Post by (The) Herald on May 25, 2012 13:10:11 GMT -5
~ m a g i c . t h e o r y
I N T R O D U C T I O N
Magic in the world of Himaryn works primarily from the idea that it is trait of character, just as height or skin color can be a trait of character. Experience has shown that magic is genetic—elements have a tendency to pass on to offspring, and that families strong in magic tend to offspring that are strong in magic.
Magical geneticists on Himaryn typically use a "Hue and Type" theory to predict the magical affinity of an offspring based on parentage. Usually, the union of two couples will each donate half of the alleles determining affinity, and the resultant element of the child will have a single affinity that is the product of the two halves. In rare cases (10% of the time), a form of non-disjunction will occur, creating co-dominance and a "fusion element" that gives offspring natural affinity over two elements.
A F F I N I T Y and T O M E S
While most characters are born with only one natural affinity (element), many characters also work to expand to magical breadth and versatility by attempting to work with other elements. This is never an easy process—it begins with scripted tomes, spells, and continuous repetition attempting to gain magical control over an unfamiliar element. At first, practitioners are completely dependent on the magical tomes engraved on their body, and cannot perform extra-elemental magic without the tattoo marks of tomes.
However, as time passes, characters will gradually acclimate themselves to the magic they use every day. There is eventually a point, where characters are so familiar with a certain spell, they do not require the tome tattoo to perform the spell. Our general rule of thumb, is that one has to have had a tome for a minimum of three continuous months, before your characters can permanently "learn" spell to the point they no longer need the specific tome mark.
It is generally easier to use tomes and learn spells from within the same Hue or the same Type (see below), than other elemental families. Gradual progression of time and diligent study of magic can drastically increase a character's vocabulary of secondary spells as time passes.
HUES AND TYPES
There are three hues in magic, and four types. The three hues are warm, neutral, and cool, and some hues are more dominant than others. Warm elements are the least dominant, meaning, in other words, if a cool-hue element parent mates with a warm-hue element parent, the offspring are more likely to have an affinity in cool elements. The trait for cool elemental affinity is considered dominant, while warm elemental is considered recessive. Neutral elemental affinity seems to be somewhere in the middle.
There are also four types of magic. The four types are:
I N T R O D U C T I O N
Magic in the world of Himaryn works primarily from the idea that it is trait of character, just as height or skin color can be a trait of character. Experience has shown that magic is genetic—elements have a tendency to pass on to offspring, and that families strong in magic tend to offspring that are strong in magic.
Magical geneticists on Himaryn typically use a "Hue and Type" theory to predict the magical affinity of an offspring based on parentage. Usually, the union of two couples will each donate half of the alleles determining affinity, and the resultant element of the child will have a single affinity that is the product of the two halves. In rare cases (10% of the time), a form of non-disjunction will occur, creating co-dominance and a "fusion element" that gives offspring natural affinity over two elements.
A F F I N I T Y and T O M E S
While most characters are born with only one natural affinity (element), many characters also work to expand to magical breadth and versatility by attempting to work with other elements. This is never an easy process—it begins with scripted tomes, spells, and continuous repetition attempting to gain magical control over an unfamiliar element. At first, practitioners are completely dependent on the magical tomes engraved on their body, and cannot perform extra-elemental magic without the tattoo marks of tomes.
However, as time passes, characters will gradually acclimate themselves to the magic they use every day. There is eventually a point, where characters are so familiar with a certain spell, they do not require the tome tattoo to perform the spell. Our general rule of thumb, is that one has to have had a tome for a minimum of three continuous months, before your characters can permanently "learn" spell to the point they no longer need the specific tome mark.
It is generally easier to use tomes and learn spells from within the same Hue or the same Type (see below), than other elemental families. Gradual progression of time and diligent study of magic can drastically increase a character's vocabulary of secondary spells as time passes.
HUES AND TYPES
There are three hues in magic, and four types. The three hues are warm, neutral, and cool, and some hues are more dominant than others. Warm elements are the least dominant, meaning, in other words, if a cool-hue element parent mates with a warm-hue element parent, the offspring are more likely to have an affinity in cool elements. The trait for cool elemental affinity is considered dominant, while warm elemental is considered recessive. Neutral elemental affinity seems to be somewhere in the middle.
There are also four types of magic. The four types are:
- Offensive: The offensive elements are Fire, Wind, and Water, as well as their related elements of Electric, Sound, and Ice (often called Secondary offensive elements). It is easier for someone who is born with an offensive element to adapt tome spells of another one - especially within their own hue. It's actually very common for kids to be born with one element (e.g., ice), but end up mastering the other offensive element instead (e.g., water). This is because the primary offensive elements are easier to learn than the secondaries!
- Defensive: The defensive elements are Metal, Terra, and Earth. Although they are of different hues, it is easier for defensive to pick up one of the other defensive elements, instead of say, an offensive or paragon element. Defensive elements are often associated with the land itself, and can be used for healing if the user is clever enough.
- Psychological: The psychological elements are Dream, Time, and Illusion, and have no physical matter on Himaryn. Unlike the other above two elements, Psychological and Paragon are rarer in occurrence, but it is easier to switch between the two types if one is apart of them already (it is very difficult for an offensive or defensive element user to learn a Psychological or Paragon element and vice versa). These are very strong, powerful elements when used effectively.
- Paragon: The two Paragon elements, Light and Dark, are at constant war with each other. They are two very different, yet similar, elements that balance each other out. Users who master the Light element are often called Life Sages, while those who master Dark, are called Death Sages. Just as with Psychological elements, they are very strong, and rarer in occurrence.