Varieties of Magic

The source of all magic is the energy of the soul itself. This article will describe the sources of the patterns ("spells") of each of the traditions of spellcasting ("classes" to use game terms). Although for the sake of the game spells are codified and the same spell cast by casters of different classes have the same effects, in-universe the patterns differ and the effects can be varied. Not all spells in the printed materials can be learned; there are innumerable others that can be cast but are not described in the printed books.

Bards

"Bard" is the name given to those who resonate with reality using performance and the strength of their personalities. Through music, dance, oratory, or other performance they bend the minds of others, charm and confuse, etc. They learn their tricks (spells) by trial and experimentation. This means that they know fairly few spells but are less restricted by traditions and schools than some others. It should be noted that many people called bards do not have access to more than a few basic tricks (cantrips or simple first-level spells). Bards who can fully use their powers and grow in power are very rare. The bardic college is the organization devoted to bards.

Bardic (or Harmonic) magic was one of the earliest forms of magic, dating back to the First Age, when agents of Leviathan taught mortals (the proteans and lightborn especially) the power of songs and chants. The chants used by commoners (especially in the Successor States are a primitive, ritualized form of harmonic magic.

Bards are about equally common throughout the Federated Nations. There is a Bardic College in Kaelthia. Other Names: often shamans and witches actually wield bardic magic.

Clerics

"Clerics" are the servants of the Congregation in the mortal realm. They are chosen by the gods and contract with them. Their spells come through inspiration and faith--as their personal power grows they gain access to more powerful prayers and words that resonate with reality. Most of a cleric's spells are shared in common with other clerics (by covenant among The Heavenly Congregation)--a few spells are specific to the aspect of the god being worshiped. It should be noted that, as with bards, most clerics are incapable of more than the very most basic magics. Most can cast the equivalent of one first-level spell per day. Of the rest, all but a tiny fraction cap at third-level spells. Other than adventurers, the number of clerics in the Federated Nations that can cast Resurrection (a 5th level spell) is very small (less than a few dozen). Clerics tend toward organization and tend to follow established orders devoted to one or a small set of gods.

As a note, most priests are not clerics. They do wield divine power, but only by specific delegation. This means that while some priests can create effects similar to a 5th level spell, they may not be able to choose their spells (unlike clerics, who are less constrained). Most priests also are incapable of creating very many adventuring-relevant effects.

Clerics are most common in the Successor States and in Wyrmhold; priests are common in the Jungle of Fangs, but mainly draw their power as warlocks instead. Clerics are vanishingly rare in Byssia--priests there are actually Pledged serving Nocthis.

Other Names: Clerics of each member of the Congregation use culturally-specific names and titles. For instance, wandering clerics of Selesurala are often called "storm crows," while priests of Korokonolkom are known as Listeners.

Druids

Druids gain access to spells through communion with the kami or spirits of nature--genii loci, elemental spirits, fey creatures, etc. Unlike warlocks who make a single contract with a single powerful being, druids make deals with the lesser spirits that suffuse the landscape. Each spirit allows itself to be bound to a task in return for packets of aether from the druid. These tasks are expressed as spells. This gives the druid a wide array of effects to choose from; he or she must choose during meditation what pacts to make each day as only a limited number of pacts can be maintained simultaneously. Of all the full casting traditions, druids are the most common as this is the tradition followed by most tribal shamans (although many shamans follow bardic traditions or are incapable of casting spells). The exact expression varies between the tribes--some are more elemental in orientation and others are more animal-focused. They tend to cap around 4th level spells with a very few capable of 5th level. Druids are not usually organized beyond the tribal level.

Druids are most common in Byssia and in the orcish areas of Wyrmhold, although Southshore is now home to a Circle, and the puun ihmisia of Kotimaa also commonly follow these traditions. Druids are rare in the Jungle of Fangs, although not unknown.

Paladins

Paladins are empowered by the fervency of their oath. Or so they like to think. In reality, their source of power is the sacrifice inherent in the oath. By choosing to restrict themselves, they become sensitive to the patterns of aether and can influence them. It is hypothesized that paladins devoted to more abstract concepts could have access to wizard-like spells. The restrictions seem to be self-imposed, not imposed by an outside force. This means that a paladin who "falls" by rejecting her oath and turning toward darkness and hate finds that her power has changed and become more monstrous, not because the source has changed but because the paladin's soul has changed.

Organizationally, the main order of paladins in the Successor States the one sponsored by the clerics of Ytra, the Scale Balancers. They dispense justice without mercy to lawbreakers or to those the law can't touch (due to positions of wealth or prestige). Those who join this order renounce positions, heritage, inheritance, and rank. Their symbol is a golden circle. The appearance of a paladin of Ytra is met with the same fear and despair as would be a tidal wave. Most other paladins are not part of a formal order--they wander in pursuit of their oath with a small group or with only a squire.

Because a paladin spends much time on martial pursuits, they learn spells at a slower rate than do clerics and their abilities are more martially focused. It is said that the preceptor of the Scale Balancer Order can cast fourth-rank spells.

Most devotees of these Orders are oath-sworn (meaning that they've made binding vows and promised to abide by the tenets of the Oath). This does not make them paladins--most gain only very limited (if any) supernatural power. The ability to sense truth, the ability to identify unnatural creatures at sight, a limited amount of healing, supernatural resistance. These are the most common such abilities; other than these, most oath-sworn are simply well-armed, disciplined men-at-arms.

Orders and Oaths

Three orders are most visible in the Federated Nations: the Scale Balancers of the Successor States, the Crownguard of Wyrmhold, and the Sinner's Tear (found throughout).

The Scale Balancers are most associated with the Oaths of Conquest and Vengeance, although the Oaths of Devotion and Crown are not uncommon. They swear to root out falseness and to punish wrongdoers.

The Crownguard, associated with Devotion and the Crown, with Vengeance as not uncommon, swear to protect the queen of Wyrmhold with their lives and souls.

The oath-sworn of the Sinner's Tear are most associated with Devotion, Redemption, and the Ancients, although Vengeance is also common. They swear to protect the light from the darkness, to take on the sins of the world so that innocents don't falter. Most of them believe themselves damned beyond redemption, but have a fierce dedication to not letting others go down that path.

Rangers

If druids work to ameliorate civilization's impact on nature, rangers act to ward civilization from nature. As they gain power, they learn to contract with the spirits in much the same way as do druids. A big difference is the nature of these contracts--druids make and change contracts daily. Rangers contract with smaller spirits but bind them to themselves, rarely if ever changing their contracts. Some rangers even bind themselves to the soul of a beast, gaining its aid and in return strengthening it with their own aether. More than just a well-trained animal, these beasts take on a piece of the master's soul and personality.

Rangers tend to be loners--there is no formal organization among rangers, although they trade and share information with other like-minded folk. Most people called rangers are unable to cast spells, with a few capable of casting first or second level spells.

Rangers progress more slowly than druids and their spells tend to be channeled through their weapons to enhance the effects of their strikes.

Sorcerers

"Sorcerer" is a catch-all term for those whose spells come from their heritage (their genetics). These come as genetic memories or patterns as natural as breathing. They impose their will on reality by force of will and are not as bound by strictures and structures as other spell-casters. As they gain experience and power they learn to manipulate the patterns, breaking the normal limits of the spells. As a side effect, they tend not to have very many patterns available to them. Like clerics, relatively few can cast above 3rd-level spells. Sorcerers are rarer than either clerics or druids.

Sorcerers are most common in the western nations--Wyrmhold and Byssia. Dragonborn sorcerers (who almost uniformly take after their draconic heritage) are respected by the clans and organized into schools. Byssian sorcerers are usually Storm or Favored Souls. Shadow and Wild magic both crop up at random throughout the Federated Nations.

Warlocks

Warlocks are those whose power is based on a contract. Often these individuals do not have intrinsic powers but gain power by forming a contract with a powerful being. These contracts may impose more or fewer strictures on the warlock--those who make contracts with fiends tend to see the most interference while those who contract with outsiders (the Great Old Ones) have little interference but often develop weird tics or quirks as a result of continued exposure to eldritch forces. Those who contract with fey powers tend to act normally except for a single oddity that reflects the quirks of their contracting partner. Warlocks are rare and not organized. Gaining power is easier for warlocks than for others, but much more hazardous. Warlocks who don't naturally cap in potential burn out or are consumed by their contracting partner.

The status of warlocks depends on the nation. The Jungle of Fangs has many fiend-pact or celestial warlocks, and they have respectable status. Many Stone Throne "priests" are closer to warlocks than to clerics--the Queen Ascendant cannot create clerics (not being a member of the Congregation). Fey warlocks are particularly common in Byssia; hexblades and celestial warlocks are common in the Dynasty. The Council Lands looks askance on non-celestial warlocks, although, with the influence of Catalyst Vassarian, Great Old One warlocks are becoming more tolerated and starting to come out of hiding. Other Names: Pledged, Devoted. Many priests with power are actually celestial warlocks.

Wizards

Wizards are unique--they learn spells through research, study, and experimentation. As a result they can learn spells from other wizards, but are bound to their spellbooks. Losing a spellbook is a traumatic experience for a wizard and such books are usually heavily guarded. Wizards have the widest variety of spells available. The Granite-Flame Academy is the center-point for wizards and primary source of their training. The Academy has the largest surviving collection of research materials. Wizards were the hardest hit by the changes of the Cataclysm--as the structure of the world changed, so did the resonances that make up the core of wizard spells. Thus, wizards had to relearn how to use magic and many blew themselves up or burned themselves out in the attempt. Wizards are not as common as clerics or druids, but more common than powerful bards, sorcerers, or warlocks.

Distributionally, the most powerful wizards are found in the Successor States, with the Jungle of Fangs second. Wizards are rarer among the Byssians; Wyrmhold tends to the shamanistic, oath-bound, and sorcerous paths.