The 3 Laws of Magic

Excerpt from Chapter 12 of Omnia Magicka
The 3 Laws of Magic

Gabriel Suzette the First of His Name, Royal Alchemist to the Phendorian Empire

…Magic can be unpredictable at the best of times and a disaster at the worst, even by the most talented caster. The very nature of magic itself seemingly exists to break the natural order and break the laws of physics. The universe can react violently and immediately to many spells, especially in the hands of a novice.

However, Magic is not the living fickle entity that it seems to be. In fact, it is actually a part of the universe as a whole. Magic exists side-by-side with the other forces within our world. Mr. Wesson, Enchanter of Wesson & Smith Inc., stated it best as: “Magic is a natural force, distinct yet intertwined within the fabric of our reality”. This is the basis of the first law of magic.

1. Magic exerts its force on everything within the universe at all times.

Spellcasters do not simply conjure effects, or create magic, they tap into a source of magical power. Naturally, different spellcasters are inclined to different sources of magical energies. For instance, Wizards and Sorcerer’s will most often tap into the Arcane Ley Lines. Ley Lines are high concentrations of magical energy that flows beneath the world. Magic is then called upon in small doses to change other forces within the world.

Shamans, on the other hand, are likely to call upon Ancestral Spirits to lend them portions of their energy. As such, shamans are usually only as powerful as the number of Ancestors that will lend power. In both cases, the spellcaster will gather a high concentration of Magic to initiate a spell, which leads us to the Second Law of Magic.

2. Left unsustained, Magic will flow from High to Low concentrations and dissipate.

In many ways, Magic exists in the same way that heat does. Like heat, all forms of matter will retain some form Magic. They are also similar in the fact that without either, life could not exists. This is the reason why magic is often called the “Spark of Life”, even though that’s not entirely accurate.

The most easily noticeable way is in the way that Magic will flow out of areas of high concentration, to areas of low concentration. Eventually, Magic, like all other forces, strives to reach a balance of equilibrium.

Young students often dispute this law, as there exist many areas throughout the world with a high magical concentration, which leads us back to the first point that Matter retains Magic. When Magic is bound to something, it will either artificially slow the process of magic lost, or end up sustaining the Magic to help it to grow (See The 3 Laws of Enchantments).

3.Isolated Magic will affect the universe in consistent and repeatable ways.

There is a reason that specific spells have names. It is because they are repeatable and consistent. Regardless of where the user is, a fireball spell is a fireball spell. But when the spell is subjected to external forces, its form and intent can be changed. A spellcaster must take into account their surroundings, air pressure, temperature, all of these factors and more go into the spellcasting process. However the most difficult to calculate is how Magic will interact with other Magics.

Casting a powerful enough fireball underwater, for example, is likely to create a ball of super-heated steam. Whereas shooting a fireball through an enchanted field may cause the fireball to take on different characteristics, depending on the enchantments used.(See The 3 Laws of Enchantments)

This amount of variables can make it difficult, if not impossible, to truly know how a spell is going to behave. This is another largely disputed fact by the untrained. Although Magic may seem random, and unwieldy, this is always a result of user error.

To say that Magic isn’t volatile is inherently untrue. Magic is a dangerous force within the universe and should be treated as such. Oftentimes even expert spellcasters will forget this fact, and frequently, this is the final thing they will forget in their lifetimes. As spellcasters grow in power, they will usually attempt more powerful spells, which require more Magic. And the more Magic that is summoned, the more volatile the results can be…

This article is part of the RPG Blog Carnival hosted this month by Sea of Stars