Just a couple of notes on some of the many questions put forward.
1. On Galreans - Garleans cannot naturally use magic, like at all. The Imperial soldiers we see that do use magic are one of two things. They are either; a.) using a magitek device to simulate the ability to cast magic naturally, or b.) the brainwashed that have been pressed into service from lands taken over by the empire. There is one thing we do not know, and that is the definition of Garlean. We do not know if the term refers to pure blooded Garleans (Cid, Nero, etc.), or simply those who come from the area the Empire was founded in. They never have been clear on it.
2. On sources - Magic requires Aether (or something similar) as a power source. Thaumaturges use their own, Conjurers channel it from the elementals, and Arcanist channel from the surrounding area. We know that Eorzea as a whole is an aether rich environment. For whatever reason it just flows better here. This is probably the reason Eorzea boasts a higher number of Primals than elsewhere. We do know that in the course of conquest, the Empire encountered a Primal outside of Eorzea, but that is the only case we of a Primal being out side of Eorzea that we know of. The point here is that it is much easier to channel aether in Eorzea than it is elsewhere in the world. Also, while aether itself is a source, we do know that it is not the only source. Demons and other such dark things channel from the Void, casting spells such as Void Fire, Void Blizzard, ect. ect. We also know that regular people can do the same by forging pacts with Voidsent or otherwise connecting their aether to the Void. This is generally considered a bad thing by the three magic based Guilds. Lastly, and well worth mentioning, Ceruleum is also used as a source of magical energy. It is basically a liquid form of aether (think Mako energy from FFVII) and is processed used as the fuel for magitek devices.Â
3. On Aether Poisoning - Too much Aether is totally a thing. A bad thing at that. Absorbing too much Aether drives people nuts and has a deteriorating effect on the body. There is a similar effect mentioned when a person handles too much raw Ceruleum. The cause seems to be absorbing more than one's natural limit of Aether. Your mileage may vary as far as what the exact definition of that is.
4. On Casting - We currently have three major magic classes, but their spells are not the sum and total of spells available to Adventurers. Flash, Shield Oath, and Sword Oath are also spells. Bard songs are also spells. Monks channel Aether through their Chakras. For some reason Dragonfire Dive makes fire go splode everywhere. The point here being that Aether channeling/manipulation is not something that is the soul purview of just the spell casting classes.
Just some things I have seen for consideration, and to help add stuff to the conversation. ^ ^
-Y
1. On Galreans - Garleans cannot naturally use magic, like at all. The Imperial soldiers we see that do use magic are one of two things. They are either; a.) using a magitek device to simulate the ability to cast magic naturally, or b.) the brainwashed that have been pressed into service from lands taken over by the empire. There is one thing we do not know, and that is the definition of Garlean. We do not know if the term refers to pure blooded Garleans (Cid, Nero, etc.), or simply those who come from the area the Empire was founded in. They never have been clear on it.
2. On sources - Magic requires Aether (or something similar) as a power source. Thaumaturges use their own, Conjurers channel it from the elementals, and Arcanist channel from the surrounding area. We know that Eorzea as a whole is an aether rich environment. For whatever reason it just flows better here. This is probably the reason Eorzea boasts a higher number of Primals than elsewhere. We do know that in the course of conquest, the Empire encountered a Primal outside of Eorzea, but that is the only case we of a Primal being out side of Eorzea that we know of. The point here is that it is much easier to channel aether in Eorzea than it is elsewhere in the world. Also, while aether itself is a source, we do know that it is not the only source. Demons and other such dark things channel from the Void, casting spells such as Void Fire, Void Blizzard, ect. ect. We also know that regular people can do the same by forging pacts with Voidsent or otherwise connecting their aether to the Void. This is generally considered a bad thing by the three magic based Guilds. Lastly, and well worth mentioning, Ceruleum is also used as a source of magical energy. It is basically a liquid form of aether (think Mako energy from FFVII) and is processed used as the fuel for magitek devices.Â
3. On Aether Poisoning - Too much Aether is totally a thing. A bad thing at that. Absorbing too much Aether drives people nuts and has a deteriorating effect on the body. There is a similar effect mentioned when a person handles too much raw Ceruleum. The cause seems to be absorbing more than one's natural limit of Aether. Your mileage may vary as far as what the exact definition of that is.
4. On Casting - We currently have three major magic classes, but their spells are not the sum and total of spells available to Adventurers. Flash, Shield Oath, and Sword Oath are also spells. Bard songs are also spells. Monks channel Aether through their Chakras. For some reason Dragonfire Dive makes fire go splode everywhere. The point here being that Aether channeling/manipulation is not something that is the soul purview of just the spell casting classes.
Just some things I have seen for consideration, and to help add stuff to the conversation. ^ ^
-Y
