12 May 2020

It's Magic

One huge change from our world to the Sabers and Shamans world is, of course, magic.

European magic is quick, dirty and chaotic.  While most of the energy that makes a spell go is ripped from the aether, it still requires much effort on the part of the spellcaster.

Something which became somewhat common, necessitating the retention of weapons like sabers, are missile shield and reverse missile enchanted items.

If you and your foe are equipped with such a device, you're left with closing to literal spitting distance and using good old fashioned steel to finish the job.

Indian magic is also capable of making such enchanted items, but their magic is more ritual based and it takes much longer to accomplish, but is less draining on the caster.

Roman Nose, for example, had a war bonnet with the missile shield enchantment with many ritual limitations assigned to it.

There are lots of affordable enchanted items available from both the sutler and mail-order houses such as Sears and Roebuck; as are potions and elixirs.

Alchemy is an actual science here!  As is thaumatology.

An old joke is, "what do you call someone who graduated last from medical school?"

"Captain."

This also applies to mage officers in the US Army.  The low and erratic pay does not attract the most talented or experienced mages, unless there's some external drive to seek adventure that doesn't regard the poor pay and conditions.

Enlisted mages are people with a trainable magical aptitude without the means to obtain training in civilian life.  They tend to learn a narrowly focused, utilitarian, and small, group of spells.

There are also "untrainable" mages in the ranks who've accumulated a few spells here and there.  These are mostly the people who's aptitude in magic is limited to a single discipline or by sun, moon and or stars.

3 comments:

  1. In your world, is one of the differences between New World Magic and Old World Magic the existence of Iron and it's effects?

    Like, old world critters not being able to handle cold iron, while new world not having any negative effects? If so, some foreign military observer, expecting his sword to protect him from pixies and elves, will be mighty surprised when a Wendigo eats his leg.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Steel wouldn't protect you. It's hot iron. Only cold iron is protective.

      Wizardry is the European model, unaffected by iron. Ritual magic is the Indian norm, unaffected by iron. Naturalist magic is affected by iron and has was abandoned in our world because its effects are smaller and take longer to produce.

      Some parts of the magic systems I don't want to get into in too much detail here because it's growing into a plot point and could be a spoiler to reveal too much now.

      Delete
    2. You have spent more on thinking about your worlds' physics than most modern sci-fi/fantasy writers.

      Good on you. Mess-ups, or continuity fuck-ups as my darling wife calls them, can just kill my enjoyment of a story.

      Delete

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