Mithradites 1161 Share Posted February 27, 2015 Reorganizing Arcane Magic The Arcane school had never been so actively practiced in all of its long history. Those using it were proficient in many schools, and many mastered the deepest aspects of their chosen craft--summoning beasts of great power, conjuring plumes of fire with a thought, and pouring power into deadly enchantments. It truly was a time for Arcanists to flourish and reveal every mystery of the void. But little did they know that the void had secrets unknown to even the most studious mage. The great number of minds creating and pulling within infinity bore an unnatural weight to the realm of nothingness. The void was not a conscious thing, but it had a nature, much akin to the wind directing a cloud, or the changing in the ocean's tide. A change was coming--no, not a change really, but a tremor. A ripple that would shift all that was known about the arcane schools. The void had no mind, but it would adapt. Something I wanted to do near the end of my time in the MAT (and near the end of the MAT in general) was to reorganize/combine arcane subtypes, and also define the limits of void-based physical weakness. Now that arcane is basically free-for-all with everyone able to learn everything, I figured I'd try to put some easier, definable limitations on arcane, as well as making arcane more convenient to learn. Many of the arcane branches have very similar functions, and have no business being separate subtypes (looking at you, five fundamentally similar evocations). What I want to accomplish is to give a reasonable suggestion for a single, reformed archetype of Arcane, with four subtypes: Sorcery, Wizardry, Thaumaturgy, and luxamancy. I'd also like to add extra abilities for some schools that are a tad sparse, but we'll see how much support this 'mission statement' gets first before we make knitty-gritty decisions like that. Sorcery (http://nahelus.deviantart.com/) Those that seek raw, undulated power look to the many skills of the sorcerer. Though all arcane magii are studious, those within the schools of sorcery are less inclined to learn from grand, dusty tomes. They learn through hardship, experience and above all, the continuous application of their power. Fueling their array of destructive forces with chaotic emotions and overwhelming willpower, they are individuals to be treated with caution. More-so, when they are in great numbers. Current Subtypes Tossed into this School -Electrical Evocation -Fire Evocation -Water Evocation -Earth Evocation -Wind Evocation -Arcane Evocation -Arcane Shielding Possible Additions: -Group-based super-spells: E.g. creating Blizzards, tornadoes, lightning-storms etc. -Combination spells: Fiery boulders, electrified water etc Wizardry (http://tira-owl.deviantart.com/) The slow and contemplative sect of Arcanists, the wizard is a bulwark of knowledge and study. They are beings of learning, who would more likely be found deep in a cavernous library studying the deeper mysteries of their art, rather than adventuring through the lands. Their skills lie mostly in the manipulation of the world around them, rather than the more direct route taken by the others schools. Wisdom and intelligence define this school, and those who are proficient are afforded great respect. Current Subtypes Tossed into this School -Transfiguration (includes enchantments, transmutation, and wards) -Telekinesis -Void Translocation Possible Additions: -Group-based super-spells: Teleportation, enormous wards, etc -Combination spells (though already possible in lore, greater afforded fluidity): Floating towers, larger things lifted, etc. Thaumaturgy (Thaw-mah-ter-jee. Shut up, I liked the name!) (http://mysticaldonkey1.deviantart.com/) Though arguably as studious as a Wizard, the Thaumaturge can be seen, often unjustly, as more sinister. Skilled in the study of life, these fringe-magii focus not on destruction, change, or trickery, but on creation. Preferring quiet laboratories to explore the workings of living beasts, they use their considerable arcane power create their own. For what purpose they do so is unknown. Perhaps such is why they are feared? But more likely because others would not understand. Current Subtypes Tossed into this School: -Conjuration (including morphons, primordials, and perennials) Possible Additions: -Binding creations in existence with a permanent slice of mana taken away from the user (unless the creature is de-summoned) -Non-existent, custom-designed creatures for higher tiers (so long as their biology is logical) -Attracting and trapping spectres, then binding them to their will. -Group-based super-spells: creating larger creatures with the combined mana of multiple Thaumaturges, summoning void-creatures and binding them to this world. Luxamancy (http://shininmysticice.deviantart.com/) More secretive than even a Thaumaturge, the Luxamancer heralds the school of manipulation and trickery. The school itself has a poor reputation, if only due to the individuals who are attracted to it. A Luxamancer is not one to be kept in the confines of a library or laboratory, and actively seeks subjects to test their power upon. They are devious and manipulative by their nature, and will rarely tell the whole truth in any situation. They ought to be considered dangerous, but you wouldn't have seen one anyway. Unless, of course, they wanted you to. Current Subtypes Tossed into this School -Light Illusion -Mental Magic -Cognitism Possible Additions -Group-based Super-spells: Grand illusions, invisible houses, memory rewriting. All the things written in here (especially the expansions and group-abilities) are all up for debate, and are hypothetical along with all other suggestions, here. This entire concept is, after all, a rough draft, so don't get too upset about decisions I made! Another important note that you may have noticed is that I have left out a number of arcane subtypes, notably bardmancy, beardmancy and the two Fi’hiiran anti-magics. This is because I couldn't find a place to put them (and because some of them are too silly). And even if I did, they were too out of place with the other ones. Better in my opinion to keep them separate, or remove them entirely. I wouldn't be opposed to joining the two Fi’hiiran magics together, though. More importantly, the simplification of the subtypes allows for a more concise management of the main arcane weakness (That is, physical weakness) and also allows another weakness to balance out their power-boom. It furthermore makes arcane magic more convenient to learn--finding a teacher for four different fiddly evocations can be painful. As an Arcanist grows in power, they will inevitably find themselves drawn to the schools that interest them most. In many situations, of course, they will also delve into the studies of other arcane schools. Though the more advanced they become in their preferred school, the more other schools will feel... wrong. Mana doesn't flow as it should. Sometimes it is painful to use their secondary abilities, other times disastrous. These other schools in turn seem to stop mages from advancing further in their preferred school--those magics contradicting and prohibiting one-another. There are only two options for a mage at this time; to accept the limitations of their powers, or abandon these 'lesser' schools. There can no longer be total mastery of all magical schools. This means there will always be a varied number of 'average' mages, and also those of greater power. The two weaknesses can be summed up in this handy-dandy chart I threw together in MS Paint. Tiers are just a placeholder for whatever magical ability is measured with nowadays. (By the way, I didn't mention this before, but I feel that household magic ought to be the pre-beginner's magic. Just to have new folks ease into it, y'know? It's still non-combative) So, that's basically the rough draft of my idea. If you have any suggestions about implementation, or subtypes I have missed, or you're just a big complainer, or you dislike hamsters, or you think mince pies are delicious please comment, and throw you idea-pies in my face! You know you want me to! Remember that all names, combinations and abilities are not final! And there is no tl;dr you can bloody read it. 27 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ℤ∃ʁ∅ 823 Share Posted February 27, 2015 Looks nice to me! +1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nana 3 Share Posted February 27, 2015 If this were like this, maybe I'd try to start learning magic. 1+ from the newbie, me! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
๖ۣۜ§osa (E.G.I.E.) 520 Share Posted February 27, 2015 Well organized, well worded. Amazing read! +1 I also love the tiers, it's much more "realistic" if you will. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hydra 513 Share Posted February 27, 2015 Nope -1 locking mages to a school is not to fun most mages take from all the schools Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moot 1715 Share Posted February 27, 2015 It seems more like renaming Archtypes, and if I understand correctly, restricts people to a single archtype... Which if that is the case, I'm heavily against the idea. Not to mention, a lot of the "additions" are already largely possible. Edit: After looking over again, it certainly is pinning people into one archtype... It kills massive amounts of creativity, and actually damages a lot of lore already in place. -1 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dohvi 622 Share Posted February 27, 2015 This is actually a pretty interesting suggestion, and definitely a good read. Just a couple questions regarding the idea of limiting based on schools. First of all, my understanding of primordials is that they're a mix of conjuration and evocation, but wouldn't that be impacted by the ability and limitations that accompany casting from different schools? Secondly, you have Luxamancy, composed of entirely support magics. It makes sense to group them, but these are all mental things that can't do any physical harm. I worry that the limitations of the schools will have a negative impact on the interest people have in these less direct magics. Do you see focus on sorcery affecting the popularity of other schools like this one? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lima 773 Share Posted February 27, 2015 I do like the idea, however if this were to be implemented I have a couple comments. 1. The combination of evocations is usually fine, but anything regarding the nature of lightening evocation is absolutely terrible. It is indisputably the most powerful evocation when facing opponents due to its unrefined ways and "I always hit you" mentality. To allow it to bear combination with water and the likes in evocations just allows it to be further bound and controllable. I mean, honestly speaking I am calling for a lightening evocation nerf, in the current 'meta' of RP combat its nearly always used. 2. To my knowledge with the use of transfiguration and all its sub-types you find yourself having to know the evocation in question to apply the enchantment with a similar enchantment. I see this being a possible issue, maybe? 3. Maybe make a chart of school accessibility relative to tier, so that it can actually be enforced and observed? Edit: After looking over again, it certainly is pinning people into one archtype... It kills massive amounts of creativity, and actually damages a lot of lore already in place. -1 Which pieces of Lore in specific, if I may ask? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mithradites 1161 Author Share Posted February 27, 2015 (edited) It seems more like renaming Archtypes, and if I understand correctly, restricts people to a single archtype... Which if that is the case, I'm heavily against the idea. Not to mention, a lot of the "additions" are already largely possible. Edit: After looking over again, it certainly is pinning people into one archtype... It kills massive amounts of creativity, and actually damages a lot of lore already in place. -1 You call it restriction, I call it 'attractive variance.' What is the end result of learning magic? To be the best, like no-one ever was? Arcane magic is an onwards trek to be super-awesome at everything you get your hands on. Something that's missing (and has always been missing) from arcane is the perpetual 'okay' magic user. In my proposal, these people are the types who want a lot of options, so they keep themselves to more basic levels of magic, and won't actually hobble themselves. On the other hand, you have a guy who wants to be amazing at everything, but realises he can't! So he builds his abilities in one school to crazy levels, and then joins up with a mage of crazy skill in another school to co-create his dreams! He can't do it alone anymore, which kind of sucks I guess, but it does get him out and about making friends! And I think that's the most important thing! Are you feeling me, man? Are you hip to my jive? Are you down with the sickness? D'y'know what I'm sayin'? I sure don't! And does it really kill a massive amount of creativity? You can still get powers in other branches of magic. You just can't have it all as a tier five. You might have to restrict yourself to lower tiers! You might not get to be the best! You might have to come up with creative solutions to your problems. Does it damage lore? I didn't think of anything game-breaking here when I was writing it, so I really would appreciate knowing what's broken. This is actually a pretty interesting suggestion, and definitely a good read. Just a couple questions regarding the idea of limiting based on schools. First of all, my understanding of primordials is that they're a mix of conjuration and evocation, but wouldn't that be impacted by the ability and limitations that accompany casting from different schools? Secondly, you have Luxamancy, composed of entirely support magics. It makes sense to group them, but these are all mental things that can't do any physical harm. I worry that the limitations of the schools will have a negative impact on the interest people have in these less direct magics. Do you see focus on sorcery affecting the popularity of other schools like this one? That's a very good point about the primordials. I suppose it would certainly be difficult for a Thaumaturge (I'll call them my names for now. Let me live my dream!) to do so without knowledge in sorcery, but who is to say he wouldn't? He could have tier three in Thaumaturgy and tier two in sorcery, and get them, but that's assuming they would have access to that ability at tier three, which is information I quite purposely left out of this. If they don't have enough knowledge to do so anymore, they could always invite a happy sorcerer around to help! And then create and bind the **** out of that primordial, man. The answer to the luxomancy question is really the same as the first. You can always limit yourselves to lower tiers (though again, I am not yet aware which skills will land in what tier) or you could become really good at it, and just never be seen at all! And hey, lack of popularity? Not a problem. That just means the ones who do go to the effort to learn it will feel darn special. And rightly so! I do like the idea, however if this were to be implemented I have a couple comments. 1. The combination of evocations is usually fine, but anything regarding the nature of lightening evocation is absolutely terrible. It is indisputably the most powerful evocation when facing opponents due to its unrefined ways and "I always hit you" mentality. To allow it to bear combination with water and the likes in evocations just allows it to be further bound and controllable. I mean, honestly speaking I am calling for a lightening evocation nerf, in the current 'meta' of RP combat its nearly always used. 2. To my knowledge with the use of transfiguration and all its sub-types you find yourself having to know the evocation in question to apply the enchantment with a similar enchantment. I see this being a possible issue, maybe? 3. Maybe make a chart of school accessibility relative to tier, so that it can actually be enforced and observed? 1. I quite purposely left the abilities of the magics more to the wayside, and instead concentrated on the plausibility of joining them together in general. Though you do raise valid points about lightning evocation, that's not really a question I feel needs to be answered at this draft-stage. :P Maybe if it gets a little further than that. 2. As far as I know, that's not strictly true. I am sure any clever enchanter can study fire to the point of enchanting things with it. If it is true, though, grab yourself a sorcerer! Friends in need are friends indeed! Hmhm! 3. I did! I made a handy-dandy chart that does that thing you said! (Merged them all together for you!) Edited February 27, 2015 by Dohvi Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevie 1598 Share Posted February 27, 2015 sounds dank af makes mages not dumb and super saiyan 5 in 3.2 seconds. and i hate magic so thats saying a lot coming from me!!!! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
WuHanXianShi14 0 Share Posted February 27, 2015 Locking people to a certain archetype of magic simply sounds like a lock on creativity, so I'll have to give this a non-personal -1, sorry. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salvo 1831 Share Posted February 27, 2015 "i'm t5 in four different subtypes i win" ... +1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luxury 603 Share Posted February 27, 2015 "i'm t5 in four different subtypes i win" ... +1 We have a new magic blacklist for people like that. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitto 2307 Share Posted February 27, 2015 We have a new magic blacklist for people like that. exactly, also if you spent like 3 years irl in order to get t5 in four different sub-types and you just picked up a sword or something they win. magic gives you power beyond human ability that's why it's ******* /magic/ don't get pissed off cause you don't have the dedication to learn it. -1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GodEmperorFlam 3447 Share Posted February 27, 2015 exactly, also if you spent like 3 years irl in order to get t5 in four different sub-types and you just picked up a sword or something they win. magic gives you power beyond human ability that's why it's ******* /magic/ don't get pissed off cause you don't have the dedication to learn it. -1 Just pointing out, there is no "3 years IRL" anymore now that voidal magic is unlocked, anyone can simply make a character and be a master. Edit: Woops, forgot to post my opinion. I like the idea overall, after the clarification the OP made in regards to Kala's concerns. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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