Mages connected to certain Primals are sometimes more common in parts of the world than others. Everything in Tolkiens world is carefully designed to avoid being preachy; but most of it also has a carefully thought out moral and spiritual basis, and certain elements (like whether orcs have free will, and are therefore capable of redemption, and the implications of what that means in terms of how the good characters treat them and the conflict with the literary need for a clearly identifiable group of bad guys) troubled him to the end of his life and which he was never able to resolve to his own satisfaction. While your categories wouldnt be any fun if they were identical, they do need consistency. If you can convey the rules of your system in a way the reader can understand, you have a rational system. Just remember that great ideas are only the start, solid implementation has to follow, and learning that takes a lot of time and practice. Are there other applications that would make sense? Ive been working on a magic system in my head, but would like help on a few things. If you go with that, I really hope youll have a scene where your mage character (or one of them) sees the empty shells that older mages have become, their very last memory bargained away in exchange for a little power. This is the name list Tolkien draws from at least for a couple of the Dwarven characters in The Hobbit. When youre brainstorming magical costs, try to be creative. All are well known for changing things theyre associated with into other things or even changing other women into one of them, so that can be fun. Moreover, the party must complete the quest without killing anyone. Since the universe as a whole tends towards entropy, where this world uniquely tends towards balance, fire doesnt always behave as expected), Water in its various forms (liquid, gaseous, solid; in redistribution it will always revert to its most common form in nature, that of liquid. For example, your magic is powered by emotions, which also means that your emotions, if they dont get a new power source (more emotion), will disappear over time. Ive been thinking about a system of magic that was born of 6 Tower, stationed at the poles and in each of the cardinal directions. Technically, anyone can use holy magic, but it takes years to become proficient. The most well known curse is the Demons Mark. 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. This suggests that telepathy and telekinesis (at least if I go with something like your suggestion) imply some form of teleportation. But the Mother eventually grows tired of such a long and drawn-out abuse of the balance, with the plants greedily hoarding the sunlight for themselves each day; in autumn she begins to draw water out of the plants, more than just the droplets that form on leaves in the morning. In the TV show Im writing, there are dryads, nymphs, and naiads, which are all parts of nature. Something as seemingly insignificant as a casting time thats five seconds longer has a huge impact on whether mages can handle unexpected problems. Mana manipulation is a basic form of magic (though anyone can learn this ability through time and training without doing magic at all. You cant have conservation of energy violated by magic that also keeps the laws of physics the same over time, any more than you could have magic that makes 2+2=5 (unless, perhaps, the laws of physics in a universe dont involve Lagrangians, but then that would likely be a universe totally different from our own). This is what making sense means when it comes to magic. Telekinesis, telepathy, and teleportation are not something people can really use in everyday life, so you will find it hard to justify their existence through science alone. Readers could not have guessed that Harry might create something like a Patronus, so if it hadnt been explained in depth, using it at pivotal moments would have felt cheap. Telekinesis and teleportation require an explanation as to how you direct your power outside of the body. Why can only some people do time magic or elemental magic? [end worldbuilding] Well, your protagonists will use magic to solve some of their problems. Rituals are easy to execute, but can be dangerous. I generally call the opposite of rational arbitrary, and that one I just chose arbitrarily, you might say. However, some fear that all is unraveling. Worldbuilding in a Novel: A Guide to Creating A Believable World The tricky thing about powering magic with emotions is that it generally leads to magics power being as fickle and arbitrary as emotions, which often makes problems and solutions stemming from its use feel arbitrary. A rational magic system is supposed to be understandable. From the other side, putting lot of fire energy into single point will produce real fire, moving air energies will make air blows. Perhaps Mages can use all the magical abilities, but CHOOSE to specialize? There are a number of times during the series when Harry performs magic out of anger or fear. Hey! A very interesting and well laid out post, though I dont quote agree with all the recommended reading. In the series Rowling shows that wands and spells channel the magic within an individual so witches and wizards are not without magic if they dont have a wand. Or does it speed up molecules/atoms to heat up an object (if we have mostly realistic world)? Maybe there are a few things that the sorcerer cant do, but basically its just whatever they want to happen, happens. Though some have tried since the beginning, it has been deemed impossible for a human to harness and redistribute sunlight. Why do I need spellcasters? I see where you are coming from on a few of these points but perhaps since Ive read the series so many times I think they miss the mark. If most people are one or the other, and Conduits are rare, then most Conduits will also be the children of Interferers. About the Avatar thing, what you are saying makes more sense to me now. Anger Heat. Group C can use magic although they have to learn to use it and still have to have enough counsciousness to grab this feeling and utilize it. Skill also plays a part, and is determined by both intelligence and creativity. In this case, rational, soft, and hard come from Brandon Sanderson. You need to think it through and you need to make it understandable for the reader, because otherwise they cant imagine your world and they cant dive into it which is why people read stories. After giving it some thought, I think the spirits will take memories as payment. Some kind of mana system (where mana is the energy the mage uses to cast spells) will make the system rational in that case, because it will give natural limits a mage can only cast as long as they have mana left and they need to regain it afterwards (through rest, rituals, or whatever pleases you). It does seem likely that humans, with their limited lifetime, would not master all elements in a system of elemental magic, but it is, of course, possible for humans to use different types of magic or magic from different sources all at once. This system was mostly me being annoyed that magic usually violates the Law of Conservation of Energy, so I made a system built around that principal (until it spiraled out of control) Like actually dodge the spell physically? If everybody is capable of wielding magic they will likely use it for everything, from war to daily life, but if only a portion of the population can wield it it means magic will be handled differently by those who can and those who can't wield it. Hes also known as the God of Mischief. Look at your three lists and try to find patterns and connections. Thank you for commenting! Now, if magic in Tolkien just went by power levels like a Pokemon duel, Sauron would have won this handily, being pure blood of an order of beings who if we looked at these things just on the power level dimension clearly outranked the mortal clay that was mixed into Luthiens veins. There is a certain logic to the magic in Harry Potter, too, but its never completely explained, because the magic only serves the purposes of the story. In my plant-based system, there could be a lineage with the biological adaptation to absorb the magical substance directly, without using the plant as an intermediary. So, for each point in environment will be possible to calculate the energy value. That works for just Neo, but if you have many spellcasters over long periods of time, someone will be able to smash two planets together. (Currently called Reformancers, Defining and Refining) The act of changing your sight so you see physical objects as they are, without needing light (eliminates glare and shadows), and the act of changing your sight so you can see a person's inner qualities. All benders in Avatar, safe for the Avatar themselves, can only control one element, one source of power. In fact, they are drawing on residual energy left behind when a spirit interacts with the human world. My magic system is based on the Netflix show, The Dragon Prince, because I really like how dynamic and diverse its magic system is. In the first book, Ron doesnt know any troll-slaying spells, so he uses the Levitating Spell to knock out a mountain troll instead. This is the first step in learning magic, for depending on what Primal theyre affiliated with, their magic may not be useful at all times (a Sun mages magic is severely weakened at night, and an Earth mage is practically useless out at sea) and they need to rely on their mana for defense and offense. This is only my second serious piece of writing, so its really encouraging to hear stuff like that from someone like you. A few generations later, some of them did discover the truth, but kept it secret for fear of being blamed by association for the fall, and of people fearing a magical plague happening again. Ask yourself what sources will work well for the magical effects you want to use, and what sources will work well within the world you have created. This could also link in nicely culture and tradition (festivals on summer or winter solace to celebrate the Mother). Incantations are used, and using the magic is mentally draining. You can also read his books to see his systems in action; personally I recommend Elantris. As far as using body energy outside of the body is concerned, this is something you will have to wing. Magic is part of an enormous range of stories, but finding 2 stories which use the same magic system isn't as easy as it may sound. 7 Ways To Create A Spectacular Magic System For Your Novel And theres nothing less exciting than a story where the protagonists can escape from any danger just by wishing it away. I checked it out, and indeed it seems to just be another name for obsidian. Being able to gain power is generally an often picked choice for story telling, first the hero is unable to defeat the villain, but after training or some other form of power gain the hero becomes stronger than the villain. Even within one category, theres no way to extrapolate new spells because the rules are so eclectic. As mentioned, Im still working on the plot details, but I was thinking the decrease in magic availability from protagonist 1s time to protagonist 2s time had to do with spirits withdrawing from the human world and not dealing with mages. Old magics can occur without any intent. > how are you handling the problem that (I would imagine) youd have to assign EVERY object/environ in your game world a energy attribute/variable. Hope I dont sound like a rabid Potterhead but I dont think its irrational! Internal logic, that is, otherwise thered always be that magic doesnt exist bit to fight against. Avatar is, essentially, based on elemental magic which is the ability to control one or more elements. Wizards cast spells by waving wands and saying incantations. However, as we are all well aware humanity and its constructs are fragile things and some event happens that upsets the norm; war, a terrorist attack on these factories, solar flare, etc Regardless this event causes a change within these factories, the main computer systems get a little bit fried, perhaps even gain a modicum of self-awareness. Angelic and demonic can stay, but dont over-simplify things. Most priests wouldnt be any more concerned with gods than the average person. The system I created is very similar, with some differences. In this world i was playing with humanity had long ago developed nanotechnology as a means of improving quality of life; whether that meant cleaning up the environment, being used for medical purposes, or for body augmentation didnt really matter. You can have that, too, while still retaining rationality. Blood is messy and sticky and gets in the carpets and really why would anyone who doesnt consume it like a vampire want it as payment? This is where your magic system will become unique, even if it shares elements with existing works of fiction. I see some interesting potential with that. What effect does the use of magic have on the user? Only one. And the Aether is born from our Thoughts and Actions, more specifically, our Souls. Here we will get into seven different bases to help you create your unique magic system. What do you think? High Fantasy and Low Fantasy. While it can be fun to have wacky spells, wouldnt it be even cooler if you could reveal how your wacky spells all click together? Thats a larger imbalance. In fact, I suspect it might make more sense than what Chris Winkle says in the original article. I have three ways to get magic, and four types of magic, and several races of dragon. Also, how is this energy directed to a specific object and not blocked by everything in the way (including air?) My train of thought was a bit of a runaway train. Magicians have no power of their own except through the spirits they command. Human variation in magical ability is determined by how much excess soul they have, after running all of their brain activity. This person, the Avatar, bends all four plus spirit energy. What is the development of science, your description of kinetic or thermal energy makes me think the inhabitants have some scientific knowledge, but if thats the case why is it that they havent studied transpiration? Its implied humans discovered the thread and abandoned technology altogether, becoming more and more dependent on magic over the next few hundred years. If you send out powers, your brain stays in one piece and in the same place. How do I create a good naming system for the magic system in my Fantasy As fun as fantastical powers can be to write, crafting your magic system with care is key. Im currently working on subtypes to it but I am miserably failing. I forgot to mention the Towers :(. The brain does use relatively weak energy for thinking, so that would not reach far. The fantasy genre is one of the fastest-growing genres in fiction, and this also applies to science fiction/fantasy novels. Otherwise, your categories will feel contrived. This description generator will generate a short random description of a spell, including its effect, appearance and inventor. My main question is whether you think the weaving should be specialized; i. e., should I break it up into different types of thread/weaving style/knots? As a general rule, antagonists can use soft magic to solve problems, even though protagonists should only use hard magic. Holy magic is more reliable, but hard to learn. Im thinking at the beginning it requires some basic training to attune oneself to contact spirits, and from there its more a practice/strength of will thing. Powers are similar to Borne, but are not very draining. Theres three kinds of people: Apaths (Apath, sing. . So if you think multiple types would be cool, go for it, if you want to keep it simple, dont. .and It would probably look a lot less like the X-Men than a lot of fictional magic systems do. Hey Ryan R Im still plugging away at it (when Life lets me anyway! This would involve a preferred reference frame, breaking relativity (for a specific class of phenomena only) but disallowing time travel (I dont have anything against time travel stories; I just didnt feel like including it in my universe). For example: Your mum had speed enhancing paint you will have some form of it or Your mum had paint that could carry poison within it, your dad had paint that could take the physical appearance of slime and your grandma had paint that floats you now have floating poisonous slime paint.