34 lines
No EOL
4.3 KiB
Markdown
34 lines
No EOL
4.3 KiB
Markdown
Magic is not a gift, but a negotiation. It is never wielded freely, nor granted without price. The power of magic is ritualistic, dangerous, and often deeply personal. It is the art of entreating, coercing, or binding spirits to act upon the fabric of reality, transforming what is into what could be - at a cost.
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## Foundational Principles
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Magic is not an innate force within mortals. No human, [[Tul People|Tul]], Myou or other sentient being may shape the world through will alone. All magic flows through [[Spirits]] - entities both vast and minute that dwell in every facet of existence. From the whisper of wind through the grass to the mind-shattering presence of a void-thing lurking behind the Veil, spirits are the intermediaries through which reality may be touched.
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But there is a price.
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Long ago, when Vaelora was open to the stars, magic flowed freely. In those mythic times, great civilizations channeled power from the heavens without consequence. Now, with the Veil drawn tight around the world, that astral lifeblood is severed. Spirits cannot draw on the cosmos for energy - they must take it from what remains: the world, its people, and the practitioners themselves.
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Thus, every act of magic comes with a cost. It may be a fragment of a spirit's own dwindling essence, a blood tithe offered in ritual, the draining of a fertile field, or the slow erosion of the caster's mind and body. There is no magic without consequence. The question is never “can it be done”, but “what are you willing to pay?”
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## Nature of Magic
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Magic in Vaelora is not the hurling of fire or the summoning of storms - not directly. It is an art of nudging, coaxing, and reshaping the energies that flow through the world. It bends nature rather than breaks it. Its effects are often subtle, indirect, or symbolic. A fire might be lit through a whispered pact with a hearth-spirit. A wound might close through the intercession of a spirit of flesh and pain. A mind might be altered not through telepathy, but through shared possession.
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This is a world of dark enchantment. Power comes not from flash, but from sacrifice - spiritual, bodily, or otherwise.
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## Traditions and Techniques
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Over the centuries, many cultures have developed their own approaches to magic, often reflective of their relationship with the spirit world. From the grimoires of the [[Magisters of the Black Citadel]] to the silent, haunted bodies of the [[The Hollowed|Hollowed]], each tradition draws on different sources of energy and different methods of communion. These include:
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- **[[Setting/Magical Traditions/Spirit Binding]]** - Forcing spirits into submission through ritual and will.
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- **[[Chthonism]]** - Channeling the deep powers of the earth through body and meditation.
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- **[[The Hollowed]]** - Serving as vessels for spirits through fractured souls and possession.
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- **[[Setting/Magical Traditions/Alchemy]]** - Employing the smallest spirits in material transformation and concoction.
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- **[[Soulforging]]** - Imbuing objects with bound spirit-essence for ongoing effects.
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- **[[Setting/Magical Traditions/Pact Magic]]** - Bartering with spirits in reciprocal agreements of power.
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- **[[Melded Souls]]** - Merging identity and spirit into a singular, symbiotic whole.
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- **[[Setting/Magical Traditions/Blood Sorcery]]** - Sacrificing life itself to draw spirits to one's will.
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Some practices lie outside formal magical traditions, but remain powerful nonetheless - such as **[[Veiling]]**, which channels the world's protective barrier to suppress spirits; **[[Spirit Soothing]]**, which balances the spiritual and mortal realms through appeasement; and **[[Voidcalling]]**, the perilous art of reaching into the emptiness beyond the stars.
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## The Role of Spirits
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All magic begins and ends with spirits. They are the agents of change, the hands that shape the world when mortals beg, bribe, or bind them. Each spirit is tied to one or more **[[Spirit Dominions|dominions]]** - concepts or aspects of existence that define their power, such as fire, hunger, stone, memory, or sorrow. Their strength, personality, and reliability vary, as do the prices they demand.
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Some may be ancient beings of towering presence; others are barely-conscious whispers. But all are part of the ever-shifting balance between spirit and flesh that defines Vaelora's magical reality. |