Magic in the Solstones
The fabric of reality that makes up the world of Medea is a thing of broken threads and frayed knots. These “tears” in existence create openings into the Tempest, a plane containing an infinite and immense storm of magical energy. Some tears are natural; at times, the Tempest’s power tears its own way into reality, and warps objects or creatures. Others are created by mages: enterprising beings who seek to harness the magic of the Tempest.
Mages
A small portion of the inhabitants of Medea is born with an innate awareness of the Tempest’s power. These potential mages can feel rips in the tapestry of reality just as another being might feel a stone in his-or-her hand. Likewise, a mage is capable of ripping into the Tempest through a feat of willpower just as another may break a stone by a feat of strength. Among humans, mages are quite rare, but magically created races, such as the Endai and the Outcasts, have a near-universal awareness of the Tempest. Though some mages choose to never develop their inherent magical abilities, others make it their life’s pursuit. A mage can hone his-or-her Tempest powers alone (a practice more common among Wild Mages), but apprenticeships are usually more effective and less dangerous. An aspiring mage may elect to use the tempest through either rune magic or wild magic.
Rune Magic
In order to avoid the risks of being disintegrated by the Tempest due to a loss of focus or distraction while tearing into it, most mage use runes. A rune is an engraving capable of storing Tempest energy for a short time and channeling that energy into a specific effect (a spell) upon release. Rune magic requires patience and knowledge, but is quite versatile, as a studious rune mage should know runes or rune chains that can be used for a large variety of spells, mainly in manipulating energy or matter. The rune or rune chain carved into an object determines the form that the Tempest’s power will take when the spell is cast.
The object into which a rune is carved is unimportant. Some cultures favor stone (the Endai), other bone (the Midonai), clay, or wood. A rune is charged when a mage rips into the Tempest with the rune in hand and directs the outgoing energy into it. This requires a great deal of focus, and, depending on the amount of energy required to realize the spell, make take anywhere from a few minutes to several hours. More experienced rune mages can better control the Tempest and thus charge runes more quickly. A mage casts a spell contained in a rune by again grasping it in his-or-her hand and using willpower to tear into the rune’s stored energy and not into the Tempest itself.
Runes can be recharged after use, but Tempest energy is volatile and cannot be contained for longer than a day. If a rune is left charged for too long, the magic within will burn through the object into which the rune is etched, letting the spell loose and destroying the object. Losing focus while charging a rune has the same effect.
Despite their many other cultural differences, every civilization on Medea uses the same runes, which suggests that there must be a common source of rune knowledge. There are many legends about the origin of runes, in which they are typically regarded as connected to the divine: given by, or stolen from, the gods. While the more basic runes are widely known, others are closely guarded secrets, lost in the ruins of Luz, or yet unknown.
Wild Magic
The unleashing of unfettered magical energy, directed only to a limited degree by a mage’s willpower alone, is wild magic indeed. Though this use of the Tempest’s power is exceptionally potent, it is not as widely used as rune magic due to the grand risks that it presents. A mage that loses focus while opening a rift in reality leading to an energy storm will destroy his-or-herself and everything nearby. Additionally, failed or out-of-control wild magic can cause the Tempest to warp nearby beings into magical monsters (demons) or create permanent Tempest magic effects on nearby objects.
Even with so many dangerous downsides, wild magic still appeals to some mages because of how powerful it is. It requires no preparation and no knowledge of runes; only strength of will is needed. It is not as versatile as rune magic, as it is nearly impossible to re-create a specific spell using wild magic, but the power to through blasts of Tempest lightning whenever you want is quite useful in combat. There are not many mages that choose to use wild magic, because its use asks for either a great measure of focus and willpower, or a ton of stupidity. Goblins love it.
