How to create an elemental magic system that feels FRESH!
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- čas přidán 8. 06. 2024
- Elemental magic always seem tempting to create. So easy, just jam the 4 elements together, pick a power-of-friendship element and boom, you're done. But what if that just gives you a ATLA ripoff? Let's take a deep dive into elemental magic systems and how to make them unique.
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Intro music by Ivan Duch - ivanduch.com/songs/
Chapters
0:00 The trouble with tropes
0:46 What is elemental magic?
1:58 Themes are mandatory
6:30 Characters in Elemental Magic
8:47 Elemental Spells
10:50 Elemental Use
13:10 Elemental Support
13:56 Letting the beams cross?
15:06 Elemental Items & Rituals
#justintimeworlds #mariemullany #worldbuilding #magicsystem #elementalmagic
A note on L5R, I'm speaking about the original system, edition 1, 3 and 4. I haven't played the latest version yet, but I heard they changed a lot, so just adding a caveat here in case they changed the spell system.
You did briefly mentioned it, but I think this deserves some much needed appreciation. And that is: combining elements. Very few people seem to even consider the notion of elements combining into new things, and I find that very disappointing on a conceptual level.
To me, the reason elemental magic is so popular, is seen as so powerful, and sometimes form the very foundation of the systems themselves is because... that's kinda what they're supposed to do. They are powerful because they are literally the fundamental aspects of this world, unfiltered and raw. The elements are the building blocks from which all manner of complex mixtures, structures and arrangements form and make up our world. They are forces of nature/nature itself, twisted and bent to one's will.
So mixing them is the next logical step. And for our real world, it very much is. Compounds like water, table salt, and hydrochloric acid are so common and vital in our daily lives. So at least for me, I would really like to see people bending mud, or shifty loose areated soil, or a straight up localised hurricane by way of elemental magic.
Elements are often treated as static, unmoving entities, which in many senses they are. But that disregards their ability to react, adapt, and change to fit any new environment, the very environment they inhabit and embody. They can grow and evolve within a magic system just as much as the world itself.
The examples of ways that you can break the stereotype of elementals and their personalities was great. Would love to see more media breaking the mold
My element system is based on a configuration of sourcing or casting. Sourcing magic is when you create gates for only that specific element to filter through so you can summon water or summon fire if you have already placed a gate around a source somewhere else so long as that source is not moved from that spot. Casting is when a mage can manipulate that's specific element. People specialize in one or the other so those who are sorcers will tend to strategize having the element fall on their opponents or feed into a specific area while a caster carries around small amounts of their element and is more capable of finesse with it. One is more of a wide sweeping damage dealer while the other is a precise striker or manipulator.
Nice variation there. I like the specialization aspect
Elemental magic is one that I like playing with in my head, particularly when it comes to giving them secondary powers. One system I thought of, for example, had Wind grand Authority/Commandment (since it encompasses the sky and gods often rule from above), Water grant Shapeshifting (because it is fluid), Earth grant Healing (because plants grow from the ground and can have medicinal effects), and Fire grant super strength (because it represents power). In a different system, only Fire had elemental control, while Water had alchemy (because potions tend to be liquid), Earth had durability and strength buffs, and Wind had psychic abilities.
In terms of my favorite elemental system, Furycrafting in Codex Alera always attracted me. I like how much thought was put into each element, in terms of their secondary abilities and societal rule.
Another worth mentioning (due to being different) is RWBY. In it, there’s a type of crystal called “Dust” that holds elemental abilities, with a number of different ways to use it (namely hitting it to make it explode, channeling aura into it for more fine-tuned control, adding it to your unique power’s effect, or running electricity through it so it can be used in tech). One interesting thing is that mixed elements are an integral feature to the system, with there being a large number of Dust varieties that came about from mixing the basic four in differing amounts during the refining process (like heat, combustion, gravity, hard light, steam, and the like). Sadly, a lot of this is explained in side content or corollary materials, and the show also introduced people who can use elemental magic without Dust as well.
I did think about talking about Furycrafting, but I felt ATLA was probably better known to people and kind of covers the same ground.
I've never watched RWBY. Might check it out, Dust sounds interesting.
@@JustInTimeWorlds Yeah, ATLA is definitely far more iconic. It would be weird to not mention the show in a video about elemental magic.
In terms of RWBY, the quality is a bit shaky, but it is a fun watch (especially the first three volumes).
You're reading my mind. All last night I was working on this. 😳How did you know this is what I needed????
Hahaha! A lucky guess :) I hope it helped you.
Another interesting use is sensing your stuff. Like if you are a metal mage, you can sense concentrations of metals. Maybe, if you are good, you can even find living beings from the trace elements in their bodies.
Kinda magneto like? Increased iron in the blood 😆 that was a weird plot point.
I have a suggestion for an elemental system that feels fresh! Instead of the traditional four elements, use the periodic table of elements as the base for your magic system! Fun and educational!
Just writing some ideas down:
Main character initially has a weak form of fire power only able to produce sparks. But he uses this weakness as an advantage, sort of a distraction tool hence why he decided to go as a thief in his early part of life.
The deuteragonist is the main character's best friend and does wield the same element of fire, albeit in a different way. Instead of a trickster's sparks, he wield immense flame needed by a powerful warrior like him to easily overwhelm and burn down any opponents in the way.
Many more to come but I'm writing this down in a busy moment, will update more later!
When I write my own fanfics, I tend to separate the earth element into 3 different ones: rock, metal and wood. So yes, a lot like what Pokémon did with rock, steel and grass.
I feel that the earth element in a typical magic system, when not explicitly broken down, is actually waaay to overpowered and varied than the other 3 main ones which are fire, air and water.
Then there’s the customary “fifth” element that goes from heart, to soul, to aether (still no clue what this mean) to death / life. I fancy the one used in the video game Wizard of Legend called “chaos” which is a mix of space, matter, shadow and psychic manipulation. That’s perfect.
The fifth one might be the elements we got to meet along the way.... :D Just joking, you make a good point about Earth being a touch of the overpowered side. Earthquakes vs a fireball for example.
In HeroQuest TTRPG, air is the rune and the element of movement and destruction. That's why the god of air is also a god of war in Glorantha, the game setting.
So, most conquerors, heroes and warriors worship the god of air.
That sounds like a fun setting. I can get behind air as war.
I didn't want mine to be too similar to atla, so practitioners can't "bend" elements, but they can sculpt them by hand like clay. There are great artisans crafting swords out of blue flames and stringing bows with cirrus clouds.
And each person can only craft using the elements that they are made of, of which everyone has 2: one from each parent. Like if your mother is lava(earth+fire) and your mom is smoke(shadow+air), you might be lightning(fire+air) but couldn't craft a dagger out of shadow, for instance.
What could (shadow + fire) make
my system uses different elements but can combine them to create new things like wind + water = storm or earth + fire = lava. combing elements needs a sacrfrice and you have to have seen that element before
This was a very i spiring video. Thanks.
You got me started on an elemental system where the associations of the element are where power lies, such as Earth starting simply as Soil magic, which can then be specialized into Growth or Mineral magic, which can then be further specialized, such as Mineral becoming Stone or Sand.
Each specialization is more powerful than the one before it.
That sounds like a good progression system and I'm glad the video helped you :)
Thanks, that's what I needed to hear, you helped me so much!
My elemental magic system is possible thanks to everything in reality being made up of "archetypes" of one element - aether. And Ehserai are people who have higher concentrations of aether in their blood. This means they can control a certain archetype of aether which they are proficient in. This is (mostly) genetic. But Ehserai never seperated into tribes, they were a culture, never an ethnicity. Kinda like the Jedi, every force sensitive kid masters the force in different ways but they're all out for peace in the end. Ehserai are nomadic and offer their services wherever is most comfortable and prosperous for them, kinda like modern day gypsies. Problem is, the Imperium comes around and spreads their religion of a single god and that aether is the source of all sin so yeah the Ehserai get mostly holocausted
When you mention magic items it made me think of Elemental coins listen no matter where you are you won't be helpless
That would work well :)
Wow. This video is amazing. I love this trope. I have thought of my own ideas on how my elemal system works. My system doesn't have elemental items. My magicians just rely on spells instead of gear. I do makes a distinction between roles like damage and healing. However that is affected by class, instead of elements. Elements have a paper-rock-scizzors interaction instead.
Elements are associated with ideas and personalities. That is a very good point. I just go with the associations that make sense to me. I end up with radically different persanalities than what the video describes. Earth is the solid stable element. I associate it with the physical and material. Physical things are tangible like the earth. The temperment is outgoing, active and straightforward. One needs to be active to engage with the material world. There is a tough mindedness allowing one to blaze through. Water is the liquid and flowing element. So I link it with feelings and emotions. There is a link to ethical and moral, since such things rely on empathy and feelings of what is right. People cry a lot when they feel strong emotions. That has water. The personality is emotional and also outgoing. There is a social and playful nature. There is also freedom, expression and impulsivness. Air and fire are tricky. So I just place them as opposites of the other two. Air is opposite of earth. So it is spiritual which is the opposite of physical. Air has abstract and imagined things. There is religion, art and philosophy. One has thier "head in the clouds". One is reserved and sensitive. They retreat inward in order to get into the imagination. There is gathering information and pondering it, as opposed to doing actions. One can be moody or sweet withing the serenity. Fire is the wierdest one. I may be the only one that thinks of calm and collected when I think of fire. I have my reasons. Fire is opoosite of water. So if water is associated with feelings, then fire is associated with thought. Fire is associated with the intellect. There is education, science and study. Withinthe fire burns brightly with knowlage and ideas. It is like a light bulb in someone's head. The fire is associated with a calm personality. A calm and stoic person is best able to come up with bright ideas. They can retreat into thier mind. They also lack the emotions that lead to bias. The fire person is one that is stoic, detatched and less expressive.
Ooh there is more. The best way to prevent elements from getting stale is to add more. I do this in element mixing. There can be a lot. My favorite example of elements in media is Pokemon. That has eighteen. Some are really weird like bug, dragon and fairy. The card game does simplify things though. The Pokemon reference in the video is incorrect. I came up with sixteen elements. I came up with four categories. There is land, sea, sky and mantle. Each category has part of the four categories. That leads to sixteen combinations. That forms sixteen elements. This includes four pure elements and twelve mixes. There are four elements that are mainly land based. Earth is pure land. Then three are mostly land mixed with something else. Poison has some mantle. Metal has some sea. Wood has some sky. There are four elements that are mantle based. Fire is the pure one. Then other three have mostly mixed with something else. Lava has some land. Sound has some sea. Light has some sky. Then the sea has the same pattern of four elements. Water is the pure one. Ice has some land. Conscious has some mantle. Dark has some sky. Finally sky has the same pattern of four elements. Air is the pure one. Cosmic has some land. Electric has some mantle. Gravity has some sea. The conscious and cosmic elements have a similar theme to the quintessence. They are just element mixes and are not treated too special.
I didn't think of elemental baggage. That is a good point. Avatar keeps baggage in mind as the video describes. Pokemon doesn't do this. For example a water Pokemon doesn't have gallons and gallons of water inside to be used for water attacks. That is just impossible. Some water Pokemon can be very small, like Squirtle and Psyduck. There is weird element creation magic for sure. That is a far cry from Katara bending whatever water she finds in her surroundings. Blood bending is creepy and gross. There are other forms that are not as bad. Water benders can bend ice and wood too. The wood bending is a lot like blood bending except with plants and sap. I personally take the Pokemon approach. My magic system has abstract resources. A magician has to prepare spells and use mana juice to make them work. However there is no physical baggage. In this approach, I just assume that the elemental stuff would just disappear after the attack or spell is over. That would be weird if the creation was permanent. Oh poor Misty. Her Pokemon gym would be absolutely flooded after a gym match or two. It wouldn't be just a swimming pool anymore. It would be totally filled with water, and it may even flood Cerulean City. Funny enough Misty's Pokemon of choice is Staryu. That is another water Pokemon that is small. Even the evolved form Starmie isn't very big. Misty has that too.
That sounds like a fascinating system :)
Thanks for this.
Always a pleasure
1:16 Eleven in the card game, eighteen everywhere else. :)
Oh my goodness. Eighteen :D
@@JustInTimeWorlds
Well they don't call it explictly 'elemental' but a 'type' system, so they can be a bit more flexible with it, and include such things like 'dragons' and 'fairies'. Grass is, tbh, not that surprising, being simply a fancy way to say they're plant based, especially if you're familiar with incllusion of 'wood' in the eastern clasic system.
I was hoping to get some advice for my elements and their spells.
So my Magic system plays with the classic 4 of Fire, Earth, Air, and Water, and they are more of sources of energy to cast spells but in unique ways and each have different meaning.
For example: Fire is the element of Change, so it's spells are variations of altering physical matter in different way for different uses but doing so will burn off matter so the final results will have a smaller form than the original source like turning a large sword into a short knife. And to add matter you need extra materials to make it bigger.
Earth Magic is about Growth and Patience, it's spells revolve around healing and manipulating flora, but it requires time and dedication for the spells to be effective; shorter time to cast = weaker effects and longer time to cast = stronger effectives.
The problem I have is finding fitting spells and effects for my Air & Water.
For Air I have it as Clarity and Purity and I was thinking having it use a mind related effect.
As for Water I have Motion aad Consistency and was looking for spells and effects that gow with flow.
And I was also wanting combo spells like Earth and Fire together to make different spells and effects as well.
A very interesting system. Off the top of my head, I'd say that how about making air about Clarity and Energy (linking into lighting strikes) and then have the spells about clearing the mind, waking you up, making the body stronger, that kind of thing. So an air mage can make the body stronger and more dexterous or the mind more alert. But it burns up the body's natural resources to do so. So it's kind of like a an extreme high metabolic activity and can even eat into your muscle mass if it goes on long enough, leaving you emaciated.
For water, how about motion and travel? You can traverse through or on bodies of water at high speed by shaping the water into a wave to carry you? I'm not sure what your downside would be, but travel seems to me be the thing you haven't got in your magic system and something that fits with water quite well.
@@JustInTimeWorlds I have thought about using air to heighten ones own scenes and even illusions involving tricking those scenes in your opponents. I like the energy part cause it would make sense that breathes help push energy through our bodies.
As for water maybe you could use it almost like telekinesis, using the water, mist, or any moisture, to surround the objects moving them and as you put it move through water, but as a downside you have to keep the water moving around your object and any breaking of that flow will break the spell as well.
@@brandonchapman4532 illusions are also a cute idea. They could fit water too (reflections in the water)
@@JustInTimeWorlds perhaps with air and water combined one could create illusions that's far more advanced.
Thanks for your input, it was very helpful.
@@JustInTimeWorldsSo it's been a while since I shared my magic system and I've made some changes to it.
I added Star as the fifth element. To use spells you draw from the light of stars but you can only do so at night time.
I fixed some of the themes and how they are casted.
Fire is still Change and you still break down materials to cast spells, but not every material can be broken down so easily and breaking down too much and so suddenly can cause backlash and the spell to go out of control.
Earth's theme is expanded upon so instead of just growth, it's Maturity, and you draw power from special flora. Like before you also have to give time and care to your spell to be at it's most powerful.
Water is about Adaptation, for water can alter its form in any environment like ice or mist, but it's still water at its core. You place water seals on objects or yourself to cast certain spells but if the seal breaks, so does the spell.
Wind is about Felicity, the source of happiness, drawing your strength from something meaningful like a happy memory makes wind spells powerful. You'll need an object that holds meaning to you that can store wind, that will be your Wind Poket. However it can only store so much and you'll have to replenish it from time to time.
Stars is about Visions, to see all the possibilities and different perspectives. Like mentioned before you can only draw power from starlights at night. However, you can carry a small star in a form of a gem to use in daytime but it's powers are limited.
I've also included some factors about my magic system like how to be able to use it in the following:
You must be born into one of the five races created to use magic. You'll be drawn naturally to one of the elements, but you can learn to use the others with hard work and study.
You must understand and dedicate yourself to the truth of the elements (the themes) and if you deviate from that truth you will lose your ability to do magic, but you can get it back if you understand it again.
The more you understand the elements truth, the more powerful you become.
I've also have categories of spells called Chapters that have specific purposes that almost any elements can use like healing, illusion, alteration, etc. Some spells can only be used by only one of the elements, some can be use by all of them.
What's your favourite elemental magic system?
I have to say Avatar the Last Airbender. Classic tropes, stellar execution. Plus, bending is both hard and mystical as a magic system.
One might say it maintains a certain... balance. Heh.
good
Pokemon has 18 types
Air is wand born as a branch as not of the ground but off the side of a tree aka born in air thus the wand is Air
The wand of fire cane from from the French fire flaring wand a hollowed branch made in to a Romeo candle furring fire balls
The dagger born of fire and hammering in to form thus born of fire.❤😅
No one asked but heres my elemental magic system: Sun (and Stars), Moon, Sea (or chaos), and Blood
Well, I may not have asked, but it's interesting anyway so thanks for sharing :) I like inclusion of moon separately from the sun and blood not being chaos. Is the moon madness?
@@JustInTimeWorlds it is the second easiest to learn, and right now it is quite vague as to what each one can do, however I know that, for moon form specifically, 1: elves and dwarves usually use this form, 2: it is more powerful based on phases of the moon or moons (the planet most of my stories will be taking place has 3). Thank you for your moons vid it is very helpful :]
One of my favorite things about the system is, to quote my world building bible *Dofunga the Knome's Lost Guide to Everything*, "... a user may use one or many of the forms listed. They are all connected in some way. A user may mix and match which spells from which type they choose. Everyone to a certain degree has mana- which is a persons magical energy used for casting."
Now I'm going to contemplate more limitations besides the mana
my elemental magic is spread into 11 different ones. 9 of them are the elementals arranging from:
Fire
Water
Air
Earth
Electricity
Ground/Earth
Druidism (Plant and Beast magic)
Light
Darkness
Ice
The other three are:
Dragonmancy (Cosmic horror Wild Magic coming from a eldritch horror dragon)
Cantrips (Basic and easy to use spells)
Arcana (Spells)
In this case, anyone can cast any of the elements but of course not everyone. However, Dragonmancy is the case of trying to cast magic beyond your world's naturality. For those who want a quick exlpanation, it's like Cyberspyschosis from Cyberpunk. And here's the long explanation. Dragonmancy is a risky magic to use, using it can either lead to the following. Either you die from the surge of overwhelming energy, or you go completely crazy and go on a rampage. Or you manage to gain control and use the magic carefully.
There's basically no other stereotypes you'd find in elemental magic but in the world, there is a bunch. Usually how Umbramancy (dark magic) is said to be evil and dangerous to use like Dragonmancy. When in actuality it was because people used it for selfish needs or people who weren't fully trained to use such spells.
"11 different ones"
"9 are elemental"
> lists 10 items, earth twice for some reason.
"the other 3 are"
What in math?