Aragorn the Wyrmspeaker Posted February 6, 2020 Report Share Posted February 6, 2020 Laws: Gems of different types can hold magic in the form of different elements. Ruby = Heat/Cold Amethyst= Kinetic Diamond= Light Sapphire= Electricity Magical energy is known as Scelce. Gemstones absorb energy through conductive materials. The way a gem can express Scelce is through how they are cut, focusing energy at sharper points of the facets. Higher quality gemstones are more powerful. Gemstones change weight depending on the amount of energy in them. Larger gemstones hold more energy. The cutting of a gem makes it functional, whan uncut they are inert. Energy is transferred through conductive material. Opal stores pure energy, that can be transformed into any of the 4 types. Mages are people who go into battle with a large gem on their back, with gloves lined with wires connecting back to the gem. The wires stimulate different parts of the gem with certain somatic motions. As you use this, the wires overheat, and will snap if you are not careful. Multiple gems can be used, but this will cause the wires to overheat faster Scelsi are the higher born of the population. These people have interbreed with a native species of humanoids scec’ar, who are naturally born with one of the 5 scelics, or magical gemstones. They have gemstones inside them on their spinal cord, in between their shoulder blades. Those born with these are commonly known as Scelomancers. Their nerves act like the wires. Scelomancers gems are like their life support system, and if broken, they will die. When gems act as spells, you have to use gloves studded with metal, and the more studs touch the gem, the more power is exerted, and the length of the finger, or in a machine, the wire, determines the range by inches converted to feet multiplied by 10. For a ray of energy, this is multiplied by 3, and projects with 45⁰ vertex. For a ball, the range is multiplied by 2 before the ball explodes, and the ball will also explode when it comes into contact with a solid surface. Onyx absorbs energy and does not release it, expanding constantly until it is 3 times the original size, at which point it detonates in a massive maelstrom of sharp onyx shards 3 seconds after it is activated by metal or a hard impact. When an energised gem is broken, it releases all energy stored inside of it in a massive blast, and in a flash of light as the crystalline bonds holding energy shatter, and the gem is left in small chunks, with a fraction of their original energy. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smye Posted February 6, 2020 Report Share Posted February 6, 2020 What specific advice are you seeking? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aragorn the Wyrmspeaker Posted February 6, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2020 anything from critique, ideas, art, revisions, anything you can give, and this is a first draft so I would love advice on things like how the magic would affect and shape the world, and so on. Quote 1 minute ago, Smye said: What specific advice are you seeking? also, if you really like magic systems, go bug my friend, @the cardinal of death, he has made over 50 awesome ones, and is currently my only editor. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quantus Posted February 6, 2020 Report Share Posted February 6, 2020 Just in case you havent yet, be sure to read Sanderson's Laws of Magic, it will help a lot with determining how and where to develop any magic system. My initial thoughts/questions are about the "elements": Are those 4+1 elements (thermal, kinetic, light, electromagnetism, and "Pure Scelce") the entire total, or are they just what has been developed so far? Is it possible for somebody to discover how to make a Gravity Emerald or some such? Is Onyx the only gem that physically changes Size? Does Onyx have the same variability by Size, Cut, Quality, etc or is it a flat x3? Could a Person be born with an Onyx based ability (by the power of Plot)? When you say "Conductive Materials" does that differ by energy type? As in do you need Prisms and/fiber-optics for light, but metal Wires for Electricity, and something like a steam system for Thermal (these can be fun and very steampunky), and clockworks for Kinetic? Or are is that defaulting to electrically conductive metals. Among the Scelsi, does the type of gem/power breed true, or is only the overall ability hereditary but random for each individual? Among the scec’ar, how does their magic use and/or philosophy differ by being native to it? Setting Questions: How much development do you have on the setting? Are you thinking Medieval Society, Victorian steampunk, Modern, Post-apocalyptic, etc? How are race relations between Humans and Scec'ar? How to the Scelsi interact and view the Mages? Are they the mage's leaders? Rivals? How common-place are these magics to the average citizen? Are these basically reserved as Military resources, or will there be Ruby Refrigerators and Diamond streetlights and whatnot in the average places? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karger Posted February 6, 2020 Report Share Posted February 6, 2020 2 hours ago, Aragorn the Wyrmspeaker said: Ruby = Heat/Cold Amethyst= Kinetic What is the difference? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quantus Posted February 7, 2020 Report Share Posted February 7, 2020 15 hours ago, Karger said: What is the difference? In almost all practical matters, quite a bit. At least as much difference between Light and Electromagnetism, anyway. He's not trying to break it all the way down to the four Fundamental forces or anything. If is helps, the easiest dividing line is that heat is more molecular vibration, while traditional Kinetic energy would direct physical Forces being applied to points or moving whole object in uniform vectors. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aragorn the Wyrmspeaker Posted February 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2020 16 hours ago, Quantus said: Just in case you havent yet, be sure to read Sanderson's Laws of Magic, it will help a lot with determining how and where to develop any magic system. My initial thoughts/questions are about the "elements": Are those 4+1 elements (thermal, kinetic, light, electromagnetism, and "Pure Scelce") the entire total, or are they just what has been developed so far? Is it possible for somebody to discover how to make a Gravity Emerald or some such? Is Onyx the only gem that physically changes Size? Does Onyx have the same variability by Size, Cut, Quality, etc or is it a flat x3? Could a Person be born with an Onyx based ability (by the power of Plot)? When you say "Conductive Materials" does that differ by energy type? As in do you need Prisms and/fiber-optics for light, but metal Wires for Electricity, and something like a steam system for Thermal (these can be fun and very steampunky), and clockworks for Kinetic? Or are is that defaulting to electrically conductive metals. Among the Scelsi, does the type of gem/power breed true, or is only the overall ability hereditary but random for each individual? Among the scec’ar, how does their magic use and/or philosophy differ by being native to it? Setting Questions: How much development do you have on the setting? Are you thinking Medieval Society, Victorian steampunk, Modern, Post-apocalyptic, etc? How are race relations between Humans and Scec'ar? How to the Scelsi interact and view the Mages? Are they the mage's leaders? Rivals? How common-place are these magics to the average citizen? Are these basically reserved as Military resources, or will there be Ruby Refrigerators and Diamond streetlights and whatnot in the average places? OK, so this is still in the works, but first of all, yes, there are other gem abilities, and they just have not been discovered yet. 2, all gems change in size and weight slightly when they have energy stored in them, like a battery, but in other gems it is not nearly as noticeable, as the changes are slight. onyx does NOT vary with the cut of the gems, it is merely like a black hole for scelce. yes, A person can be born with an onyx ability, although it is rare, I am planning on making them basically super magic resistant, and be the main weapon against mages. as for conductive materials, this retains to materials that are conductive to electricity, like copper, which allows for nerves to act like this. as for how the ability is inherited, it does in fact breed true, but it is not often that someone will have multiple. As for the Scec'ar, they all have this magic, and are a peaceful, and very nature oriented society. as for the society itself, I am thinking more medieval time frame, and possibly a little bit of modern, like early guns. now, the relationship between Mages and Scelci is similar to the relationship between those that use a soulcasting fabrial and those with the soulcasting surge, in that there is no particular rivalry, it is simply a way for the common people to use magic if they have enough money. now, these gems are used by the general society, as they are more reliable, and more useful in that way, but the people are just beginning to discover the possible uses behind the magic, and I cannot wait to show off some of the creatures I have in store for this world, as well as weapons and armor. anyways, thanks for the advice, it really got me thinking, and should lead to some interesting developments, and I will do what I can to keep you posted. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quantus Posted February 7, 2020 Report Share Posted February 7, 2020 3 minutes ago, Aragorn the Wyrmspeaker said: OK, so this is still in the works, but first of all, yes, there are other gem abilities, and they just have not been discovered yet. 2, all gems change in size and weight slightly when they have energy stored in them, like a battery, but in other gems it is not nearly as noticeable, as the changes are slight. onyx does NOT vary with the cut of the gems, it is merely like a black hole for scelce. yes, A person can be born with an onyx ability, although it is rare, I am planning on making them basically super magic resistant, and be the main weapon against mages. as for conductive materials, this retains to materials that are conductive to electricity, like copper, which allows for nerves to act like this. as for how the ability is inherited, it does in fact breed true, but it is not often that someone will have multiple. As for the Scec'ar, they all have this magic, and are a peaceful, and very nature oriented society. as for the society itself, I am thinking more medieval time frame, and possibly a little bit of modern, like early guns. now, the relationship between Mages and Scelci is similar to the relationship between those that use a soulcasting fabrial and those with the soulcasting surge, in that there is no particular rivalry, it is simply a way for the common people to use magic if they have enough money. now, these gems are used by the general society, as they are more reliable, and more useful in that way, but the people are just beginning to discover the possible uses behind the magic, and I cannot wait to show off some of the creatures I have in store for this world, as well as weapons and armor. anyways, thanks for the advice, it really got me thinking, and should lead to some interesting developments, and I will do what I can to keep you posted. Awesome! I look forward to seeing what you come up with. One question on Onyx: Is there a way to drain Onyx before it explodes, to reuse it? If not, does that mean an OnyxBorn would have a lifetime max they can counter before they explode, or would they have some specific mechanism to bleed it off, maybe because it's still a Life Support System? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karger Posted February 7, 2020 Report Share Posted February 7, 2020 58 minutes ago, Quantus said: If is helps, the easiest dividing line is that heat is more molecular vibration, while traditional Kinetic energy would direct physical Forces being applied to points or moving whole object in uniform vectors. In that case should it not store momentum? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aragorn the Wyrmspeaker Posted February 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2020 Ok, so some rough draft stuff off the top of my head. kinetic absorbs the energy, but not the momentum, and can only apply extra force in general, and cannot be used or something like telekinesis. using this, someone could in theory make an object not unlike a halo gravity hammer. however, doing this would require a special armor to absorb the rebounding force, because every action has an equal and opposite reaction. light is more precise, and can be manipulated to create things like illusions and holograms, as in lightweaving, but it is difficult, and holograms have not quite been figured out yet. With credit to my advisor on the project, @Quantus, Emeralds can generate and control gravitational force, harnessing the power of the earth itself, although I think it would be cool to let all of you vote on what it should do in the upcoming poll. unknown to the world, I am considering having scelce act like a soul within all living things native to the planet, and would appreciate a simple yes or no for weather or not this would make sense. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aragorn the Wyrmspeaker Posted February 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2020 (edited) 23 minutes ago, Quantus said: Awesome! I look forward to seeing what you come up with. One question on Onyx: Is there a way to drain Onyx before it explodes, to reuse it? If not, does that mean an OnyxBorn would have a lifetime max they can counter before they explode, or would they have some specific mechanism to bleed it off, maybe because it's still a Life Support System? for this, I add a specific detail, that onyx does slowly leak energy, loosing size, but this energy cannot be harnessed. this process slowly occurs over a long period of time, and occurs faster in 'OnyxBorn'. (open to name suggestions.) this makes it so that the 'onyxborn' have a sort of "charge limit", and can all be released in a sort of suicide blast, but most tend to avoid this. Edited February 7, 2020 by Aragorn the Wyrmspeaker 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ixthos Posted February 7, 2020 Report Share Posted February 7, 2020 I think much more setting context is needed to answer your questions in the poll - without context it is almost impossible to give helpful feedback. Could you give a little more detail on the history of the world, how the scec'ar and humans came into contact and the different cultures of the two, where it originates from for the scec'ar or if they have always had it, how they could use it in their nature focused way, how soon after humans began to interbreed with them it was passed to them and how this affected their culture and so on - basically, what is the history and use of this system for the native peoples? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aragorn the Wyrmspeaker Posted February 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2020 10 minutes ago, Ixthos said: I think much more setting context is needed to answer your questions in the poll - without context it is almost impossible to give helpful feedback. Could you give a little more detail on the history of the world, how the scec'ar and humans came into contact and the different cultures of the two, where it originates from for the scec'ar or if they have always had it, how they could use it in their nature focused way, how soon after humans began to interbreed with them it was passed to them and how this affected their culture and so on - basically, what is the history and use of this system for the native peoples? This might Take a while... let me get back to you on that, however, suggestions will be considered. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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