Post by Oden Lorax on Oct 29, 2014 2:21:51 GMT -8
Magic as energy
Magic is life's essence. It is generated by living things, and may be thought of as akin to the concepts of Odic force and prana. However, the human heart and soul is also powerful source of magical energy. There's more magic in a baby's first giggle than any fire that a wizard can call up. Emotions are a kind of channel for magic, a path to carry energy to a practitioner. Practitioners can draw on their own emotions for power. Black magic comes from negative emotions like lust, fear and anger, which are easy to harness and to make grow. White or Light magic is harder because it comes from a deeper truer and purer source—harder to tap, harder to keep but more elegant and more powerful.
Magic as practice
Casting a spell is a three-step process. The first step is to gather energy. The second is to shape that energy with one's thoughts and feelings for achieving one's goal. The final step is to release the energy in the intended direction. It can be likened to using a bow and arrow: first one must load arrow (gather energy), aim the bow (shape the energy with intent), and shot (release the energy). The more complex the magic the longer the process.
Belief
"You can't weave together a spell that you don't believe in." ~ Harry Dresden.
In order to successfully cast a spell the practitioner must have the confidence that they will succeed in casting the spell in question. A practitioner who believes themselves incapable of achieving an effect with magic makes them incapable of doing that very magic. If you do not believe in the spell you are about to cast and your ability achieve it, it will not succeed.
A practitioner must also believe that casting the spell they intend to cast is a proper thing to do. A practitioner with a deeply-held belief that violence is wrong would almost certainly fail in attempts to do violence with magic. They can't make it happen if it isn't part of them, inside.
Props
Magic doesn't require props to function. Magic may not need props but people need them. Each prop has both a symbolic and practical reason for being part of a spell. Simple activities like lighting candles can be done in the mind. However, complicated spells have too many parts to keep track of: flows of energy, manipulating them and so on. Using props serve as a device to hold the meaning, the image that the user attaches to it.
Anchoring
To make spells long-lasting, they need to be anchored.
OBJECTS: Magic can be anchored to specific objects, usually expensive objects but not always, like a staff or wand.
PERSON: There are times when magic can be anchored to a person. It must be a blood relation. Some anchored magic can pass between the generations.
Other details
Left side is the side that takes in energy.
The right side projects energy.
The proper hand to carry a staff in is the left hand.
Magic is time-consuming with Circles, gathering energies, and aligning forces.
Magic as practice
Casting a spell is a three-step process. The first step is to gather energy. The second is to shape that energy with one's thoughts and feelings for achieving one's goal. The final step is to release the energy in the intended direction. It can be likened to using a bow and arrow: first one must load arrow (gather energy), aim the bow (shape the energy with intent), and shot (release the energy). The more complex the magic the longer the process.
Belief
"You can't weave together a spell that you don't believe in." ~ Harry Dresden.
In order to successfully cast a spell the practitioner must have the confidence that they will succeed in casting the spell in question. A practitioner who believes themselves incapable of achieving an effect with magic makes them incapable of doing that very magic. If you do not believe in the spell you are about to cast and your ability achieve it, it will not succeed.
A practitioner must also believe that casting the spell they intend to cast is a proper thing to do. A practitioner with a deeply-held belief that violence is wrong would almost certainly fail in attempts to do violence with magic. They can't make it happen if it isn't part of them, inside.
Props
Magic doesn't require props to function. Magic may not need props but people need them. Each prop has both a symbolic and practical reason for being part of a spell. Simple activities like lighting candles can be done in the mind. However, complicated spells have too many parts to keep track of: flows of energy, manipulating them and so on. Using props serve as a device to hold the meaning, the image that the user attaches to it.
Anchoring
To make spells long-lasting, they need to be anchored.
OBJECTS: Magic can be anchored to specific objects, usually expensive objects but not always, like a staff or wand.
PERSON: There are times when magic can be anchored to a person. It must be a blood relation. Some anchored magic can pass between the generations.
Other details
Left side is the side that takes in energy.
The right side projects energy.
The proper hand to carry a staff in is the left hand.
Magic is time-consuming with Circles, gathering energies, and aligning forces.