A Brief History of Magic in Britannia

The Age of Darkness
In the very early days when the world was whole and went by the name of Sosaria, magic was outlawed until the threat of Mondain became so great that the rulers of Sosaria sought to fight magic with magic. We know very little about the magic itself. What we do know is that Mondain experimented on the people creating the first known fomorian creatures. Noteably orcs, trolls and minotaurs. For these were not naturally occurring creatures in the world.

It is interesting then to note that fomorian races are in fact a very old concept introduced in the documents of the very early Ultimas I-III.

There isn't much to say about the magic from Ultima II except that it was like a simplified version from Ultima I and that Ultima II did not take place in Sosaria at all but rather on Earth. Ultima II gives us the very first incarnation of magical gate travel in the Time Gates. The history of magical gates could possibly be it's own topic so I won't get into them much here. Perhaps I'll start a new topic just for that.

It is in Ultima III where we really start to see lore regarding magic itself and not just the shenanigans of a few mages. By this time magic was becoming a well developed part of Sosaria society and we learn of two basic schools of magic studies by two groups.. the Cult of Runes who were wizards, and the clerics of the Cult of Truth.

These two cults are only every mentioned in the Ultima III documentation but each had their own book of magic and it is here we start seeing some of the early concepts that developed into modern Britannian magic and some of which are carrying on into New Britannia.

The Book of Amber Runes gives a little insight into the Cult of Runes and introduces us to the idea of magic circles. Each circle apparently had it's own rune, it's own book and rituals or trials required to graduate to the next highest level. Amber represents the 6th circle of magic, preceded by Jade. The book itself is written by The Druid Selzhanik, Arch Mage, Keeper of the Ninth Circle.

Many of the spells listed in the book describe items and rituals required to cast the spells and also the first words of power. None of which really survived the Age except in concept only.

The Ancient Liturgy of Truth is the book of the Cult of Truth. In it we have an interesting piece of lore that tells us the Cult of Truth has existed for 3000 years. What implications that has for magic is unknown and purely speculative.. but interesting.

While the Cult of Truth did not follow the same organization as the Cult of Runes they appeared to be a more religious cult referring to the One. But then remember these were clerics back in Ultima still had a class system heavily influenced from D&D. So this would have been divine magic where the Cult of Runes used arcane.

Like arcane magic.. divine magic required some ritual unique to the spell. Other than that, there are no words of power or other significant similarities. Divine magic does not survive into the next age.

The Age of Enlightenment through The Age of Armageddon
Ultima IV gives us the first iteration of the magic system that has evolved into what we have now. At this point I will note for you that the lore behind the magic is far deeper than has ever be represented by in-game mechanics. Throughout the remainder of the main Ultima series and including Ultima Online the magic has not changed much.

A scroll or spell book is required to cast traditional arcane magic. All spells have two components. Words of Power and reagents which lend power to those words. Words have meaning while reagents which act as fuel provide properties.

All reagents have a special preparation that is required (according to lore). Sulphurous Ash for example.. sulphur had to be burned in a crucible made from a Balon's skull. You would then take your prepared reagents and pre-mix a spell.

This was the basis for a suggestion I made awhile back.. Reagents: Refining & Mixing Spells

As an example. Any ranged spell required black pearl because that is the property and power it lent to a spell.

 

The fundamentals of Britannia magic do not change through the last age but in Ultima VII we are introduced to the mysterious substance called Black Rock.

Great devices constructed of Black Rock called Black Rock generators were dispersed across Britannia and one of them disrupts ethereal waves and attacked the minds of magic users.

Until Richard comes around and says flat out that Obsidian and Black Rock are two entirely different things.. SotA Obsidian is Black Rock.. their descriptions in how they behave and interact with magic seem very similar (so far). In UVII a black rock generator was used to disrupt magic throughout the world.. which is exactly what Shardfall did (and continues to do) but on a larger and uncontrolled scale.

I would submit, that if the shardfalls were removed from the world.. magic would return to 'normal'.. that our existing magic remains "modern Britannia" magic that is being disrupted by the presence of large deposits of obsidian/black rock and that we've simply learned how to use magic in this disrupted state.

Other Magic
Now we can't really talk about Ultima magic systems without looking a Ultima Underworld, Savage Empire and Ultima VIII.

Ultima VIII takes place on the world of Pagan which has it's own system of magic, but like Britannia magic requires reagents, words of power and spellbooks. The major differences in Pagan magic is that it is split into multiple schools and includes rituals while also requiring foci for each school.

Savage Empire uses totems which are similar to foci in a sense along with reagents. This magic is used by shamans to invoke spirits represented by the totems and is a much simpler magic system. The reagent is an offering to the spirit resulting in a desired effect.

Martian Dreams is even more simplified but likewise has fewer effects. This system doesn't use actual magic as such but special berries that give you mental powers.

Probably the most interesting alternate magic systems comes from Ultima Underworld I which is the only 'modern' magic system that doesn't require reagents as a fuel for spells. Instead, the unusually high mystical energy inside the Stygian Abyss provides the power for spells while runes representing the words of power and used to invoke them. Because these energies are a localized phenomenon however, this runic magic would not function anywhere else.

I might speculate however that in theory it might be possible for runic style magic to function within shardfalls.

 

As we don't really seem to use the words of power (at least I don't hear/see my mage using them when I cast) and there are a number of spells that don't require reagents, is it possible that the Obsidian instead of negating magic, like black rock did, causes it to manifest or radiate more like the UU system did. The chaotic influx of magic being emanated not only warps the minds and life around it, but also causes magic to be able to be harnessed that way?

That in turn, means that the current spell caster is either drawing the rune, or utilizing it when casting lower end spells, and its only the much more powerful spells that require reagents to help channel the latent magic in the area (and why even those spells can be cast sans reagents, though with less chance of success).

 

It is more likely that the existing magic system just isn't finished yet. Richard has talked about using words of power and in one hang out he even suggested you might be able to cast spells with words of power (alternatively to glyphs). Also the primary reason some spells don't use reagents is because people complained about it being too difficult.. reagent availability and cost right now isn't what it should be or will be. They need to get all the areas in where reagents can be harvested before they can really begin to balance reagents properly.

All of that said however.. if you really wanted to you can use blackrock/obsidian as the explain any deviation from the modern Ultima magic. It didn't so much as negate magic as disrupt it.. I think what you're thinking of is when raw blackrock was used to disrupt the influence of one of the blackrock generators which is a little different.

 

It seems to me that we have different styles of magic in use simultaneously throughout Novia. Perhaps each style has its own roots and lore, which also dictate if/when/how words of power and reagents are used.

There is:

Elemental magic- This is sort of a form of "Gaiaism" where the power of the four elements is commanded by the mage through an Invocation to create physical effects. Essentially a "mind over matter" operation which requires focus, regs, and words of power. What @Bowen Bloodgood called Arcane Magic.

As a side note, but also which happens to impact Jaan's roleplay in addition to economics, Tier 1 "basic" spells (I call them magic monk fists) do not consume regs, but only require a single word of power combines with a martial art maneouever. There's a potential crossover opportunity here if martial arts ever gets officially added as a skill tree.

Life/Death magic is like what @Bowen Bloodgood called Divine Magic. It still exists.. it has just evolved to embrace its own shadow side. Here is essentially the ability to convert focus to health... or vice versa. It is the two counter-rotating spirals. Which way are they rotating? It depends on the perspective of the viewer. This magic does not require regs because the results are internal, not external. It also does not require the spoken word. It is an act of sheer will and faith. It is performing miracles.. Thaumaturgy... through momentary realization of one's true divine nature.

Sun/Moon magic is more about surrender than control. It is Celestial Magic... unlike the Arcane Arts, it is not about exerting one's mind to make a change, but rather getting in alignment with forces that are much greater than oneself, and outside of one's control. Theurgy. Words of power don't really fit here... but mantras do. Maybe even work it into the game mechanics where the mage has to actually say the mantra every so often in order to cast the spells... the more powerful the spell the more often the mage needs to say the mantra. Maybe kind of corny, but the idea is to have a time cost, rather than a mat cost. Similarly, Celestial Magic doesn't consume regs per se, but requires focus items... runes? At lower levels maybe just having the item in the inventory.. and higher levels requiring an equip with various penalties.

Other ideas could tie in Virtue somehow such that different effects are possible depending upon virtue levels. It would make the Virtue system more meaningful and also build in a tradeoff for players like Jaan who don't give a damn what the Oracle has to say... and who don't trust Titans. So that attitude/playstyle is fine, but no Theurgy for Jaan.

Chaos Magic... well thats where those obsidian shards come in. Is it blackrock? Well if Richard said no then it's not blackrock, but maybe it's related to blackrock in some way. All that blackrock that got mined went... where? Maybe to outer space? What happened to it there?

In any case, Chaos Magic is essentially about mind control. Sorcery. Using confusion, fear and doubt to cloud the minds of others causing them to see things they might not otherwise see and do things they might not otherwise do.

It would make sense that being ignorant to the true knowledge of blackrock, since it was lost to the Novian subconscious in the Cataclysm, is what renders Novians more susceptible to its influence toward mind control.

Sorcery also directly interferes with Gaiaism as the latter requires increasing amounts of mental self-control. Theurgy trumps Sorcery as it draws in higher powers (for good, evil, or otherwise). Gaiaism, being able to directly influence the elements, is more powerful than Theurgy, which needs to act indirectly via the Evocationist.

So there is a rock-paper-scissors game that can go on between the different styles of magic.

Thaumaturgy acts... independently of these.

On Earth... certain forms of magic are more "acceptable" than others depending upon one's religion (or sects within a religion) and belief system. Then there are those who totally shun the idea of magic itself. (Oftentimes in an ironically creepy cultish sort of way.) I would imagine something similar goes on in Novia.

 

This is really rich with detail Bowen! Not just speculative but really interesting connections that really make sense. This lines up with the runes on the obsidian mage robes as well. That runic magic might work within shardfalls...

Fantastic summary and in my gut I know that magic and specifically how it was effected in the cataclysm has a big factor in this series. This alone is facinating. I love ultima magic and sota magic has so much depth and has so much potential.

 

It also just struck me that each type of magic might be more well suited to different kinds of mobs:

Arcane magic for animals and elementals.

Thaumaturgy for the undead.

Theurgy for humanoids.

Sorcery for other players.

 

Is there a word in Novia for non-magic users? A New Brittanian version of "muggle"?

 

Not that I'm aware of. I imagine 'mundane' could care over from Ultima, but its use was limited to snooty mages from Moonshade so it's equally plausible its use could have died out.

 

Hmm. I smell an opportunity. Any ideas?

 

Well you could adopt the term for your RP and encourage others to do the same. Use it in books etc.. maybe it'll catch on.

 

~The Knights of Access~

http://assassinlair.blogspot.com/2015/07/on-armageddon-spell-from-uo.html

Back when Ultima Online was young when all science pointed towards that Britannia being shaped like a donut.

Then with the addition of Trammel became a Double Donut World

Ritual magic was the centerpiece of what became known as "The Armageddon Spell" ~Vas Kal An Mani In Corp Hur Tym~, a ritual spell that would destroy all housing and gold within the world.

Some believe that such ritual magic could find it's way into our SOTA in some form or another. Yet even the mention of "The Knights of Access" could get one perma banned from the game because that group was known to be hackers and thieves of the accounts of others. I was attacked 5 times by these players when I expanded The Fellowship (TFS) guild who ruled SP shard for it's first year of operation. "A truly nasty bunch those KOA were" ...

Will ritual magic come true here? Who knows ...

Ritual magical myths from our pasts...
~Time Lord~

 

In all seriousness, if you're going to bring up the Armageddon spell.. this is the first spell ever cast in recorded Ultima history according to Xorinia. The spell is supposed to wipe out all life in the world but the actual magnitude of the spell varies. It was cast by someone named Zog more unknown thousands of years before Mondain and the events of Ultima I. Which gives you pause to wonder.. if the spell really did wipe out the world.. implying that there was a civilization prior to what existed in Ultima.. then where did the people of Britannia originally come from?

 

@Lum the Mad !
hm.... we need a quest in blackrock that leads you to be permanently less susceptable to that type of magic, if completed.

hah...understatement of the thread!



well said with all the descriptions, J. very well stated. kudos!

 

Based on certain books that eventually got taken out of Ultima Online, within one such book described some red colored order guards that appeared to Lord British and said that "he was not the Lord British they were looking for who had stole all their women and raped their cows" or something like that. I had a copy until Origin's took it from me. Yet this story pointed and mentioned toward a fact that when the gem was shattered, then so was he shattered and thus incomplete, yet faced with the question of, "if he made himself whole again, then all others that came after the shattering would then never existed"... which is so typical of Lord British with all his morality choices.

 

Well now... a Druidess can't divulge all her secrets...

EDIT: I've also made some updates to my first post to reflect how some of these ideas have evolved in my mind throughout the day.

 

My next question is where the heck did richard garriott get these really cool ideas? Was it just piecing together stories like the wizard of oz, narnia, necronomicon???, or world religions or was this all just totally creative and made up out of nowhere that somehow still maintains a continuity?

That being said when I recall I do see some reinventing of the lore after the release of a newer game. So this all evolved to fit the most current "in game" civilization. For example using the image of the avatar as the one who destroys mondain's gem in the UO opening scene (when in fact there was no single avatar before U4... nor the word avatar..., and as has been mentioned many times that players of U1-U3 were actually worse villians than the bad guy waiting at the end.

So perhaps all of the history is good and we can speculate about it but ANYTHING can happen, and history can be rewritten to fit the needs of the present. So much of what happened in the past is just a guideline but the current generation is really the ones responsible for making the world what it is. LOL Maybe that's one of the points where reality and fantasy actually have an actual point in which the two connect. That even here on earth our history is is percieved as is seen fit. Besides if history has shown us anything, it is that the winners decided how the story would be told. So Ultima history, and human history is always open to be reevaluated.

STill this is great stuff and no matter what direction is taken rituals, runes, words of power... not just trutiness, but Ultima-iness is ripe for the writing and personally I don't want to screw with Richard's lore one bit because I'm so eager to hear the story he's going to spin out of all of this.

 

We have to look at Richard Garriott as a D&D dungeon master that kept finding different ways to express his own search for virtue questions to present to the questing seeker. He's drawn many of the things that make up his works from the different influences he's had throughout his life. Some may say that's a rip-off, yet it's a tribute to each thing that effected his life in some way or another and caused him to reflect upon his own world view. The Three Stooges were even in his Ultima The Savage Empire One could also say that his work never changed from Tabla Rasa, it only changed back into the medieval setting which has worked for he and his audience.
Our magic has many Soft,"Origins" ?' hehe

 

I've often wondered this myself... keeping in mind the first publication of any of this lore was when he was.. 19?

 

I know that Richard actually talked about some of this in a very early video (I think 2013) as to where he got some of his ideas from. Some of the ideas thrown into the earlier ultimas came from movies, pop culture, etc. For example, the concept of the moongate came from the movie Time Bandits, and the Ankh used in Ultima 4 came from the movie Logans Run.