Player's Guide to Magic within the Consortium
On Aroka, magic is a blanket term applied to forces that are believe to be supernatural. There are many ways this is determined, but it is typically reduced to anything that can't be understood by academic and scholarly experts. For more primitive peoples with limited understanding of science, this can be applied to nearly anything. More advanced peoples that have at least some concept of science and the technologies left behind by past civilizations are less hasty to label something as beyond the limits of natural laws.
The established civilizations, such as the three nations of the Tryvyum Trade Consortium, have their own refined definitions and uses of magic. Cogys has by far the most logical relationship with magic, believing it to be science they just don't understand yet and using their advances in science and technology to unlock its mysteries. Morydal takes a more utilitarian approach, understanding magic to be a means of divining the location of critical resources or dangerous threats, helping them survive in the unforgiving deserts of Duva. Ohedyn is very naturalistic in that it believes magic to be the manifestation of life itself, wielded by those most in tune with the natural world.
Each of the nations are right, to a degree. For a time, the three nations combined their different approaches to try and create a unified theory of magic and its potential. The Arcane Laboratory served as the center for discovery during its brief existence. After the Mageblast, which both figuratively and literally shattered the new magical academia, the study of magic in its entirety nearly ceased and much of the progress was buried, lost, or withheld from all but a handful of academic and scholarly elites. Each nation maintained their own style of magic, blaming the incident on the other nations and their approaches and uses of magic. Within the Consortium itself, the use of magic, regardless of method, is strictly regulated, preventing all but a few hand-picked practitioners to exercise their knowledge only when absolutely necessary.
The early days of the new restrictions on magic were a dark time for the Consortium. With the destruction of the Mageblast still echoing throughout the known world, attempts to stamp out unregulated magical use devolved into near anarchy. Any rumor or mere suspicion of magical practice resulted in the arrest if not worse for countless citizens. With no real means to determine the magical capability of an individual or whether or not they had recently used it, investigations and trials were similarly ineffective, resulting in many false convictions, imprisonments, and, in some cases, executions. Even if the Consort wasn't involved, individuals would sometimes take matters into their own hands, targeting those that they believed threatened their existence or way of life.
At the height of the chaos, a faction of magical practitioners began to take action, using their powers to fight back against anyone that opposed them. Though not confirmed, it is believe that the Consort had to train and utilize magic among their ranks to combat this new threat. With the violence and destruction quickly escalating, a tense truce was enacted until a diplomatic solution could be reached. This led to an agreement where those that wished to continue to practice and study magic could do so under the strict supervision of the Consortium. Those that refused were offered free passage to a nation of their choice, granted that the nation accepted them, insisting that if they were to continue their recklessness, it should be at their own peril far from the heart of the Consortium. If neither option was taken, the Consort made it clear that banishment or imprisonment were the only other choices. How many practitioners of magic chose which option is unknown, but the use of unauthorized magic within the Consortium nearly ceased and procedures were developed to better identify and apprehend those in violation of this new agreement.
Now, if someone is suspected of practicing magic within the Consortium, they are typically interrogated and/or followed by a Consort investigator. They can only apprehend the suspect if the use of magic is witnessed. Whether magical practice is confirmed or not, suspects typically befall unusual fates ranging from disappearances to unpleasant demises. Conveniently, the speculations associated with these events is enough of a deterrent for the general public to keep their hands clean of magic or at least exercise extreme caution if they insist of practicing. Unusual events or misfortunes are often blamed on the secret use of magic, further stigmatizing the issue to the benefit of the authorities.
Though the true nature of magic will be revealed through exploration of the world of Aroka, the players need to have a basic understanding of its nature so their characters can utilize it. Here are the major concepts and guiding principles necessary to use magic in gameplay:
- Magic is not a supernatural force within the world of Aroka. In fact, if not for the study of how to manipulate it, it would be indistinguishable from the natural world with only a handful of exceptions. Matter, when broken down to its most basic components, is energy. Magic, is the use or manipulation of this energy. As a result, magic is not a violation of the laws of nature, but an exploitation of them.
- Most sentient species on Aroka have excess energy that helps maintain their bodies and minds. This is absorbed from energy sources in their surroundings, namely sunlight, though other sources of energy can help sustain their Spirit, as it is often called. A notable exception to this is most Scourge, who very rarely have enough of a Spirit to exercise magic.
- Whether through natural talent or training, all beings with a Spirit can use this excess energy to influence the world around them. The simplest forms of this can include telekinetically interacting with objects. Though the maximum capabilities of magic is unknown, advanced uses include focusing this energy to deal harm, transferring energy to another to expedite natural healing, or, in extreme cases, changing the chemical or atomic composition of matter.
- There are many ways to learn how to effectively use magic, but practice and tying certain actions to memories is crucial. Sights, smells, sounds, tastes, and other senses as well as focusing of certain emotions or memories are key to perfecting the art and science of magic.
- For the vast majority of practitioners, the greatest limitation to magic is its power source: the Spirit. Though the Spirit can draw upon energies from its surroundings, it is limited in its capacity and takes time to recover. Those that push past their limits will often end up drawing upon the energies used to keep their bodies and minds functioning, leading to mental and physical damage. Repeatedly pushing these limits leads to derangement and the decaying of the flesh.
- Whenever using a magical ability or spell, imagine that your character is using their Spirit as an extension of themselves to manipulate the world around them, whether it be kicking up a cloud of dust, hurling the flames from a campfire at an approaching enemy, or changing the chemical composition of a piece of armor or shield to make it more resistant to damage. use your imagination, but think of using magic as your Spirit utilizing physics, chemistry, and quantum mechanics to bend the world to their will. You can't make something out of nothing, but you can take what's around you, including the energy of your Spirit itself, to create what you need.
- Abjuration: Use your Spirit to protect yourself or others.
- Conjuration: No Calling, Summoning, or Teleportation. Creation magic is possible, but you can't make something out of nothing. Magic healing is just accelerated natural healing, but it's rarely fast enough to be effective in combat.
- Divination: No Scrying.
- Enchantment: Influencing and controlling others through magic is incredibly difficult, but not impossible. The easiest varients are inflicting conditions such as confusion, sense-deprivation, or other debilitating effects.
- Evocation: No current limitations.
- Illusion: Creation illusions that everyone can see is much easier than trying to manipulate the mind or sense or a certain individual or group. Still can't make something out of nothing.
- Necromancy: No Undead.
- Transmutation: Difficult, especially polymorph.
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