#askmagic

Yes! They can raise very small and weak undead (like insects) by toddlerhood. Of course this depends on how much they practice and a bit depends on genetics as well.

If both of their parents are shitty necromancers, chances are that their baby will not be great at it either. But if one or both parents are prodigies, their child may excel and be able to cast stronger necromancy spells at a younger age.

Necromancy is in drau blood, they are compelled to practice it even when they're young. If a drau baby finds a dead fly, lizard, or other small creature, instincts will compel them to raise it as a zombie. How successful they are depends on the factors I mentioned above.

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

This is a complex question, because the very nature of magic is that it is illogical. It has rules, but it can also do anything, at least in theory.

Magic is a sentient force. Mages must treat it with respect, because if magic feels exploited or disrespected, it might decide to backfire on the mage and cause a spell to fail...sometimes catastrophically. If you're a mage and you think you're going to do something cheeky like transform dirt into gold endlessly, think again. Magic will probably not let you, and sooner or later one of those spells is going to blow up in your face and turn all your gold into slime. That's just one example.

Magic likes to obey its own rules...except with it doesn't. Once in a great while, magic will allow a mage to break a rule. This is considered an "arcane anomaly", and it is incredibly rare, but there are documented cases in history.

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

Good question! Species with passive healing powers do have trouble keeping things like tattoos and scarification. This is why cecaelia take so much pride in their natural markings, because they can't really get permanent tattoos to decorate themselves with.

As for piercings, it depends. Mr. Roach, a cecaelian character, explains that cecaelia in his culture wear a fishing hook in their nostril after they get married. As long as the jewelry remains in the hole, the skin cannot heal over it, so it remains open. But if it's ever removed, the hole will heal over very quickly and it'll have to be redone.

I think what cecaelia and maenads do is wear a small "stud" in their piercing hole at all times. Maybe it is magnetic or has a little hook or ring on it, but it's designed in a way that they can clip earrings, chains, or other jewelry onto it. This allows them to switch out earrings without leaving the hole empty.

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

I've been considering overhauling the skinwalker curse, so I will take this into consideration! Thank you! I may divide it into two separate things, a disease and a curse, and they will work differently.

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

Great question! Devout Vermist mages become well acquainted with the concept of decay, and the more they understand it, the more they can craft spells around it. As a result, Vermists have invented many decay-related spells over the ages, and some are very scary!

There is a curse that causes people to physically age faster.

There is also one that causes people to start rotting like a corpse while they are still alive.

There is a curse which causes everything the victim touches to rot.

These spells aren't just limited to people though. They can be cast on different materials like wood or metal to cause accelerated rot and corrosion.

The unicorn naturally harnesses the power of magical entropy! But what the unicorn does naturally, peoples must study for many years to master.

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

Good question! In this case, they would resurrect as a normal nymph. If they wanted to become a titan nymph again, they would have to redo the ritual. Or in the case of minervae, they would have to convince Karenza to transform them.

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

Since the flamcor is a magical object and magic doesn't always follow logic, I think there could be a lot of possibilities! The way it works for one person may not be the way it works for another.

A flamcor fused with the lungs would probably give someone fire-breathing abilities. A flamcor in the stomach might allow them to digest anything. A flamcor in the liver could enable them to eliminate poisons and other toxins easily, such as gorgon venom.

A flamcor in the bladder...well, enjoy your magma-piss...

(I think similar effects could be achieved by fusing an everfloe crystal with an organ. Everfloe lungs = ice breath. Everfloe stomach = slower digestion, requiring less food. Everfloe liver...uh, this would be bad. Don't do this...)

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

How often is it that some young and dumb people get injured trying to use magic to imitate what they see in media? Like some teenage fae trying some half baked spells to fly and shoot laser beams of their eyes or something along those lines?

Good question!

I hate to make this comparison, but it's the best one I can think of: this phenomenon is similar to young/dumb/drunk people playing around with guns or fireworks IRL. It does happen from time to time, people lose body parts and even their lives by throwing spells around irresponsibly. Lobbing a hazard spell is treated like firing a gun.

Children can certainly cast spells irresponsibly, but magical tragedies among children don't happen as often as you'd think. Toddlers and young kids can't usually cast spells strong enough to hurt people, and by the time they're old enough to grasp such spells, they are usually old enough to understand how to use them responsibly. Magic mentors teach about this responsibility long before they start teaching the actual spells. Of course, some kids are just destined for trouble no matter what...

(For example: When Tep was a child, he nearly burned down Yerim-Mor palace numerous times by playing with pyromancy spells. He knew better, but he just couldn't resist the allure of the flames...)

As for drunk people...Casting spells takes intense concentration, so novice mages can't cast them at all while they're drunk/high. Experienced sorcerers can, but these spells will be weakened or sloppy. Once in a blue moon there may be an incident where a sorcerer slams some bad drugs and starts throwing lightning bolts around in public, but it's pretty rare.

Safety is the highest priority when it comes to spellcasting. As I said, it's treated a lot like gun safety, and there are just as many regulations around who can cast spells, and when and where they can cast them. Accidents do happen, but they're not common enough to tear society apart. Magical misfires are like car crashes; they're rarely intentional.

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost