Magic

Magic was once commonplace throughout the lands of Ane Dorai and Eraden. Magic was a natural ability humans were born with, and could be passed on to their children. Not everyone receives these powers. Sometimes the line skips a generation or two, or will be passed to one sibling but not the other. It is usually hard to tell at first if a child has been born with magic or not, but their eyes can usually give it away. Those blessed with power have lightened eyes that seem to have an ethereal glow to them. Magic users will often have their first release of magic around 10 years old.

Humans will receive magic that is structured under the influence of one of the gods. When the gods first created the humans of Eraden, they created a human in their image who possessed a fraction of their power. This influence became magic. Historically, the type of magic someone received was based on which god their ancestor was blessed with, since the influence is carried over. However, the intertwining of many humans with different bloodlines led to the influence becoming unpredictable, as everyone eventually had the influence of every god in their blood. Typically, there will only be one god they receive magic from, but they can have access to additional abilities from other gods. Through prayer, a magic user could also receive powers from a specific god, if the god found them worthy. There have been instances in the past where someone would be born with unlimited access to all the gods’ powers. These people are rare and dangerous, as there is no limit to their potential, and no guidance from the gods. Humans do have a limit to how much magic they can use in one setting. The longer they use and practice their magic, the longer they will be able to access it. They need to rest after reaching their limit. The more magic they use, the longer they will need to rest. If a person manages to use up every ounce of their magic, they could die. Magic is also influenced by emotion. The stronger emotions someone is experiencing, the stronger their magic will be; but it will also be harder for them to control.

After Olvoldin’s defeat, the gods made magic dormant in humans. Followers of individual gods were fighting each other, especially followers of Olvoldin. The gods took magic away since the humans proved they would not use it for the better. Since this time, the Zae gods have seemingly abandoned their humans. Emissaries haven’t been able to communicate with them, and their influence isn’t felt as strongly on the lands anymore.