Magic, Alchemistry and The Endless Paths

Tevastra is a land of many mysteries. What is the origin of the monsters which appear seemingly at random across Tevastra? What is the source of arcane magic? What was the Apocryphon? How did The Pantheon of Saviours preserve life and bring it to Tevastra? Why?
One theory purports to relate all of these arcane phenomena, and to answer them - the Endless Paths. Scholars of the Collegium Arcanum have compiled records from as early as the Wandering Years, comparing accounts of miracles and demons, impossibilities and horrors. The culmination of this research, completed while the Empire of Avaros yet ruled humanity, indicated that magic and monsters were not native to Tevastra - just like the races that now called it home. This explained the longstanding observation that monstrous creatures seemed able to sense, and were drawn to, arcane magic. It also explained the accounts of many witnesses throughout history claiming to experience a strange blurring or warping in the air shortly before a monster attack. Finally, if true the theory revealed why certain spells were able to summon monsters as though from thin air.

Magic

Theories aside, the Endless Paths certainly exist and are accessed any time that a magic spell is cast. Wizards, druids and all other manner of spellcasters have each found unique ways to tap into the latent energy of this realm, which seems to exist in parallel to the physical realm. For example, magical teleportation is accomplished when a spellcaster briefly transfers their body into the Paths, using them to travel a great distance in mere moments before re-emerging into Tevastra. For those that have seen the Endless Paths with their own eyes, they appear as a mind-bending collage of shifting colours which seem to be slowly converging upon a distant point that never grows closer. These shifting colours cover the spectrum of visible light, and reflect the seven disciplines of arcane magic:

• Red - Elemency (Evocation)
• Orange - Deterency (Abjuration)
• Yellow - Cognation (Enchantment)
• Green - Alchemency (Transmutation)
• Blue - Communion (Conjuration)
• Indigo - Oculency (Illusion)
• Violet - Mortency (Necromancy)

Note: There is an unofficial eighth discipline of magic - Portency (Divination). Because the effects of its spells are difficult to accurately quantify, it is not taught at the Collegium or recognized as "true" magic. The power of Portency also does not seem to originate from the Endless Paths but rather from beings within the Paths. Practitioners of Portency, often called Oracles, use rituals to contact and appease mysterious beings which grant them insight into the past, present and future of Tevastra.
Those who study at the Collegium Arcanum are taught to draw increasing amounts of power from the Endless Paths, weaving its various colourful strands to influence the physical realm using an arcane focus and words of power. Precision and control are extremely important to this pursuit, since the energy of the Paths is difficult to control and can wreak havoc upon the physical realm if unchecked.
Others are able to access the Endless Paths through some innate, unlearned ability. The most notable of these are the druids, who form such a strong connection with the natural world that they are able to tap into the magical energies which exist in parallel to it. There are also sorcerers, those who are said to have been born with a small part of them existing permanently within the Endless Paths, giving them natural access to magical abilities. Finally, there are warlocks. There are entities within the Paths besides monsters, and some seem to contain power approaching that of a god. While these beings, perhaps thankfully, appear unable to enter or uninterested in entering the physical realm, they do influence it by making pacts with mortals. Such a person is known as a warlock, and they are typically granted the power of the Endless Paths in exchange for serving the entity's aims.
Besides arcane spellcasters, there is a completely separate tradition of magical use that has developed in tandem to the rise of organized worship of the Pantheon of Saviours, Divine Magic. Clerics and Paladins who have devoted their lives to the veneration of one of the Saviour Gods are granted a personal connection to a sliver of that God's power in exchange for their service. Based on the nature of this power, it appears that the Gods themselves wield the power of the Endless Paths, albeit at an infinitely greater level. For example, clerics of Virel are able to wield strands of Mortency to heal injuries and cure disease, and paladins of Hrogar are able to wield Elemency to smite their foes.

Alchemistry

The study of alchemistry is a far more recent development than the well-established study of arcane magic. It arose as a result of a similarly recent phenomenon occurring in Tevastra. Rarely, the Endless Paths spontaneously seem to create a rend in the physical realm, forming a "portal" of sorts in random locations. Invariably, monsters will emerge from such portals, remaining undetected for a long time if the portal had appeared in a remote area but causing potentially great destruction if the portal appeared somewhere civilized. Reports of such events first appeared just under a century ago, and their frequency appears to be increasing. Some theorize that these portal events have always been occurring throughout Tevastra's existence, but infrequently enough that they escaped notice. This would explain how there were tales of monsters before the discovery of portal events.
A by-product of these portal events is the formation of Apocryphite. Portals from the Endless Paths are never permanent and disappear after a few minutes, leaving Apocryphite at their site. Apocryphite is a rough, completely opaque gem-like substance which can appear in all the colours of the Endless Paths themselves (the spectrum of visible light). For several decades, Apocryphite was treated as a curious, potentially dangerous and valuable gemstone. About fifty years ago, a woman named Marei Courien from Dyr Tolen (known to history as the First Alchemist) discovered an amazing property of Apocryphite after many years of experimentation. The substance was essentially physically manifested magic, solidified and stabilized. The various colours of Apocryphite represented the seven forms of magical effects.

This discovery was an incredible breakthrough for the development of spellcraft. A problem which had long plagued the graduates of the Collegium Arcanum was the great difficulty in making magic permanent or widespread. A skilled wizard could repair a broken stone wall, or magically charm someone, or even turn a stand of trees into ash with magical fire - but only if they were actually there to do it, and only if they had the power available. Because of the limited number of people with the means and ability to receive magical training, this meant that magic was still a limited and precious resource which the common person might live their lives without ever witnessing. Apocryphite could change all of that. Courien found ways to refine and distill it so that the effect of a spell could be kept in a liquid form, within a specially designed glass vial. A fire spell could be kept stable and maintained inside a glass orb, creating an ever-burning source of light. With the cooperation of clerics of Virel, Courien even devised a potion which could cure injury and ailment.
This development was not met with universal acclaim. The leadership of the Collegium Arcanum was vehemently opposed to this new science of alchemistry, and perhaps with good reason. Marei Courien's work was cut short when she died unexpectedly - a concoction she had been working on meant to harden the skin to deflect weapons instead turned her completely to stone. The Collegium claimed that alchemistry was too inexact a science and that it would surely do more harm than good if its products became more widespread. Nevertheless, its uses could not be denied. Courien had amassed a large estate through her discoveries, and in her will had decreed that her fortune be used to construct and fund an "Academy of Alchemistry" in her home of Dyr Tolen. Since then, the Academy has graduated many brilliant alchemists and alchemistry has generally become accepted as a viable alternative to arcane magic (except in Ehr Nuvale, where it is completely banned). Whenever a monster attack occurs, afterwards it is a common sight for labourers from the Academy to show up to collect the valuable Apocryphite.

Type

Metaphysical, Arcane