overeating it. People will accept that magic exists in a universe like ours, even though magic doesnt exist (as far as we know) in our universe. Hey Ryan R Im still plugging away at it (when Life lets me anyway! Im sure theres a deeper meaning in this. Entire body effects:: Heres how this system might break down: A long list of constraints will make it much easier to craft conflicts in your story. I would say on a molecular level. Earth and earthy minerals/materials (Since earth is firm, solid and tangible, and since man walks and sleeps on the ground, eats what the ground produces, and has a beneficial relationship with the earth, earth is easy to hold on to for longer periods of time, assuming you dont try to control too much of it at a time). the frequent earthquakes that break up the surface of the earth and reshape it releasing gasses from below. Thank you for commenting! These properties can give limitations but also make some stronger. The power can be anything reasonable, but behind its use is an action that they used to love. Or you could simply say that air is good for dodging, while earth is good for blocking. SO, questions: where is the magic energy coming from in the environment? Maybe Im just saying this because Id defend Harry Potter to the ends of the earth. Money? A system where the only users of this magic are at first the cultists until the Heroes learn it out of necessity and self-defence, and accepting the price that it separates them farther from the group consensus of reality which is the measure by which society defines sanity, and that in fact belonging to a species of animal as social as humans are means that diverging too far from your species in the way you perceive and experience reality carries certain risks and costs to it, more or less well understood to tradition and to the majority of systems of magic because what most of these theories agree on is that the more minds believe that something is So, the more difficult it is for one individual Mind to impose a different understanding than what the Many agree on EVEN IN THE PERSONAL REALITY the putative magician themselves inhabits, and CERTAINLY if they have to use the force of their personality, belief and magic to convince other individuals that what THE MAGICIAN believes as fact is in actual good and honest coin Really So in the shared consense reality they all co-inhabit by reason of their shared belief that they do in fact have at least some things in common in their universes, enough to make a Reality of and enforce/defend it by the power of your shared beliefs. Okay, now that thats our of the way Incantations are used, and using the magic is mentally draining. In the TV show Im writing, there are dryads, nymphs, and naiads, which are all parts of nature. Ask yourself how you can prevent the magic-wielders in your story from becoming too powerful, and what costs would post interesting challenges for your characters. Now the fall is a far more distant memory, and one less likely to be associated with mages, but the habit has become too ingrained to change. I suspect it might be possible; after all, there are plenty of mathematically worked out theories involving new particles and forces, but Ill have to do quite a bit of research. That can create an interesting dilemma if a person primarily driven by a particular emotion starts to lose it, how likely are they to remain committed to their goals? However, most people wont deviate from what they know to work to avoid wasting their time on a failed ritual or potentially hazardous consequences. Some consider it Her gift, a compensation for taking back the light they harnessed. Decide on its tone. (plants take the water from the ground and transpire it at night, so its balanced in some sense) If thats not the case(scientific understanding of the world), how do they explain a fire dying out or lightning? As the Wizard unravels the Great Mysteries, and gains understanding of the Universe, they unlock additional rune slots, allowing for more complex, refined spells. The elemental magic of Avatar is a great example of splitting the same form of magic into different types. Weft threads are what complete the fabric, what is woven through the warp to add the unique characteristics of the fabric (e. g., a 3/1 twill for denim or a satin weave for silk). Gestures could be used to move molecules (that would be how Avatar does it). They cant use magic at all. In my mind, rituals are the middle ground between divine magic and holy magic. Kristen now works as a creative wellness coach and offers new resources through her personal website at kristenkieffer.co. All students learn the same (unless its an elective) and can use the same types of magic. but humanity is creative and designs massive jammers that are able to disable the nanites that enter within X radius of them. A puddle could be vaporized at will, only to have the water redistributed at a later time, again at the will of the one controlling the exchange. Thanks! Once you've figured out who can wield it it's time to figure out how they can wield it. Ill give you a specific example of the cultural dependence I mentioned. You don't have to have an exact cost, like making the average human able to cast 20 fire balls before being tired, but having a cost relative to each other spell will help make sure your magic system is at least relatively realistic in the sense that there's a logic behind it. So there you have a source of energy for your telekinesis. Furthermore, nervous systems and brains have different structures and encodings, even merely among humans how could someone understand all the different people? What is the development of science, your description of kinetic or thermal energy makes me think the inhabitants have some scientific knowledge, but if thats the case why is it that they havent studied transpiration? Then use the answer to characterize all of your nature spirits. Once again, grab a sheet of paperthis time to brainstorm magical sources. You can have several sources of magic, but you need to bring them together in a way that makes sense at least in the novel. For example, if you need a magic source which is unlimited a good choice would be a magical power given by the gods or magical energies within the air. Nullify and boost it? Students learn all of the spells by memorization, because theres no logic underpinning how they operate. If you can't combine spells you'll have to work together perfectly, time spells one after the after and make sure you're not in each other's way. Most magic systems fall somewhere in the middle of the spectrum. Im not sure if this will help ScWall any, but I experimented with something very similar a number of years ago. The World we perceive and interact with all stems from the Energy, called Aether, and the Vibrations that come from it, all make up our world. Despite that, it can still be used to many different and wonderful effects, think like some of the stuff Aang does. For instance, if you have chaotic magic, dark magic, and lawful magic, your audience will wonder where the light magic is. Figured out the important themes and used them to craft something that fits more within the setting. You can make it mysterious just by hiding how it operates. However, it had similar things to our universe, stars and planets and lifeforms that could look somewhat like ours, so it needed to follow most of them, at least, the ones that allowed for these things. Theres a reason why RPGs with team-based fight systems (I use those when playing around with the RPG Maker myself) are often based around the Tank/Damage Dealer/Buffer principle. So if you think multiple types would be cool, go for it, if you want to keep it simple, dont. Otherwise, how can the effect of the knot be decided? The key traits of a soft magic system are outlined in the graphic below. This generator gives you names for their various alliances, covens, and clubs. Energy-based magic is easy to use because it comes with limitations. Or make your telepath one who can only read minds when touching someone else (Vulcans from Star Trek work telepathy that way). With the exception of the Avatar, people who cast magic are only attuned to one of the four main elements. I transfer energy into the boulder or to the air around it to move that boulder. Though a country can have a large number of a certain Primal (such as the Sun or Earth Primals) that doesnt mean that people of other Primals cannot be born in that area. After giving it some thought, I think the spirits will take memories as payment. Others get a bit more pleasing mutations; sensory enhancements, enhanced reflexes, strength, bone density, accelerated healing. Oh! When the spell is done, the deactivated knots simply float around, unattended. My train of thought was a bit of a runaway train. This was implemented to further refine (/complicate?) The willpower to make changes, no matter what kind of powers or tools are needed in addition. Or just feel ridiculous. In real life, cold is not a thing but just the absence of heat, and ice and fire dont seem to be fundamental opposites. Basically, the magic in my world all comes from spirits, which exist in a dimension parallel to our own. Apoglies if it comes off as confusing, Im not very good at conveying my thoughts and ideas, will explain in greater detail later. So, for instance, lets say you decide water spirits are more powerful than plant spirits because their aspect is more basic and elemental, whereas plants are more complex organisms that feed off of water. My major problem is that the subtypes dont connect with the main types of magic (demonic and angelic). Both Harry Potter and Avatar: The Last Airbender are hard magic systems, because they explain magic and its rules to the audience. Spell description generator. This is only my second serious piece of writing, so its really encouraging to hear stuff like that from someone like you. I definitely have more work to do. Maybe something with an eclipse? I think natural disaster can be explained in this world as terrifying manifestation of the imbalances in nature, things that the Mother wants to avoid by seeking to restore balance always. Its the same way you need to build your world logical for a novel. External energy could work; however, instantaneously moving energy from one place to another causes problems. In my world, priests arent like Catholic priests and all that. Vampires are electromagnetic, which is why they are hurt by sunlight (photoelectric effects), are solid but turn to dust when killed (they actually are dust, and their solid form is a magnetic shell), have superstrength (they can easily lift metal objects, and can use opposing magnetic forces to move their own body quite forcefully). mental enhancements, the nanites acting as auxiliary brains.
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