What language do wizards cast spells in?

[Kantolin]

I cannot see, anywhere, whether or not there is a language attached to magic.

My group typically goes with draconic as the language of magic, but it recently came up that a group of kobolds were speaking in... well, admittedly draconic. Either way, it was ruled that my character (who didn't speak draconic) could not identify the spell via spellcraft due to this for the purpose of counterspelling.

That actually strikes me as very reasonable, but it's odd as that's not something I ever hear about. So, is there a language you're expected to be speaking in when you cast verbal components of magic? Do you have to understand that language in order to identify spells?

The only suggestion for 'draconic' I can see is under wizards, but they suggest 'Many ancient tomes of magic are written in Draconic', which if anything, suggests that there exist magical tomes that are not. >_>

But, while it's interesting for flavor that my half-orc wizard casts and writes spells in orcish, that seems like a somewhat powerful use of the speak language skill if I can't be understood. Either way, I was wondering if there were any official rules about this.

[horseboy]

They're cast in the language of game mechanics, which usually translates to the language of plot in the game's "fluff".

[Tengu]

Mangled Latin, obviously.

[Jack_Simth]

The language is Spellcraft - for the simple reason nowhere in the books does it say you need to know the language the opposing spellcaster is using - but you do need to make a Spellcraft check to:

1) Recognize opponent's spells
2) Prepare a spell out of a spellbook other than your own
3) Copy a spell into your spellbook
4) Familiarize yourself with a scroll for later casting (unless you are under the influence of a Read Magic effect).
5) Other stuff.

Basically, anything having to do with spells requires a spellcraft check - no mention is made of any other language as part of it in the books.

[Ganurath]

I'm pretty sure that, if it is a specific language in the books, the language would be Illumian. It is rather literally a magical language.

[Fax Celestis]

I prefer Truespeech as the language of magic.

[Admiral Squish]

Illlumian!
Draconic and other ancient, magical runes combined and refined until the very act of speaking causes sparks of arcane energy to crackle in the air.

[Mewtarthio]

Modern English with a horribly fake, "Richard" van Dyke-esque Cockney accent.

[TheOOB]

Wizards cast magic in the arcane tongue, a mystical langauge that is unique to each wizard, imbued with their magical ability. Thats why you need sufficient spellcraft (and/or read magic) to read another magical writing, for while the magical language for each person has similarities, it is still unique.

[Sleet]

It's specified in some settings - I believe Dragonlance wizards speak their verbal components in a language called Magius.

I'm not certain there's anything close to "conversational Magius," though. It isn't a real language unless you can cuss in it. :smallwink:

[Fax Celestis]

It's specified in some settings - I believe Dragonlance wizards speak their verbal components in a language called Magius.

I'm not certain there's anything close to "conversational Magius," though. It isn't a real language unless you can cuss in it. :smallwink:

You know, I'm pretty sure the Magius word for bestow curse sounds like a curse word.

Heehee! I made a pun!

[Icewalker]

Truespeech sounds cooler. :smalltongue:

Actually, with my truenamers (at least in pbp) I actually standardize my speech!

example: (unique something)'do'areanai'negalati = lesser word of nurturing reversed.

the unique bit is something totally made up each time representing the target.

Areanai = word of nurturing
do' = lesser (where un would be minor, trei or some such would be the next up, etc)
negalati = reversed

[/offtopic]

Yeah, I'd say it is a specific magic language that just has representations and such, so that one cannot actually communicate with it.

[Nerd-o-rama]

Common, obviously. Are you going to correct Vaarsuvius and Lina Inverse?

[TheOOB]

I acually had a character once who's verbal components where all cryptograms, I purposefully made my cypher so that a lot of y, x, z, s, v, and such where in the spells "arcane name"

[kamikasei]

I prefer Truespeech as the language of magic.

It seems like Illusionists at least should use Falsespeech.

[Riffington]

Infernal. The laws of magic are written in the language of all laws.

However, learning Spellcraft teaches you the important bits - you do not need to actually learn Conversational Infernal to identify or cast spells.

[Sucrose]

As the varied answers would tell you, I'd say that it depends on the campaign setting, and, if not specified in the campaign setting, can be determined by each individual wizard.

However, Spellcraft will always let someone know what you're casting; my flavor for it is that the wizards can sense the pull on the tides of magic in the region, and can determine what you're doing by how the weave is being used.

[Serpent Stare]

For wizards, there might be a standardized language of magic, or each wizard finds through experience which words work for him. Speaking in common, or Orcish, Elven, Draconic, or anything else could be possible.

For sorcerers, verbal components could be as simple as shouting something akin to a battlecry. I usually use unintelligible utterances for spellcaster verbal components: my characters hear: "He shouts something you don't recognize as speech and tosses a handful of dust at the creature. Suddenly the air is filled with glittering sparks and it roars in frustration, bashing the wall a couple of feet to your right..."

Still, I've considered humorous uses of verbal components. Example: Shouting "Rats!" in an aggravated voice as you cast Summon Swarm...

[Duke of URL]

Using the OOTS standard, it's English, and requires only saying the name of the spell.

[Kurald Galain]

Probably in Lawful.

(it is too a language!!!)

I like the Cipher idea as a gimmick, and I've seen it in a few computer games, but from your character's point of view it doesn't really make sense to shout the name of the spell in cipher...

So I'm going to have to go with Some Ancient Tongue. Whether this is mangled Potteresque Latin, or Truespeak, or Dragonese (and mind you, in several settings Truespeak is Dragonese) isn't really the point. Methinks it would be unwise to hold conversations in this tongue, because weird things will happen if you do.

Xander: You can't just go "Librum Incendere" and expect the book to... whoa!!

[Fuzzy_Juan]

I could have sword that I read in the 3.0 mechanics that draconic was the main language of wizards. That spells were in Draconic and most all magical writing is in it as well...that every wizard recieved Draconic as a bonus language for free like all druids gained their druid language.

I always thought of spellcraft then as a form of fantasy mathematics/physics with reality. It doesn't matter if you speak the language...unless you have trained and studied in the fields for a long time and are practiced in the 'arts' you could stare at the words and symbols all day and it make as much sense as a novice trying to read a paper on ionic propulsion and all the equations. Some one who didn't speak English at all could pick it up and if they were a trained scientist, they could decipher much of the equations and get a general idea of what was going on...at least...better than someone without the training and background.

like a great moment in class for me...my wife, then GF, accompanied me to class...both of us knew greek symbols just fine, but I was in enginering and she was in music...she looked at the chalkboard and was trying to listen to the professor and then turned to me very confused and said..."It's all just Greek to me."...she knew what he was saying, she knew all the symbols...she just had no idea what it all meant.

I think Draconic and spellcraft is like that. Unless you 'know', you just won't understand even if you speak the language.

[Prometheus]

It is the language of the universe and the God himself...
What does it sound like?

I dunno - ask Cthulhu.

[skeeter_dan]

My players always just shout out the name of the spell being cast. Overdramatically. In english.

In-game, we usually treat it as being a strange conglomeration of various languages, combining the magical research of countless millenia. Thus, it's not enough to simply know the language, as a single spell is rarely cast using only one language. Hence, Spellcraft checks.

[kamikasei]

I could have sword that I read in the 3.0 mechanics that draconic was the main language of wizards. That spells were in Draconic and most all magical writing is in it as well...that every wizard recieved Draconic as a bonus language for free like all druids gained their druid language.

"A wizard may substitute Draconic for one of the bonus languages available to the character because of her race." The fluff says this is because many ancient tomes of magic are written in Draconic. It doesn't say or imply that you have to know Draconic in order to cast spells.

Given the "every wizard's spellbook uses a unique notation requiring a Spellcraft check to decipher" notion, I would say that they speak a hodgepodge of words from their own tongue, ancient languages, and fundamental languages of reality (think the glossolalia from Snow Crash). Actually, the best analogy that comes to my mind is a power user of a computer system, executing some command at speed; the basic commands are uniform across the architecture (i.e. the universe), but the user has a set of common utilities based on his local environment (his culture and course of study), and then most of his frequently-used commands will have been worn down to mere nubs, handfuls of characters that look like nothing to anyone else but to him encode some complex acronym or mnemonic.

Of course, casting a spell would have to be more structured than that, since it still allows Spellcraft, while the command to run a script could look like anything and mean nothing about its contents. But yeah, I would say that a wizard's casting sounds the way a wizard's scribing looks, highly idiosyncratic but with underlying decipherable structure.

[Arioch]

Probably in Lawful.

(it is too a language!!!)


I call it Axian in my campaign (as in axiomatic).

[MagicPrime]

My Elven Wizard/Elemental Savant (fire) casted his spells by speaking Ignan. I've always felt that the words themselves aren't as important as what they symbolize for the caster. They act as a focus.

[Scorpina]

I tend to describe spells as being cast in a language appropriate to the caster (or where the caster got the spell from, particularly in the case of PC wizards). As a general rule, this means that good Clerics cast in Celestial, evil Clerics in Absyssal or Infernal, neutral clerics in any one of those clerics, Wizards and Sorcerers in any given language (but Draconic is common, as is Elven). Also, Aquan, Auran, Ingan and Terran are used frequently with elemental spells, and a number of casters use their vernacular tongue.

[Telonius]

Modern English with a horribly fake, "Richard" van Dyke-esque Cockney accent.

My group generally calls this language "Urchin." NPC rogue-ish characters and all NPC children under the age of 10 get it for free.

[Crimson Avenger]

Spell casting shouldn't be considered any one language, lest any mook with the right bonus tongue know what is being cast before the party (with the highly trained wiz/ sor/ clr/ ect.) does. What's more, all magical casting MUST have some common elements to it, or a spellcraft check wouldn't be sufficient. Can you imagine the mechanics involved if you had to know elven in order to spellcraft an elven wizard.

[....]

I don't think it matters what language you speak spells in. You can cast them in draconic, or in common, or aurian.

I always imagine the verbal component of any spell is just shouting the name of the spell in whatever language you want.

If there was a specific language that triggered magical effects, then wouldn't people occasionally blow themselves up with fireballs do you passionate arguments?

[Tengu]

Using the OOTS standard, it's English, and requires only saying the name of the spell.

Maybe I'm reading too much into that, but I think that's Rich's shout-out to japanese RPGs, where casting a spell makes its name highlight at the top of the screen, and it's implied that the caster calls out its name.

[Nerd-o-rama]

I never followed that implication, actually. Not until I watched Slayers, anyway. I just thought it was there for player convenience.

And I refuse to believe that anyone ever shouted "Lit2!" Thundara, maybe.

[Cybren]

I never followed that implication, actually. Not until I watched Slayers, anyway. I just thought it was there for player convenience.

And I refuse to believe that anyone ever shouted "Lit2!" Thundara, maybe.

I recall in final fantasy 4 several of the characters saying the name of the spells. (Rydia casting fire on the ice wall, Rosa trying to restore Palum and Porum, and of course, Tellah casting meteo. On another note, I loved the FF4 spell sound effects, however crappy they were)

[Kantolin]

Welp, thanks much. I believe that's the answer I'm looking for... I'll utilize language-the-caster-uses as a quick way to tell where they learned to cast magic / how they do it intrinsically. Just wanted to make sure RAW didn't have anything on the subject, heh.


*Grumblecakes* I miss Bolt2. Blahga bugs me.


Thanks again for your help.

[TheOOB]

I do believe somewhere that there is a mechanic that makes it easier to decipher spells written by your master/peers/students, implying that while every mages magical language is different, those who learned from the same source are similar.

It stands to reason with the spellcraft skill that even if the magic langauge differs greatly from area to area, there is a common base, and thats why you have a chance to decipher others spells.