Magic in the world of Eninn is generated by the great flux of energy left over from the creation. The world itself sits in a vast, invisible wellspring of chaotic power. Magic stems from tapping into this conduit, and shaping the chaotic energies that come forth.
Spellcasters create effects by performing rituals that weaken the boundary between the world of Eninn, and the primordial chaos. This boundary is known as The Great Veil. Spellcasters, and all users of magic, pierce this veil, and draw forth energy from the roiling chaos to cause magical effects. The exact nature of the effects is dependent on four things: the rituals used to channel the energy, the conduit thru which the energy passes, the amount of power tapped, and the means for piercing the Veil.
- Rituals: Verbal, Somatic components, Glyphs, Arcane symbols and words
- Conduit: The caster, Material Components, magic item, holy symbol or focus
- Power: Level of the spell, Caster Level/Skill
- Means: Divine, Arcane, Innate ability
Divine casters typically appeal to their deity, to weaken the barrier of the veil for them. They’ve trained their mind, thru intense prayer and devotion, to sense the power welling up from the other side, and to channel it for divine purposes.
Arcane casters study words of power, and special glyphs: archaic formulae which describe the very fabric of the universe, and how to recognize, or induce, weaknesses in it. Again, thru intense study, or natural ability, the caster is able to tap into the other side of the Veil.
Many new spellcasters fear that their use of magic will permanently damage the veil, and destroy the world. This is not so – the Veil is self-regenerating, and actually resists penetration. It is maintained by the Goddess Enchantra, Keeper of the Veil, and it is her that allows energy to flow between the roiling chaos, and the world of Eninn. Her twin children, Illias and Nostalus, are both also maintainers of the Veil.
The practical considerations of this is that no two spellcasters cast spells in exactly the same way. Because one of the things which can effect the outcome of a spell is the nature of the conduit, each wizard, sorcerer, cleric, favored soul, etc. must determine the exact aspects of spell casting that works for them. This applies not only to spell casting, but the creation of magic items as well. Typically, variations between two casters will be minor (caster A might flick the wrist, where caster B might roll their wrist in a clockwise manner). Also, the visual display of effects might vary drastically from one caster to another. Caster A might generate purple bolts with a Magic Missile spell, where caster B might have green bolts.
This does not mean that one caster cannot learn spells from another caster. They just need to understand the inherent nature of themselves, and what the spell is trying to do, so that they can figure out how to adjust their own spell casting to generate the same effect, or close to it.
