History Main / WildMagic

* ''TabletopGame/InvisibleSun'' has the Order of the Weavers, magic-users who shun formal rituals and instead take general types of magic and connect them together to get an effect. They may not get exactly what they want, but experienced Weavers can at least coax a good result out of things.

Particularly powerful Wild Magic may take the form of a BackgroundMagicField that renders reality unstable. Or, in other words, reality is a RealityWarper. It will frequently mistake your mind for a set of inspirational prompts. Think happy thoughts. [[PsychicStatic Think happy thoughts]] ''[[PsychicStatic very, very, hard.]]''

* In the ''Franchise/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirls'' series, before they receive the magical geodes in ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsLegendOfEverfree Legend of Everfree]]'', the Rainbooms have little control over the magical remnant they received from the Element of Magic in the first movie, and the effects tend to be random. At first they "pony up" when playing music in ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsRainbowRocks Rainbow Rocks]]'', but an effort to invoke directly ThePowerOfFriendship falls flat. In ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsFriendshipGames Friendship Games]]'' the magic manifests when they expresses their respective Element, but they take a while to realize it. Sunset Shimmer's attempt to analyze the magic scientifically in the short "[[WebAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsFriendshipGamesShorts The Science of Magic]]" results in a power outage, a deluge of apples, a rush of static-charged balloons, or a rainbow-colored splash of goo... and very little progress in comprehension.

* In ''Franchise/BaldursGate'', Wild Mages are introduced in ''[[VideoGame/BaldursGateIIThroneOfBhaal Throne of Bhaal]]'', it being a game set in the ''TabletopGames/ForgottenRealms'' ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' setting. The UpdatedRerelease makes it possible to play as one from the first game in the trilogy and introduces Neera, a Wild Mage follower, as a new character.

* In the ''Franchise/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirls'' series, before they receive the magical geodes in ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsLegendOfEverfree Legend of Everfree]]'', the Rainbooms have little control over the magical remnant they received from the Element of Magic in the first movie. They have little control over it initially, and the effects tend to be random. At first they "pony up" when playing music in ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsRainbowRocks Rainbow Rocks]]'', but an effort to invoke directly ThePowerOfFriendship falls flat. In ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsFriendshipGames Friendship Games]]'' the magic manifests when they expresses their respective Element, but they take a while to realize it. Sunset Shimmer's attempt to analyze the magic scientifically in the short "[[WebAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsFriendshipGamesShorts The Science of Magic]]" results in a power outage, a deluge of apples, a rush of static-charged balloons, or a rainbow-colored splash of goo... and very little progress in comprehension.

->''"Magic can exist on its own, independent of any spell, such as the werelights in the bogs by Aroughs, the dream well in Mani’s Caves in the Beor Mountains, and the floating crystal on Eoam. Wild magic such as this is treacherous, unpredictable, and often stronger than any we can cast."''

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* The Warp in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'': Some people can harness it, but it's very dangerous for them and others.

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** Young unicorns can run the risk, when very startled, of their magic going out of control. When Twilight Sparkle (one of the most powerful in modern memory) got her Cutie Mark, her uncontrolled magic turned her parents into houseplants, turned a baby dragon into a giant dragon, and came close to leveling the royal palace. ''Baby'' unicorns are even worse in this regard, since their magic is incredibly strong but purely instinctive, and cannot be controlled by anyone -- especially not the baby. This is epitomized by Flurry Heart, a baby [[PhysicalGod ''alicorn'']] whose inherent magic is so strong -- and so prone to being released by emotional outbursts -- that she caused an ancient, powerful magical artifact to shatter into pieces ''entirely on accident''. It is unknown if this level of raw power remains in unicorns and alicorns when they grow older.

** Young unicorns can run the risk, when very startled, of their magic going out of control. When Twilight Sparkle (one of the most powerful in modern memory) got her Cutie Mark, her uncontrolled magic turned her parents into houseplants, turned a baby dragon into a giant dragon, and came close to leveling the royal palace. ''Baby'' unicorns are even worse in this regard, since their magic is incredibly strong but purely instinctive, and cannot be controlled by anyone -- especially not the baby. This is epitomized by Flurry Heart, a baby ''alicorn'' whose inherent magic is so strong -- and so prone to being released by emotional outbursts -- that she caused an ancient, powerful magical artifact to shatter into pieces ''entirely on accident''. It is unknown if this level of raw power remains in unicorns and alicorns when they grow older.

* Most magic in ''LightNovel/{{Slayers}}'' is either rule magic or theurgic, but Lina's DangerousForbiddenTechnique is wild magic. The Giga Slave is a version of a powerful theurgic spell, modified to call upon Chaos itself. As Chaos is both powerful beyond everything, and [[CaptainObvious more than a little chaotic]], there's the minor problem that a miscast Giga Slave could destroy the entire universe. [[spoiler: Or not. The Lord of Nightmares is a very capricious being, and her mind always follows her power, so it really all depends on how she's feeling.]]

* Loki in ''Comicbook/LokiAgentOfAsgard'' claimed that magic runs on [[TheoryOfNarrativeCausality story]] and so it has a will of its own, that series [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall leaned on the fourth wall]] very hard by the way.

** Young unicorns can run the risk, when very startled, of their magic going out of control. When Twilight Sparkle (one of the most powerful in recent memory) got her Cutie Mark, her uncontrolled magic turned her parents into houseplants, turned a baby dragon into a giant dragon, and came close to leveling the royal palace. ''Baby'' unicorns are even worse in this regard, since their magic is incredibly strong but purely instinctive, and cannot be controlled by anyone -- especially not the baby. This is epitomized by Flurry Heart, a baby ''alicorn'' whose inherent magic is so strong -- and so prone to being released by emotional outbursts -- that she caused an ancient, powerful magical artifact to shatter into pieces ''entirely on accident''. It is unknown if this level of raw power remains in unicorns and alicorns when they grow older.

* The Warp in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}''': Some people can harness it, but it's very dangerous for them and others.

* In ''Manga/HunterXHunter'', Kite's Crazy Slots ability takes the form of a jester-like being that will spin a wheel on its tongue and turn into whatever weapon corresponds with that number. Crazy Slots has a mind of its own and honestly doesn't care much about Kite's well-being.

* Young unicorns in ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' can run the risk, when very startled, of their magic going out of control. When Twilight Sparkle (one of the most powerful in recent memory) got her Cutie Mark, her uncontrolled magic turned her parents into houseplants, turned a baby dragon into a giant dragon, and came close to leveling the royal palace. ''Baby'' unicorns are even worse in this regard, since their magic is purely instinctive.

** Baby magic is actually incredibly strong but cannot be controlled by anyone, and especially not the baby. This is epitomized by Flurry Heart, a baby ''alicorn'' whose inherent magic is so strong that it requires the other four alicorns to work together to keep the Crystal Empire from crumbling. (Bear in mind that two of these alicorns control the Sun and Moon in the sky, the third of them is a living embodiment of love, and the fourth has defeated several would-be [[TakeOverTheWorld world conquerors]].) It is unknown, however, if Flurry Heart can tap into that same level of power when she grows older.

* In ''Literature/Themoonofgomrath'', the human protaganists inadvertently return the imprisoned Old Magic to the world by lighting a bonfire on a sacred mountain on the right night of the year, the Eve of Gomrath. The wizard Cadellin, Guardian of the High Magic, is not pleased and points out it took a lot of effort to imprison the damn stuff in the first place. apparently the ordered and somewhat anally retentive High Magic is man's stuff (wizards) whilst the Old Wild Magic is that of women (The Lady in the Lake, the opposed Morrigan - and Susan, the human girl who lit the bonfire.)

*** By 4th edition it is a power/spell source for some sorcerers, it has different bonuses based on dice rolls. In 5th edition, Wild Magic remains the exclusive domain of sorcerers, but is closer mechanically to its 2nd edition self; wild mage spells have a one in twenty chance of producing some random effect when trying to cast a spell, ranging from regaining hit points to turning themselves into a potted plant.

Contrast RitualMagic, where the casting and effects of magic are very rigid. Compare and contrast MagicRealism, which on the one hand treats magic as having a life of its own but also makes it subtler and/or weaker.

* In ''Fanfic/TheWitchOfTheEverfree'', The Everfree Forest has a haze of magic which scrambles incoming scrying spells, making it an ideal hiding place. However, it also makes it somewhat more difficult to cast spells while inside it, which prevents Sunset from teleporting out of danger as quickly as she would otherwise be able to.

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--> -- '''Oromis''', ''Literature/InheritanceCycle''

* In ''Film/TheGamers: Dorkness Rising'' one of the gamers plays a Wild Mage who in their first battle tries to cast a lightning bolt, but due to a random effect is delayed until the battle is over and it hits the just resurrected bard. Oddly it never happens when he/she is frying [=NPCs=] for lulz.

* ''EnemyGlory'': very active in the North Country, where reality seems to be on a constant quest to turn into the most grandiose metaphor for itself that it can come up with.

* ''ForestKingdom'': oh boy. Not only is it alive. It wants the world as its playground. The first book is about trying to stop it. The second culminates in [[spoiler: going into the world where the embodiments of magic live and then going on a killing spree]]

* ''TheDresdenFiles'' has Demonreach, a sentient island somewhere in Lake Michigan that you can only arrive at if you mean to and which actively opposes people who try to settle on it.

* ''TalesOfTheFiveHundredKingdoms'' has the Tradition, which pushes people who are susceptible to it into the paths of traditional fairy tales -- the heroine of the first book is a Cinderella whose destined prince is still a child. If the magic of the Tradition can't be channeled into a tale, it simply accumulates around the person until someone decides to take it... or until the circumstances are changed until they no longer fit the story.

* The Literature/OldKingdom series uses both this and RitualMagic, though the latter is used much more often than the former, due to Free magic being extremely dangerous, as described in this trope. This actually ties into the main plot; [[spoiler:originally, [[RitualMagic Charter magic]] didn't exist, but seven of the nine great spirits who created the world sought to create something more organized, and bound Free magic using the Charter. This was then used to organize and create the known world.]]

* In Literature/{{Mogworld}}, magic is said to have a will of its own, and gets upset if a spell is finished by another person if the original caster is incapacitated in some way. It ''really'' doesn't like being used by corpses (i.e., the caster is killed midway through, and someone aims their severed forearm at their enemy and finishes the spell).

* ''{{GURPS}} Fantasy II''. The strange effects on magic cast in the Madlands.
* ''The {{Nightbane}}'' Supplement ''Through the Glass Darkly'' included rules for spells that had come alive and gained sentience. Later on this lead to aclass of Magic Users who deliberately did this everytime they caste a spell called the Spell Breather.

* In ''CastleFalkenstein'', wild magic is what happens if you draw a Joker while gathering energy for a spell. The spell goes off immediately, with unpredictable effects -- determined by the gamemaster, which practically guarantees it will be ... entertaining.

* In ''Franchise/BaldursGate'', Wild Mages are introduced in ''Throne of Bhaal'', it being a game set in the ''TabletopGames/ForgottenRealms'' ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' setting. The UpdatedRerelease makes it possible to play as one from the first game in the trilogy and introduces Neera, a Wild Mage follower, as a new character.

** 2nd Edition has Wild Mages whose magic always has the chance to produce random, and often extremely powerful, results. A first level spell is the voluntary release of Wild Magic to produce a randomly determined effect. It's effectively a straight gamble on whether it will be helpful or not. The class returned in 3.5 ''Complete Arcane'' as a prestige class.
** By 4th edition it is a power/spell source for some sorcerers, it has different bonuses based on dice rolls.
*** In 5th edition Wild Magic sorcerers have a one in twenty chance of producing some random effect when trying to cast a spell, ranging from regaining hit points to turning themselves into a potted plant.

* In ''Franchise/BaldursGate'', Wild Mages are introduced in ''Throne of Bhaal'', it being a game set in the ''TabletopGames/ForgottenRealms'' ''TabletopGame DungeonsAndDragons'' setting. The UpdatedRerelease makes it possible to play as one from the first game in the trilogy and introduces Neera, a Wild Mage follower, as a new character.

* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons''

* Most magic in {{Slayers}} is either rule magic or theurgic, but Lina's DangerousForbiddenTechnique is wild magic. The Giga Slave is a version of a powerful theurgic spell, modified to call upon Chaos itself. As Chaos is both powerful beyond everything, and [[CaptainObvious more than a little chaotic]], there's the minor problem that a miscast Giga Slave could destroy the entire universe. [[spoiler: Or not. The Lord of Nightmares is a very capricious being, and her mind always follows her power, so it really all depends on how she's feeling.]]