Now we go back to the Beginning. You just need a set of guidelines that all of your spirits/nymphs follow. This is super helpful, thanks so much for taking the time to write it and to provide examples. Do you have any feedback or glaring flaws that you noticed? But you can use pretty much anything you wish, whether it's a magic absorbing rock, special water or perhaps a type of wood. I remember a HP fan-fiction where Harry developed two spells into some kind of magical arms he could call up at will to help with magic or protect himself by picking up half a dozen objects he could throw into the path of a spell or weapon. It sends a positive message to the reader when the magic being performed is a positive being paid for by a regrettable negative but sends the wrong message when its a cheat or lethal act that is only being rewarded or reinforced with a positive. It depends on how you build up your magic system. I just wanted to run a few things past eyes that arent mine any feedback/critique/comments would be hugely appreciated!! Do you really have to hop 3 times on your left foot? After giving it some thought, I think the spirits will take memories as payment. Are there magical societies or a hierarchy of magic users? And after reading this article, Ive found there is one important question missing: How exactly magic affects the world? but humanity is creative and designs massive jammers that are able to disable the nanites that enter within X radius of them. If theyre distracted, panicking, drunk, or otherwise unable to focus the spell wont work. This type of magic is tricky and potentially dangerous, as the faerie in question could seek out loopholes that benefit them and take more from the person than what was agreed. The problem would lie in too many types for an already-complex magic system. So when it comes to babies, you probably want to pick just one.. Im working on setting up a writing blog on WordPress, mirroring it to tumblr. o_o. Magical properties are randomly given to some creatures and elements (eg: Fire breathing dragons, Gem stones that arent affected by gravity)- this type of magic is Irational but still has rules (depending on each specific example), But the most common form of magic is the one humans can control- this is a rational hard magic that is all about Energy, our ability to create & manipulate it. Its at its strongest during a thunderstorm and is the most dynamic of the Primals, as the mage is always connected to the Primal at a given time. Is magic inherited, gifted, obtained, or learned? Thank you so much for the reply! Drop us a line or let's stay in touch via : Subscribe for writing hacks, special offers and free stuff, 2023 - Orpheus Technology, prowritingaid.com, How to Build an Amazing Magic System for Your Fantasy Novel, Hard Magic Systems vs. Soft Magic Systems, How to Self-Edit Your Manuscript Like a Pro, How to Craft an Engaging Arc for Your Story, How to Use Deus Ex Machina like Stephen King, ProWritingAid or Grammarly? There are also spells and counter spells, and characters know when to use themtake for example when Harry accidentally levitated Ron (using levicorpusnot hard to figure out the root for that one). Do people get to choose their side in this case or are they born with the ability to wield one side? Anyway, just to throw MY 2 cents in A while back, I was trying to design a magic system for a Skyrim Mod some friends of mine were attempting That ultimately went nowhere. It would foreshadow his powers at the end of the story, when he faces off against Voldemort controlling all types of magic. Telepathy: You mention detecting the electrical impulses of the nervous system. However, most societies dont have the resources to crank out wizards. Magic is one of the essential elements of any fantasy story. Magic systems vary from colorful bears with tummy badges to ritual blood sacrifices. I originally wanted a free form system where just about anything was possible. When the spell is done, the deactivated knots simply float around, unattended. That means the stories cant foreshadow spells prior to their explicit introduction, and when a protagonist has to face a tough problem, they cant get out of it by inventing new spellwork. Hope I did well! As long as you dont change fundamental things in the universe, theres no problem with making enough changes to slip your magical or psychic powers in. Honestly, I cant think of a reasonable or cohesive cap on what it can do so I hope the limitations will balance it out. The twist? So far, the types of energy that can be manipulated in this way are: Air/wind (although due to its constant motion and near-intangibility, air cannot in most cases be held, but is almost always instantaneously redirected. If youll allow my humble but informed opinion. Dark, but if it works for the story however, I would say that rather than the Interferes having been oppressed and retaliating, it seems a lot more likely that they were the oppressors and committed genocide. My character doesnt get him to throw lightning at foes, but he does send a giant bird to carry off my character to relative safety, but they end up getting separated from the rest of their group. All three should work together to create the magic system. Human variation in magical ability is determined by how much excess soul they have, after running all of their brain activity. Of course, its possible. Chris Winkle mentioned Avatar as an example of a rational magic system, because its elements (fire, water, air, and earth) are natural classifications. Why can only some people do time magic or elemental magic? Fireball that damages a characters weapons/armor, while leaving the character unharmed. Sorry for the late reply I had went out for the past few days. :-D. So the idea was born out of the fact that in a lot of computer games, playing a Mage just doesnt feel very Magey. The plants begin to die, and in dying change color and surrender the rest of their water to Mother. This article is very normative and I think its furthers clich. Too Trope-ish?? Of course, I wholeheartedly believe that considering each element of your story is the surest way to craft an engaging novel. In this case, rational, soft, and hard come from Brandon Sanderson. I really like the distinction between on the one hand the rational-nonrational scale, on the other hand the hard-soft scale. So eventually, after a little Silly Putty work with words and concepts, I wound up with a magic system where believing something was considered a form of observing it with your mind in the state that you want to be so; that all that I read in the quantum physics book was true and intermeshed perfectly with the various descriptions of magic as being any system where a strong mind or majority of minds is able to influence reality through the strength of its being perfectly itself (e.g. On the other hand, there could be a group of people allergic to the plant. If there are no downsides to using magic, your protagonists might soon become overpowered, able to solve any problem with the wave of a wand. Its not just about the energy needed to transform a body into energy and then back into mass, its also about controlling where the second transformation takes place (splicing would be a problem or manifesting through matter its what cost Heimlich from the Brian Helsing series his right lower arm). It tries to convince the reader the newly defined rational magic system is what every fantasy writer should strive for. What are the interconnections between the ideas Ive come up with? Different for the TV series, of course. Its implied humans discovered the thread and abandoned technology altogether, becoming more and more dependent on magic over the next few hundred years. Every person who attempts this dies, without fail. A dwarf named Keti seeks a company of adventurers to steal a powerful arcane device from a rival. A primary example of soft magic would be that which Gandalf practices in The Lord of the Rings. The mystery is in the water that the Living Mother leaves behind on the plants when the sunlight returns again. Since there are clear rules in the Harry Potter series, we dont wonder why Harry doesnt just make up an all-powerful spell. It is believed in this world, at least by this group of acolytes, that the nighttime is caused by plants absorbing the sunlight, and the dawn only comes because the Living Mother has taken it into her hands to manually restore the balance and takes back the light. Most everyone is either a Conduit or an Interferer, and it is genetic. Heat Wraith, lich, or revenant for example. They dont pay with utter exhaustion or even by losing several years of their life, because of the power they wield. What limitations does the magic put on the wielder? I dont like giving writers a formula for magic systems. It is the rarest of the Primals to be connected to. He exerts his own living will in opposition against the tendency towards balance. Sounds right to me). Apoglies if it comes off as confusing, Im not very good at conveying my thoughts and ideas, will explain in greater detail later. You should understand why some spells have symbols in common but different dance moves. ), Given how late it is, I hope this makes SOME sort of sense :-S. Thanks alot for your thoughts, it looks interesting! SWAMP, kind of based off of iguanas in design, rare chance of getting magic. Why do I need spellcasters? : Otherwise you have near-god mages with no limits, who will hurt your story more than they will serve it. You neednt appropriate any that have extant adherents, of course, but looking at what people believe can be a touchstone for how an invented system of magic could work. The nanites of this future continue their work, though they are many generations after the initial outbreak and the AIs have calmed them. There could be just one type your system is already very interesting or more than one. Another limitation is that you have to touch whatever youre casting a spell on, e.g. That means Rowling doesnt have any guidelines to keep her from contradicting something shes already invented or from creating a spell that makes the plot pointless. If one side summons up a lot of spirits, they inadvertently give more available energy to those who channel it from the surrounding area. Making sense in case of magic means being constant. Thank you Cay, for making me think more about what i want my theme to be. Group B dont have magic at all. You can have several sources of magic, but you need to bring them together in a way that makes sense at least in the novel. Hard magic systems feature a strict set of parameters explained within the story to ensure that readers understand what characters fantastical powers can and cannot do. And you have the buffer, often a rogue or priest, who can either buff the own group (healing, boosting skills) or debuff the enemy (lowering attack or defence most often). All magic is governed strictly by the Law of Equivalent Exchange, which says that in order to obtain something, something else of equal value must be lost. When the protagonists need to create something, the readers understand exactly what materials they need to sacrifice. Note that this does NOT prove energy is conserved (at least I dont think so), it means that if energy is not conserved, the laws of physics must change over time this applies even if magic is involved. If I knew that I could kill every jerk i know unapologetically and without remorse, and be assured that someone would be returned to life as a result of that action then whats stopping me from just killing indiscriminately all the time? Theres a lot to figure out about the basics, before you can think about sub-types. Eco (plant life). Both Harry Potter and Avatar: The Last Airbender are hard magic systems, because they explain magic and its rules to the audience. The expeditions that have come back tell of fantastical landscapes, filled with mystic flora and fauna. Cant help but feel its lacking in creativity and complexity, but thats for another day. Im only using that as a place holder name because mostly priests use it but priest carries its own connotation thats probably also misleading. If so, what differentiates them? Maybe they are all for structural integrity, without them the world explodes outward into the vacuum of nothingness. Some people make a long-term contract with a particular spirit to channel its energy themselves, with the spirit becoming the casters familiar. Theyre usually gifted to devout followers, but anyone can use them once they figure out how it works. However, most people wont deviate from what they know to work to avoid wasting their time on a failed ritual or potentially hazardous consequences. I have read an anecdote in which members of a certain tribe classified an orange with a knife, rather than an orange with an apple as the Western researchers expected, reasoning that a knife cuts an orange so they belong together. The duration for using paint is limited and if your paint bottle runs out life will slowly start to sap out of you. This allows for more ready, flexible use of magic, but one has to be careful how much they use at once or risk damaging both the spirit and themselves. Note that most, if not all, superpowers in this generator will belong . If were told that a heros ability tires them out, but they can always push through their exhaustion when they need to most in the story, then we stop considering their exhaustion when considering whether we should be worried about them. Vampires are electromagnetic, which is why they are hurt by sunlight (photoelectric effects), are solid but turn to dust when killed (they actually are dust, and their solid form is a magnetic shell), have superstrength (they can easily lift metal objects, and can use opposing magnetic forces to move their own body quite forcefully). Crafting a hard magic system can be a complex endeavor, though soft magic systems also require a bit of care and attention to develop. The Harry Potter series is a splendid examplewe know what spells Harry can do, while we never find out the exact bounds of Voldemorts magical abilities. I understand your point. Fantasy Name Generator. This then leads to the problems with conservation of energy and relativity I mentioned earlier of course, were working with magic, so these may not be insurmountable issues, but they need to be considered, as I want this universe to be mostly like ours in situations in which magic is not involved. Trying to do anything that involves pushing against or even breaking natural law will require aid from outside forces. Having the users of this power (some of whom actually are human) be its creators wouldnt really work, as I was going with a technology level around modern times for my main setting and this would require extremely advanced technology. By adopting a specific mentality and pairing that with martial art forms, they can move and manipulate their element. All magic is fueled by mana, a form of energy found in all living organisms. A waterbender cant control air or earth or fire. I want the magic of the world to feel whimsical (or horrifying) and ever present, but not the cure all to every problem. Which is why you need to attach a heavy price. dragon glass can kill them and both weapons were forged by dragon flame. Id love to hear more about what the magic can do. Strength no longer depends on physical brute force but many new factors make it so much more complex. One of them is how I believe that the tips given may not be universal. More like youre a easily broken, magical gun (Aim, shoot fireball, repeat.) About the Avatar thing, what you are saying makes more sense to me now. Nevertheless, I will go with your assumption for what follows for the moment, as it does involve fewer changes to known physical laws and is easier to discuss (plus, I already mentioned some of the consequences of lack of conservation in my previous post). Brandon Sanderson is fantastic at crafting magic systems. The mandrake has been considered magical, because its roots do look vaguely like a human being. Even though there are no physical costs to using magic, being Grisha means losing their freedom to pursue the life they wanted. Dragon breeds or races (this is with Borne magic): Some people are good at magic, others are not. Water was taken and later give back. Because there is no sunlight and no heat, the water is frozen and white, and blankets the ground. I just think that Sanderson hard-soft magic divide is much more useful for novel writers. Hermione explains this to Ron in the seventh book when he mentions bringing food out of nowhere. Its the subtle way magic leans toward fire or ice. However, while I do hope to write something that others enjoy, it is also for myself, and I like thinking about things and would not want to write something logically impossible. Potion-making probably would make more sense, if there was more talk about the properties of the ingredients and what they do. Mind energies are bit different: they could be bonded with any type of energy. If you figure out exactly what each type of thread is doing to hold the world together, you can not only extrapolate what magic they can do when woven, but also predict the damage that the world will suffer when too many of them are used. Thanks a million! It wasnt meant to be a rational system (although the EU developed it into one and, no, Im not going into the midichlorian desaster), it was simple old-fashioned fairy-tale magic, the kind which does exactly what the heroes need it to do. Then I really thought about the setting and that would breakwell, everything. The term magical effects refers to the ways in which magic influences and alters the world around it.