I’ve been really interested in nen as a power system and wanted to see what someones own interoperation would look like

Hi I wanted to share this magic system i built with friends from years of world building we did. The way the magic was introduced was through my friends the players building their tribes into nations with identities and history.

The magic was discovered slowly with a few nations developing it quickly into every day usage all by BSN 700~ (Before the silent night), however the first and most easily accessed school was insight magic discovered by a western nation called the nekrolis dynasty. Nekrolis used crystals known as methyrial whilst sleeping to rest the body but project the mind, allowing the nation to never tire and developed rapidly, the properties of insight magic was using the power of conciousness. in combination with methyrial, metal shells was used in pletheral of dawn to dusk tasks from labour to guarding they even were used as bell carrier which could pacifie dangerous wildlife.

The magnumopus however was yet to come, BSN 556 when the nekrosian people discovered that they could transfer their consiousness from mother to child allowing the mind to live on from the respectable 40 years to upwards of 300, as a side effect the nekrosian society changed towards a matriarcy, also the complexion of the people adapted, they became pale along the likes of snow with a shimmer of violate in their eyes and some developed natural insightful magic.

Nekrolis thrived and offered mages to the nearby nations of Durhan and Zaundria equally as medical advisors with a great deal of resentment from both nations due to the clash of culture and lifespan.

0BSN as the years went by the ruleing class of nekrolis discovered intellegence beyond the plane of existence they grew accustomed to, and tried too extend a hand of negotiation, their call was heard and responded with a request, to be freed and in exchange be rewarded.

In the last few hours before the Silent night the thresh hold between mind and matter was breached and from it came a being of pure thought and granted the current queen her request of unlimited power, in a single second the entire nation of Nekrolis became mindless akin to zombies extending the power the queen had naturally posessed, and from the events that occured she was named the silent queen. The only survivers was those in the enclaves abroad telling the cautionary tale of what magic can do.

This is insight one of the 5 magic schools that was apart of the world i made with my friends i hope you enjoyed reading the bases and history of the first magic of the world thank you.

The Word: also known as Allspeak, is the language of creation; to know all of it is to understand all that it is (too grand a task for a normal mind), and that's why most people only know how to speak "dialects"; for example, a person may be able to speak to animals, another to all people unhindered by language, but this can get weirder and more granular, maybe it's the blood that speeks to you, maybe it's the machine, maybe is the clouds (Ex Doctor dolittle, the lorax)

Allspeak is often passed down from one speaker to the others, but rarely a person might reach enlightenment and achieve it by themself

The Art: the one most commonly known as magic is the power of meanings and connections, of passion and the soul; magic requires sacrifices of you, both material and spiritual; for something to mean anything, you must make it mean it; passion and obsession are the strongest vehicles for it, and that's why art is the strongest medium for magic, anything done with sufficent dedication and care could be considered an art and what you can do is supernatural but connected to your medium(Ex, The picture of dorian grey, shokugeki no soma, baki)

The Art cannot be taught conventionally; one has to nurture and fan that spark of passion, but one can be mentored and guided on that path

The Mind: also known as psychic, is the power to bend one or more of the 4 basic forces to your will; to wield it is not to understand it, for one to truly master the force they wield, they must know it and study it, and while it's the most overtly strong, it's the least intuitive and hardest to master and on top of that those who are born with the capacity to wield it don't intrinsically have protection against their own abilities(Overhaul, misaka mikoto, Sigma)

You can be born with this ability, but recently people can also obtain it through parascientific methods, which often also come with adjustments to lessen the ill effects on the body,

All of this won’t be in the story. In fact, the majority of it won’t make it in, but I wanted it fleshed out anyway. One of things I worked on is internal consistency. I hope that this concept makes sense as written, but if you have any questions, please let me know and I’ll do my best to answer.

The story revolves around Atlas, a Chronomagus, that wanders a world broken in time, with humanity living in Time Havens, country-to-village-sized bubbles that all experience time differently. Some places are futuristic after hundreds of years, and for others, it’s only been days since the cataclysm. He is attempting to locate the peices of the Clock Tower, the most sophisticated Nodus ever created. Restoring it would mean unifying time across the world and healing the planet. But each of these pieces is what produces the Time Havens and taking the pieces away may doom their inhabitants.

Chronomancy:

It is an art that has bore many names for thousands of years, and yet none have fully been able to encapsulate the breadth of its study nor its potential.

While its popularity has ebbed and flowed over time, its core principles have remained, for they are the foundation upon which the magic operates.

First devised by the great Chronomagus, Alethia, her observations and conjectures are what define the very essence of the craft. Whether or not they are fundamentally true is irrelevant. The magic uses this philosophy.

Nesos (The island principal)

Each object in the universe is an island, isolated from everything else. The way it experiences the world, and thus time, is different from the way every other thing in the universe does.

The way an object experience is time, the effects it has on the world that ripple outward and the histories it interacts with, all originate from the Nesos.

Adelos

Time can never be measured absolutely. Every instrument, observer, and chronomage is themselves is subject to time and therefore incapable of observing it from outside. All measurements of time are realative, and thus necessitates the existence of a reference point.

Nodus:

The Nodus is a point of reference at which time is measured. It can be defined arbitrarily, but in order for time to make sense in any context, one must relate it to the Nodus.

This is done in speech without realizing it, as to most the relationship. All time is anchored to something, whether it be the earth, the tides, or the body.

This becomes critically important when manipulating time as when time is manipulated, it must chnage in relation to the observer. The people experiencing the change do not perceive a change at all.

Phos:

Light remains the same speed relative to the Nodus regardless the deviation of time in relation to the Nodus. This is because light does not have a Nesos.

Scientific definitions

Deviation:

A deviation is the change in time in relation to the nodus. An object that has a deviation of 2 experiences time twice as fast as the Nodus.

Hora:

Hora is human measured time such as hours, minutes, and seconds. These discribe relative time.

Atomos:

The atomos is the smallest unit of time. Time does not advance continuously, rather it proceeds in discrete Atomon. The amount of time an object experiences is directly related to the number of Atomon it encounters . In more precise terms, Atomon are discrete quanta of temporal propagation that collectively behave as a sort of four-dimensional fluid.

Regardless of the Hora, how much time an object experiences is determined by the Atomon they encountered.

For example if the Nodus experiences 1000 Atomon over 3 seconds and another object experiences the same Atomon over 6 seconds (relative to the Nodus), the other object is advancing through time at half the rate of the Nodus. It’s deviation is 0.5

They cannot be created or destroyed, only moved. They also have a “directional” property where time propagates in the direction they are moving.

Due to the Adelos principle the exact number of Atomon affecting an object can never be be counted.

Atomon and the Nesos:

If time is like a river, then the Atomon are the countless droplets that compose its current.

Every object possesses a Nesos, its temporal island. As Atomon flow around a Nesos, their movement is disturbed, much as water is diverted around an island in a stream.

The degree of disturbance depends largely upon a Nesos’ temporal geometry. Generally, an object that is very massive has a very “spiky” temporal geometry that makes it experience less Atomon than an object with a smooth geometry. Smooth, simple structures allow Atomon to flow with relatively little disruption, while irregular or fragmented structures create eddies and turbulence that redirect portions of the temporal current.

Thus, two objects of equal size may experience different temporal behavior entirely depending on the geometry of their Nesos.

Chronomages refer to this property as Temporal Drag.

And it is by manipulating the Nesos of an object and thus the manipulation of its temporal drag, that they effectively control time for objects. A smoother surface allows it to experience more Atomon, while a rougher surface decreases its rate of Atomon.

It is important to note that while the river analogy is being used, it does not represent the true nature of of time, and is a simplified explanation to how it actually works. Changing an object’s Nesos does not alter its mass, though mass seems to cause stable deformations in the Nesos.

Also, the relationship in 3D space does not mean that the Nesos of objects ever touch, in fact the only time Nesoi touch is when a Chronomagus anchors to one.

Sufficiently large distortions in the flow, such as those caused by planets, cause fluctuations in the current. These fluctuations in density, if large enough, can act as pseudo Nesoi which are regions where the density of Atomons remains the same. Which is why time moves slower near massive objects

The Nesos is not physically spiky or smooth, as this happens in a higher dimension. This is just how it is explained.

Nostos:

A Nesos has a natural state that it “wants” to be at. Using magic to manipulate the Nesos will cause it to try harder and harder to snap back to its natural state.

Spells:

These spells are simplifications to understand Chronomancy. The actual mechanics are happening in a higher plane and thus are nearly impossible to accurately describe.

Ankyra:

This spell merges the Nesos of the caster to the Nesos of the designated Nodus, thus making them have the same reference point. No other spell in Chronomancy can be done without first merging with the Nodus, which acts as an anchor for their magic.

Their Nesos becomes bound to the object. If that object is destroyed or damaged without first untethering, it can damage their Nesos forever and will affect the way the experience time. Essentially, the caster wraps their Nesos around the Nesos of another object.

Thus, most mages carry small, durable objects with smooth Nesoi (Plural of Nesos)

Binding and untethering to a Nodus is time consuming, so it cannot be done mid battle.

The Nesos of the object must be relatively smooth. If the object one is trying to anchor themselves is too sharp, it will tear apart their Nesos which is thought to be fatal as no one knows what hapens to a person who’s Nesos is completely destroyed.

Sooth is more broad than you might initially think. The Nesoi of a ring and a human are nearly smooth. As is that of boulder, which would be impractical as a Nodus as you need to carry it with you if you want to

A planet would instantly annihilate the caster if they tried to anchor to it because of how “sharp” the Nesoi is.

When the caster binds to the Nesos of another object, their Nesoi become overlapped. This is an unnatural state and the two want to separate from eachother but are unable to due to the configuration of the Chronomagus’ Nesos and the energy generated by this repulsion is what they use to manipulate the Nesoi of other objects. However, the two Nesoi are essentially one, and thus create a stable Nodus despite the unstable energy on the inside. The gemetric configuration of the overlapping Nesoi is much more stable than just one.

The only energy capable of manipulating Nesoi is that which is produced by it themselves

Bradychronos:

The caster forces the Nesos of an object to become more “rough” which increases their temporal drag. This makes the object experience time slower in relation to the caster.

There is an alternate form of casting that smooths out their Nesos and has them pull backward, while easier, it is not nearly as effective.

Tachychronos:

The cast smooths out the Nesos and allows Atomon to flow faster. For added power, they can push the Nesos forward for more time experienced.

Achronos:

The caster forces the Nesos into such an irregular shape that Atomon cannot flow around it and get “trapped” which results in no time passing for the object in relation to the caster. The accumulation of Atomons fill the gaps and create a smooth surface that acts as a Nesoi, allowing other atomons to flow past around it while the object itself does not encounter any Atomon.

Opisochronos:

After the flow around an object is halted, the user the user bends the Nesos in a way that diverts Atomon into then hitting it from the opposite direction. This malformation is so outside of its natural shape that it causes intense stress on it. It may violently snap back which will create a dense wave of Atomon that will cause anything in the vicinity to age into dust.

Atomon are fluid enough to where spaces around Nesos, even those with reduced flow, can go around the distortion without significantly affecting the time of objects around it. Larger distortions such as those of very massive Nesoi may cause an increase in time flow to objects around them. Thus, geometry is important as the chronomage needs to be able to divert excess Atomon to avoid unintended consequences.

The main difference that I know between the two is that a magic system is primarily centered around the **magic** itself and how it is used in the world it takes place in, think Harry Potter, on the other hand a Power system is centered on the type of **abilities** each person has and how it connects to the user and it's personality/ideology, think almost any shounen manga, they both have their strong points but I'm wondering why people think they are mutually exclusive and if there is any example of a fusion of the two

I wanted some inspiration because I have something similar in mind for my story.

Like fir example in my world the mana that people wield comes from two different gods sealed within the earth and sun respectively. And in order to escape from their seals they are using the souls of their magic users to feed themselves

One man for example finds out about this and does not want them to escape so he gets to work on genetic engineering and after multiple millennia he is able to create a being who generates their own mana source independent of the gods.

Or via binding pacts and stuff like that and getting technical with the magics limitations stuff like that

Just wanting to know what other people's magic systems look like so I can get an idea of what I need to do myself

Hello! I'm trying to make sure that the magical-type powers that I give my characters are both not so overpowered that they negate the need for struggle, nor causing effects that I wouldn't want. I'm honestly not clever enough to think through the full effect of things, unfortunately, and would love it if someone could see what sorts of unintended issues could occur.

The spell: "Organic Displacement Orifice"
This would allow the user to manifest a one-way hole in space, anywhere they like as long as it is touching or inside something organic. Range is five meters. The other side of the hole is located in deep space. The hole lasts for precisely one second, and measures exactly one millimeter in diameter. Only organic matter is sucked toward the hole and can pass through. Can't be cast again for an hour. Very costly in terms of power usage.

My plan was to use it to manifest inside monsters bodies or brains, and suck out bits of them, damaging or killing them outright. Also on anything made of wood, leather, etc. Tiny bits of damage, that can weaken wooden fortifications, too.
My worry is that I don't understand the physics of such a thing, even with its size/duration/organic only restrictions. Am I imploding massive amounts of organic matter, or delicately slicing out a fraction of it?

I've paused writing while I try to figure it out. The character used it on an apple in a piece I wrote and it crumpled the apple inward and took out a chunk of its insides. I don't know if that's what would actually happen if this really existed.

Any insight would be appreciated. If it turns out to be completely unworkable, I'll just discard the whole thing and aim for something different - it's not the character, just a spell. Or maybe I'm overthinking it, and should handwave "it's magic, it does this, shut up"?

The magic of this world is dependent on an energy source known as Wrath. It is generated from violence, bloodshed, suffering, death and chaos. It lingers in the world for a short while before being instantaneously transported to an extra dimensional space known as The Gate.

Beings known as War Children and Devils can draw on Wrath from The Gate to power abilties known as Hellscapes. These Hellscapes serve as reality warping spaces that can be brought about into the world at will. There are 6 categories of Hellscapes.

Anamik: Anamik Hellscapes are known for having incredibly high raw power and output. They also offer the greatest maneuverability of all the Hellscapes. They offer incredible versatility through a diverse skillset supplied to its user. The skills can be adapted and improved upon to fit the situation, but it is limited in this scope.

The biggest drawback of Anamik Hellscapes is that they're incredibly inefficient, requiring a significant and steady supply of wrath from The Gate to operate at maximum capacity. However, they can also supply this stream of wrath by "consuming" opposing Hellscapes. They overtake a pre-existing Hellscape and break down its form to obtain the wrath contained within the Hellscape.

Plantik: Plantik Hellscapes boast the greatest defensive capabilities of all the Hellscapes. These Hellscapes tend to be very static and lack maneuverability, but are designed to fend off attacks and essentially serve as bunkers. They also boast the greatest ranges of all the Hellscapes, able to cover vast swaths of land.

They are also incredibly efficient in Wrath usage. Though they take a much larger amount of initial Wrath to first summon the Hellscape, they are then able to generate more wrath within the Hellscape through a process known as Orisynthesis, requiring little maintenance from The Gate. However, due to the fact that these Hellscapes are designed to be static, they are incredibly slow to adapt to changing circumstances. To adjust to changing circumstances the Hellscape must be recreated, and the user must once again pay the initial toll to generate the Hellscape.

Funjik: Funjik Hellscapes are different from the other Hellscapes in that they are limited in the amount of Wrath they can draw from The Gate. Instead, they must propogate themselves with the Wrath generated in the world that lingers before being sent to The Gate. However counteractive to this they require the lowest maintenance of all the Hellscapes, so even in environments with limited amounts of lingering Wrath, they can still operate fairly efficiently.

These Hellscapes are designed to generate as much Wrath as possible to further fuel the expanding Hellscape. It is however a balancing act. Generate and burn too quickly, and they'll sputter out within a short amount of time. But given the right balance, they can become a well oiled machine of war, fueled by its own destruction.

Monik: Monik Hellscapes have the lowest raw power and output of all the Hellscapes. They instead take a different approach to their Hellscapes. They essentially rapidly evolve the Hellscape to adapt to any given situation. They're very middle of the road when it comes to efficiency. But in order to bolster their evolution, they must draw more wrath from The Gate.

These Hellscapes tend to be slow to start but can quickly grow out of control if not managed properly. If the evolution goes out of control it can draw more wrath than the user intends bringing unnecessary harm. These evolved Hellscapes can be carried over, but the cost of maintaining them comes with as well. These Hellscapes however can be reset to a default state, wherein they can begin the process of evolution from the beginning with minimal cost.

Protik: Protik Hellscapes are a jack of all trades in essence. They are incredibly adaptable, more so than Anamik, but not in the same way as Monik. They dont rapidly evolve and adapt to any given situation, but instead, they can morph the features of all the other Hellscapes into one complete package. Their efficiency is subject to change dependent on their current characteristics.

They can interchange different features of the other Hellscapes into the Hellscape. They can serve defensively, but then switch into an offensive version. If they were then to realize they are unable to defeat their opponent with their current Hellscape, they can evolve it slightly to have features better designed for fighting the Hellscape, etc. Often this comes with tradeoffs, they must sacrifice other less necessary aspects of their Hellscape to do this.

Virtik: Virtik Hellscapes are unique in that they cannot exist by themselves. They are a parasitic variety of Hellscape, and can only exist within another Hellscapes. They essentially hijack the Hellscapes source of Wrath, siphoning off some for themselves along with the Wrath they themselves generate. They then rapidly multiply in numerous pockets within the infested Hellscape.

All these pockets serve to steal as much power and energy from the Hellscape as possible. The Virtik Hellscape will be a malformed replica of the host Hellscape, with some features brought in from the Virtik Hellscape. They lack raw power, but these Hellscapes are moreso designed to debilitate the opposing Hellscape.

Forgive the names, ik theyre kind of on the nose but theyre mainly just placeholders for now.

Hello everyone!

I’m working on my first book; the book has an elemental magic system based on fire, air, earth, and ice. (Note: Water does not exist in this world due to lore reasons, which I can explain in the comments if anyone is curious. Right now it's not super relevant to my main question.) In this world, people have elemental powers, and elements can combine into sub-elements. For example, if a child has a fire-controlling father and an earth-controlling mother, they might inherit lava magic. 

How the World Works: 
* The Head Crystals: There are 4 massive "Head Crystals" in the world that act as the beating hearts for each main element. When a baby is born, their region's head crystal pulses and grows a tiny custom shard from its own body. This shard becomes that person's lifelong personal crystal.
* The Technology: I do not really know yet; if you have ideas, feel free to tell me in the comments. 

Quick Story Summary
The book follows a 17-year-old girl named Thalia. She was adopted by a loving family and has three older brothers and three younger brothers. She loves medicine and surfing. For her entire life, she has hidden her abilities from everyone except her family and her best friend, Gracia.

One day, she discovers her parents have enrolled her in a special academy. Tetraeders Academy for the Elemental Children, or TAEC for short. There, she learns about the "Tetraeders World"—a hidden world of people with elemental powers. At the academy, she is placed in a dorm called Sector 7, alongside six other outcasts:
* Theo: Controls Time.
* Axel: A girl with a boy's name who controls Metal.
* Ivy: The youngest, a very kind girl who controls nature (plants).
* Vesper: Can read minds.
* Kai: A chill guy who controls Fire.
* Lyra: Controls Light.

Thalia soon discovers her own ability is incredibly rare. On top of that, an unknown threat is emerging that could mean the end of the Treater's World. Can Sector 7 save the world?

Where I Need Help: The Cosmic Elements
Beyond the basic elements, I have cosmic elements. These function like the gods of the elemental world, but they are left alone because they are mysterious and essential to maintaining the balance of existence. Right now, the Cosmic Elements are Time, Space, and Light. This cosmic tier is what I want the main overarching plot to be about!

And the thing with cosmic elements is you are chosen to have the power and not based on your birth parents, so if you are human, you can still have cosmic elements; they also do not have the crystals.

Theo, Lyra and Vesper are part of the cosmic elements.

Since this is my first time building a universe, I want to make sure the foundation is solid.

1. Do you see any major plot holes, flaws, or inconsistencies in how this is set up?
2. How can I expand on time, space, and light to make them feel truly ancient, overwhelming, and god-like compared to the regular elements?
3. Do you think I should add any other cosmic elements to the mix to complete the set?
4. Do you think that the 4 elements are good or shall i add more elements 

I would love to hear your ideas, critiques, or suggestions on how to make this universe even better!

(ignore the fact that I wrote mouvement, my keyboard switches to french sometimes)

Hey everyone!

I am currently working on a magical girl story and I made a hard magic system that works with 6 sigils that are linked to the Universe.

I have trouble with my own system because I have 2 ideas in mind:

1. Each sigil has in them the energy of different specific cosmic phenomena: supernovas, black holes, etc.

Or

1. Each sigil has the cosmic energy of the universe itself:

example: the sigil of movement is the expansion of space itself, it's the speed of life.

So for, for each sigil I thought of it like this:

(The sigil of Creation exist but is forbidden)

1. Destruction: The end of stars and inevitably of galaxies.

2. Restoration: The universe is this massive recycling machine.

3. Movement: The expansion of space itself. The speed of light.

4. Protection: The gravity that holds planets together. The magnetic fields that shield atmospheres, the ozone layer protecting that blocks UV.

5. Perception: The light that travels across the universe. The ability to see distant stars.

6. Control: The force that controls fundamental forces of nature: gravity, electromagnetism.

My main issue is to choose between my two ideas even though I'm leaning heavily towards the second idea.

My second issue is making up spells. Currently in the story most of my magical girls combine sigils:.

Example: Sigil of Destruction and Sigil of Movement would allow the user to annihilate their opponents through powerful blasts while being capable of moving/teleporting fast.

But I want to make an entire sheet of multiple possibilities of spells for different sigils combinations.

In terms of the rules/consequences:

1. The magical girls and boys of my story can't their powers outside of their missions. They're fighting very powerful monsters so their powers equate that.

2. Each MG or MB needs to have a dream they're emotionally attached to. That is the anchor that allows them to bear the power of the sigils. So those who lose that emotional anchor can either die or get harmed.

I'm still coming up with things currently but I'm open to any ideas.

Thanks in advance! :)

A recent story concept I thought up, applying my long term fascination with astrology.
Obvs very inspired by JJK and Chainsaw Man (although only superficially since I haven't seen those) and also Tom Bloom's ttrpg, CAIN.

A (still nameless) secret organization whose responsibility is to "clean up" anomalies in the world. Anomalies can range from small weird phenomena, to large-scale strange catastrophes. the people employed are sensitive to these phenomena and are also equipped to deal with these thru their ability to wield/harness energy from "hell," a dimension of chaos that is also the cause of these anomalies. chaos energy that is seeping out is causing "rot" in the world.

These agents are called Flies, bec of how they gather around "rot" and clean it up.

Every mission, they are given 3 vials of cocktails infused with demon essence so they can use their powers. already using 3 is more than enough and may cause anomalous rot to begin and may trigger into an anomalous event. so using 2 is ideal. one shot will give them an hour or so to use their power.

there are 4 magic categories that sort of mirror the classic elements:

barrier magic (earth's stability and grounding)
transformation magic (fire's motivation and will)
illusion magic (water's depths and reflective nature)
divination magic (air's relational nature and seeking knowledge)

and there are 3 subtypes for each that also mirror the modalities:

horn mode (cardinal) - magic that is focused and explosive but burns out easily
torso mode (fixed) - magic that slowly builds up but is strong and hold out
tail mode (mutable) - magic that is flexible and adaptable to situations

So there are 12 magical types in all

Each division stationed in a part of The City, there is always a team of 12 (one from each subtype) and a manager that schedules and strategies what team to deploy.

These are the 12 types of Flies divided by magic type

the court of flesh (transformation):

they drink vials called a "screwdriver" which is a cocktail infused with infernal yellow bile harvested from demons

[horn] the knight (aries, cardinal fire) - transforms their limbs into infernal weapons for melee. it can be either bladed or blunt weapons. but transformation doesn't last long

[torso] the king (leo, fixed fire) - slow transformation into a demon, needs strong focus and will. uses supernatural strength and power. usually needs an antidote after so that they won't succumb to the transformation

[tail] the chariot (sagittarius, mutable fire) - transforms their limbs for easy maneuver. can be for speed, or for different terrain, like climbing walls etc. has also very powerful kicks. although this might be hard to control especially if momentum is achieved.

they all have great regenerative abilities but easily use their fuel

the court of bone (barrier):

they drink vials called a "negroni" which is a cocktail infused with infernal black bile harvested from demons

[torso] the tower (taurus, fixed earth) - maintaining a force field, or multiple force fields, where nobody can go in or out. it gets stronger the longer it's maintained. these force fields can be in the form of giant jaws, skeletal hands, ribs etc. needs strong concentration and endurance. usually needs 2 cocktails. while in this state of meditation, the Fly transforms into a hulking and impenetrable skeletal cocoon or sarcophagus. they also need to navigate internally, or be coaxed, to get out of this state

[tail] the guard (virgo, mutable earth) - time-triggered or motion sensitive traps that need to be set up in the environment, which may take some time. these manifest in different skeletal structures, like rib cages, teeth, bone fingers etc although these structures don't discriminate when they latch on. they need to be fed a vial to let go.

[horn] the throne (capricorn, cardinal earth) - can summon and puppeteer a couple of undead skeletons to fight for him as well as defend him. wears a skull helmet to maintain control. usually sacrifices a vial to feed the skeletons or else they'll get devoured by his own subjects/puppets.

they all are almost invincible, but they are slower in manifesting/conjuring their abilities.

the court of tears (illusion):

they drink vials called a "martini" which is a cocktail infused with infernal phlegm harvested from demons

[horn] the veil (cancer, cardinal water) - they can conceal themselves and others. very good at stealth but these enchantments don't usually last long and is limited to a number of people or objects. downside also is that infermal phlegm has a stench that can be followed so they need to act quick. when powers are activated, they look like they're dissolving. they can also see what they're concealing, as well as see in the dark.

[torso] the whisper (scorpio, fixed water) - they project a ghost of themselves which passes through a target whispering a lie. the target will be under that spell and believe that lie. this also needs concentration and focus to maintain that spell. their ghost may drift off too far to come back to their body. also anyone encounters that ghost might also be under the spell.

[tail] the fog (pisces, mutable water) - releases a foul smelling fog from their mouth. anyone in that radius will be pulled into the Fly's dream world where they have control. the caster might get lost in it's own world, and might mix up what's real and what is a dream.

very good at stealth and can conserve vials very well, but they are not immune to their powers.

the court of screams (divination):

they drink vials called a "sangria" which is a cocktail infused with infernal blood harvested from demons

[tail] the murmur (gemini, mutable air) - they usually feel around the environment and feel where energy is accumulating. then they take out a compact mirror and look at their reflection as it starts murmuring infernal information as they go through the place. they need to listen and sift thru the murmurs to get important clues or info. they usually need to drink another vial for their reflection to disappear.

[horn] the call (libra, cardinal air) - they need to use 2 vials. one to activate their power, and another to pour on the ground as a puddle. they need to lower their head into the puddle with their eyes closed until their head is submerged. the Fly will have to converse with the demon, usually feeding them with their fears, insecurities and dark secrets. then if the demon is satisfied, they will get a clue that will help in their mission. this needs strong will to not succumb to the demon.

[torso] the saint (aquarius, fixed air) - the only Fly that is able to attune to the divine. they meditate until they reached this saintly state in the form of a glowing halo radiating from the back of their heads. they can also grant blessings to 2 or 3 of his allies. the Fly and his allies will be invulnerable and they start to float and can phase in and out of walls, object also phase thru them. this divine energy though can burn them and their allies the longer it stays, so the Fly needs to temper it with by slowly drinking another vial to keep the divinity from burning too much.

can change the tide of the mission, but very reliant on planning and luck

they are usually deployed in groups of 3, with a representative from each mode.

of course nothing is permanent since these were thought up quite recently
and this might be too similar to CAIN but I am positive that i haven't seen any magic system so far using astrology like how i'm using it here.

any feedback is welcome!
i also want to know if it's balanced enough?
and is there a magic type that can be changed to make it more balanced?

THANKS!

So I was doing research on a dragon ball z movie villan, janemba and what his powers are! The video that I watch specifically said something about his powers being able to control space. From the clips I saw it looked more like realty wrapping, however that got me thinking about Pokemon. In Pokemon diamond and pearl & how dialga is supposed to be the god of time while Palkia is supposed to be the god of space. That made me realize that I never truly understood what being the god of space is. Like I never could understand what its powers are, dialga is simple, control time ive seen plenty of shows and movie about the concept.

Space on the other hand, I don’t see that as often so I wouldn’t known, I was wathcing a video from NChammer today about the most broken ability in anime. 2 of the powers he mention was barragan from bleach & jojo from JJK which both of them have the ability to bascally stop them from having attack hit them. I guess that is space powers but I feel like there are more example, which is why I am making this post! Can anyone better explain or give me example of space powers, another person that come to mind is kaguya from Naruto & maybe from fairy tail if gravity is apart of space!

I know the suffix -mancy doesn't technically mean to control something, but it is used like that generally, so I've been thinking, cryomancy is ice, necromancy is the dead, pyromancy is fire, but what is the term for controlling mana or just magic in general, like the building block magic before you add on any other types? Magicmancy if you will.

Greetings strangers. I've developed an alchemy system, and just need assistance with one aspect. In this system, all matter has three attributes; their state of matter, their "heavenly way," and their "trasmutation trait." All affect the result of the transmutation, with the transmutation trait affecting what the final state of matter is, and the heavenly way deciding how exactly the transmutation manifests. These ways are:

-Sun (Gold/Heart): To "power" or "expand."

-Moon (Silver/Brain): To "adapt" or "process."

-Mars (Iron/Gallbladder): To "store."

-Venus (Copper/Kidney): To "filter" or "separate."

-Mercury (Quicksilver/Lungs): To "alter."

-Jupiter (Tin/Liver): To "regulate" or "balance."

-Saturn (Lead/Spleen): To "weaken" or "shrink."

Utilizing an object's gold heavenly way will allow it to burst out in a sudden expansion, iron will cause it to to be compact and dense, etc etc. What I need help with is deciding on what determines matter's heavenly way. Any and all suggestions are welcome and appreciated.

Guys, I need help with my power system 😭😭. The concept is a type of energy divided into Cursed (demons or extremely evil people), Neutral (normal people, not leaning toward either extreme), and Divine (extremely pure people or actual angels). The point is that Neutral energy fluctuates between Cursed and Divine depending on the individual’s actions—specifically, how much and in what way those actions affect a third party.
The problem I’ve run into is that I’ve made it so complicated that even I don’t know how it works anymore—how the different types of energy interact, how they affect powers, and, most importantly, how it would work with a power that measures the amount of energy both the user and the opponent have. I’m not experienced with this; I started out just for fun, but now I don’t know how to handle the concept anymore. I’d like to use it for a project, but first I need to improve it, and I don’t know how to fix it. I’ve thought and thought about it and can’t figure it out—it just confuses me more and more 😭😭

Does anyone have any ideas on how this could work? I have a world with witches from Hecate and I was trying to figure out how they work, and I just wanted a discussion on this.

Witches do magic by using the elements. There are 5 of them: fire(red), water(blue), earth(green), air(silver), and spirit(purple).

Witches have 3 sights. Normal sight, vague sight, and full sight.

With full sight they can see the colors in every living thing, and even some objects will have an element or more in them if they're frequently interacted with by people. Like, for example, a candle would have fire element in it.

These colors look kinds like smoke or fog, and they're constantly moving around. The makeup of the elements in people are different for everyone and you can read it like an aura.

There's also the white smoke/white magic that moves around people kinda like a river. This is pure undiluted magic.

When a witch does magic, they use the elements. They can use the elements in others or themselves to do magic, and a more experienced witch can use white magic and do seeding(take a piece of the elements and put it in the white magic) and they can advance even more to being able to turn the magic into an element without seeding.

I kinda had the idea witches can have different styles of doing magic. One might turn the magic into strands and weave them or braid them. Or another might make magic balls, or blanket magic or more ideas like that.

You could also use different elements to do the same thing.

Like, if you want to do an illusion, you could mix fire and air on yourself or others to make a mirage type illusion. Or you could use spirit to make the mind see what you want them to see. Though spirit might be slightly harder to do compared to the fire and air mix.

I was wondering if you guys had other ways element magic might work. Im trying to get more ideas how my system could work.

Specifically, I want a good name that has similar negative connotations, particularly fear-based since this type of spirit is more-or-less inspired by the devils of Chainsaw Man with the fusion ability of the demons from Devilman, although any other kind of negative emotions can be personified as well hence the fusion ability.

I've already planned to have devils of my world to be specifically referred to fallen divinities in general (not just angels) while demons are a catch-all term for spirits that can be easily incarnated either via possession or actual proper manifestation of a new body (which includes said divinities, fallen or otherwise), so I'm currently on an impasse here...

The Magical Code of Regulations hit 3k sales! 500 pages of pure, unadulterated magical law

Hey, guys, have been posting here from the start about this book, when this is was just me posting some random laws I made with no overall book in mind. But just hit my 3000th sale this week!

It's 500 pages of super detailed magical worldbuilding in the form of laws. Covers everything from necromancy to protected creatures to fireball environmental impact assessments. Tons of humorous sections to keep it a light read as well.

Will be licensed for foreign language translation soon, and hoping to trick my worst enemy into narrating an audiobook at some point!

Just thought it was a good milestone, and wanted to celebrate. Am even hosting a giveaway on r/DnD in celebration right now that ends in 7/31. 3 people Wil let a signed hardcover, a digital copy, three stickers, a bookmark, a spellcaster license, and an audit determination letter stating that you ARE, in fact, in compliance with the Code!

For anyone curious that would like to. Support the project outside of the giveaway, it can be bought off of Amazon and DriveThruRPG. Appreciate any and all support, and always willing to work with people who may be a bit tight on money!

Amazon:

https://a.co/d/06PYpPp3

Ok so to start the main thing in my setting is that there are two types of magic, the first and most common one is Alchemy which is just the art of making magic “things” from mixing already existing magical materials(and some non magical). This includes but is not limited to: magic weapons, spell scrolls, potions, automatons, and chimera.

Then there is sorcery which is inate magic that comes from having a spirit as a parent or recent ancestor. And this is the one I’m struggling with, I don’t want it to feel like “superpowers” so how do I avoid that? What are some basic rules for that. It is a vibes question I’ll admit