Magic

To be a magician in the world of Verdict is akin to being a scientist in a more modern one. Of course, there are exceptions to the rule- sorcerer-esque individuals exist, who draw upon naught but natural talent- but most who manage these great feats are those who've studied and practiced all their lives. After the Void Crisis, this changed drastically, and not necessarily for the better. The increased influence of the Patron Spirits caused a swell of magical ability in nigh-all of humanity. Regardless of whether or not someone draws on their wisdom or their spiritual connection for power, however... one thing is certain: magic is a volatile tool for both good and evil.

The Nature of Magic

It'd be incorrect to say that magic is omnipresent throughout the Planescape, as it simply isn't. However, that isn't to say that magic is impossible in the universe; quite the opposite, in fact. Magic is borne of the five Aspects, firstly. The five Aspects are pieces of the five elements present throughout the planes, and Mana, which most living things have at least some regenerating portion of, can be thought of as a neatly-packed box of said Aspects. It contains a decent chunk of each, and to cast magic is to unravel this packaging and construct a spell from the contained Aspects.

It's worth mentioning that this process isn't always for the best, as a firebolt would obviously use up far more of the Fire Aspect, Ignis, than any of the other four. The result is plenty of waste that, simply put, doesn't get recycled well. That being said, it's very difficult for even adept mages to accumulate enough of these consequences for it to matter. This is called Backlash, and is only rarely observed in the most boisterously unstable of archmages. Spirits, at least as far as humans have thus seen, are seemingly incapable of suffering said Backlash.

Spellcasting

Classically, the denizens of the Old World didn't tend to refer to mages by any singular title- including "mages", for that matter. While initially it might seem entirely cultural- say, because a race believed magic originated in this or that way- the truth is that Verdict's methods of casting magic are incredibly varied. There isn't any straightforward answer to the question of "How?" when it comes to conjuring a firebolt or summoning a wall of earth. Depending on one's point of reference, everything from the magical implements used to the attire of the participating "mage" can vary extremely.

Traditional

The most common implements used in casting magic are tomes, wands, and staves, with no respect to order given. They individually represent a unique style of traditional casting, mind, but ultimately achieve a very similar goal: channeling magic through an intermediary focus to amplify its strength. Tomes are associated with wisdom and experience from age. Wands are associated with haste and quick wits. Lastly, staves are- as the most popular choice- associated with potency, strength, and confidence.

Weaving

Weaving is, in truth, not so much a method of casting as it is the cultural belief surrounding casting. Those who practice magic will undoubtedly cross paths with at least the concept of Weaving. In short, it is the understanding that to cast magic is to "edit" the Tapestry in a sense, and thus to practice Weaving is to show respect to this fact. Many believe this to be a sort of magic-centric religion, wherein the goal is to maintain a healthy balance between self-promotion and environmental consciousness.

Maskcasting

Some mages would opt to fixate upon folklore, tradition, and history rather than modernity and lexiconic memory. Those who follow this path often arrive at Maskcasting, which entails donning the (imagined) visage of an ancient figure as a magical implement. This takes time, of course- often as much as it'd take to study the utilization of a spell with any wand or staff- but ultimately results in incredibly potent magics resembling that of said ancient figure. This art is one without precision or nuance, but with great ancestral devotion.

Elements & Hybrids

As mentioned above, there are five Aspects- one for each element: Fire, Earth, Water, Wind, and Essence. Generally speaking, mages will attribute themselves to at most two of these elements, fixating their lives on practicing each to their very core. In exceptional cases, though, especially powerful and skillful wizards have been found capable of mixing these Aspects and elements in unique and strange ways. Many combinations sputter out uselessly, but some produce absolutely incredible feats of magical ability. Nature is a particularly decent example, which draws on the caster's Mana to accelerate natural growth. Gravity, too, is quite fascinating; one can alter the pressure of air by combining the inherent manipulations of Wind magic with the density-altering properties of Earth magic.

By the time of the Void Crisis, nearly all ordinary elemental combinations- now deemed "Hybrids"- had been hashed out between the archmages of humanity's millennia. Each wields a primary element and a secondary element, with the primary attributed roughly two-thirds of the Hybrid's form.

• Fire +
  • Earth =
    • Magma
  • Water =
    • Steam
• Earth +
  • Water =
    • Nature
  • Wind =
    • Gravity
• Water +
  • Wind =
    • Ice
  • Essence =
    • Body
• Wind +
  • Fire =
    • Lightning
  • Essence =
    • Sound
• Essence +
  • Earth =
    • Crystal
  • Fire =
    • Light