You would paint specific patterns in the air in front of you while at the same time your mind involuntarily forces the molecules to obey and move into a new pattern, speed up, spread out (going for solid to liquid or liquid to gas), heat up (going from any other state to plasma). Just remember that great ideas are only the start, solid implementation has to follow, and learning that takes a lot of time and practice. Hard magic systems feature a strict set of parameters explained within the story to ensure that readers understand what characters fantastical powers can and cannot do. As Sanderson explains, magic primarily exists to create conflict in fiction. 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. So, in my story world theres a plague spreading among the populace known as the Grey Death (somewhat analogous to the Bubonic Plague). So when it comes to babies, you probably want to pick just one.. And the Aether is born from our Thoughts and Actions, more specifically, our Souls. Having the users of this power (some of whom actually are human) be its creators wouldnt really work, as I was going with a technology level around modern times for my main setting and this would require extremely advanced technology. This was, oh, maybe sixth on the list of fourteen or fifteen legendary impossibilities he demanded, all in the essentially same format. But creating a consistent system that allowed for both these laws and my magical exceptions without, say, having the laws of physics change so much that there are no stable structures, or allowing for time travel, was difficult. If I can find a way to make it work, it would be cool if sound can be harnessed and redistributed as well. When I say the tips may not be universal, Im referring especially to how you state that rational magic is based on a single, coherent metaphysical framework and describe things such as categories and symmetricality. You could also INCREASE existing energy in an object (Eg- Can make a Moving ball move faster) Or you could DECREASE existing energy in an object (Eg- Can make a Moving ball slow down and even stop & become completely static). The value of the memory is determined by how much it affects the mage, and whether its repeatable or replaceable after the original is given up. As this energy is formless and intangible, it is naturally attracted to your body and stored there. You make good points about the gap between different kinds of magic. You could just as well do the Magic The Gathering approach and use stuff like decay or nature as base for the magic (which would give you white magic based on life/nature and black magic based on death/decay). Since the main character of the series starts as a member of a gang of thieves, the choice of theme is very appropriate. This was long enough ago to be remembered as an advanced society falling, but its manner of advancement being conflated with the magic that exists now, and most specific knowledge of it lost. In the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, wand magic is like language. Because the setting is divided into nations that correspond with the elements, the Avatar is the only person who symbolically belongs to all the nations. LEARNED: obtain magic through studying. Then the fight between Voldemort and Dumbledore (both of which also have that trait) would be a glance into the future of Harry himself. The most well known curse is the Demons Mark. If youre doing the system well, you dont need to break a rule for the plot or you can make it shine through beforehand that under specific circumstances rules can be broken (or at any rate bent very far). I just replied to your last post, but about the different cultures have different ideas of what makes sense, the point about a rational system is that it must make sense to the reader. A magical source is where the magic comes from. mental enhancements, the nanites acting as auxiliary brains. Professor of Political Theory in Star Trek. Used by the guy who commands sand zombies or something? When an Interferer discovered their ability to pull power from a Conduit and affect the world, they were shunned for interfering. Note that this does NOT prove energy is conserved (at least I dont think so), it means that if energy is not conserved, the laws of physics must change over time this applies even if magic is involved. Now we go back to the Beginning. donjon; Fantasy World Generator I wanted to try my hand at creating a really fleshed out magic system for fun, and never planned on making a story or doing anything with it. Also, I read that chemical changes play an important role, and those probably cant be detected externally at all. I agree that a spell to dodge doesnt make much sense on first glance, but Ive also just realized that thats only true if we assume that the hostile spell were interested in dodging in the first place were as part of the basic nature of magical reality totally incapable of moving any faster than a theoretical average apprentice level user of magic can move without having recourse to their wizardry. I like your idea about the gods randomly interacting with the world. ^_^. Hard magic is one where the audience knows about the rules of magic, so it seems to me that your mention of convey[ing] the rules of your system might actually be referring to hard magic. One thing to keep in mind is how much power somebody can gain. A waterbender cant control air or earth or fire. Awesome, thanks! Every person who attempts this dies, without fail. When picking the powers and spells for your magic system you'll have to keep in mind a few things. Fantasy worldbuilding Magic systems Scifi worldbuilding Make Full-Time Passive Income From Book Sales FREE Creative Writer Class: How to Write & Publish a Fiction Book Taught by a Bestselling Author with YEARS of experience doing JUST THIS! A cunning ex-adventurer named Wlfrilda seeks a company of adventurers to explore the Pikawas Jungle. Is it connected to religion or religions of your world (since something based on the principle of good and bad [if you have to keep that, use evil instead of bad] should have a connection to religion)? World-Building, Prepare to Write, Revising for Publishing, As bestselling author Brandon Sanderson explains. Some will desire fresh milk, and it will not be possible to have fresh milk for all, unless we have the bottles of Rhinnon Rhin Barnawd, wherein no liquor ever turns sour. The Mages dont rule, but merely maintain a beneficial relationship with those that do, but the Empires form of transportation (and thus commerce) is almost entirely dependent upon magical meansSo what does the Imperium bring to the party? It is the rarest of the Primals to be connected to. Though there is an international standard for magic spells, certain cultures practice magic in different ways pertaining to either their culture, beliefs or lifestyles. The tricky thing about powering magic with emotions is that it generally leads to magics power being as fickle and arbitrary as emotions, which often makes problems and solutions stemming from its use feel arbitrary. This is a pretty nice article, and it has inspired me to think more about the magic systems I create. Then you would have to decide whether someone can use all elements that way or just one (as everyone safe for the Avatar in the series). 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). that were made by the gods. For now, Im thinking that the energy will be a 3D field spreaded around (basically, just a math function). This version of my storys magic system is like a combination of magic in the Marvel movies and in The Magicians. Do you think the metaphor works when stretched so far? . An entire category of limitations would no longer apply to them. 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). Ill be checking this site for updates everyday, so thank you in advance of letting me share my crazy idea with you all. Basically the spirits want more knowledge of the human world, to experience it through human eyes. Of course, its possible. If youd like additional guidance as you build your storys magic system and other facets of your fictional world, then be sure to check out World-Building Warrior, a workbook that will walk you through the world-building process step by step. Now the magic is tied directly to ones own life force, the more magic they use the weaker their magic becomes and the weaker they become, with rest their strength will come back but their magic will not and if they run out means they used up their entire life force so they die and the only known way to regain all their magic and life force is to take the life of another completely consuming their victims life force\magic. There is a set science about how magical techniques are performed, and knowing about the what and the how behind these techniques is important. Combustial (fire) It could make for some interesting stories devout priests who get power from their deities versus irreligious wizards who use their own will as magic, bio-mages who draw upon the weak but flexible power of living organisms versus geo-mages who draw upon the mighty yet unsubtle power of the land itself, Incidentally, all examples you have given, Cay Reet, are about how (most) magic-users cannot use all types of magic; do you think that a system in which magic-users could learn all possible magic (at least theoretically) but what is possible for magic in total is strictly limited could work? And finally, I was thinking about a story involving space travel, so FTL would be convenient to explain how the aliens managed to meet each other in a relatively short amount of time. 2015 2022 Kristen Kieffer | All rights reserved. People will accept that magic exists in a universe like ours, even though magic doesnt exist (as far as we know) in our universe. If they are limited, its usually not by some universal magical law, but rather a handicap in their source of power. Both have always existed since the beginning of time and revolve around each other in order to exist. Or just feel ridiculous. The Lord of the Rings is a low magic setting, but it is a high fantasy setting. So I would greatly appreciate some constructive feedback back. Spellcasters cant blow up planets, because obviously that would take too much energy. I think your point is that in a story, there needs to be limits to magic, which I agree with. Sophie, if youre having trouble with elements heres a few ideas but no need to add them. The Given is normally in for 3-7 year. I would take a step back from good and bad, first of all. Being a priest (a magic user in service to their village/town) is a full time job; but sometimes you need a hunter, not a demon slayer. Kathy Ferguson When a person deliberately causes an imbalance that person becomes the cork plugging up the hole, so to speak. Souls allow us to exist as Individuals, separate from the Aether. Harry Potters magic is not irrational. You can either post it here or use the contact page. Over time more Blacks appeared and White got lonely so they split their body into seven colours. First off, Id like to say that your idea is amazing! In The Last Airbender storyline, Waterbending, Firebending, and Earthbending all have elite applications that not all benders can achieve, while air doesnt. Writing is given magical properties in many books, movies, and shows but the paper itself is rarely imbued with power. It flows through all life and can be controlled by any sentient object. (Arguably, before the development of modern science, many people had similar attitudes towards technology! The key traits of a hard magic system are outlined in the graphic below. Want an offline version of this generator with editing, printing and saving? And i aint going to be touching it ever again, so if you or anyone else finds some sort of use from it, have fun. Lets delve further into this topic together. 2023 Mythcreants LLC, all articles, art, recordings, and stories are the copyright of their respective authors. Substances like these make it easy to put limits on the amount of magic used just limit the substance. Magicians train to control different aspects of reality, but a magician is also constrained to the limits of reality. If youre curious about the source Nonhumans might think in ways that make little sense to humans. He was inspired with the observation that this is the Living Mother who is removing water and redistributing it to restore a balance. And I did read the other piece about magic but my system sounded alot simpler in head head so I didnt think it applied as much. 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. There are two types of people in this world, Conduits and Interferers (though Inteferers prefer to be called Whisperers). That source has to be available to a spellcaster, and that spellcaster needs to direct it to accomplish specific goals. There are medieval books detailing how to pluck a mandrake from the ground because it was thought that they screamed when unearthed and could kill everyone who heard the scream. Its origin is with the creation of all life itself and the first humans: Black and White. Technically, you could link influencing the elements (moving earth to create a wall for instance) to the way Avatar handles it. You might want to read them. My magic system is based on the Netflix show, The Dragon Prince, because I really like how dynamic and diverse its magic system is. Because people tend to be put off when your story changes rules in the middle. You will see through their eyes, feel what they feel (emotionally and physically), hear their thoughts, and even have their memories. But because of Saurons _spiritual_ and _moral_ corruption, ADDED to the fact that dis werent no ordinary Elfk, Luthien was able not only to win handily but to pretty seriously humiliate Sauron before his boss (no other than Morgoth, the Satan figure in Tolkiens universe, Old Scratch himself) by the pathetic ease by which she shelled him? Paint can be metaphysical meaning that 0.0005% of the entire population can dabble in spirits though most choose not to. If youre at a loss, take a page from Brandon Sandersons Mistborn series. Nevertheless, you will always introduce something which, as far as we know, does not exist in reality. Note that most, if not all, superpowers in this generator will belong . For example my magic is about energy- but you cant control energy like Motion in the traditional telokinies way (you think & point and it moves anywhere)- instead you can only increase the speed of a moving object or decrease its speed (to a full stop if your skilled enough) or create movement in a static object (only in one direction as if you hit it- and only that single inital pow of motion), So if youd like your magic to be one of the driving forces in the conflict of your story then itll be great to know what you can and cant do with it and understand if there are any limitation to the magic which may make it more rememberable, interesting and unique- plus create a challange for your protagonist who has to use their wits to work around the limitation and solve a problem. None of those energies could be stored by characters themselves, so they can only use energies from environment. For Time and Space, Keeper will be the name. Is it dark and scary? The differences come into play when various factions go to war. Not that hard to extrapolate. If youre working with leylines and the fabric of reality you should model the whole earth as a living thing(as it is)but not necessarily conscious, although that could add tension and the leylines and threads could be like vains in an interconnected system that gets clogged from the knots relating to all manner of natural and unnatural disasters/phenomenon and just like any living thing this system would naturally resemble a circulatory/lymphatic system with currents and nodes to regulate and cleanse said currents. the frequent earthquakes that break up the surface of the earth and reshape it releasing gasses from below. The old magic is, of course, pretty coincidental, and used in specific ways that drive the plot. The thread is being used up at such a rate that the next generation may have none at all. Some kind of mana system (where mana is the energy the mage uses to cast spells) will make the system rational in that case, because it will give natural limits a mage can only cast as long as they have mana left and they need to regain it afterwards (through rest, rituals, or whatever pleases you). Prime / Mana worked a little differently, in that each rune slot had a certain number of Mana-Points that could be applied, up to a value equal to the Players skill/level. Can ones magical abilities be stolen or suppressed through fantastical or physical means? Gandalf didnt use his powers to destroy the One Ring, so readers didnt need to know how his magic worked to find the ending of The Lord of the Rings to be believable. Someone could gain double the magic in half the time. Perhaps, the basic power influenced by the caster is stronger at a certain time of the month (new moon or full moon for instance) or of the day (noon, midnight, sundown, sunrise). Lich could do for those who contain the energy, as liches go on living long after they should be gone, so essentially containing life energy past their due date. Perhaps the background magic I mentioned earlier could be involved. What unusual methods and applications might they attempt? Characters could control those energies by some kind of telekinesis (Thoughts & will) plus Mana energy. Preview. Motion Spells are also incredibly varied, which makes adding randomized details a . However, if your magic system serves more to create a fantastical ambience than to resolve any major conflicts, then explaining how magic works on the page likely isnt necessary. I also thought about adding elementals (People that impersonate a specific emotion and can change when overloaded with emotion) and some lore. However, you still need to put in the work to create a unique and compelling system that will serve the needs of your story. All you need are the right ingredients, follow the right steps, and have the right mindset. Can they simply stretch their arm, make a gesture with their hands and shoot out a ball of fire or do they need a wand do direct the magic? The term magical effects refers to the ways in which magic influences and alters the world around it. If you dont have enough power to spare, the spell fizzles. Toward the last point, I think the inclusion of old magic in reference to Lilys motherly love protecting Harry I believe is more for the benefit of the themes of love and goodness triumphing over evil and hate (Rowling was dealing with grief toward her own mothers death while writing). Ive currently got 11 tabs open that I need to look through. Furthermore, it is meant to be mysterious in-story and something that not everyone has. I forgot to mention the Towers :(. Dryads are usually depicted as tree spirits, or tree nymphs. Is magic kept secret in your story world? It is dual-natured-representing the life-giving light of the sun that all life relies on, but also the destructive and fiery nature of its power. In the HP books, the only reason why Harry cant do everything is that hes still learning. On the other hand, it definitely sounds like Conduits could be oppressed now, because they cant cast magic to defend themselves, and Interferers have a strong incentive to control them. Im only using that as a place holder name because mostly priests use it but priest carries its own connotation thats probably also misleading. Motion/kinetic energy: you stop an object in its tracks. Angels are not incapable of doing bad things and demons can be nice every now and then. But that doesn't mean all magic systems work equally well for stories. Overusing their magic can cause them physical harm. If your mage has no limits to their powers, where would the conflict be? The elemental magic of Avatar is a great example of splitting the same form of magic into different types. For example, a tree nymph can make a leaf tornado appear, but cant work with other materials. Hey there and welcome to my site. Shapechangers all use either the strong or weak nuclear forces, and telekinetics and poltergeists use gravity. 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. OK that was alot and I totally understand if you choose to use none of my ideas or stopped reading halfway through, these are just my thoughts based on my research on how our world works physically and metaphysically. If your mage has a limit on their powers (and having a human with unlimited powers is probably going to break a story, at least with that human being the hero), the limit must always be the same or you need to give a reason why it is different (the character is exhausted and thus cant muster as much magic or the character took a specific potion which boosted their powers, for instance). Gaining power Combining powers Limitations 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. There are two types of magic systems: hard magic systems and soft magic systems. Thats why we have a character (in the Silmarillion, and referenced in passing in the songs and stories Aragorn tells the hobbits on Weathertop and they later hear much more about in Rivendell: a character like Luthien Tinuviel, who inherited her power from her connection to both the mortal (in the sense of not being a divinely descended spirit who chose to take bodily form; Tolkiens equivalent of greater and lesser angels whom he sees as having a role in the world; her father was a powerful Elf king but still in that sense mortal) and angelic (her mother, who was a lesser angel who fell in love with her father and chose to take on bodily form enough to bear his child but still remained of divine race) lines in her ahcestry. In both these cases, its their clever problem-solving that saves them, not the power of the magic itself. In the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender, magic (called bending) is embodied by the four elements of air, water, fire, and earth, plus spiritual energy. 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)? Seventh Sanctum - Magitech Generator Does it just move objects/parts of object? Their technology and motivations could be very different from human ideas. Bewitchment Grenade-- This bomb emits a gas that causes hallucinations and lowered aggression in 99% of affected persons. What themes will your magic system discuss? Caster is Eco, Given controls animals, which is basically mind control. 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. A water line would provide energy for a water mage, an earth line for an earth mage, and so on. Why can only some people do time magic or elemental magic? Thanks a million! One of my characters is able to beg the Storm God for help without making a proper appeal because they danced nearly every day for 5 years. Certainly using more types adds complexity that might be a burden in shorter stories, but I think you could start with the type of thread that is most prevalent, and explain more rare threads as the story progresses. the interactions between spells of opposing Wizards. So this sentence: The second Twist to my setting is that the magic in my world is in fact technological in origin, Yep, Im doing the whole forgotten tech trope :-), The Grey Death is in fact a invasive form of Nanotechnology, accidentally released into the public.

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