[Interest Check] The World At Our Fingertips

[anethia]

Warning. This Roleplay is subject to change, and isn't even set in stone. I do not have all of the faults ironed out and everything drawn in. Some parts aren't even shaded. This is just for me to know if I should bother continuing.

The World At Our Fingertips.

A world, always there, the world we saw when we blinked and when we turned away. And then another world, a world riddled in mystery and far away from what was known. Hidden in the smartest place, where no-one would ever look. Right in front of them. The signs all there, the breadcrumbs left behind. Yet still, we did not see.

A world of excitement, of unfathomable danger. A world of trust, loyalty, betrayal and last, completely desperate stands. Where magic flowed in the pulsing veins and spread out across the Earth, where the wind danced to one's will and the power terrifying. The undeniable feeling of something more, a shadow you could not vanquish. A world of mystery, and yet so undeniably familiar.

A world that hid itself from the view of 'the mortals', the ones that could not bend the earth and walk on water. The ones they had sworn to protect, yet they never knew. The ones always at risk, from a force they never even realized was there. Quite unfair, really. Yet such was the way with life, the ones with power ruled, unquestioned. Even when the chains that bound their subjects were gentle, easily broken and not visible. You didn't know they were even there until you were in too deep, and you had already become one of the ones with power. And nobody likes giving up power.

Setting

Set in modern day Earth, this roleplay will depict the secret civilization of magic that ruled secretly beneath them. The ones who's wars were on behalf of the world, and the famed mages could destroy mountains with a simple gesture. I understand; this concept is nothing new. A magical race who are in secret? This is practically Harry Potter! Well, apart from that the magic will be completely different, and in Harry Potter they get letters explicitly stating the Wizarding World. But let's talk more about THIS one, and what's going to make it different.

Unguarded by spells, hidden in plain view by absolutely nothing, were Sanctums. In the bustling hearts of the 'mortal' world, the ones without magic. Were the sorcerers; the ones with magic from the Odai pulsing through them. They gathered, these Sanctums acting as the law of the secret sorcerer lives that went on there. A place for jobs, to learn, to gather and laugh. The one in absolute power - known as the Exalt - commands the lower branches of the Sanctum, working as a sort of government for the sorcerers living in the area. They passed laws, launched investigations, gave jobs. They communicated to the smaller branches in less important cities, the smaller branches known as the Temple of _____.

History of the World

A long time has passed since the Odai existed. Powerful creatures, so similar to humans and yet impossibly different. Driven by the magic they harnessed from the world, they lived in a constant state of war, each one of them mad for power. An insatiable lust that would plague them, cause them to destroy each other in their own blinded pursuit of incredible power without realizing the destructive causes it would have. They all fought, ached for the true power they talked about in lullabies and in rhyme. An ancient myth, older than even them.

They fought for it until one day, one horrible day, an Odai known as Jal received the legendary power of the stars and heavens they sought. And it destroyed Jal, it ripped apart the Odai. It was in an instant that Jal's mind and conscious was ripped apart, the power far too great. It drove him mad, but he was dead before he even realized. And all that remained was a terrifying creature as the magic retreated to the stars, hidden in the Zodiac where none would disturb it again. The terrifying creature, however, hungered. It had no form; not really. It was a being of dark and light as one, a disturbing mess of fractured reality and the formless given form. A being that, by all means should not exist by any rule of nature, but such was the awe inspiring power of the stars.

The creature once known as Jal, holding no recollection of what it once was, laid waste to the world. The cities of the Odai burned, each one of them running from something that was everywhere. With a flick of its non-existent wrist, it shattered bones and flattened cities. And such was the end of the Odai; such was the deserved end of the power hungry species. And the being of impossibilities moved on, it opened a portal to another universe; another reality, and began to destroy anything it came across. No power could match it. The Odai were powerless, and they paid there price. But as a last, desperate hope that one day, somehow they would return, the last of the Odai relinquished their magic, but it was trapped. Before all of the magic could return to the stars, to the heavens it belonged, Jal had decimated the world, and moved on to the next. But somehow, with its uncontrollable and terrible power, it had sliced the fabric that had thinly held on between the stars and the Earth it had once been on. The magic could not return.

And when the life known as humans appeared, the magic had already multiplied. It was nowhere near the power of the stars; and never would be. But there was enough to keep the cycle going; to ensure that the magic would not die off. But when the humans came, there was no need. The magic quickly inhabited them, but eventually there was too many humans and not enough magic. Passed down like genes through the bloodline, some never got it, while some had more than their parents. However, that didn't matter. Magic had survived, and life was flourishing once more.

Magic

The magic that dwells in humans is far more advanced than the uncontrollable, spurts of raw power the Opai had. It was more refined; more professional, and controllable. It was calm, but powerful. Branches grew from what was once simply one, it mutated and changed into many different branches that humans studied and mastered. But, the magic was wary. While it had no brain to think, it knew somehow that if the humans received too much magic; too much power, it would be disastrous. Thus, an explainable change slowly occurred. At the age of 18, at the exact moment eighteen years had passed since their birthday, the magic would storm inside of them. The magic festered like an open wound, and the sorcerer would experience anything from mild discomfort to passing out; or in some cases, pain. Upon this, the magic discipline that the sorcerer had studied and practiced the most would become ingrained in them, the only type they could use. Prior to this, the sorcerer could use any number of magic disciplines to varying degrees of success, but none were better than mediocre. To compensate, the sorcerer now has stronger magic in their discipline and much more knowledge about it. This can only be complimented.

So, the point of this topic should be pretty obvious. Vote on the poll and tell me things down below. If I make the OOC thread, there'll likely be more things; such as the plot and magic disciplines. Thanks.

Edited October 19, 2015 by Anethia

[anethia]

Oh yeah also ask any questions you have and I'll like answer them.

[Rosesong]

Hi Shiri! So, in addition to what we talked about earlier, here are a few more things that I was thinking about. (My questions tend to build off of one another, so I'm sorry in advance ^^; )

• So, what would happen if two mages combined their respective fields of sorcery in order to perform a spell? Would that grow stronger, would the aspects of magic need to harmonize with one another? Are there aspects of magic that are volatile when used in conjunction/against each other?
• How does a mage choose the area of magic that he/she specializes in once their 18th birthday is reached? Does the magic choose for the mage? Are there rare instances in which more than one aspect stayed with a wizard? How does a mage choose their discipline (ie fire, water, etc)? How does this discipline affect their magical aspect that they specialize in?
• What should happen if a human learn about the magical world that lies right in front of their eyes? Have instances like this occurred before? Are there consequences if bloodlines cross, ie a magical and nonmagical person have a child? Are there instances where a mage can lose his magic; where a mortal can gain magic?

I'll be thinking of many more questions too, but I really love this and am excited to see where it's going to go!

[Grizzlybrand]

I am very interested in this. And really hopes this bears fruit. (Not much happening in these boards.)

I wanna Know how the magic works, is it more Vancian like D&D, where its a finite number of prepared spells to use at leisure, Hp like wand magic, rituals, a combination of these thing? Or is it a system you made up?

I like that concept, where peoples spark for true magic awakens at a certain age. I wanna see how others imagine it.

[anethia]

I am very interested in this. And really hopes this bears fruit. (Not much happening in these boards.)

I wanna Know how the magic works, is it more Vancian like D&D, where its a finite number of prepared spells to use at leisure, Hp like wand magic, rituals, a combination of these thing? Or is it a system you made up?

I like that concept, where peoples spark for true magic awakens at a certain age. I wanna see how others imagine it.

The magic disciplines vary; in fact, it's difficult to explain exactly how every type of magic works. But this'll be a good time for me to elaborate on something very important.

There will be two branches of magic. The ones who study the first are known as Magi, and those who follow the second are known as the Comai. The two live side by side, talking and interacting with each other. There's no ill blood between them, or walls that separate them. Think of it as a college degree, or someone's education. Each one gives perks that differ from person to person, but there's no anger or ill feelings.

Moving on, the Magi focus more on the energy-based side of things. What I mean by this is by using their magic, and feeding it (temporarily, obviously, it functions a bit like blood if that helps) into say a spark, they can create a flame that doesn't hurt them and they hold it in their hands. Just an example. So the Magi focus on the 'natural' elements, so to speak. This is where the Elementalist branch comes from; the Elementalist branch is where Magi interested in learning or practicing fire, water, earth and air. Some trade off mastering one element to become a jack of all trades; able to perform basic to medium difficulty spells, but never being able to - say - use the air to fly or create a giant wall of earth.

The Comai are much more reliant on their physical abilities. If you want to consider the Magi as using Spiritual magic and the Comai as physical magic, that works too. The Comai very often enhance their physical bodies with magic. Increasing their strength, speed, anything within the limits. If they tinker with their body too much, they can become unhinged and dangerous, so there is a very fine line. This branch of magic will never be as versatile as Magi, but it offers more immediate power and is still versatile in its own right. Due to being able to manipulate your own form, this is the type of magic the military of the Sanctums use in order to become powerful super soldiers.

The magic is going to work by spells, but not spells that require incantations (most of the time) or wands. Take for example you were an elementalist; you snap your fingers, creating a spark from the magic inside you, and then feed it magic to create a flame. You could manipulate that flame, but you can't change it into something else. A finite number of spells to use at your leisure is a great way to describe it, but there's also the added bonus of creativity. Due to the very basics being easy to manipulate (it's much easier to manipulate a flame than a fireball), with creativity you could change the flame into the stream. You can use more versatile effects, but they hit a lot less hard.

...I hope that made sense.

Hi Shiri! So, in addition to what we talked about earlier, here are a few more things that I was thinking about. (My questions tend to build off of one another, so I'm sorry in advance ^^; )

• So, what would happen if two mages combined their respective fields of sorcery in order to perform a spell? Would that grow stronger, would the aspects of magic need to harmonize with one another? Are there aspects of magic that are volatile when used in conjunction/against each other?
• How does a mage choose the area of magic that he/she specializes in once their 18th birthday is reached? Does the magic choose for the mage? Are there rare instances in which more than one aspect stayed with a wizard? How does a mage choose their discipline (ie fire, water, etc)? How does this discipline affect their magical aspect that they specialize in?
• What should happen if a human learn about the magical world that lies right in front of their eyes? Have instances like this occurred before? Are there consequences if bloodlines cross, ie a magical and nonmagical person have a child? Are there instances where a mage can lose his magic; where a mortal can gain magic?

I'll be thinking of many more questions too, but I really love this and am excited to see where it's going to go!

Hi Rose!

If two sorcerers were to combine their magic into one in order to cast a spell, you were right with your 'magic needs to harmonize'. Along with a strong bond of friendship and mutual trust, the magics cannot be two different branches (Magi, Comai) and cannot be polar opposites. You can not combine fire and water, air and earth, shadow and light, et cetera. The effects of the spell cast would vary wildly of what the two elements were. For example, fire and earth would create magma; light and water would create holy water.

The magic will choose the discipline for the sorcerer. You guys will be able to simply choose for yourself, but the way it actually works is that the discipline of magic that you were best at (so, for example, if you had an excellent knack for Necromancy but you only found out a day before your birthday, if that was your strongest discipline, the magic would choose that. It's a survival tactic.). There are no recorded cases of a mage maintaining two disciplines after their 18th birthday. But since I said recorded, who knows?

Should bloodlines cross, the baby has a 50% chance to become magical or not. There are no consequences for it, and nothing stopping it from happening. Should a mortal find their way into the magical world, if they are not magical at all, the Sanctums will intervene and prevent them from joining their world. Even if a child is magical, they would still intervene. Thanks to specialized Magi magic, a few non-violent sorcerers joined the Sanctum with the power to convince people of anything. Due to this, they easily convince the mortals that do not know how to fight the magic that the sorcerer world was not real.

Thanks for the questions! I hope that was clear enough.

[Grizzlybrand]

Ayyy this answers a good chunk of my questions and gives me ideas for a character already! I'm definitely down to try out for this if ya make it.

[Flux]

Sounds pretty awesome to me. Comai all the way! I'd definitely support taking this farther, and you can count on me signing up if I can at all find the time to do another RP.

[Rosesong]

Thanks so much Shiri! Crystal clear answers~

[anethia]

I've decided to go through with this thanks to the support and attention it's received! Thank you to everyone.

If a moderator could lock this at their earliest convenience, that would be amazing. Thank you!