It could be both, perhaps. We do know that training is needed to safely wield Conjury, for instance, thanks to the Conjurer class quests. We also know from the Thaumaturge class quest line that some people have a lot of Aether and can wield their magic with training, whereas others have lower Aether levels and aren't really suitable for training. Let me toss out a few possibilities on this line of thought, noting that these are all suppositions in the big grey area that is XIV magic theory 
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Socially, I think even Garleans who could learn magic in Eorzea wouldn't, given their largely negative opinion of Eorzeans, their culture, and their societies. I expect they'd view magic as inherently inferior to magitek and sadly primitive -- something that no true Garlean would sully himself with.
:- A character must have some characteristic -- let's call it "the Gift" for the moment -- to use magic, but training is required to achieve safe usage and mastery. Garleans simply don't have that and so can't use magic directly.
- A character has to have the right intuitive mindset to grasp magic, and for societal reasons, Garleans rarely reach an age where they can learn magic and still have the mindset for it.
- Magic is ultimately an intuitive process, since it involves manipulating something that can't really be directly seen or felt. The "formulas" of spells and the formal training thereof are just codified ways of helping people grasp the underlying concept, in much the same way the scales of Western music are ways to "grasp" the concept of pitch and work it into a sensible form. Other "ways of magic" are theoretically possible. Garleans have no social structure to support a way of magic -- or, alternatively, magitek is their "way of magic" -- and so don't learn it.
- A certain degree of intuition is required to "break through" to being able to wield magic, but once achieved, you learn it like any other skill. Garleans socially, or physically, are unable to achieve this "Awakening."
Socially, I think even Garleans who could learn magic in Eorzea wouldn't, given their largely negative opinion of Eorzeans, their culture, and their societies. I expect they'd view magic as inherently inferior to magitek and sadly primitive -- something that no true Garlean would sully himself with.
The Freelance Wizard
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((about me | about L'yhta Mahre | L'yhta's desk | about Mysterium, the Ivory Tower: a heavy RP society of mages))
Quality RP at low, low prices!
((about me | about L'yhta Mahre | L'yhta's desk | about Mysterium, the Ivory Tower: a heavy RP society of mages))
