Arcane Magic's Source?

[Goldroger437]

So this is sort've a newbie question but... Where does Arcane magic come from? How are Wizards/sorcerers/etc. able to tap in to it exactly?

Also I've heard about spellcasters being able to sometimes "merge or become one with magic". How does that work?

[Thrice Dead Cat]

So this is sort've a newbie question but... Where does Arcane magic come from? How are Wizards/sorcerers/etc. able to tap in to it exactly?

Also I've heard about spellcasters being able to sometimes "merge or become one with magic". How does that work?

Magic is generally considered by the default fluff to be inherit in the world. Occasionally, deities are tied to magic, much like Mystra is in the Forgotten Realms. Someone kills her and you get crazy magic cities falling out the sky due to the "hiccup."

As for merging with magic, outside of crazy epic level spell shenanigans a la Karsus's Avatar, generally it's all marshmallows for flavor. So, mechanically, you are unlikely to find something that would allow a casters to merge with magic. However, I do vaguely recall a third party spell that basically turned a caster into a ball of magic for a short amount of time, so it is within the realm of possibility that something similar exists that was created by WotC.

[Voldecanter]

As mostly stated above , Magic , is the inherent force or energy within the world that allows Mages and Arcane spellcasters to inprint their wills and intentions onto the energy to get variable results depending on a number of factors and variables ( Components ,Focusi , Verbal , Somatic , ect.) . Magic in general Dungeons and Dragons is considered to be Learned from an 'spark' or intellectual standpoint for wizards ( Prepared spell-casters ) or completely inborn (Spontaneous Spellcasters , mostly) , Magic is an unending energy within the universe that allows for both reality and nature to be bent to the wills of others .

[Shalist]

Here's a guide that explains it, with pictures:

edit: "merge or become one with magic" sounds more like the power of plot, than the power of magic :P

[Set]

There is no one true in game explanation, barring the Forgotten Realms, where it all comes from Mystryl/Mystra/Midnight/the Weave.

My personal favorite, from Al-Qadim's flavor text combined with the Wizard's Academy supplement back in 2nd edition, is that arcane magic consists of the abandoned tools of creation left behind from the creation of everything in the campaign world. Whatever gods or elemental entities formed the planes from nothingness used some 'Language Primeval' or something to do it, which may have a few distorted permutations of it's original words and structures left behind in the elemental languages (Auran, Aquan, Ignan and Terran), Draconic, Celestial, Abyssal and Infernal. (Elves would likely add Elvish, or at least Sylvan, to that list, but they have big heads like that.)

Wizards painstakingly learn to mimic the speech of creation (and destruction, and transformation), at least in vastly limited form (until they learn Wish, anyway, then they're *really* playing with daddy's big boy toys, not just feeble kiddie versions made of nerf and plastic!), and use them to 'hack reality' and create, change and destroy things the same way that the ancient creator(s) did during the construction of the universe.

Outsiders and Sorcerers come by this talent more naturally, but Sorcerers in particular still have to do the gestures and speak the words in an attempt to get themselves into the right psychic space. Clerics and Druids are granted limited use of 'daddy's tools' by the gods themselves, many of whom claim to have some sort of connection to the act of creation (although others argue that they just found the tools first, and use them better than any mortal could, and that the true creator, has yet to be found).

Someone a long time ago said a word, and there was light. Who knows how many millenia later, gods teach their clerics to echo this word and wizards have figured out how to mimic it without the help of a divine patron. Now all sorts of people can speak a word and make light. Or fire, or wind, or stone. Or tear down the same.

It's all right there in the toolbox, for those with the talent to figure it out, left behind for mortals to use to build upon creation, or to destroy themselves with, whichever comes first.

There are plenty of other option explanations, including planar forces or quantum mechanics, the observer effect, blah-blah-blah, but that's my favorite.

[Zaq]

It's a secret.

What? Look up the actual definition of "Arcane." It's a secret.

[Eldariel]

The common trait for all versions of arcane magic, and what makes it distinct from other forms of magic, is that it draws upon the surrounding energy fields. While divine casters channel the power of their divine patron (or the "ideal" if we're talking about such a world) and Psions use their own inner power, arcane casters draw upon an outside, but present source of energy, such as the weave or the creation or lifeforce (see Darksun) or some such.

The "lifeforce"-explanation is a bit difficult to make distinct from Druids (indeed, I've always thought Druids should be arcane casters), but I guess Druids draw upon something more...focal and distant, not the actual lifeforce of the nature around them but rather the divine incarnation that is the nature itself, or Gaia if you will. That's the only tough point though; such arcane casting does fall neatly between Clerics and Psions with clearly separate power sources.

[Aron Times]

4E's power source fluff deals with this. Each power source deals with an archetypal form of magic.

1. Martial = Physical "magic". Basically, all the crazy superhuman stuff you can do without magic.

2. Divine = Faith magic. Magic derived from a belief in a higher power.

3. Primal = Nature magic. Basically your druidy type of magic.

4. Shadow = Dark magic. Draws power from the literal darkness of the Shadowfell.

5. Psionic = Mind magic. Mind over matter.

6. Arcane = I guess it could be called "learned" magic or "book" magic, since all arcanists are trained in Arcana and generally have to master their own powers through practice.

A case could also be made for arcane magic to be elemental in nature, since they tend to have the widest array of elemental attacks among power sources. The elemental power source seems to have been folded into the arcane power source, similar to how ki was folded into psionic and shadow.

[Sir_Elderberry]

I've always thought of Arcane magic as being very scientific. That is, the world's full of energy, which unlike our world will respond to consciousness differently than it does to other matter. All of this energy runs on rules or natural laws, and a wizard is just learning how to apply his influence in just the right ways to make the universe work for him.

[Dixieboy]

Magic is generally considered by the default fluff to be inherit in the world. Occasionally, deities are tied to magic, much like Mystra is in the Forgotten Realms. Someone kills her and you get crazy magic cities falling out the sky due to the "hiccup."

As for merging with magic, outside of crazy epic level spell shenanigans a la Karsus's Avatar, generally it's all marshmallows for flavor. So, mechanically, you are unlikely to find something that would allow a casters to merge with magic. However, I do vaguely recall a third party spell that basically turned a caster into a ball of magic for a short amount of time, so it is within the realm of possibility that something similar exists that was created by WotC.

Isn't Karsus's avatar that spell that lets you replace a god?

[Goldroger437]

Ooh that's really helpful, thanks guys! I guess I should explain why I'm asking...

In the game I DM, there's a Wizard who's basically a dmpc and acts as a sort of guide since none of the players have played D&D before.

Well now that they're moderately experienced I'd like to do away with him via some sort of heroic sacrifice; But in a manner in which he can't be raised.

What I came up with was that he somehow would "become one with the world's magic".
so now I'm trying to think of a way to do that which isn't cheesy or overly confusing to the players.

[The Glyphstone]

If they're new to the game, then you're probably playing at low levels...just kill him with something that requires True Resurrection. Or have him eaten by a Barghest. Or fall into a Sphere of Annihilation.

[Set]

Have DMPC discover (or have it be revealed) that he wasn't originally magically talented, but discovered a way to get around his disadvantage by fighting other arcanists and stealing power from them, eventually becoming so saturated with stolen power that he 'made the jump' to being a full-blown arcanist himself.

But whatever process he used, which seemed fine at the time, since he was just beating up bad-guys to power up, has become a two-edged sword, as he now drains magic from items and individuals around him, without consciously trying to. His divinations have determined that there is less magic in the world than before he worked whatever pact, ritual, etc. he worked to 'get around it,' and it's because he's been taking it in, but never truly releasing it back. He's unintentionally become a black hole of magic, leaching magic from the world, so now he has to sacrifice himself, to return the magic he's stolen for so long to the universe.

Perhaps he'll die in the effort. Perhaps he'll be reincarnated as a child with some special destiny that the heroes have to save from the evil forces who want to tap into his potential power. Perhaps all the magic will fly out of him, and he'll miraculously survive, once again a mere Expert, with maxed out ranks of Spellcraft, because he may not be able to cast spells anymore, but he still *remembers* being an archmage...

[AstralFire]

A common view is that magic is woven into the world invisibly, as 'leylines' or 'the weave' - like difficult-to-detect mineral veins that criss-cross the world, occasionally pooling in some places by accident or design.

[Ravens_cry]

All magic is an illusion, the more 'real' forms of magic are just pulling one over on the universe. A wizard spends years convincing himself that scribbled gibberish in a musty old book will let him create fire, while a sorcerer just has a knack for it.

[Johel]

Our homebrew setting has the following explanation :
Magic comes from the gods and outsiders, but of whom are nothing but huge clusters of dreams, souls and other "mental energy" that have reached a critical mass and developed sapience. This was possible because mortals had dreams.
So, in a way, mortals created the gods and magic, even if they didn't realize it. Some creatures are also natural magic catalysts, like dragons, fairies and most magical beasts. They draw magic by instinct, without understanding it properly, much like the way we breath.
For thousands of years, the only spellcasters were a few sorcerers, born from some ugly backstory pairing of mortals with dragons, elementals, fairies or outsiders.
Eventually, as more and more outsiders appeared and some of them became powerful enough to manifest in the Material Plane, mortals started to worship them, increasing the influence of their gods by spreading his values.
Then came the first druids, as mortals stroke pacts with the fairies and elementals, swearing to preserve the natural balance against the rise of these "new" Gods.
Finally, as civilization evolved, scholars developed ways to extract magic directly from various catalysts, be they dragons, outsiders, fairies, elementals or any other creatures, and this without their consent. Depending of the wizard's moral, the drain might be just a few harmless sips or a complete drain. It's usually done through an item.

[taltamir]

arcane magic comes from the GOD OF MAGIC (via the weave) who actively NERFED it when the last arcane magic god was killed (by a human trying to steal her power). There is an alternative source called the shadow weave, which is extra dimensional.

Divine magic on the other hand, comes from within. Once vested by another cleric, an outsider, or a god directly, a person can channel positive and negative energy from the said plains to create spells. If you greatly wrong your god he will SEAL Your ability to regain spells, but he CAN NOT strip away your magic, and all prepared spells you have yet to cast that day remain until you cast them! To be able to regain spells again, you must have an atonement spell cast on you by another cleric (to remove the seal). Presumably you will either have atoned (or you god will be pissed), or have switched gods. (a god of evil doesn't want you to atone for killing an innocent in the service of a good god, he wants to corrupt you further)

You can also choose to be a cleric of cause, such as "my ascension to godhood" or just "good" or "neutrality" or "magic".

Of course, that is just one of the official world's of DnD... in Faerun for example, divine casting comes from the gods... arcane casting is AIDED by the gods of magic... should they be gone (they were in the past), arcana magic is greatly reduced, but not gone...

And your DM likely has his own custom brew world where usually clerics get their casting from a god and must have one, and arcane magic is just natural laws without a god component.

[Sinfire Titan]

arcane magic comes from the GOD OF MAGIC (via the weave) who actively NERFED it when the last arcane magic god was killed (by a human trying to steal her power). There is an alternative source called the shadow weave, which is extra dimensional.

Divine magic on the other hand, comes from within. Once vested by another cleric, an outsider, or a god directly, a person can channel positive and negative energy from the said plains to create spells. If you greatly wrong your god he will SEAL Your ability to regain spells, but he CAN NOT strip away your magic, and all prepared spells you have yet to cast that day remain until you cast them! To be able to regain spells again, you must have an atonement spell cast on you by another cleric (to remove the seal). Presumably you will either have atoned (or you god will be pissed), or have switched gods. (a god of evil doesn't want you to atone for killing an innocent in the service of a good god, he wants to corrupt you further)

You can also choose to be a cleric of cause, such as "my ascension to godhood" or just "good" or "neutrality" or "magic".

You have it backwards. As written, Arcane is either learned or innate, and Divine is granted. Besides, Mystra isn't the true god of magic anyway.



Tzeentch is.




My favorite explanation of where magic comes from is in my favorite book: The Liber Chaotica. Read it. Its worth it.

[taltamir]

You have it backwards. As written, Arcane is either learned or innate, and Divine is granted.

incorrect. Arcane magic requires learning or innate ability to manipulate the weave, but the weave comes from the gods of magic who actively rule on what spells are and are not possible. Over time arcane magic gets weaker as more spells are banned by the various gods of magic.

Divine magic ABILITY is granted. By it CAN be granted by clerics, outsiders, or gods (rarely does a god give someone ability directly, and when they do it is often a favored soul; clerics usually get theirs from other clerics).
And if you wrong your god he can only prevent you from preparing spells (until you get someone to cast atonement on you)... He can't actually take away your prepared spells.

I know it is stupid, but that is what it says.

[Moriato]

incorrect. Arcane magic requires learning or innate ability to manipulate the weave, but the weave comes from the gods of magic who actively rule on what spells are and are not possible.

If you're in Faerun. It doesn't work that way in every setting.

[Johel]

Besides, Mystra isn't the true god of magic anyway.
Tzeentch is.

I second this.

[taltamir]

If you're in Faerun. It doesn't work that way in every setting.

I explicitly stated that it varies on a setting by setting basis...

[Sinfire Titan]

incorrect. Arcane magic requires learning or innate ability to manipulate the weave, but the weave comes from the gods of magic who actively rule on what spells are and are not possible. Over time arcane magic gets weaker as more spells are banned by the various gods of magic.

Divine magic ABILITY is granted. By it CAN be granted by clerics, outsiders, or gods (rarely does a god give someone ability directly, and when they do it is often a favored soul; clerics usually get theirs from other clerics).
And if you wrong your god he can only prevent you from preparing spells (until you get someone to cast atonement on you)... He can't actually take away your prepared spells.

I know it is stupid, but that is what it says.

What is this weave you speak of? Oh, right, Faerun stuff... Never really paid any mind to Faerun. I'm more of an Eberron/Sigil DM. Yes, I have a campaign set around Sigil itself.

[taltamir]

let me quote myself:

Of course, that is just one of the official world's of DnD... in Faerun for example, divine casting comes from the gods... arcane casting is AIDED by the gods of magic... should they be gone (they were in the past), arcana magic is greatly reduced, but not gone...

I did however focus on the info in the PHB and the class description...
Read the cleric class description in the PHB from beginning to end.

An FYI, I read an interview somewhere once where an official developer was asked about the cleric. He responded with something to the extent of:
"well, when we play tested the game nobody wanted to play a cleric, so we just buffed it up until enough people wanted to play it".

[OldTrees]

From how I understand it (3.x, assuming only three kinds of magic: Arcane, Divine, Psionic)

Psionic is channeling power from the manifester itself.

Divine is channeling power from an idea/ideal in their head. (sometimes through deities)

Arcane is channeling power from a outside source.
That source varies with the scope/focus of the class. (Wizards draw from the fabric of reality, Binders from the vestiges, Sorcerers from their blood, Truenamers from names)

[Eldariel]

incorrect. Arcane magic requires learning or innate ability to manipulate the weave, but the weave comes from the gods of magic who actively rule on what spells are and are not possible. Over time arcane magic gets weaker as more spells are banned by the various gods of magic.

Divine magic ABILITY is granted. By it CAN be granted by clerics, outsiders, or gods (rarely does a god give someone ability directly, and when they do it is often a favored soul; clerics usually get theirs from other clerics).
And if you wrong your god he can only prevent you from preparing spells (until you get someone to cast atonement on you)... He can't actually take away your prepared spells.

I know it is stupid, but that is what it says.

It's worth noting that in Faerun, you have to worship a deity to receive divine spells. So in Faerun more than anywhere else, divine magic is direct manifestation of your deity's energy and so is channeling positive or negative energy; you're a channel through which your deity interacts.

Now arcane casters, they manipulate the weave. They study and learn how to manipulate an energy that's omnipresent in the world (except for Dead Magic Zones). While Mystra is the Weave (sorta), she doesn't really have a hand in lending that power to anyone; she can block the Weave off, but she does not actively grant anyone the power. Arcane magic is simple power field manipulation (as is apparent from the fact that there's no way to cast in Dead Magic Zones as an arcanist; Clerics of Mystra can call "Mystra" there though through Initiate of Mystra).

[Godskook]

Personally, I always assumed that arcane magic is much akin to science, except with even less limitations.