Magic in Averius
Note: This is a Heavy WIP...
History of Magic
WARNING PAGE IS WIP
Basis of Magic
The Basis of magic in the Empire is the use of Aether, a magical substance that is present both within an individual and permeating all of existence. The study of the Aether is still ongoing and there are many things that are still known about Aether and the magic it fuels. Due to the basis and use of Aether, magic used by the citizens of the Empire is generally called the Aetherium.
Limits on Magic
It is rare to be magically adept in the Aetherium. Only about 1 in every 10,000 people are considered Adept and thus able to reliably use the Aetherium. Even amongst the Adept, without Aetherium Crystals, some spells may be unusable as some may not have the innate magic control or ability needed to direct the magics.
In order to use Aetherium-based magics, Aetherium Crystals or stones are needed to act as a focus for the magic, being directed by the will of the Adept.
Aetherium Crystals
Aetherium Crystals are concentrated deposits of Aether that can be used as catalysts for spells enchantments, and other uses of magic. These crystals are extremely rare, with there being only ten known deposits within the Empire.
Rituals
Rituals are the basis of almost all Aetherium-based magics. Rituals typically use chants, poems, hymns, songs, or prayers in conjunction to arithmancy and runic-based ritual circles and patterns.
Areas of Magical Importance
Aetherium Observatory
The Aetherium Observatory is a massive chamber under the Imperial Palace that houses massive runic and arithantic arrays for various rituals and spells.
Imperial Pantheon Complex
The Imperial Pantheon Complex has many ritual circles and much of the buildings have some form of Aetherium Crystals incorporated into the structure of the buildings. The insides of the buildings and pathways are known to glow at night as the magic from the crystals causes them to glow in a variety of colors.
The Seven Schools of Magic
Elemental Magic
One popular usage of Aetherium is Elemental Magic. Elemental Magic allows for the manipulation or creation of various elements.
| Magic | Summary | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Fire Elemental Magic | This magic creates heat and flames | This magic is thought to function by either magically induced oxidation reactions or by magically induced molecular vibrations. |
| Ice Elemental Magic | This magic creates ice and removes heat. | This magic is thought to function by either freezing moisture in the air or by conjuring ice. |
| Air Elemental Magic | This magic creates air currents. | This magic is thought to function by magically induced air pressure manipulation. |
| Water Elemental Magic | This magic creates water. | This magic is thought to function by either magically induced condensation of moisture or by conjuration of the water. |
| Earth Elemental Magic | This magic creates mineral and metal objects. | This magic is thought to function by either magically induced conjuring of minerals or metals or by manipulating nearby mineral concentrations. |
| Lightning Elemental Magic | This magic creates lightning. | This magic is thought to function by magically induced generation of static electricity or by magically induced manipulation of electrostatic concentrations. |
| Light Elemental Magic | This magic creates light. | This magic is thought to function by either magically induced light emission or by amplifying light already present. |
Alchemy
Alchemy is at its core, a critical field of magic. This magic uses rituals in coordination with various astrological and arithmancy sequences on a runic array. Alchemy uses those rituals to create potions and elixirs, transmute one material into another, or to enhance the expression of certain magics without runes actively on an enchanted object.
Enchantment/Artifice
Enchantment and Artifice involves the creation of enchanted objects and artifacts, respectively. Each uses rituals, arithmancy, runic arrays, and other methods to enchant various objects with various effects. The main difference between Enchantment and Artifice is that Artifice imparts magical effects permanently to the enchanted object, usually through the use of Aetherium Crystals and master craftsmanship.
Holy Magic
Holy Magic, uses rituals with songs, chants, hymns, prayers, and poems, to cast spells. This magic is the most mobile of the Seven Schools of Magic because the ritual circles can be cut into Aetherium Crystals to be invoked at any time.
There are some spells that act similarly to a curse but is only imparted upon a willing person. One example is a spell that enables a couple of two seperate species to conceive a viable child.
Healing Magic
Healing Magic is a useful and diverse magic, used to heal persons of injuries and ailments. The only real limit to the healing magic is that it can not cure death.
Battle Magic
Battle Magic is a diverse set of magics that uses enhancement spells, usually in conjunction with enchanted objects or artifice. A common use is to use Battle Magic to enhance weapon or armor performance. Another use is Artillery Spells that allows a person to be able to replicate the effect of artillery without needing artillery. Explosive Spells are a subset of Battle Magic that allows a user to create explosions or enchant certain objects to act like explosive mines.
Dark Magic
Dark Magic has several subsets of magic that are grouped together because of their use being too powerful, too difficult to remove normally, or imparts an effect onto an unwilling target.
Curse Magic, as a subset of Dark Magic, imparts magical effects onto a target unwillingly, usually to the detriment of the cursed person.
Transfiguration Magic, as a subset of Dark Magic, imparts forces a person to become a different species. Depending on the spell, the cursed person's mind might not be affected.
Crystallization Magic, as a subset of Dark Magic, demolecularizes a person and reconstitutes a person's body and magic into an Aetherium Crystal.
Aetherion is a subset of Dark Magic spells. Aetherion is a kind of magic weapon. These spells convert a person or person's body for use in the spell to essentially replicate the effect of dropping a bomb onto a target. One variation could essentially melt any object, mineral, or metal within a 25 meter radius of a target with 10,000 K temperatures. There are other variants of the Aetherion spells, but they act similarly. The main downside is that the caster must be able to see the target or the spell will target the caster.
Imprisoning Magic, as a subset of Dark Magic, is a magic used to contain prisoners within a set area. This some spells in this magic also prevents spells from within the imprisoning spell area to affect areas outside of the imprisoning spell area. Most of these spells act as a tether keeping a person within a radius of a specific spot. These spells also include spells which counter the same spells.