Axioms of Magic: A Guide to Understanding Spellcraft through the Six Colleges.

#Axioms of Magic: A Guide to Understanding Spellcraft through the Six Colleges.

When Galerion the Mystic left Artaeum to found the Mages Guild, he did so with the intention of demystifying the process of spellcasting for everyone. For this reason the 6 Colleges were founded, to foster better understanding of the different aspects of spellcraft. A little-known fact, however, is that before the institution of the Colleges, Galerion compiled a list of magical truths known as the 77 Axioms of Magical Understanding. The list grows increasingly technical with each axiom, and many of the concepts are dangerous to pursue, and so access to the text has since the founding been restricted to the highest echelons of the Guild. This text details 6 of those most basic axioms. It is the hope of the Archmage, who commissioned this text be written, that these simple truths, discovered by the most famous mage in history, will aid novice and adept alike in their understanding of the most basic concepts of their chosen College.

Axiom of (Re)Constitution: The physical world is magical in essence, and therefore subject to change.

Students of Alteration, ponder this: Nirn was born of magic, shaped and formed and molded by magic. The Spelunkus Tamrielicum states that Nirn itself was once alive, pulsing with internal magical energy much like we mortals. Through this internal magic, the very nature of things can be changed. This is how we harden our skin like iron, or lighten the weight of our bags. The change is not permanent, but it very much real.

Axiom of Existentialism: Reality is subjective, determined by the perception of the individual.

Students of Illusion, ponder this: all that you know of reality has been gained through your senses. The layman trusts these senses without question, but the wise know that these senses are easily manipulated. To make oneself appear indomitable, or nonthreatening, or even invisible entirely, is a simple matter of altering perception. The reality of the change is irrelevant; the belief in the change is everything.

Axiom of Energetic Application: The amount of energy released in the effect(s) of a spell is equatable to the amount of energy applied to its construction.

Students of Destruction, ponder this: there are many names for a fireball, but they are all in essence the same, a ball of fire. The difference between a “flare” and an “inferno” is not structure but power. For the novice, the magicka expenditure on basic elemental conversion and propulsion limits the potential strength of the projectile, but steady practice will make the process increasingly efficient. This is readily shown by the fact that there are far more proficient students and practitioners of Destruction magic than any other school.

Axiom of Rectification: The physical body is both surrounded by and permeated with magical energy; like the physical world, it is made from magic and therefore subject to change.

Students of Restoration, ponder this: all mortals are beings of magic, surrounded by an aura of energy that permeates their being. Scholars and religious institutions have debated the origins of this force and the role the soul plays in it for time immemorial, but a connection between the aura and the body is beyond contention. This connection is the medium through which magic is used to effect change, in this case the repairing of wounds.

Axiom of Entropy: Magical energy always seeks dispersion.

Students of Mysticism, ponder this: where does the difficulty in spellcraft come from? Why is knowledge and understanding not enough for a novice to cast the spells of a master? The answer is control. Magical energy radiates from all mortals at all times, and the art of spellcraft begins with the harnessing of this force and its controlled dispersal. Many spells have brief effects which disperse naturally, such as fireballs, shields, and charm spells. Others, like certain complex wards and soul traps, are designed to persist indefinitely. Most spells of this nature require a maintained power source; one exception is the standard soul trap. The crystalline nature of soul gems allows the spell-lattice of the trap to flow in a closed loop, sustaining the trap almost indefinitely. Other objects, such as extremely high-quality precious gems, geodes, and even skulls have also been used to successfully sustain soul-traps, but they inevitably degrade with time.

Axiom of Macrolocality: All points in space and time are connected by magic.

Students of Conjuration, ponder this: all of the Aurbis is connected through both magic and time. Time is often thought of as linear, since that is how mortals perceive it, but time is a construct that can be transversed. Similarly, magic is often thought of as a force, since that is how mortals perceive it; but magic is also a construct, a framework which connects all points in space. When the conjurer truly understands that all places are connected, the process of calling forth a daedra from one place to another becomes simple. Instantly changing one’s own location is much more difficult and dangerous, but can be achieved by experimentation following the same logic.