Magic

"Before the Principia Arcana, every magician had to reinvent magic from base principals."

— from A History of Arcane Science, University of Carbury Press

Magic is, in its most basic form, the manipulation of spiritual energies to produce an effect in the physical world. All people have the power within them to perform magic, if they take the years to learn it. This power can also be placed with objects and imprinted with particular effects by the craftsman. In the Empire of Albion there are many alchemists, talismongers, and artificers who produce magical items and sell them in every town of note.

Idiosyncratic Magic

Throughout most of history, magic was believed to be fundamentally idiosyncratic, in that the spells created by one magician could not be taught directly to another. The structures of spells and other magical workings were highly sensitive to the conditions in which they were cast, and most especially to who was doing the casting. While grimoires of magical spells existed, they were only of use to the magician who had invented the spells; other magicians would have to invent their own versions based on their understanding of the basic principals of the art.

This quality of magic proved a great limitation upon its use. While powerful magicians existed (such as the Living Gods, they were rare and dependent on having the time and resources to spend decades learning the principals of magic, and inventing their own spells from scratch. Also, these spells were highly variable in their use and application, and sometimes there would be magical effects that could only be produced by one individual, and then never reproduced by another. With such limitations, magic was unable to permeate all aspects of life, and remained a tool of a small and powerful elite.

Universal Magic

The state of magic changed dramatically in 1687, with the discovery and publication of the principles of Universal Magic. Sir Edwin Harlowe, a magician and scholar from the University of Carbury, discovered a set of spells that were insensitive to who was casting them, and could be taught by one magician to another. Even those who had not mastered the theoretical underpinnings of magic at all could learn to cast these spells, which had reliable and predictable effects.

The change this wrought on society cannot be understated. With the introduction of Universal Magic, experts could design spells, concoct alchemical formulae, or draft blueprints of magical artifacts, and then sell these designs to tradesmen for mass manufacture. The armies of Taloi and other constructs found throughout the Empire are examples of Universal Magic, as are the potions and talismans for sale in shops in every town.

Sadly, not every form of magic has yet been rendered into Universal form. As spells grow more complex, designing a Universal Variant is exponentially more difficult, and there may be some spells that can never be rendered Universal. One notable example are the rites that allow a magician to bind their soul to a body of worshippers and become a Living God; this has long been of interest to certain people, but in all of history fewer than fifty people have ever been able to perform their idiosyncratic version. Other challenging spells include the manipulation of time, the restoration of true youth, and the spells to create and transmute matter. But there are always researchers working on these and other problems, and they may one day find Universal options for all magical effects.

Type

Metaphysical, Arcane

Definitions

Formula - A single use alchemical concoction that produces a particular effect when consumed properly.
Talisman - An object designed to route power towards a particular spell, allowing those who do not know it to cast it anyway.
Artifact - An object imbued with its own permanent magical effect.
Construct - A type of Artifact, which has a spirit inhabiting and animating it.

Sir Edwin Harlowe and the Principia Arcana

The Principia Arcana is one of the most influential books ever published in the Empire of Albion, and provides the foundation of their industrial magic use today. Harlowe was a mage and a scholar, and was the Chair of Alchemical Studies at the University of Carbury. He was deeply interested in the fundamental underpinnings of magic, and would invent dozens of versions of the same spell in order to test theories about how magic truly functioned. When he realized that one of his spells had no requirements related to the caster, he was fascinated and spent the next seven years testing and refining it until he had discovered the mechanisms underlying Universal Magic. Like many breakthroughs, these mechanisms seem obvious to us in hindsight, but until he demonstrated their practical use, nobody believed that Universal Magic could exist. It was this discovery, more than any other, that permitted the development of modern Albion.

"One can be aware of something, and choose not to tell everyone about it."

— Elissa, the Living God of Qartis when asked why the Living Gods had not discovered Universal Magic