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Where do magic spells come from? - Printable Version

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Where do magic spells come from? - Vashies Alexander - 07-26-2013

If you have not notice on the welcome board me and a fellow rper are trying find where does magic spells come from. This has been a task all in its own and now im asking you as the community to help use with this. I know from playing and reading that each final fantasy game has its own way of obtaining magical spells but it does not say how it works. At least there is no connection of all final fantasy of how this works. 
Are they born with it? 


Is some thing they need to tap in to? 


Is some thing you need to go to school for? 


We do know magic comes from the planet or rather the life force but this only raises more questions how you are able to use it.
 So put your thinking caps on gang and try help use out on making a connection on how magic works. 

RE: Where does magic spells come from? - Vashies Alexander - 07-26-2013

i kinda answered my own question... kinda but if you canstill help out on this feel free comment but i found some info here http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Magic_(Term) 
Thank you for your time^^

RE: Where does magic spells come from? - Ashren Dotharl - 07-26-2013

In respect to FFXIV Magic comes from an energy source known as Aether, which is produced by the planet itself. I may be mistaken, but there are several methods that casters use to channel Aether. For Conjurers they draw it from nature and the elements, acting sort of like Druids in the setting; while Thaumaturges draw their Aether from an internal reserve which makes it destructive and chaotic (which explains the fluctuating auras they have). One can only assume that the source of the Arcanists power is something similar to this, or perhaps a combination of both, or perhaps they draw power from symbols and words which explains the use of a book as their weapon.

If you're familiar with the lore for Final Fantasy VII, think of Aether in the same way as Mako. It's a form of energy that permeates from the planet, in large quantities it can be poisonous and even mutagenic, and under certain circumstances it can crystallize into Aetheryte.

RE: Where does magic spells come from? - Vashies Alexander - 07-26-2013

that helped me a lot thank you for that info^^

RE: Where does magic spells come from? - Ildur - 07-26-2013

The official FFXIV: ARR page has this to say about arcanists:

Quote:Adepts of the art of arcanum derive their might from symbols of power born of geometric techniques hailing from across the southern seas. Held within occult grimoires, these symbols lend shape to the arcanist's aether, thereby allowing him to produce myriad powerful spells.
Using the selfsame symbols to unlock the latent power contained within gemstones, arcanists are also able to summon forth the familiar known as Carbuncle to carry out their bidding.

So it would seem Arcanists are pretty much like thaumaturges, relying on their 'internal aether' to cast spells. Except that thaumaturges use 'deep instrospection' to tap the aether inside them and channel it outwards to a staff/wand housing a magical gem; while Arcanists channel it towards symbols in their books.

I guess we'll find out more about how they work once the next phase starts and we can play through their guild's storyline.

RE: Where does magic spells come from? - FreelanceWizard - 07-26-2013

To answer the other question regarding spells, spells do seem to be a known concept IC. In the Conjurer and Thaumaturge quest lines at level 15, the guild masters speak of granting you knowledge of a new spell, and in the Conjurer quest line, there's quite a brouhaha created by an untrained Conjurer using Raise.

It seems training is required to properly harness one's power -- certainly for Conjurers. Some people can perform some Conjury (usually healing) without proper training in how to hear and call upon the elements, but doing so uses one's own life force and has dire consequences. So, at least for Conjury, "wild talent" does exist, though it's uncommon.

RE: Where do magic spells come from? - Nako-Chan - 07-26-2013

Being a nerd when it comes to magic I paid a lot of attention to the Thaumaturge and especially Conjurer dialogue, Freelance pretty much described it.

Black magic is manipulation of the aether, or life force, inside you while Conjurery is defined by drawing power from the aether around you (more or less described as asking Nature to give you the power to do X).

As Freelance mentioned, the case of the girl using Raise without formal training... Since she had no training or even attempted to practice asking the elements to grant her the power to heal, when she was healing people she unknowingly was sacrificing her own life-force and giving it to others. It really illiterates that the (conjurer) healing arts are asking nature to sacrifice a little bit of it's own collective life force to save an individual.

RE: Where do magic spells come from? - Kaed Farsight - 07-26-2013

So, here's the question that basically started the thread.  I've been brainstorming my character and i'd like an important part of his past to involve his inability to use healing magic (Or any form of conjuror magic to be less specific)  If he tries to force out a spell from that class, it would backfire violently.  Would this be believable or even possible?  Maybe due to some form of block to connecting with external Aether sources?

RE: Where do magic spells come from? - FreelanceWizard - 07-26-2013

While there's no direct example of that in lore, it seems entirely reasonable that a character could have an inability to use one or all forms of magic and have it manifest in such a manner. I can especially see it with Conjury, since you're using elementally aspected Aether from the world. If, for example, your character angered elementals, they may respond especially negatively to you and express that displeasure by interfering with your magic.

RE: Where do magic spells come from? - Kaed Farsight - 07-26-2013

Hm, i may have to rethink things, that doesn't really fit with the idea i had.  Though, what do you guys think someone would have to do to really tick off the elements to cause themselves to be *cursed* for lack of a better term.

RE: Where do magic spells come from? - Torvhan - 07-26-2013

Others can answer this question better so I'll direct you to two similar threads I've read earlier

The Power of Magic
http://ffxiv-roleplayers.com/showthread.php?tid=2593

The Mechanics of Magic
http://ffxiv-roleplayers.com/showthread.php?tid=2595

Hope this helps search engine sometimes seems to pop up every thread so unless you happen to know where your looking it can be hard to find.

RE: Where do magic spells come from? - Kaed Farsight - 07-26-2013

Hey, thanks for those links.  It certainly sounds like it should be possible to have a natural ineptitude toward a school of magic, though the side effect i was hoping for will probably have to be scrapped and reworked.

RE: Where do magic spells come from? - FreelanceWizard - 07-27-2013

Well, do remember that those threads are in many ways speculative. Smile I think it's still entirely viable to have a person whose ineptitude with magic manifests as spells often having reverse effects, though again with the proviso that no such exemplars exist within the lore. That doesn't mean you can't do it, it just means that, well, it'd be a Thing about your character, and you don't really want too many Things, as that stretches credulity.

EDIT: Said ineptitude would have to be explained. Since Conjury is based on calling upon Aether outside yourself (specifically, that of the elements), it's possible for external forces to interfere. Thaumaturgy and Arcana are based on internal Aether and failures like this would have to be a personal fault -- anything from exceedingly poor handwriting or dyslexia for an Arcanist to failings of will for a Thaumaturge. Of course, these internal factors can apply to Conjury as well. That said, to cast a spell that is properly trained and have it have a reverse effect due to internal factors would mean your character would be an egregiously poor spellcaster from a technical standpoint. Smile

RE: Where do magic spells come from? - Kaed Farsight - 07-27-2013

That is true.  To many unique 'Things' can make a character seem very fake.  Though for me i hadn't planned on using or really doing anything with the ineptitude over just using it as a character plot device.  

I'm going to play around with the idea, see how it feels once i flesh out the story around it.  If it comes off as something to unnatural, I'll scrap it in favor of something else.

RE: Where do magic spells come from? - Merri - 07-27-2013

(07-26-2013, 07:15 PM)FreelanceWizard Wrote: While there's no direct example of that in lore, it seems entirely reasonable that a character could have an inability to use one or all forms of magic and have it manifest in such a manner. I can especially see it with Conjury, since you're using elementally aspected Aether from the world. If, for example, your character angered elementals, they may respond especially negatively to you and express that displeasure by interfering with your magic.

Actually, it has been confirmed canonically that a majority of full-blooded Garleans have an extreme ineptitude for the use of magic, to a point where most can't even cast the most basic of spells. It's one of the reasons they rely so heavily on Magitek. The Imperial NPCs you do see using magic are conscripts from conquered territories.

So it's definitely within the realm of possibility.