Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

Coren FrozenZephyr

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Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« on: 29 May 2006, 07:30:00 »

Note: Drasil and Orril requested that I post this little summary I prepared for Renakroz here. Should we make it sticky?

BTW I am still working on that "Magic for Newbies" guide Twen asked... Currently: procrastinating... Maybe I'll have a version I'm satisfied with by the end of the summer!

Note: If there's anything else you want included in this guide, post below! Adding a silver bard per request might help speed up the procedure!

Magic for Beginners

by Silfer & Coren

GIST

SYSTEM:
The Ximaxian system is the secular, scientific study of magic (in the Santharian kingdom of the Sarvonian continent), interpreting the world through (the angles of) the four elements: Wind, Water, Earth, Fire. Ximaxian magic (excluding Raw Magic) revolves principally around the content of the Carall, the universal aura, and its manipulation. This view is very flexible - very few things are impossible per definition of the system. Magic-users are limited by means: A fire mage cannot extinguish a fire by conjuring up water. However, he can extinguish by manipulating the flame itself for instance. Thus, the system is not necessarily limited in ends – except the individual limitations of the casters.

CARALL:
Ximaxian mages believe in the existence of the universal aura (Carall) as the essence of Creation. Although everything has a carall, some claim that recognition of individual carallia (this carall, that carall) is a simplification. A carall is the defining principle of an entity: the carall (aura) decides what a given object is, how it behaves etc.

The form of a carall is the underlying “Idea” of the object, which characterizes the concept the object belongs to. The form is what helps us identify different types of objects or group those sharing a lot of similarities together: For instance there are red fish, silver fish, blue fish with white stripes, long fish, stubby fish, salt-water fish, lake fish, big fish, small fish etc. but it is the Form of all these Caralls, the “Fish-Idea” (the idea of a fish), that enables us to identify all these creatures, despite their differences, as “fish”. Only Raw Magic can directly manipulate the Form of the Carall by e.g. substituting the idea of a “spoon” with the idea of an “egg” to transform a spoon into an egg.

The content of the carall consists of ounia and the links (“Xeua”) holding them together in the specific structure that defines, constitutes the given object. Ounia (singular: oun), the building blocks of the aura (and in fact all of Existence) come in four flavours: Fire, Wind, Water and Earth. Each oun is dedicated to and contains the characteristics of one of the four elements. Differences between objects as well as personalities – in fact almost all differences – arise from how many of what ounia there are (loosely speaking; ounia aren’t something one can count and should better be expressed as proportions in relation to the ounia of other elements present) and how they are linked in a carall.

Any particular carall typically contains all kinds of ounia, however the amount of each type (wind-water-earth-fire) may – and in fact, does – vary. For all practical purposes “foreign” ounia in the physical manifestation of an element are negligible. Thus, the “avatars” of the elements (e.g. the water of a raindrop is an avatar of the Element of Water) are assumed to be “pure”.

MAGIC:
A change in the aura reflects as a change (which can be physical, spiritual or in some cases both) in the object/being. By altering a carall, a mage can affect a change in the actual presence represented by that carall. This (sometimes called the “Mirror Principle”) is the basis of all magic according to the Academy of Ximax.

Ximaxian magic (excluding Raw Magic) is achieved by manipulating the ounia and the links between them. A mage of one element manipulates the ounia of that element, while Xeua (link-making) and Ecua (link-breaking) mages typically manipulate the links and are therefore able to directly affect more than one element in the carall. (Xeua and Ecua mages can also manipulate the ounia, while elemental mages cannot directly manipulate links. Also, elemental mages can only affect their own element: A water mage for example can only manipulate water ounia)

Will is the primary tool through which a Ximaxian mage modifies the carall – and thus “casts magic”.

Essential entries you want to read:
- Magic in the World of Caelereth
- Carall
- Schools of Magic
- The individuals entry of the elemental school you wish to focus on. For instance: The School of Water

To be added:
- Physical & Spiritual representation
- Further Reading list
- raw magic (remove!)

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Edited by: Coren FrozenZephyr at: 6/7/06 21:27


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Kalína Dalá'isyrás

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Re: Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« Reply #1 on: 29 May 2006, 09:58:00 »

Well, it certainly isn't only for Renakroz, as those who suggested it could also greatly benefit from the information which it contains.

Looks good Coren

I am no real magic expert so the information in the write-up is not my place to comment on. ;)

I will such to Mina, Marvin, Twen, and Silfer

www.p081.ezboard.com/fthesantharianrpgboard83.showMessage?topicID=259.topic" target="_blank">

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Silfer Darkflare

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Re: Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« Reply #2 on: 29 May 2006, 14:55:00 »

Looks good to me - nice, Coren.


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so orril miesefer

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Re: Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« Reply #3 on: 29 May 2006, 18:27:00 »

Can we make this sticky??? we must make it sticky, is the best guide I've seen arround here, this and Silfer 101

What's my magic? My treasure. What's my God? My freedom. My law? the strength and the wind. My mother country the sky So Orril Miés'éfer, Sky master.


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What's my magic? is my treasure, What's my god? is my freedom, my law? the strenght and the wind, my mother country is the sky.--- So Orril, Sky Tower apprentice

Coren FrozenZephyr

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Re: Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« Reply #4 on: 30 May 2006, 01:09:00 »

This IS the "Silfer 101"! Only Corenized a bit

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Twen Araerwen

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Re: Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« Reply #5 on: 30 May 2006, 01:37:00 »

Very wonderful start here Coren! "Magic for Dummies" will most likely be the most useful entry to of ever reached the magic forum IMHO. A small overview of Spiritual and Physical representations might be useful as well. Not an elaborate description of all these things but a general overview of what defines their catagorizations might be helpful. Since these representations are part of each of the elemental schools. Keep up the good work hun. :hug

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Edited by: Twen Araerwen at: 5/29/06 9:38


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Re: Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« Reply #6 on: 30 May 2006, 04:05:00 »

I like it really - my only concern is, that more people than now think from now on wrongly, that they understand Caelereth magic ! ;)

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Falethas Whisperwind

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Re: Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« Reply #7 on: 02 June 2006, 12:49:00 »

Edited... for further explanation see here, second post from top of page.

Edited by: Ysuran Auondril at: 6/3/06 18:09


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Re: Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« Reply #8 on: 02 June 2006, 17:44:00 »

This keeps it simple - the spheres delve into the more complex aspect which doesn't necessarily need an "overview", perhaps in the more formal write-up, as I believe there is another one coming?

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Mina

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Re: Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« Reply #9 on: 02 June 2006, 17:47:00 »

Yeah, there is, or at least I hope so. I'm counting on it to replace my guide in the RPG board. (And, yes, I'm lazy that way. :pet

)

By the way, I suggest not mentioning raw magic. It's from really long ago, and I don't think it's in the magic system anymore.

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Edited by: Mina Aylwin at: 6/2/06 1:48


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Falethas Whisperwind

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Re: Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« Reply #10 on: 03 June 2006, 08:44:00 »

Edited... for further explanation see here, second post from top of page.

Edited by: Ysuran Auondril at: 6/3/06 18:10


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Epthaeranté á sáh pheranía sáh alyría; ahmantát naithím sá sae'llán styaeyías.
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Re: Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« Reply #11 on: 03 June 2006, 09:16:00 »

IMHO Raw magic must deal with time... It doesen´t overpowers, and let the things alredy writen well.

What's my magic? My treasure. What's my God? My freedom. My law? the strength and the wind. My mother country the sky So Orril Miés'éfer, Sky master.


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What's my magic? is my treasure, What's my god? is my freedom, my law? the strenght and the wind, my mother country is the sky.--- So Orril, Sky Tower apprentice

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Re: Magic for Beginners: The Essence of the Ximaxian System

« Reply #12 on: 03 June 2006, 09:44:00 »

Well, in theory, if a xeua mage and an ecua mage of enough power were working together, I think they could completely alter a car'all, and since the car'all of an object pretty much determines what it is, they could alter what the object is. But, yes, raw magic is really old, and I'm not sure where it could possibly go now, since it was meant to be the magic of the Weavers, and the rewrite Rayne did changed them enough that it wouldn't really fit anymore.