Orbis — Doctrine of Magic

Orbis — The Doctrine on Magic

This study was recorded and documented by Sir Arthur Heyes, the late scholar of Port Yarda who passed away in 93 BDW. While magic has been studied and researched by countless individuals since historical records began, no one has yet to capture the fundamentals that make up what magic truly is like he did in his book “The Doctrine on Magic” written in 101 BDW. The book has since been certified and legitimatised by the Emerald Academy of Magic in the Heartland of the Empire. It’s also received praise from many colleges in the Elven world; the Galari University of Arcane Arts, the Silverglade Royal Arcane College and the University of High Brownleaf are among some of the most notable creditors for its popularity amongst Elven scholars.

While magic is indeed very much a real thing in the world of Orbis, it remains quite a complex matter to explore — and comprehend. How does one use it? How easy is it to perform? Do I just throw fire balls out my hands like nothing?

To begin, we need to wrap our heads around the fundamental question; What is Magic, exactly? The simplest way to characterise it in a single sentence is that it’s a form of energy. Exactly like that of G-Force or Heat energy, magic exists as a form of energy to be used and transferred from one place to another. It cannot be destroyed and in most cases, it can’t be created either. With exceptions of the Glowing Towers; a discussion for later.

Just like with other forms of energy, Magic can be trapped and contained — within a powerful gem, or a piece of jewellery, or even a weapon. These are what the people of this world call Artifacts: something that which contains a degree of magic within it to grant it unique abilities of an arcane nature. Some places around Orbis have larger concentrations of magic than others. For example, the sight where Huulnrad and Dra’motiz clashed and were defeated by Lord Ralkess Veranok in 105 ADW. If one was to travel to this place as a pilgrimage and meditate at this sight, they would receive a deeper connection to magic and grow their personal strength by obtaining more control over the magic they absorb and maintain. If one is deeply connected to magic, they will possess a stronger understanding of the flow of magic and will be able to feel higher concentrations of magic. Their awareness of magical energy will become much more tuned and refined as their meditation allows them to focus their mind on the magic around them. Only those among the strongest and most dedicated to the Arcane Arts can achieve this. If one is more attuned to magic, they can bend it to their will much easier and can cast much more powerful spells with little to no effort. This is why people like Necromancers can remain alive for indefinite amounts of time, as they’ve spent more years than anyone else meditating and practising the art. With such dedication, they can now use the magic as a life support. The only way to kill such people is with a powerful weapon like an artifact to counter and cut off their misused power.

Growing your strength in magic can be done through other means — reading a Tome (an instruction book on how to use and maintain certain spells, usually more powerful ones), practising it outside and in safe environments, worshipping and making offers to the God of Magic and many more. A very important piece of information to take into account is that not all people are born with the ability to practise magic. Sir Arthur Heyes believed that the ability to tap into the mystical plain of magic was something blood related. This theory is based on the fact that entire civilisations exist today almost completely without the use, or even recognition, of magic entirely. There are whole races of people who naturally cannot practise magic in an everyday situation. Some people need to spend vast periods of time—weeks, months or even years—meditating or practising one of the other methods in order to access the ability to perform magic. Although, to those who have already been doing this for many years and have honed their skills to a certain point; some of you may struggle to grow your power beyond where you currently are. This is because you have reached the limit to what magic to can obtain with where you are or what you’re doing. If you’ve mediated and practised magic at a certain academy for 10 or 15 years, it’s likely you’ll begin to feel your magic powers stagnate. Many Mages experience this issue—fear not. There’s many ways to continue growing your power. All you simply must do is find a pilgrimage place or a specific spot where the concentration of magic is higher than that of where you are. The highest concentration of magic can be found in the Never Lands; a land so far in the south of the world and possibly the very end of it. This concentration is so much that it can AND will kill you if you’re there for too long. This is why powerful magic users such as Elders or Necromancers travel to the Blackcloud Isle, also known as the Isle of Necro. This Island is infamous for birthing some of history’s most powerful and notorious magic users. The islands original purpose is unknown, but its believed to be another of the many ruined Promethean Cities like the others found around the world. This place heralds danger to any of those who travel there—but for those with the courage and strength, this place can unlock your true potential. For unknown reasons, this place holds a huge concentration of magic; the highest in the world that mortals can sustain themselves in. It also never seems to drain of magic either.

Using Magic-

The skill of utilising and summoning magic into reality is as simple as writing on a piece of parchment. This is the first thing you’re taught in any magic school around the world. Once you’ve cast your first spell, you’re already passing the first lesson with flying colours. However, this can be quite a difficult task for those not born with the natural ability to connect to magic. During his life, Sir Arthur Heyes travelled to Lilacia and spoke to Grandmaster Rhynsol, Head Mage at the Royal Academy of Draoix. This is one of the worlds most prestigious places to study magic; located right in the heart of the Grand Kingdom of Goldfall, a bastion for magic. Sir Arthur and Gmr. Rhynsol spoke about the races of people that usually get accepted into his college. According to Rhynsol, the percentage of his alumni is roughly 87% Elf, 11% Human and 2% Beast. These stats have roughly remained the same since then, according to the current headmaster in 150 ADW. This statistic changes only slightly when looking at the alumni of the Mage’s College of Teal-Point, a renowned school for magic that opened up 160 years before the Dark War. Their stats show that 64% of pupils were of elven blood. Whilst 29% were of human blood and a mere 7% were of Beast blood.

It’s no secret that elves are the one race that almost always possess a natural connection to magic. This mainly comes from their cultural significance of Draoix, the God of Magic. The Elven nations of Lilacia don’t worship the 10 Spirits. Instead, like other local cultures, they worship only specific Gods. The Elves generally worship 2 of the 10 Spirits – Dominus and Draoix. In their culture, they refer to Draoix as the superior one, and Domini as the son of the Mother and Father. This has, in time, granted the elves Draoix’s favour. He blessed their bloodline with a deeper connection to magic than the other races.

Or so the stories say.

The human and beast races do not yield the favour of Draoix. Instead, the humans look towards glorifying Gladix, the God of War and Discipline. He was taken on as a role model for human slave revolvers on both Lilacia and Emeraldia as his blessing was upon them. As since, he’s become the favourite God of many human kingdoms; the 10 Spirits are still worshipped as a collective, however. The only god referred as higher than the others is Dominus- Chief Deity as First Born of the Mother and Father. This, instead, grants the humans a superior tactical minds and logistics. The best Mages come from the Elven Kingdoms- but the best Generals, Knights and Rulers come from the human kingdoms.

The beast, on the other hand, receive the blessings of Nadurin, Goddess of Nature and Mother of all Trees. They’re granted much superior senses for tracking and hunting. This also offers a primal gene to most Beast races that makes them incredibly strong—hence why races such as the Kamaali, Ramerians and Kanaan-Zi inhibit seemingly impossible amounts of natural strength to outsiders.

If you’re a human or a beast practising magic you will find the first steps to be possibly the hardest. Once you overcome it and successfully feel the connection to magic, you will be equal to those around you.

Some magic is extremely powerful. Something that needless be said despite its blatancy. What must always be remembered is that— certain magic requires a certain amount of power. If you attempt to practise an extremely powerful spell without having the right amount of power, you will blunder and backfire; possibly kill you. The same applies to rituals—they’re magic just like anything else. If you don’t follow the instructions and have the precise ingredients, it can blow up in your face horribly. Remember, magic is always dangerous, especially when misused.

When casting magic, all it takes is a simple spell. You speak the incantation in your head and it’ll appear. If you’re powerful enough and possess a deep enough connection, you won’t have to speak out your incantation and instead it will be cast for you. Being connected to magic is a bond—if you’re good at it, it will learn to understand you. The most powerful Mages are able to cast such impressive spells with ease and at great speed because of this. Magic talks to them just as much as people do. It’s also possible that one might drain themselves of their power. If you run out of power, you can easily meditate or rest to gain it back. Much like anything else; fatigue, being bloated after eating, relieving yourself at the bathroom, all you have to do is wait. People with more power will, of course, last longer when it comes to spell casting. This is the dangerous part of magic combat—if your opponent is vastly stronger than you, you could run out of magic whilst they’re still throwing spell after spell at you. You must make sure you’re powerful enough before taking on a magic opponent.

The Ethics of Magic-

Sir Arthur Heyes thought it was important to note down the ethical components that come into using magic. He wanted to draw a very clear and straightforward boundary between magic that was good and magic that was objectively evil. Most magic sits within the neutral ground (not evil but not objectively good by nature, just neutral). This includes the standard elemental combat spells and simple spells like casting a light or teleporting. However, spells like summonings and mind control are not spells to be considered entirely ‘neutral.’ In retrospect, these spells aren’t objectively evil either, but they’re some of the common spells used by all evil Mages throughout history. Certain branches of magic, like Demonic Magic and Blood Magic, exist entirely because of evil deeds. Necromancy is another branch of magic riddled in controversy. Many kingdoms across the world have banned the practise of such magic as its seen as cruel to use against anyone. Resurrecting the dead and bringing such disrespect to the corpse that you defile with magic is highly shunned upon. The only places to allow the use of this kind of magic 5 kingdoms; Banovkar, Dremos Empire, Zanic Wood, Yaras Tahr and the Viduri Empire. 5 kingdoms that are all condemned by their neighbours as objectively evil. As of 150 ADW, Dremos have been debating on banning the magic too as they’ve been looking at improving their relations amongst the realm, but this is unlikely to be a full ban. All of these nations are run by Necromancers and Liches, no wonder they’re welcoming of it.

Over the past 3,000 years of recorded history, Orbis has become home to hundreds of “Sights of Magical Significance.” These are spots or specific locations that are places of sincere magical concentration. Whether it be the death sight of an ancient and powerful being, or the battleground of a violent and costly battle, these places are the go-to spots for Mages looking to embark on a pilgrimage to grow their power. There’s something about the loss of life, particularly the loss of thousands of lives, that attracts magic energy to it. This theory has baffled scholars for centuries—could souls be the source of magic? A topic of debate ongoing since the Golden Empire of Goldfall in 1,200 BDW.

Holding too much power from mediating for centuries at a time, can begin to have physical impacts on your body. If, of course, your goal is to travel to all the pilgrimage sights and grow your power to limitless extents; this is the right direction for you. But heed this warning—although the practise of necromancy slowers your aging of the body, possessing such great power can drain your soul and transform you into something of an undead state of being. You will become a Lich: an undead being of immense magic power that’s transcended the realm of mortality. Very few have actually succeeded this; even fewer make their existence known. Two examples are the Lich Lord of Banovkar and Lord Ralkess Veranok. These two used their political power to grow their own strength and make the transcend to Lichdom. Many Liches can be found in the Ar’Maaljhal deserts; magic is strictly prohibited throughout most of this realm, so powerful Mages pursue their career in the dark arts privately in secluded caves and hideaways miles off the main roads. Some particular roadways between city states are so old and disused that one could even get away with kidnapping the odd traveller for certain dark deeds.

If you’re looking for a Holy Sights—magical sights that grant you a deeper connection to your god of worship, there are many temples around the world devoted to all types of Gods. If one was to pray or meditate to their god in a temple anywhere in the world, you would receive the same affects. Places of worship are known for their sources of power provided by the Gods they represent. If the temple is broken or defiled, the blessing is lost.

Another place to receive holy blessings from your God is the birth places of great and holy men throughout history. As of 150 ADW, the most recent sight of interest was the birthplace of Tom the Seeker In Blueport, the small Nordic settlement now-turned city in North of Ryfklin End. This place has exhibited signs of magical attraction much like other sights. This has sparked debated between human kingdoms of Lilacia whether they should protect the city from the violent Cursed Lands War between the Mystari and the Riftmen.

The Gift of Magic-

The blessing of being born with Draoix’s Gift is something only few can appreciate. However, it isn’t without its own set of complications. Sir Arthur referred to another study in his research—the Case Study of the Magic Toddler. It’s a popular exam in most magic academies, but before that, it was a real menace to elven society. Up until 520 BDW, households in Elven Kingdoms were suffering from their young children, specifically between ages 2 to 5, casting unwanted and unpredicted magic around the house.

In 520 BDW, a respected Elven Mage called Mawaylin of Blackbay, wrote a thesis about this case. Why were toddlers causing such chaos at home with magic? After half a year of investigating, he believed he found the answer. The King of Windshine had been attempting to reintroduce magic into schools. The previous dynasty that lasted between 890-550 BDW had outlawed magic in its entirety. (This would later be brought back by the 3rd dynasty that started 460 BDW, who favoured Gladix over Draoix). In the era of the 2nd Windshine dynasty, the monarchs wanted their people to be free to practise all safe and common forms of magic. This meant that during school times, the older students would begin to practise magic. For children starting school at ages 3 and up, this meant that they were exposed to this spectacle. For children to be allowed to watch magic performed, turned out to be quite a dangerous act. They would later bring this home with them as they attempt to try it themselves later in the evening. Mawaylin noticed the cases for children who hadn’t started school were significantly lower, so he wrote it off as unlikely accidents.

The Mage brought his findings to his superior, a Sorcerer who oversaw a class of 250 students over the course of their training. He, in turn, handed it over to the Grandmasters Table as he believed the thesis to be invaluable information to the higher authorities. It is important to note that these cases of Magic Toddlers were much more serious in reality—dozens of families had perished in house fires because of this ongoing issue. Within weeks, the King had invited Mawaylin to the Palace of a Thousand Towers, the Royal Seat of Windshine. His research became the very reason that put and end to this issue, after the king declared magic to be taught in higher educational schools.

Magic is never without cost, but certain races face less of a cost than others. There are some people groups out there that have practised their magic in a closed environment for such a number of generations, that their specific bloodline now display certain favours towards magic. For example, certain Faesiul and Bloodmen clans have been practising Blood Magic for centuries. Now, the newer generations are born with a slight advantage for it. If your parents were both avid users of a certain type of magic—be it Sun Magic, Elemental Magic or Necromancy—there’s a chance you will be born with a natural ability to excel at said magic. Sometimes, the magic you’re genetically destined to excel at can even affect your appearance. Every race that heavily practises Dark or Demonic Magic has had their skin dyed with a tint of Blue or Purple. Even the humans; the Zanic and the Vidurians both glow with a dark blueish hue.

There are some groups of humans who possess a natural skill for magic. It’s not just the Elves who boast this. There are isolated communities of Castallans, who hail from the Southern Moors of Emeraldia, that live within specific towns and monasteries practising a unique form of magic. These people called Sparrows. They are the only humans in the known world to practise Sun Magic. This magic is famous for its infinite power as all magic is directed from the Sun. The Sparrows were born from an old decree by a King whose name is lost under the sand. But they’ve since been turned into an exclusive Order of Paladins who fight undead and demonic entities.

Some Sparrows have even given birth to other children who possess the power of the Sun. Most of these children are welcome into the fold of the Order, but not all are so lucky. These children who are tossed aside are usually shunned from society and bullied by other children for their ancient and unwelcome magic. Over the course of many years. These abandoned children found themselves at the back of a dark cell. More and more of them turned to crime and eventually wound up behind bars. This inherently caused the creation of the Black Hawk Order; a collective of orphaned Sparrow offspring who found consolidation in one another’s existence. This consolidation quickly turned into a Gang who made nests in most prisons across Castalla.

In the 200 years before the Dark War, the 3rd Emerald Empire tried to tackle this issue. The Moorish Kingdoms had finally succumbed to the Empire; this meant they inherited their problems too. They first started by sending the kids and other older, more known members of the gangs to many different prisons across the entire realm. The Emerald Ambassador to Castalla specifically stated that all 1,400 members of the group they had picked up to relocate had to be move as far apart as they could. This order wasn’t followed by the local soldiers and guardsmen who ran the operations between forts and prisons. Instead, several dozen ended up in the Warendale’s Fort Sickham, the realms 5th largest prison. Because of this, the gang tripled in size. More of the same children were brought to the prison and by the time the decision was rectified, the gang had already spread to other prisons where other large Black Hawk populations existed.

Today, the Order of the Black Hawk is just as big as the Sparrows. They’re nasty, malicious and cultivate their gift in wicked ways. This entire crime syndicate was founded in the basis of humans being outcasted for possession of magic. Which brings us onto our final point.

The Cultural Impact-

Magic, since the discovery of its very existence, has been wrapped in controversy. It’s uncontrolled and volatile. It’s unpredictable and chaotic. You can’t chain it down to the foundations of law and order with decrees and doctrines. If one possesses the power to magic, then it will be used one way or another. The ability to cast magic give anyone who uses it a sense of freedom. There’s no restrictions. Much like any form of art, the only limitation is your imagination. This has empowered people for thousands of years. It was the burning light that lead the realm of Lilacia out of the Mystari Dark Ages. It was the very reason the 5 Generals marched on the Zanics and took the realm by force. It’s such a symbol of life, freedom and liberty to the world of orbis, it’s impossible to imagine a world without it...

Like all things, there exists a bad side to magic. It just so happens this bad side happens to be the horrors of Demonic Magic and Necromancy. The counterpart of something will always be as strong as its other half; since magic is arguably the most powerful force in the world, this gives evil men who pursue evil things more power than other things would. This is exactly how great men are driven to madness in the pursuit of magic. That’s the true evil of magic. If you delve too deep, you fall in and become corrupted. Sir Arthur speaks of this too—he knew a number of great scholars who fell into the depths of depression and insanity. According to his personal accounts, he mentioned a close friend of his he had met in university. He was pursuing magic in order to find his mother whom he was adamant was trapped inside a gem and was powering the artifact. Arthur never declassified any names for anonymity reasons, but his close friend ended up in a deep state of depression after working years on this project, only to accidentally destroy the artifact and releasing his mother’s soul into death. All he wanted was to say goodbye to her, but the wondrous call of magic had turned his world upside down. It is unknown what came if the scholar.

Some parts of the world have banned magic entirely. The Realm of Umoyah is full of magic, but the human Dynasties all prohibited its practise throughout their kingdoms. Instead, the ancient races like the Mondrasii and the Kraknaal all use it in their everyday lives. Lilacia has always been the home to most of orbis’ magic. The 4 main realms of the known world (Lilacia, Emeraldia, Kalwo and Ming Tao), all have an element of Magic existing within their territorial borders. Whilst magic finds it’s home in Lilacia, Emeraldia hosts dozens of Academies that teach magic to anyone of all classes. The only condition is that you must display the ability to cast magic. If you struggle and win to learn, there are classes one can pay for in order to attain this. Ming Tao’s Eastern Dynasties have offered lessons in Magic only more recently after the Dark War. The most prominent magic found throughout this realm is Dark Magic as vampires and K’narhox worshippers both lay claim to their own sovereign kingdom.

Kalwo doesn’t particularly have any rules against magic. The 13 Kanaan-Zi clans forbid magic within city regions of high population. Other than that, all magic is allowed; apart from Necromancy. Kalwo does, however, possess a reputation of a unique form of magic called Mysticism. The Kanaan-Zi believe that the deeper they delve into the world of Mystic Arts, the closer to ascension they will be. This is the second oldest existing religion in the world (the first being the Religion of the Hajj), meaning not many today practise this. Many owe their allegiances to the clans they represent. Only few still maintain its existence; all of whom are extremely powerful Mages who have a different level of understanding for magic. A higher understanding. People have tried to understand this concept, but none have come close in comprehension to just how difficult this can be.

The Kanaan-Zi aren’t the only ones who have a history of Mysticism. There are small communities of indigenous Galari who live within the ruins of the Mayini. These Elves have been practising Mysticism as a way to commune with the Mother and Father; the only ones to ever do so directly. This allowed the indigenous groups to see into the past and even the future, but not too far ahead. Recordings of this have been documented by only a handful of explorers and researchers who have had the chance to meet these strange elves. Only one has managed to succeed in seeing through time like they do: Eralon of Whitetower. He was an Emraldi born in a wealthy city in the Southwest of Horosia. He managed to see into the future after living among the Galari for some time. His vision took him further into the future than he imagined, where he was able to see the impeding Orcish fleets heading across the ocean. His warning was the reason that only Starlai was prepared for the Dark War. As such, the Mages of the island came together to conjure a hurricane that surrounded the island, keeping the Orcish fleets away.

The reason Starlai broke off from South Lilacia was down to the Magic too; one of the earlier Emperors of the Pax Mystari wanted to kill all the Mayini. Who are they, you might ask? Well, there’s a reason they don’t exist anymore. They were a race of humans who lived deep within the Starlai Jungle and studied the cosmic map and the stars. They were also last race on Lilacia for the Mystari to conquer—they were just as advanced as they were. If not for the Emperor using all his power to wipe out every single Mayini—killing himself in the process—we would be living in a world where the Mayini rule Lilacia like the Emraldi rule Emeraldia. Instead, the Old Elves of Lilacia elected to destroy their competition through a method of hard sacrifice. In the wake of the Emperors act, the landmass cracked and Starlai split off, heading directly south.

If you’re not yet convinced of the cultural impact of magic, then allow me to introduce you to Glowing Towers. In the Elven Kingdoms of Silverglade, Windshine, Brownleaf, Whytewood, Goldfall and even Starlai, one can find hundreds of these strange looking pillars scattered across the landscape. They’re several hundreds of feet high and are far enough apart that you can see only a few alone the horizon. They’re also patterned with layers of spikes and glowing orbs. At the very top, lays a mysterious structure that resembles that of a portal. Only, there’s no portal. Instead, there’s a huge ball of glowing energy that radiates an infinite supply of magical energy and emits itself into the atmosphere. The locals took to calling them the Glowing Towers a millennia ago, and the name has stuck since. These towers predate any existing records, which leads many scholars o believe that they’re of the Promethean Era. Unfortunately, that means that no one can replicate them. They’re a marvel to witness, but more importantly they produce magic—unlimited magic too. The Galari and Silvari have cultivated these towers for their personal use both in combat and research. Academies have been known to build their campuses around and within close proximity of these towers in order for their students to utilise them in their studies.

In Windshine, when the 3rd Dynasty rose to power in the 400’s BDW, the practise of magic was strictly outlawed and with this, all the towers were deactivated as a means to stop anyone from going against the Emperors orders. Since then, 550 years on, the towers are still deactivated. Their pillars at the top were smashed with stone catapults after a tactician deducted the distance needed to hit the top of the towers precisely. When they switched off, the light from the entire tower fell dim as if it was dying. Something sadly symbolic in the telling of all elven history.

In Ar’Maaljhal, magic is banned almost entirely throughout the Eranid City States. The sun bleached humans of this realm are very distrusting of magic—for good reason. The ancient Hajj Civilisations and the more recent Jarazheeni Empires used to utilise magic as a means to mass enslave the physically weaker Eranid races. It was their main tool in keeping the starving populace in line. It took a millennia for the Eranids to finally break free of their metaphysical chain and took charge of their own fate.

Thousands of years on and due to the huge slave population, the Eranids are the most widespread race. They rule the deserts with their Golden Empire and dozens of sovereign city states. The old Jarazheeni empire of Crimson Sand, however, lives isolated to the south where they trade with their few allies.

In the eyes of the Eranid, magic has no place in their realm. The Elves of Lilacia revere it as the weapon that brought them their freedom. Here, they’ve long since condemned it for its actions against them in the Jarazheeni Era. The Eranid society blames magic for poisoning their Jarazheeni brothers after discovering it thousands of years ago.

The Hajj of Old kept hidden temples of tall towers, adored with exquisitely sculptured pillars and intricate designed rooftops of gold and brown, in the Daiqamar mountains. Local stories tell researchers that they possess an unknown amount of untapped raw magical energy absorbed from thousands of ancient soldiers in willing sacrifice. The kind of magic that one would find in one of these temples could allow them to terraform the entire realm- which is what the Hajj did. They turned their desert landscape into a tropical paradise of beautiful luscious fields and palm trees and gorgeous lakes. After their civilisation died off due to unknown circumstances, the temples have remained hidden, and the only remnants of their tropical world is the Walihir Spring of Northeast Ar’Maaljhal.

We known of this because of the stories that the Jarazheeni tell; families that have lived in the Springs since they first ‘grew to life overnight’, as the legends would have it.

These examples of just how fundamental magic is to certain societies can certainly prove its status as a pillar of human foundation and one of the most studied topics of all scholars throughout time. This study was written as an essay to commemorate the workings of Sir Arthur Heyes and to provide a doctrine on all magic for those who wish to learn or explore it. Do be careful when practising any form of magic, but remember how useful it can be in the hands of the right person.

This has been the first of many Orbis projects in the making. Essays, Worldbuilding and Short Stories will all be published to further the expansion of my Fantasy Novel. I hope you enjoyed the content.

Dan, May 2020