Magic is from...

alsih2o

First Post
Where does magic come from in your world? Have you provided an explanation for it?

I would like to share the explanation of magic in my world, and see what you guys and gals have come up with.

In my campaign the world was created by Simus the uncaring. He wished to write a story so he reached into empty space and grabbed a clay tablet. Needing a language he commisioned the Ghost Dragon, a lonely mystic creature, to create one for him. The dragon spent many centuries creating a language for Simus to record hi history on the clay tablet with (this clay tablet is the world).

When the Ghost dragon returned from it's task it found that the eggs it had been sitting on previously had petrified. The GD shed many tears over its young and Fespa and Kalin, the artist and the academic, who were sisters and the first daughters of Simus, saw it's grief and gave the eggs life as the major races of the planet.

One race was superior,a nd spoke the language of the gods (magic). This race grew haughty, and some of them grew powerful indeed. Every word they spoke was magic, and their written language was magic. Their pretense grew until one of them challenged Simus himself. Using all of his magics he snuck into the viewing room of Simus, where he sat recording the deeds of all the races.

He snuck up on Simus and attempted to end his life with a dagger forged of pure magic. Simus caught him and snatched him form the ground by his neck. The vain mage, in an attempt to free himself spoke all of the magic he could to no affect. Simus decided he had ebough of these haighty humans and spoke to his two dogs- Aphus and Magus, and said to them "Kill everyhting that speaks this language."

The dogs made short work of the mortals, even with their magic protections.

Centuries later, as men settled and formed cities some of the old writing was foudn and deciphered. Each word that was deciphered was a verbal component. Each gesture of their dances was a somatic component. The words left a taste in the mouth that hinted at material components.

Anyone else?
 

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In my campaign, Arcane magic was brought into the world in the Year of Awakening, due to a huge magical explosion brought about by visitors known later as Ancients. Prior to that time, only Divine Magic was available, and only existing gods could grant it. Arcane Magic's only been recently available, about 1000 years, and people have only recently adjusted to the changes it brought about.
 

Might as well ask where water comes from, or clouds, or goblins....it's something some greybeards concern themselves with, but nobody really cares, as long as we can still get our mending and our healing and our occasional ability to kill a lot of people.
 

In my world, arcane magic is a flowing natural force from within the world itself (how it came to be I have not answered, but it is not a god or gods). There are points in the world where the magic flows strongly outward and disperses across the region, and there are others that gather the magic pulling it back into the earth. Near the areas of outward flowing magic, the strength of magic is increased, but it is harder to control as well. In the gathering areas, the power is diminished until at the actual point, it is essentially anti-magic.
 

Great backstory!

IMC, the Creator God Ormazd and his shadow Ahriman struggled through the ages until their final meeting in the greatest city of the age.

The city is now a blasted desert in which no creature lives.

It is not known whether Ahriman was killed or exiled, but most sages believe it was the latter: he was trapped in the shadow of the world, a place from which he constantly tries to return.

It is not known whether Ormazd was shattered in this battle, or whether he sacrificed himself afterward. We do know that the myriad spirits that inhabit the High Country first appeared after the battle, and that they each have a spark of divinity in them, and can perform magic.

Sorcerers are those who have befriended one or more of the myriad spirits, and can call on favors from them.

Wizards are those who have studied ancient ritualized bargains struck with spirits: by performing a ritual, they can call a spirit to their assistance.

Clerics are those who pay allegiance to one of the more powerful of the myriad spirits, and by serving that spirit, are granted powers.

Psionicists are at least partly spirit themselves, and perform magic directly.

Magical items have spirits bound within them, sometimes willingly.

It is worth noting that the myriad spirits have myriad intelligences and myriad goals. Not all of them value freedom, or value power, or value their own existence. It is also worth noting that some scholars believe Ahriman was also shattered in the final battle, and that some of the spirits harbor his essence.

There is an order, who call themselves Paladins, who believe that Ormazd relies on us to reassemble him, and who worship Ormazd as the Godhead. They are able to turn and destroy spirits--except that what the spirits consider destruction, the paladins consider reuniting with the Godhead.

Daniel
 

Pielorinho said:
Great backstory!
Daniel

Thanks, a large part of my world came form the urge to use the line "Kill everyone who speaks this language!"

I originally tried to write a sci-fi story around it, but it turned into a campaign setting :)
 

In my world, magic is part and parcel with the cosmology of the planes. The prime materials (plural, I've always liked the idea of near-infinite prime material planes) get their magic by association with the inner, outer and transitive planes. Worlds cut off from the planar cosmology lose their magic and magical creatures die out (not right away, rahter they become infertile and if applicable mortal). The powers commonly exile worlds that advance too far technologically, leading them to lose all vestiges of magic and end up like, well, us.
 

alsih2o said:
Thanks, a large part of my world came form the urge to use the line "Kill everyone who speaks this language!"

I originally tried to write a sci-fi story around it, but it turned into a campaign setting :)

A campign setting that I am enjoying quite a bit! alsih2o has this world memorized right down to the crap stains on dwarven guard #43's undies.
 

Considering that the primary unique feature of my weekly Tainted World campaign revolves around the fact that arcane magic has become tainted, often corrupting those that use it as well as those affected by it, I'd have to give a definite YES. As the heros work to battle against the Taint and those infected by it, they will uncover more information about the nature of where magic comes, possibly even discovering the source of the Taint. I'd reveal more, but some of my players frequent the boards, and I don't want to give away any spoilers.
 

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