Dynamica Aetherica

Magic operates on three major principles. The first is Mana, an exotic and only partially known force, energy, or particle bound to most materials within the universe, particularly cellular matter. The state of mana is often tied heavily to the state of its material subject, kept in close lockstep even as material and matter undergo significant change. Mana is extremely difficult to observe outside of the use of Magic, lending to difficulties understanding it through more material sciences. Some material events and objects do not, however, have any association with mana and as such are often immune to its influence; while other items exist solely as mana, having no tangible, physical associate.

The second is called Resonance, the interaction of mana within itself. Mana consistently interacts with itself and as a result of it being so affected by material interactions and other forces, it often undergoes constant states of change that propagates in a manner similar to sound, lending to its name. Changes in mana caused by resonance are often insufficient to have any side effects, though can be measured and observed by trained magicians to understand magic or divine events by analysing these echoes, as they are often referred to in common parlance.

The last is Transference, the interaction between mana and the material world. The majority of transference has little interesting effect, serving only to create echoes in mana and rarely sufficient to overcome a material body’s other restricting forces. Transference events, however, are those where the interaction between mana and other forces is significant enough to overcome this resistance. Creatures performing magic do so by using their own body’s connection to mana and specific activities to cause a significant enough transference event to have lasting effects either directly upon mana itself – or by causing a strong enough echo that it then causes a secondary transference event to afflict a material body. Some individuals are fortunate enough to have been born with a stronger tie to mana in their body, permitting them to perform magic; these individuals are often known as ‘manablooded’, hailing from now dated but persistent beliefs of this being tied to an individual’s blood, and are individuals capable of learning magic as a Magician.

Magicians and Spellcasters

To a spellcaster, causing initial transference is the easiest component; mana already reacts to cognitive and physical actions in the material realm quite significantly, more so in the case of those with manablood, and even a movement in the arm can cause a significant echo. The difficulty is creating the appropriate resonance to have the desired effect – Mana, much as matter, has a strong resistance to its state being changed without the right forces being applied, and as such many magicians spend months causing nothing but errant, observable, but ultimately ineffective echoes. As each individual magician’s specific attachment to mana is slightly different, magicians need to possess a certain level of intellect or education to make adjustments to any learning materials to specifically suit their case; however, this also permits magicians to attempt to adjust their own methods to obtain goals such as to cast spells with different types of staves or while omitting or enhancing certain factors such as somatic or verbal performances.

Feedback

The use of spellcasting comes with its own dangers in the form of feedback (represented in GURPS by their Tally), resulting from the repeated instability and transference caused by a magician’s efforts upon their own mana. Feedback settles slowly over time and takes a significant amount of magical activity to cause any significant risk to a spellcaster. Should it be left unchecked or unmanaged, however, spellcasters can rapidly find their own stronger connection to mana causing them problems from interference in spellcasting to dangerous mishaps.

The amount of feedback a body can handle before suffering risks is relative to its own bulk and mass, while the ease at settling feedback is affected by the cardiovascular system of the spellcaster, as their body and its mana naturally seeks and restores equilibrium. Magicians are often taught various rituals to assist in the management of feedback, which permits the magician to attempt to better pair their body’s mana with the passive mana in their environment – however, these same rituals also temporarily subject the magician to a greater susceptibility to transference, so much so that many echoes that would be too weak to afflict even the weakest materials may cause issues. As such, most magicians prefer to perform these rituals in their home before resting in rooms unlikely to be subject to dangerous resonance.

Innate Magic

Some creatures are capable of causing transference events naturally as a result of their particular physiology; the most commonly known of these would be the various forms of Dragons and the magically gifted species Lyestra. These creatures are often capable of learning spellcasting as traditional, manablooded individuals are; however, their physiological makeup is designed, evolved, or fortunate enough to be capable of causing specific transference events intuitively. Some of these creatures have sufficient generation of mana in their physiology to continue to perform magic even in areas of low or no mana — though this helps them little in affecting the world around them without any resonance to manipulate. Creatures using innate magic often don’t suffer from feedback, and instead have other limitations to their magic – if any – as suits their physiology or nature.

Other Magical Pathways

Intentionally caused transference events caused by magicians are not the only causes of significant magical effects. Even before the understanding of transference, attempts have been made across history to try and cause magical effects without the need for a magician; only gaining more traction as thaumaturges and scientists discover and understand transference and resonance, and how these can be caused by physical acts. Due to working through a different mechanism, occasionally, these alternate paths of performing magic can create effects that themselves might not be possible by any single spell.

Alchemy is the practice of understanding and using materials or compounds that when appropriately prepared, can cause transference events. The most common forms of these are various powders and liquids that when imbibed or exposed to air or flesh, cause various magical effects. Alchemy eventually evolves into the twin studies of chemistry and cheostry; the former covering the mundane interactions of compounds, and the latter of their magical and transference results, with the majority of modern practitioners specialising in one and having an understanding of the other.

Some individuals additionally manifest magical abilities as, initially, a panic response. Often called psions, Psionics is the term for magic performed purely through cognitive ability. The specific qualities that indicate if someone can manifest psionics are unknown, as psions are exceptionally rare; however, those that have manifested it usually do so during moments of intense, prolonged fear or stress. Psions are usually only capable of a singular, magical effect and often suffer significant psychological problems tied to the cause and manifestation of their psionic power. Some learn to harness this ability to use it actively, however, many others expire in their attempts.

The practice of Communing is often a tool used by those in need of magical aptitude but lacking it themselves, practising often secretive arts to invite extra-planar beings to materialise and offer their services. The process of this can vary based on the particular being, however, what follows is often a series of negotiations to encourage the invited being to both provide a service and remain manifested long enough to perform it, in exchange for some cost. As such, those performing the practice are often called petitioners; though these individuals come in many forms from priests communing with deific figures, to shamans seeking the counsel of animal spirits.