Arcane Law ~ Chapter the First
The Beginnings of Magic
Before the beginning all was perfection and light. Then came chaos and in the midst of the chaos came our forebears and they looked upon the chaos and were dismayed.
And some knew that that they had fallen from grace while others believed the chaos had birthed them and they fought one with the other for dominance and those who loved the chaos, though they did not win each battle, so it was they won the wars.
Those who would know perfection were banished and in the midst of the chaos grew the land and the seas and creatures lived and moved within, on and above the both. And in the lands stood the peoples of the world, Elves and Men, Dwarves and Halflings, Orcs and Goblins and all manner more that were beyond reckoning.
And of the peoples of the world there were those who sought the perfection and those who sought chaos and always they were waning one with the other and even amongst themselves.
And always behind the world swam the sea of perfection; tom and shredded flowing back and forth entwined and twisted with the sea of chaos almost so that none could tell them apart. And this power moulded and formed the lands and the peoples.
And among the people were those who could draw upon the powers of perfection and chaos and mould it to their wills. Thus there was magic and thus there were mages.
And those who knew how to bend the magic to their will were powerful and they studied the ways of magic learning how to bind it and blend it, withhold it and give it freely, and in some places they were reviled while in others they were revered. And in some places they were strong and in others they were weak and in passing from one place to another they would find their strength would change.
Thus it was learned that magic was not constant throughout the world but that it waxed and waned, ebbed and flowed sometimes with the constancy of perfection, sometimes with the irrationality of chaos.
So it was in the beginning, so it is now and so shall it always be.
From the Cosmology of the World, the wisdom of the Aratian philosopher Atan al-Rashish, written by his scribe Tiresh, 553 years before the founding of the Great Library of Norhault. Translated from the Arataic by Tolen Garanesh in the 57th year after the founding.
"Magic is the manipulation of patterns within the Universal Amalgam"
Morag Stone Cleaver, Clan Fergusson
Atefacts
In our world a magical artefact is that created device that possesses the inherent ability to command or release the power of magic in a defined manner.
The tool of a blacksmith, as a hammer, is not such a device in that it provides a channel for the strength and skill of its wielder to shape the iron by direct physical contact but it does not alter the skill or strength.
Yet the Hammer of Yosmalinthes is such a device, though it may have appearance and characteristics similar to that of the blacksmith's, in that it channels the strength and skill of its wielder yet enhances and increases it such that it may penetrate the strongest protections. Possessing it even the fiercest of warriors can win great victories - and so it has been through all of history.
But such a thing need not be for war. Consider the Hammer of Yosnialinthes in the hands of a blacksmith. He would he the greatest smithy in the land able to work iron as no other.
Truly it was written by Atan al-Rashish:
Though one creates a tool for the working of good, nothing can be made that cannot be twisted to evil. For it is the mind of Man and all rational creatures that brings purpose to the tool. And the maker cannot dictate that purpose.
Though you may study to create such devices as would bring peace to all, remember these words for they are a warning and a guidance.
How They Work
It was the Master Toolcrafter, Joseph of Norhault, Founder of the Toolcrafters Guild at Norhault in the 67th year after the founding of the Great Library of Norhault, who first defined the understanding of artefacts and their functioning.
To understand these principles the student must consider the constitution of the universe itself as described by Atan al-Rashish:
When our forebears fell from perfection all was light, but the light became tainted by chaos and from this came the lands and the waters and all creatures that live and do not live. But pervading all the lands and the seas and all living things there exists the amalgam of light and chaos that is called in the common tongue Magic.
But know this, you who would work with this amalgam it is not constant.
It is clear that every artefact contains an intensity of the Universal Amalgam that is itself a pattern woven into the very texture of the artefact itself. Woven with such utmost care and craft that the very act or perhaps the merest intention, of using the artefact brings forth its potency.
Clearly such weaving requires minds most dedicated.
How They Are Made
The precise means of making an artefact are as many and as varied as there are tools to be made yet it will always pivot about a single Ritual to bind the Universal Amalgam into the, precise pattern to perform the task required.
The first step must always be delineating the goal, it may be that some great Lord calls upon a Toolcrafter and requires that such-and-such he made or this-and-that be made. But be wary to blindly obeying the dictates of Lord or peasant or even free emotion as it will lead only to destruction.
Delineate your goal with utmost precision; do not yield to the temptations of inexactitude. To name your goal a hammer that strikes with additional strength is not sufficient: How will you know the way to bind and weave the Universal Amalgam into a pattern to achieve such unclear purposes?
Consider the weaver of cloth, does he not design to the last thread how each colour will be placed? How would his cloth appear if he did not do so? We are the weavers of magic and needs be so much more precise than this lest it unravel us.
Now you must choose your threads, for material and colour, and your tools for working. These words are not spoken in levity; your very life depends upon it. Consider again the hammer, if you were to place the power into a hammer of poor construction how would it fare? Test it if you dare.
Find the best maker of hammers in the land and bid him outdo himself for the sake of your toolcrafting, but be sure you have payment ready for he will command the highest of prices for such work. Better still, be yourself the maker of the hammer, have such skill as to create perfection in the ingredients you will need, for none but yourself can truly comprehend your needs.
Listen, once more, to the words of Atan al-Rashish:
Though not all may work the Universal Amalgam to their own ends know this now, the closer to perfection a thing is so it is a vessel to perfection.
And listen not to the fools who command you create such perfection with magic, and perform such rash acts of foolishness only if you be brave, and foolhardy (you needs must be hardy to be such a fool).
If it is that you have delineated your purpose with a clear mind and have brought together the parts that will become the whole, so it is time to consider the Ritual.
It is easy to say, but be sure to consider this: All but the simplest artefacts will require many rituals to be performed before the Universal Amalgam is compressed and bound within the body of the target.
Once the Universal Amalgam has been bound into the body of the target, the vessel. That vessel becomes virtually impervious to physical influence. Though each time it serves its purpose it is weakened.
Unnumbered may be the occasions when those without wisdom have attempted to weave the Universal Amalgam into the body of one living. When one considers the rules commanding the perfection of the vessel one can deduce the results of such insanity.
The Key
Understand this, invocation of magical artefacts is not an essential ingredient in their making. But if no key is worked into the weaving its lifetime will he short.
You cannot make perfection and so you cannot bind the Universal Amalgam for eternity. If you attempt it you will fail. Master Toolcrafter Joseph of Norhault perceived this filing and codified it into his teachings, few before him understood and if they did they did not teach what they had learned.
Here is his truth: There's no perfection in this world so don't try to make it. It's better to make your own imperfections and turn thetn to your benefit. When toolcrafting make the Key your imperfection, it's a way to allow the controlled release of the magic, which is going to go eventually anyway. That way you'll get the most lasting effect and the imperfection becomes a benefit, especially if your sponsor (supposing you're lucky enough to get one) wants it for his own use only. There'll be other smaller imperfections anyway but no one will notice if 'you're clever enough.
The Key permits the controlled release of the power of the artefact.
Since the days of Master Joseph a single key has been used for most ailefacts and that key is taught as, what the commoners call, Invocation. There are few who do not know this key. Yet it is not the only key.
What can be Made
There are two basic forms of the magical artefact, the one most common is the artefact that holds constant power and provides an enhancement to its wielder's abilities. The Hammer of Yosmalinthes is such a one, its power is constant, and also there are the various forms of Seeing Eye.
The other form, the one most popular with the commoners and ignorant lordlings, will provide a magical effect upon command. The making of these must he two-fold as first the vessel must be prepared as an artefact woven to contain the Universal Amalgam. Then it must be charged with the power that, when released, forms a single effect.
Such weavings require enormous skill and are very rare.
The Scroll is a form of ibis artefact using the application of Low Magic, it is codified and ritualised to such an extent that if practised sufficiently, many can perform it safely.
Who Can Make Them
The Circle is close to perfection yet the more mages that combine the harder it is to create a balance of purpose and mind. It is true that more Mages may channel more power through a Circle but for delicate weaving the force of so many may not he needed.
Rehearse your rituals with utmost diligence lest a single slip will, at best, undo your work but, at worst, bring destruction upon you and your Circle.
How Are They Destroyed
No artefact can survive indefinitely but its longevity depends upon the skill of its crafting in both its physical and magical elements. If it should be that the vessel of the Universal Amalgam can no longer contain the magic within then it will fail.
The manner of its failing cannot be determined but such a release of magic is seldom inconsequential, no warrior keeps his magical weapon by his side save when he chooses to use it.
In the Battle of Bon Grimar the conclusion came when the Red Axe of Tolamayrin, wielded at that time by Lord Greman of the Axe, failed in the midst of the fighting and three thousand men and elves were slain where they stood. Know you that dragons always hoard their magic a safe distance from their skins?
But lest the battle-hungry think that this too would be a great weapon such failure cannot he predicted with certainty. Too much depends upon the local intensity of the Universal Amalgam and its perturbations.
Failure of a so-called Wand can be most damaging as all of its bound power is released in one, without a target to focus upon. Such power normally dissipates quickly but such bound energies may fall upon those nearby and affect them badly - though perhaps justly.
Intentional dismantling of an artefact can only be performed in a series of Rituals which must first determine how it may discharged safely and then bring about the conditions for such discharging.
Due to the avarice of so-called rational beings and their desire to cling to their power regardless of their state, magical artefacts are seldom discharged in this fashion.
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