The Acclimation Theory - by Orin Vossar

[WriterX]

The Acclimation Theory

by Orin Vossar, Student-Apprentice of the Sandstone College

On Undead and Constructs – The Original Thought

While pondering on the Undead a thought crossed my mind, a question. How come these monsters, that are sometimes as little as bones, are still capable of using magic? Most creatures in order to cast magic need to be alive and thinking. They need to be aware of themselves using said magic, in order to repeat the process. Then I too looked at certain constructs, that seem capable of a limited number of spells. Perhaps not fully capable of learning or expanding on the magic they know, but there was a difference between Constructs and Undead, when it came to their respective magic use.

In the case of Constructs, they were built and prepared to cast magic. There are many constructs that hold no magic at all, and simply operate within their given parameters. I have yet seen some capable of casting limited magic, due to the runes and fuel stored or engraved upon them.

Undead on the other hand don't typically have the same excuse. Most undead who are brought back to life are simply fodders, using swords, axes, bows, whatever they may get a hold of. And yet some of them will be capable of casting magic, and usually, in such cases, it would be the bodies of dead spellcasters who retain such an ability to use magic, after animation.

One of the most common explanations is that during animation a piece of the original owner's soul is bound to their body, and due to that the undead can still continue to use their magic. Similarly, certain undead spirits can do the same, and they lack any physical body as such.

So the question remains, how can undead continue to cast magic, when, practically speaking, they should have no ability, or memory of doing so?

A theory began to arrive in my mind, one for which I cannot find a fully correct name but one that I shall for now call the Acclimation Theory.

The Acclimation Theory

Following Daoud al-Maaz's theory of arcane energy, and my own theories on "Raw Arcanum", I tried to look for a possible explanation as to why some are capable of casting more magic over others, and how some are capable of casting it at all, while others do not.

This will combine some observations, pre-ring fall, of a phenomenon known as Plane Sickness.

Plane Sickness, also known as Planar Sickness and Seam Sickness, was caused in one of two instances. Travel to other Planes, and a Wizard casting magic on himself or upon others. The use of magic in the past, in the form of Wizardry magic, relied heavily upon Planar energies, which, based on some speculation, escaped after their destruction at the hands of the Djinn, and now may, very well, be present throughout our world.

This planar energy is now everywhere, and thus magic is drawn not from distant planes, but from around us.

Holding that in mind, Planar Sickness was a dangerous illness, as it would "destabilize" an individual, and in the final stages, kill them. However, now that this is not present, at least not visibly, I wish to put forth this theory;

The doze of Planar Energy present while casting our magic, is greatly diluted. Further, it is served in such small dozes that over time our bodies grow more acclimated to it.

Daoud al-Mazz showed upon his drawings of "Passive Energy Wands", that they would draw Arcane energy from their surroundings, and pass it through themselves. In a way, I view Wizards and Sorcerers in a similar light. With the Arcane Energy present around us we "draw it" into ourselves while casting, and then expel it, in the form of a completed spell.

At first we seem only capable of casting a limited amount spells, which some claim is forgetfulness, power, exhaustion. But what if it was simply our bodies incapable of simply storing or "passing through" more arcane energy?

It would seem, in my mind, that most races are capable of casting magic, thus everybody is capable of storing a very small amount of arcane energy, but be unable to use it, as that requires the right triggers, training or "gift". However, those who continue to use magic have their bodies grow more accustomed to the strain, and, over time, they can handle and use more, and more arcane energy.

In essence, the Acclimation Theory is that over time our bodies adapt to use more and more powerful magic, the more we expose ourselves to it.

There is however a difference between casting a spell and having a spell cast on you. When you cast a spell raw magical energy passes through you. Meanwhile those who are on the receiving end of the spell receive the "filtered" product. Thus, a person who continues to cast more and more magic may prove to be more capable of casting more of it, over time, while a warrior who continues to receive a spell of Bull's Strength won't suddenly have the ability to cast magic.

In other words, Arcanists slowly "adapt" to magical energy, they grow acclimated to it. But this is not usually reflected in some physical change, I believe it might be a more internal one.

While grotesque, we can look at some examples of where such may be true, especially when we consider our previous thoughts on the Undead.

Shamanistic Fetishes – Monstrous Artefacts of Bone - Wands

 Among my many adventures I have both heard of and seen the use of bone fetishes by different monstrous races. Some of them, however, were notably made from the bones or body parts of other spellcasters. While many such objects exist, it seemed that those fetishes made from spellcasters were the most potent.

It almost seemed as if the bones or body parts were either more magically charged, or capable of storing more energy.

And while this may be a grotesque observation, many commonly made wands are made of bone. While it may be an aesthetic choice I believe that bones may be a natural conductor for arcane energy. And, while most creatures can store magic, to some degree, only those who truly delve into the arcane are capable of storing more of it. More expensive wands are often made of silver or gold, including certain other devices with magical, arcane, properties, which may suggest that they too are capable of storing arcane energy, though I do not know how we can compare their relative capacity.

Returning to the Question of the Undead

Holding the above in mind, we can theorize, at least in part, why skeleton mages may be capable of casting spells. Their "bones" are capable of more aptly conducting arcane energy, thus allowing them to cast spells.

This however does not address the question of ghosts and spirits that have physical bodies, at least not entirely. However, the simplest explanation I can think of is that there isn't a single organ, or body part, responsible for storing or casting magic. Instead the entire body, and even the soul, grows more capable of storing and using magic. Thus, a spirit, who has no physical body, is still capable of using magic, because, to some degree, its soul can store arcane energy to do so.

Based on this however one could assume that undead have a diminished store of the arcane, because the amount of "mass" they have is reduced. A skeleton has only its bones, a spirit only its soul, but considering the varying levels of power that these individuals may have had when they were still alive, a fraction is still plenty of power at their disposal.

The Nazaru, Sorcerers, Beasts and Familiars.

This chapter will be a little odd, as what do all of these groups mentioned above have to do with one another?

The Nazaru are a race of goblin-like creatures that are, as a race, incapable of casting magic. This in itself is fascinating, as one would beg the question, how can the Nazaru be incapable of using Arcane Energy at all? Could it be that they lack any sort of arcane conductivity? And if not that, what are they "missing" that allows so many others to cast magic?

With that in mind, the way the Nazaru go around their inability of casting magic is by forming pacts with the Djinn. These Marked Nazaru are often covered in tattoos, due to all the pacts they have formed. This gives them not only different empowerments but in some cases also allows some of them to become shamans or mages. However, it is clear that while they might know how to cast magic, how much they can cast of it depends fully on the Djinn Tattoos that they carry. A sort of artificial magical storage, without which they would be entirely helpless, at least in terms of magic. It could also be theorized that the Djinn, by living inside of the Nazaru like parasites, become leeches that drain their souls and life force, while also making available the arcane energy that they themselves can store. A sort of parasitic symbiosis.

Sorcerers are split between those who have been touches by the Arcane, in a specific way, or who have heritage that awakens in them, thus allowing them to use magic.

Their blood, in essence, is what allows them to both store and use magic. At first their blood could be called a crutch, but over time their bodies acclimate to the magic, and thus become more capable of casting more powerful spells, like wizards, and perhaps also undergoing certain changes due to their heritage, thus allowing for more such power.

Meanwhile among Beasts we have a handful of examples where normal animals suddenly become capable of using magic. One such example that I can think of are Arcanist Rats, as they are known. However, their existence could be due to something similar that the Nazaru go through. Rats have been used for centuries in all manner of arcane experiments. Perhaps over said centuries some of them were released, some of them escaped, and, these experiments having been exposed to more arcane energy than others may, somewhat like a mixture of both the Nazaru and Sorcerers, be capable of casting limited magic.

Thus a rat, "super charged" with arcane energy might not immediately show any arcane ability, but through following generations, also due to how unpredictable magic can be, some of them suddenly go through an "Awakening", and become capable of casting spells. 

Familiars on the other hand tend to be perfectly normal animals, in most cases, until they are bound to a wizard. The bond formed between them seems to change how the animal behaves, and familiars are known for gaining super natural abilities, and sometimes limited spell casting. There was, in the Well's history, an example of a Familiar that broke its bond and went on to become an independently powerful brooker, but I would say it is a similar case to the above. A familiar would had been a perfectly normal animal, if not for the exposure to magic. 

Racial Magical Heritage

I dare take a step further and say that, if the origin of magical use goes back to the inception of a race, or its early steps, so to speak, that some of them may be especially skilled in specific forms of magic, or particular schools, while others may grow more resistant to magic.

This again could tie in as to why certain races or creatures are capable of using magic more skilfully than others. Why some of them have more access to specific schools, or, in some cases, be incapable of using magic at all.

To name a few such examples;

Dwarves are known for being somewhat more resistant to magic than other races. Elves seem more resistant to spells from the school of enchantment. Gnomes are often seen as very skilled illusionists. Kobolds are often seen as having closer ties to the earth, and they are one of the few races who use Geomancers. Orcs don't only seem more acclimated to heat, but they have a greater than normal number of Pyromancers, showing some connection to Fire.

I would theorize that if we followed the history of each race, to its very roots, we could see the reasons for these specific traits appearing, what impacted their "development" in this path, and perhaps observe how each of them developed magic in their own way, how they were exposed to it, and how they used it.

Final Remarks

 While just a theory, I would hope that these observations hold some merit. Considering how we do not truly have an explanation for why with time the magical power of individuals grows, this is a blind jab at a vast and complicated topic. And while it may be tempting to begin examining the bodies of different monsters, to find some "magical organ" that could answer the question of arcane use, as with most magic, it might not be immediately obvious, or even visible. We may not have a clear answer, in our lifetimes, to this question, but there certainly seems to be some correlation between exposed arcane use and becoming more adept in using it.

And just like in other cases, if we consider ourselves conduits of arcane energy, as we grow more capable we can conduct and use more of it. But, if we try to overcharge ourselves, we may simply, explode, change from the maelstrom of energy that we cannot contain.

I would not wish to create an illusion that arcane energy in its raw form is safe, for it is not. Wild Magic has damned many to death and worse fates. So, our "acclimation" to it is not a quick or immediate process. We barely seem capable of using small portions of it. When we observe certain ancient magics, none of the wizards I can think of today could easily replicate that, and even some legendary personas, such as Q'tolip himself or the Golden Vizier of Kha'esh have their limits.

In short, while Acclimation exists, what we seem capable of is still greatly hindered by what we are, and strip a wizard or sorcerer from all his magical trinkets and you will see that the amount of magic they have will usually be trivial at best.