Can you draw parallels to other themes and ideas to your story/lore to why your system has powers to begin with? What does it mean for a person to have powers in your setting?

I got inspired by a random memory about M Night Shamalan's avatar movie. Say what you will about the movie itself but their bender test used on Aang was curious. Snuff out fire, pull water into a circle, stand up a rock. Or at least that's what he did. And his reaction after stuck.

"You said I could go once I took the test."

"But you passed it, and nobody ever has, so we can't let you go."

In my world people have magic linked to their blood, and the only way to access true magic is by offering it to a god when you come of age or education. So the race that carries out the ritual tests various elements when blood is set to them and whichever one reacts is the "winner" and off you go with a mentor for practice in using it. So trickle some blood onto a fire and it'll change color or grow in size or take a certain shape...or do nothing, meaning it isn't your magic.

So what about you?

I am working on a story and I am stuck on what name to call the power system.

For context this is the how the powers work for the people:

It's supposed to be a strong connection or relationship the person has with their "god" [ the entity they call their god] either through something someone in their generation did or has been doing , a pact someone in their generation made, sacrifices their family made or they have made , worships and praises , strong faith

I stuck between calling this Spiritual Connection or Spiritual Energy.

I was thinking about a way to add a black flash to a magic series I had. I thought instead of just having it hit hard, it disabled your opponent.
A Scatter is technique only Gods, and Dragonborn can use (With one exception). You can do it by making the mana in your body flow into itself and focus to a point. When someone is hit by it their magic will “scatter” leaving a shattered looking mark on impact; however, the magic will return and mark fade depending on the victim’s and attacker strength.

This is a power system that I have been working up in my mind for years now. It's gone through tones of revamps and iterations, and I basically had to start over from scratch at one point.

But I think I've finally gotten it to the point where I think it's finalized, and the rules are coherent and explainable enough to be satisfying at least to me. So here it goes. The Ambience Power System explained:

Ambience:
Ambience is a golden gaseous substance found on the planet Runic. From it, all living creatures are born with affinities that map onto the elements of the universe. A person’s affinity is largely determined by genetics, but sometimes they can vary if members of two different family elements intermingle. With each person’s affinity, their atomic mass defines the upper limit of the amount of energy they are allowed to expend through ambience before they run out of energy. Whenever a person is using ambience, they're essentially converting the ambience into their elemental affinity which causes heat loss. That heat loss is what's burning their mass and thus energy reserves. The better skilled the master is, the less heat is lost on conversion. The atomic number of a person’s affinity on the other hand determines the amount of energy that they HAVE to extend in order to perform a rune art.

Runearts are spells that ambient masters cast in battle that are typically stronger and more versatile than just basic ambience manipulation. With normal manipulation, if you say, took an individual with a Hydrogen affinity, and they were able to shoot water out from their mouth like a water gun, that wouldn’t take any additional mass from them, as their simply manipulating the oxygen already present in the air, with the hydrogen from their affinity to create a simple attack.
Bonds however, require a lot more force and power to execute, and thus are usually reserved for Runearts. 

Bonds are essentially Runearts that you’re able to cast, based on your connections to other affinities.  An example is if we took the same Hydrogen affinity individual from earlier, but instead they cast a Runart for H3O+, Hydronium acid. This is a much more powerful and devastating attack, and thus is required to be performed with a Runeart. And this power is only achieved if the Hydrogen user has a former bond with an Oxygen affinity of some kind.
Usually Runearts are denoted as the type of element first configured as the style of art (so Hydrogen Art: Hydronium Crest Wave), before the user casts the symbols through the air using their ambient extract as a pigment for the cast.

Runes are just materials with Runearts scribed onto them, which essentially stores reactions and chemical effects. They are the pinnacle of Ambience mastery because unlike Runearts, creating a rune requires the user to inscribe their ambience strong enough so that it can be a functional activation device. As such, Runes are usually only produced by machinery and used for things like factory production, since those are actually powerful enough to infuse ambience into objects. Very few individuals can create runes by themselves, and it’s usually only basic things, like a water activation spell, or the most common, NaCl runes which are used in cooking. Even Runes have a shelf life after so many uses, with the most powerful Rune lasting literal centuries, and some seemingly being immortal, as inscribed on ancient cave walls as some historians research in the world. While creating Runes is almost impossible for most masters, activating Runes is as simple as infusing the right ambient signature. As such, they are a common military weapon deployed during war time. Think of it as grenades or gas bombs some soldiers use.

Ambient Extract: Ambient extract is the substance that is formed when ambience mixes with human blood after stirring in their body. Every human has this substance, but only talented ambient masters are able to access it for combat uses. Now the basic use of the extract is just for casting Runearts as stated earlier, but there is also a special technique known as “Ambient Extraction” in which the user drains their reserves of ambient extract to use in battle. Think of it as burning the excess fat in your body left from your constant ambient intake. The reason why this technique is so powerful is because unlike regular ambient usage, ambient extract doesn’t consume your atomic mass. It does however consume your ambient extract which does need to recharge over time just like your mass, and unlike regular ambient, an improper extraction can drain your mass all the same. As such this technique is usually only reserved for the most elite of masters, as mastering it is really difficult, and imperfect usage of it is downright dangerous.

I understand why they simplified it or removed it but the original idea of the magic system and benders and nations and how linked everything was and how important balance actually was is quite interesting.

In a lost age…

Power is balanced among four great Nations: Water, Earth, Fire, Air. An order made up of men and women lead each nation. These masters possess the ability to manipulate their native element.

They call themselves Waterbenders, Earthbenders, Firebenders, and Airbenders. The most powerful bender in the world is the Avatar, the spirit of the planet incarnate. He alone masters all four elements and maintains world order.

Disaster Strikes… …when the current Avatar dies. Taking advantage of the opportunity, the Fire Nation’s leader launches a global war. His goal – eliminate the Water, Earth, and Air Nations so that the Fire Nation may rule for eternity.

100 Years Later, the Avatar returns… With the Fire Nation on the brink of global domination, a young girl and her brother living on the South Pole make an amazing discovery: Enclosed within an iceberg for 100 years, a 12-year old Airbender has miraculously survived. Waking up hungry for food and adventure, the boy reveals himself as the Avatar. But will this irresponsible kid accept his destiny in time to save the world?

What is the Avatar?

The Avatar is the incarnation of the Spirit of the Planet in human form. There is only one Avatar, who reincarnates himself through the centuries. Each time the Avatar dies it is reborn into the next nation.

This successive cycle mirrors the order of the seasons: Water Tribes – winter Earth Kingdom – spring Fire Nation – summer Air Nomads – autumn The cycle provides a natural balance between the elements.

This way, no single nation can grow stronger than another. Upon the death of an Avatar, Bending masters from the successive nation conduct a search to find the child reincarnate. (The successor is expected to show signs of continuity with the one who died, such as being born within a week of the death.)

These Benders carefully train the new Avatar to prepare him for his high position. First, he becomes proficient with his native element. Then, when the Avatar reaches maturity, he travels the world and studies with Masters from the other three Bending disciplines.

Upon completion of his training, the Avatar possesses sole control of all four elements. And so, the nations work to nurture the Avatar, whose responsibility it is to keep Water, Earth, Fire, and Air in harmony with each other and the world.

WHO STARTS THE WAR?

When a young, fearsome Firebender named Fire Lord Sozin ascends to the Fire Nation throne, only one person possesses the strength to oppose his rule – Avatar Roku, a Fire Nation native.

Many times during his reign, Fire Lord Sozin attempts to expand his empire, but the elder Avatar Roku always prevents his tyranny. Fire Lord Sozin’s only chance to achieve supremacy comes on the heels of Avatar Roku’s death.

Before the succeeding Avatar reaches maturity and challenges his action, Sozin secretly builds a massive armada of ironclad ships strong enough to overpower any nation’s Benders and trains a fierce army of Firebenders, foot soldiers, and assassins. For twelve years, the Water, Earth, and Air Nations live oblivious of Sozin’s hidden army.

Consequently, when the Fire Nation begins its assault, they are defenseless. Fire Lord Sozin strategizes to kill off the Air Nomads before the next Avatar grows to maturity. Strengthened by a passing comet’s natural energy, the Fire Nation simultaneously attacks the Water, Earth, and Air Nations.

Within one summer, Sozin’s Army wipes out the peaceful Air Nomads. Vainly assuming that the Avatar’s body lies among the casualties, Sozin expands his invasion of the valiant Water Tribes and Earth Kingdom; his devastation disrupts the natural cycle, ruins the delicate balance of the elements, and makes the Avatar’s future reincarnation impossible. Sozin envisions a world where Fire exists as the dominant element and no nation or energy challenges the Fire Lord’s rule.

Though he wages war for decades, Sozin dies before he sees this vision realized. Despite his death, he succeeds by inspiring greed for world domination among his descendants who continue to carry his torch and strengthen the Fire Nation’s hold on the world.

OTHER PHENOMENA

While a Master’s skill level determines the range of his attacks, his elemental power never extends beyond his immediate area. Therefore, an Earthbender possesses the strength to create a tremor locally, but not an earthquake five miles away. However, a Benders powers may be influenced by the seasons and natural phenomena.

Because each nation corresponds to a season, a Bender is strongest in his native land and during its season. Therefore, Waterbenders are strongest in the north and south poles, during winter; Firebenders are strongest near the equator during summer, etc. Benders are born into each nation, according to the season.

Therefore, Earthbenders are born during spring while Airbenders are born during autumn, etc. However, the number of Benders born during a season represents only a small percentage of all the children born.

While benders are frequently born to parents who also posses this power, it’s not uncommon for parents without powers to birth a Bender. Because of the lengthening summers, the Fire Nation births more and more Benders, while the other nations birth fewer.

Therefore, the Fire Nation’s conquest means disaster for opposing Masters. Seasonal changes will become non-existent. With the world stuck in perpetual summer, Firebender numbers will grow and strengthen, while Water, Earth, and Airbender numbers will weaken and diminish until they are extinct. In addition to the seasons, natural phenomena also influence a Bender’s power.

For example, the sun and comets strengthen Firebenders; the moon cycle and rain boost a Waterbender’s power; Earthbenders tap into the potential energy of fault lines; and wind and storms are advantageous to Airbenders.

The only thing that can rid a Firebender of his power is a total eclipse, which is short-lived and infrequent. Seasonal and natural phenomena play an important role in Avatar’s storyline as it relates to Benders.

On a sunny day near the equator, the kids take lengthy detours to avoid Firebenders. However, during cloudy, rainy weather, they travel a more risky, but direct route, relying on Aang and Katara’s heightened Airbending and Waterbending powers for protection.

Sorry for so much writing, but it has all necessary information and limitation. It’s based off many systems such as Nen and Cursed energy, and others I’ve seen in literature. I would like help for it to improve and what to do better.

In this world, runes are used for magic, however, creating a runestone comes at the cost of a very particular and rare type of stone, named Banestone, a small pinch of an ingredient, and a proportional amount of blood. The larger and stronger the runestone, the more blood it needs. This has complications, and one rune user even suggested turning a rune user's skeleton to banestone, then putting all their blood into it, but this was swiftly realized as idiotic at the time. There are 26 runes that can be made, each requiring different ingredients and having different magical effects.

1. Asu, Ice, requires a bit of ice (Beran)
2. Beran, Fire, requires a lump of charcoal (Asu)
3. Chiro, Night, requires a bit of spider web and a drop of oil (Kimh)
4. Dendi, Door, requires a wood splinter and a copper nugget (Mesu)
5. Ettas, Thunder, requires a small copper rod (Jimak)
6. Ferot, War, requires a nugget of raw iron (Retu)
7. Gendo, Growth, requires three blades of grass (Nekon)
8. Hasu, Health, requires two drops of aloe (Xarus)
9. Izan, Earth, requires a pinch of dirt (Lona)
10. Jimak, Wind, requires a swans feather (Ettas)
11. Kimh, Day, requires a dead firefly (Chiro)
12. Lona, Water, requires a drop of water (Izan)
13. Mesu, Barrier, requires a nugget of raw gold (Dendi)
14. Nekon, Rot, requires a bit of rotten flesh (Gendo)
15. Oruma, Mirror, requires a shard of obsidian (Tolim)
16. Pevir, Rope, requires a short length of twine  (Seter)
17. Qusun, Strength, requires a length of ox tendon (Vilu)
18. Retu, Repair, requires a shard of bone (Ferrot)
19. Seter, Steed, requires a long strand of hair from a powerful stallion (Pevir)
20.  Tolim, Bell, requires a miniature silver bell (Oruma)
21. Uro, Stone, requires a bit of mica (Wes)
22. Vilu, Will, requires a splash of spinal fluid (Qusun)
23. Wes, Magnet, requires a chunk of magnetite (Uro)
24. Xarus, Disease, requires a parasitic wasp larva (Hasu)
25. Yula, Calm, requires a sprig of an olive branch (Zolic)
26. Zolic, Fury, requires an olive leaf that has curled and withered from the poison of the blossom of the nightshade plant for three days (Yula)

In addition, you may combine the power of these runes, with three at a time being the maximum recommended for keeping effects stable. For example, you may combine Ettas (Thunder) and Tolim (Bell) to create a massive blast of lightning, with bolts of electricity striking everything nearby. This effect combines the elemental effect of Ettas with the emitter/shockwave effect of Tolim to create a powerful blast of electrical might. The rune names listed at the end of a runes entry is the rune that acts as a counterpart to the other.

The setting combines 3 major magic systems, though one has been purposely taken to an extreme for narrative purposes.

To start, mages, the most populous, make up about 1% of the population.

Mages-

Scientists, scholars, academics. Functionally, they are standard dnd mages- VS and occasionally M. Societally, they are generally well regarded.

They are centered in the Academy, which is functionally CERN. They are a bastion of scientific knowledge, and firmly police themselves and as such are considered good guys.

The overflow from the Academy ends up as hedge witches- your standard unlicensed contractors to do things like enchant a still to be more effective, or shore up a wall with architectural enchantments.

Needless to say that's sketchy but a hedge with a good reputation makes bank.

Magicians- Magicians are mages whose techniques have become so specific and advanced as to be impossibilities.

territory operation (low level omnipotence), merging of magic and matter, fourth dimensional thermodynamics to steal heat from the end of the universe to use as an infinite power supply, PROBLEM techniques. Those people are designated as magicians.

Druids- Your standard bell book and candle "The Vampire Diaries" style witches. Druids are the product of a very complicated bargain made a very long time ago between a tribe of humans, and a group of elementals (who generally do NOT like humans.) They are protectors, healers, scholars. And they've been whittled down to eight families. The time of the druids is nearly over unles something changes.

Having said that, the elemental situation was... if not resolved then dramatically changed, so. It is entirely possible that they will make a comeback.

Clerics-

Clerics work slightly differently in my universe. Clerics are not necessarily a product of faith or prayer- they are a product of soul.

When a man begins a quest to avenge his murdered family, he takes the first step to becoming a cleric of the Hunt. When a woman first stares wide eyed into a tome and feels the call of old secrets, she takes the first step to becoming a cleric of knowledge.

Very few make it. But those who allow themselves to be whittled and honed and give themselves over to whatever it is that is calling them, become clerics. Living avatars of their god not by effort exactly but by... "alignment."

This content was an answer to the question, "Why everyone can't use magic". I began cooking this when Gender bent Worldbuilding was all harem self-insert.

.......

I'm my world, once upon a time everyone could wield magic. The only difference was what commoners, Nobles, and combatants used to cast spells. Also all humans have the innate ability to mentally draw in Mana.

During a global war with another Plane/World, the enemy was losing badly and decided to summon their god to possess a mortal form and perform something forbidden.

He grabbed a hold of Mana and tore it asunder, separating it into Yin Mana and Yang Mana. This wasn't a positive and negative attribute kind of thing, they just existed with different properties.

This of course came with consequences from both the Grand Will and fellow gods. In the human world, all who held Mana within them were torn apart.

In the context of people using magic, it became Opposite attract and Same repel thing.

Yang Mana was like hot air, it roamed the surface. And since women where predominantly Yin, only they could absorb it and use it for magic. As you can imagine this shifted the power dynamics of the world.

Yin Mana was like cold air which roamed in altitudes. So for a long time Men couldn't use magic and became Second class citizens as women once were. It was until Mountain dwelling Hermits became a thing that Men discovered to use magic again.

Even then, it became a Secret Society kind of thing to prevent the females from destroying all highlands. Ironically, this decision caused the powerful Sorceresses to turn a blind eye even after they caught on.

A phenomenon called Yin Rain became an occurrence and created the Yin Beasts (monsters) because they mostly fall in nature.

Divine magic was also not possible since the division of Mana threw the world out of balance. The gods couldn't descend into their representatives and they also couldn't perform Miracles which overtime destroyed their religions.

But Men weren't entirely powerless as there existed other power systems.

The Weapon Master: whenever one reached a higher level of mastery in their combat arts, the Grand Will acknowledges them and baptize them with Spiritual energy giving them abilities akin to Sword Intent, Pressure and Super stats. There's progression in this system.

Divine Artifacts: are the leftover items from the Era of Miracles. A portion of the Divine energy within them are absorbed, granting some people related abilities. As you can imagine only longstanding families have this.

Legendary Weapons: There's the Hero's equipment set, tools created by powerful Mages of old, and the Saints' Sword or Spear(like the black weapons in One Piece).

Magic Instruments: have no innate attributes, allowing anyone to use them.

Elemental Spirits: a bond with one grants control over that element. One of the only four Kings, has stayed in power thanks to Sylph, the Wind Spirit.

Rare Bloodlines: they become a thing when the Ancestral blood is alien to the world and Grand Will recognizes it as that. There are Dark Bloodlines inherited by people whose ancestors sided with the enemy. One King's bloodline was from the Incubus race, allowing him to control a harem of sorceresses.

The Eunuch Method: was born from the theory that a Male's innate Yang is centered in their balls. One King's power was protected through loyal Eunuchs.

Just maybe, Mana Control; a highly disciplined path where one takes years to meditate and practice their innate ability. It grants telekinetic type powers.

The paths may seem numerous but entry takes, sacrifice, resources, time, and nepotism.

The themes were Inherited Hatred and the Powerplay of Sexism.

The story is called Festival. Its set in a alternte timeline to our own but keeping its history. Its mostly wholesome with some dark elements. Also an "corporation manufacturing an energy crisis to keep poor people poor" type story.

Essence 

* An energized particle that has seeped from the Earth as a result of many fissures suddenly opening on March 15th 2012, all over the world in an event called The Splintering(where the Essence Timeline and Our timeline diverge). Since then essence has been used as a “perfect energy” source all over the world. This has helped the advancement of modern technology and medicine. In the years following, multiple lifeforms including humans were found with Essence naturally as part of their biology and multiple improvements because of its presence. 
* Such Subjects (dubbed “Outers”) exhibit abnormally efficient biology (better lungs/ oxygen absorption, more efficient immune system, etc) which allows them to access superhuman/superspecies performance. These Outers also possess the ability to manifest a special phenomenon. Each phenomenon and its effects are unique to each subject and are called Modus Operandi aka MO. 
* Do not confuse Essence for fuel for MO’s but the Key to them

Modus Operandi 

* Each MO is unique to each Outer and most likely no two Outer will have the same MO 
* The general way an MO functions is through the use of a Critical Formula = The mathematical symbolization of how any MO functions at its base level. This baseline use will provide the Outer with the most rudimentary understanding of how their MO works. 
* Using an MO doesn’t take any type of “energy” from the user but instead functions based on brain capacity. The Outers brain is the hardware that runs the MO’s code in order to function and the brain’s computational power sets the limit to which it can be used. Any MO has a limited amount of uses until it reaches BurnOut = a state in which an MO is unable to be used safely in regards to the health of the Outers brain. When in BurnOut, the user's brain is undergoing an excess amount of stress and starts to increase in temperature. The user will have to wait until their brain refreshes itself in order to use their MO safely again. This process can take anywhere from a couple minutes to days depending on the user's neuroplasticity.
* Another worry of Outers is BackFiring. When an MO is used too many times within a short window of time its margin of error increases by a varying percent. When this number reaches into the 80s, a backfire occurs. This means that no matter the computative power they are placed into BurnOut

Supplemental Numbers

* An addition to the Critical Formula in order to modify its use while not changing the overall effect of it.

Magnum Opus 

* A Magnum Opus is an optimization of the CF that the MO derives its ability from. This pinnacle is achieved via a deep knowledge of the components that make the CF work. Once it is achieved, 1 of 4 effects can take place: 1) The basics of an ability is taken to its maximum potential in a singular action. 2) The users form is temporarily changed in order to optimise the base ability. 3) An MO’s function is overextended to the point of creating another effect. 4) Some combination of the 3. 
* Once the Magnum Opus is deactivated the user is immediately placed on BurnOut but refresh time is reduced. This however will leave the Outer physically exhausted. 

Example:

Electrical Pylon

* Allows the outer to create a metal pylon at their location and use it to direct electrical discharges towards a target 
* This MO has two separate parts of its CF those being {0 = b\*sin(a)\*sin(b)/sin(a+b)} to summon the pylon to the user (with 0 being the users location) and {$E = V x Q$} to discharge electricity to its target. 

Are there any advanced magic systems that go to PhD level depth?

My aim is hard magic system with possible denailability based on real science. Science stretched a little but without PhD in field you cannot be sure what real and what not. No fantastic magic more grounded aproach of "magic" that can actualy work in real life. Moust of it is mental effects, hacking preception...

Example joke of lvl0 fireball :

Joint fireball casting

Casting fireball by joint poping causing cavitation of sinovial fluid triggered sonoluminescence. You can cast real fireball size and that it's inside body are mere technicalities.

The question is simple: if magic is so powerful, then what's stopping everyone from becoming a mage?

In my story, the limit is a psychological one. Anyone *can* use magic, but most people have a subconscious block preventing them from doing so. Even those aware of the supernatural tend to think of magic as something that other people do. Becoming a mage requires you to break through that block and accept that 1) magic is real and 2) you specifically can use it.

So, what's the "limit" for your mages? Is it innate power, training, divine favor? Do you have to give something up for the power, or does it just happen randomly?

Edit: Okay, just to clarify, I'm asking for the in-universe limiting factors behind who can and can't use magic in your worlds. This question is always at the front of my mind when I'm thinking about magic systems, and I was curious as to how other people have answered this question.

1. The Athar System (The Trace): The Tearing of the Soul

Athar, in its essence, is not a superpower, nor does it belong to the elements of nature, nor is it a magic that is chanted or inherited; rather, it is a permanent tear in the human soul.

This tear occurs when a person is subjected to severe trauma or profound despair that exceeds their soul's capacity to endure, causing it to tear for a defining moment and connect to an unknown, chaotic cosmic dimension known as "The Abyss." If this person is destined to survive that moment, the tear in their soul remains open forever, forming what we call "Athar."

2. The Abyss and the Overflow: Formless Energy

The Abyss is neither a realm of spirits nor a resting place for the dead. Instead, it is an untamed cosmic dimension that defies all the known laws of our reality. Raw energy leaks from this dimension, known as the "Overflow" it is purely abstract energy, devoid of form, color, or element, and lacks any will of its own.

Since the human mind is incapable of controlling the Overflow in its raw state, the human psyche, in the very first moment of awakening, gives it a form that matches the psychological wound that originally caused the soul to tear.

Therefore, it is impossible for two identical abilities to exist; even if two people share similar thoughts, the mechanics of their abilities will differ. The Abyss does not grant the ability itself, but rather grants the "potential," making the final ability a pure reflection of its user's soul.

The Golden Rule: One human, one Athar, one Overflow, and one ability.

3. The Toll of Athar: The Body Pays the Price

Human bodies were not created to be vessels for the Overflow. Every time it crosses from the Abyss into our world through the user's body, this body is subjected to immense pressure that exceeds its natural limits, leaving a hidden internal toll. With repeated use, these tolls accumulate, transitioning over the years from temporary damage to permanent marks and scars.

The stages of depletion vary based on the intensity of use:

• Simple Use: Accompanied by distinct fatigue, slow breathing, and trembling limbs.
• Intensive Use: Leads to muscle spasms, bleeding from the nose or eyes, sensory disturbances, and sluggish movement.
• Exceeding the Limit: If the user forces the Overflow to cross in quantities beyond their endurance, the Abyss begins tearing them apart from the inside. This leads to permanent organ damage, loss of a sense, paralysis, coma, and potentially death.

4. Evolution and Stages of Mastery: The Power of Will

In the Athar system, the ability itself does not become stronger, and the volume of the Overflow does not increase. True evolution happens to the user themselves; power comes from utilizing energy intelligently and effectively, not from having a larger mana pool.

Stages of mastery:

1. Awakening: The body rejects the Overflow. The ability is unstable, and the toll on the body is high.
2. Taming: The user learns control and begins to invent their first techniques.
3. Harmony: The mind, body, and Athar act as a single, integrated unit.
4. Transcendence: A dangerous phase where the user forces massive amounts of the Overflow to cross, terrifyingly increasing their power, but at the ultimate cost of permanent, irreparable physical damage.

5. The Cycle of Athar and Absolute Laws

Upon the death of an Athar bearer, their Athar does not die. The Overflow returns to the Abyss, while the Athar remains wandering, searching for a new soul bearing a psychological wound and tear similar to its previous host.

This transfer does not recognize heredity, does not go to the strongest person, nor does it transfer to the killer. It is impossible to predict the next bearer. Furthermore, the previous bearer's memories or skills do not transfer; every user must invent their own techniques from scratch.

Absolute Laws of the System:

• No human can possess two Athars.
• No energy is granted without a price.
• It is impossible to create matter out of nothing or resurrect the dead.

Discussion: What do you guys think of this system? Are the limitations and costs balanced? I would love to hear any thoughts, or if you have an idea for an ability that would fit into this world!

For my system, rune magic is part of the system. Magic comes through patching into the planes (a bit like Stargate to get the planar XYZ coordinates) to open a 1 inch hole for 1 second. More advanced runes help shape the magic and how it emerges. The runes themselves are in classical impossible shapes that cannot be reproduced physically, it is the acceptance ot the abject object that lets someone connect with the impossible truth.

Hey everyone! I refined my power/magic system for my story! I'm just coming here to ask what yall think and if there is any plot holes I'm missing with it. I'm also curious if the system seems too inspired I won't say what systems I was inspired by in the post(I will in the comments if someone guesses and its right) just so you dont get the idea in your head and see every element in this system but im sure its pretty obvious.. They're genuinely incredible, but I hope im not completely ripping off them.

My system is called Hoyon I'll probably change it later but for now this is the name
The themes are individuality and identity.

There exists two layers of soul within the human body

1. The inner energy
2. The barrier energy

The inner energy consists of your memories, experiences, emotions, and thoughts containing a denser core in the middle.

The barrier energy is the energy that contains your inner energy and compresses it into its core.

However, Mages create a third layer of the soul by breaking the it's seal: the weakest point of the barrier energy or where your soul formed as a child. This releases some of the inner soul which creates an outer energy. If one breaks this barrier too much they can risk dying, losing memories, bodily autonomy and more all depending on how much they let out.

This can be done by visualizing your soul, who you are as a person, and where it is located once you understand that you can awaken by opening the barrier or the seal. When awakening it is wise to be guided by another person who's already awakened to make sure that you don't open the barrier too much. When you think you've got enough outer energy you can close it. Once awakened you can see others outer energies and abilities you will also experience refined senses such as hearing, taste, smell, sight, touch, and sense. As a result of these improved senses you can often smell and sense others outer energies as well.

This outer energy can now be utilized to form abilities. These abilities are limited by the properties of your energy though and the properties are dependent on one's inner energy or experiences.

It can be judged by its density, flow, range, and reaction time to your thoughts etc.. (I havent decided more to be honest)

When one is forming an ability they must take these things in mind to form the one that is best suited for them. The ability can be formed through visualization of the overall shape of your energy etc and where it goes..
These abilities are limited by how much outer energy one has. If one overuses this energy they can battle exhaustion and pass out. To help it recover they need water, food, and sleep.

When one releases their inner energy to form outer energy it becomes a new self regenerating layer of your soul. It stays close to the barrier because it wants to go back to the inner core(like planets and gravity) but it cant because of the barriers too strong. If a person were to attempt to create more layers of their soul they would find that the inner energy only mixes further with the outer.

Increasing your soul increases the outer energy as well since the outer energy is a part of it. To increase your soul you can:

1. Cultivation - mental contemplation, visualization, and getting rid of past traumas. This method can be slow unless one experiences a breakthrough in their mental state usually through periods of extreme stress, but it can also be safer. 
2. Exploration - This one works by traveling. As one travels one gains external experiences such as new birds, textures, terrains, experiencing new things like building a fire, immersing oneself in another culture (in the sense of interacting with people and eating their foods etc) for the first time.
3. Knowledge - Learning is best for the mind and can improve a person’s survival opportunities which benefits the soul. To do this a person may read books, use grimoires, learn new languages, learn about new plants and beasts etc. All these things increase the depth and size of the soul
4. Physical Training - Training increases the strength of the body which allows one’s body to handle abilities and outer energy better. It doesnt really improve the soul but it improves the body which makes it easier for it to handle the amount of energy (especially after it increases.

This is the magic system for my story. I'm open to any advice for improvements.

Everyone in the world has access to the World Spirit system. The system was made by the World Spirit, Asherah, to help its inhabitants grow in power.

The system facilitates the refinement of talent by engraving skills into souls. The body and soul are mirrors of each other; changing the soul alters the body, and vice versa.

For example, a math teacher gains a quick-solving equation skill. He still has to think through the equation, but the skill engraved on his soul gives him extra processing power. His thoughts run smoother. He can calculate faster.

These kinds of skills are called general skills, achievable by anyone and lacking any supernatural characteristics.

Specialized skills are acquired from paths of power. Paths of power are skill trees, starting with an initial skill and then sprouting into branches and more evolved skills. There are many kinds of paths of power, all with their own prerequisites and rules.

Some of the most widely used paths of power are menders, soldiers, force archers, and elemental mages. There are kingdoms built off royal families with mighty paths that they hoard, keeping the prerequisites hidden. The thief guild's path of power's prerequisite is to steal an item from a tier 3 vault. ETC.

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Elemental magecraft

Elemental mages are the most common and versatile magical path of power. The path focuses on the manipulation of elements and the concepts latent within them.

To be initiated as an elemental mage, you need to absorb an aspect core. Cores are the congealed mana of a given elemental aspect.

They can only be found in places of extreme mana density. Water cores form at the bottom of the sea. Air and lightning cores form in storms. ETC

Upon absorbing a core, the person gains two attributes: perception of the mystic field and access to the elemental path of power, the primal star.

The Mystic Field is the layer on top of the physical world, only visible to mages. The domain of spiritual beings. Mages are subject to the 3 fundamental laws of the Mystic Field as much as they are to physics.

• The law of Sacrifice- sacrifice and limitations act as a catalyst for more potent spells. A spell that costs an arm is more powerful than one costing a finger.
• The law of Idolatry- symbols in the mystic field can invoke power. Ex, a water rune draws and shapes water mana. Saying the true name of a spirit can bind it to your service. ETC.
• The law of Mirror Perception- to touch something in the mystic field, one must be able to perceive it. Higher-level spirits, such as undines and void devourers, can conceal themselves from mortals.

The primal star is like an enclosed skill tree. Meaning it has no set starting or ending point. The aspect of the core originally absorbed serves as a primary element and starting point on the star. A mage can only ever learn one skill from secondary elements.

The star is six-pointed; at each point is a primal element: earth, water, air, fire, death, and life. Inside the star is a web of variants and convergences of the primal elements. A mage must comprehend and philosophize on the elements connected to their primary to acquire them.

• For example. If you were to start as a water mage, you could branch off into steam, and as steam is the compound element between water and fire, you can use it as a bridge to learn fire. One can not skip over elements; if a water mage wanted fire, they'd first have to learn steam. All elements are connected in this way.

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Magic use

Not all cores are created the same. The factors that determine the value of a core to a mage are depth and aspect resonance.

Depth is simply how deep a core's mana reserves are. The unit of measure for mana is PAX.

Resonance is how much a mage resonates with a specific aspect. The greater the resonance, the more efficient the mana usage, as the mage has to try less.

• An earth mage with a budding resonance needs 30 paxs to cast lift a stone, while an earth mage with a blooming resonance needs 15 paxs.

Resonance ranks

Withered

Budding

Blooming

Full Bloom

Surpeme

Paragonic

Zenith

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As previously stated, a person can learn many spells and skills with their primary but only one on secondaries. Elemental mages not only manipulate an element physically but can harness the concepts within that element. These are called meta/conceptual skills.

• Ex. a mist mage, after years of studying air particles, movement, and moisture, deciphers the concept of intangibility within the mist. He gains a skill to briefly embody that concept, turning him intangible. He analyzes the concept of obscuration in mist and gets a skill to make others' minds hazy.

Let's take the path of my MC for example. He starts as a slave until he finds a dungeon. There, he absorbs an earthen aspect core and has a full bloom resonance with it.

Skill: Dust shroud-a cloud of dust surrounds the user and passively forms shields to negate incoming attacks. The effect diminishes if the user is moving.

Skill: Vibrational sense- sense the world via vibrations in the ground.

Stalwart (meta): through observation, Mc grasps the concept of stalwartness in stone, thus gaining a skill.  

• Stalwart blessing: apply a stalewart effect onto objects, making them harder to be moved by outside forces.

He then goes on to gain a metal aspect and gains the skill of lesser metal manipulation. From metal, he branches off into blood. He gains the concept of nourishment from blood.

Skill: Nourishing touch: a nourishing effect to skills and spells, enabling them to be fueled by ambient mana for a short period.

Blood is the convergence element between water, life, and metal. So he can go to either.

Basically, I want the primal star to be a make-your-own build path of power. My MC is a field control archetype, a stational bastion that alters the area around him.

It still needs a lot of work and examination, though.

I'll try not to make this too long and keep out all the finer details.

Elirogen is a form of energy present in all organic and inorganic matter in Elira. Elirogen is the only energy in Elira that is capable of being manipulated either consciously or subconsciously. The presence of elirogen varies depending on the material and it's fairly common for most materials to not have enough elirogen for manipulation. Generally, there are six so-called ‘elements’ that have enough elirogen to be manipulated on large scales and on a scale helpful to humans and living things in general. Those six elements being:

**Water

Fire

Air

Earth

Plants

And dead matter (or necromancy.)**

Almost paradoxically, when the presence of elirogen grows, so does the difficulty of manipulating it. This is due to the fact that elirogen particles become exponentially attracted to themselves the more they grow and remain static while always being linearly attracted to any other energy.

This forces mages to seek a 'goldilocks zone' that has neither too much nor too little elirogen.

There are also mages who take advantage of this characteristic and intentionally amass large amounts of elirogen to use as a pseudo-destroyer. Elirogen is part of the internal composition of all materials, including spells as elirogen heavily prefers to bond with larger bonds of elirogen. This means that by amassing large amounts of elirogen, one is capable of breaking down almost any material down at its molecular level. As the larger elirogen pulls on the smaller one, it, essentially, unravels the whole thing. This also allows mages to, quite literally, dismantle the spells of other mages by forming larger masses. It is at those points that fights between mages devolve simply to those with the superior ability of elirogen mass control.

Every physical living being has what's called an 'ethereal' which is considered almost as a secondary soul and has a primary purpose of regulating and controlling a person's inner elirogen to ensure people (and living things at large) don't die from elirogen's exponential self-attraction law.

It also protects their inner elirogen from foreign wills. (Which is why mages can't simply draw out the blood or crush the bones of someone else.)

While ethereals are passive ‘mechanisms’ that cannot be depleted or exhausted. A person cannot rapidly increase their internal elirogen volume or they risk the excess elirogen attracting to themselves and destroying the mage from the inside out. Inner elirogen capacity has to be built slowly to allow the ethereal to adapt and increase its elirogen controllability capacity.

To use necromancy, one needs to use the elirogen within their own bodies to supplement the minimal elirogen present in dead or decaying biological matter. This, of course, is incredibly dangerous and sometimes results in death. It's because of this that necromancy is considered black magic and is heavily advised against learning.

While it isn't necessarily difficult to learn how to use magic, it takes a lot of time to improve. Time to allow a persons’ ethereal to adapt and strengthen, time to increase precision control and time to increase elirogen mass control.

It's because of this that many people deem only the basics of elemental control necessary. ( eg: the average person who learnt to control fire would be capable of lighting a stove and the average person learning the manipulation of flora would be able to support plant germination and early growth.)

The number of people who know no magic at all is minimal and is dwarved by those who know the basics and even those who are established mages.

Generally, people only learn about one or two elements in their lifetime, this is mostly due to the fact that the elirogen present in each element exists in different states. Thus, the ethereal has to adapt to hold a specific type of elirogen, once a person attempts to learn multiple the ethereal also has to adapt to be able to control all the different elirogen forms. However, the ethereal is not capable of this, especially once considering the fact that the elirogen present in some elements actively conflict with the elirogen present in others. (Eg: the elirogen present in fire would repel itself from the elirogen present in water and vice versa.)

Though, it is not uncommon for a person learning only the basics of the elements to know more than than two with some even learning up to five of the elements. Never necromancy (the sixth element) however, as it is inherently a massively complicated endeavor that would require one to be an experienced mage before even attempting to practice the art.

It is much simpler for a person—whether they’re learning the basics or becoming mages—to learn two similar elements rather than elements opposite to each other. For example, it would be more difficult for a person who knows earth manipulation to learn air manipulation but much easier for them to learn plant manipulation. It would be easier for a learner of water magic to start plant magic rather than attempting fire manipulation.

This is because the elirogen in so-called ‘opposite’ elements have a strong push against each other. While every element has a push, the push of some elements are much smaller than others, thus, making it much simpler to learn the elements that have the lowest repulsion between each other.

Almost counter-intuitively, it becomes harder to advance in dual elements the more proficient a person becomes in one or both elements. This is due to the fact that one’s ethereal would have to continuously adapt to contain two different elements, the more the ethereal’s elirogen containment grows, the more the two elements begin to push against each other. This can eventually result to the ethereal becoming too strained and can—in some extreme cases—cause the ethereal to fail to hold the two elements thereby inducing elirogen’s exponential self-attraction law.

The speed for which this can happen changes drastically depending on which two elements one chooses to learn. As established before, a person learning both water and plants would have a much higher ethereal capacity before it ever becomes a danger for them. Whereas a learner of earth and air would have a massively lower ethereal capacity before it turns into physical disabilities and then ethereal failure.

I feel like this is way too long 🙄.

If you were creating an original manga power system from scratch, what would you focus on?

So I have a magic system based on the 12 hours of the clock (since 24 is too difficult) and I have all but hour 3 and I can’t for the life of me remember what it is, can someone give me suggestions?

THE TWELVE HOURS
Each Hour represents a separate divine authority. Different Hours may sometimes achieve similar results, but they do so through different methods and obey different limitations.

HOUR 1: SPACE
Space is the authority over where something exists. It controls position, location, distance, direction, dimensions, and the boundaries between places.
Space users can teleport themselves or other objects, create portals, shorten or expand distances, bend paths, connect distant locations, separate nearby locations, and create spatial barriers. They can pull something closer by compressing the space between themselves and the target or push something away by expanding that distance. Advanced users may create pocket dimensions, spatial labyrinths, unreachable fortresses, or places where the normal ideas of near and far no longer apply.
Space does not directly control speed, momentum, strength, energy, or impact. Teleporting a rock above someone does not automatically give it the destructive force of a meteor. Accurate teleportation also requires knowledge or awareness of the destination. Living beings naturally resist hostile teleportation and direct spatial manipulation. Greater distances, larger targets, and more complicated spatial changes require much more power.

HOUR 2: ARCANE
Arcane is the authority over raw supernatural power. It represents magical energy before that energy is shaped by the specialized authority of another Hour.
Arcane users can fire magical missiles, create energy beams, produce magical lightning, use telekinesis, construct barriers, detect supernatural power, absorb magical energy, transfer energy, reinforce objects, power rituals, and create temporary weapons or structures made from energy. Arcane is the classic mage Hour because it is highly versatile and useful in many situations.
Arcane does not mean that the user can perform every ability that could be described as magical. Arcane cannot teleport because that belongs to Space. It cannot control life because that belongs to Nature. It cannot resurrect the dead because that involves Death. It cannot control probability because that belongs to Desire. It cannot manipulate time because that belongs to Time. Arcane users can produce enormous amounts of power, but their abilities consume energy rapidly. They are extremely dangerous for short periods but may become exhausted faster than users of other Hours.

HOUR 3: UNKNOWN
The authority of Hour 3 has not yet been decided. It will be chosen after identifying which major concepts and abilities are not already claimed by the other eleven Hours.

HOUR 4: OCEAN
Ocean is the authority over the primordial waters. It governs the seas, rivers, lakes, ice, rain, mist, and other forms of natural water.
Ocean users can manipulate water, create and shape ice, freeze existing water, produce mist, influence rain, control waves and currents, create whirlpools, summon floods, and manipulate pressure within water. They can breathe underwater, resist the pressure of the deep sea, move rapidly while swimming, and sense movement through nearby water. Powerful users may create tsunamis, freeze harbors, part sections of the sea, alter regional currents, or summon storms connected to the ocean.
Ocean users are strongest when they are near an existing body of water. They are significantly weaker in dry environments, although advanced users may pull moisture from the atmosphere at a high energy cost. Ocean cannot freely create unlimited water from nothing. It also cannot control blood or the water inside living creatures because living biology is protected by Nature’s authority. Ocean controls water itself, but it does not control plants, animals, soil, stone, or the entire atmosphere.

HOUR 5: NATURE
Nature is the authority over the living Earth. It governs natural land, plants, animals, ecosystems, vitality, and biological life.
Nature users can manipulate stone, soil, terrain, mountains, natural minerals, and earthquakes. They can accelerate plant growth, control roots and vines, awaken forests, create medicinal or poisonous plants, and sense through connected plant life. They can communicate with animals, calm or command beasts, form supernatural bonds with creatures, borrow animal traits, and partially or completely transform into animals. Nature users can also detect life, transfer vitality, accelerate regeneration, treat poison, strengthen biological processes, and heal physical injuries.
Nature cannot perform true resurrection. It can save someone who is dying, restore damaged tissue, and accelerate the body’s natural healing, but once a soul has fully passed into Death’s authority, Nature cannot simply bring that person back. Large-scale creation of life requires seeds, nutrients, water, soil, or an enormous amount of supernatural energy. Nature controls natural materials more easily than refined machines. Raw iron ore may fall under Nature, but an advanced mechanical device made from refined alloys belongs primarily to Innovation.

HOUR 6: HUMAN
Human is the authority over mortal potential. It allows the physical and mental determination of humanity to become supernaturally powerful.
Human users can increase strength, speed, durability, stamina, reflexes, balance, coordination, concentration, pain resistance, and physical recovery. They can resist fear, intimidation, despair, supernatural coercion, and some forms of mental domination. Human users can also share their enhancements with allies, allowing ordinary people to temporarily compete with supernatural creatures and powerful Hour users.
Human enhances the person rather than controlling the environment. It cannot directly move objects without physical action, manipulate external forces, control energy, or alter space. Human enhancement is also not the same as healing. A user may continue fighting despite a serious injury, but the injury still exists and may become worse when the power ends. Human allows the body to exceed its normal limits, but it does not permanently remove those limits.

HOUR 7: INNOVATION
Innovation is the authority over human advancement. It represents humanity’s ability to surpass natural limitations through invention, technology, and progress.
Innovation users can understand technology intuitively, repair machines, improve existing devices, forge advanced weapons, create armor, construct vehicles, build robots or golems, develop artificial intelligence, and combine magical power with machinery. They can create inventions far beyond the normal technological level of their civilization. Powerful users may build autonomous armies, intelligent cities, enormous mechanical beings, or technology capable of challenging divine creatures.
Innovation requires materials, tools, energy, knowledge, and construction time. An Innovation user cannot simply wave their hand and create a complex machine from nothing. Innovation can imitate some of the results of other Hours, but it does not possess their true authority. A medical device can heal someone, but it does not directly control vitality like Nature. A teleportation machine may be possible, but it requires far more infrastructure than the natural abilities of a Space user. Innovation’s greatest creations may continue changing the world long after their creator dies.

HOUR 8: HOLY
Holy is the authority over the sacred. It governs purification, blessings, protection, spiritual healing, divine light, and sacred conviction.
Holy users can create sacred weapons, produce holy light, grant blessings, construct protective barriers, remove curses, purify corrupted objects or locations, exorcise spirits, banish undead, cleanse supernatural diseases, and protect others from Death or Chaos abilities. They can create sacred ground where curses weaken, undead struggle, spiritual healing accelerates, and corrupt powers become unstable. Holy users may also strengthen others through blessings connected to courage, protection, endurance, or devotion.
Holy power requires genuine conviction. That conviction may come from religion, an oath, a sacred ideal, a cause, or belief in something greater than oneself. A person who betrays their deepest convictions may weaken or lose access to their power. Holy healing is especially effective against curses, spiritual wounds, corruption, and supernatural illnesses, while Nature is usually better at treating physical trauma and restoring biological vitality. Holy does not control all ordinary light, and it cannot freely resurrect the dead.

HOUR 9: DESIRE
Desire is the authority over risk, reward, temptation, fortune, gambling, and what someone is willing to sacrifice for what they want.
Desire users can create supernatural wagers, magical games, contracts based on risk, and abilities that grow stronger when greater dangers are accepted. They can manipulate probability, steal or transfer luck, accumulate fortune, place rewards and punishments on certain outcomes, and wager things such as lifespan, memories, senses, abilities, or power. They can expose or exploit a person’s strongest desires and tempt them into accepting dangerous agreements.
The absolute rule of Desire is that nothing can be gained without something being risked. The greater the reward, the greater the required danger or sacrifice. A Desire user cannot simply grant themselves unlimited good luck. They must accept a meaningful chance of loss. Desire can make possible events more or less likely, such as causing a weapon to break, a person to trip, or an attack to narrowly miss. It cannot make something completely impossible happen because impossible events belong to Chaos. Users who repeatedly force favorable results without accepting fair risks accumulate fortune debt, which eventually returns as severe misfortune.

HOUR 10: DEATH
Death is the authority over what has ended. It governs corpses, ghosts, deceased souls, undead creatures, and the memories left behind by the dead.
Death users can see ghosts, speak with the dead, summon spirits, control corpses, raise skeletons, create undead servants, perceive souls, bind deceased spirits, and access memories belonging to the dead. They may open temporary paths to the realm of the dead, summon ancient spirits, create intelligent undead, or command entire armies from battlefields and graveyards filled with past deaths.
Death has much greater authority over the dead than over the living. A Death user cannot casually touch a healthy person and immediately kill them. Attacking a living soul requires prolonged contact, rituals, established conditions, weakened targets, or an overwhelming difference in power. Death cannot normally perform true resurrection. It may summon a spirit, temporarily bind a soul to a body, or reconstruct the memories of someone who died, but complete resurrection would likely require the combined authority of Death, Nature, Holy, and Time.

HOUR 11: CHAOS
Chaos is the authority over what should not be. It governs corruption, mutation, contradiction, broken laws, unstable transformations, and impossible events.
Chaos users can create curses, mutate living creatures, corrupt land, contaminate magic, combine incompatible things, distort reality, produce unnatural transformations, and create areas where normal physical or magical laws no longer function correctly. Chaos may create fire that freezes, stone that behaves like liquid, independent shadows, wounds that appear before an attack, reflections that act on their own, or gravity that pulls in several directions at once. Powerful users may create impossible creatures, permanent anomalies, corrupted regions, or temporary zones where one fundamental law of reality is rewritten.
Chaos is extremely difficult to control. The user may receive exactly what they requested, but the result may continue changing or spread beyond its intended target. A user who turns their arm into a weapon may discover that the mutation refuses to stop. A cursed forest may become hostile to its own creator. The central cost of Chaos is that the more the user breaks reality, the less reality is willing to obey them afterward. Desire makes unlikely things happen, while Chaos makes impossible things happen.
Chaos can also impact the minds of others creating visions or illusions that can make people go crazy. It can also mess with emotions or thoughts confusing enemies if needed
HOUR 12: TIME
Time is the authority over when something exists or occurs. It governs duration, aging, temporal speed, previous states, future possibilities, and the sequence of events.
Time users can slow or accelerate time, age objects, reverse aging, rewind objects, restore previous physical states, view fragments of the past, glimpse possible futures, create localized time fields, preserve things in temporal stasis, accelerate decay, and temporarily stop time within a limited area. Powerful users may restore recently destroyed objects, rewind sections of a battlefield, preserve entire locations from change, or reverse recent disasters.

So yea it’s a lot of text but I have been thinking about it for a while. But I need hour three really badly.

I’ve tried force but redirecting energy or changing motion overlaps with space and human too well

Lighting is energy so that would go into arcane

Sound isn’t appealing, I want the first three hours to be grand and strong concepts

Reality is too broken

Stone would be probably with nature

Mind would be with chaos

Gravity maybe but it had too much to do with force (my original idea for hour 3) so I’d rather it

Maybe combustion? Idk I need help

This is the first part of a theory I've been kicking around to present a cohesive explanation of magic in-world for a DnD adaptation of ASOIAF. It doesn't yet include a mechanism for the power and presence of magic fluctuating or the seasons but I'll get there. Probably something to do with the current of decaying energy changing. It's largely based on a laypersons's understanding of physics and biology.

Next section will be blood magic, then greenseeing (which will be based off of accumulated Vital essence in an ecosystem).

I'd appreciate any suggestion or feedback!

Essential States & Decay
Essence exists all around us in several states. It flows between these states constantly and by myriad processes I have been studying for some time.

The default state of the world is one of essential decay. That is, one of essence transmuted through degradation from a high energy state to a low energy state. Deific essence decays to Material essence, which in turn becomes Pyric essence, and finally Aetheric essence. 

However, this descending transmutative chain is not quite so simple. At every link, some fragment of higher state essence degrades further, skipping a link, towards an even lower state. In the natural progression, the ambient Deific essence decays to yield the Material essence of our tangible world. Yet it also directly decays into the light and heat of Pyric essence, and even the unseen shadow of the Aetheric essence. This observation is of critical importance for our present discussion of the Higher Mysteries.

Essential decay releases bursts of energy as it slips down the chain. This energy, likely the actively transmuting (Liminal) essence itself, is minute and ephemeral in the natural world, rapidly dissipating into nothingness. On the occasions that I have been able to observe, and measure, this phenomenon, it appears that the quantity of energy is proportional to both the mass of decaying essence, and, most interestingly, the number of “skipped links” on the hierarchy of essential states. 

For example, experimental immolation of a live newt yielded over hundred-fold more essential energy than the experimental immolation of one hundred dead newts. Unfortunately, the Citadel ethics board shut down that line of inquiry before I was able to replicate the procedure, yet I believe its results to be valid. I hope that the next edition of this volume will contain results disentangling the stages of decay.

This formative study suggested that there was something immaterial sustaining living organisms, something profoundly more essentially powerful than our corporeal forms. From it, I derived one of the theories explicated herein, the hypothesis of which can be summarized as thus: 

Although diffuse and inaccessible in its ambient state, a unique Vital essence is concentrated in, or perhaps by, living beings. Upon death, a portion of that essence decays directly to the Aetheric state, producing an immense quantity of energy relative to that yielded by the decay of its Material essence to the Pyric and Aetheric states. The degree of released energy suggests that the Vital state of essence sits at an energy density far higher than any other state, save for the Deific.

Life & Death
If living things release a markedly disproportionate (to their mass) degree of essential energy when they expire, and if we attribute this to sequestered Vital essence, it follows that they must have some mechanism to generate and maintain essential deposits of said state, despite constant decay. My studies lead me to propose two related methods by which beings achieve this: Dissipation and Accumulation.

Dissipation involves the catalysis of essential decay by way of ambient siphoning. The most basal of living beings, like simple plants and algae, somehow harness the ambient decay of ambient Deific essence, capturing the energy released from its natural transmutation into lower states. The energy of this Deific decay is then captured in order to transmute a proportionally miniscule mass of absorbed Material essence into a higher energy Vital state. The gradual decay of this Vital essence then functions as an catalytic accelerant for lower order decay, primarily material essence into the Pyric and Aetheric states - i.e. biological functions of the organism.

Dissipative organisms appear to reverse the eternal current of essential decay, synthesizing Vital essence from lower energy essence of the Material state. However, a series of experiments I conducted in 298 and 299 AC indicate that the opposite is actually true. Yes, these beings do themselves swim upstream on that current, increasing their average essential state with the synthesis for Vital essence. However, they are not a closed system, and in fact quicken the rate of external decay observed with their immediate surroundings significantly more than they slow the internal process. En masse, dissipative life, and indeed all life, is an agent of decay, accelerating the net flow rate of essential decay from the Deific state to the Aetheric.

Accumulation achieves this same end, though by secondary means. Any being that consumes the tissue of another is an effector of Accumulation. By consumption of living (or recently living) tissue, we extinguish life, immediately destabilizing the Vital essence within it, accelerating its decay. However, a portion of this Vital essence is bound, ephemerally as always, to our bodily form. The rest of it decays to lower states, as does the consumed tissues’s Material and Pyric. By this process, humans and other higher order beings accumulate the Vital essence within them, storing it at much higher concentrations than found in dissipative organisms. Both types of life, however, use this store of Vital essence in the same basic biological functions. It is the fuel of life and what sets the living apart from the non-living.

Sorcery & Magics
As discussed at length, essential decay releases ephemeral bursts of energy, understood by some in the east as Liminal essence (i.e. essence moving between states). This is the stuff of magic, regardless of type of discipline. Bloodmages, Greenseers, Stormsingers, Warlocks, Shadowbinders, Spellsingers, Aeromancers, and priests of all faiths, each have their methods to capture this energy and manipulate it to their ends. An astute reader might note: did we not just learn how all living things harness this energy to create Vital essence - life itself? Is life a form of magic? In a single word, dear reader: Yes.

Life itself is magical in nature. And until some mage or maester much wiser than I discover a means to concentrate and manipulate the ambient Deific essence around us, life is the most powerful source of magics known to man. An innocent heart might find beauty and wonder in this truth. And yet, the consequences are very dark indeed - and they bring us to an exploration of Bloodmagic.

...to be continued...

- Archmaester Marwyn, 305 AC