Introduction to Thaumaturgy

Pierce through the s̵̵͘͢h҉̵͡҉͞r̀͢o̶̶̴͟u͡͠d͏̡̛͟ until you draw ichor-blood; you'll know it by the oily sheen, the bitter taste that coats the inside of your t̛ho͝u̧̢gh҉̀̕t̸̢s̶̕; then think like a tick! Drink, but not too much. Nȩ̛͢͏̧v̡́͜͞e̵̵̡͘͞ŗ̛̀͘͘͜͢͠͞ too much. Fill your flesh through the m͏͟ark͝͡s͝ and pour it out into the world around you, and we will bec̸̢o̷̴̡m̀͞͞͝è̵̴̕͠ ̵͝͞͏̵l̵͝͏̷͝í̧͏k̷̡̕͞͡e̡̕ ̛̀͡͞͝t̛̀͜ḩe̵͏ ̧̢͢s͢͜p͞͠͠į͏r̷̷̵͝i̡͘͝͏̢t҉͏ś͜͟͜͞ ̧̕͜͡҉a͏̶n͘͜d̢̛͘͡҉ ̴̡̀͢g̸̨̀͞͞o͜͞͠͠d̵̵͠͠͠s͡,̴͠ ̸̶́w̷̴̨h҉̡͜e̢̨͟ņ̀͠ ̷̴̨̨y҉̶̢͝ó̵̧ù̸̢̀r̵̢͞͡͞ ̨͞͡m̸͜i̴̛n̨͟͏d̨̡́͘͞ ̨́͘͢͟a̶̴͘̕n̶̢͘͜d̵͘͝ ̶͢͞f̶҉͏̡͢l̸͠͏͟͞e͢͟͡ş͘h̸̡̛͟͞ ͜͜͢͟b̢̀͝è̀҉c̢̀̕͜͞o҉̸̀m҉͝͡é̷̢͘ş҉̡̕ ҉͏ļ̧̕͘͞į͘͝k̴͜͡e̢͢͠͞ ̶̛͠t̕͝͞h̵̸̨͘e̢͜҉̧͝i̡̧͜͠͏r̷̶̛͢s̢̨͠҉͘.̴
Excerpt from the Key of the Black Star

Thaumaturgy, or Magic, is the combined school of occult knowledge for stealing power from things behind the veil of simple reality and pouring it into the world to make it malleable to human will. Like a parasite sucking blood, the occultist draws energy from terrible, alien things into her own flesh to fuel her powers.
But for all their confidence and for all they know, the Theurgs of Araea have only cast a single candle light into a vast darkness.

The Art of Thaumaturgy

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Power requires sacrifice. What's a bit of flesh here and there compared to this?

— Excerpt from the Key of the Black Star

At its core, Thaumaturgy makes reality more and less than it is. Most theurgs and mystics believe that the world beyond the veil is not one so strictly defined, but one of ideas, thought and possibilities. Thaumaturgy makes Araea more like that world by blurring the borders between worlds. From spears of stone to skewer opponents to the odd fungi-manipulation of the Shroomomancers, Magic reshapes the physical world through will and stolen power.

Centering

To reach the right state of mind required to work Thaumaturgy, Magi use a wide range of techniques and tools that are collectively known as "Centering". To shape a spell requires a rare sort of focus and vision, and the Magi who can do so without aid are rare. Most are dependent on Centering to aid their will and these techniques range from simple mantras and meditation to heavy use of psychedelics and ritual. There are as many ways to Center as there are Traditions in the world, with techniques being passed down from mentor to disciple or scrawled in blasphemous tomes.

Channeling

Shanessa's hair stood on end as she felt the energy begin to flow, a drip at first and then a flood. Her body felt cold and slick, like it had been submerged in icy slime. Her veins felt like they were writhing serpents and something dripped out of the scars on her hands. Judging by the way her attackers suddenly stepped back, she noted with a certain sense of satisfaction, they must have seen it too.

By piercing the veil between worlds, the theurg can bleed world-altering potential from the beyond and into Araea through their own flesh and bones. This is called Channeling, the act through which the theurg steal power from spirits and act as a conduit to the world around them. Channeling require the magi to be centered, to concentrate on the act of piercing through the shroud with their will and then direct the flow.
The most typical visualization is of a jagged point, though some traditions have other metaphors. Without being able to see, the theurg has to stab through the dark until they find and pierce a spirit, then draw the energy that flows from them into themselves. Only once the energy begins to flow in to them can they begin to shape the spell.
A lapse of concentration can disrupt either the flow or what is already in the magi. Flesh or bone can burst with the sudden release of raw power, or the world around them can violently warp way out of control.

Power Trip
Some grow addicted to the sensation of strange, alien energy flooding through their flesh and mind, to see cosmic landscapes dance in front of their eyes and hear the whisper of unknowable things. Others see it as an act of communion with the divine, an form or worship and sacrifice all at once. Most see it as madness and those who Channel simply to satisfy their impulses are often called "ticks" by other magi.

Like they center their minds, Theurgs mark their skin with ritualistic scars to center their bodies. These arcane symbols open their flesh to the flow of energy and allows the Theurg to function as a conduit, directing the flow from the unfathomable beyond and into the world.

While most spirits are blind and mute to the parasites draining them of power, not all are. Some turn their gaze to the magi who drink of their essence and react. The more violent and more deeply the magi drink, the more likely they are to draw a response from beyond; something most strive to avoid.

Ebb and Flow
The spirits follow their own eternal wandering, with motives and plans beyond the ken of any mortal. How many spirits, and by extension how much power, is in any given area can vary dramatically. With fewer spirits, the magi can draw on less power to fuel their magic.

In the current age, there is only one way that humanity has managed to draw the ichorous energies of the spirits without scarring their bodies and that is through the dissolution of Desolation. They can hear the whispers of the spirit and, unique among all magi, see them. Most do not envy them, for they describe chthonic horrors with no more concern for humanity then man has for ants.

Shaping

A flickering light cast the shadows into dancing flight around them. It was the only opening Shanessa needed and she centered her will upon the dancing fire. The ichor seeping from her scars smoldered like embers as she released the energies out and towards that needle of candle light. It flickered once, then started to grow with every wild beat of her heart.

As they Channel energy from beyond, the theurg shape it to acquire the change they are after. It can be compared to pouring water on clay to make it malleable, allowing the theurg to force the world into new, impossible forms. In essence, Thaumaturgy can broadly do three things:
Create or Grow - By feeding the energy into the world, the Theurg can turn a candle light into an inferno or daggers into swords. The change only persists as long as the magic does, crumbling or fading as soon as the energy is cut off. As long as they have access to some of their intended target, the Magi can create more. Matter created through Thaumaturgy is rarely subtle about its origin, warped by the alien origin of the power that created it.
Control or Warp - The Theurg can reshape the world, turning a slope into a set of stairs or make fires dance and shimmer like a rainbow. This is usually used together with Creation but used on its own the effects are usually permanent, though not all changes can sustain themselves when they are no longer reinforced by the flow of power. Two of the most common uses are sculpting or movement.
Destroy or Reduce - With a sharp, sudden flux of power, rock cracks and turns to dust or flesh rips violently. A crude technique on the surface, to destroy can be used either as a scalpel or sledgehammer.
Skilled Theurgs combine the different aspects into the same spell, growing and warping matter with the same thought or destroying something to replace it with something else.

The magnitude of change a magi is capable of is equal to their skill and how much power they can channel. With experience, the magi can learn to do more with less, but only to an extent. Once shaped, the Channeling is used in two different ways: Channel and hold, or channel and pour. One maintains the effect at its current stage, while the other allows the magi to continue affecting their spell.

The Limits of Power

Magic can affect anything that the Magi can see, from metal to stone to shimmering fields of radiation... But only what they can see. Time, emotion, minds and other ethereal concepts remain stubbornly outside the grasp of Thaumaturgy, despite the best attempts of Magi. Thaumaturgy focuses on the physical world.
Thaumaturgy require the medium that the theurg intends to shape her spell around. Without it, they have nothing to focus on or anchor to spell into. While Theurgs can in essence create matter or fire out of thin air, they need that first spark to be able to do so. In other words: thaumaturgy cannot create fire out of thin air, but if they have even so much as a tongue of flame they can create an inferno.
Beyond that, the Magi are limited by imagination, willpower and their own skill. For every common school of arcane knowledge, there is one that focuses on something bizarre and unexpected.

Invisible to the eye, the spirits themselves have been beyond the reach of Thaumaturgy but with one exception: those who suffer late stages of Desolation. As their vision slips between worlds and they see the great beyond, they become the only magi who can work thaumaturgy on the very source of their powers.

Tools of Thaumaturgy

Besides using their own flesh and minds to work Thaumaturgy, theurgs have over the centuries devised a numbers of tools to aid them in their workings. These come in two categories: Foci and Vessels.

Foci

Foci are tools that help the Magi to Channel or Shape. Unlike the incense or drugs that a Magi might take to aid them in their Centering, Foci are capable of either holding or directing the flow of energy directly. As such, they are as rare as they are valuable and any Magi who possesses a Foci will guard them jealously.
Foci are take any number of forms, from staves to gauntlets, but each is made out of the rare few materials capable of the feat. They are engraved with runes and markings similar to those that adorn the flesh of the theurgs, with some traditions maintaining that certain sacred shapes or geometries are more efficient then others.

Void-Steel
There are only a handful of materials in all of Araea that work for constructing Foci. Void-Steel, found only in the darkest tunnels in the Far Deep, is an ore that can be worked into a form of metal so dark it seem to devour light. The art of working void-steel is known to very few.

No Foci last forever. The strain of channeling the unearthly energies from beyond will inevitably begin to twist and warp the Foci until it becomes useless. The more the Magi rely on it, the more rapidly the Foci will deteriorate. Some cracks and twists can be repaired, but all Foci sooner or later crack from the strain.

Repositories

They thought they'd won. Already, they were taunting, gloating, circling her like Chiwara bugs around a bleeding prey. Shanessa's hand closed around the oddly shaped crystal, her fingers digging into the runes. It cracked, and she showed them the depths of their error.

Repositories are objects that work as storage for the energies Thaumaturgy uses to shape their spells. Like Foci, there are only a handful of materials in the world that work for the task but fortunately for the theurg, they are not quite so rare. Constantly holding a charge of energy mean the Repositories deteriorate much more rapidly than Foci and they are much more vulnerable to damage. Damaged Repositories are prone to leaking or violently discharging their content.
Attempting to store a great deal of Repositories in the same position often attract the attention of spirits; sometimes, hungry ones. For these reasons, Magi with the ability for crafting Repositories do so when they expect they'll require the extra energy or attempting some great work.

The knowledge of creating Repositories is much more common than how to create a Foci. The correct material must be prepared with markings and runes that allow it to hold the energies, then the Magi channels with the would-be Repository as their focus. Care must be taken not to pour more into the Repository then what it can hold or the Repository will break. Once the Repository has been filled with the desired quantity, the Magi must lock it by altering the runes without allowing their focus to drift away from holding the energy in place.
To use Repositories, the Magi unlocks it again, either by physically breaking it and harnessing the power as it escapes or if the object is too sturdy to break, by altering the runes once more. While Repositories provide a reliable source of power without risking the attention of spirits, overcharging from trying to harness too much too fast is still a risk and a danger.

by 000Fesbra000

Thaumaturgy Terms

Theurg - A practitioner of Thaumaturgy. Also: Magi, Occultist, Wizard, Warlock, Sorcerer.
Channeling - The act of focusing and directing the flow of energy used for Thaumaturgy.
Shaping - The sorcerous act of turning the energy gathered through Channeling into the desired effect.
Imbuing - Binding spells into an item (or individual) for long-term use or storage. Also: Enchanting, Artifice
Centering - The disciplines with which a Theurg focuses her will and achieves the necessary state of mind of channeling and shaping.
Spell - The final effect; the magic being unleashed upon the world.

Spirits
Alien and immortal, the spirits of Araea are primordial things. While not all are hostile, almost all are simply too strange for humanity to effectively communicate with, failing to share even basic concepts like time or space.
Most are ethereal and out of sight, visible and tangible only when bound or compelled by spellcraft; a sure way to earn their full wrath.
Read about Spirits

Overcharged

The energy they draw on was never meant for mortal flesh to hold. Some drink too deeply either out of greed, desperation or ignorance, and suffer accordingly.
There is a limit to how much the human body can hold and if that limit is passed, they begin to bloat, crack or mutate.

Traditions of Thaumaturgy

"Traditions" is a term for a magical convention, of thought and ritual. These schools provide a framework for the Magi to use to help them visualize their channeling and shaping as well as providing tried and true tools of centering. While all draw from the same basic principles, there are endless variations of expression.
Many traditions also teach a great deal of practical knowledge, such as the shroomomancers about all the different mushrooms or the metal-shifters expertise with metal-working.

Common Traditions:

Shroomomancy is focused on the vast variety of mushroom, fungi and lichen that grow across the wasteland. While their thaumaturgy is less impressive then casting fire or warping stone, they are usually only underestimated once.
Stone-Singers are not one singular tradition, but many different variants that all focus on the most common element in the deep: stone.
Blight Magic wield one of the most feared forces as a weapon: blight, or radiation. Dreaded as they are, many of them suffer for the constant proximity to the element of their choice. "There are no elders of blight magic" goes one saying, and most burn out brilliantly.

Cost and Consequence

Power has its price. The energies that the magi draw on is unnatural and alien. Thaumaturgy changes those who use it and they begin to take on aspects of the magic they weave as the link between them and what they change goes both ways. Those who draw deeply and often are more quickly change, while the more careful can avoid the change.
Some transformations are temporary but in time become permanent. The more the Magi use her powers to change the world, the more it changes her.

by Tom McWeeney

Learning Thaumaturgy

Thaumaturgy is a secretive art, its practitioners shunned and feared by the superstitious masses. No matter how powerful or useful, theurg delve into darkness best left alone. It is a lonely path to thread and those who chose it do tend to be either very driven or very desperate, and those who seek it go to great lengths.
The most common way to learn is to become the disciple or apprentice of an existing theurg and hope to learn from them. Others find tomes of occult, forbidden knowledge that unlock the secrets of thaumaturgy, or listen to the whispers of rare artefacts like the Verðandi. The secrets of Thaumaturgy always demand sacrifice.

by François Launet

Rites and Rituals

Many occultist use lengthy rituals to work difficult Spells. By working slow, Channeling and Shaping over hours instead of seconds or minutes, the theurg can work Spells that would otherwise be impossible. But working rites present their challenges, and Magi have to stretch their Centering and focus across the entire rite.
The incense, chanting and circles etched into the ground often have no power in them selves, but provide the occultist a framework around which to center themselves; steps to walk through to keep their focus and cope with the strain of channeling and shaping. Some few things, however, directly help the Magi work their ritual magic.

Sacrifice
While the folk-tale of human sacrifice as the climax to the blasphemous, sorcerous rituals are common, the practice is not. No occultist have ever drawn power from sacrificing another life and the idea does not fit with what they know about Thaumaturgy.
That doesn't mean that it doesn't happen. The delusional or cruel sometimes find a place for sacrificial rites, but in such cases it is about pageantry and religious fervor, rather then practical application