Magic System
Magic is defined as a person’s ability to do what otherwise would be impossible.
Magic that interacts with the physical world is considered to be arcane; the domain of mortals. This magic relies on spell circles, spell components, spell words, and so forth and focus around the will of the caster.
Magic that interacts with the spirit (emotions, thoughts, will, etc.) is considered to be divine; the domain of the gods. These powers work with emotions and abstract concepts (think freedom, love, life, death, etc.). Someone with divine magic (either as an ability or a blessing/curse on them) will activate it based on what they feel (soul).
It is possible for the lines between the two distinctions to feel a little blurry and overlap somewhat.
Magic tends to express itself in three elemental ways – earth (Tellyn), air – (Caelan), and water (Rivun).
Each element has characteristic sub magics (see magical expression below)
Some mages cast from one element, others cast from two, and rare mages can cast based from all three (but this would be very rare, reserved for powerful magical creatures, sages, etc.)
Dual elements are common enough that people with them have a certain way with magic that tends to fall into one these categories: Caster, Weather, or Plant
- Casters get the advantages of the memory/holding of earth and the freedom and whimsical flexibility of air. These mages are adept at traditional spell circles to harness a highly stable and flexible magic.
- Plant mages draw from earth and water to influence plants.
- Weather mages utilize control of air and water to influence weather.
Within each approach or attunement to magic, there will be people who regard certain uses of it as being light or dark. Someone who can heal can also harm. Someone who can enhance a body can also damage it. Some divine magics create blessings but others create curses.
Magic Expression
Every mage with an elemental attunement can express that attunement through ability to directly manipulate the element, influence time’s interaction on that element, control pressure and precision of their manipulation of the element, influence a living person, or how they can agitate or energize the element. See the table below for each element’s behavior.
| Tellyn | Rivun | Caelan |
| Those who innately cast earth magic can often move or shape it – levitating or flinging earth, creating structures, etc. | Those who innately cast water magic can often move or shape it – like earth, they can force it to take a shape or levitate. | Those who innately cast air magic can often move or shape it – most often felt as gusts or unexpected movement of air. |
| The earth is the element of the past, for all the past that we can detect (fossils, ruins, etc.) can only be found within the earth. Time magic focuses on the past. | Like the ripples across water often change what is reflected there, the future is also fluid and ever changing. Time magic focuses on the future. | Just as air is clear to see through, the time magic of air is focused on what you can see now (think scrying magic). |
| Those who cast with a lot of pressure and precision in earth tend to create areas of increased gravity or magnetism. | Those who cast with a lot of pressure and precision in water can force water to maintain a state even when it should not (liquid staying hard like a blade or stable enough to propel a solid object/person | Those who cast with a lot of pressure and precision in air can force air to be hard enough to levitate themselves or objects. |
| When earth magic is turned toward a physical body, it can coat skin for protection or strengthen things like bones (made of minerals mostly, after all) since earth is the element of sturdiness. | When water magic is turned toward a physical body, it can change it. (Think size changes or addition of something such as claws or something) since water is the element of change. | When air is turned to a physical body it can enhance it with increased strength or agility (think breathing good oxygen, etc.) |
| Those who cast with a lot of energy or agitation tend to be able to change the substance of the stone they are working with. (Turn rock into magma, crystal, etc.) | Agitation in this element causes water to heat or cool; ice and steam mages are experts at this. | Agitation in this element causes air to become electrically charged (lightning) or to catch fire. |
| Enchantments backed by earth are long-lasting (or permanent) and predictable. | Enchantments backed by water are adaptive and renewable. | Enchantments done with air have a reactive feel to them and are temporary. |
| Earth mages closely linked to “life” can heal with this magic. | Water mages linked to “life” can shape shift into something else. | Air mages linked to “life” can hear/see and manipulate thoughts and memories |
Caster mages would draw on a mix options from Tellyn and Caelan here to do their work, and tend to be excellent enchanters than can imbue their abilities onto objects that can aid people who use them.
Plant mages draw from a mix of available skills in Tellyn and Rivun to their work and can apply most of these domains to plants (agitate them and move them, advance or decrease time’s impact on them, protect them, heal them, etc.).
Weather mages can draw from the Caelan and Rivun options and are particularly good at managing natural weather phenomenon as a result. Their enchantment work can be very dynamic (but also unstable).
Magic Strength
This is a high magic setting. The secret is that the magic itself is sentient. It is looking to grow and spread itself through being part of living experience. the more it is used, the more it is capable of growing and expanding itself. This cycle, it managed to expand to another celestial body (the moon).
So, every living thing does have a little access to magic. For most people,(who would probably categorize themselves as non-mages) this shows up in little ways. They have a Rivun affinity, so their tea never gets cold. Or perhaps they have an earth affinity, and they tend to not fall as hard because of their ability to manipulate gravitational fields.
