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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
 Posted - 09 Jun 2012 : 04:18:25
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quote:
Originally posted by Hoondatha
I'm trying to remember the who and where of this, which is why I didn't post earlier. One of the designers posted here a few years ago about the Sharn Wall, and said that in addition to holding them in, it also warped their minds so that they didn't even remember it existed. Essentially, it formed an "invisible wall" holding in their territorial expansion, and vanished into their subconcious so that they weren't even aware they were being penned in.
Except that at some point they should have blundered right into it, and thus found out its existence. Anauroch was huge, but I doubt the phaerimm would choose to stay there forever---not when there's hardly enough magic in there that they could siphon.
Still, whether canon or not, that's an interesting explanation. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 09 Jun 2012 : 04:39:01
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You don't get it - its a giant 'field of confusion'. Its power is two-fold; first, it turns away the Phaerimm (like a compulsion), second, it makes them forget whatever it was they were going to do when they were heading that way.
The beauty of this 'cage' is that the prisoners are completely unaware of existence. To use a Star Trek analogy, its like being stuck in the holodeck - the room is only about 50 x 50, but no matter how hard you try you keep walking in circles (because of the illusion). You can never touch the walls, because you get turned around before you know they are there.
Thats kind of how the Sharnwall works. Its a shame none of that was touched-upon in the novels. Technically, the Phaerimm could always get out, they just didn't know to (until they did get out, and then realized what had been going on all along). The few Phaerimm that lived outside the Sharnwall - many of them got out by accident (if someone could knock-out a Phaerimm, they should be able to just carry them out).
So I guess a Phaerimm was attracted to the magic use (by Gaelaron), and once it saw the breach (in the obfuscation magic), it was able to get through and break the cycle. Phaerimm can detect magic from very far away, but any time they tried to head toward it they ran into the wall, and forgot what they were doing. In the case of the breach they were able to continue forward and through to the other side. You can understand why they were so upset when they realized they had been duped for untold millenia.
So the wall wasn't a wall at all - it was more like a mental (psionic) barrier.  |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 09 Jun 2012 04:39:26 |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 09 Jun 2012 : 04:42:15
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quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
Who says the Sharn wall wasn't composed of Shadow magic? It seemed to react violently to Galaeron's use of arcane magic on it.
No. It wasn't only Galaeron's Weave-based magic that tore a hole in the Sharn Wall. It was a combination of his and Melegaunt's shadow magic.
I am reading this trilogy right now - who said so? I am about halfway through the middle of the second book, and all I see is what the Shades claim happened. In fact, whenever the matter is discussed (in a place-blame sort of fashion), they seem to be very insistent on convincing Galaeron it was him. Read the text carefully - it never states for a fact this happened - this is only what the (oh-so-trustworthy?) Shades insist happened. The fact that the entire thing looked 'planned' came up several times.
Depending on the amount unleashed, when shadow magic clashes with Weave magic, the very fabric of reality is ripped apart. Remember what happened the last time Storm's silverfire met Rivalen's shadow magic? It practically tore reality itself, creating a hole that led down to the Nine Hells. Had Galaeron's Weave magic been as as potent as the Chosen's silverfire, when it met Melegaunt's shadow magic, it should not have only tore a hole in the Sharn Wall---it would have obliterated it entirely.
You might be misinterpreting the machination of the Shadovar. True, they insisted that it was Galaeron's and Melegaunt's combined magic that ripped the Sharn Wall. And their insistence bore some weight. Except that they're omitting the (implied) fact that they designed most of the events to unfold and appear as though it was an "accident." Galaeron is a Tomb Guard. Melegaunt and his men desecrated an elven tomb so that the youngest Thanthul prince could observe the phaerimm behind the Sharn Wall. Of all the places he could choose, why did Melegaunt pick that elven tomb guarded by an elven (Weave) spell-caster? Easy. Because from the start they intended the phaerimm to be unleashed and to wreck havoc in the surrounding areas while they, the Shadovar, could work on melting the High Ice and transforming Anauroch into the fertile land it once was, with little to no intervention at all from their neighbors (who would be pretty busy repelling the phaerimm attack).
quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
What I want to know is why didn't the Sharn show up to fix their own damn wall? They are still around - did they suddenly decide they don't care about Phaerimm?
Well, they couldn't be in all places at the same time. I gather they might be attending to some more serious matters, or that they're confident (or arrogant enough) that even if the phaerimm escaped, they could round them up again and lock them up in a newly enhanced Sharn Wall.
Perhaps it was psionic magic, then.
Maybe. Though I tend to disagree. Illithids are powerful psionicists. Yet the phaerimm, during their campaign to devour Evareska's mythal, were able to control hundreds of them with seemingly little effort.
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
That means the 'Shadoweave' was never a separate entity - it was always the other half of the Weave - the half Mystra lost. How stupid of Shar to think one could stand without the other.
Not according to canon. It's explicitly stated, in canon, that Shar created the Shadow Weave.
Either Denning/his editor didn't get the memo, or the later designers decided to change the lore to give Shar more importance in the present pantheon. Much like how they treated Lloth before...and how they're handling her insane rise to power now.
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
And Shar didn't put limitations on the Shadow Weave because the Shadow Weave is a shadow of the existing Weave, and because the shadow of something can't be more than that which it is a shadow of. The Shadow Weave is, by its inherent nature, less than the Weave. This, too, is canon.
Novels are canon, too. In RotA, Galaeron asked Melegaunt if the Shadow Weave is more powerful than the Weave. The latter said that no, it isn't; it's just different. He more or less implied the two weaves are equal.
But of course, given that the Shadovar are proven excellent in the art of fabricating lies, one may argue on the veracity of Melegaunt's words and implication.
--------
Sightless' musings got me thinking. Perhaps what the Sharn used was somehow like a variation of Karsus' Avatar spell. In his avatar form, Karsus cast chain lightning that slew a couple of phaerimm who tried to stop him from ascending. Under normal circumstances, they should have been able to absorb the lightning, but Karsus' empowered state rendered all magic he unleashed too much for them to contain. |
Every beginning has an end. |
Edited by - Dennis on 09 Jun 2012 05:23:24 |
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Sightless
Senior Scribe
USA
608 Posts |
Posted - 09 Jun 2012 : 19:15:49
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quote:
Originally posted by Delwa
That works for me! Thanks, Sightless.
As far as Sharn Magic that Lord Karsus mentioned, I like the possibility that the Sharn have their own style of magic, I would be interested in any lore/mechanical theories that expand on that.
This is probably going to have to go into the "Traveler's notebook" section. I've already have several pages and am not finished yet.
Can anyone tell me hhow to find the submission guidelines for that area? Thanks.
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We choose to live a lie, when we see with, & not through the eye.
Every decision, no matter the evidence, is a leap of faith; if it were not, then it wouldn't be a choice at all. |
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Lord Karsus
Great Reader
USA
3767 Posts |
Posted - 09 Jun 2012 : 21:50:51
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quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
Novels are canon, too. In RotA, Galaeron asked Melegaunt if the Shadow Weave is more powerful than the Weave. The latter said that no, it isn't; it's just different. He more or less implied the two weaves are equal.
-Melegaunt is also an accomplished liar, and the 3e books an omniscient 3rd person narrator. |
(A Tri-Partite Arcanist Who Has Forgotten More Than Most Will Ever Know) |
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Sightless
Senior Scribe
USA
608 Posts |
Posted - 09 Jun 2012 : 22:25:24
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| As far as I understand it, according to the thired edition source book Shadow weaveisn't more powerful than the weave, unleass you are on the shadow plain. |
We choose to live a lie, when we see with, & not through the eye.
Every decision, no matter the evidence, is a leap of faith; if it were not, then it wouldn't be a choice at all. |
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Sightless
Senior Scribe
USA
608 Posts |
Posted - 09 Jun 2012 : 22:27:12
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quote:
Originally posted by Delwa
That works for me! Thanks, Sightless.
As far as Sharn Magic that Lord Karsus mentioned, I like the possibility that the Sharn have their own style of magic, I would be interested in any lore/mechanical theories that expand on that.
Will it bother you that I'm not including anything for 4e? I don't have access to that rule set, so mechanics wise second and third editions will have to do. |
We choose to live a lie, when we see with, & not through the eye.
Every decision, no matter the evidence, is a leap of faith; if it were not, then it wouldn't be a choice at all. |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 10 Jun 2012 : 01:22:56
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quote:
Originally posted by Lord Karsus
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
Novels are canon, too. In RotA, Galaeron asked Melegaunt if the Shadow Weave is more powerful than the Weave. The latter said that no, it isn't; it's just different. He more or less implied the two weaves are equal.
-Melegaunt is also an accomplished liar, and the 3e books an omniscient 3rd person narrator.
Didn't I say one can hardly rely on the truthfulness of the Shadovar's words? |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Sightless
Senior Scribe
USA
608 Posts |
Posted - 10 Jun 2012 : 01:48:07
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| Which of course means that everyone's assuming that he's lying when he says this. A good lyer tells the truth enough of the time so that his lies are believed as such. And unless our friend is a horrid compelsive lier, meaning that he has extrem difficulty in telling the truth, we don't know if he's being honest here. Still everything I've read indicates that the shadow weave isn't more powerful than the weave. And I've found quite a few TSR articles on the subject. |
We choose to live a lie, when we see with, & not through the eye.
Every decision, no matter the evidence, is a leap of faith; if it were not, then it wouldn't be a choice at all. |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 10 Jun 2012 : 02:12:21
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Another related question...
If the Sharn managed to erect such powerful barrier no phaerimm could breach, why didn't they just summarily kill them? It would have saved them the trouble should an outside force attempt to free the phaerimm? It would have been easy for them to eliminate their captives the moment they're put inside the cage/Wall. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Dalor Darden
Great Reader
USA
4260 Posts |
Posted - 10 Jun 2012 : 02:21:17
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quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
Another related question...
If the Sharn managed to erect such powerful barrier no phaerimm could breach, why didn't they just summarily kill them? It would have saved them the trouble should an outside force attempt to free the phaerimm? It would have been easy for them to eliminate their captives the moment they're put inside the cage/Wall.
It is often easier to imprison something than kill it...it happens all the time...and started WAY BACK in literature.
The main reason the Sharn imprisoned the Phaerim was that they COULDN'T kill them. |
The Old Grey Box and AD&D for me! |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 10 Jun 2012 : 02:42:02
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Perhaps that explains it then. Their inability to kill the phaerimm left them no other choice but to imprison them instead... |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Xar Zarath
Senior Scribe
Malaysia
552 Posts |
Posted - 10 Jun 2012 : 05:55:08
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| Because there were too many? Besides phaerimm are a bit sketchy themselves on their origins, from Imaskar to time traveling to defeat the Sarrukh and the like... |
Everything ends where it begins. Period.
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jerrod
Learned Scribe
157 Posts |
Posted - 10 Jun 2012 : 18:32:09
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| If elven high-mages were part of the sharn composite,they would remember that the last time they tried to kill off a race of powerfully magical creatures the weave was damaged and magic was lessened throughout toril.(source:evermeet island of the elves novel.) The sharn wall seems to be a variation of the high magic that "imprisoned"the glorious drow in the fact that it contains them..yet also helps to sustain them. |
I haven't been here in years but I used to be DARKFLAME MILLITHOR(DROW ARCHMAGE of wildmagic |
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Lord Karsus
Great Reader
USA
3767 Posts |
Posted - 11 Jun 2012 : 04:42:08
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quote:
Originally posted by Sightless
Which of course means that everyone's assuming that he's lying when he says this. A good lyer tells the truth enough of the time so that his lies are believed as such. And unless our friend is a horrid compelsive lier, meaning that he has extrem difficulty in telling the truth, we don't know if he's being honest here. Still everything I've read indicates that the shadow weave isn't more powerful than the weave. And I've found quite a few TSR articles on the subject.
-Melegaunt might fully believe what he's saying, and might not trying to purposefully mislead Galaeron, but at the end of the day, we still know what he is saying isn't factually correct. Given his propensity for using lies as a means to influence people and get what he wants (along with other Shadovar characters in that series) though, who knows. |
(A Tri-Partite Arcanist Who Has Forgotten More Than Most Will Ever Know) |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 12 Jun 2012 : 05:47:57
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Melegaunt embellished the truth with a lie so skillfully it's usually difficult to tell one from the other. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36977 Posts |
Posted - 12 Jun 2012 : 16:23:48
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I was looking in Monsters of Faerûn for something unrelated, earlier, and found something relevant to part of this discussion. From page 78 of that source:
quote:
The sharns fought great wars agains the phaerimms, wars that helped shape Faerûn, since the intersection of great sharn magics and phaerimm magics tended to change the landscape upon which the battlefields were fought, turning mountains into hills and forests into grasslands. Eventually the sharns compromised on the phaerimm question, imprisoning them under Anauroch until they could figure out what to do with them.
Also,
quote:
...the race still spends the great majority of its time locked in internal debates and experiments.
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I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen! |
Edited by - Wooly Rupert on 12 Jun 2012 16:24:40 |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 12 Jun 2012 : 18:02:30
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Good catch, Wooly.
I tend to think of Phaerimm like a virus attacking The Weave. They eat the magic and cause wide-spread 'infections' (magic-dead areas). If Mystra's body is the Weave, then the Phaerimm are like a flesh-eating virus.
Using that analogy, that must mean the Sharn are like anti-bodies. The first were probably created with Mystryl's blessing/help from the Creator races, and since that time, more have been added to their numbers.
Think about it - Sharn had to be around before the explanation provided in Blackstaff. The Sarrukh had problems with the Phaerimm. It makes some sense that it takes five different (race) individuals to create a single Phaerimm. Untold millenia ago this would have been the Sarrukh, Batrachi, Fey, Aeriee, and Humans. the newer (Schend) models are composed of Elves, dwarves, Halflings, Gnomes, and Humans (and we could just as easily suppose there were some with dragons, giants, and others).
I also think that means Sharn-Magic is related to Silver Fire (which doesn't preclude it from being related to some form of uber-psionics, which is just the willpower to exert control over reality). In other words, they are using that 'whole magic' Melvaunt was talking about (the kind of magic that existed before Karsus' Folly). |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 12 Jun 2012 18:03:21 |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 13 Jun 2012 : 00:45:16
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Good catch, indeed. Actually, I read that part of the said source before starting this thread. Apparently, it fails to address my original question.
----
@MT: "Heavy magic" has been Banned ever since Mystryl's suicide/reboot, so it can't be it. Unless the Sharn created a variation of it, or had somehow learned to work around the limitations that Mystra placed on the Weave.
And by the way, it's not Melvaunt. It's Melegaunt. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 13 Jun 2012 : 02:11:37
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Shade princes are a dime a dozen - who has time to remember their names? 
Given what that quote by Wooly says, it would appear that Sharn magic reacts to Phaerimm magic the same exact way Arcane magic reacts to shadow magic (and vice-versa).
Now we know the Phaerimm couldn't possibly be using shadow magic, so does that mean the Sharn are using Shadow magic? Or is there a third source of power?
And 'Heavy Magic' is just banned to the general public - I'm pretty sure Silver Fire is the same thing (only Karsus managed to somehow congeal it into a plasma-like state). Both operate 'above' the laws of Arcane and Shadow.
This discussion, BTW, now has me thinking about something thats been bothering me a long time, and now with the Rise of the Underdark storyline, I have to wonder if I'm not the only one who noticed the problem.
'Shadow' is a halfway point. It is neither light nor dark. It is not the end of the spectrum at all, which means there has to be something 'beyond' shadow magic. Could this be the 'Demon Weave' referred to in the blurbs?
Could Shadow be all Shar could take back? Is there something buried deeper beneath The Weave? Something behind those 'spaces' shar got access to?
To my way of thinking, there is a major missing element (at least one) to the creation myth - Shar could not have started out the goddess of Shadow; Shadow can't have existed without light. That means before the (first) sun, Shar needed Selune. I don't understand why she would destroy the sun when all that would do is continue her dependence upon her sister.
On the other hand, can light exist without darkness? If there was no darkness, light would be meaningless. Ergo, both sisters had to have been 'born of the darkness'.
There is something missing there - there has to be another element (energy/being/whatever) that we haven't been told about. Just as there is a power beyond Arcane, there has to be a power beyond Shadow. Hopefully, we will find out more in this RotU storyline. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 13 Jun 2012 02:12:21 |
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Sightless
Senior Scribe
USA
608 Posts |
Posted - 13 Jun 2012 : 03:00:36
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quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
Shade princes are a dime a dozen - who has time to remember their names?
Given what that quote by Wooly says, it would appear that Sharn magic reacts to Phaerimm magic the same exact way Arcane magic reacts to shadow magic (and vice-versa).
Now we know the Phaerimm couldn't possibly be using shadow magic, so does that mean the Sharn are using Shadow magic? Or is there a third source of power?
And 'Heavy Magic' is just banned to the general public - I'm pretty sure Silver Fire is the same thing (only Karsus managed to somehow congeal it into a plasma-like state). Both operate 'above' the laws of Arcane and Shadow.
This discussion, BTW, now has me thinking about something thats been bothering me a long time, and now with the Rise of the Underdark storyline, I have to wonder if I'm not the only one who noticed the problem.
'Shadow' is a halfway point. It is neither light nor dark. It is not the end of the spectrum at all, which means there has to be something 'beyond' shadow magic. Could this be the 'Demon Weave' referred to in the blurbs?
Could Shadow be all Shar could take back? Is there something buried deeper beneath The Weave? Something behind those 'spaces' shar got access to?
To my way of thinking, there is a major missing element (at least one) to the creation myth - Shar could not have started out the goddess of Shadow; Shadow can't have existed without light. That means before the (first) sun, Shar needed Selune. I don't understand why she would destroy the sun when all that would do is continue her dependence upon her sister.
On the other hand, can light exist without darkness? If there was no darkness, light would be meaningless. Ergo, both sisters had to have been 'born of the darkness'.
There is something missing there - there has to be another element (energy/being/whatever) that we haven't been told about. Just as there is a power beyond Arcane, there has to be a power beyond Shadow. Hopefully, we will find out more in this RotU storyline.
It is my understanding that the limitation was just for the creation of 12th level spells, and some of the finer points of magic. Upon listening to the Ad&D material that came with the box set, I can’t find anywhere that it states that she made it impossible for Wizards to summon heavy magic. I use the word summon here, as that is what it sounds like was done by the Arcanists. If that were the case, Incarnets in the relms would be an interesting explanation, even given what is in MOI. 'Heavy Magic' is the same as soul magic, or incarnim, there are relms sorces that say so, as well as it follows from my own argumentation. If both sides are using this kind of energy, then the reaction would be similar to Arcane and shadow magic, but only more considerable. To me it would make since that the Sharn might have wielders that can iinfuse their spells with Necrotic energy. This is the power that is beyond shadow, it is the stuff of Hell itself. It would make since that Lolth would want to gain the power of this. Torturing souls seems right up her alley. It is by the way the direct opposite of the weave, which is the stuff of all life, it is the worped tortured reaility of life. It’s as close to damnation magic as I think they ever got in the relms. This power may also be what’s powering the primordial character of the abbess |
We choose to live a lie, when we see with, & not through the eye.
Every decision, no matter the evidence, is a leap of faith; if it were not, then it wouldn't be a choice at all. |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 13 Jun 2012 : 03:29:05
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The stuff of Hell itself is not necessarily beyond shadow. It all depends on who wields it. Mephistopheles was powerless in Shade, bound like a dog by Telamont and his archwizards. The Lord of Eighth had all the means to summon all energy from his domain, but all that had been suppressed by the Most High's shadow magic. Had the situation been reversed, had Telamont been in Cania, there's a big possibility he'd have a difficult time summoning shadow magic. Still, the former example (from Shadowrealm) shows that energy from Hell does not always cancel shadow magic. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Xar Zarath
Senior Scribe
Malaysia
552 Posts |
Posted - 13 Jun 2012 : 13:49:33
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| Perhaps some wizards, perhaps a lich who is also very powerful and is a supra-genius has been trying to work heavy magic for centuries, perhaps this same lich is also helping Mystra get back on her "feet" so to speak... |
Everything ends where it begins. Period.
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 13 Jun 2012 : 21:35:31
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it seems to me, Dennis, that much of what was portrayed in that series is now being down-played, if not outright contradicted by later (superseding) lore.
I doubt very much shadow magic has more power then 'hell magic' (although the two are probably related to death, somehow).
I also think 'hell' and divine' magics aren't even in the same spectrum - they are on the other axis of the Alignment wheel. Then again, 'light' and 'shadow' don't even fit the other axis either. Perhaps they are on the same axis.
So there should be 'divine' (radiant/light) energy, and Maleficium (dark/shadow) energy at each end of the LG vs LE axis. That means 'shadow' and Hellish' magic are just flavors of black magic.
Thats still doesn't work right - light and shadow should not be opposites! The demonweave should be drawing power from the chaotic end of the alignment wheel, not the evil end. If anything, the term 'shadow' should be applied to what we consider normal arcane magic in FR (magic 'in the middle' of all others - a blend of all four).
Hmmmmmmmm.... maybe it has to do with the pentacle...
Arcane magic is the perfect blend of elemental (prime material) energy, and Shadow is the perfect blend of Alignment power, ergo both sit at the apex of a different five-pointed star. In other words, both are composed of equal amounts of four other sources of power/energy. That would make them counterparts of one another, and in a strange, psuedo-scientifc way opposites as well.
Now I just went form two (simple) sources to eight - possibly ten - complex sources. This stuff is giving me a headache - I need to corner Ed at a Gencon and get some real answers. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 13 Jun 2012 21:40:01 |
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Dalor Darden
Great Reader
USA
4260 Posts |
Posted - 14 Jun 2012 : 00:41:03
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Maybe magic is just like Kool-Aid:
All the same except for which color die you use.  |
The Old Grey Box and AD&D for me! |
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Sightless
Senior Scribe
USA
608 Posts |
Posted - 14 Jun 2012 : 01:00:17
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(From Tomb of magic)
THE PLANE OF SHADOW
The Plane of Shadow neighbors and overlaps the Material Plane and many of the others as well. It is a dark, twisted reflection of the real world, made all the more alien by its nagging similarities. Color is a faded memory, bleached from the world and replaced with shades of gray. The sky is an endless vault of black, with neither sun nor stars to break the gloom. Emotions are as muted as colors -- love and hate, joy and sorrow, mirth and mourning are all less potent, less expressive. Only true needs -- hunger, thirst, exhaustion, and pain -- remain undiminished. Bring all the light you like; it will not shine half as brightly as it does in the darkest night of your own world.
The Plane of Shadow is the literal shadow of the Material Plane, cast not by any light but by the mystical energies that hold creation together. The domain contains twisted reflections of everything that exists in the physical realm. Mountains rise from the earth, but they are perverse and foreboding. Structures stand clustered into communities, but they are warped and often worn.
The most twisted of all areas are the Darklands scattered throughout the Plane of Shadow. These stretches of land are infused with negative energy. They suck life from those who travel them. Desolate, bleak, and forlorn, the Darklands are the most inhospitable terrain in a harsh realm.
It is only natural to consider the Plane of Shadow lesser than the Material Plane. After all, it is merely a reflection of "true" existence, a shadow distorted by the angle of the light and the movements of the world. It is simple image without substance. A rare few understand a deeper truth, however. Shadow is sculpted in the endless darkness. Carved from the only force that is truly eternal, it has a greater meaning, and a greater existence, than the physical world itself. Rather than the Plane of Shadow poorly reflecting the Material Plane, the plane of light and substance is the ephemeral reflection of all-encompassing shadow.
THE METHODS OF SHADOW MAGIC
Shadow magic is subtle and indirect. It involves two fundamental principles of mysticism.
SYMPATHY
Like affects like. If a caster controls a thing similar to, or related to, a target, the mage controls the target itself. Spellcasters of certain cultures take advantage of this principle with dolls shaped like specific people, or by stealing a lock of hair or an item of clothing belonging to their intended targets. Shadow magic takes this concept much further by taking advantage of perhaps the greatest example of sympathy. By manipulating the shadows of individuals, the caster can control their minds, their souls, and even their physical forms.
REFLECTION
For every action, an equal and opposite reaction exists. The reaction is not visible in most forms of magic. The wizard who casts a fireball into the midst of his enemies neither sees nor cares about the brief amount of flame that vanishes from the Elemental Plane of Fire to power that spell. The cleric who heals a dying friend knows that her god is a being of such might, he scarcely notices the energy she draws from him. Shadow magic does not hide these effects, but rather uses them, creating strength from weakness, substance from emptiness, and dark from light.
LESSER SHADOW MAGIC
Shadow magic has its lesser but far more familiar cousins. Casters of shadow magic scoff at those who believe that these feeble magics represent the limits of shadow. In truth, they barely scratch the surface.
Darkness and Related Spells: All spellcasters tap into the Plane of Shadow when creating darkness. They draw extraplanar shadows to them, for no shadow of the Material Plane is strong enough to displace the light. Comparing these manipulations of shadow to those practiced by shadow magic users, however, is as comparing a child playing with rude clay to the skillful efforts of a master sculptor. Others can only force shadow through the planar boundaries in fixed amounts; the shadow master can manipulate ambient lighting as a bard manipulates sound.
Shadow-Based Illusions: Several spells of the illusion school draw on shadowstuff to add an element of reality to their images. Swords seem to cut, lightning to burn. Yet these are no more real than any other illusion. They are shadows of shadows, merely skimming the tiniest amount of substance from the dark plane. Shadow magic casters understand that they need not settle for semireal images. They can create true items, as solid as anything found on the Material Plane.
Negative Energy: The association of negative energy with shadow is in fact a false one, although many of the wisest scholars -- and even some shadow magic users -- continue to make it. The propensity of mortal minds to associate the symbolic with the real causes most people to think of positive energy as "light" and negative energy as "dark." The reasoning proceeds -- if negative energy is dark and shadow is dark, they must stem from the same source. In truth, shadow and negative energy are separate cosmic forces, although they attract many of the same entities and can be used to accomplish some of the same effects. When a shadow magic caster draws the life or strength out of a foe, however, she is funneling the foe's essence into the Plane of Shadow, replacing it with less animate shadows. She need not manipulate negative energy, any more than evil clerics manipulate shadow to control undead.
Shadowdancers: Not all who manipulate shadow do so through intense study and arcane formulae. A rare few grow so close to darkness, they brush the edges of shadow on an instinctive level. Shadowdancers pierce the borders of the Plane of Shadow when they make use of their abilities, even if they remain ignorant of that fact. To date, shadow magic casters have been unable to determine what it is about shadowdancers that grants them this innate link to shadow, but it is an area of intense study and debate within their various societies and organizations.
LEARNING SHADOW MAGIC
The secrets of true shadow magic are difficult to learn, for only a rare and jealous minority possesses them. The majority of such lore can be found in the hands of a few specific organizations, such as the Tenebrous Cabal, and knowledge seekers must petition them for access. Although a few ancient libraries and lost ruins contain tomes of shadow lore, these are usually insufficient for readers to become shadow magic casters simply by perusing them. At best, they might point in the direction of other, more useful sources. Some religious sects and temples also possess writings and lore regarding shadow magic. The priesthoods of many dark gods study the Plane of Shadow, believing it to be an aspect of their deity's power.
As a matter of self-preservation, these groups seek out those who show both an aptitude for magic and a desire to delve into the mystic. With varying degrees of ritual, they share the secrets of the multiverse and shadow magic with a desirable applicant. Because it requires a devoted, disciplined mind to master shadow magic, for it is alien in ways that other magics are not, these groups approach potential recruits infrequently and accept petitioners even more rarely. Still, for those who prove themselves both capable and devoted, access to these organizations opens up an entirely new understanding of magic, of eternity, and of reality itself.
Now, from this alone the following can be derived quite easily, I shall leave the symbolic forms out and stick to plain English:
First, one might not be necessarily evil to wield Shadow magic; second, whatever, or by what process the shadow weave came into creation, and while it is considered a mirror of arcane magic, it is not antipathetic to that form of magic. Given this, some other magic that is not shadow most comprise this sorce. While I hypothesize Necrocarnim to fill that role, it’s only a hypothesis. I shall conjecture more later.
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We choose to live a lie, when we see with, & not through the eye.
Every decision, no matter the evidence, is a leap of faith; if it were not, then it wouldn't be a choice at all. |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 15 Jun 2012 : 07:31:36
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True, one need not be evil to use shadow magic. But this very type of magic affects its caster like a drug affects an addict. It's, well, addicting, and brings out the worst in one's personality. Aeron, Galaeron, and Cale are prime examples of such. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Xar Zarath
Senior Scribe
Malaysia
552 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jun 2012 : 05:11:11
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| Perhaps it creates the shadow self, the absence of the caster? |
Everything ends where it begins. Period.
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jun 2012 : 05:19:08
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It does that, and more. It also devours the other self, its opposite. Depending on how well the caster can control his shadow, he may end up being the shadow itself. If not for his friends, Galaeron would have completely lost it, upon Melegaunt's subtle goading. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jun 2012 : 12:16:48
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Maybe it was 'shadow' that Pandora let loose from her box.
One's 'pristine' soul represents all that is good in Man(kind), and 'the shadow' represents all the world's evils. Pure evil is darkness, and pure good is radiance, but somewhere in the middle lies the mortal soul, forever battling with its shadow.
They aren't two separate things - they are two sides to the same coin. You can no more be rid of your shadow then you can be rid of your sense of self. In fact, 'shadow' may be the requirement for 'free will' (which lawful good outsiders, such as Angels. would not have).
'Good' without the choice to do evil is worthless - maybe this is why mortals must have a dollop of shadow (to start with). |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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The Sharn Wall
