Ether
Ether is the stuff that keeps Nimrodel alive. An invisible sea of twisting currents, it is emitted by all living things, and even by some things nonliving. It swirls, ebbs and wanes in seeming chaos, and in places where it concentrates many miracles tend to occur. Ether is largely a mystery to the scholars of the world, and many spellcasters study it, but the oldest of Sages does not know its true secrets.
Ether is completely invisible to the normal eye when it is in its own realm, although if it is given a pure material shape it appears as a white, nebulous, almost pasty cloud that can only be seen through if extremely thin. Ether does not materialize naturally, and hardly ever does it materialize unnaturally unless caused to by a Wizard.
Wizards use Ether to power their spells. While Ether has no material shape of its own, it can be consumed as an energy source to create other material objects, or consumed as energy of one sort or another inside or outside of a living creature. People who study ether can learn how to, through complex rituals which themselves are somewhat of a mystery, materialize this ether and use it to power magical spells. Different people have different affinities to ether, and some people are better than others at using magic. Further, objects materialized by ether always retain a bit of their mysterious, magical qualities, and people who are attuned to the ether sometimes find themselves more resistant to attack by etherical matter.
The act of casting a spell will depend on the spell caster, and the spell in question. It requires concentration to form ether, and any mistake will result in the forming ethers dissipation back into the sea. One of the first things a spellcaster will learn to do is sea ether with their minds eye and know its location and form by intuition, and Spellcasters will develop chants and complex hand motions to form ether because of this, using their movements and words as assists in the complex process of forming the material exactly to create the matter they want. A more powerful Wizard will need less concentration to form ether as he wishes, while a more powerful spell will take more concentration and a longer ritual. To this end a spellcaster really doesn't even need to move or speak to use magic, but it helps a great deal, and most spellcasters in Nimrodel will always keep both their hands free and never impede their movement with armor. Sometimes a magical item can be crafted that can act as an ether focuser to assist in casting spells.
The movements of the sea of ether are not understood and are seen as chaotic by nature. However, they inhabit small patterns in different areas of the world just like natural winds, and directions that a consolidation of ether seems to blow across frequently are called leylines. Some areas of Nimrodel are simply full of more ether than others, and there are two possible reasons for this. One is that a number of leylines converge in this place, as is the case at the Tribal seat of Harakka. The other, as may be possible of the Andhra Rajas, is that there are so many powerful beings in one area that they create a nebula of ether that never dissipates.
On top of it all, the complexities and chaotic nature of ether makes it at some times prefer to be moulded into one sort of element, and at others prefer to be moulded into another. This has led to six basic schools of spellcasting, as learning every secret of the ether sea is impossible. In this sea live creatures in addition, beings born by consolidations of ether, many revered as gods and feared as demons. These creatures are attracted to mortal beings who dabble in ether studies, and many a spellcaster has had an encounter with an elemental or a demon while studying or in their dreams. These beings generally do not visit the material world, but in Nimrodel all things are possible.
Basic Spellcasting
While every spellcaster in Ourissa has a different focus and different abilities, all six of the spellcasting schools start off with the same basics. There are three simple spells taught to every spellcaster, and indeed these three spells, although the simplest of all, are the most often used even by the most accomplished arcanist.
The first spell every Conjuror learns is named Detect Magic. Not really a spell, this is the training that allows the spellcaster to feel and see the sea of ether with their minds eye. Able to sense ether farther away with concentration, the spellcaster will be able to sense the ebb and flow of ether, to see where it is strong and where it is weak, as well as see when an item or a creature is innately magical and has ether bound to it.
The second spell every Conjuror learns is called Dispel. There are two methods of dispelling a spell, and the first is considerably easier than the second. Since ether must be formed precisely prior to its materialization in the physical world, simply shattering the complex shape of another casters ether can destroy their work completely. This is a relatively simple thing, as the ether can be moved in any way to disrupt the spell, although when two people try to move the same clump of the stuff, it ends up a battle of personal willpower to see who appears on top. The second method of dispelling a spell is much harder, and more mysterious. Essentially, as ether created matter retains some of its qualities as ether, it is possible for a spellcaster to turn it back into ether and push it back into the sea, but this is much more difficult.
The third spell every Conjuror learns is dubbed Magic Missile. The simplest of all ether formations is a simple ball or cloud of the stuff itself. Conjurors are taught to defend themselves by forming such objects, using the formation to add momentum and fling them at their enemy. Materialized ether burns cold and may even explode in a painful shockwave, so a magic missile created by someone with excellent ether control can be quite powerful, even if it is a simple spell. In addition, because it is so simple, every Conjurors magic missile looks a little different, some looking like balls, some like lightning bolts, some like spear or arrowheads.
Elemental schools
Of the six different schools of magic, four are called elemental schools, as Ether likes to be formed into four specific elemental focuses. The school of Fire governs forming ether into heat, light and flames itself. Fire Mages tend to be the most destructive of all, and are well sought after by armies. The Earth school governs the stuff of rocks and dirt, as well as natural and living objects. Earth mages are the most common in Nimrodel, and are seen often as very respectable, able to create life with their spells. Water magic governs water and ice formed ether, and is considered to be quite possibly the most powerful of elements, but more because of superstitions of the power of the great Sea than of any grounded reason in spellcasting. Finally, Air magic governs both the winds and the lightning that erupts from them, and air Mages are known to create winds with certain qualities to them, putting strange energies into their comrades.
Shamanism
While the elemental schools form ether into specific real world objects, the art of Shamanism is slightly different. Shamans study the ether itself, and learn how to form it simply for forming its sake. They excell at the study of ether and watching it, learning its chaotic flow and materializing it as ether itself to be used in the physical realm. Spells of a Shaman take on a different hue than elemental magic. A Shaman will use many spells that remain in the ether world and remain unseen, using the flow of ether to enhance their knowledge or moving the waves itself. Many Shaman spells as well can materialize ether but keep it in its natural invisible state, making these spells only visible to other spellcasters. Finally, some Shamanism magiks have a somewhat chaotic nature, forcing ether into an elemental state without any choice as to what, creating very destructive and random spells.
Necromancy
While Shamanism is the art of studying where ether goes, Necromancy is the art of studying where ether comes from. Living beings radiate and create ether at all times, although most of them do so in very small amounts. Ancient dragons, elementals of the ether sea, and demons however, radiate huge amounts, and these are the beings that fascinate the Necromancer. Necromancers learn to deal with these creatures, as well as how to deal with ether as it is being formed by a body, which allows the Necromancer to manipulate the body itself as well. They are masters of deception and subversion, using their spells to invisibly curse or control an enemy, as well as to bless or embolden an ally. They are finally the great summoners, as while other spellcasters will happen upon magical beings in their studies and perhaps charter their assistance, a Necromancer will specifically seek these beings out in the sea. Due to this mysterious nature they are not liked by common people, who see Necromancy as a witchcraft amongst the other five, more respectable schools, and indeed many Necromancers are drawn to the school by promises of power or deluded dreams of taking control of the very gods of the world. However, there are also many benevolent Necromancers, and as with any school its powers can be used for good or evil.
Summoning
Through a spellcasters travels, they may come upon a creature of the ether sea, in fact this is almost a common occurance. As a spellcaster grows strong enough he will be able to enlist the assistance of these creatures, the beings either offering assistance in exchange for a mutual exchange of knowledge or just out of friendship and curiosity, or barring that by force, elementals and creatures of the ether realm somewhat at the mercy of a spellcaster that can manipulate the very stuff of their existance, but them able to do little to nothing to the spellcaster in the physical world.
Summoning a creature works just like any other spell, the caster forming ether in the precise way to move the creature to the material plane. This is however much more complecated than spellcasting, and many summoning rituals take minutes to perform.
Psychics
While not magic per say, the Psychics of Nimrodels human population work essentially the same way. Every human in Nimrodel is latently Psychic, and some have a strong enough affinity to this power, and enough training, to use it to amazing effect. A person with the affinity to use these powers in day to day life but with no explicit training can do simple things, such as move objects that are a few inches away from them, float a light object above one of their hands slightly, etc. There are two essential powers available to the tre Psychics of Nimrodel however. The first is an all encompassing telekinesis, that has allowed strong Psychics to level houses and fly higher than birds of prey. Psychics must concentrate on the object in question to move it, and this becomes difficult for objects that are already moving quickly, and also objects they cannot see. It is also possible for a Psychic to move ether with his mind, but this is very difficult indeed. The second ability open to true Psychics is that of telepathy. A Psychic is able to speak to other Psychics with their minds and hear a reply, although a Psychic cannot send messages to the mind of someone whose latent powers are not strong enough. |
