Schools/Classes of Magic

"Magic has no real schools. It has general 'classes,' if you will; broad strokes that unify certain areas or versions of the lunar-arcane. But schools are just how we mortals understand magic." - Unknown archmage

The lunar-arcane has been studied voraciously by mortals since the earliest days of the Age of Rebirth, and from those millennia of study, certain foundational understandings have been enshrined in arcane studies. Some of those understandings are catalogued here, specifically the "classes" of lunar-arcane that exist (which is to say, the different ways in which spells interact with magic) and the "schools" of magic (the different ways that mortals have classified spells in broad strokes). This article will also attempt to categorize these classes and schools together, to show (broadly) which schools of magic fall under which classes of the lunar-arcane.

Classes of the Lunar-Arcane

There are two main types of magic: arcane and divine. However, arcane magic is often divided further based off of how the user interfaces with the lunar-arcane and what form the strings of magic that are used take. These further divisions are arcane (representing study and formula), occult (representing eldritch evils and obscure rites), and elemental (representing primal connections to the elements).
Classes of magic are not intrinsically tied to certain schools of magic; however, certain schools (especially specialized schools) of spells do favor certain classes of magic. For example, many medicamancy spells are rooted in divine magic, but that isn't to say that only divine casters can access all medicamancy spells.

Divine

Divine magic is magic accessed from a connection to the divine. Whether that is in the case of a god granting a cleric access to the divine or a paladin swearing an oath, this type of magic is largely transactional/faith-based. This type of magic is explained in greater death in the Divinity and Its Origins article.

Arcane

Arcane is the mortal understanding and access of magic. Arcane magic is theorems and sciences; the study of magic to allow someone to access the lunar-arcane through hard work and dedication, rather than a connection to a god. In this way, occult magic is often not arcane, but it is still considered a subclass of it nevertheless, and can still bear many similarities to arcane magic.

Occult

Occult magic is largely two types of magic: that granted by a dark pact with a powerful patron, or that earned through rites and studies considered taboo and vile by the larger arcane sphere. The former is your warlocks who form pacts with unfathomable evils to gain access to arcane magic, while the latter is your witches and occultists who study profane arts and practice dark magics to access the arcane. In the case of the latter, occult magic is very similar to arcane, but it is taboo.

Elemental

Elemental magic is also considered primal magic by many. This is a way of accessing the lunar-arcane in a way that subverts arcane study (though elemental magic can still require scholarly work) and does not rely on or delve into taboo studies and pacts. Those born with a magical bloodline have access to elemental magic, as do those who draw on the primal power of the Titans and the Elemental Planes.

Schools of Magic

Schools of magic represent how mortals have tried to understand the lunar-arcane and the effects one can produce through its use. These schools are how mortal arcanists broadly categorize the different spells, sciences, and methods of magic that they have discovered and use. The main eight represent the broadest strokes of magic categorization, while the hybrid/off-shoot schools represent specific niches, hybridizations of schools, or taboo offshoots, or some mix of all three.

The Main Eight

Abjuramancy

Abjuring Magic

Abjuramancy is the study of manipulating magic to repel, abjure, and separate. Wards, banishments, and many runes are the work of abjuramantive magics.

Conjuramancy

Conjuring Magic

Conjuramancy is the art of conjuration, of moving matter, creatures, and energy through magic. Whether it is summoning a fiend from Iduran or teleporting across Emaxus, anything that has to do with the movement of things, creatures, or energy is often conjuramancy. Conjuramancers are interested in matter manipulation, largely.

Divinimancy

Knowledge Magic

Divinimancy seeks to understand the unknown, typically in a manner of divining the future. From the most basic of portents to the most complex of prophecies, divinimancy attempts to collapse the myriad fates and potential futures into specific omens, portents, and options.

Enchantamancy

Modification Magic

Enchantamancy is the science of enchantment. Whether it is enchanting of the mind or enchanting of items, enchantamancy has to do with magical modification, be it charming a person or engraving runes on a sword.

Evocamancy

Energy Magic

Evocamancy is all about energy. Evocamancers seek to learn the endless methods by which the lunar-arcane can be changed and modified to create different effects of energy. Evocamancy has the most off-shoot schools because of the niches that arise in this energy manipulation.

Illusimancy

Perception Magic

Illusimancy creates falsities. Illusimancy manipulates the lunar-arcane to create visual projections or auditory eminations. Illusimancy can range from creating flashes of light to changing the way something or someone appears in the lunar-arcane entirely.

Necromancy

Body Magic

Necromancy is magic related to the body. While not inherently evil, necromancy is most commonly represented and used as a magic involving reanimating and modifying the dead. While undead and reanimation does constitute a significant portion of necromantic studies and spells, there are necromantic spells related to the body in a more holistic manner. It is because of this common perception, however, that medicamancy is considered a separate off-shoot.

Transmutamancy

Change Magic

Transmutamancy is the act of changing things through magic. Transmutamancy can do everything from shaping dirt and stone to turning a cliff into a dragon; the only limit of transmutamancy is the user's knowledge and control.

Hybrid/Offshoot/Specialized Schools

Aeromancy

Air Magic

An elemental niche of evocamancy, aeromancy has to do with the manipulation of air. Whether creating a gust of wind or gale-force tempests, aeromancy is evocamancy applied to the open air.

Animancy

Soul Magic

A hybrid/specialization of conjuramancy and necromancy, animancy is magic related to the soul. Animancy can be benevolent, in the form of restoration and resurrection, or malevolent, in the form of using souls to fuel other magics. Animancy is rarely used on its own, and often paired with medicamancy/necromancy in the case of resurrections or a myriad of other magics in the case of channeling souls to amplify magic.

Aquamancy

Water Magic

A hybrid of evocamancy and conjuration, aquamancy has to do with the summoning, creation, or manipulation of water. Whether it is creating a tidal wave in an ocean or summoning rain after a drought, aquamancy is all about water and its creation/movement.

Chronomancy

Time Magic

Chronomancy, alongside gravitomancy, is formally banned in most respectable arcane institutions. Alindr, god of order and knowledge, decreed, "Thou shalt manipulate the constructs of reality, not its foundations," prohibiting mortal tampering of time and space; however, people have still discovered how to tug on the strings of time.

Cryomancy

Ice Magic

Cryomancy is magic based around ice, yes, but it differs from water magic in that it is focused largely on the transfer of heat energy. A cryomancer focuses on the deprivation of heat from water and steam and molecules in the air to create ice and ice-related effects. Thus, cryomancy is largely a niche of evocamancy.

Electromancy

Lightning Magic

Electromancy is concerned with the creation of plasma, and the use of lightning and plasmic energy to decimate foes. It is largely an offensive magic, and one that is considered highly dangerous in many arcane institutes as it requires a master of the finer points of evocamancy: focused energy manipualtion. However, those who can become master electromancers are truly awe-inspiring.

Geomancy

Earth Magic

Hybridizing the energy manipulation of evocamancy with the matter manipulation of conjuramancy, geomancy is interested in the manipulation of the earth: rock, dirt, and even metal. Novice geomancers can move pebbles; master geomancers can move mountains.

Gravitomancy

Gravity Magic

Like chronomancy, gravitomancy is officially banned in most respectable arcane institutions. It has to do with the manipulation, inversion, and multiplication of gravity itself. It is closely related to evocamancy and chronomancy.

Hemomancy

Blood Magic

Hemomancy is a hybrid of necromancy and transmutamancy. It has to do with the manipulation of blood, and the transformation of blood into an untold myriad of other forms. It is a largely taboo magic, but it does have its applications in medical magics.

Lunamancy

Lunar Magic

Lunamancy is an extremely powerful, extremely niche school of magic that can be hard to quantify. Essentially, lunamancers are interested in the moons themselves, not only as celestial bodies but also as generators of the lunar-arcane. Because of this, lunamancy involves the manipulation of the moons' effects, be it their weight on tides or their generation of magic fields. A true lunamancer can stop the tides and create temporary dead magic zones. As such, lunamancy is exceptionally rare and unimaginably difficult to learn. Horror stories of inexperienced mages trying to learn lunamancy and accidentally cutting their own connection to magic are uncommon, but not unheard of.

Medicamancy

Medical Magic

Medicamancy is very close to necromancy, but it ties in some evocamancy and conjuramancy and even transmutamancy ideas to create a large school of magic with many different forms. Medicamancy could be considered its own major school, were it no inextricably linked and borne from necromancy. Either way, medicamancy is simple in its intent, even if it is varied in its execution: magic related to medical applications, be they repairing minor lacerations or regenerating entire limbs.

Psychomancy

Psychic Magic

Psychomancy is magic related to the psyche. It is a niche school of magic and one that often has a bad reputation, but not for no reason. Psychomancers can rewrite people's entire personalities with their magics, as psychomancy blends enchantmancy and illusimancy to enchant the mind and trick it into believing and feeling things that are not true.

Pyromancy

Fire Magic

Pyromancy is perhaps the most famous of the evocamancy niche schools. Evocamancers care about energy; fire is energy. The connection is obvious. Pyromancy, at its most basic, is extremely easy to learn. Even the most novice evocamancers can spark a candle; however, at its most powerful, pyromancy can decimate cities. Pyromancy is all about energy manipulation to create flame; the better control and the more energy, the larger and more nuanced the flame.

Solamancy

Solar Magic

Solamancy is the penultimate niche school of evocamancy and conjuramancy. It is the ability to manipulate matter to such a degree as to create fusion, and control energy to such a degree as to keep that fusion under reins. A solamancer literally has the power of the sun in the palm of their hands. Solamancers are nearly unheard of, and solamancy is not taught in any arcane institution on account of the risks of learning it.

Telekinomancy

Telekinesis Magic

Telekinomancy hybridizes conjuramancy and abjuramancy to manipulate matter and use magic to abjure and repel. Telekinomancy is interested in the ability to move objects and creatures through space with little more than a spell. A novice telekinomancer can wrap a pebble in abjuramancy and lift it through the movement of those wards; a master can launch a dragon through a wall with a push.

Type

Metaphysical, Arcane