History Main / VancianMagic

** 3rd edition introduce sorcerers, a separate class from wizards, who don't have to prepare spells, [[CompetitiveBalance but can only know a very limited number of them]].

* In the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'', wizards are sometimes shown using this form of magic, and the series takes the third rule to an extreme -- for the first two books, Rincewind has one of the eight spells of the Octavo in his head, and it's so powerful that other spells just don't fit (or are too scared to stay). Although once it's ejected, it turns out he ''still'' can't learn any useful magic.

* Joel Rosenberg's ''Literature/GuardiansOfTheFlame'': All wizards and clerics in Rosenberg's world work by this rule, needing to either memorize spells or pray for them each day. This causes huge problems when the party's most experienced wizard [[spoiler:accidentally destroys his spellbooks]] while the party's sole cleric [[spoiler:is unable to regain her spells through prayer because she no longer believes in a benevolent deity]]. It's definitely supposed to play like ''D&D'', but he even mushed up some of the mechanics (attributes are rolled with 5d4 (reading 0-3) and class levels are on an alphabetical scale (A to whatever) for example. Importantly, it has rules for going berserk (which ''D&D'' of its era never did), which is a plot point. After the first book, Rosenberg sort of moved away from Vancian spellcasting -- the next one that features really extensive use of magic by a viewpoint character [[spoiler:(the wizard in the first book having given up wizardry to pursue the far mightier power of engineering, which has begun to radically change the nature of the fantasy world in which the heroes are stuck)]] is the sixth, ''The Road to Ehvenor,'' with no references to Andy-Andy having to prepare spells, or forgetting them after she casts them. You get the impression Rosenberg didn't much like Vancian magic, or writing in detail about magic in general, given the focus of the books on the warrior and thief-types, and the fact that [[spoiler:Andy-Andy also loses her magic at the end of Book Six.]] In the later books it becomes very clear that magic has a strong tendency to [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity consume the sanity of those who use it -- the more powerful wizards are, the crazier they get]]. And it's also [[FantasticDrug addictive]].

* Joel Rosenberg's ''Literature/GuardiansOfTheFlame'': All wizards and clerics in Rosenberg's world work by this rule, needing to either memorize spells or pray for them each day. This causes huge problems when the party's most experienced wizard [[spoiler: accidentally destroys his spellbooks]] while the party's sole cleric [[spoiler: is unable to regain her spells through prayer because she no longer believes in a benevolent deity]]. It's definitely supposed to play like ''D&D'', but he even mushed up some of the mechanics (attributes are rolled with 5d4 (reading 0-3) and class levels are on an alphabetical scale (A to whatever) for example. Importantly, it has rules for going berserk (which ''D&D'' of its era never did), which is a plot point. After the first book, Rosenberg sort of moved away from Vancian spellcasting -- the next one that features really extensive use of magic by a viewpoint character [[spoiler: (the wizard in the first book having given up wizardry to pursue the far mightier power of engineering, which has begun to radically change the nature of the fantasy world in which the heroes are stuck)]] is the sixth, ''The Road to Ehvenor,'' with no references to Andy-Andy having to prepare spells, or forgetting them after she casts them. You get the impression Rosenberg didn't much like Vancian magic, or writing in detail about magic in general, given the focus of the books on the warrior and thief-types, and the fact that [[spoiler:Andy-Andy also loses her magic at the end of Book Six.]] In the later books it becomes very clear that magic has a strong tendency to [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity consume the sanity of those who use it -- the more powerful wizards are, the crazier they get]]. And it's also [[FantasticDrug addictive]].

* In the web novel ''Literature/{{Anachronauts}}'' most wizards ''do not'' use magic this way, but the protagonist, Emily, has a "memory issue" which forces her to cast spells from page, i.e. manually copy them on pieces of paper that burn after use. [[spoiler: This turns out to be BlessedWithSuck, because spells burn anything they're written on, ''brains'' included, which is why other human mages end up showcasing that WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity.]] Later on, all mages are given this spell-memorizing restriction.

* Early Franchise/FinalFantasy games, being heavily inspired by D&D, utilize this to a degree. There are 8 levels of spells, with three slots per level. Classes that are more magically inclined can use the higher level spells, and more importantly get more charges per level. Later releases would replace the charges with MP, which simplifies the system while removing the resource management required.
* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII'' works like this. Each character has a Magic stock which can contain up to 32 distinct spells with a maximum 100 uses each. But instead of resting, characters gain spell charges by Drawing them from opponents and certain objects, or by using various abilities to extract them from items or upgrade other spells. By contrast, sorceresses can apparently use magic at-will, although [[spoiler:the character who becomes a sorceress]] only does so as a LimitBreak (presumably to avoid being a GameBreaker).

* Elona follows this to the letter, and piles on a ManaMeter, [[MagicMisfire spell failure rates]], and [[AdamSmithHatesYourGuts extortionate prices]] for [[ResourcesManagementGameplay spellstock-restoring books]] to boot, seeing them as the only way to prevent [[LinearWarriorsQuadraticWizards Linear Warriors, Quadratic Wizards]]. While it doesn't quite manage to [[Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick deliberately force some kind of arbitrary equality between those of us who can reshape matter with our thoughts and those who cannot]], it does wedge magic users into a very comfortable spot high up in DifficultButAwesome territory.

** And, well, Creator/GaryGygax [[http://www.google.com/search?q=%2B%22Gary+Gygax%22+%2B%22jack+vance+%26+the+d%26d+game%22 was a big fan of Vance]], so not only ''D&D'' obviously was influenced, but its lore contains {{shout out}}s to Vance: the evil necromancer turned [[AGodAmI God]] named [[SignificantAnagram Vecna]], said to have been the most powerful mortal wizard ever; also, Robe of Eyes from ''The Dying Earth''.

[[folder:WebOriginal]]
* In [[http://yourplayersaidwhat.tumblr.com/post/133930221462 one story]] featured in the Website/{{Tumblr}} blog "Shit Your Players Say", a spellsword constantly wrote in a book for years during a ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' game and warned her allies to never open it. It turns out that she was writing explosive runes each of which doing [=5d6=] of force damage (6-30 points) in every available spell slot in there (1200 slots per page [there being 100 pages in the book] totalling to an average of ''600,000d6 of force damage'') and used it to wipe out a third of the {{BigBad}}'s forces, punch a gateway into another plane of existence pulling in every psionic that uses that plane, creating living explosive spells that destroy everything in their way, and sent the surrounding area into ruin.
[[/folder]]

* The ''Ordinator'' mod for ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'' adds an optional Vancian Magic perk tree under Alteration that replaces your ManaMeter with a set number of spell charges that can be casted at no cost. Said charges must be replenished by sleeping, higher [[{{Mana}} Magicka]] grants more charges, and you may trade charges for stronger spells. Since all spells consume a single charge no matter their level, things can get pretty ridiculous when you cast Master-level spells back-to-back when normally one would empty your bar.

** 5th Edition moved away from static spell slots. In 5th Edition, spell-casing classes can "prepare" (i.e. memorize) a certain number of spells. They then get spell slots each level (for example, a 5th level Wizard has four 1st level slots, three 2nd level slots, and two 3rd level slots). They can use those slots to cast any of their prepared spells which "uses up" that slot for the day. They can cast their prepared spells in any combination they wish as long as they have a slot equal to or higher than the spell's level, and many spells are more powerful if cast with a higher level slot -- e.g., Cure Wounds is a Level 1 spell that restores [=1d8=]+Bonus HP. Cast with a second level slot, it restores [=2D8=]+Bonus, and so on. In addition, some spell-casting classes have "level 0 cantrips" that they can cast at will once they learn them without using spell slots at all. The cantrips include minor effects (creating a light, minor telekinesis, simple illusions, etc.) as well as direct damage spells.

** This is demonstrated with the various transportation spells used in the series: In one book, a character who wants to ascend to the top of the tower first has to use magic to knock loose a stone from the top, and use its energy and momentum as a lever in the spell. In ''Discworld/InterestingTimes'', they teleport Rincewind to the Aurient, but have to exchange him with something from his landing spot and of approximately the same weight. At the same time, in ''Discworld/EqualRites'', levitating a staff a handful of feet is extremely physically taxing because there isn't anything nearby to use as a counterweight, so the wizard in question has to do ''all'' the heavy lifting with his mind.
** This is subverted in a fashion in ''Discworld/{{Sourcery}}'', when a character who is a literal conduit of magical energy is present, wizards are capable of overriding the usual restrictions of conservation of their own bodies by using the excess energy floating around. This also allows them to perform highly tricky transmogrification of turning people into newts without the usual floating bag of flesh containing all the parts that are too big to fit.

* Some magic in ''Literature/TheMagicians'', mainly combat magic. If you want to turn your army's giants invisible and turn yourself into a martial arts expert with forcefield armour for a few minutes, you have to put in hours of spell work the night before so you can quickly cast the spells when you need them.

# Spells represent a kind of magic bomb which must be prepared in advance of actual use, and each prepared spell can be used only once before needing to be prepared again. That's why it is also known as "Fire & Forget magic."

* In ''Comics Scene'' #9, Chuck Dixon noted that he wrote magic users in his ComicBook/ConanTheBarbarian stories as having similarly restricted by stringent parameters for magic, with users required to make at times painful sacrifices and efforts.

* Joel Rosenberg's ''Literature/GuardiansOfTheFlame'' series, which features a set of ''D&D''-playing college students who are transported into the actual D&D world, uses the same trope, though note that ''D&D'' is not mentioned by name due to trademark concerns. It's definitely supposed to play like ''D&D'', but he even mushed up some of the mechanics (attributes are rolled with 5d4 (reading 0-3) and class levels are on an alphabetical scale (A to whatever) for example. Importantly, it has rules for going berserk (which ''D&D'' of its era never did), which is a plot point.
** After the first book, Rosenberg sort of moved away from Vancian spellcasting -- the next one that features really extensive use of magic by a viewpoint character [[spoiler: (the wizard in the first book having given up wizardry to pursue the far mightier power of engineering, which has begun to radically change the nature of the fantasy world in which the heroes are stuck)]] is the sixth, ''The Road to Ehvenor,'' and I don't recall any references to Andy-Andy having to prepare spells, or forgetting them after she casts them. You get the impression Rosenberg didn't much like Vancian magic, or writing in detail about magic in general, given the focus of the books on the warrior and thief-types, and the fact that [[spoiler:Andy-Andy also loses her magic at the end of Book Six.]] In the later books it becomes very clear that magic has a strong tendency to [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity consume the sanity of those who use it -- the more powerful wizards are, the crazier they get]]. And it's also [[FantasticDrug addictive]].
* Used partially, with well-defined parameters, in Lawrence Watt-Evans' ''Literature/TheLegendsOfEthshar'' series. There are many different forms of magic, the Vancian one being Wizardry. This is heavily dependent on ritual and materials or foci, uses the naming convention almost universally, and most significantly, structured into levels: spell "orders", a second-order spell being eight to ten times as hard as as a first order spell, and so on. There are at least twelve orders referenced, so small wonder that major wizards use an eternal youth spell so they have studying time. Unlike traditional Vancian magic, the spells are cast as soon as the ritual is completed and the number of times a spell can be cast is limited only by material components consumed and casting time.
** Also subverted in ''Taking Flight''. There two fire-and-forget wizardry systems are introduced, both with severe drawbacks. The first one lets wizard prepare any one (but only one) spell in advance, to be used once at his convenience, with practically zero casting time. Can be useful, as some spells need days to cast. The drawback is, until the spell is used, the wizard cannot do any other wizardry. The second system is a plot point: [[spoiler:wizard prepares about a dozen of spells, to instantly cast later as many times as he likes. The drawback? No other wizardry ever for that wizard, except for these spells.]]

* Aside from [[VideoGame/FireEmblemGaiden Gaiden]] and its remake, Franchise/FireEmblem uses this system, where magic is stored within various items (mainly tomes for offensive use and staffs for utility/healing) to be used, and like the weapons, [[BreakableWeapons have a set number of uses]]. The system ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'' uses is more traditional in that an item is not required. Magic users instead have a number of uses each battle for each spell, with foci empowering the spell rather than serving as a source.

* Aside from [[VideoGame/FireEmblemGaiden Gaiden]] and its remake, Franchise/FireEmblem uses this system, where magic is stored within various items (mainly tomes for offensive use and staffs for utility/healing) to be used, and like the weapons, [[BreakableWeapons have a set number of uses]].

* ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsI'' and ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsII'' follow this model. Each spell has a given number of uses, which replenishes when resting at a bonfire. Spells must be equipped at a bonfire before they can be cast, and take up one or more Attunement slots. The number of slots can be increased by leveling the Attunement stat, or by wearing certain rings. Multiple copies of the same spell can be equipped at once in order to increase the number of uses before having to rest. ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII'' and ''VideoGame/DemonsSouls'' have a ManaMeter instead, but spells still need to be equipped and take up a certain number of slots. ''Demon's Souls'' even has two separate kinds of slots for sorcery and miracles.

Naturally, this approach to magic is a lot more common in non-interactive media (where it's of course easy for the creators to match the character's spell selection -- when it's even explicitly shown -- to the later needs of the plot) than it is in video games, which, while often inspired by Vancian Magic, stretch its rules quite a bit since demanding a lot of magic preparation in a game could easily become annoying and/or create pacing issues. As such, most games that involve magic base its rules around the much simpler ManaMeter. Or sometimes a mix, you may only be able to "equip" a certain number of spells for any given level, but use them as often as you can afford the cost.

* ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'' uses a system similar to Vancian with it's [[AlchemyIsMagic potions]]. All potions must be meticulously crafted to achieve [[StatusEffect very specific effects]], and there is a limit to how many can be carried at once.