Wizards! Wizards everywhere!

Well now... I guess it's time to talk again! While I'm still working on the sequel to Percy Tulip, I wanted to give y'all a small filler to sift through in the downtime. Let's talk about something... paranormal... something... arcane... maybe even something... magical?

First off: a bit of history. I mean, it's kinda obligatory at this point! Lemme set the scene. *Ahem...*

You are a wizard. Or rather, a simple magician. You have no staff of great power, or get to cast off your curses from a high and mighty tower, nah. You've got something better: A tiny little wand, a top hat and matching cloak, and a lovely assistant. You're dressed all spiffy, and the stage is waiting for you. Just don't forget the saw! For this number, you're going to cut your assistant in half... or so would the audience believe.

Yeah... sadly, magic is more often than not a fake novelty. The machines that predict your future in exchange for some money just have pre-printed tickets, and many a psychic has been caught lying on daytime TV, multiple times. However, despite all this, supernatural occurrences and paranormal powers fascinate many of us today just as it did thousands of years ago.

The first references to magic that weren't tacked directly to the catch-all term of "divine intervention" are hard to pin down. Between shamans and priests and self-proclaimed healers, you can find lotsa different routines meant to do wacky stuff. And that's probably the earliest form of magic, too: the ritualistic kind of magic! Y'know them, chanting ominously at an altar with a burning candle in your hands, or yelling your lungs out and dancing like a madman while wearing a dead lion's pelt. That's the kind of ritualistic magic I'm talking about. The kind that generally has the caster calling upon a deity to grant them power and/or resources and/or hinder their foes. It's great! Well, as long as you're in good standing with that specific deity. The main disadvantage is that it requires more effort than usual. Plus, you look silly! I mean, look at that goofball! He's got a big stick with a skull on top and he's hopping on one leg singing about chicken nuggets!

Nah, nah, the really cool magic, and also the one that never shows up in real life during any chapter of history, is the kind of magic that shows up in fiction. It would've been cool to hear of historic battles being won because some smart flame-oriented mage decided to turn his own body into a flamethrower by pointing a fire at his rear end! But alas, we only get this kind of stuff in what we read and watch. As notable examples, we have the entire Harry Potter franchise, and whatever the hell those people are doing at the SCP Foundation! (Quick disclaimer, and I cannot stress this enough, some of the stuff in that community is very well-written and deserves some more love.) Who knows, maybe your favourite type of arcana stems from a video game! I personally really like the kind of magic that, according to lore, is derived from the very essence of the world. I've worked with it in the past, combining it with soul-powered magic to create two different archetypes. In this case, soul-powered is still the mainstream way, but if you have no soul, or you're feeling a bit ecological, you could always just utter a few words and have the world itself react to it!

"Dude, you lost your staff. How are you gonna attack me now?"

"Bramblo...Bada-para!"

"Whoa, what the-- Did you just fingergun me?!"

Yeah, that's the kinda fun situation I was thinking of. Imagine your opponent being backed into a corner, only to pull out the magical equivalent of a Derringer and do the fingerguns on you!

So, yeah! Let's hear it one more time for magic! Be it real or fake, in this world or another, one thing's for certain, though. It'll still hold a spot in everyone's consciousness.

Prepare for the Discord link... Avada-Linkabra!

Also, I didn't want to be too overbearing with this... trying to get ads on this blog sucked so much that I opted for a Ko-fi instead! Check it out here!

 

~Asph