A report on the reclassification and expansion of academic understanding of magical elements in Alibor: By
Drayden Vestus The Chief Master Wizard of
Bhato's School for the Magically Gifted.
Magic is classified in ways to imply that it is "other" than the standard laws of nature, when in reality it is an intrinsic part of the world. The only difference in a wizard using a specific focus combined with an action word and certain materials to summon a metal shard to attack, and a blacksmith using specific raw materials and methods to forge a knife to throw, is simply the method used to achieve the result.
Firstly, an overview is needed to ensure any terms are understood. Everything in the world of Alibor is made up of Elements (besides
Deridah and
Ephemera) though we will cover those later. Those elements all started out as
Aether the element of creation. Aether is split into all 12 elements equally. Those elements are made up of 6 physical and 6 metaphysical. These elements in their most pure forms are brought into the plane of
Terra through portals to their respective
Elemental Planes. For example, the act of throwing a fireball is literally quickly opening then closing a portal to the elemental plane of
Fire from which a large blast of flame exits. All magic that summons elements in this way is referred to as conjuration. The elements are connected to
Terra via each element's respective
Gigas, giant beings that are physical representations of each element.
The 6 physical elements are
Fire,
Earth,
Wood,
Water,
Air, and
Metal. These elements are the ones with physical presence in the world. They can be touched and quantified. These elements are represented on a hexagon where the elements on opposite sides do not interact, but any element can combine with one of the other 4 to create a para-element (a secondary element made up of two of the primary elements). Manipulation of these elements are very straightforward and often performed through similar methods of standard elemental conjuration. The only outlier is the element of
Wood as its property of self growth makes effective usage more complicated. Manipulation of this element is represented through a school of magic known as Nature magic.
The 6 metaphysical elements are
Light,
Life,
Stasis,
Darkness,
Death, and
Chaos. These elements cannot be easily quantified and are only understood in more indirect natures. These elements are represented on a hexagon where the elements on the opposite sides can combine into para elements, while the others do not interact. These elements, lacking a physical presence do not see common use in their pure forms. They are used in combination with and in reaction to other things.
Many of the spells, besides direct physical elemental conjuration, most commonly used by mages day to day are not simply the usage of a single element, but a combination of techniques to weave elements in various combinations to achieve the desired effect. One may consider the
Pithecine weather mages of western Verdania. While with a single spell they conjure a lightning storm for protection or a ritual, the spell is conjures the element
Water in the sky,
Air to mix with the water to form and control the storm cloud, and also to combine with their conjured
Fire to form the para element of lightning. One does not need to understand how to summon those elements individually or even to know that those elements are part of the spell, so long as they perform the steps necessary to create that storm.
Over time we have categorized various common schools of magic with different elements. Though these categorizations have never been perfect. One mage performing a spell may utilize different amounts of various elements to perform a single spell than another will based on their own materials, the environment around them, and the techniques used. This has led to us having varied understandings of many more complicated spells and what elements they are related to. In this work, after careful and developed study we have established the elemental affinity for the most common schools of magic.
Life and
Death were already established as their own school, as their effects on living targets are well pronounced and useful. The combination of these creates the para-element of Luck. The school of fate magic, through the control of life and death allows the user to change events primarily through use of this para element.
Light is used as the primary element in Divination magic as the element represents both actual visible light and knowledge.
Darkness is the primary element used in Domination magic as it represents both shadows, and the concept of fear and the unknown. Together they form the para element of Illusion. This para element is primarily used in the school Glamour magic, though some of the element of Sound is often used to assist in effective illusions.
Chaos is the primary element in Dimensional magic, as simultaneous connections to the various
Elemental Planes is necessary for stable portals.
Stasis is used in the school of warding magic as most common wards are used to stop incoming effects. Combined they create the para element of Temporal, the element used in the school of Time magic.
Outside of those elements (referred to as
Aetherial elements referencing their nature) ; there is the opposite of Aether. As Aether is the element of creation and the overall building block of the world,
Deridah is destruction. If the elemental components of a single target are completely drained, this is what is left. It has had several names. The red death by the people of Verdania, Corruption by the people of
Loredas (which still serves as its common name today), and
Deridah by the Ancient
Elves. This name in their language translated directly to "violent and drastic upheaval." Though this name was most likely influenced by the violent civil war they were going through at the time that led to
Balimor's reawakening, it is in my opinion the closest descriptive term to the actual effects of Deridah. While as far as we are concerned the effects harm the victim in ways that they are changed in ways that could easily be called corruption or even destruction, but our studies of the timelines in which Balimor "destroyed" the world, our time mages have been able to detect the inklings of a reborn world afterwards, indicating that the effect of Deridah on the entire world simply represents a massive change and rebirth as opposed to full destruction.
Combinations of
Aether and
Deridah in imperfect ratios result in a material known as
Erebus, a primordial material that either has unparalleled power of destruction (for example able to kill Shadir - God of Hatred when he was pushed into a beam of it) or restoration based on which element is in greater concentration.
This fact led to theoretical discussion of what would result from a perfect combination. In highly controlled environments we have only been able to observe small readings of
Ephemera. The same way
Alios and
Balimor are the dead gods of
Aether and
Deridah, the being known as the
Deep is the mysterious god of Ephemera. The element is created when perfect ratios of Aether and Deridah are combined. The effects of the element are seen as absolute and complete lack of existence. It is notably difficult to perceive because even the memory of it cannot exist, only the effects and results of it's interactions can be measured and observed.
Lastly, for sake of thoroughness we will also cover the methods that magic is used. All mages must have what is known as a magical spark to be able to manipulate magic (outside of using charged wands or potions that have been imbued with magical energy by someone else). The strength of this spark is not relevant to the power of the spells cast unless you are a sorcerer. The power and presence of the spark is mostly hereditary, though a random element is noted. In rare cases a mage has removed their own magical spark to great powerful effect of a magical source in free space, though it means they could never channel magic again.
The most common method is Arcane Magic, or Wizardry. This method is the usage of various movements, sounds, materials, and focuses to create magical effects. It is noted that Bards actually use Arcane Magic through exclusively sound manipulation. Secondly is Bestowed Magic, which is when a patron such as a
God,
Archfiend, or other powerful being gives some of their magical power to someone to be channeled through them. Lastly is Spark Magic, or Sorcery; which is a magic entirely powered from within the mage via their own magical spark. It is heavily influenced by their emotional state and the strength of their own magical spark.
It is assumed that eventually these findings will eventually become outdated as our understanding increases, but this is a summary of our best understanding of the forces governing magic.
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