Magic & Metaphysics
Magic
For the common folk, magic is something to be feared,
avoided, and held in mystical awe. Even those who practice
these arts are not so fool-hardy as to take lightly the power
that magic represents. There are several views on the origin
of magic which colors most discussions of the power. For the
vast majority of common folks, especially among human and to a
lesser extent dwarven populations, magic is a force for evil,
with harmful and unpredictable attributes indicative of
Maelwar's involvement. It seems to the common people that
magic is always used to take the easy route and it follows, in
their thinking, that no good comes from a short cut. To back
this claim up, many will show by example that a great many
evil people from the past used magic and, in addition, elves,
who are seen as morally inferior, use magic all the time.
For the more learned, magic is a more fascinating power,
more rich in possibilities, less fraught with the lure of
demons. Only a few published works remain on the
subject--other than those condemning magic as the work of
Maelwar. For Ilumnrath, one of Faalor's most well-known
philosophers, magic is the primal energy. It is Spirit,
therefor the most important and holy thing in life. It flows
through all things, expressing itself in the priest's healing
art and the gem-cutter's skill, in a fireball and in love
itself. It is the glue which causes all things to happen. Each
and every person possess some level of magic for even the very
act of breathing is itself magical. He warns though that this
force can be used for evil as well as good and therefore
pleads restraint to those who wield magical forces more
blatantly. Others, like old King Padral himself who died a 102
years ago, claimed that magic comes from Adrahil AND Maelwar,
that magic is a force for both good and evil. Each person who
wields the power makes it what it is. A holy paladin or devout
priest will always use the power for good, while a wretched,
power-hungry wizard cannot. Magic, all magic, comes from the
will of the individual not though mystic energies outside of
himself.
Magic use is a rare occurrence on Faalor. For every 1000 or
more people, only one has the ability to blatantly wield
magical forces. This number is significantly larger in elvish
and gnomish communities. Dwarves keep their magic use very
secretive; a high percentage of dwarves sequestered deep under
Mourningthain are practitioners of the art. The PC's are a
special lot as almost all of them will possess some ability to
use magic in one form or other.
Officially, all magic is regulated by the Church. Special
schools, called Spirit Colleges, set up by the Church dot the
land for those with magical abilities or aptitudes. Usually
run by an Inquisitor, these schools train magic-users of all
sorts, indoctrinating them in the proper use of the art.
Needless to say, any mage who graduates from these schools
will be heavily schooled in Church dogma. Officially, only
those who have graduated from these schools are permitted to
use magic and those found practicing magic without a diploma
will be arrested and sentenced (usually) to another term or
more. If the offence is grievous, much harsher punishments
including imprisonment or worse have been known to be meted
out. Even those who have a diploma yet use magic in harmful,
unorthodox or unauthorized manners will receive, at best, the
harsh scrutiny of an Inquisitor..
Unofficially, there are some who disobey the Church and
teach magic without the Church's blessing. Many of these
"schools" are run by "free-thinking"
individuals, though there are a good number of Maelwar-bent
teachers who openly defy the indoctrination for unwholesome
reasons. Any institution, teacher or unsanctioned practitioner
who convenes classes without the Church's consent will be
hunted down and persecuted.
Recently, the Arch-bishop, Remchat Morl of Gravemist has
declared that magic is not necessarily the work of Maelwar.
While there is nothing close to complete acceptance of this
view, a growing minority of people have begun to change their
views of magic.
Metaphysics
Though there is considerable debate about the nature of
reality on Faalor, most people agree that the universe is
divided into two parts: matter and spirit. Spirit, often
called the Body of Aergot, makes up the entirety of the Nether
Realms. As with the physical plane, the Spirit (Nether Realms)
is divided into warring Kingdoms, neutral states, and vast
stretches of unclaimed (and unclaimable) Seas of Ether. The
Spirit intersects with the physical world but is usually
unseen by most mortals.
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