Magic in my world

[seekmore]

In my novel, I have three types of magic sorcery, divine, and necromancy.

Sorcery

Sorcery is the most dangerous and the most powerful of magicks. A sorcerer utilizes the energy that binds the mind, soul and body together as a catalyst to reshape creation itself. A sorcerer is limited only by his imagination and his willingness to risk his very existence.

Using his blood, the sorcerer begins a ritual of his own devising. The ritual varies for each spell. A simple chant, a complex dance, perhaps some music, whatever the sorcerer deems appropriate. He focuses his mind and slowly begins to separate his mind or soul from his body. He tears apart the bands of energy holding him together. Once separated, the sorcerer uses the freed energy to bend creation to his will. Once the process has begun, a single distraction or misstep would prove disastrous.

The ritual prevents the sorcerer's mind and/or spirit from leaving his body. If distracted, the sorcerer's soul could dissipate, leaving behind nothing but a catatonic shell. There would also be the worry of some restless spirit or Demon taking up residence in the empty body. On the other hand, if the soul remains, but the mind is shattered, the sorcerer would become less than an animal. Lashing out in rage and pain until the body runs itself to death or it is put out of its misery. If neither mind nor soul survives, the body simply wastes away.

Once the spell is complete, the sorcerer directs the energy to bind his mind, body and soul back together.

Divine magic

Divine magic is power bequeathed upon mortals by the Younger Gods in return for their devotion. The limitations of this magic are dependent upon two factors. The first is the god in question. Some gods dislike the notion of giving mortals large amounts of the own power, while others have no problem with the idea. The second is the amount of dedication and the practitioner's willingness to sacrifice to their deity.

A divine magic user is typically limited by whatever domain their deity maintains. Followers of the sea goddess, for instance, cannot use their magic far from the a large body of water. On the ocean itself, they may be able to do anything from breathing underwater to calling up storms. Followers other gods, like the god of Law, are limited by their own interpretation of their teachings and by the god himself.

Divine magic can be a bit of a double-edged sword, as every spell cast is monitored by the deity it draws from. Failure to adhere to the teachings of a god, or by misusing the power they have been given is often dealt with quick and extreme prejudice.

Divine magic users can be people of all sorts, though they usually occupy some sort of religious role. Tribal shamans, druids, and clerics  all practice this magic. It is believed that the most powerful divine magic users are monks and nuns who occupy small hermitages that dot the landscape.

Necromancy

Necromancy is magic dealing with the forces of life and death. Many believe it to be a type of divine magic. That necromancers simply draw upon the power of the gods of life and death, but the reality is much different. Necromancers draw power from within, the life around them, and from the dead.

Necromancy falls into two distinct groups. There is White Necromancy and Black Necromancy. White Necromancy deals with the progress of the natural order. It can heal and preserve, but can also kill. It also can lay the dead to rest, and purify contaminated places and objects. White Necromancy acknowledges that death is a part of life. Black Necromancy is the opposite. It seeks to pervert the true nature of life and death by prolonging life in a futile effort to achieve immortality. It enslaves the spirits of the dead, or raising the bodies of the slain and makes them into weapons to be used against the living. It can cause rot, decay, and kill.

Necromancers enjoy a hallowed, if lonely place, in most societies. Necromancers are the only people allowed to touch the dead, once the family has completed their mourning rituals. Unfortunately, many people believe death shadows necromancers, and that they should not be approached them without need of their aid.

[Ecuadorian Super Termite]

You should probably rethink the names "white necromancy" and "black necromancy".  It's way too close to saying "good wizards" and "bad wizards", whether or not that's where you're going with the story.

Besides that, I don't see any problems with your magic system itself. Just remember that if magic is being used to solve narrative obstacles, your readers have to understand the nuts and bolts of it, so they can see the solution coming.

It might also help you to find a writing group, online or in person. They can help you with problems of grammar and diction and the like.

[seekmore]

Yeah, my grammar and such can be atrocious.

I usually go through an excruciating self-editing process, but I haven't slept today so it didn't happen.

Those terms are simply for my own use. Characters wouldn't refer to people who used that magic as Necromancers. Black Necromancy is a perversion of nature and anyone who uses it could be considered evil.

[belial.1980]

Very interesting. I like all three flavors of magic quite a bit.

Just some things to consider:

Is somebody limited to the schools of magic they're allowed to follow? Can a sorcerer also practice necromancy? Since necromancy is sometimes considered divine, could a necromancer make nice with a god and practice divine magic?

Who's allowed/able to practice magic? Are there academies, or would one learn from a tutor or be self taught? All of the above?

It sounds like you're creating a whole world, as well as a magic system, so those are just some things to consider. What you've got so far sounds great. Good luck. I'd like to hear more about your creation as it develops.

[seekmore]

Very interesting. I like all three flavors of magic quite a bit.

Just some things to consider:

Is somebody limited to the schools of magic they're allowed to follow? Can a sorcerer also practice necromancy? Since necromancy is sometimes considered divine, could a necromancer make nice with a god and practice divine magic?

Who's allowed/able to practice magic? Are there academies, or would one learn from a tutor or be self taught? All of the above?

Potentially anyone can practice divine magic provided they can attract the attention of a god. Many gods require testing or training to be undertaken.

Necromancy and Sorcery must be learned, but an aptitude for one or both can be genetically inherited.

Combining schools of magic is frowned upon, but it happens frequently enough to not shock people.

Necromancers rarely practice sorcery because of the the beliefs that are often acquired during training. The soul and mind are sacred, and to use them in such a manner shows them great disrespect. Necromancy must be taught by a practitioner. There is one small Academy  that teaches Necromancy en-masse, but it is typically learned via the traditional Master/apprentice route.

It's fairly common for sorcerers to dabble in Necromancy for the versatility, but a people who are strong in both are exceedingly rare. Sorcery can be self-taught if one finds the resources that detail creating rituals, and occasionally a Sorcerer will pick up an apprentice.

Divine magic, on the other hand, is kind of a come one, come all. As long as you stay on the good side of your sworn deity, you can pretty much do as you please, magically speaking.

It sounds like you're creating a whole world, as well as a magic system, so those are just some things to consider. What you've got so far sounds great. Good luck. I'd like to hear more about your creation as it develops.

I am, actually. It's quite difficult.

I have a few things and plan on sharing them later this week once I can get back to my own computer.

[The Corvidian]

Are the "White Necromancers" the doctors/healers of your world?

[seekmore]

Are the "White Necromancers" the doctors/healers of your world?

They are a magical equivalent of the profession, yes. They have extensive medical training and have a unique understanding of how the human body works.

"White Necromancers" also prepare the dead for burial, conduct funeral rites, and, when necessary, lay all manner of shades, spectres, and ghosts to rest.

How a "White Necromancer" goes about their duties varies from pracitioner to practitioner. Some contract themselves out to large cities. The city pays for the Necromancer's small living expenses, and the Necromancer provides their services to the people in general. Some volunteer to travel and work in the aftermath of wars and diasters, helping the poor. Others try to heal wounds to the natural world, brought on by progress, and forego contact with people. It's all about restoring and maintaining a balance in the world.

[Roaram]

I really dig on the divinity angle for magic, I 'v been futzing with it for one of my own stories. and necromancy is never used enough as far as I am concerned.

my only concern is your description of the sorcery. I like the graphics description, the risk and the gain. even the total commitment to perfect concentration has a good amber resonance. BUT, instantly calling it the strongest? no limits other than your imagination and willpower? so, if I got this right, anyone who is stubborn, creative, and focused, can just auto trump gods? (three year olds can be awfully willfull and creative.....) maybe a little limitation would be a good thing.... that way your MC can't just become a god and bring everyone back from the dead with a riverdance if he WANTS it bad enough...

[seekmore]

my only concern is your description of the sorcery. I like the graphics description, the risk and the gain. even the total commitment to perfect concentration has a good amber resonance. BUT, instantly calling it the strongest? no limits other than your imagination and willpower? so, if I got this right, anyone who is stubborn, creative, and focused, can just auto trump gods? (three year olds can be awfully willfull and creative.....) maybe a little limitation would be a good thing.... that way your MC can't just become a god and bring everyone back from the dead with a riverdance if he WANTS it bad enough...

I suppose the way I described it above, sorcery seems to be limitless.

Let me start out by saying this: Necromancy is a rifle. Dangerous and requiring training and upkeep. It has a several different uses. Divine magic is a knife. It has some of the same uses as the rifle, but many more besides. Sorcery is a cannon. Effective,  but also limited in its usefulness.

Now, as to the second of your concerns. Sorcery requires more than a few years of training, both to acquire the mental acuity necessary to maintain concentration sometimes for hours on end and for the ability to create good rituals. A ritual isn't simply doing a little dance or whistling a tune. It's something specific. It begins the process of calling up the energy needed to accomplish your intent. The ritual establishes that intent and helps account for any barriers or variables that could affect how the spell works. The best rituals are created by a sorcerer himself. He could use another sorcerer's ritual, but it wouldn't be nearly as effective.

There is no power on earth that a mortal could attain that would enable him to become a god in such a way. After having created and completed the proper ritual, a sorcerer could level a city. He could reverse the flow of a river or cause an earthquake. He could create a fog that puts people to sleep, rain fiery death from the sky or any number of other things. He could not end the world, or kill a god.

There are a few fundamental rules that all magic-users must obey, one of them being that you can't resurrect things once they have passed on. A necromancer couldn't even do that.

[seekmore]

Necromancy
Necromancy manifests as a combination of powers and actual magic.

Powers
Necromancers are able to absorb ambient life energy unconsciously to speed healing and keep in general health. A downside to this is that, if wounded deeply, the necromancer can lose control of this ability and draw too deeply from a single source, weakening and even killing it.

Necromancers are able to artificially bolster physical abilities(speed, strength, etc) by drawing energy from the world around them. Drawing too much, or too frequently without adequate rest, results in headaches of increasing severity. The headaches will eventually incapacitate the necromancer until the energy deficit is naturally replenished.

Necromancers have a heightened sense of awareness of those around them. He or she can feel recent wounds and painful points on the bodies of those near him. Prolonged contact with the same individual only heightens this awareness, allowing the necromancer to divine the type of life someone has led in reference to physical violence and to identify unknown health conditions.

Magic
Accomplished necromancers can summon and banish beings from beyond the grave and detect living creatures at a distance.

If prepared, the necromancer can cause intense physical pain to an opponent via eye contact or touch, or disconnect the conscious mind from the body, causing the person to lapse into a deep sleep. The latter power cannot be used often on the same person, as there is a chance the individual may not wake up.

He can influence the mind to ignore or heighten sensations of pain or discomfort, and actually drain life from any opponent.

By drawing from his own reserves, the people and other living things around him, a necromancer is capable of healing anything from small cuts and scrapes to potentially fatal wounds. Doing so drains the necromancer and rest is needed after using this power.

Any wound or pain a necromancer purposefully inflicts on another person will eventually be felt as a ghostly echo. This is a backlash for using his powers in such a way.

Divine Magic
Divine magic varies according to the god. In this example, I am using my character Rea. She is a cleric of the god of Law and horses. One thing that hold true is that most, if not all, divine magic must be channeled through a focus; an article of faith that has been blessed by an ordained priest of the faith. In this character;s case, she has two primary foci. The first is a pair of silver bracers she inherited from her grandmother, a former cleric of Law. The second is a silver mace.
Another thing that holds true with all divine magic users is that faith and devotion are directly proportional to power.

Divine magic manifests as a series of powers. These powers are a combination of the user's faith and willpower and the power granted by their god. It is limited by the imagination of the user and the scope of the god's domain(Law, Storms, the Sea, Fire, etc)

By calling on and focusing her faith, Rea channel stunning energy through her focus at the target it comes into contact with. It is more than enough to bring down someone who is unprepared or not protected from such an attack. If allowed time to concentrate, she can direct this power from a distance via her foci. A weaker version of this power can be directed outward from her person at any opponent in the immediate area.

By invoking the name of her deity, Rea can restore things going. Her power can set bones, but not mend them, realign tissues and capillaries, but not seal them, etc. She can restore tampered minds, as long as the damage isn’t too great or the result of something natural(i.e. birth defects)

By focusing her energy, Rea can project a sort of field around her that dispels magical attacks against her person. This is physically draining for Rea, and if she maintains it for too long, the effect is not unlike that of severe intoxication.

The law aspect of Rea’s deity gives her a degree of command over natural phenomena, greatly increasing her destructive capabilities under the right circumstances. For instance, she dictate the path of a fire, if the fire was started naturally, or fix the path of a bolt of lightning in a natural thunderstorm.

Because of her deity, Rea shares a special connection with creatures used as mounts, specifically horses. Such animals take to her easily, and trust her not to harm them. This connection extends not only to her own mount, but also to others'. While she can not actually speak with them, they gain a sort of intuition with her, allowing her to direct them against the will of their owners. Her own horse would enjoy heightened strength and speed, as well as a resistance to injury and an increased rate of healing.

I can give another example of a cleric's powers if this isn't clear enough.

I'm still working out the specifics of sorcery.