The Calling of the Mage

Practitioners of the use of magic are known to themselves as mages and to others as magicians. Mages are different from the rest and they know it. It takes a life of dedication to obscure and arcane arts to tap into thaumaturgic phenomena and as a result mages are rare and tend to live a life apart. Many mages look on non-mages with pity or dismissal, while non-mages tend to look on mages as worthy of respectful reserve (at best) or naked suspicion (at worse). In rural areas a mage that has the sponsorship of the local nobility is respected but is otherwise shunned. Some mages like to revel in how different they are and wear the trapping of mage-hood like robes and staves. Others however like to blend into the background by using ordinary clothes and hidden items like daggers.



Humans can become mages including all specialists. Most specialists are Humans as it was among them that specialization was developed. The seven 'schools' into which spells fall are Illusion, Enchantment, Transmutation, Evocation, Conjuration, Necromancy and Prognostication.

Elves can and do become mages but in Elvish society it seems that the distinction between mages and clergy is blurred by the Elvish apprehension that “all the Universe is magical and we both participate in and venerate the Universe”. As such mages in Elvish society have more of a pastoral role than they do in others. Elvish culture has a preference for Prognostication, Illusion and Enchantment but only those Elves who live among Humans ever become specialists. Half Elves can be both generalists and specialists.

Half-Orcs can become mages (always generalists) if they have lived in Human society.

Dwarves cannot cast magic spells but those of mixed Human parentage can become what are known as Spellsmiths who combine magical with mechanical skills. These Spellsmiths cannot produce spell effects themselves but can imbue objects with magic.

Halfings have difficulty in developing magic talents - whether due to cultural or natural factors - which ironically makes them attractive apprentices for some of the more miserly and selfish of Human mages.

Generalists and Specialists

For most of history mages have drawn on all manner of magic. However there have always been those who had particular preferences for one brand of spell over another. These preferences have been formalized by recent generations of Narman mages particularly in the Sea Cities. Now there are specialist mages whose names are taken from the particular ‘schools’ of magic to which they are dedicated.

As a result the term ‘mage’ now refers to generalist mages specifically. The most accomplished generalist is thus an ‘arch-mage’ while the most accomplished of specialists is known as a master or mistress. Advocates of specialization refer to the additional power one can get within a given school of magic. Critics however note that specialists lose talent in other areas of magic to some extent.

Wizards and Sorcerers

Both ‘wizards’ and ‘sorcerers’ are mages (whether specialist or generalist). These terms in The Lands refer to the distinction between those mages who prefer to work in conjunction with other mages (wizards) and those mages who prefer to work alone or in the company of non-mages (sorcerers). Thus one talks of ‘wizard lodges’ and ‘maverick sorcerers’. In practice a mage can be both at one time or another in life and many see the distinction as a spurious one. Others however see these distinctions as important ways of life.

The Doctrine of Rules and the Doctrine of Will

Mages have been having a long-running debate over the nature of magic-using. All agree that magic is derived from the natural forces of the universe. But there is division over how mages relate to these forces. Some argue that shaping forces into coherent spells involves profound understanding of the rules by which those forces operate – these mages adhere to the Doctrine of Rules. Others however argue that shaping forces into coherent spells depends on exercising ones will over them – these mages adhere to the Doctrine of Will. There is a tendency for wizards to prefer the Doctrine of Rules while sorcerers prefer the Doctrine of Will. Some mages however dismiss the entire debate by saying that one can only cast spells if one both understands and controls magical forces. And many mages give the whole issue scant attention – for them all that matters is that the magic works.

Important Groups of Mages

The distinction between different schools is a technical one but there are also some groups of mages defined by cultural or political distinctions.

The Nartellfar Guild of Magic

It is normal for a city to have its own lodge for wizards but most are only as powerful as the membership itself. The Nartellfar Guild of Magic is different. As the whole basis of popular rule in Nartellfar is manifested in guilds (the Assembly comprising the representatives of every recognized guild in the city) this instantly grants some power to the Nartellfar Guild of Magic. In particular it holds a charter to police magical crime in Nartellfar and thus the guild has authority over all mages in the city whether resident or visiting. This power is rarely abused. Nonetheless there are those among non-guild mages who resent this authority.

The Ancient Fellowship of Wizards of Farport

The thing that sets the Ancient Fellowship of Wizards of Farport apart from all other lodges is the fact that its membership is open to non-mages! For a very significant fee non-mages may become associate members of the Fellowship and don its distinctive membership cap. Many rich and powerful personages in opulent Farport have made such membership one of the things that marks one as rich and powerful. It is possibly this meeting of mages with affluent non-mages that has made Farport the key workshop for the makers of magical items for the use of non-mages.

The Arcane Coterie

The Coterie has been likened to a mercenary company but staffed by mages rather than warriors. Its only loyalty is to itself and to the temporary alliances it undertakes. Its members allegedly reside in all nations. Membership is only open to mages who are sponsored by existing members. Everything from its membership and office-holders to its property and customs are guarded secrets of the Coterie. Anyone known to be a Coterie member is instantly the subject of suspicion. Rarely is anyone ever confirmed to be a Coterie member. A few shops in far-flung locales are rumoured to be fronts for Coterie activity - indeed there are reports of particular mages entering a shop in one city and exiting another shop in a completely different one.

The Magøsha

The Magøsha are the sorceresses of Rovnara. In Rovnaran culture only women may be mages and these generalist mages must develop brewing skills so as to make the Red Rum which inflames the warlike passions of the Cavar. If she wishes to be the matron of a clan she must both be a Magøsha and take a Cavar as her spouse. This is all because the original queen of Rovnara had such a life. Some of the best mages in The Lands are men who left Rovnara to be free of this restriction.

Mage Game Rules

This is a summary of game rules as they apply to mages in The Lands.

Mages all must have above-average Intelligence. Specialist Mages have further expectations as follows:

- Prognosticators and Necromancers must have above-average Wisdom.
- Enchanters must have above-average Charisma.
- Illusionists must have above-average Dexterity.
- Conjurers, Evokers, Transmuters must have above-average Constitution.

For Life Points they roll the same number of d6 as they have levels till level ten (inclusive). Between levels eleven and twenty they get an extra 1 life points per level. At tenth level a mage becomes an ‘arch-mage’ while specialist mages become 'master' or 'mistress' of that school of magic.

Mages need to have one or both hands free for spell-casting and so cannot use both weapon and shield at such times. Likewise they need a degree of comfort and cannot be encumbered by anything more than leather jerkin.

Mages start with 1 weapon proficiency point at level 1 and get an extra point at every fourth additional level (levels 5, 9, 13 etc). Mages must start with either staff or dagger according to generations of tradition (tradition which they say even the magic itself has come to expect). Mages using non-proficient weapons deduct 3 from both hit and damage rolls.

Prognosticators and Conjurers get Astrology free. Necromancers get Astrology and Taxidermy free. Enchanters get Rhetoric free. Illusionists get Ventriloquism and Slight-of-Hand free. Evokers and Transmuters get Alchemy free.

Mages variously cast Illusion, Enchantment, Transmutation, Evocation, Conjuration, Necromancy and Prognostication spells.