History Main / BloodMagic

** Dragon Communion is the act of partaking in the blood of dragons (via eating their hearts) to gain their power. Abusing this by eating too many hearts turns people into Magma Wyrms, grotesque parodies of true dragons. Thanks to GameplayAndStorySegregation, a player character doesn't have to worry about any changes except their eyes turning yellow. The Dragon Communion Seal that boosts Dragon Communion incantations is even made of drake blood. The item lore for the seal notes that "incantation" isn't really the right term for these spells since they are too primal in nature. Like the Blood Oath incantations mentioned above, these "incantations" also have Arcane stat requirements.

* ''VideoGame/EldenRing'': Blood Oath Incantations are a school of spells that revolve around summoning massive quantities of red and black blood from a portal and can be used a variety of purposes: ranging from [[MyBloodRunsHot setting it aflame]] to [[TheSwarm brainwashing flies with the scent to make them fight for you]]. Happening upon a certain BrutalBonusLevel reveals that blood magic [[spoiler: was first invented by the Mohg, Lord of Blood (a member of the Lands Between's Demigod royalty abused for having been born deformed) and is in truth fuelled by the Formless Mother, a sadomasochistic [[EldritchAbomination Outer God]] who offered the young Omen the chance to [[AmbitionIsEvil take his mother's crown]] in exchange for spreading the use of her evil magics]].

* ComicBook/JohnConstantine {{Expy}} [[ComicBook/DoomPatrol Willoughby Kipling]] points out that the easiest and most blood-efficient way to do this is with a papercut on the page of the spellbook you're using.

* ''VideoGame/EldenRing'': Blood Incantations are a school of spells that revolve around summoning massive quantities of red and black blood from a portal and can be used a variety of purposes: ranging from [[MyBloodRunsHot setting it aflame]] to [[TheSwarm brainwashing instects with the scent to make them fight for you]]. Happening upon a certain BrutalBonusLevel reveals that blood magic [[spoiler: was first invented by the Mohg, Lord of Blood (a member of the Lands Between's Demigod royalty abused for having been born deformed) and is in truth fuelled by the Formless Mother, a sadomasochistic [[EldritchAbomination Outer God]] who offered the young Omen the chance to [[AmbitionIsEvil take his mother's crown]] in exchange for spreading the use of her evil magics]].

* In ''Manga/TongariBooshiNoAtorie'', a criminal witch uses blood to produce magic ink needed to draw magic.

* ''VideoGame/EldenRing'': Blood Incantations are a school of spells that revolves around summoning dark-red blood from a portal and can be used a variety of purposes: ranging from [[MyBloodRunsHot setting it aflame]] to [[TheSwarm brainwashing flies with the scent to make them fight for you]]. Happening upon a certain BrutalBonusLevel reveals that blood magic [[spoiler: was first invented by the Mohg, Lord of Blood (a member of the Lands Between's Demigod royalty abused for having been born deformed) and is in truth fuelled by the Formless Mother, a sadomasochistic [[EldritchAbomination Outer God]] who the young Omen the chance to [[AmbitionIsEvil take his mother's crown]] in exchange for spreading the use of her magic]].

* ''VideoGame/EldenLord'': This is [[EvilOverlord Mohg]]'s specialty and mastery; he ''invented'' the entire sub-school, and most of his followers use its spells. His intro cutscene has him use a puddle of blood oozing from Miquella's corpse as a PortalPool, and in battle he conjures spouts of blood which bursts into flames in a variety of ways, launches exploding {{Sword Beam}}s of blood from his claws (which can also explode into {{Hellfire}}), and at the start of his second phase he conjures a red mist which inflicts the Bleed status effect. Similarly, several blood based skills directly reference him.

* In ''ComicBook/TheSandman: A Game of You'', menstrual blood is used to power a spell to send the characters into Barbie's dream and come back alive ([[spoiler:mostly]]). The spell is repeated with blood from a cut palm in ''Death: Time of Your Life''.

* ''Literature/CradleSeries'': Blood [[{{Mana}} madra]] Paths aren't particularly uncommon, and many healers combine it with life madra to great effect. However, blood Paths have a negative reputation because the most common source of blood [[BackgroundMagicField aura]] is ''spilled'' blood. Paths that combine sword madra and blood madra are often disparagingly referred to as "slaughter Paths," since that's the most common way to advance them. And it doesn't help that one of the four [[GodOfEvil Dreadgods]] is the Bleeding Phoenix, and its cultists/victims can quickly gain a lot of power by accepting its bloody children.

Spilling of blood is a [[ThePowerOfBlood potent force]] in the working of magic. It may be a token sacrifice, but it may also be [[CastFromHitPoints the loss of life that fuels the spell]]. Expect mages who practice Blood Magic to be portrayed as [[BlackMagic evil]], or [[TheDarkArts at least dark grey]], with possible exceptions made for {{druid}}like nature cults that may be considered [[NatureIsNotNice amoral]].

** When you kill monsters you collect their blood (which conveniently crystallized into red orbs in contact with air) to upgrade your magic powers. Justified in that there is a bounty system in placed by some nebulous god of good.
** In ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry3DantesAwakening'', [[spoiler: Arkham used the blood of Dante, Vergil, and Lady to open up the portal to the demon world. He needs this because the portal was sealed by Sparda (Dante and Vergil's father) using his own blood and the blood of a mortal priestess, Lady's ancestor]].

* Blood magic was forbidden in the backstory of ''The Blood Queen'' as a compromise by the high kings of man so they wouldn't have to exterminate the WitchSpecies. The main character herself and several other dark wizards still use it in secret, however.

** The blood of [[WitchSpecies warlocks]] and [[TheFairFolk fairies]] has a strange effect on vampires, even if it is never explained exactly what effect it is.

* The blades that provide the name of ''Literature/TheSharingKnife'' series are carved from the bones of the local WitchSpecies (thighbones, by preference) and driven into living hearts to empower them for the purpose of slaying the 'Lakewalker's' enemies. [[DarkIsNotEvil The Lakewalkers are in fact the good guys]], the [[EldritchAbomination things]] they hunt will [[WalkingWasteland kill everything]] [[TheWorldIsAlwaysDoomed if even a single one is left unchecked]], any every ''other'' weapon just [[NighInvulnerability gets the latter's attention]].

* ''VideoGame/DivinityOriginalSinII'': Several {{Necromancer}} skills [[ElementalBaggage create]] or take effect through [[GeoEffects blood surfaces]], such as a RainOfBlood that inflicts massive NonElemental damage and {{Status Ailment}}s, ghostly hands that do the same to any enemy standing in blood, and a spell that heals the target by absorbing nearby blood.

* ''VideoGame/VampireTheMasqueradeBloodlines'': The Tremere [[VampireVarietyPack vampire clan]]'s unique [[MagicByAnyOtherName Discipline]], Thaumaturgy, manipulates blood. Powers include long-range VampiricDraining via blood projectiles, inflicting a StatusAilment while the target vomits blood, forming armour out of blood, and making people explode in [[HerdHittingAttack superheated gore]].

** In ''Literature/MagicInTheBlood'', a villain steals some of Allie's, which seriously worries her.

* In ''Film/{{Blade}}'', it's of little surprise that the ancient vampire artifact runs off of blood. Blade is strapped into a huge bloodletting device that causes his blood to fill up all the magical symbols below him, rather similar to the picture above.

* In ''Film/LesbianVampireKillers'', the [[TargetedHumanSacrifice blood of the last of the [=McLaren=]'s]], along with a VirginSacrifice, is required in the ritual to resurrect Carmilla the Vampire Queen.

* In ''Film/PansLabyrinth'', the blood of a child is called for to open a gate, though the heroine refuses to take it. It still [[spoiler:technically works -- it just happens to be the protagonist's blood. [[SecretTestOfCharacter And it would not have worked had the baby been used.]]]]

* In ''Film/PracticalMagic'', Sally and Gillian slice their palms and clasp hands to cure [[spoiler: Gillian's DemonicPossession.]] It also conveniently works as a [[spoiler: CurseEscapeClause]].
* The eponymous ''Film/{{Pulgasari}}'' starts off as a rice figurine made by a dying blacksmith that gets brought to life by the blacksmith's daughter, Ami, when she pricks her finger while sewing over it. Later in the film, she is able to revive him by cutting her arm and letting the blood drip into the pile of boulders trapping the {{Kaiju}}.
* In ''Film/SilentHill'' Christabella unintentionally invokes this trope when she stabs [[spoiler: Rose]] in the chest. The blood gushing from the wound destroys the church, allowing [[spoiler: Alessa]] to enter. Then all hell breaks loose.
* In ''Film/SinbadAndTheEyeOfTheTiger'', Zenobia uses her blood to animated the [[ALoadOfBull Minaton]].
* Ryuhei Kitamura's ''Film/{{Versus}}'' revolves around the "Blood of Resurrection", which the villain plans to use in the Forest of Resurrection to open some kind of a dark door and get "The Power". Zombies and reincarnated samurai are involved.

* ''Literature/WickedSaints'': Tranavia use blood in their various rituals and spells. It's gotten to the point that even common folk can use it for simple tasks like fishing and sewing and the entire culture and society of Tranavia is supported by blood magic.

* ''Literature/BazilBroketail'': Most of the Enemy's magic requires drawing blood, if not killing a human or beast.

-->-- '''[[SpellBook Grimoire Weiss]]''', ''VideoGame/NieR''