I keep hearing that the magic in the books is really great, but what does that mean?
1. What are the physics of the magic? Is it like a magical wind that can pool and collect in areas possibly changing things in the physical world. Or maybe magical field projected by all living things. Or a corrupting force that we are not meant to know? Perhaps it involves manipulating nature spirits or beseeching gods for help. How about a well of inner power that only those highly trained in magic can access giving them incredible physical abilities.
2. What are the costs to using magic? Does is drive you insane, corrupt your soul, or body. Are you stealing life force from others, or from yourself. Maybe you anger gods or need to go on quests to keep their favor. Perhaps it is dangerous and can easily backfire causing everything from a cold breeze to a demon summoned.
3. How do people interact with the magic? Ancient words that the living magic field responds to. Perhaps to takes time and effort to stich strands of mana into a device that can be activated later. Talking with spirits and asking them to do things. Simply using your intense physical training to access your inner strength. You have a very personal relationship to an element, through family history or having been consumed by it and lived. Maybe everything is just magical science and requires a laboratory and the right substances mixed into potions or powering magical machines.
4. How does magic affect non-mages? Is there no hunger in the world. Teleportation circles take you anywhere you want to go. Is magitech normal and common. Does magic corrupt the land and mages are hunted down because they cause crop failures. Or maybe mages are just incredibly rare due to magical lottery and so if you see one they are probably either working for a king or emperor as their magical artillery or are trying to become the ruler of the land and you should probably start running now before you get caught in the crossfire.
5. Is the magic weird, does it have a sense of mystery or unnaturalness to it? Does understanding what is behind the magic cause you to lose just a little bit more of your sanity. Or the very existence of the magic causes unexplained phenomena such as milk going sour or plants rotting, frost to form in the area even on a hot day, etc. Do you have to interact with strange creatures that have weird rules like not feeding them after midnight. Or perhaps you have a space god locked up in your starships engine and it feeds on coal...
I guess my main beef is with D&D which looks at the above mentioned questions and gives a resounding shrug. I am just wondering if this is going to be another system with out any real flavor, or is it something that really drips with flavor and makes me want it.
Edit: Added #5
Note that I made this list largely due to brain dumping while working on my own magic systems. Probably accounts for the weirdness.
^2
1. What are the physics of the magic? Is it like a magical wind that can pool and collect in areas possibly changing things in the physical world. Or maybe magical field projected by all living things. Or a corrupting force that we are not meant to know? Perhaps it involves manipulating nature spirits or beseeching gods for help. How about a well of inner power that only those highly trained in magic can access giving them incredible physical abilities.
2. What are the costs to using magic? Does is drive you insane, corrupt your soul, or body. Are you stealing life force from others, or from yourself. Maybe you anger gods or need to go on quests to keep their favor. Perhaps it is dangerous and can easily backfire causing everything from a cold breeze to a demon summoned.
3. How do people interact with the magic? Ancient words that the living magic field responds to. Perhaps to takes time and effort to stich strands of mana into a device that can be activated later. Talking with spirits and asking them to do things. Simply using your intense physical training to access your inner strength. You have a very personal relationship to an element, through family history or having been consumed by it and lived. Maybe everything is just magical science and requires a laboratory and the right substances mixed into potions or powering magical machines.
4. How does magic affect non-mages? Is there no hunger in the world. Teleportation circles take you anywhere you want to go. Is magitech normal and common. Does magic corrupt the land and mages are hunted down because they cause crop failures. Or maybe mages are just incredibly rare due to magical lottery and so if you see one they are probably either working for a king or emperor as their magical artillery or are trying to become the ruler of the land and you should probably start running now before you get caught in the crossfire.
5. Is the magic weird, does it have a sense of mystery or unnaturalness to it? Does understanding what is behind the magic cause you to lose just a little bit more of your sanity. Or the very existence of the magic causes unexplained phenomena such as milk going sour or plants rotting, frost to form in the area even on a hot day, etc. Do you have to interact with strange creatures that have weird rules like not feeding them after midnight. Or perhaps you have a space god locked up in your starships engine and it feeds on coal...
I guess my main beef is with D&D which looks at the above mentioned questions and gives a resounding shrug. I am just wondering if this is going to be another system with out any real flavor, or is it something that really drips with flavor and makes me want it.
Edit: Added #5
Note that I made this list largely due to brain dumping while working on my own magic systems. Probably accounts for the weirdness.
^2
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