The Role of the Otherworldly in Emory Haven.
What is a "Masquerade"?
Magic Exists...in secret.
Emory Haven is set in a world that is much like the real world we know, but magic exists beyond the veil of masquerade. Mystical beings and magic users operate surreptitiously, and have an innate instinct to protect magic by keeping it's existence a closely kept secret.
On the surface, you would never expect what otherworldly truths exist disguised alongside the mundane. The local coven's meetings are never listed overtly on the chamber of commerce website, the local newspaper wouldn't know to report magical headlines with the daily news. But hidden below it all; something obscure and mysterious exists out of the eyes of the unenlightened consensus reality, the veiled world, the mundane non-magical world, the Leity. Without the masquerade the very fabric of existence could unravel and it's how it has always been. The mundane world is not ready to know the truth, they probably never will be, and the risk of being found out is a danger that unites the magical world with the common need to remain shrouded. It is a world within the world, covertly existing side by side.
A modern fantasy masquerade is a fun and popular story trope that can be found in a lot of books, movies and shows. Each has it's own flavor and manifestations. Here are a few of our favorites.
The goal of our rp setting is to find a unique symmetry between what it might be like for mystical beings to interact with the mundane parts of the world and what a slice of their lives as such might be. Therefor our characters' stories travel well in and out of their mundane layman lives and back into the fabric of our well kept magical world, hidden shrouded behind the veil of the Mysterium. We also see the other side, mundane beings veiled from the truth of magic's existence, living their varied lives among the supernatural they know nothing about.
Emory Haven is set in a world that is much like the real world we know, but magic exists beyond the veil of masquerade. Mystical beings and magic users operate surreptitiously, and have an innate instinct to protect magic by keeping it's existence a closely kept secret.
On the surface, you would never expect what otherworldly truths exist disguised alongside the mundane. The local coven's meetings are never listed overtly on the chamber of commerce website, the local newspaper wouldn't know to report magical headlines with the daily news. But hidden below it all; something obscure and mysterious exists out of the eyes of the unenlightened consensus reality, the veiled world, the mundane non-magical world, the Leity. Without the masquerade the very fabric of existence could unravel and it's how it has always been. The mundane world is not ready to know the truth, they probably never will be, and the risk of being found out is a danger that unites the magical world with the common need to remain shrouded. It is a world within the world, covertly existing side by side.
A modern fantasy masquerade is a fun and popular story trope that can be found in a lot of books, movies and shows. Each has it's own flavor and manifestations. Here are a few of our favorites.
- Sherrilyn Kenyon's Nick Chronicles series & Dark Hunter series
- J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter Series (Muggles anyone?)
- Rachel Vincent's Alpha series
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer (and Angel)
- Supernatural
- The Librarians
- The Spiderwick Chronicles
- and more...
The goal of our rp setting is to find a unique symmetry between what it might be like for mystical beings to interact with the mundane parts of the world and what a slice of their lives as such might be. Therefor our characters' stories travel well in and out of their mundane layman lives and back into the fabric of our well kept magical world, hidden shrouded behind the veil of the Mysterium. We also see the other side, mundane beings veiled from the truth of magic's existence, living their varied lives among the supernatural they know nothing about.
The Basics of Magic & Mysticism (The stuff everyone needs to know)
Mystical Energy
Magic is a type of natural energy.
It is an energy source that flows around and through the entirety of the world. Anyone has access to it as long as they are able to clue into it being there. For some that just takes knowledge, for others it takes having a sensitivity to magic, the veil, or the supernatural.
As an energy, magic does not always coexist well with other energy sources; take Technology for example. When magic is performed around electrical devices of any kind, the mix of electricity and magic can cause the electrical objects to behave unpredictably, they have even been known to short out if the magic energy is strong enough.
It is an energy source that flows around and through the entirety of the world. Anyone has access to it as long as they are able to clue into it being there. For some that just takes knowledge, for others it takes having a sensitivity to magic, the veil, or the supernatural.
As an energy, magic does not always coexist well with other energy sources; take Technology for example. When magic is performed around electrical devices of any kind, the mix of electricity and magic can cause the electrical objects to behave unpredictably, they have even been known to short out if the magic energy is strong enough.
Magic’s Origins
Whispers, stories, and speculations flicker in and out of magic’s history surrounding the origin of such an immense and powerful energy. One of the things heard over and over again, and perhaps bearing the strongest ties to the truth, is that it originated from The Aesir. They bestowed the gift of magic and all that comes with it upon our realm and have since been re-imagined in many different ways throughout the different cultures of the world.
Essential Fundamentals
- Magic can not change the laws of nature without grave consequences.
- Magic requires a balance of energy
The Essence of Magic
Mystical beings have some inherent to them, but learned magic requires an equal balance in active magic. As do rituals and spells that call additional power. Something has to be given to receive power – a Surrender*, a sort of cosmic currency used in exchange for utilizing mystical forces, equal to the power being drawn, specifically, equal in balance.
There is always a price. If power is gained through magic without the price paid then the balance is thrown off and there are consequences. Neopagans call this a threefold rule, which is true for the witches of the Nature Path as well. The Gothi** have a little more latitude with this. They’ve gone through pain rites – which are like a Surrender investment plan.
The ability to use magic can be shorted out or lost indefinitely for all sorts of reasons when the root cause is that the balance of the exchange in energy is tipped. If the balance was tipped too far, it could potentially not be able to be reset. Magic is essentially a type of energy. It needs a conduit and fuel to be used and if used improperly it can cause significant damage to the source. Like other energies, it constantly seeks to right itself so it can act in ways that are unpredictable if you are asking it to do things when you don’t fully understand its needs or how it will react with variables. But, also like energy, Magic doesn’t have a will of its own other than to seek balance and exchange. So the same energy can do very different things when reflecting different motivations and perspectives.
This is why it’s so important for the mystical entities to preserve the shrouded nature of the magical world, and why witches of the local coven work together to manage and guard the power of this land – and magic in general.
The 7 Laws of Magic
There is always a price. If power is gained through magic without the price paid then the balance is thrown off and there are consequences. Neopagans call this a threefold rule, which is true for the witches of the Nature Path as well. The Gothi** have a little more latitude with this. They’ve gone through pain rites – which are like a Surrender investment plan.
The ability to use magic can be shorted out or lost indefinitely for all sorts of reasons when the root cause is that the balance of the exchange in energy is tipped. If the balance was tipped too far, it could potentially not be able to be reset. Magic is essentially a type of energy. It needs a conduit and fuel to be used and if used improperly it can cause significant damage to the source. Like other energies, it constantly seeks to right itself so it can act in ways that are unpredictable if you are asking it to do things when you don’t fully understand its needs or how it will react with variables. But, also like energy, Magic doesn’t have a will of its own other than to seek balance and exchange. So the same energy can do very different things when reflecting different motivations and perspectives.
This is why it’s so important for the mystical entities to preserve the shrouded nature of the magical world, and why witches of the local coven work together to manage and guard the power of this land – and magic in general.
The 7 Laws of Magic
Access to Magic
All living beings have the capacity for magic, it is a learned practice for most. There are a few races that may have more of an innate affinity towards magic though, fae are a good example of this. Given the right attention and study, any race can become a witch, save for those that are undead -because of their curse, these races can't harness or use magic in any constructive form and therefore aren't considered witches-. Mundane humans that take up the practice do need to be careful, though, as magic can quickly use up mortal energy in attempts to balance itself, so it needs an external force, a sacrifice.
Storing Magic
Items can store magic in a couple of different ways. Like a battery – that delivered ongoing effects of magic or a spell – but once the power has drained out, it’d have to be refueled or recharged somehow if it was designed to do that – or was in something that could continue to hold more of that concentrated energy. If magic is being stored in something it’d be like storing electricity – It’d need the right things to balance and stabilize the energy; otherwise it could be very volatile and dangerous. There are some things that have magic that naturally occurs in it, too.
Attaching spells or enchantments to living, non-magical/mundane people or creatures permanently is possible, but very situational and rare. The rule of something needing to be given to receive power – a surrender, equal to the power being drawn still holds weight. Anything placed on or in someone would either A. feed off of the person it is attached to, likely killing them quicker than natural. B. need to be recharged somehow, making it more temporary than permanent. C. the surrender would need to be given as the power is placed on them that is pretty much equal to the span of the power. In this case it would need to be a “life worthy” sacrifice.
A witch can "charge" their magic by practicing rites of surrender to build power toward a specific intent.
Attaching spells or enchantments to living, non-magical/mundane people or creatures permanently is possible, but very situational and rare. The rule of something needing to be given to receive power – a surrender, equal to the power being drawn still holds weight. Anything placed on or in someone would either A. feed off of the person it is attached to, likely killing them quicker than natural. B. need to be recharged somehow, making it more temporary than permanent. C. the surrender would need to be given as the power is placed on them that is pretty much equal to the span of the power. In this case it would need to be a “life worthy” sacrifice.
A witch can "charge" their magic by practicing rites of surrender to build power toward a specific intent.
Limitations of Magic
Limitations within magic come alongside the balance of things. If they can balance the magic, the energy continues. That being said, magic takes a lot of surrender to balance it. So they’d have to expend the energy or spend the escrow for the power.
Because of this magic can behave unpredictable, seemingly mischievously in many instances. Unless they have something outside of themselves to create the balance, the magic turns inward and extracts cede from them internally – their body, their spirit, etc. Additionally magical energy is affected by the whole of the user, so intent and clarity play a large part in the interaction. Subconscious stresses, fear, or indecision can play a huge role in how magic behaves.
Combating magic if you are non-magical/mundane can be done, but can be tricky at times. It comes down to the fundamentals of magic; force of energy, requires balance. The way to combat that is to try to thwart their ability to use the magic by affecting whatever they’re using to maintain balance, or what is taking Surrender for the magic to work. Or find a way to redirect the energy.
Because of this magic can behave unpredictable, seemingly mischievously in many instances. Unless they have something outside of themselves to create the balance, the magic turns inward and extracts cede from them internally – their body, their spirit, etc. Additionally magical energy is affected by the whole of the user, so intent and clarity play a large part in the interaction. Subconscious stresses, fear, or indecision can play a huge role in how magic behaves.
Combating magic if you are non-magical/mundane can be done, but can be tricky at times. It comes down to the fundamentals of magic; force of energy, requires balance. The way to combat that is to try to thwart their ability to use the magic by affecting whatever they’re using to maintain balance, or what is taking Surrender for the magic to work. Or find a way to redirect the energy.
Mystical RP rule of thumb
Even though we play in a world of magic, keep in mind that we are still held to a plausible believably. If something seems too far fetched to be able to do, you probably can't. First and foremost, it should always feel like the real world, where magic just happens to exist.
Appendixes
Glossary (*)
* SURRENDER
A balance in energy can be measured in subjective ways. For instance – In a harvest ritual, you might Surrender to the Spirit of Earth. You could sacrifice a goat and sow the magic of its offering on the ground with the seed – but the magic is more potent if it’s a prized goat, either one that people have grown attached to, or perhaps one from a shy breeding season where the missing milk will make an impact. To Surrender does not necessarily require killing something. Another example could be melting down a favorite locket in the spell, painstakingly collecting herbs or ingredients in a prescribed and ritualistic way, and/or carving symbols craftily into a spell board. Anything that requires a surrender of your work, time, energy, effort, or endearment can be done in the spirit of the spell and applied to the magical balance as the Surrender needed.
* GOTHI
The Highest Rank in the magical world, held by only a single person at a time. No two Gothi are alike, yet all of them share the same grasp on knowledge of themselves and the world. Gothi have many gifts, but some of the more prominent and talked about is the gift of "Freyja's sight" which, among other things, give them the ability to inherit some of the memories and powers of those that came before them in their Order.
The Highest Rank in the magical world, held by only a single person at a time. No two Gothi are alike, yet all of them share the same grasp on knowledge of themselves and the world. Gothi have many gifts, but some of the more prominent and talked about is the gift of "Freyja's sight" which, among other things, give them the ability to inherit some of the memories and powers of those that came before them in their Order.
NOTE OF RIGHTS AGAINST POSSESSIONS
A foreign spirit cannot possess a physically incarnated body which is still possessed by its original spirit without first obtaining the permission of a spirit already possessing said body.
- What does permission mean? Well it can mean that you said out loud that a spirit may possess your body and it can also mean that you have a strong intention in your mind to be possessed by a spirit.
- This permission can be somewhat conditional, meaning you can limit it to only certain spirits. You can say only a specific spirit can enter your body. Or you can say that only a certain type of spirit can enter your body. Or you can say that only spirits in a specific location can enter your body. When you give a spirit this type of conditional permission, the spirit doesn’t have to meet your conditions, you just have to believe that it does. For instance if you said only the spirit of your dead grandmother was allowed to possess your body, a spirit other than your dead grandmother could possess your body so long as you believed that spirit to be your dead grandmother.