Part 1: Magic And How It Works

Mana:

Mana refers to the “supply” of magic or the ability to cast magic. Magicians, magical gemstones, and enchanted items all have a supply of mana, which they use to exert their magical influence.

Mana is the source of all magic. A person’s supply of mana determines how much magic a person can use, though it does not directly affect the power of their magic. Mana is essentially stamina but for magic and varies between individuals. Training can increase a person’s supply of mana virtually without limit, though it does have diminishing returns.

Mana and physical strength do influence each other, but not both ways. As in, physical fitness and strength amplify the supply of mana, but the amplified supply of mana does not, in turn, amplify physical fitness, only the original supply does. That is to say, a physically very weak person with a powerful supply of mana can have much greater strength than just their physical bodies, but their original, weak body, would not have much of an effect on their supply of mana. Their mana is powerful by nature, and their body is weak by nature, but the powerful mana makes them physically strong, while their weak body does not make their powerful mana more powerful. Conversely, a physically strong person with weak mana will have stronger mana due to the effects of their physical bodies, but the originally weak supply of mana will not make them physically much stronger. Their mana is weak by nature, and their body is strong by nature, so their strong bodies make their mana more powerful, but their naturally weak mana will not make their physical bodies much stronger.

Regeneration of mana occurs naturally. It is unclear where mana comes from, but it is generally believed to be everywhere (free mana). Mages absorb mana from around them, which is how their supply is replenished. Some places can have higher concentrations of “free mana” than others, making mages who are there able to regenerate their mana much faster.

Because of this, using magic will cause disturbances in the surrounding free mana, an imbalance, if you will. This signature of disturbance is unique for different forms of magic, and in some cases, individuals, depending on their power. Skilled trackers can sense this disturbance and trace the use of magic even down to the individual.

Effect Power:

The flow of free mana and magic is controlled by “effect power”. Effect power dictates the flow of magic, only allowing it to travel from higher areas to lower areas. Higher effect power levels can influence lower effect power levels with magic, while the inverse is impossible. The power of a mage is determined by their ability to generate or manipulate affect power fields. Powerful mages often have very high effect power in their immediate surroundings, allowing them to cast magic over areas of lesser effect power. Their high effect power also means weaker mages will have a hard time casting magic onto them, as the high levels of effect power surrounding them repel (“overrides”) magic from lesser effect power levels.

Most mages are able to manipulate their effect power fields, channeling it along with their magic to overwhelm another mage’s natural field so their magic can take effect. Skilled mages almost always manipulate their effect power fields constantly while fighting. To cast magic upon another can only be possible when there is a difference in effect power levels. Some types of magic, such as fire, do not need to be directly cast onto a person or object to cause damage.

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The world normally has a level of effect power, generally very weak. Some enchanted areas can have very low or extremely high levels of effect power, making it difficult for many to cast magic effectively.

Disturbances in effect power levels can be felt, which is how most mages are able to predict and counter attacks. An attack is almost always preceded by the channeling of an effect power field. Because of this, magic against magic is often a very evenly matched situation, meaning that traditional combat is not rendered completely redundant. Traditional combat does not affect effect power fields, making them completely different, and equally as effective as combat with magic. The downfall of many great mages were their lack of traditional combat skills.

Abilities:

All mages are born with one or more abilities. While those abilities can be strengthened and slightly expanded over one’s lifetime, it is impossible to attain new abilities which one wasn’t originally born with. Most mages have a primary ability which their bodies/supply of mana have a natural affinity for, and often a secondary or even tertiary ability. Two abilities are most commonly seen, however, four or even five abilities have been documented.

Overall, abilities don’t appear to fall into specific sets or categories and often vary slightly between people. For example, some telepaths can communicate over a distance, some can read minds, while others can manipulate thoughts. The definite boundaries of one’s ability are vague, and cannot be conclusively ascertained without rigorous training in a specific field of magic.

Generally, abilities can be put into several categories, those being: fire, light, shadow, telekinesis, telepathy, healing, and clairvoyance.

Light and shadow magic have been suggested to be of the same category, however, it is still generally agreed that they are different and distinct. Light mages can produce light, while shadow mages cannot.

It should be noted that some abilities may fall into multiple categories. For example, a telepath that can read a person’s thoughts and perceive the world through their eyes may also fall into the category of clairvoyance.

Those with telekinesis are able to manipulate all matter, though different materials require training and specialization of their own. Those who work with water a lot may develop an affinity for controlling water, while those who work a lot with metals may develop an affinity for controlling metals.

General rules and things to remember:

There is believed to be no hard limit on what magic can and cannot do, however, there are certain trends and basic laws on the abilities of magic.

Magic is capable, somewhat by definition, of violating the agreed-upon laws of physics. However, certain aspects are still widely debated as being whether magical or simply a physical phenomenon. Some such aspects include telepathy, healing magic, and electricity.

Magic is also incapable of controlling vague/non-physical ideas such as “love”, “happiness”, or “success”. All magic must, in some way, manipulate physical matter or energy. Though “love potions” and similar things do exist, they are believed to affect the workings of specific parts of the brain to achieve their effects, and not via the direct control of the idea of “love”.

Precognition has also not been firmly proven as a magical ability. While certain people are able to predict future events with surprising accuracy, it is usually not without logical conclusions or reasoning. Some claim to have the ability, and often make a living telling fortunes, but it is usually viewed as pseudo-magic.