Casting Focuses of the Earlier Ages¶
"Augur's are prized for their magical dueling abilities and are trained in some places to police other wizards." — Terrun Cosmology (S421)
The 2014 archive pictures magic differently from the later sources. In it a caster is defined by a focus, the kind of magic their mind is shaped to, and within each focus by the spheres or colleges they study. The archive's focuses describe kinds of people as much as kinds of spell: the Augur who duels and polices wizards, the Sorcerer whom everyone fears, the self-taught Shaman of the primitive peoples, the Invoker who is "the bully among wizards". This page keeps that picture as the Earlier Ages' account of magic. The later scheme of domains and colleges is described under Arcane Colleges and Arcane Magic; the Fae casting styles that replaced the Shaman are under Primal Spellcraft.
Primitive and academic focuses¶
The archive's cosmology sorts the focuses into two kinds. "Across are those focuses sometimes referred to as the primitive focuses and these casters are found in equal number among advanced and primitive cultures. Down are the focuses sometimes referred to as the academic focuses which rely on much more training and apprenticeship. Progressing far in the academic focuses without guidance is extremely difficult. These focuses are generally only found among established wizards and their apprentices" (S421, S389). The primitive focuses are Shaman, Enchanter, Invoker and Incanter, working Life, the Ethereal, Energy and Matter; the academic are Primalist, Magus, Augur and Sorcerer, working the Elemental, the Material, the Planar and the Shadow (S421).
Priests stand outside the scheme. "An Astral Shard may be used by the Ordained as a focus for magical energy ... Astral is the binding plane and has control over all other realms of existence (no other focus is really needed)" (S421); see Divine Magic. Those without a shard can still work the Astral Faults, "used by Mages and non-denominational Clerics" (S421; see Astral Shards).
The eight focuses¶
Primalist¶
The Primalist or Elementalist bargains. "Casters which use this focus can use magical energy ... to accomplish many different elemental effects by forming a bond with Elemental beings to trade energy for their services. Elementals are energy hungry and many will do your bidding for relatively small amounts of energy. Note that Elementals prefer Mithis or Ethereal energies. (They are forced into submission by Astral Shards/energies). Casters which make use of this focus often form long term bonds with various Elemental entities. Learning to manipulate Elemental energy is quite alien and requires long hours of study and practice" (S421). A Primalist may even run up a debt: elementals of each kind "will allow the caster to be no more than 1 spell (of any level) in debt" (S421). Priests who compel elementals with Astral power instead risk rebellion, "Elementals will only rebel when in a zone friendly to them. Fire elementals near a volcano, Water elementals at sea" (S421).
Magus¶
The Magus or Magister is the scholar. "Casters that use this focus use magical energy to directly manipulate the material plane. This requires memorization of complex formulas and equations, and is a discipline of precision and not force. The magus often surrounds himself with Arcane formulas, runes and other mechanisms to try to keep all the formulas straight. Magus spells can be some of the most complex. Among mortal casters, their spells are some of the few that can rival Eldritch and Draconic spell complexity" (S421).
Augur¶
"Casters that use this focus manipulate the planar barriers with adjacent planes. This focus is heavily dependent upon reagents and planning. Almost every spell requires significant preparation work, reagents, or both. The Augur uses the planar affinity of various materials and beings to assist with their magic. This extra effort pays off in the form of some of quickest spell casting times, and some very dramatic effects. However, it also makes them more dependant upon tools than most other casters. Augur's are prized for their magical dueling abilities and are trained in some places to police other wizards" (S421). An Augur reads auras: the power and native plane of a being, its "overall disposition toward good or evil" and mood, and whether the aura is masked or forged; "Standard Invisibility also does not mask an Aura, making Invisibility useless against an Augur" (S421).
Augury also runs in the blood. "Augurs are humanoids with an extra-terrestrial lineage. The Augur bloodline is present in roughly 1% of the population and most people with the bloodline live their entire lives without realizing it. To them it is little more than an occasional vivid dream that turns to reality, or a dream that uncovers some otherwise unknown truth. For 1 in 100 of these they can control enough of their gift to be fortunetellers and simple divinations. Only 1 in a 1,000 of these fortunetellers is a full blown Augur with the ability to fully control and manipulate their gift" (S536).
The Augurs had orders. The Order of Agalon was "a once powerful order of Augurs which literally controlled the fate of the world", until the betrayer Heruditus "helped gods (Kalar) to destroy the order. He showed the gods how to be invisible to the auguries" (S536). The Ghorvallian Conclave, "a small group of Augurs which operated in secret and whose existence is likely forgotten to almost every book", was "largely responsible for orchestrating the First Great Mage War which led to the death of millions and the reduction of magic use among humans" (S536; see Nexa-Vinian War). "At the height of its power, the assassins of Ghoresh were actually led by an Augur" (S536; see Assassins of Ghoresh).
In the Fifth Age the auguries failed. "Everyone from the Dark Gods to the local peasant Seers on the street corners are complaining the Auguries are not what they once were. The future is distorted, uncertain and unfathomable ... Even Clairvoyance and Divination Magic appears to be imparied … especially at great distances" (S140). The cause was Koradikken, "The Last Augur", who with "Thidryn (master of Dwarrow knowledge)" built "a hidden machine whose purpose is to distort Auguries and Divination" (S140).
Sorcerer¶
"Casters that use this focus tap into the workings of the Shadow Realm. Many people associate the Shadow Realm with darkness and evil, though this is not the reality. However, numerous evil sorcerers have given Sorcery a bad name. As a result, among all casters, sorcerers are routinely the most shunned and feared. The practice of sorcery requires intense concentration (more so than other focuses), and is therefore very susceptible to interruption" (S421). Sorcerers "are most powerful in the twilight, where deep shadows provide effortless access to the Shadow Realm", and while casting "may straddle the Shadow Realm, leaving them partially insubstantial ... Shadows swirl around the caster" (S421). The Shadow Realm has its own page. The archive's other "sorcerors", those who trap a demon to cast, are described under Demonic Magic.
Shaman¶
The Shaman or Witch Doctor works life. "They are considered mystical healers, soothsayers, agents of forces nature and are known to have power over bodies of water ... Shaman are often self-taught, and found among primitive cultures that are incapable of pursuing more academic-based wizardly focuses. That is not to say that Shaman are not found among the membership of the most powerful and scholarly wizard orders" (S421). A shaman enchants totems to channel living energy (S421). The later shaman is a Fae caster; see Primal Spellcraft.
Enchanter¶
The Enchanter or Mystic works the soul's connections. "Casters that use this focus tap into the Ethereal connections of creatures and matter. They are often looked to as seers, fortune tellers and mind readers ... Enchanters are sometimes self-taught and found among primitive cultures" (S421). An enchanter can memorize spells in sleep and leave the body in a dreamstate: "Their eyes turn white and they become motionless. While in this state their spirit is detached from their body" (S421).
Invoker¶
The Invoker or Battle Mage is force. "The Invoker is the bully among wizards: breaking planar barriers, forcing elements to react, assaulting ethereal connections and triggering natural forces. They are masters of cause and effect. Invokers tend to make plenty of enemies during their career, made up primarily of Elementals, Demons or denizens of the Shadow Realm. These wizards are quite often prized as battle mages to sow mass destruction on the battlefield" (S421). Their casting is "by nature imprecise", wasteful of energy and hard to interrupt (S421).
Incanter¶
"Casters that use this focus channel their magical energy to reorganize their surroundsing. This focus requires the caster to understand the nature of their surroundings and the things they wish to alter. The more intimate the caster's understanding of their targets and their surroundings, the more successful and powerful their spells are" (S421). An Incanter studies a place by touch in a meditative inspection, and grows stronger the more familiar it becomes (S421).
The spheres and their names¶
Each focus pairs with spheres of magic, and each pairing gives a caster a name. Under the Primalist the elements yield the Hydromancer and Acetemancer, the Aeromancer and Fulgemancer, the Pyromancer and Frigumancer, the Geomancer and Lithumancer; under the Magus, the Bloodmage and Druid, the Binder and Alchemist, the Arcanist and Spellbinder, the Transmuter and Thaumaturge; under the Augur, the Abjurer and Medium, the Seer and Voidcaller, the Summoner and Demoncaller, the Conjurer and Negater; under the Sorcerer, the Witch and Mesmer, the Illusionist and Psion, the Shadowmancer and Deathmage, the Necromancer and Animist (S421, S391).
The oldest draft of all divides magic into five spheres, Spirit, Living, Arcane, Conjuration and Elemental, and marks some of their fields, Shadow, Death, Blood and Necromancy, Contract and Summoning, as "often associated to evil or rogue wizards" (S371). The Compendium kept the five spheres for the first wizards and gave each its caster names and its "dark caster" names: the Spirit sphere's Enchanter, Illusionist, Diviner, Mentalist and White Wizard against the Necromancer, Soothsayer and Trickster; the Living sphere's Druid and Green Wizard against the Witch Doctor and Maleficus; the Elemental sphere's Thaumaturge, Mage, Elementalist and Black Wizard against the Sorceror; the Arcane sphere's Arcanist, Magician, Augur, Blue Wizard and Alchemist against the Spellbinder and Witch; the Planar sphere's Conjurer, Summoner, Red Wizard and Shaman against the Demoncaller and Warlock (S372). See Arcane Magic for the first wizards themselves.
Colleges and meta-colleges¶
The Spellcasting draft of late 2014 divides study into sixteen colleges and twenty-four meta-colleges built from them (S395). Its colleges are Abjuration, "the extraction of energy"; Air; Binding, "imbuing energies"; Botanical, "plants and plant systems"; Corporeal, "living bodies and soul-vessels"; Divination, "exploration, detection and truth"; Earth; Evocation, "the expression or creation of energy"; Fey, "nature and the mechanisms that govern natural law"; Fire; Gate, "extra-planar boundaries and their manipulation"; Mentalism, "the mind and central nervous system"; Shadow, "memory, thought and creativity"; Spirit, "the soul, soul-energy and the spirit-body connection"; Water; and Transformation, "conversion of matter and energy" (S395).
Its meta-colleges include Animation, "imprinting thoughts and artificial intelligence into magical objects"; Blood, "extracting and transferring life energy"; Channel; Charm; Contract, "forging enforceable magical contracts between souls"; Counterspell; Death, "extracting energies from or manipulating ethereal souls"; Earthpower, "how plant systems can be formed as living pylons of Mithis energy ... These plants can even be used to repair Mithis-damaged areas, as well as act as gateways across planar boundaries"; Frost; Healing; Illusion; Light; Necromancy; Planewalking, "extra-planar theory and astronomy"; Polymorph; Revelation, "extracting predictive knowledge (prophecy)"; Scrying; Spellbind; Spellforge, "endowing objects with magical effects"; Synthesis; Time, "widely considered the most dangerous and volatile meta-college, with many risks to the caster's existence"; Transjunction; Void, "the Void, void entities and chaos"; and Wood (S395). The same archive's Death Magic list and Ethereal college are described under Death Magic (S414, S404); its other college fragments, Botanical, Corporeal, Evocation, Fey, Fire and Psionic, are spell lists only (S400, S401, S405, S406, S407, S409, S413).
Earlier accounts¶
The Spellcasting draft names its eight Mithis focuses differently: Elemental, Arcane, Thaumaturgy ("the study of natural systems, including natural laws, ecosystems, biological systems and the nature of the planes"), Augury ("the study of the mind and thought", whose casters are "seers, fortune tellers and mind readers"), Metamorphosis ("the study of change", its casters "mystical healers, soothsayers, or agents of the forces nature"), Enchantment ("the study of constants and self-reinforcing systems"), Incanter and Conjuration (S395). In that draft it is the Incanter who is "the bully among wizards" and "prized as battle mages", and Conjuration that "channel[s] their magical energy to reorganize their surroundings" (S395); the cosmology gives the first description to the Invoker and the second to the Incanter (S421). The draft also restricts casting to a few peoples: "Only a handful of races have consistent casting ability (Elves, Gnomes and Draconians)" (S395; see Arcane Magic).
Legacy rules for these focuses are kept under Mechanics: Spellcasting, Wizard Spell Spheres and College Spell Lists.