Post by Gaea on Aug 1, 2013 18:10:50 GMT -8
An enigma wrapped in a riddle cloaked in secrecy - Staves have existed since before the other types of magic were calcified, useful but never understood, and even in the age of reason they are nearly as mysterious. They create effects seemingly divorced from what is possible - magical healing that has been theorized to be a local reversal of time for the wound, an uncanny - and thoroughly disorienting - form of ripping caster or ally across time and space to change locations in a mere instant, and even the ability to summon and somehow control monsters, linking what appears to be nigh-empty shells to the caster's will as perfectly loyal minions.
The mechanics behind Staff magic are simply not understood by the academic elite, loath as most are to admit it, but some have compared staves to keys of a kind, running what they describe as predefined "processes" inherent to the world. While it is true that staves are quite inflexible in terms of effect - Healing staves do exactly that, and unlike most magic types their effects cannot be altered - this theory only raises more questions when one reaches the more arcane of staves, particularly the teleportation and summoning variety. It is clear that staves are linked more to the caster's will than their conscious mind, as teleportation staves show, but the amount of magic used on activating a staff also somewhat influences its effects. Healing staves, for example, heal - but by how much, how wide a range of injuries, and how thoroughly they do so is linked to the caster's magical ability and experience.
Further, there is the metaphorical elephant in the room that most users shy away from even attempting to explain - summoning. By what means staves can call forth monsters and link them to the caster's will is a complete mystery, nor does the aforementioned theory of predefined uses have particularly positive connotations when one considers that the only difference between natural monsters and the summoned variety is how eager they are to kill the caster.
The idea of monster summoning being somehow built into the world itself really isn't a popular subject either.
The mechanics behind Staff magic are simply not understood by the academic elite, loath as most are to admit it, but some have compared staves to keys of a kind, running what they describe as predefined "processes" inherent to the world. While it is true that staves are quite inflexible in terms of effect - Healing staves do exactly that, and unlike most magic types their effects cannot be altered - this theory only raises more questions when one reaches the more arcane of staves, particularly the teleportation and summoning variety. It is clear that staves are linked more to the caster's will than their conscious mind, as teleportation staves show, but the amount of magic used on activating a staff also somewhat influences its effects. Healing staves, for example, heal - but by how much, how wide a range of injuries, and how thoroughly they do so is linked to the caster's magical ability and experience.
Further, there is the metaphorical elephant in the room that most users shy away from even attempting to explain - summoning. By what means staves can call forth monsters and link them to the caster's will is a complete mystery, nor does the aforementioned theory of predefined uses have particularly positive connotations when one considers that the only difference between natural monsters and the summoned variety is how eager they are to kill the caster.
The idea of monster summoning being somehow built into the world itself really isn't a popular subject either.
