Magic does not appear, it is born. Those blessed by magic enter the world with potential. It is not genetic. It is random. If power is to rear its head, it will do so from the beginning. Those who behold the power of Magic grow into their abilities. Their childhood is punctuated by magical mishaps; Accidental apparitions, unintentional spellcasting… It is dangerous. Untrained hands are societally feared and thanks to the Royal agenda in each Continent, young Mages quickly become insecure and uncertain of their power. Difficult to bare a power demonised by all around them.

The Royal Guards are tasked with the management of the Magic Population. Guided, ironically, by the Royal Mage. The hunted becomes the hunter… Those who are reckless and a liability are quelled. Only the Young Blessed with subjective potential and an inherent ability to control are considered suitable Royal Mage candidates. The assessment credentials are ambiguous and shrouded in mystery; What exactly is the difference between a Young Mage destined for greatness and a Young Mage destined for the Royal Blade? Many believe the ambiguity is purposeful to generate fear.

In order to be able to practice Magic somewhat freely, the Royal Guard must first deem you worthy. Then, you are conscripted by the Royal Family. Plucked from your own family home and dropped in the Royal Mage quarters. This is an extension of the castle, where both the current and previous Royal Mage hold residency. It is a lifelong commitment, to be a Royal Mage. Therefore, both the practicing Mage and Retired Mage share living quarters along with several candidates. Predecessors and future Mages live side by side on Royal Grounds, the Elders tasked with training and nurturing the future appointments. When a Mage hits 50 years old, the Royal Guard begin their recruitment. In the 7 years an Initiate is trained, taught and moulded, the Royal Mage will observe their replacements with watchful eyes and select the most promising student to take their place.

But what of the unselected? What happens to the young Mages unsuccessful in their training? Some disappear. Some go into hiding. Some try their hardest to return to normal life… None permitted to practice the magic they’ve now harnessed. It is the ultimate shame to be cast aside as a failed Royal Mage. The Crown tend to favour keeping these Mages on a tight leash in the instance they’re called upon in the future. With the promise of another chance should something tragic strike the Mage in power, these failed Initiates live life on red alert, praying on their fellow students downfall.

Turning 25 for the Initiate Mage means the official transfer of duties. Their predecessor stays close, for advice and guidance. But officially? They are the Royal Mage by and large.

A Royal Mage acts as the primary magical authority serving a monarch or government, responsible for protecting the realm and providing specialised counsel. Their duties typically blend political advice, magical defense, and research.

Core Responsibilities -

Advisory: Providing guidance on magical, scientific, and academic matters, often serving as a key member of the king’s council.

Magical Defense & Security: Warding the castle, city, or kingdom against supernatural threats. This includes neutralizing enemy magic, dealing with monsters, or serving as General in the Royal Army.

Arcane Research & Development: Maintaining, studying, and repairing magical artefacts and relics for the court.

Regulatory & Oversight Duty: Overseeing other magic users in the realm, ensuring they follow laws, and preventing the misuse (or simply, preventing the use entirely) of magic.

Intelligence & Divination: Using scrying or magical foresight to spy on rival nations, predict enemy actions, or investigate anomalies.

Protecting the Kingdom is a heavy burden to bare. A Royal Mage might turn to dark magic to maintain order and eliminate threats. Dark Magic is largely forbidden and certainly frowned upon in every Continent. Examples of dark magic include manipulating blood to control enemies, using necromancy to question deceased foes, or sacrificing life force to enhance their power.

Any use of Dark Magic has consequence in this Realm. Drawing power from dark magic can cause the decline of the users health, the health of the planet, resurrect the monsters of the Realm… It is a highly dangerous line to dance.

Here are some specific examples of dark magic categorised by usage:



Stripping subjects or foreign dignitaries of their free will to ensure loyalty or extract secrets.

1. Memory Extraction/Modification: Probing the minds of suspected spies for treasonous information, often causing severe mental damage.

2. Love/Obedience Potions: Using dark alchemy to make the monarch loved or to force binding marriage alliances.

3. Glamour Failure/True Polymorph: Forcing an enemy into a monstrous form to discredit them.



1. Blood Magic: Controlling the blood of enemy soldiers, stopping their hearts, or using blood sacrifice to amplify defensive barrier spells.

2. Necromancy/Animated Soldiers: Raising fallen enemy soldiers as undead minions to fight for the crown, or animating armour for city defence.

3. Darkness Shield/Sentient Flame: Creating protective barriers that protect allies while hostile to any who oppose the crown. Warding is light magic. A shield that both protects and harms is dark magic.

4. Summoning Demons/Void Beings: Binding dark entities to protect the kingdom, often requiring mortal souls as bait.



1. Shadowcasting/Spying: Using shadows to observe secret meetings, or creating shadowy doppelgängers to act as bodyguards.

2. Soul Recall: Forcing a recently deceased enemy to reveal secrets, trapping their spirit between realms.

3. Magic Mirror (Dark Divination): A scrying tool that uses blood sacrifice to see anywhere in the world.



1. Life Draining/Vitality Theft: Sapping the life force of commoners or political prisoners to maintain the mage's youth, strength, or to survive otherwise fatal wounds.

2. Soul Splitting: Creating a soul container to ensure they can serve the royal bloodline forever.

3. Magic Jar (Body Swapping): Possessing a younger, stronger, or more politically advantageous body to retain power.



1. Magical Plague: Engineering diseases that only affect a certain population or district to quell rebellion.

2. Mandatory Madness/Curse of Suffering: Using hexes to drive political dissidents insane.

3. Silent Assassination: Using curses that make murders look like natural causes (e.g., stopping a heart from a distance).



A Royal Mage using these abilities would likely deal with corruption— such as shadowy auras or strange runes appearing on their skin. Persistent use of Dark Magic has wider implications outside of the Mage themselves. The world suffers, decays and monster sightings are increased. A Mage seen to be using Dark Magic is punished by the Council of their Continent and, in more extreme cases, all Continent Councils.

Light magic for a Royal Mage typically emphasises protection, authority, illumination, and healing. Light Magic reflects a role that serves the kingdom and protects the crown. It often functions as "order" magic, opposing chaos and darkness, and can range from subtle utility to intense, offensive power. Light Magic does not have a price nor wider consequence save for the energy of the Mage wielding it.

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1. Aegis of Light/Light Shield: Creating barriers or shields of hard-light that can stop physical or magical attacks, often appearing as shining armour or a dome of energy.

2. Aura of Radiance: A passive or active buff that protects the user and nearby allies, providing both physical protection and comfort against fear or dark magic.

3. Purification/Cleansing: Removing curses, diseases, or "negative emotions" from individuals or land.



1. Laser Beams/Searing Rays: Concentrated beams of light used to pierce, burn, or slice through targets with extreme precision.

2. Blinding Flash: Releasing a sudden, intense burst of light to disorient, blind, or stun enemies, providing a non-lethal way to take control of a room.

3. Hard-Light Constructs: Creating solid, tangible weapons or tools out of light, such as a "sword of light".

4. Sun Spheres/Orb of Light: Summoning glowing orbs that can be used for light or sent out as explosive, kinetic projectiles.

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1. True Sight/Clarity Manipulation: Removing illusions or detecting lies.

2. Illusion/Holographic Projection: Creating 3D images of light to confuse enemies, create decoys, or display information during tactical briefings.

3. Healing Light: Using radiant energy to heal wounds, mend broken bones, or rejuvenate tired troops.

4. Light Travel/Teleportation: Moving instantly from one location to another by turning into light. This does not transcend time and is reserved exclusively for highly adept Mages.

ȶɦɛ ɖɛʐɛʀȶ - A desolate, hot, desert-like land. Known for harbouring outlaws and secrets.

ȶɦɛ քʟǟռɛֆ - Meadows, wildflowers, grassland. An idyllic ecosystem where nature, and its people, thrive.

ȶɦɛ ʍօʊռȶǟɨռɛֆ - Arduous, rocky, mountainous. The clean air and altitude makes for inhabitants with stamina and good-health.

ȶɦɛ ǟռȶǟʀȶɨӄ - Cold, icy, snow-filled lands. The challenging elements have forged a resilient, hardened populous.

- The Sahara region is mostly desolate and often buffeted by sandstorms. Characterised by rolling sand dunes, the Sahara people live in clay, terracotta igloos built within the ancient stone walls. The walls of the city protect the Saharans from the devastating weather conditions and it is notoriously hard to locate. It is said that the Royal Mage of this region has enchanted the city to disappear at nightfall. An illusion charm, this magic protects the Sahara from the nocturnal Sandworms that hunt in the dunes come nightfall.

- Accessible via one singular rocky ascent, this Kingdom is built into the Dezert mountainsides. The weather is less abrasive here, protected by the Dezert mountain range and large canopies to shield from the unforgiving sun. Kalahari is notorious for its Underground Culture. Markets hidden away in caves, outlaws seeking anonymity, the Kalahari Crime Rings deal in “Dust” - A hallucinogenic powder that is made from Dolomite Rock deep in the Kalahari mountains.



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- Emboldened by nobility and composure, Aethelguard is ruled with an iron fist disguised by silk gloves. Built on the coast of The Planes, fisher families and sailors make up the majority of this population. Centered around the buzzing ports, Aethelguard’s trade economy is the nucleus. Blue skies, salty air and paradisal beaches, the inhabitants of Aethelguard are bright-eyed and fresh-faced.

- Luscious meadows and thriving corn fields, Elowen is a farmer Region. The heart of the Planes, the people of Elowen have never known struggle. Wealth, abundance and blossoming gardens, Elowens are rich and proud. The working class look like farmer families with successful ranches, the upper class live amongst gold and jewels. There is no such thing as true poverty here. The only thing that separates the classes is whether or not they work for their riches or they’ve inherited them.



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- Towering peaks and hidden valleys, Arcadians are miners who farm the Mountaines for gold and jewels. Do not let their trade deceive you, Arcadians don’t care for the precious materials that they mine for. They are proud and adept warriors who focus more on their battalions than materialism. The Mountaine air is said to have healing and purifying qualities with the Mountaine dwellers rarely suffering from diseases or plagues. Many make the journey to Arcadia as a pilgrimage as the ascent is only manageable by the most resilient.

- Wyvern riders. Fierce, powerful and unafraid. Kunlun neighbours the other side of the Arcadian peaks. Men outnumbering women by 3/1, Kunlun is packed full of hunters, soldiers and Wyvern riders. It is every young man’s dream to serve in the Kunlun army or hunt the monsters that terrorise the mountainsides. The women are nurturers and home-makers, the men are the breadwinners and protectors.



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- “The Snow City” - An icy kingdom, breathtakingly beautiful and chillingly uninhabitable. The Breifnir people have adapted to the bitter cold over the centuries. They travel by Husky-drawn sledges and deal in furs and art. The Arts underpin Breifnir’s economy, painters and sculptors are the wealthiest of inhabitants. The more working class hunt for animal pelts and make leather to trade with other continents.

- Ice warriors. The bodyguard to Breifnir. Located at the base of Yrsun Peaks, this is a city of red-nosed, cold-blooded soldiers. Ice trolls and Snow Hags inhabit the mountains overhead, so the Yrskaldians are hardened monster hunters. They emphasise the importance of community and the bonds formed in this city are unbreakable. Frozen, not forged.