[quote=Gelgarin]
Follow up question: this might be answered in the intro, but I couldn't find it. Where do mages come from? I don't mean in the 'when a mommy and a daddy decide they love each other very much' sense, but rather, are some people randomly born with a natural magical affinity, or is it something that has to be learned through study and dedication?
[/quote]

Maybe. When a mommy and daddy love each other very much, they occasionally produce a random freak of nature by a very rare chance. Mages are like shiny pokemon.