[Art/Writing] Jairus: Merry Christmas

[Fragmaster01]

Wow, that was one of the shortest posts I've made in this thread.

Victoly!
My killing spells run the opposite, with the fact that since all it does is knock the soul out, and the body is still not quite dead, spirit magic to throw the spirit back in would fix that right up(with occasional use of defibrilator, depending on how quick you are with the soul vacuum).

[Jairus]

My killing spells run the opposite, with the fact that since all it does is knock the soul out, and the body is still not quite dead, spirit magic to throw the spirit back in would fix that right up(with occasional use of defibrilator, depending on how quick you are with the soul vacuum).

The Killing Spell works on the very simple principle that the same knowledge that allows you to heal and protect a body also allows you to hurt it: in short, the Killing Spell is a Light magic element spell. Basically, what you're doing is shutting down every single living thing in the body simultaneously and forcing the soul out at the same time. The end result is that the person hit by it just drops dead. Of course, one minor problem of the Killing Spell is that it leaves a bit of magical residue behind, so anyone who knows about magic can tell that a spell was used to kill someone, even if they don't know which spell was used.

Also, there are spells that will kill you. A lot of them. And some of them will kill you instantly, in the same sense that having a fully-loaded gatling gun emptied into you will kill you, or having a grenade go off inside your stomach will kill you, or being hit by an artillery shell right through the head, or being next to a nuclear bomb as it goes off... well, you kind of get the point. In short, there are a lot of spells that will kill you instantly, but there is only one instant kill spell.

On another minor note, this thread is officially at three pages! Yay!

Please, people, don't forget to raise questions if you have them.

[Pagan]

Sorry for not saying anything earlier. Whooo-boy. I've only really got two questions, and they're both about the old white/black magic topic.
So black magic is just the normal progession for wizards and sorcerers after they become strong enough in white magic? Is black magic pretty common amongst magic users?
Oh, how common are Sor. Stones? How are they made? How much more difficult is the process for a Phil. Stone?
Cool tech stuffs, but why- beside things like the TF (mark II and IV) and Cal and Caliburn- is a cannon classified?
It almost seems that any of the "holy grails" are open to anyone dedicated enough. Bringing back the dead? Tested and proved, we've even got certified methods! Immortality? Make up a new way and we still won't be impressed. Even the cure-all is open to those who really want it.

Can we see either races, especially more clarification on creatures, beings, and beasts. Or elements of magic, like light/dark, arcane and fire and stuffs.

[Jairus]

So black magic is just the normal progession for wizards and sorcerers after they become strong enough in white magic? Is black magic pretty common amongst magic users?

No, not really. Very few mages ever truly "learn" Black magic, for a couple of reasons. It's not as simple as learning a few techniques and then you're immediately an amazing badass Black Mage capable of tearing through Faeries with no effort. One literally has to basically be a master-level magic wielder/energeia wielder in order to pull Black magic off at all, let alone master it. The sort of Black magic that most people tap into is little more than an accident, and so few people do it that it really doesn't matter in the end. In addition, the whole "emotional trigger" thing is a stage that a lot of Black mages fail and lose themselves in. Ultimately, most people don't learn Black magic for a handful of reasons. In addition to all of that, much like the Philosopher's stone, the methods of doing it are very rare. In fact, only a handful of books and grimoires talk about how to do Black magic: it is usually passed along from master to student, in that kind of a relationship. It's a little safe that way: a master can know when their student is ready to begin learning, whereas someone might just learn Black magic from a book and not be able to handle it. So, to answer your question, Black magic is rare enough that most of the time you just hear of it in conjunction with evil mages and the like, which is unfortunate.

Oh, how common are Sor. Stones? How are they made? How much more difficult is the process for a Phil. Stone?

Low-quality stones aren't that uncommon (is that two or three negatives in a row?). A sufficiently skilled sorcerer with a few months or a year on their hands could make one. The idea I have for how they're made it you are basically collecting and compressing magical energy over an extended period of time through a special magical array, gradually converting bits of the compressed energy into a solid state until you finally have a solid crystal tuned precisely to act as a magical conduit. The stone's size is kind of dependent on how long you let it simmer and how much energy you can compact in, combined with how efficient you're being about the whole process. There's a bit more to it than that, and the ritual is fairly complicated. Moreover, it is time consuming and takes some observation in order to get it right. Sorcerer's stones just make it easier for sorcerer's to trap magical energy to perform their spells, that's all. Nick has made at least ten in his lab, all of them created under exacting specifications to be as close to one another as possible: five are set aside for Roland's use, while each of the Skipper's uses four. The reason he could get away with this is because all of them were made under his computer's observation while he was working on more important things. Mastered stones are the rare ones, rare enough that Nick actually tried to refuse Corey's gift of one because it was far too valuable. Corey had to insist that his friend take one of the most valuable magical artifacts in all of Grehzia.
      As for the Philosopher's stone... there's more to it than the stuff to make a Sorcerer's stone. A lot more. I'm fairly certain that at least one mastered sorcerer's stone is necessary to make one, and you'll need more - a lot more - to make a really good stone. That means that you have to at least make one sorcerer's stone to make one philosopher's stone, and the process of making a P. Stone is at least twice again as complicated. So, to answer the second part of your question, a lot more complicated. Also, if I remember some of the sleep-deprived notes that I wrote down in one of my notebooks, I seem to recall writing that the stone needs to "gestate" for a while... I don't quite recall what that means. Since I never show any of the characters making one, it doesn't really matter anyway.
      In short, both types of stones are fairly rare. And to be blunt, Nick was a poor enough sorcerer at the academy that the only reason he passed his sorcery classes is because of his stone (it actually wasn't cheating on his part)(also, his knowledge of magic is highly advanced, so his problem is that he's bad at capturing the energy used in sorcery). The philosopher's stone is rare enough that I don't think there's even one on Terra, and the most that are in one place is three. And for the record, I don't think that Nick will ever make a Philosopher's Stone.

Cool tech stuffs, but why- beside things like the TF (mark II and IV) and Cal and Caliburn- is a cannon classified?

Because Nick's friends know about stuff like Skipper and Cal and Caliburn and the Reactor (or learn about them shortly into the story), but the DACA and Roland and AMP Tech is still being kept under the table. Nick is a little worried about any of those three getting out (well, he's more worried about DACA getting out, because most Creatures aren't going to mess with AMP Tech and only Elves are small enough to use Roland as it's currently set up), so he keeps them under lock and key. You'll also notice that Skipper's most powerful weapon is classified: he hasn't told his friends how that works either. Besides, the DACA's small peanuts compared to Roland. There's also a few things I haven't mentioned, stuff like AMP Tech... well, let's just say that if people knew what AMP Tech was about, Nick might have a few problems on his hands. Most of the stuff that's classified are either weapons or AMP Tech.
In short, these are just a few of the things he's invented, so only a handful are "classified." Basically, anything that is a weapon is classified.
* the real reason DACA is classified is because I'm still designing it, so it isn't finalized. Three barrels or six?

It almost seems that any of the "holy grails" are open to anyone dedicated enough. Bringing back the dead? Tested and proved, we've even got certified methods! Immortality? Make up a new way and we still won't be impressed. Even the cure-all is open to those who really want it.

Almost. Yes, it may sound like this stuff is widely available, but you have to remember that I'm talking about the whole of the multiverse when I'm talking about this stuff, not just Terra. Hundreds, thousands of vibrant living worlds, and we're just hearing about one. Truth be told, most of this stuff isn't available on Terra: potions certainly are, but Familiars and immortality and resurrection are so rare that only a handful of people know about them (and Familiars not at all: ironic considering that they used to be to mages what lightsabers are to Jedi).
One crucial thing about bringing back the dead is that you can't force it. At a certain level, the dead person has to want to come back. Otherwise it won't work. In addition, Mastered Sorcerer's stones are at least one in a few hundred: each one usually represents decades of work to get it to that point (even though Nick has figured out a way to shortcut the process... he'd be truly terrifying if he ever went bad) so they're not exactly things you can pick up at the grocery store. The Undead don't count in this case, since an Undead by definition has a soul sealed into their body when it should have left already. Also, Phantoms don't count... I haven't mentioned Phantoms, crud. They just don't count.
As for immortality, the trick is that there are a lot of ways, but none of them are perfect. Turn yourself into a spirit and seal yourself into the blood of a family line? When every last carrier of that trait dies, you go with them. Divide your soul into multiple parts and seal them into various unkillable monsters? Someone's going to kill the unkillable monsters and then they'll kill you. Besides, no matter how unkillable you are, there is a weakness somewhere. As far as I have figured out, only three entities in the entire universe have achieved true and total immortality, and one of them is dead. I'm not kidding. Of course, that one chose to die.
As for the true "panacea," remember that it needs the philosopher's stone to help create it. If you don't have one, tough. Potions and stuff like that are fairly specialized, and chemists good enough to make an all-around-fix-everything potion are rare. The Elixir of Life is also considered insubstantial when compared to the stone's true power: why bother mixing up a potion to fix a cancerous tumor when you can just use the stone to boost your power to the point that you can use a high-level healing spell on the tumor and fix it? Also, healing spells are fairly complicated and take up a good deal of magic, and potions are no different. In addition, there are curses and spells that can leave permanent damage and scars that can't be fixed by anything short of the Elixir itself. So the EoL can fix basically anything, but much like sorcerer's stones your not going to find it at the corner drugstore. In fact, I don't think it's been brewed for a while anywhere. Besides, the person who invented the Philosopher's stone certainly didn't need a magical life extending potion.

Can we see either races or elements of magic? Like light/dark, arcane and fire and stuffs.

Sure. I don't quite no where to start, so I'll just start at the beginning right here...

Just kidding.

Truth be told, I'm still working out stuff about the various races. How about I talk a little more about magic?

[Pagan]

Alright, except for the techy answers, I pretty muched guessed those. Just wanted to make sure that these were a bit more difficult and rare than they sounded. And I've only one subject that I want to discuss, the "grails."
To me, immortality is the only important one. And the idea that a cure-all potion is nigh worthless compared to a more easily accessed spell (of course, both of these would require a high level s. stone (ss? Am I really that lazy?), but still the spell's at a closer reach) is simply hilarious and I agree. What you said about resurrection sounds right to me as well. The rezzed has to want the rez. But back to important matters, most methods are imperfect? I guess for such a goal, that would be truth. Still, beggars can't be choosers, and I'll take the option avaliable.

You haven't designed the thing yet? You, the crafter of verses? Excuse my laughter, the blood from my nose, and I think I'll ask for a tissue.        Just teasing! No ill will meant!  Hmm... I'd say three. But it depends on how much the "bullet" would heat up the barrel and such things. Just three and the barrels might melt. On the other hand, how big are these barrels and how much does it take to rotate the thing? Six and it might be too heavy or too slow.

Something that occured to me, you've spoken of "gods and faeries" before in much the same tone. I'm guessing that since "minor gods" have been created, divinity is not omnipotence (and please tell me that stronger gods could best a faerie, if not, I lose faith). But... wild magic creates gods as well... Oh boy, my eyes are crossing. Explain if you can, the gods.

Magic? That's a good answer to me.

[Jairus]

You haven't designed the thing yet? You, the crafter of verses? Excuse my laughter, the blood from my nose, and I think I'll ask for a tissue.        Just teasing! No ill will meant!  Hmm... I'd say three. But it depends on how much the "bullet" would heat up the barrel and such things. Just three and the barrels might melt. On the other hand, how big are these barrels and how much does it take to rotate the thing? Six and it might be too heavy or too slow.

Well, let's just say that Nick does not believe in either No Plans No Prototype No Backup or the Super Prototype: each thing that he builds is basically a fully functioning tool or gadget. The Mark I for all of his units has long since been retired in favor of upgraded and more powerful versions, so tools and such have been updated. Roland is much sleeker and more compact than the bulky Mark I, while AMP Tech has become more efficient as time goes on: he no longer needs a belt-pack battery to run anything employing AMP Tech, since their power is self-contained.
As for the DACA, the name Delta originally came from the triangular framework used to mounted the barrels on, so it did originally have three barrels. Remember how inefficient Gatling's early designs were? Nick is working with fairly new technology: fully automatic weapons had only been out for maybe two decades at this point (and were massive things that took two people to set up and use), so the knowledge on gun barrels was there: he just took it to the next level to create a gun that could fire about 600 rounds a minute. It's got six now, but since only the barrel has really changed he doesn't
And as for why I haven't finished the DACA... because it isn't important compared to the other stuff. Let's just say that a DACA can kill pretty much anything alive, while Roland can even kill stuff that isn't.

Something that occured to me, you've spoken of "gods and faeries" before in much the same tone. I'm guessing that since "minor gods" have been created, divinity is not omnipotence (and please tell me that stronger gods could best a faerie, if not, I lose faith). But... wild magic creates gods as well... Oh boy, my eyes are crossing. Explain if you can, the gods.

Gods and Faeries are basically a part of wild magic in much the same way that leaves and the trunk respectively are a part of a tree. They grow from the root of their power, and are a part of it, and might even be the part that everyone sees, but there's so much more going on behind the scenes.
Okay, have you ever seen a little vortex of air when you're just out walking? It looks a bit like a minor tornado, and it's created by winds hitting in weird ways or being accidentally redirected by cars and stuff. Anyway, not important. Imagine instead that that little vortex of wind, it's a vortex of wild magic. Now imagine that that vortex might fade away to almost nothingness, but it can never truly go away. And that every time it blows past someone, it becomes a little stronger and is shaped by their belief in it. Okay, that's basically what a god is. It's a little nexus of wild magic shaped by belief into something more powerful. So every god that has ever been believe in exists to one degree or another (yes, even the Flying Spaghetti Monster and the Invisible Pink Unicorn: while wild magic can be controlled through a sort of logic, it's really more like quasi-logic than anything), and is more or less how people imagine them.
So, the short answer is, gods are no better than the beings that created them. In fact, only a handful of the most powerful gods cab even migrate between different worlds and thus truly be older than the civilization that believes in them. Each god basically has the normal powers: super strength, immense magical power, immortality, the ability to bestow power upon their believers. Most gods are aware of what they are to one degree or another, and so while their believers are duking it out down on the mortal planes most gods actually have a somewhat friendly rivalry. Gods also need the continued faith of their believers, even if it's just one person who truly believes in them, to cling onto their "life." And yes, they're powerful, but there's also a certain lack of control to that power in that they can only use it as their origins see fit, if that kind of makes sense. Some gods are extremely powerful and have power rivaling Faeries, but considering that Faeries can do more to a god than a god can do to a Faerie, most gods don't try.
Okay, so what are Faeries then? Faeries are natural-born cyclones of wild magic, the trunk of the tree: so intimately tied to wild magic that they are often mistaken for it. They are powerhouses of magical energy, and can practically rewrite reality with a snap of their fingers. They don't rely on belief since they are practically a side-effect of mortals and magic existing in the same place (I've always imagined that Faeries were born from the subconscious desires of mortals for the universe to make sense, but truth be told Faeries are among the oldest races in existence, so that probably doesn't explain it). Their primary weakness in the magic department is that they really can't perform spells, and can only shape wild magic to suit their will. So, basically each Faerie's version of magic is different. Sucks to be whoever's fighting them. Oh, also, did anyone catch the little hint as to one additional weakness that Faerie's have in my previous post?
I will get into more about this (including different ways of killing a god or Faerie) when I actually get the races down.
Incidentally, that little Faerie weakness to cold iron? I've actually been nursing the idea that someone laid a curse on the entire race to give them all one weakness that any lesser race could use to protect themselves against them. I'm also nursing the idea that it was the High Dragons who did it. Now guess who I consider to be more knowledgeable about magic, and therefore the truly more powerful race?

Magic? That's a good answer to me.

You got it... later. I've got to go to work today.

[Jairus]

Okay, so it's a lot sooner than I anticipated, but I kind of realized today that there are three little things I forgot to mention. Rather than edit them in, I thought I might as well make a little mini post about it.

In regards to the TF Reactors: the Mark II and above reactors all are designed with a series of filters to keep them operating at maximum efficiency. Part of the reason that the Mark I was only successful as a proof of concept is because it A) didn't have a place to store it's waste product (the AM Particles) and B) in addition to absorbing magical energy it was also absorbing the AM Particles, which basically polluted the process. All subsequent models are capable of functioning properly under full influence of AM Particles.

In regards to Skipper: Skipper - from the Mark III onward - was designed to also include non-magical weaponry. The CPC is currently Skipper's only non-magical weapon, though Nick is planning to add in a DACA-A or two when the new unit is completed, and there are spaces in the current model for... shall we say "alternative weaponry?" It also has emergency jump-rockets built into the legs, as well as compressor-prop thrusters (their version of a jet engine: powerful, but not very efficient).

In regards to the Elixir of Life: I just want to make it clear that part of the reason that the Elixir is considered valuable is that it can heal basically anything, up to and including cursed wounds. Elian Cidney's eye, for example, could be healed by the Elixir of Life even though it was destroyed by a powerful curse.

Okay, I guess I should get my thoughts for magic in line if I want to post them sometime soon.

[Jairus]

Ugh. Sorry to disappoint anyone expecting something about the different classes/types/elements of spells, but I'm really kind of tired tonight. I'd still feel bad not posting something (slightly ironic considering my thing about Gods/Faeries and the three little extra notes earlier), so instead I'm going to post some information about one of the characters. He's not a main character, but I've mentioned him a few times: Elian Cidney.

And yes, I shamelessly "borrowed" Amber's cast-information template. It seems to work very well and is fairly well organized, especially considering that most of my similar cast sheets are three or four pages longer than this (yes, imagine this being two or three times longer, and shudder in fear). Most of my characters will use my design (if I ever finish it), but Elian hasn't got a sheet yet, so I'll just borrow Amber's for now. Sorry Amber.

Name: Elian Cidney
Nicknames: Cid, El Cid, Der Cid, "Faeslayer," Der Blitzkrieger, The Lightning Bullet
Age: 64
Marital Status: Married
Family: Father, Mother, seven siblings (six older, one younger), Justine Price Cidney (wife), seven children (Katrina, Rosa, Margaret, Carol, Artemis, Cynthia, Nicodemus (all except Nicodemus are human))[note that all of the kid's names except Artemis and her little brother Nicodemus are liable to change]
Species: Elf
Hobbies: Adventuring, sorcery, househusband, training, video games
Hair color: Black and gray
Eye color: One brown, one white (blind in his right eye)
Most known for: killing a Faerie
Favorite food: Oranges
Favorite color: Brown
Overview
Personality: As a former Adventurer, Elian has seen it all... or at least he had until he married Justine and started a family. Elian tends to let life happen as it may: the fact that he has seven children - six of whom are at least two and a half feet taller than him - doesn't seem to phase him in the slightest. Even though he was only an adventurer for about five years, those experiences were enough that he seems quite content to fade away into the background of history and retire to help raise his family. He has attracted his fair share of enemies over his lifetime, yet at the same time he has also attracted some very powerful allies. He is quite willing to listen to all sides of an argument, and doesn't lay down his judgement until he has heard everything. He also supports his kids in their chosen careers, and seems quite proud of them for making their own choices. A word of warning: don't get him angry, as one Faerie discovered the hard way.
History: Elian was the seventh of eight children. He decided at a fairly young age to study sorcery and witchcraft and become an adventurer. He graduated from the local Academy with top marks and went on to become infamous for his skill in Wind and Lightning elemental magic, as well as being a crack shot with his chosen weapons, a pair of matched revolvers. He went by the nickname "Cid" out of respect for one of his teachers at the academy, a talented Lancer who taught him wind magic. It is somewhere in his five years of adventuring that a curse permanently blinded his right eye: he trained himself to sense the energeia of his opponents, making him more dangerous against normal Beasts, Beings, and Creatures. He retired shortly after the crowning achievement of his career: the killing of a Faerie. While the exact circumstances are unknown, one rumor holds that the Faerie was attempting to curse either Elian or a friend of Elian's: either way, the Faerie ended up dead (this is part of the reason why Elian's enemies have mostly left him and his family alone: you do not want to piss off someone who can kill a Faerie). Shortly afterwards, he met the famous (Human) Negotiator Justine Price while on a blind date that some mutual friends of theirs had set up: they were married within a few months. They currently have seven children (six human girls and one elven boy), while Elian seems to have spent the last forty years enjoying his retirement and helping raise his children.
Quirks/Fun facts:
• Elian still trains and practices daily: he is in incredible health for a man his age.
• Elian wears a leather eyepatch to cover his blind eye.
• Elian maintains his old contacts in the adventuring world, as well as his old Creature allies.
• Much like his son Nicodemus, Elian is "gifted" with a very youthful childlike appearance (to be honest, it's something that plagues most members of the Elven species). The only reasons that Elian is never mistaken for a young child - unlike his twenty-two year old son - is because of his eyepatch and the fact that he has grown a goatee and has graying hair. His son is very envious of the goatee.
• At one point as a child Elian met a figure known as the Wanderer. It is as a result of this meeting that Elian was inspired to become an adventurer. He hopes very much to meet the Wanderer again someday.
• Elian is a much better sorcerer than his son.
• Elian actually owns several matched pairs of guns, most of which are designed for one purpose or another. One of Nicodemus' earliest experiments with technology is when his Dad showed him how to clean them.
• At 3'7," he is actually the shortest member of his immediate family (Nicodemus is 3'9").
• The reason that Elian and Justine have seven children is twofold: first, they both come from large families (Justine is the youngest of seven children herself), and second, they both decided that they wanted at least one boy and one girl. It took them seven tries to finally get a boy.
* Elian is a huge video game fan.
Elian's Quote: "There is nothing a Cidney can't do!"

Okay, hope that helps hold you over until I get the magic in gear. Again, sorry for borrowing your template, Amber. And if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. And now I'm going to sleep. Good night.

And for the record, his last name of Cidney is in honor of Cid Highwind and all the other Cid's of Final Fantasy. He's just too short for a lance, so he had to settle for a pair of handguns. I just though Sydney was a funny name to give to Nicodemus, and then I thought, "hey, he's an inventor so maybe that last name should be named after a famous inventor." Thus "Cidney."

[Jairus]

Or elements of magic, like light/dark, arcane and fire and stuffs.

Magic? That's a good answer to me.

I really can't put this off any more, can I? It's just that a few people *coughpagancough* seem to really want to see how I treat magic, and I did promise not only to give out that info anyways, but also to try and answer questions. So, here it is: magic, spells, elements, classes... the whole shebang. Basically, you'll get what I got, what magic does, and what I need it to do. Be warned: all of this is still being worked on, and is liable to change, but most of it is basically set in stone. Given that THIS at the very least is a work in progress, I'd really like it if people asked questions, gave ideas/feedback, pointed out problems... stuff like that. Anything would be appreciated, especially since this stuff is starting to give me weird dreams. Okay, let's do it.

I just want to make it clear that I really have no idea what I'm writing here. In this case, I really am depending on feedback and questions, people. Every one of them helps me figure out what I'm doing, helps me take the next leap in logic and get the next couple of paragraphs down on digital paper.

The earliest spells were basically designed to replicate the natural abilities of Beasts and Creatures: later spells not only built on this, but added spells that had never been seen before. Fireballs, flight, super-strength and speed, enhanced sight, thought and mind reading, illusions, conjuring, teleportation, alchemy, shapeshifting... at some point, most Arcane spells (as well as Modern spells) are based on abilities that other beings found natural and normal. Later on, slightly weirder spells - such as attacks that can best be described as the magical equivalent of a laser cannon or a plasma blaster - were added, but these seem to be solely used by the Modern Magic system.

Part of my problem with nailing down a system of magic is that to a certain degree, if a character needs to do something with magic, they either know how to or they don't. If a character needs to create a free-floating ball of light to illuminate a darkened room, they can conjure up that ball of magical light. If they need a shield made of solid fire, then they can do so. Need to fly? Done. Need a healing spell? Got it. Do you need to hit a hundred targets with a hundred individual magical shells? Take aim and fire. Summon a giant cybernetic wolf loaded down with ice spells and an array of missile launchers? Get the contract with the summon clan, and you've got it. Create a full costume with a snap of your fingers? Master-level magic, but doable. A spell to temporarily make your skin as hard as diamond? It exists. Hover in midair? No one's stopping you. Breathe underwater? Learn the Aqualung spell. Seal a horrific demonic beast inside of an innocent new-born baby boy, condemning him to a childhood of shunning with few friends to help him out? Sure, you sick freak, go right ahead. Slow down time? It's high level, sure, but it's there if you need it. Create a bag of holding? Go right ahead. Telepathically rip information from your opponent's mind and leave them an amnesiac wreck on the floor of your room? It may be mind rape, but yes, you can do it. Rip someone's soul from their body and stick it into a suit of armor? Again, a little dark, but sure. Actually eat someone's soul? Yep. Unlock any door? Sure, there's a few levels to it, but they're all there. Collapse magical energy into a blade of solid magic and use it to beat the tar out of a fourteen year old? Uh-huh. A spell that can translate any language - known or unknown - into one that you understand? Okay, that one doesn't technically exist, but if you bring together a dozen or so spells you can actually get a Universal Translator effect. In short, they all exist. They might take a lot of magical energy (in fact, some take more energy than a person can safely use), but someone's probably already invented it. Everyone might not know them, but I guarantee every spell in existence is known by at least one person (and I mean that one person doesn't know all of them).

The elements that magic tends to use are Fire, Earth, Rock, Water, Ice, Lightning, Wind, Nature (poison/plants), Dark, Light, Twilight, Void, and Non (i.e. no elemental affiliation whatsoever). Spells also exist that control time and space, as well as sound and gravity, and spells for mind abilities and stuff like that. Basically, if you can understand it with physics, you can do something to it with magic: even if you can't understand something with physics, you can do it (you'll just have to cheat a little bit). Dark and Light are a lot trickier, and mostly call on the nature of magic itself, in addition to being affiliated with light and darkness.

While spells generally refuse to be easily filed, you can sort them into a couple of categories (please note that these are all temporary, and I am trying to figure out how to consolidate them... scratch that, these are all the old categories and are going to be scrapped: read anyway). Attack spells are fairly obvious: shooting spells, missile-like things, melee-enhancing attacks, wide-spread field attacks, it's in there. Protection spells include shields, barriers, domains (magical barriers that negate certain things), and healing spells (I think they'll end up in here anyway). Support spells have a few healing spells as well, and also have negative spells for use against enemies and movement spells like jumping and flight. Sealing spells seal magic inside objects or prevent things from being used: you can also seal memories, though I don't know if it's the same thing. Summon spells are obvious: think of any form of summoning you've ever seen, and you've got a good idea of what it does. Conversion spells alter something in some way, like illusions (shapeshifting's a subtype) or enchantments (adding magic to something) or transformations (magical alteration of something into another thing - it's basically a more permanent form of shapeshifting... yet somehow not) or transmutations (complete and perfect transformation of something through alchemy). Then there's the spells that I hadn't categorized when I wrote this all out, and now you're starting to understand my problem with getting this freaking mess sorted out.

On the other hand, writing all of this out has given me an idea for dividing magic into basically two categories: evocation and invocation. Evocation would be attack spells, defense spells, healing spells, movement spells, basically anything quick and dirty - really suited for combat. Invocation would be the more complicated ones, the regeneration spells, telepathy and mental spells, summoning spells, trans-dimensional travel, alchemy, illusions, transformations - more like support magic in a way. I need to think about this for a while.

Um, okay, there - in all of its disorganized glory - is what I can dredge from my mind. Please comment, discuss, ask questions: help me figure this out. You've already made me realize that the current version of DACA uses six barrels. Thanks in advance for commenting. I guess the next few posts will be me figuring out this newest idea of evocation/invocation. Already I'm getting some initial thoughts... and it shoves away all of that messy categorized stuff. Hm.

[Pagan]

Hey, I've been asking for races and you've been saying magic. ER... Yay, magic!  Alright, what to say... aside from laughing and nodding at anime and other references that I saw and some I probably missed...

Fire, Earth, Rock, Water, Ice, Lightning, Wind, Nature , Dark, Light, Twilight, Void, and Non

So these are your temporary elements? Why the need for rock if you have earth, water if you've ice, etc. What would you say is void and twilight?

I don't see how narrative causality would further complicate a magic system. If a spell doesn't obviously fall into an element, use that forum-power to make it fit into one by odd logic or even a hand wave if you have to!

As for attack, defensive, etc. that sounds like you're going above and beyond the call. It might be useful for grouping purposes (for you, the reader, and soccerers in the story), but it sounds to me like an unnecessary, if nice, addition.

And god, now I really want to post up my magic system...

[Archanon8957]

hey Jairus i read alot of what you had and youve got some great ideas going for you. keep it up, and good luck.

[Jairus]

Okay, I'm still thinking through the whole "evocation/invocation" insight from last night, so instead of posting what little I've thought about how about I make it up to Pagan by posting some information about the High Dragon race?

Again, I'm borrowing Amber's Demonology template because it just works so well. Darn you Amber for your multiple strokes of pure brilliance. I hope you get complimented today. I was going to have multiple characters (you missed out on some stuff for Dreksa and Merlin and Avalon), but I decided to use just one major figure. If you want the stuff on the other three, just ask. Anyhoo...

The High Dragon Race
General Characteristics
• Varied form, appearance, and size: varies from individual to individual
 * Generally scaled
 * wings
• Varied colors (clans tend to have similar schemes)
• Various magical abilities, all members have some form of breath weapon
• Skilled with spells and various types of magic
• Natural physical abilities
• Shapeshifting (natural only to Hybrids)
• Average life span: unknown
General: The High Dragon race (hereafter just called "Dragon" because that's what most people mean anyway) is likely one of the oldest and most powerful races in existence. Even the Faerie, who have members with life spans measured in tens of millions of years, do not recall a time when the Dragons did not exist. Dragons have been known to have lifespans a dozen times longer than most creatures, and even the appearance of old age might merely be illusory on their part. Many of them have seen the rise and fall of entire civilizations many times in their lives, and some have been a part of it. Dragon's have an incredibly varied array of appearances, and all of them at one point learn how to shapeshift and disguise themselves as a regular being or creature. Interestingly, whenever they shapeshift, a piece of their true appearance sticks with them, such as a hand of talons or a wing or eyes: this can be disguised by normal shapeshifting, but most don't bother. Also, most dragons in their Being form wield some kind of weapon that reflects their true appearance, though this weapon tends to disappear when they're in their Creature form. Some people believe that such weapons represent a seal on their power to help prevent them from causing too much of an effect to the races that they encounter.
      Or not. No one really knows the motivations of a dragon, and understanding the motives of their entire race is another problem in and of itself. Dragons on the whole do not seem to intend harm upon other races, though an enraged dragon is something you do not want to see. Dragons are powerful, smart, and incredibly long-lived, a feature that tends to drive most of them into either isolation or the company of other dragons, lending them an air of mystery. The motivations of a dragon are fairly inscrutable, and you can never be sure if a dragon is helping you because it honestly wants to or because it needs something from you. However, dragons tend to look out for those that they are helping/using, so you will not come to harm from them... generally. All in all, it is perhaps best to simply watch yourselves around dragons. However, to be called "Friend" by a dragon is of the highest honor, and represents a bond of trust between the two.
      They are technically Wyrms, and thus should be related to Saurians, Wyverns, and Low Dragons. However, this similarity more represents parallel evolution than any mysterious connection, so High Dragons tend not to be lumped in with other Wyrms. They do, however, share the same physical power and magical awareness, and some have suggested that the High Dragons had something to do with the continued success of the various Wyrm subspecies on so many worlds.
      Most dragons seem to treat the world named Draconis as their home world, though the precise location of Draconis is unknown: it is believed to exist in a parasite universe much like the Faerie Kingdom, but this of course merely raises the questions of where their true homeworld is, and why they aren't there anymore...
History: The history of the Dragon race is fairly unknown, even to themselves. But as far as anyone can gather, so long as the Abyss between worlds has existed, the dragons have been there. They seem to mostly keep to themselves, yet at the same time they have a marked interest in the goings on of other worlds. One interesting thing about them is that they don't seem to have a homeworld: exactly what happened to it, or where they come from, is unknown. There is a world that the dragons have "adopted" as their homeworld, but it is believe that this is an artificial world they created. Dragon's rarely interfere with the affairs of others, preferring to let people solve their own problems, though there are some who go out of their way to at least make sure that people are able to solve their problems. Unfortunately, due to a number of interdimensional wars, their numbers have been thinned somewhat.
Strengths: Powerful magic, natural abilities, and an incredibly long life span means that dragons are quite capable of becoming very powerful opponents. Even without the help of spells, they are very dangerous opponents. With spells, you are facing a very powerful opponent indeed. Part of their power comes from their long life spans, which give them ample opportunity to master tremendously difficult magic to bring against their opponents... power to rival the Faerie race itself. Dragons can regenerate from most wounds, disguise themselves to fit into a population, or reveal their true appearance and have all of the physical powers of a Low Dragon backed up by tremendous magical power and a sharp intellect. Worse than all of that is the possibility that High Dragons might be immortal: Dragons on occasion have been killed, only to return a short while later. They don't seem to hold grudges, though they do tend to remember things.
Weaknesses: Aside from obvious failings from member to member, there are no real known weaknesses about dragons. Doing enough damage to a shapeshifter does tend to force them to reveal their true appearance (not that this is a good thing). However, Dragons - much like Faeries - tend to be very honorable, and if they make a promise, they will keep it... unless the other person breaks their side of the bargain, at which point the gloves come off. There is, however, an old saying that hints that every dragon has an exploitable weakness: "a dragon is at its most vulnerable when it is at its most powerful." Exactly what this means is unknown, since dragons seem to be plenty powerful as it is.
Notable Figure(s):
Annwyn Ydraigoch (pronounced Ee-dray-goch): The dragon who did it. Annwyn was perhaps one of the most powerful dragons to ever live. A researcher and archeologist, she did more for uncovering lost civilizations - and her own culture's lost history - than most people ever have. She also invented a spell designed expressly for killing a Faerie, meaning that she did what many considered to be impossible: use magic to defeat a Faerie. Stories also are told of how on one world that she visited, she stopped the sun in the sky to make her point. Her primary concern in archeology seemed to have been uncovering the history of the dragon race: she may have even learned part of the truth behind it. More than that, she turned the Ydraigoch clan into a powerhouse of connections and allies, meaning that today the very name Ydraigoch is capable of causing entire armies to surrender (it is also one of the more powerful clans, but considering the Dragons thinned numbers anyone who has connections across hundreds of worlds is going to survive longer). Despite her power, she was basically a pacifist, and disliked fighting. Towards the end of her life, she married the warrior Skaira Stargazer, and had a Hybrid son with him. Both she and her husband are dead, and are currently survived by their Hybrid Dragon/Human son Dreksa Tiemyu Ydraigoch.

[Jairus]

On the other hand, writing all of this out has given me an idea for dividing magic into basically two categories: evocation and invocation. Evocation would be attack spells, defense spells, healing spells, movement spells, basically anything quick and dirty - really suited for combat. Invocation would be the more complicated ones, the regeneration spells, telepathy and mental spells, summoning spells, trans-dimensional travel, alchemy, illusions, transformations - more like support magic in a way. I need to think about this for a while.

Okay, I've had some time to think this through over the past two days. Let's see if I can get it right.

Evocation spells are exactly as they were described. These are the quick spells, the ones that basically do what they need to do. Evocations are the attack spells, the protection spells, the basic healing magic, the movement spells (flight, that sort of stuff). Essentially, evocations are the fire-and-forget type of spells. Their actions are preprogrammed (a lot of Modern spells have simple video-game-like AI to direct and control them, like a missile guidance program) and mages only control their direction and the amount of power put into them. Most evocations work through the various elements, though a bunch of them are pure energy or force. In exchange for the overall control over the spells and their preprogrammed nature, evocations are easier and faster to perform. That's not to say that they're easy to do, per se: a flight spell still takes practice to perform safely, and a guided magic missile takes constant attention to direct it where you want it to go. It's more like they're designed to be performed quickly, and be triggered with simple actions and words.

Invocations are the more complicated spells, the ones that take a little more effort to control. Mind spells, divination, sealing techniques, summoning spells, alchemy, illusions... the kind that take a little more attention to get right. Enchantments - spells that add abilities to things - are also included in here. I kind of see them as a cross between support magic and general catch-all techniques, yet I'm having trouble gathering them together. These kinds take some attention to run, although there are some that once you've got them set up they'll run until they're dispelled. If these spells have simple AI, they're still more complicated than evocations (I say AI, but really they're just magical computer programs: again, think of a smart bomb/missile). Spells like this may take a little longer to run, but to be honest the difference between evocation and invocation type spells are fairly minimal, and ultimately could be considered Assault magic and Support magic respectively (again, there's a lot of overlap though).

As for the nature of the elements, Earth/Rock and Water/Ice are so similar that it's very rare to find a mage who can do one and not the other. Technically, though earth is different from rocks (soil versus sand), while the spells to control ice have to include something like temperature manipulation. Again, though, all of those spell elements are confined to Arcane magic, while Modern magic has an elemental affinity, meaning that there's a little more variation (there are spells designed to expressly to manipulate aluminum, for example). Light and Dark elemental magic is basically the only part of Modern magic that really follows Arcane magic, and that's because it's extremely metaphysical. Basically, Light magic is designed around healing and protection, though it does have a few spells handy against dark powers and things that completely twist nature around (Undead for example), as well as the only "instant kill" spell in existence. Dark magic calls upon some fairly powerful emotions (anger, hatred, despair, love) to power it, and can do some very disturbing stuff in addition to powerful attacks and shields: torture, curses, powerful killing spells. It's important to note that neither Dark nor Light magic is evil, though it is easier to lose control of oneself when using Dark magic. Magic is power, and power corrupts: Dark magic offers some very easy power, and it takes a strong-willed person to safely master it. Incidentally, White and Black magic are different from Light and Dark magic, though both White and Light magic share relative safety in their use while Black and Dark magic are slightly (mild understatement) more dangerous.

The idea behind Twilight magic is that it was a fusion of Light and Dark magic, a kind of best of both worlds. Alternatively, it's the kind of magic that a being that is a pure soul can perform, while Void magic is the kind of magic that a being with no soul can perform...

Anyway, I'm not quite certain about all of this. Any questions, comments, ideas? Please. Pretty please.

[Pagan]

A being with no soul? Like what, a construct? Or is this a bit more metaphysical, and things like the undead are soulless?
I think I get you on the evo-/invocation spells. Evos are things that need to happen and need to happen right now. Invos on the other hand are things that take a bit of time and careful thought and shouldn't really be attempted in the middle of a fight.

Is there an explanation of creatures/beings/beasts on the horizon?

[Jairus]

A being with no soul? Like what, a construct? Or is this a bit more metaphysical, and things like the undead are soulless?

Oh boy. This is gonna be complicated... really complicated. As in I'm going to keep this short, and it's going to take four paragraphs to answer you.
      When I talk about a being with no soul, it's more like a being who once had a soul and then lost it. The thing about souls is that they're basically a byproduct of being alive, if you will. Basically, any and every living thing has a spirit/soul - something metaphysical - that comes into existence when the life in question is "created" and leaves when it "dies." So yes, every thing - plants, animals, humans, dragons, etc. - basically has a spirit. There's a whole lot of debate over when a spirit becomes a soul, but I tend to weigh in on the sentient or near-sentient side. But, technically, it's the same thing, really. It's just that souls that belonged to life forms that could experience life (like an complex animal or sentient plant - yes, they exist) are more resilient and stable than other souls, while sapient souls are the most "stable" of them all. This is something that scientists and magical researchers have been studying for years.
      When it comes to a Construct, however, things get really complicated. Actually, in matters of the soul, things get complicated. The short answer is that certain events can grant a soul to a being that ordinarily wouldn't have one - a golem, a robot, a puppet - which would make that being "alive," and thus capable of losing a soul. I've kind of thought that Void magic can only be performed by those who had a soul and then lost it, while any mechanical device or construct or what-have-you is simply doing normal magic. It's a little tricky.
      As for how a being with no soul can be up and about... under normal circumstances, if a soul is consumed (by say, an Angel or Demon or Lazerai) that tends to instantly kill the being that once had that soul. But if a soul is "simply" removed (it isn't simple, really, but run with it) there is a possibility that the being in question can "go on" without it. The body, you see, carries an "echo" of the soul that it once carried, while the soul carries an "echo" of the body that it once had. I really don't want to go into this, but let's just say that if stuff like this started happening again... well, it wouldn't be pretty.
      Incidentally, part of the definition of Undead is that they are not soulless: in fact, the only way they could be considered Undead is if they had a soul. The trick is that the soul of an Undead has somehow been prevented from leaving the body upon death (usually through some kind of seal or disturbingly powerful dark/black magic, or even a need to not die - it's the same kind of will that keeps a truly-soulless being going after losing their soul). Basically, so long as the soul is attached to the corpse, it'll keep going: there are Undead walking around that are desiccated skeletons, and a few Undead have actually fossilized... you do not want to meet an Undead Saurian or Wyvern. It is not pretty. Anyway, they're all animated by magic, and the trick is to do enough damage to the body that the soul can no longer stay attached to it: Elian's favorite trick back when he was an adventurer was to burn an Undead until it was nothing but ash to ensure that it was gone. Trust me, with the amount of pain that most Undead go through (the kind who were forced to do it or became undead through circumstances beyond their control), it was a mercy killing.

I think I get you on the evo-/invocation spells. Evos are things that need to happen and need to happen right now. Invos on the other hand are things that take a bit of time and careful thought and shouldn't really be attempted in the middle of a fight.

Kinda-sorta. It's more like invocations are just a little tricker to pull off. So, it isn't recommended that you do them in a battle (just as an example, would you want Abel to have put that mindshield on Jyrras in the middle of a chaotic battle between an army of amazons and Dark Pegasus?). Really, though, you had a point: they're going to do it anyway, so why worry. The designations are really just to help sort them and also help me figure out how relatively easy they are to do. I guess evocations trade degree of control for speed of casting, and invocations trade speed of casting for degree of control. Something like that.

Is there an explanation of creatures/beings/beasts on the horizon?

      Okay, here's a quick explanation. Mind you, these are just general classifications. Beasts are non-sentient animals (and occasionally mobile plants... it's magic). It doesn't matter whether they have non-magical powers or not, or even their species: non-sentience is basically the definition of a Beast. A Being is basically any sapient animal (and occasionally mobile plant... and sometimes Constructs... really, anything sapient) whose species/race is not inherently magical. So, we humans would be being because we do not possess as a species any total magical ability, like each of us having the power to shapeshift or something like that. A Creature is basically any sapient animal (and occasionally mobile plant... and sometimes Construct... really, anything sapient) whose species/race is inherently magical across the board. Dragons (who I've already kind of talked about) are Creatures, Demons are Creatures, and so are a bunch of other life forms. Really, Being is a good catchall term for all of them (and to be honest, it's the middle ground between the other two, so it tends to catch the things that don't fit in as either a Beast or a Creature). There's a little bit more to it, but to be perfectly blunt it's just a general category.

Does that help any?

[Pagan]

Actually it does. So is being sentient a requirement for creature? Or is the "we're all magic, you're not-hahaha" thing more important?
Glad to hear you're getting things sorted as for as magic goes.
And... so... living thing, still living, was sentient, had soul, no longer has soul. Do they retain sentience or are they kinda shambling "basic instincts, desires, etc. of the echo" type things?

[Jairus]

Actually it does. So is being sentient a requirement for creature? Or is the "we're all magic, you're not-hahaha" thing more important?

Sentience is a requirement. Without sentience/sapience, they're considered Beasts. Even a Wyvern - with tremendous magical power to rival the Low Dragons (otherwise I doubt they'd be able to fly at any appreciable rate) - is considered a mere Beast because it has no real control over it's powers. Low Dragons and High Dragons are creatures because they are sentient. And the "we're all magic, you're not-hahaha" is a bit of a misnomer: even with tremendous magical powers, there are some Creatures who need to use sorcery to do spells and magic like that. Low Dragons can breathe fire (well, different ones can do different breath attacks) and fly and have impressive defenses against physical attacks and magic, yet a Low Dragon cannot perform wizardry. It's kind of weird (for the record, there has never been a non-wizard High Dragon. Ever.) Basically, it's a category. Nothing really special: it just means that you're higher on the food chain.

And... so... living thing, still living, was sentient, had soul, no longer has soul. Do they retain sentience or are they kinda shambling "basic instincts, desires, etc. of the echo" type things?

First one. The body still has the mind and all of it's memories, it just doesn't have a soul. The most powerful of those who have lost their soul's change very little from when they had them. It's hard to explain what happens to them afterwards, but the word "psychopath" seems to do nicely. It's the leftover soul that is a shambling "basic instincts, desires, etc. of the echo" (it's complicated: under the right conditions, the soul can construct a rudimentary body for itself). After all, if all it has is the barest echoes of it's former existence, the strongest echoes are going to be the instincts that once drove it... and there are few instincts stronger than the ones to feed and reproduce in some way...
      But really, these things haven't been seen anywhere in a very long time. And besides, as far as I know none of them show up on Terra... well, not yet anyway.

[Pagan]

You continue to drop your ploty teases and temptations. But I do have another question
Is void magic an element, if so, please describe, or is it more closely related to the difference between white and black magic?

[Jairus]

You continue to drop your ploty teases and temptations. But I do have another question

Is void magic an element, if so, please describe, or is it more closely related to the difference between white and black magic?

It's more like the difference between White and Black magic, to be honest. I've kind of imagined it to be pure magical energy without any alteration, but I'm not quite sure (especially since it's not like any of the characters on Terra can use it). Much like Black and White magic, it's still controllable by spells and the like and it can have an elemental affinity (unless you choose to manipulate pure Void magic), but I'd also imagine that any being who has lost their soul can use it - regardless of whether they're a wizard or not. I also think it might be the kind of magic that Faeries use (it's either that or White Magic, and I know that it's impossible for a Faerie to use Black magic)...

[Jairus]

Well, while there's still a bunch of stuff about magic the Terra and Nick's tech (though frankly that can wait until after Nick himself is introduced), it's about time to introduce characters and races. However, since I'm still figuring out races and that ilk, how about instead I post information about a character who never appears on the world of Terra, yet is somehow still a player: Dreksa Stargazer

One again, I have "borrowed" Amber's character profile template. It's... just so perfect. Forgive me Amber.

Name: Dreksa Llefellys Tiemyu Ydraigoch - aka Dreksa Stargazer
Nicknames: (ho boy) Drek, Rex, The Wanderer, The Threeswordsman, The Twin Swordsman, The Coming Storm, The Blade-wielding Storm, Dragonslayer, Son of Annwyn, son of Skaira, the Dark Stigma... etc. etc. etc. (to be honest, he acquires them basically wherever he goes)
Age: approximately 9,500 years old
Marital Status: Single
Family: Father (Skaira of Tiemyu), Mother (Annwyn), Nephew (Merlin), Adopted son (Skaira), possibly other relatives
Species: Hybrid Dragon/Human
Hobbies: Swordsmanship, magic, gardening, cooking, weapons collection
Hair color: Black w/ a few streaks of gray (he likes the gray)
Eye color: Violet
Most known for: Being the Son of Annwyn, generally kicking butt wherever he goes
Favorite food: Jerky
Favorite color: Green
Overview
Personality: Young for a dragon, Dreksa is perhaps one of the few beings considered an equal to the legendary Annywn. In terms of his personality, he is actually a fairly friendly individual who always gives his opponents a chance to surrender and prefers to leave enemies alive when he can. He also comes across as a patient individual who genuinly enjoys the company of others. Behind all of this hides a slightly darker personality. Dreksa himself - as a dragon - is nigh immortal, and always lives with the knowledge that most of his friends will age and die long whereas he will not. On the other hand, Dreksa finds not having friends and companions to be a far worse thing than living with the knowledge that he's going to out live them. Also, those who inspire Dreksa's wrath rarely - if ever - get second chances. Dreksa can also be hard when he needs to be, and is fully willing to kill an opponent when they're down. All in all, Dreksa has a dark side buried beneath his calm and friendly exterior: the only surefire way to bring it forward is to threaten those he loves. Like his nephew Merlin, Dreksa tends to weigh in on the side of Beings, and can generally be found protecting them: despite this, he has a great number of Creature friends across the worlds, some of whom don't share his views. Surprisingly, Dreksa doesn't really care much for the dual legacy of his parents: aside from the fact that he wields both of his parent's swords, Dreksa doesn't make a big deal about who they are.
History: Born approximately 9500 years ago (he doesn't really count anything outside of the decades), Dreksa never knew his biological parents but fully knew who they were. At a fairly young age, he participated in a major inter-dimensional war, and emerged from that war a hero and worthy of the name Stargazer. Since then, he has become the figure known as the Wanderer, and rarely settles down anywhere for more than a few years, traveling between the worlds in search of something. Across the millennia, one of his recurring rivals has been the figure named Avalon, though he rarely - if ever - talks about why they seem to hate each other. About two-three years ago, Dreksa temporarily retired from wandering and heroics in order to raise his adoptive son, Skaira (named in honor of his father).
Quirks/Fun facts:
• Dreksa is considered by many to be one of the most powerful wizards of the modern era: part of the reason for that is that he works so hard at it.
• He is also considered one of the best sword fighters to have ever lived, having been trained by the legendary swordmaster and maker Kusanagi as a child. He also often fights with his off hand (his right hand).
• Dreksa was once an honorary member of the Knights of the Realm, and in fact temporarily commanded the entire group: despite this, he does not consider himself a Knight, as many surprised opponents have found.
• He will willingly confess to being a "dirty" fighter, resorting to "underhanded" tactics in order to win. He doesn't see anything wrong with this.
• He is the current wielder of Stigmata, a Familiar sword that was passed on to him from his father. He also wields his mother's sword, though he maintains massive collection of weapons that he can call on at a moments notice. Some of them seem to be dragon's weapons...
• Dreksa's dragon sign (the element of his body that he rarely shapeshifts) is his right hand, which tends to resemble a dragon's forearm: it is usually red as a result of him using his mother's sword.
• For some reason, Dreksa has only used his "true" appearance a few times, all back when he was a child. He has not revealed his true appearance since then.
• In addition to a vast array of normal spells and abilities and techniques, Dreksa has a handful of rare - some would say nigh-unique - abilities (even for a dragon) that he is reluctant to use.
• His son Skaira's given name was actually Sky: Dreksa decided to expand it to Skaira while still calling him Sky. Merlin seems to be sabotaging those efforts, as he has nicknamed Skaira "Drake."
Dreksa's Quote: "I'm a Stargazer."

Oi, there's so much about Dreksa that half of it isn't here. Well, any questions?
I guess tomorrow I'll post something about Angels/Demons. How does that sound?

[Pagan]

YES! I can't decide which is better, a very cool lefty or angels and demons tomorrow... ooooh... both are so very shiny....
So Merlin's his nephew?
"The Threewordsman"? What? Did he kill everyone in a town cept one person, said three words, then went on his merry way?
Is a high dragon (even if only a hyrbid of one) killing another high dragon looked down upon... by high dragons?
Gardening. Seriously?

[Jairus]

YES! I can't decide which is better, a very cool lefty or angels and demons tomorrow... ooooh... both are so very shiny....

I can't imagine if you're excited.

So Merlin's his nephew?

Yep, 300,000 some odd year old Merlin is 9,500 year-old Dreksa's nephew. It's actually loosely based off of a friend I had back in second grade who - at seven - was an aunt because her older sister had just had a kid. For a seven year old (me) used to the idea of uncles and aunts being grown-ups, it was a little mindblowing. In this case, it's because Annwyn had (a) kid(s) a while ago (several million years ago, at least, maybe a few tens of millions of years ago) one of whom had Merlin a while ago. Annwyn, meanwhile, met Skaira about forty years before she had Dreksa (Skaira was five or so) but the two officially met about twenty years later. Skaira never learned magic and was never a wizard, so he used witchcraft completely to fight. He was able to match Annwyn - briefly, anyway. So, they had Dreksa, who is about 290,000 years younger than his nephew. To be fair, they treat it like a joke really.

"The Threewordsman"? What? Did he kill everyone in a town cept one person, said three words, then went on his merry way?

"Three Swords Man," well, more like "Three Swordsman" swords being plural. He used to carry three blades with him at all times in honor of his teacher Kusanagi (who had two katanas and a tsurugi, the last of which was simply called "Tsurugi" - it'd be like naming your sword "Sword") - Stigmata, his mother's sword, and an ivory-white katana. He hasn't been seen with the katana in a while, but Avalon meanwhile has been seen using an ivory-white katana on occasion, when she doesn't just use magic to kick her enemies' collective butts.

Is a high dragon (even if only a hyrbid of one) killing another high dragon looked down upon... by high dragons?

More or less. Dragon society is a little more liberal than ours, but the concept of a one-on-one duel is not unheard of. So long as its done for a good reason, they won't get too angry. Besides, Dreksa's never cared for Draconis, and only visits there on occasion. If he has a house, it's a little thing in a place called Junction, but nothing on Draconis itself.
      In any case, Dreksa got the name Dragonslayer for slaying a white dragon named Albion (Dragon's are not ones for original names) back when he was a teenager/young adult. He rarely uses it: he prefers to use the name/title Stargazer. He has killed a handful of dragons since then, but most of the times that he fights a High Dragon he tends to just leave them in a state where they will eventually die rather than actually killing them... it's complicated. Let's just say that I left a little information off of my High Dragon profile, and leave it at that. And that Dreksa is one of only two individuals capable of doing it, and gained the ability to do it at the price of the majority of his Dragon powers. He's still got wizardry, and regeneration capabilities, and all of the little things, he's just given up a bit. Again, it's complicated.

Gardening. Seriously?

Sure. Why not? He prefers to do it without magic, actually. That's actually something I forgot to put under his profile: he is indeed one of the most powerful mages to ever live, but he's a little eccentric in real life. He gets a certain extra thrill out of doing something without magic, and is actually really handy with tools.

Any questions?

[Pagan]

I can definitly get that "young aunt/uncle" idea.
Ooops, miss-read that one, I seriously thought it said three-words-man.
You're hiding something, you are.
<facepalm>

Yes... but only if you answer after the demons and angels thing- I want that first!- Who's Avalon?

[Jairus]

Ooops, miss-read that one, I seriously thought it said three-words-man.

Well, to be fair, I think that he could destroy a village with only three words: some kind of spell or somesuch. I do know that he once destroyed an army with only three words. Those words?

"Surrender or die."

Guess what happened next?

You're hiding something, you are.
<facepalm>

Ah, duuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhh!

Yes... but only if you answer after the demons and angels thing- I want that first!- Who's Avalon?

I will answer about the demons and angels (and I'll be borrowing Amber's template again), but there is a caveat about me answering the question about Avalon.

I can't edit her history/personality/profile as easily as I did Dreksa's. If I post her info, you are talking spoilers the quality of if Amber out and told us exactly what Mab's plan was in DMFA. I could give some general info without giving too much away, but something like Dreksa's profile... well, it's a little much. Albeit, I wouldn't be revealing her plans, but still... her history is huge. Your call.

[Pagan]

No thank you! Important plotsy stuff should be left for big reveals and sweeps week! I don't want a trailer to ruin the story here.

The accusation was about "killing a high dragon;" the facepalm for the gardening.

And now I'm wondering if I can incorporate this idea of "number-wordsman" somehow...

[Jairus]

Alright, hopefully I can get this up in time for Pagan to get a nice surprise when he logs in this evening.

As promised last night/this morning, today is about Angels/Demons. To make it easier for people to ask questions, I'll just do Angels right now, and demons later tonight. And again, all credit for the Race profile template goes to Amber. I'll make my own one of these days. Also note that all Race/Species information is still being developed: please call me out on inconsistencies and ask me questions to help keep this coherent.

The Angel Race
General Traits:
• Feather-based wings (between two and four)
• Inherent light-elemental magical skills
• Heightened physical abilities/appearance
• Lifespan: upwards of 2000 years
General:
      Legendary among the worlds as messengers of the gods, Angels are anything but. Nowhere near as apparently active as their Demonic cousins, Angels seem to prefer operating from the shadows. Angels seem to dislike getting their hands dirty: whereas a Demon might hunt down and destroy an enemy themselves, Angels will arrange for someone else to handle it. Despite a race-wide mentality that could almost be described as "Lawful," Angels on the whole are a devious race, a rapier-thin blade compared to the hacking broadsword that Demons could be described as.
      Much like their Demonic cousins, Angels seem to have a thing for power, though it is power of the orderly type: power over something or someone. This can extend from simply being the true power behind a throne to actually manipulating belief enough to create a god and a religion to back it up. It is worth noting that at a certain level, Angels are fans of order, and would prefer some form of peaceful system: the problem is that they approach this ideal with a logical mentality, and are well aware that sometimes sacrifices must be made to work towards order (like say, a child or an army or a city or even a nation). It is also important to note that there isn't some massive Angelic conspiracy at work, since most Angels prefer working alone or in small groups. That is not to say that there aren't some conspiracies at work, they're just not run on a race-wide basis. Some Angels do ally themselves with various gods or devils (really, there's no difference between the two at a fundamental level), if only to gain some extra power for a short time.
      While there have been a handful of Angelic communities and towns, there have never really been Angelic civilizations or cities: they seem to prefer living among other Beings and Creatures. Most of them - though organized in clans much like Demons or Lazerai - prefer the loner's life, and only come together for clan meetings and to start families. Most clans are little more than communication networks between related individuals, and the amount of intermarriage between clans is fairly high (to be honest, Clans among Angels are little more than formalities). There have, however, been a number of wars between the clans, though these wars have degenerated to little more than protracted arguments passed down from parent to child.
History:
      Much like their Demon and Lazerai brethren, the precise history of the Angel race is unknown. However, the Angel race is approximately as old as the Demon race, and many theorize that they were "born" from the same event... though what event that is is unknown. Some theorize that the two represent the balancing forces of light and darkness in the universe, and that demons are simply the dark twins of Angels, with Angels representing Order to Demon's Chaos: this theory is a little too simplistic to explain their existence, however. All in all though, Angels seem to be more content to operate at the very fringes of history, quietly playing their games with civilization. This also includes the alteration of recorded history on occasion, which is probably why Angels doing good deeds and helping to build civilization is more well known than the wars that dangerously clever Angels have engineered expressly for the purpose of destroying a single individual. Most races that spend an extended amount of time with Angels tend to become a little paranoid about them, but to be fair it's for a good reason. Angels will, however, help you out if you happen to have something that they want. Four-winged angels, for all of their rarity, seem to be larger players, and most of them are in positions of - if not leadership - then certainly respect within the various clans.
Strengths:
      Powerful light elemental magic, incredible physical abilities, and long-lifespans make Angels very dangerous opponents indeed. Much like demons, they can also harden their skin and the rest of their body to incredible levels, allowing them to actually block bladed weapons without any concern or punch through concrete. Angels are also considered exceptionally beautiful, no matter their species: the term "Greek God" seems to capture their physical appearance fairly well. Their generally logical approach to battle and all other areas of life adds to their danger. What Angelic wizards exist are also fairly powerful. The rare four-winged type of Angel also possesses a limited degree of shapeshifting, mostly limited to their basic appearance: stuff like complete alteration of physical type is beyond their inherent skills, and is mostly kept to hiding their wings. Like Demons and Lazerai, Angels can increase their power through the consumption of souls: Angels seem to rarely do it (there seems to be a taboo against it for some reason).
Weakness:
      One surefire way to defeat an Angel is to infuriate them to the point that they start acting emotional: being so used to a logical mindset, once they're out of their element it's a little easier to fight them. For all of their physical and light-magic skills, Angelic wizards are actually a rare breed, due to the infighting between clans. They also tend to retreat when defeat is imminent, preferring to live to fight another day.
Important Figure:
Valen: (Age: approximately 1,500 years old; deceased). An angel who allied himself with what was believed to be a Lazerai and a council of twelve gods some 2,000 years ago, Valen was a part of a conspiracy to bring the world in question under the god's direct control... through judicious use of war and weapons of mass-destruction with a figure-head in place. Valen tended to act as a "messenger," delivering weapons and powers to the "Chosen Ones" who could serve the gods' will. He was slain in battle before the gods' final plan could be carried out, while the Lazerai in question was slain by a dragon.

Okay, Demons next. Any questions, comments, ideas?

EDIT: Yes! Got it up before Pagan logged in!

[Pagan]

Hey, it's not my fault if lighting chooses my house to haunt for over six friggin' hours. I would have been all day otherwise.

So we basically have the typical secular angel here. You say there aren't many angels wizards, but they have natural light abilities. What are they (normally)?
Heheh, "between two and four" so is there a three winged angel somewhere flyin' in circles?

So demons tomorrow? Woot.

[Jairus]

Hey, it's not my fault if lighting chooses my house to haunt for over six friggin' hours. I would have been all day otherwise.

Ouch. Wait, "lighting" or "lightning?"

So we basically have the typical secular angel here. You say there aren't many angels wizards, but they have natural light abilities. What are they (normally)?

Pretty much. You really can't do much to an angel before they start coming across as the "messenger of God(s)" thing, so they basically come across as something more mortal (well, duh). The kind of idea I had was to think of the Greek/Roman heroes (the demigods and such-and-such things), and use those as the basis for what they're like. To be quite blunt, the Demons and Lazerai are far more fascinating, mainly because those two actually do things that EVERYONE gets pissed off at. Also, to be honest, I kind of loosely based my demons off of a hybridization of Western demons, Eastern demons, and Devil May Cry demons: my Angels were then drawn from this weird hybrid idea of the secular magical monsters (they basically are, after all).
      Second question: Um, technically Creatures. Remember what I said about how Low Dragons, despite having remarkable magical powers, have no wizards among their population? A lot of Creatures have what I guess you could call "abilities," which are magical powers that they all have and inherit and can control with a little bit of practice/training. I guess ultimately that's what draws the line between a Being and a Creature, except that there's more to them than that (For example, Demigods in my universe have quite a few special abilities, and yet they're considered Beings... I wasn't kidding when I said that there was a lot to it). Anyway, these abilities for angels include such things as light magic, the physical powers, and flight (I tend to believe that they need to use a small amount of magic to actually fly), and these are powers that every Angel has. It's just that some of them also have the wizardry gene(s), and as such can use other types of magic too. I think the idea is that Angels (and by extension Demons) had no natural Wizards, and only gained those powers by breeding with Beings and the like...
      For the record, of the top of my head, Dragons may be the only race where every single member is a wizard. I'm not sure though.
      Come to think of it, I think I once described the power that a Warlock commands as being an ability too. Hm. Interesting how my mind works when I let it wander.

Heheh, "between two and four" so is there a three winged angel somewhere flyin' in circles?

No, but there is a one-winged angel out there somewhere.
      In all seriousness, I'm just saying that Angels (and Demons) have either two wings (common) or four wings (rare). Most of the time, an Angel is born that way. I think I once had an idea that as an angel/demon entered old age, some of them would grow the second set of wings, which would grant them shapeshifting powers thus allowing them to retain a youthful appearance. This idea might still be valid: either let me think about it or give me your opinion on it. Actually, I'm just realizing that they're not mutually exclusive: both of those can be quite valid circumstances. Anyway, Lazerai, who have two sets of wings (four total) from childhood, always have shapeshifting powers, and their third set of wings that they gain between puberty and adulthood only amplifies their powers to an inordinate degree... (as will be revealed when I talk about Lazerai, they are meant to have inspired legends about the six-winged Seraphim, the highest rank of angels in Judeo-Christian mythology)
      Again, this stuff is a lot less set-in stone that the worlds and magic and tech.

So demons tomorrow? Woot.

Woot indeed. And I think so. Barring something weird coming up.

Any more questions?

Okay, bed time for me. I have nothing to do in the morning and I don't have to leave the house until two: the alarm clock is going off and I am sleeping in. Until 8 AM.

[Pagan]

Lightning. Static electricity stuff. Knocks out the power for half and minute and the crowe-damned cable company leaves my internet off for freaking HOURS! What in hell do I pay them for? </rant>

Ooops, bad wording again, what I meant was, "what are the angel's abilities (normally)?" So... they acess to the element of light magic without needing socerery or wizardry?
Devil May Cry, for the win, hehe. I'm starting to become really interested in these Lazeri again. They named after Lazurus, the guy who Christ rezzed in the Bible?

Hoho, trust me, I know my juedo-christian mythology. Private christian school, 6th to 12th grade. I know stuff my christian friends and church going family doesn't. I mean seri-- </rant>    Sorry, that rant doesn't require completion. But I'm going to use this knowledge for all it's worth, my story's getting so many biblical allusions...

Tomorrow- er... later today, then!

[Jairus]

Ooops, bad wording again, what I meant was, "what are the angel's abilities (normally)?" So... they acess to the element of light magic without needing socerery or wizardry?

Technically it's wizardry, but to be honest it's just natural to them. A lot of these powers and stuff are as old as the races themselves, which in some cases predate magic spells and stuff like that. It's like our ability to hear or smell... kind of. They still need to practice it, but ultimately they basically can manipulate light magic at a very high level without "technically" using spells. It's confusing: it's kind of like they can do only one type of spell normally, with their bodies "canceling" other types of spells... tell you what: pretend that they're all basically warlocks who can manipulate light magic and perform any kind of light magic spell.

Devil May Cry, for the win, hehe. I'm starting to become really interested in these Lazeri again. They named after Lazurus, the guy who Christ rezzed in the Bible?

Lazerai. Male form Lazerin, female form Lazerus, plural/gender-neutral singular form Lazerai. While it is pronounced similar to Lazarus, the name is actually based on the first Lazerai's name, who will actually be the "Important Figure" when I get there.

Hoho, trust me, I know my juedo-christian mythology. Private christian school, 6th to 12th grade. I know stuff my christian friends and church going family doesn't. I mean seri-- </rant>    Sorry, that rant doesn't require completion. But I'm going to use this knowledge for all it's worth, my story's getting so many biblical allusions...

Hehehe... you have no idea. My family has been members of this one church since long before I was born. There are people there (including the minister and his wife) who have known me since I was a week old. I had Christian education for K-2 (can't remember the denomination for the life of me), Lutheran 3-8, and Catholic 9-12. Minister for a cousin. My brother just got confirmed at the church a few months ago... about seven years younger than me. I always said he'd get confirmed before me. Of course, I'm never going to get confirmed... but that's not really important in the slightest. I also have the minor distinction of being named (indirectly) after the first recruited apostle, as well as having a middle name based off of a famous businessman (Wiki "Jairus"). And that's not even counting the two Witnesses in the family...
      In short, I've gotten quite a bit of exposure to all of that. But I'm not going to go any further than all of that, because A) it's not important for the story and B) it's religion, and I don't talk about religion. People get offended easily.

Tomorrow- er... later today, then!

Indeed.