Magology (mɒgoloʤi)

Magology is the science of understanding Magic and The Weave. It also focuses on categorizing and ordering different types of magic. For example what's considered a Cantrip, and what's considered a Spell.

The main rule of casting is that without Blood Crystals, or alternative forms of Leviathan Blood it simply doesn't work. We differentiate Cantrips and Spells based on whether you need to be in contact with the blood or not. Cantrips work simply off of the presence of the blood, while for Spells you need to be in contact with it somehow, even if it's through items. For example a shield with a Blood Crystal in it gives you both contact and presence.

Each standard sized Blood Crystal (they have been cut this way) can only provide contact for one consumer at a time. Meaning that you can't really share your Blood Crystals with another Mage by having both of you touching it, they need to be physically given to them.

We've categorized Spells into Levels based on the minimum amount of standard-cut Blood Crystals you need to be in contact with to use them. For example to cast a Level 2 Spell, you need to hold two unconsumed Blood Crystals. Obviously if you hold a large crystal, that also works, the measurement was made for the standard amount / concentration of Leviathan Blood.

You say you understood everything? Nonsense! Even I don't understand it all.
— Magic professor

The Weave can be manipulated in three major ways. Through these manipulations of The Weave we cast Spells. There are many different ways to cast a particular Spell, as long as you make The Weave have the correct shape in the end.

Verbal - through your voice you can draw curves with The Weave. The louder you say them, the easier The Weave bends. For powerful spells (or if you're a novice) you pretty much have to shout your activation words, but if you're expert enough and know the "sweet spots" of your Spells, you can say them on normal volume too. The words are not standardized, it's more about the sound / rythm / song of these words. For example both "gold" and "mold" would produce the same shape with only minor changes. The minor changes would only affect high Level Spells, cause they tend to be rather delicate.
Somatic - through moving your limbs (usually fingers) you can "pull" on The Weave to make angles and lines in the shape. Usually the shapes get more complicated at higher Levels, and require grand gestures, but a highly expert Mage can produce even complex shapes with their fingers. Students usually move their arms in front of their eyes, so they can imagine what they are "drawing" in the air.
Material (Crystal) - some rare spells only work if you thicken The Weave. The strings however only thicken when coming to contact with fine pieces of Leviathan Blood. For example if a Spell requires a fully filled circle, then you'd draw a circle and sprinkle enough blood for it to fill in the middle, otherwise you could be making hundreds of lines all day long.

The frequent use of Magic tires the Mage, and although this tiredness is not physical or mental - they still feel spent enough not to be able to cast more Spells, only simple Cantrips. To quantify the amount of Spells after which the Mage feels this phenomena, we invented a new word: Mana. This amount of Mana is different from person to person, but usually more experienced Mages have more Mana. When someone is no longer able to cast Spells, they are Mana Deprived, and need to rest up to recharge their Mana.

Rituals are an easy, but rather time consuming way of casting Spells. Not all of them can be casted as Rituals, however the ones that do can be drawn onto a surface. Even though a Ritual is about a hundred times slower than casting a Spell regularly, it does not spend Mana, and even the simplest of Mage can do it. You just have to follow the instructions of the Ritual, like a recipe.

Some spells might require you to concentrate on them. These are Spells that are usually long lasting and need the constant attention of the Mage. As soon as the Mage stops concentrating on them, or is momentarily shaken - they instantly end their prolonged effect. This also means that you can't concentrate on more than one effect at a time, and you must choose which one you want to keep going.

Books about magic? Why? You just need to go whoosh and zah!
— Unknown sorcerer

A dali can become a Mage through one of these ways:

Inheritance - those lucky few that didn't die of consuming Leviathan Blood have got it mixed into their blood. Even though they don't give presence, their blood still carries inherent magical abilities. These folk are sometimes also called Sorcerers, Mages with inherent ability, but often no study of magic.
Knowledge - even though it's most difficult, spellcasting can also be learned. Mastering even just one Cantrip can take years for those not gifted or intelligent enough, hence why those that are able to quickly grasp magic are referred to as Wizards.
Faith - one of the first hard to explain sources of magical ability is faith. It is most easily developed through faith in the gods, but one can also develop abilities through faith if they put immense amount of faith into another dali, an idea, or even themselves.
Gift - highly powerful magical beings are able to give out fractions of their power and Mana to someone else. It's not unheard of that some have got their powers through more unsavory means - through making a deal with a monster or a magically powerful entity such as a Devil. The dali who got gifted power from an outside entity are often called Warlocks.
Connection - many argue that this type is equivalent to faith, but one can also gain abilities through their connection with beauty, creation, or nature. For example a Bard may be able to produce magic through song, using their instrument to shape The Weave. Many say this type of tapping into magical abilities is accidental at first, but can be quickly grabbed on and advanced.