Thoughts on my magic system so far?
I've been working on the magic system for my setting called Alden. I wanted a semi-hard to hard magic system, and I want some feedback and criticism to refine it.
Magic in Alden
Basics:
Magic in Alden is divided into 3 major subsets. Casting, Deific and Natural. Natural magic is the simplest, magic that exists naturally and comes in the form of crystals and enchanted regions. Deific magic is done through patronage or sacrifice to one of the eight gods, while it is costly compared to casting it can be done by every species. Casting magic is the most powerful and prolific, and is done by using your body and soul as a wire between the natural world and the Shroud
Shroud:
The shroud is an invisible field that covers the world and is the source of most supernatural activity. It comes from the presence of gods and demigods in their respective realities. Shroud energy travels across the planet like clouds or dust storms, in good times it is abundant and coats the region, while sometimes it is extremely scarce. Shroud energy must be channeled through the user to be turned into energy and spells, and your channeling is based on your biology and more specifically, lifespan. Species like elves, lithoids and photoids can use it basically forever as they live for millennia, while shorter-lived species like kobolds and thlixans can only do it in short bursts.
Deities:
The world of Alden is ruled by 8 main gods, they are
Entran: God of order. Created the world's rules and limits to stop mortals from surpassing the gods. Patron god of the Deogens. Her realm is dominated by a baroque compound, the center of bureaucracy and order in the higher realms.
Kohnrah: God of labour and work. Forged the foundations of the planet, the mountains islands and continents. His realm is a massive island resembling an anvil, with the top a deep crater from centuries of forging, with the village bellow housing his patrons
Nalten: God of nature. Created the world's flora and fauna. Her realm is a mountain-sized mangrove tree, which serves as the source of life for the planet. The top of the tree has dozens of tree dwelling homes for her patrons, with Nalten herself living inside the tree itself.
Axansh: God of adaptation. Responsible for the world's evolution and the advancement of civilization. Her realm is an endless plain of constantly shifting mosaics, always changing in their size and colour.
Riocons: God of war and violence. Created predation and competition to keep the world in check, from microbes hunting microbes to global crusades. His realm is a
Psicon: God of weather, responsible for the clouds, tornados, waves and seasons. His realm is in the center of a typhoon, with a shattered island chain in the center.
Antrel: God of the stars and moon. Created the moon, the stars, auroras, everything that makes the sky worth seeing. Their realm is a crystalline asteroid, with his patrons living on smaller rocks that orbit the main asteroid.
All-Being: God of time, creator of the universe and the only being the 7 gods answer to. While the rest can be seen in their full glory by mortals, the All-Being cannot be seen without the viewer going mad.
Demigods are the children of the gods, who's abilities are determined by their parents. While there is only 7 main gods there are dozens of demigods who each rule over smaller realms than the main ones. When in the mortal world, they can take whatever form they want but it's usually the form of whatever species they're talking to.
Spirits:
Spirits are another big aspect of Alden's magic. They come from 3 different sources
Deaths of sapient beings in times of extreme shroud activity
Deaths from overchanneling
Extreme devotion for an object or animal
Spirits are the fragments or personification of the being's soul that are imbued with shroud or deific energy. They tend to roam the world or ally with mages. They tend to have more shroud channeling than their mortal bodies thanks to being made of mostly shroud energy which is a far more effective channeling material. Their appearances aren't physical matter, but projections. Spirits come in a few types, such as
Elemental:
The most primordial form of spirit that can only use simple casting magic. Used in the forging of things like magic orbs, a practice only accepted in a few cultures and groups or under specific circumstances. They tend to come in the form of a blue or cyan coloured flame with a glowing crystal in the center
Bhakrtas:
More powerful and rarer than elemental spirits. Instead of feeding on shroud energy, most of theirs's comes from harvesting different emotions through different means. Ones that harvest awe will take the form of ancient ruins, ones that harvest fear will look like a terrifying monster.
Deogens:
A class of spirits who are most proficient in entrapment magic. Have dedicated themselves to containing dangerous beings. Tend to look like grey and cyan cloaked humanoids. One of the more intelligent spirit types.
Orabah:
Spirits especially honed in on floral and faunal magic. Looks like a mass of intertwined vines with fruits all over them. Often act as protectors of enchanted forests.
Natural:
Natural magic is created through natural means (obviously) thanks to large shroud presence. The main forms of Natural magic are
Crystals: Crystals are created when they're formed quickly after the god's fights. Normal fights between them can create semi-powerful crystals like communication crystals or channeling-boosters. Ones where a god is killed creates truly powerful crystals, powerful enough for entire civilizations to be built around them. The main types of crystals are
Communication Crystals, useless on their own and must be shattered to be useful. When one of the two crystals are vibrating (Crystal A), all audio near A is transported to any other shards. Is used like a radio, with "Resonance Studios" that broadcast music to their respective cites or nations. One of the more common variants
Channeling Boosters. A specific type of crystal that expands your channeling ability when held. Usually mounted at the end of a staff or wand, it allows species like kobolds and humans to compete with elves and lithoids in terms of raw magic energy.
Detonating Crystals. When triggered by a variety of methods (high temperature, specific elements, etc) they detonate, with explosive power density over 100x stronger than dynamite. Used by mining clans for excavation and Viningrad in combat.
Beacon Crystals. Similar to the Detonating Crystals, they are only useful with a trigger. They create a massive bright beacon that can be seen up to 100km away. Some variants can only be seen through a twin crystal, which is refined into a glass and crafted into a monocle or glasses. Once used, must be recharged with a couple days of light absorption
Radiance Crystals. The largest of the crystal group, they're often larger than an apartment building and the base of villages and enclaves.
Enchanted Regions: Enchanted regions are places that are imbued with shroud energy. The most common places to be enchanted are forests, canyons and mountain ranges. Effects of them vary, such as stronger magic, better channeling or unnatural phenomenon. Here are some major examples
- Rionaden Mountain Range: A vibrant alpine region with spiky mountains covered in runes and rich in rare metals and crystal. It stretches across Darikaar and is home to the Darikan Imperial Palace that stretches many miles and houses their royal family.
- The Encasement Atoll: A massive desolate island chain in a complex, unnatural geometric pattern. Inhabited by powerful spirits called Deogens, ruling the Liocan Prison, where the most dangerous beings are contained to prevent mass destruction. Dozens of large, stone obelisks surround the islands, which act as watchtowers and like a force field.
- The Shattered Skies: The home of photoids, it is a region the size of Algeria full of floating islands covered in white ash and strange orb-shaped trees. All flora and fauna in this region were transformed into light-based life. Instead of eating plants or meat, they feed on sunlight.
Arcane Lifeforms:
Animals and plants that evolved to use magic for survival. Here are examples:
Mesmerizer iguanas: Reptiles that live in the southeast rainforests. They reach up to 40cm and live for 30 years. They get their name thanks to an unfolding frill on their neck that can be used to hypnotize predators and prey. This only works on less intelligent creatures like bugs or amphibians.
Necroa Beetles: Metallic black and purple beetles, with bioluminescent markings on their shells. Their life cycle involves finding a recently deceased animal or human, reaching their heart, laying eggs and using the lasts of its life-energy to resurrect the body, though leaving it in a robotic state. The body will act as protection for the eggs and provide nourishment, before eventually dying again when they reach maturity.
Thermite Sea Dragons: Amphibious serpents living on the Kelayan coasts. They reach 12 meters long and come in shiny turquoises and navy blue. Under their throat is a transmutation sack that turns water into a stream of thermite fire. A nightmare for traders.
Deific:
Deific magic is used by sacrificing something to the gods, and them fulfilling your request. The forms of deific magic are
Blessed: A form of enchantment that instead of using shroud energy, is blessed directly by one of the eight gods. The god that blesses it decides its ability, as well as the gift you give them or their opinion on you. For instance: If you ask Krion to bless a crossbow and they are very fond of you, the blessing will be powerful and less costly than if you were cordial or negative.
Aid and Scourge: Deific magic that either improves a region in some way or harms it. Like for instance, aid magic could make a field grow food quicker or improve health over a town. While scourge magic would do the opposite, killing crops and spreading illness.
Gift: Giving a sacrifice or gift to a deity can be used to get either large amounts of resources or divine tools. Divine tools come in many types, from a blade that can slice through solid steel to a shield that can absorb and release energy in a beam.
While being the mostly costly form, requiring generous offers or a good standing with the gods, it is useful because it isn't connected to your channeling abilities while casting magic needs a good amount of it, which was invaluable for the early Vinigradi to rebuild their civilization.
Casting:
Casting magic is the most common and most powerful form. It is done by channeling shroud energy through your body to produce effects in the real world. Your body's ability to act as a medium for the shroud is mostly determined by your species' lifespan, though certain artefacts and crystals can expand someone's channeling ability. Species with long lifespans, like elves photoids and lithoids, can channel tons of shroud energy because they live either centuries or millennia, with some lithoids being over 10,000 years old. Species like humans, cobans, shroomfolk, plasmoids, most uplifted animal species, sirens and orcs can only channel a fifth of the long lived species. Meanwhile the thlixans, fleafolk, short-lived uplifted animal species and kobolds can barely use magic. If you exceed your channeling abilities, there are many possible consequences. On the low end it can cause temporary ageing or unconsciousness. In the worst cases it causes calcification in your body, turning your muscles and bones into a crumbly mix of calcium that is very fragile.
Casting magic is divided into 4 main groups and other subsets.
Creation:
The hardest form of magic which turns shroud energy into physical matter. The most draining magic since it uses the most amount of energy. Subtypes are:
Fauna and Flora Growth
Elemental Creation
Material Creation
Destruction:
A bit simpler than creation magic, its defined by destroying or damaging physical matter. Subtypes are:
Detonation
Deletion
Vaporization
Transformation:
Often simpler than destruction magic, it turns one thing into another instead of creating it from the ground up. Subtypes are:
Enchantment
Transmutation
Petrification
Illusion:
The cheapest magic type of the 4, it doesn't create physical matter, instead its more of a hologram. The subtypes are:
Mind Warping
Projection
Magic subtypes are more of a spectrum than hard groups. If you want to create fire, you need to mix creation and destruction. If you want to give a creature sapience you need to mix illusion and transformation.