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There are no powers in this world which can surpass magic; only users whose prowess surpasses each other. It is a divine force of nature, imbued into the very being of the earth beneath our feet, the lifeblood of our world. To use it is to become part of something greater.

- Archmagus Jaerit of the Ninth Realm, The History of Magic

If you intend to play a magus and utilize magic, then you'll need to understand the magic system before you go charging off half-cocked.

In Astraia, magic is complex and difficult to use, requiring the user to dedicate their life to it in order to use it properly. It's extremely powerful, but the knowledge and ability to tap into that great power has faded greatly with time. There are different ways in which to use magic, and magic users tend to specialize in one or two of those different ways. Some types of magic use are good for fast-paced combat while others are more versatile, but also statistically weaker (making them bad or not as good for combat alone).

spells.
All magic has limits and different variants, and is a very mental practice rather than physical, especially in this day and age, making the bodies of magic users weak. All magic takes the form of spells, which have very singular and specific purposes; once put into motion, they are out of the magic user's hands and will only perform the purpose that they have been designed to do. A spell must be prepared in advance before it can be used, requiring what can sometimes be hours of mental concentration (depending on its complexity) and repeated testing to perfect it. Once perfected, the components that took such a long time putting together become something along the lines of muscle memory, allowing the user to initiate them practically at will. How many spells a magic user has available to use at one time depends on their mental stamina and the amount of magic power required for their type of magic. Spells are very difficult to create on the fly, an act which requires an immense concentration and years of experience to actually perform, the main reason why archmaguses were such masterful users; they aged much more slowly than their descendants the maguses, and so spent many more years perfecting magic. Attempting to create a spell on the fly will not store it in a magic user's "muscle memory" the way pre-prepared spells are, and the results are most often not what was desired and can be catastrophic in nature depending on how much magic power was used. Cleansing a spell from the user's bank of spells requires at least an hour, sometimes more (again depending on the complexity of the spell), of mental concentration.

mental stamina.
Spells also require certain amounts of magic power; the amount of magic power drained depends on the size and complexity of the spell being used, and the amount left over depends on the user's mental stamina. As aforementioned, magic is mainly mental, and only maguses possess the mental capabilities to generate magic power. They do not have a set store of magic power; rather, they have a certain level of mental tolerance for generating power. When a spell is cast, the magic power for it is generated from within a certain part of the body, most typically the arms, but this generation takes a mental effort on the part of the user. The more power they generate over smaller periods of time, the greater a stress is put on their minds for this repeated effort. If they put too much stress on their minds, it can and will result in pain, malfunctioning of the senses, incoherency of thought, fainting spells, and even death. Building mental stamina requires hours upon hours of practice and concentration; so if you're going to play a magus, I would ask that you be reasonable, as it's difficult to have a mental stamina beyond their years.

magic types.

elemental magic
This type of magic draws on the user's magic power to manipulate and generate the raw elements of their surroundings, including fire, wind, ice, water, lightning, rock, and many more. Spells of this kind are not particularly complex and are generally designed for one singular action, usually requiring a small amount of magic power to use due to lack of complexity, allowing the user to store more spells of this kind than some other kinds of magic, making elemental magic one of the primary battle magics.

enchantment magic
This type of magic is used to place temporary magical effects on just about anything or anyone. Spells of this kind tend to require moderate magic power and complexity. How long they last depends on the magic power used, and casting them over long distances is very difficult. Enchantment spells also take a toll on whatever they're cast on; so if it is not durable enough, damage will occur, which makes the creation of long-lasting magical items next to impossible now; civilization simply lacks the ability to harvest and refine the materials necessary to create such items. Enchantment magic has the potential to be a good combat and support magic.

healing magic
This type of magic is rather self-explanatory. It requires high magic power and complexity, and can be used on singular or multiple targets. Spells meant to affect multiple targets are naturally weaker than spells of the same magic power meant to affect single targets. This type of magic is not a battle magic; it is purely support.

illusion magic
This type of magic allows the user to alter the way in which the senses perceive something. The magic power and complexity of the spell depend on how large of an area the illusion is covering and how many senses it alters. For example, casting an illusion on a blank wall to make it look as though there is a door. If this illusion only tricks the eyes into believing there's a door, then this spell would require only a moderate amount of magic power. If however the illusion also makes that feel to the touch as though a door is actually there, and perhaps the ears and nose (the sound of people within and smell of wood instead of a stone wall), then the amount of magic power used is probably high. Illusion magic is not good for combat or battle support, but has other various uses.

If you have any questions about magic, please let me know. The descriptions here are meant to give you an idea of how the system works, not tell you how to play your magus, so you'll have to make some decisions on your own (though I'm always happy to offer my help).

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