Language Magic
From Trinity Reign Wiki
The power of magic and the mysteries that come along with it all find their way back to the divinities who wield the power of the Creator -Unknown
Language Magic (Urissal):
Scholars and historians search for more; for words of Urissal still unknown. Language Mages use these words to affect the world around them. The caster's will brings the words to life, the sentence he utters in turn speaks to the world and commands your will be done. To learn Language magic one spends time studying Urissal, the ancient language of the Trinity, and the six elements: Earth, Air, Fire, Water, Darkness, and Light. The temples teach that each element works in different ways and so the mage of an element works like that element itself:
The Earth Mages make the ground tremble before them and work it to their advantage. From mud they can forge hardened weapons of earth and stone. They can turn even the strongest armor into metal powder, make the weakest stone so hard that it cannot be cracked, and turn even the greatest mountains into mud. Earth is still thought to be very close to the forge and blacksmithing. This results in many brutal earth mages who very closely resemble warriors. The difference is their power comes from how hard they can make a shield, so much that it does not bend, how weak they can make an opponents armor, so much that it will crumble, and how firm they stand on the ground, so much that it's rumored they do not fall.
Mages who utilize water or air mimic the flow of their spells in their movements. She who uses water calls the river to her aid to slam the enemy. She moves the liquid wherever she can find it, making it move as if it were alive. Some carry small pouches of water to command as if a whip. Air mages work in much the same way, but their spells have a greater sense of freedom. They command the winds with devastating force, create whirlwinds, blast foes away, or even obtain a faux-flight. Water mages are usually limited in needing a source for their magic, Air usually limited in being unable to deal great damage.
Fire mages walk with the flame. They can bring scorching heat with them and make a man's blood boil from temperatures too great. They can call flame with the right fuel, incinerate with their words. The fire mages hold a power thought to be very cruel, some even able to call for the combustion of a body, lighting it aflame with flesh as the fuel. They are thought most dangerous near sources of great heat, like deserts or volcanoes. Even a large bonfire or a small torch can serve as a source of power to the fire mage.
Mages of Light and darkness are thought to be twisters of energy. A Light mage draws energy from any source of light, be it an open flame, a sun, or a shining crystal. They manipulate the light, perhaps making blinding effects. Other times bringing a bright streak of energy onto a foe. Greatest of all are those who wield the lightening from a storm or those who create it from the light around them. Mages of Darkness weave spells of void and emptiness. On a basic level they undo the light, blinding one by smothering them in darkness itself. But they are also drainers of energy, weakening through an elimination of lie. The darkest remove all energy, and wield death and undoing.
These Language mages also take knowledge from the other elements. Air mages learn of the hardening force utilized by Earth Magics to harden the air for missiles. Water mages can learn to reverse the heat that Fire mages use, creating shards of ice as a tool. Fire mages may mimic the fluid movements and words of water and air when commanding power such a lava or great amounts of flame. There is much intermixing, leading to control moving beyond the normal power associated with an element.
Many spells can be limited to what an elemental mage has around him/her. Air mages cannot created a whirlwind without a strong gust, earth mages cannot wield their power if they are not in contact with the earth they attempt to use, very connected to motion itself. The colder the area, the harder it is for a Fire mage to use his skills, the elements of the area itself undoing him/her. Water mages need liquid to work with, and so on. This usually makes a mage of an element unwilling to leave certain areas where they are at their peak in power.
Each season also corresponds with a certain element. During an element's season the Urissal mage of that element has increased power and ability. The constant study Urissal mages must do usually makes them unable to use weapons because of a lack of time to practice.
Training Language Magic:
The best way to become a competent arcane user is to start at the source closest to the Gods in Ura: temples. Priests and religious scholars are those who not only strive to please the Gods but work at uncovering the secrets to the powers that they left for their people. It is a common occurrence that when a person comes of age they travel to the temple at which they worship to learn the magic of their chosen faith. Many powerful or wealthy families will send their children to multiple temples to gain an overall mastery of the magical arts.
The path to magic starts with the practice of religion and the pursuit of the knowledge of the Ancient Language: Urissal. Many of the different religious texts and various tablets are written in this complex and mysterious language. Urissal is considered so complex because it has many tiers to it, and even today, it is still being studied as Uran religious scholars try to unlock its secrets. In order to conjure magic, one must know how to recite the spell’s key phrase in Urissal. While doing so, the mage must also focus on the target of his actions. This takes an enormous amount of strength, depending on the spell, which is why casting a spell that one isn’t ready for could end with violent consequences. For this reason, mages spend many years of their lives studying and practicing Urissal.
Gaining the most basic knowledge of Urissal takes about 6 months. After that 6 month period one starts to practice the magic that they plan to specialize in, returning for more advanced training in the Ancient Language periodically. In this way, once you've become a fully developed mage, you can wield a specific element sufficiently and have great competence in using spells and Urissal to advance your magical skill.
Those who seek to learn all the ways of magic follow a different path. They instead go to seek a temple to teach them the magic of Water or Earth first. Both of these are schools of magic taught independently of any other element by tradition and so one can first take 6 months to learn the basics then spend their time becoming more advanced in a single element. After learning the first element of your choice you often go to a temple that teaches either light and wind or fire and darkness. These four elements also have a tradition of being taught in their respective pairs because many of the skills you learn in one of those elements complement the other. And so you spend a period of time focused on these next two elements.
By the time you've learned the basics of three elements and you are ready for your fourth you start training again with Urissal, learning things that were once too advanced for you. This training is again 6 months to a year followed by either water or earth training (whichever you did not choose in the beginning). Finally you finish your learning of the basic principles and skills of magic with the last pair of elements remaining (if you did light/wind you do fire/darkness and vice versa). Through this process a youth comes out a fully developed magic user.
Though the teachings have ended there is still much more to learn. A 'fully developed' user only has basic skill in all the elements, advanced by their knowledge of the Ancient Language. The Temple Scholars know much more than they teach beginner students and those who commit to a certain religion and temple often delve into greater arts and abilities beyond the common scope. There are also those who are naturally gifted, whose abilities in one element seem to be blessed by the Gods. These people, though rare, often find themselves able to command skills they would never learn in the temples simply because the temples themselves have no knowledge of them (Adeh will probably be like this for Dargon me thinks).
Lastly, there are a number of ritualistic magic spells/items and ancient magic that can be uncovered through intensive research. These are not skills and spells to be tampered with though as these powers have truly strong connections to the Gods. While you learn about ritual in your younger stages you only practice worship rituals, never magic rituals because of their danger and power, regardless of the god they connect to. These powers are meant only for the elite. (Things like the Tome of Blood would fit under this category.)
