Lets talk about Magick - Writers Forum

RyuTheMagi · 01-06-2005, 07:20 PM

I write fantasy, and a key factor in every fantasy is magick. Heres the quandry...

I need to limit magick. You cant just throw fireballs for fun. Here's what i have so far.

1) Magick is a gift...not everyone can do it. Only about 1 in 10 people have The Gift.

2) The Gift is only given in certian ways: in other words there are different kinda of wizards. There are Healers, Seers, Elementalists, Summoners, Necomancers, etc...

3) Religion is a big thing. The God of magick conrtols everything, and he picks who gets what gift...and can take that gift away if necessary.

But that isnt enough...i need a way to make it so a apprentice summoner isnt calling a dragon. Any ideas? Thanx for all the help.

-RyuTheMagi

Talia_Brie · 01-06-2005, 08:14 PM

There are lots of ways of limiting magic.

1. physical restraints. It takes a certain amount of physical/mental strength to perform certain feats. Which means magicians can only do certain things, and only so often before they need to rest.

2. educational restraints. It's difficult to summon a dragon, and a certain amount of mental application needs to be undertaken in order to learn how it's done, and then put the knowledge into practice.

3. time constraints. Lets say it takes a good five minutes to call the signs required to summon a dragon. When there's a horde of sword wielding maniacs running down the hill toward you screaming, you just don't have time to start drawing circles on the ground.

4. D&D restraints. In dungeons and dragons in order to restrict the game power of mages you can only use a spell once before you have to re-memorise it.

5. Diablo/Might and Magic/Magic: The Gathering restraints. Mana. It all coems down to mana. How much do you have, how quickly does it replenish, and how much does summoning a dragon use? Mana is the essence of magic, at least in these games, and each magic user only has so much of it at any one time. Once it's all used, it's like drawing on an empty bottle. You can make all the right gestures and say the right words, but with no petrol in the tank, you're not going to be seeing any dragons.

6. Burnout. Another way to restrict the use of magic is through the threat of the magician burning themselves out. Robert Jordan and Sean Williams both use this method. Draw too much, and all you leave behind is a burnt out husk of a person.

7. force of will restraints. This is especially relevant for summoning. A dragon is a creature with a high level of free will, and they are not going to be summoned easily, and are even harder to control. Your mage needs to have a force of will sufficient to control a powerful creature.

I'm sure there are others.

RyuTheMagi · 01-07-2005, 07:08 AM

thanx. ill mix and match them around.

Talia_Brie · 01-10-2005, 01:15 AM

Sort of thought of another one.

8. potential restraints. Sure, Magic is a gift and certain people have it and others don't, but is it the same in everyone. This is a variation of the mana idea. Some people have more potential that others, and can use the gift in more powerful endeavours. This is a brute force measure, like physical strength, only magical. Some people just aren't strong enough to control the gift in such a way as to summon a dragon. This idea is reasonably common however.

playstation60 · 01-10-2005, 01:10 PM

You could also have the characters restrained by consequence. Even though you are writing fantasy, the typical rules of the world generally apply. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Say every time the apprentice performs a spell, something bad happens, like it takes a year off from his/her life, or someone else loses a year....or something dies...

Another restraint that I've seen that I thought worked well, was a physical retraint. In the Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind, wizards in training had a collar around their necks, to prevent them from doing things they were not instructed to do.

The SWOT series is a good one, I highly recommend reading it, if you have not already done so.

Ben

Clockwork · 01-10-2005, 03:21 PM

I don't like the idea of only one in a few people being
able to use magic but
thats just me.

playstation60 · 01-10-2005, 03:25 PM

I think the idea of every person having the ability to perform "magic" is very scary.

RyuTheMagi · 01-10-2005, 06:14 PM

yes, it is a scary idea. That is why the God of magick in my story limits and picks only certian people who he thinks are 'worthy' of the gifts.

CrimsonMoon · 01-11-2005, 07:00 AM

Try to think in a simplistic fashion. This will allow more ways to create rules for magick. I to write fantasy yet, I don't have any trouble with it anymore. After I wrote my first novel, I already had a set of rules since my continuation thus far has been an addition or series to the original book. Anyways, I find that smiplisity itself generally brings excellant ideas.

Jiieden · 01-11-2005, 09:31 AM

I've always thought one attractive idea for limiting the prevalence of magic is that of unpredictability. Let's face it - if magic was really as cool as it seems in all the books, humankind would long since have abused the system for transportation, exploitation of mineral resources, developed it as a powerful, institutionalised weapon, etc - for reference as to when this actually happens, read Robert Jordan - the a'dam the Seanchan use seems reasonable to me.

So make it unpredictable. That makes it more difficult to harness and exploit, limiting the otherwise unromantic outcome.

If any of that makes sense...

RyuTheMagi · 01-11-2005, 02:15 PM

dont worry, it makes perfect sense.

Thanx for all the help, i think i have down a pretty good system now. Now to put it to the test...

Hand · 01-12-2005, 06:07 AM

Maybe you could have it that everyone has magic(k) ability, but only a handful can use it without serious consequences to themselves?

ExoticaRose · 01-18-2005, 01:26 PM

OK, so you've got magik down. But what qualifies as magic?

You can't have everything that's magical be magical, just because. You need to have the philosophy of magic down, and heirarchies of magic and stuff. I find that makes it more realistic.

Oracle · 01-19-2005, 06:28 PM

Heh, I'm working on a fantasy series, and I gave my magic a science. While the inhabitants of the world interpret this science as "magic", it really is based on the natural laws and energies of that world.

Try to remember that cultures will interpret phenomenons(such as magic) in different ways.

Sam · 01-19-2005, 07:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RyuTheMagi

yes, it is a scary idea. That is why the God of magick in my story limits and picks only certian people who he thinks are 'worthy' of the gifts.

Just a quick point: Using this system you're going to have to choose whether you want antagonists with the ability to use magic and an imperfect god, or a perfect god with your hero's rivals lacking in spell-wielding.

This might not make a difference to your story; I just thought you might want to take it in to consideration.