The Nature of Magic

What even IS a mage hand, and how does it work?
— Dayne Reed

Magic is perhaps the most fundamental force in all of creation but few take the time to actually understand how it works, content enough knowing only that it does. To the majority of thinking minds, magic is simply a thing that can be accomplished with study, or power, or the right combination of items. The truth is much more complicated, esoteric, and strange. Magic itself is just a word, a common name used to label an unexpected manifestation of cosmic action. The many varieties of magic are in fact just forces of energy that flow beneath the surface of reality. The way they "bump into" a plane of existence is what can be considered a spell, a miracle, or a place of power. These forces are often referred to as schools of magic by the more academic minded. They would call them Abjuration, Conjuration, Divination, Enchantment, Evocation, Illusion, Necromancy, and Transmutation. Again, these are just words, used not to describe sentient things but merely forces. Necromancy has no more desire than gravity. Abjuration is no more invested one's wellbeing than that which binds one's molecules together. Thus, magic can best be described as the ability to harness one of these forces to change an otherwise naturally occurring process. This of course begs the question, what is the difference then between say, natural entropy which exists in all systems, and the force of Necromancy? It is a matter of tool vs canvas. The creation of the cosmos is its own vast field of study but what is clear is that whatever brought reality forth from nothingness, used these tools to birth a system of order. The system of order is the reality in which we exist, the tools that made it are the forces of magic. The painted figure upon a canvas is powerless to pick up the brush, that is the realm of the painter alone. However, under the right circumstances the painted figure can nudge the brush and inspire the rest of the work. This is magic. To continue with this analogy, the canvas is the Leylines, the blank slate waiting to be formed by the palette of colors and the painter's brush. The spellcaster, the painted figure, exists to bring canvas and color together. They lack the perspective of the the true painter, but they are masters of the sliver of canvas before them. How the painted figure is able to nudge the brush of creation is simple. Belief. The tools of creation exist separate from the system they forged and it is by will alone that whatever made the cosmos did so with intention (as alien as it may be to us). That intention, that belief, is coded into the use of the tools. All sapient minds possess the means to tap into forces of magic. Whether you call it will or spirit, or the psyche, this intention in what bridges leyline to force of magic and allows creation to follow. Belief is not easy though. Wizards dedicate years of study to the cosmological underpinnings of reality and to formulae that serve as their system of belief. Sorcerers are living "snags" in the flow of these forces, where reality and magic fuse. They must use their will, their psychic connection, to pull brush and canvas together. Bards believe in the power of emotions and the intention at their core to accomplish this. Warlocks and Clerics trade the power of this belief to greater entities in exchange for help connecting canvas to brush. It's certainly possible with this last example to pray to a god that doesn't even exist, but the belief be enough to subconsciously connect caster to magical force. No matter the method, all of this relies on the psychic connection thinking minds share with tools of creation and the leylines. Complications occur in places like Tairos where the leylines have become toxic. This, in effect, covers a portion of the painter's canvas in slippery oil that nothing can stick to, cutting off brush from canvas. The painted figures can either risk mixing themselves with oil, distorting or destroying themselves, as they draw the brush back or they can find shards of Manacite to offer to the brush. These shards act as pieces of the canvas preserved from the oil coating. Each one precious and their number finite. Many here have tried to undo the damage of The Queen's Rebuke, in effect, wipe away the oil coating. None have succeeded thus far in any meaningful way, causing most to fear the impact is permanent. Others, such as the Tengu have developed a means of turning existing forms of creation back into a faulty type of leyline energy. To use the familiar metaphor, they'd discovered how to purge pieces of the painted canvas, leaving behind a ruddy new patch to paint on This process, known as Reaping has particularly dark implications that the tengu take great pains to conceal.

Execution

All magic requires will to use. Will is fueled by belief. And for many, belief comes in the form of ritual. That can mean gestures, words, and arcane formula. For others, it can be belief in themselves alone (in the example gods or "psychic" practitioners). The execution of a spell can be largely personal to the user so long as their belief is strong enough and thus allowing them to bring force and mana together. Spells vs. shaping magical energy is an important distinction to understand when attempting to execute castings of any kind. The term 'spell' is best viewed as dogma, that which is believed to be part of the tradition or culture of magic users. For example, it is a common belief that flames can be formed into an explosive sphere, thus Evocation 's classic Fireball spell. Spells are like holy hymns in a religion, they are a known way to worship and the culture of that religion has already reinforced them as the proper way to venerate. Shaping is like faith without a church, not only must you believe on your own but you must determine the best way to believe through trial and error. This is how sometimes a spell will come to exist that seemingly appears outside the scope of a Force's portfolio. Some determined and powerful believer made it so, and others came to believe it was possible to replicate. For example, it's very possible a Diviner might find some way to conjure an effect similar to Fireball but it defies all logic to think that the Causality Force would be capable of setting something aflame. Everything depends on will, the ability to take hold of a force and shape it to your desire. The Fundamental Forces seem slippery and impossible to grab hold of when the desired outcome seems absurd. It can even be dangerous to tap into these forces when you lack the confidence and belief to see your ends met. This is why so many casters stick zealously to the existing spells of their traditions.

Components and tools

Magical components in most cases serve to help fuel the belief needed for connecting to the forces of magic. Exceptions include Manacite which is a vital component for the use of magic in Tairos.