| 1 | %% Image moved to ScientificallyUnderstandableSorcery per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1558632366033602600 |
| 2 | %% Please start a new thread if you'd like to suggest an image. |
| 3 | %% |
| 4 | ->''"We don't ask that you stay within the bounds of physics, but at least follow the rules you freaking made up."'' |
| 5 | -->-- '''Website/{{Cracked}}''', ''[[http://www.cracked.com/article_16625_8-classic-movies-that-got-away-with-gaping-plot-holes.html 8 Classic Movies That Got Away With Gaping Plot Holes]]'' |
| 6 | |
| 7 | Works heavy on speculative elements, such as ScienceFiction and {{Fantasy}}, often have an assortment of fantastic intangibles we cannot even dream of encountering in RealLife -- yet act in a completely consistent way, as if governed by imaginary rules of physics; or at least, they do if the writer knows what they're doing. No matter how fantastic the events in a piece of fiction, their InternalConsistency is what makes or breaks the WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief. You can have the tech guy of LaResistance explain [[{{Technobabble}} in oblique terms involving the word "nano"]] why TheEmpire's fairy dust superweapon needs an hour to recharge after it fires, and the audience will nod its collective head and smile. But if you later have that fairy dust superweapon fire twice in five minutes, you've just created a PlotHole, and the audience will be at your throat. |
| 8 | |
| 9 | Internal consistency is often a superior alternative to attempting to scientifically explain every fantastical element in the story. Without it, any instance would quickly degenerate into an InfoDump of [[MagiBabble quasi-physics and pseudo-science]]. |
| 10 | |
| 11 | In a related trope, a common response by fans of a fantasy series to plot holes is, "You're talking about a story which literally involves ''magic.''" The answer is that while the audience can accept the existence of magic within the context of the story, that doesn't automatically explain every contradiction within that story. Using the mere existence of fantasy elements in a story to justify continuity errors is AWizardDidIt. |
| 12 | |
| 13 | It's possible to break consistency without damaging the WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief. It takes work; basically, the work of making a believable case that the violation did not happen out of nowhere. [[LampshadeHanging One way is to have the characters themselves notice the inconsistency]]; this only reinforces that it ''is'' unusual and there might be an [[AllThereInTheManual explanation for it somewhere]]. If none ever ends up being offered, at least it relegates a glaring PlotHole to mere FridgeLogic. Conversely, overly strict adherence towards these manufactured rules can cause its own problems with stagnation or [[NewRulesAsThePlotDemands complexity to the point you lose its functionality]]. After all, if Magic is [[SufficientlyAnalyzedMagic actually like]] [[FantasticScience science]], then the theory will likely be wrong sometimes and will have to be revised in the same way as earth science. |
| 14 | |
| 15 | Related to WrongContextMagic, when someone explicitly has the ability to circumvent it, UnequalRites, where there's more than one type of magic, each with their own rules, and YourMagicsNoGoodHere, where the rules change in a different dimension or world. See also BeyondTheImpossible, where internal logic is deliberately broken. If the rules are the same as the rules governing real physics but the energy source and methods are different that's ScientificallyUnderstandableSorcery. |
| 16 | |
| 17 | See also MinovskyPhysics, which is a fictional science with detailed laws that makes it feel real and help justify the foundations of the setting (as well as the CoolOfRule). Contrast NewRulesAsThePlotDemands and HowUnscientific; also contrast GameplayAndStorySegregation, which is an ''entire category'' of notoriously common VideoGame violations of this trope. |
| 18 | |
| 19 | ---- |
| 20 | !!Examples: |
| 21 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 22 | |
| 23 | [[folder:Anime & Manga]] |
| 24 | * A certain middle school class in ''Literature/{{Another}}'' must deal year after year with a curse that will potentially kill members of the class and/or their immediate loved ones. This goes on for ''twenty-five'' years, more than long enough to determine many of the rules that govern the curse. For instance, the curse only takes effect within the school's town. The one time a death appears to be an exception the actual cause of death was an injury that occurred before they even left. |
| 25 | * ''Anime/CodeGeass'' has Lelouch test out via experiment the constraints of his Geass. The show mostly sticks to the established rules, and when it doesn't, it's usually because a Geass has "evolved". |
| 26 | * ''Manga/DeathNote'': |
| 27 | ** This is one of the central tropes of the series, with Light Yagami pushing each of the rules for using the eponymous Death Note to its breaking point, while his adversary L uses every clue available to determine the limits of "Kira's" powers. Some of the rules themselves are written out in an explicit, detailed manner in the first episode; others are puzzled out over time, and shown briefly in EyeCatch segments; a full list is [[http://deathnote.wikia.com/wiki/The_Rules_of_Death_Note here]]. |
| 28 | ** Some of these rules are introduced [[{{Foreshadowing}} before they actually become relevant to the plot]], while others [[RedHerring never become relevant at all]]. One of Light's most devious tricks is to write a fake rule into a Death Note to throw L off his trail. |
| 29 | ** It's one of the rules that Shinigami don't ''have'' to explain all the rules to humans holding a Death Note unless one of them is about to be broken. |
| 30 | ** When ''ComicBook/TheSimpsons'' comic book did a parody of it, they got rid of the impossible situations rule. Which led to, among other things, Flanders getting pecked to death by a flock of flying penguins. |
| 31 | ** Ryuk states that ''no one'' ever tried to systematically test out the full limits of the Death Note rules the way Light does. They usually just use the default rule that you need to know a person's name and face and when you write their name they die of a heart attack -- sometimes playing around with the "set circumstances of how they die" rule. Light realized he can effectively ''mind control'' people for extended periods of time by exploiting this, so long as it ends in their death. This does have limits, though, which are fuzzy in-universe: you can't mind-control people to do things there was no possibility of them doing without your intervention, i.e. telling them to kill someone they've never heard about -- but the limits of what someone might "plausibly" do are inherently vague. Another in-universe vague rule is how much of a person's face you need to be able to see: if someone is wearing a mask that ''partially'' obscures their face, how much is enough? The Death Note outright states this is a loose rule, but generally, you need to see enough that you can distinguish their face from someone else's. Basically, Light pushes rules to the limit which most people were barely aware of in the first place, so how consistently he can apply "Magic A is Magic A" is unknown in-universe. |
| 32 | * ''Manga/DrStone'' has a deconstruction: [[spoiler:Initially nobody knows what the "Stone Beam" that [[TakenForGranite petrified humanity]] is or where it came from, but during the Treasure Island arc, the heroes meet a villager whose people are terrorized by people who have a weapon that produces a smaller-scale version of the effect, and actually managed to escape the effects of the beam personally. Senku is excited by this because it proves that the "Stone Beam" is a scientific weapon, meaning it has rules and restrictions and therefore they can work out a way to defeat and potentially reverse it.]] |
| 33 | * ''Manga/DragonBall'': |
| 34 | ** While the exact mechanics of ki and battle power are never fully explained, they do follow consistent rules. Among other things, the rules about who can fly, who can transform, and who can [[GoodThingYouCanHeal regenerate]] are all the same for everyone across the board. And if there's someone who does break the rules, an explanation is given as to why they can. |
| 35 | ** ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' also does this for the rules of the Saiyan race, which are kept internally consistent throughout the entire series for every Saiyan character, especially when it comes to Super Saiyan levels. |
| 36 | ** The titular Dragon Balls have their own rules that govern how often they can be used and what wishes they can grant. Earth's dragon, Shenron, notably cannot affect people whose power exceeds his creator, cannot revive the same person twice, and can be used to bring back multiple people under one wish as long as they died within the last year. Porunga is similar, but offers three wishes, can revive the same person any number of times, and originally cannot revive multiple people with a single wish. Later, both sets of Dragon Balls are upgraded to be similar in power. |
| 37 | * ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'' never gets into the "nuts and bolts" of how one learns alchemy or gets it to work, but we are shown through repeated example that it requires a great deal of research, practice, and the use of [[GeometricMagic inscribed runes or circles]] to make it happen. There is also the constantly repeated rule of ''EquivalentExchange,'' that for the alchemist to create something, they must destroy something of equal value (in practice, this means just having the necessary raw materials at hand -- the act of construction itself doesn't seem to "cost" anything, since alchemy uses geothermal energy). In fact, the author's notes at the beginning of the manga emphasize that the series was originally intended to showcase a B-movie style version of real-life alchemy, without so much emphasis on the actual science behind it. In ''Anime/FullmetalAlchemist2003'', though, it's revealed that [[spoiler:''[[HumanResources human souls]]'' from our world, especially the influx of souls from World War One]] are the cost being paid to perform alchemy. [[{{PhilosophersStone}} Philosopher's Stones]] seem to break this, acting as an infinite energy source, but in the manga/''Brotherhood'' it's revealed quite early on they're [[spoiler: compressed human souls]] and they eventually run out like a battery. |
| 38 | * ''Manga/FutureDiary'' has diaries that can predict the future. However, the limits of the future that they may predict varies from character to character. Yukki, for instance, has a diary that can only predict what is going on around him, from his perspective. Yuno, being Yukki's stalker, has a diary that updates her on things that are going to happen to Yukki. The only exceptions to the rules are if a character's DEAD END comes up, which will be a prediction of the future of the diary holder's death. |
| 39 | * Each episode of ''Anime/{{Gunbuster}}'' has a little "science lesson" short that explains a certain aspect of the show's universe, laying out the physics behind it. |
| 40 | * In the anime/manga of ''Literature/TheHeroicLegendOfArslan'', Zahhāk Warlocks, despite their formidable powers and are using magic in an otherwise realistic story, have limitations of their magic and can be combated and defeated by normal people. Their most common form of magic is Earth-diving that allows them to move beneath the surface like water, but it ''only'' works on earth and does nothing to protect them from being stabbed or burnt, especially once they emerge from the ground. Additionally, they can't attack beyond the length of their arm so if someone climbs up a tree, they can avoid their attacks. They also cannot perform unnatural phenomenons at will like summoning fire or lightning, resorting to knives and blades they are in a fight. The sole exception is the mists that obscured the Lustianian traps upon the fields of Atropatene, but even that required lots of preparation, all the warlocks to perform the ritual and the leader being greatly weakened for several months after. |
| 41 | * ''Manga/HunterXHunter'' does this with the Nen-system. Going further, while Nen itself has its own rules and limits, specific abilities can also have rules of their own set in place by their creators. Examples of such rules can be placing limitations on how and when an ability can be used. Further, due to the general rules of Nen, setting such limitations can make the actual ability far more powerful. The stricter the limitation and the more harsh the penalty for violating it, the greater the power boost gained. For example, Kurapika creates powerful attacks with the limits that they can only be used against the Phantom Troupe and he will die if he misuses them. These limitations allow him to take on the most physically powerful of his enemies one-on-one without difficulty. |
| 42 | * This is the fundamental narrative rule behind ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' from ''Stardust Crusaders'' and onward: [[FightingSpirit Stands]], wielded by heroes, villains, and neutral parties alike, can endow their users with superhuman abilities. However, all of them are bound by particular rules, each one is entirely self-consistent (albeit unique), and a more effective Stand must have a tradeoff or restriction of some sort, which adversaries can exploit once discovered and which bound their users to fight in particular ways. For instance, Josuke Higashikata's healing powers work at a distance, but only up to about two meters away from him, requiring him to stay on the front lines to be effective. There's also two hard limitations: if a Stand causes changes to the world around it, [[NoOntologicalInertia disabling the Stand by knocking out or killing the user will undo those changes]], and [[AllDeathsFinal there is no way to raise the dead]]. |
| 43 | * "Magic" in the ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'' franchise is essentially a massive pool of energy that certain living creatures can tap into and shape with the help of very complex mathematics to bring about spectacular, if temporary effects. Since it is very much rooted in conventional physics, the settings' mages actually have ''computers'' to help them store magical formulas and reproduce them quicker, and they can teach "spells" (essentially, [[PowersAsPrograms magical programs]]) to other mages with minor alterations to produce exactly the same effects. |
| 44 | * In ''Anime/MajokkoTsukuneChan'', the CuteWitch heroine explains that while she can reverse her magic spells, she can't reverse any collateral damage that results from said spells. Since this is a GagSeries, HilarityEnsues. |
| 45 | * ''Franchise/{{Nasuverse}}'': Nasu Kinoko's works have a nasty habit of setting up incredibly complex and detailed rules about TheVerse...then having a character with some really rare ability break those rules. Only that character alone can ever do it (and probably [[ItOnlyWorksOnce not more than once]]), otherwise it's completely consistent. Needless to say, the rules in the Nasuverse are extremely complicated to the point of MindScrew. The fact that more than a few rules contradict others makes it worse. |
| 46 | ** One of them: Nothing can reverse being a vampire, once you pass a certain point. Ever. Period, end of story. One character is an ex-vampire, through said convoluted spoilers[[note]] The gist of it is that thing is death. The ex-vampire in question, for convoluted reasons, simply didn't ''stay'' dead.[[/note]]. One character is almost at that certain point, and one character comes within inches of it |
| 47 | ** Another example is that you can't just make stuff with magic and expect it to stay around. It'll be gone within minutes. Unless you happen to have mastered the First True Magic that is, or you're [[VisualNovel/FateStayNight Shirou]] and have a Reality Marble that allows you to break that rule. |
| 48 | *** For an example of how it can get convoluted, the explanation there is that True Magic is wholly different from the thaumaturgy available to most mages and follows different laws - but it ''does'' have its own laws. |
| 49 | ** Reality Marbles themselves are either a very good example of this trope or a glaring break from it, depending how you look at it. But ultimately the concept boils down to a detailed and structured set of rules for breaking a detailed and structured set of rules. It's stated in-universe that the point of reality marbles IS breaking the rules. |
| 50 | *** For more context, a Reality Marble is a part MentalWorld, part PocketDimension, that temporarily substitutes the ruleset of reality (including most rules pertaining to magic and magecraft) with the user’s own consistent ruleset. So on one hand, it plays this 100% straight, on the other, it subverts this. |
| 51 | * ''Manga/{{NEEDLESS}}'': One Needless, one Fragment. It's consistent throughout the story, with certain Fragments that can imitate the effect of other Fragments to some extent, i.e. [[WrenchWench Kana's]] [[SchizoTech Flamethrower]] is as good as the power of a [[PlayingWithFire Fire Needless.]] [[spoiler:TheHero and the BigBad have fragments that can learn the abilities of other fragments.]] |
| 52 | * ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi'' does well with this by only ever explaining the nature of strategies and techniques, and leaving the actual science of magic for the ''Lexicon Magicum Negimarium''. Even still, the eponymous Negi makes it clear that he's never heard of anything like a money tree and that {{Love Potion}}s aren't common and are unreliable because magic wasn't meant to be used like that (later it's made clear that love potions are completely illegal in Magical society). It doesn't stop LoveIsInTheAir moments from occurring ([[HilarityEnsues often hilarious]]). |
| 53 | ** There is at least one rule Negi can break by kissing hard enough but no one knows if that ''was'' a rule to begin with, and considering that [[spoiler: his ancestors created the Pactio system to begin with,]] he has a surprising amount of leverage. In other words, magic still follows the laws, but one of those laws is [[spoiler: {{nepotism}}.]] |
| 54 | ** In the situation of Negi and Jack Rakan, whenever they break a seeming rule, it is brought to our attention, such as [[spoiler: Chisame calling Rakan the man with infinite cheats, the one time he ''doesn't'' break a rule.]] |
| 55 | * ''Anime/OjamajoDoremi'': Magic follows a set of rules that is definitely adhered to throughout the series. |
| 56 | ** You cannot use magic to heal someone. If you do, you automatically suffer those wounds. |
| 57 | ** You cannot bring someone back from the dead. If you try to cast it and succeed in bringing the dead back to life, then you will die in the formerly-dead person's place. |
| 58 | ** You cannot use magic to directly control other people's thoughts and feelings. If you do, then you will fall into a coma, the length of which depending on how much of it you used and how long you've managed to deflect the punishment. |
| 59 | * ''Manga/OnePiece'': While the individual powers and the rules regarding them vary wildly, every Devil Fruit ability follows consistent general rules. Any exceptions, real or imagined, are typically unique and always [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded.]] |
| 60 | ** Those who have powers are unable to swim and grow weak when submerged in water. Even a character who possesses the power to swim through nearly ''everything else'' will drown if submerged. This also applies to creatures who are otherwise aquatic, like Fishmen. A Fishman with Devil Fruit powers will not drown, but they will still be rendered immobile and need rescue. |
| 61 | ** Two of the same fruit/power can not exist at the same time, though similar, overlapping powers are possible. This is first brought up in Thriller Bark, where the crew first meets the skeleton man Brook and then proceed to encounter Gecko Moria's zombie army. The idea that the zombies could be reanimated the same way Brook was is dismissed because of this rule and, indeed, the zombies are a product of Moria's LivingShadow powers. Later, in Dressrosa, a Devil Fruit is put up as a prize in a fighting tournament. The Devil Fruit had been eaten and used by another character already, but that character had died some time before the Dressrosa arc, causing their Fruit to reappear elsewhere for BigBad Doflamingo to acquire. |
| 62 | ** Any attempt to eat more than one Devil Fruit is supposedly fatal. When a character does so and instead gains the power of the second Devil Fruit in addition to his existing one, this is a shocking event in-universe and years later (both in ''and'' out of universe) it's still a complete mystery how this was possible. The only hint was that the character in question was implied to have an irregular body (something noted much later on when it's rumored said character [[TheSleepless does not sleep.]]) |
| 63 | ** [[ElementalPowers Logia-type]] users can become intangible by turning into their element, unless attacked with Haki or an opposing element. The exception to this is Blackbeard's Dark-Dark Fruit, whose powers are partially based on gravity and absorption. Indeed, rather than let things pass through him, Blackbeard is forced to attract things to himself even if he'd prefer not to. |
| 64 | ** [[{{Animorphism}} Zoan-type]] users can transform into either full animal, their full original form, or a third in-between form. Tony Tony Chopper has more than the standard three, but this is explained due to his medical knowledge and experimental pharmaceuticals that only he can make for his own use called the "Rumble Ball". Rob Lucci is able to assume a second version of his in-between form via a body modification technique completely unrelated to the Devil Fruit. |
| 65 | ** The second source of superpowers in ''One Piece'', Haki, was following this trope before it was even formally introduced. The "Color of Observation", or "Observation Haki" grants a SpiderSense that is very useful for CombatClairvoyance and [[TheEmpath detecting other people's emotions,]] the "Color of Armaments", or "Armament Haki" is a form of MagicEnhancement-based InstantArmor that can also be used to enhance attacks & weapons and can be used to bypass Devil Fruit provided defenses (such as the infamous Logia {{intangibility}}). "The Color of the Conquering King", or "Conqueror's Haki" is a DeathGlare of {{Awesomeness|IsAForce}} that can incapacitate the weak-willed. |
| 66 | ** A third source of superpowers comes from Dials, or sea shells of shellfish that live in the sky-sea shallows of various Sky Islands. There are many styles of shell, each with at least two versions of the same effect. For example, Flame Dials emit fire when the apex of the shell (that acts like a button) is pressed, but Heat dials only become hot. Sky Island warfare is the skillful use of Dials, including embedding them into normal weapons, effectively giving them permanent enchantments. [[spoiler: Usopp becomes very excited when he trades rubber bands for a huge bag of assorted dials, and uses them to upgrade the half-lame Clima Tact he made for Nami into the Perfect Clima Tact, and his own slingshot into the Kabuto.]] |
| 67 | * ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'': [[InvoluntaryShapeshifting Magical transformations]] have a set of basic of very generalized rules to purposely avoid complicated minutiae ("I don't think about it, and [[BellisariosMaxim neither should you!]]") despite [[FanWank whatever fans say.]] |
| 68 | * ''Anime/ReadOrDie'' sets the arbitrary yet consistent rule that only the most skilled paper-manipulators may use paper that gets wet. |
| 69 | * In ''Anime/SDGundamForce'', there is a distinct difference in the power of Mana, which all people native to Lacroa can use, and the power of Spirit, which one can only use by a pact with a supernatural creature like the Griffin or Dragons. This difference is very important when the evil knight Tallgeese was sealed in the Dark Hole; Mana can't work in the Dark Hole, but the Spirits exist just fine. Because Tallgeese had been fused with the Griffin at the time, he was able to escape. |
| 70 | * In chapter 32 of ''Manga/TalesOfWeddingRings'', Alabaster and Morion give Satou and Hime a lecture on the workings of magic. Essentially, everything in the world is made up of particles drawn from the four classical elements. Magic is the act of manipulating these particles to achieve desired effects, such as drawing the fire particles out of a tree to set it ablaze. The titular [[RingOfPower wedding rings]] exist [[WrongContextMagic outside this paradigm]]: ordinary magic relies on manipulating existing particles, while the rings can create elemental particles from nothing. |
| 71 | * For all the magic and curses flying around in ''Manga/TsubasaReservoirChronicle'' and ''Manga/XxxHolic'', it is made indisputably clear that the one rule of that multi-verse is that the dead don't come back. No matter what you pay, they stay dead. [[spoiler:Yoko's living dead situation caused all the Mind Screwy mess in the former series because this sort of thing isn't supposed to happen.]] |
| 72 | * Deconstructed in ''Manga/{{Uzumaki}}'': it becomes clear that the supernatural events afflicting the town ''aren't'' random. There are rules deciding what happens and breaking those rules incurs [[NightmareFuel horrifying punishments.]] One problem; ''nobody knows what the rules are''. And the EldritchAbomination causing all this doesn’t care to explain. ''And'' the rules change over time, with zero announcement. The only method of discerning them is trial-and-error, but any error means you’re dead. |
| 73 | * ''Franchise/{{Zoids}}'': |
| 74 | ** The ''Manga/ZoidsChaoticCentury'' manga establishes a rule that [[RobotBuddy Organoids]] cannot beam into any [[HumongousMecha Zoid]] at will. Zeke needs their permission, and Shadow will kill any Zoid it beams into. The [[Anime/ZoidsChaoticCentury anime,]] on the other hand, never establishes an equivalent limitation, and as a result the series has a ton of plot holes as the Organoids behave in an inconsistent manner. |
| 75 | ** ''Anime/ZoidsGenesis'' states that Bio-Zoid armour can only be harmed by Metal Zi weapons, and in particular are immune to beam weapons. This stays consistent, and later the armor is upgraded to be even more resistant to Metal Zi. However, there are other weaknesses related to the structure of the Bio-Zoids -- their mouths (which breath fire) are extremely vulnerable, if difficult, targets, and can be destroyed by even the aforementioned beam weapons. The Bio-Zoids that didn't get the more powerful armor can be crushed, for instance by [[RockBeatsLaser a group of falling rocks larger than them.]] And they also have one other, even rarer weakness -- if they fall into lava, they melt. Late in the show a Brastle Tiger comes around with a gun that can turn land into pits of lava, which is a very effective weapon against a swarm of them. |
| 76 | [[/folder]] |
| 77 | |
| 78 | [[folder:Ballads]] |
| 79 | * In the Literature/{{Child Ballad|s}} "Literature/WilliesLady", Willie's mother knows his wife could not have given birth without undoing her spells, which lets them trick the knowledge of how to do it out of her. |
| 80 | [[/folder]] |
| 81 | |
| 82 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 83 | * Discussed by Creator/ChuckDixon in Comics Scene#7 for his Hyborian Age tales in Savage Sword. "The supernatural stuff generally never makes any sense to me. I have to give it an interior logic in the story. As [artist] Gary Kwapisz says, if you conjure up a demon, you lose an arm or something. All the wizards are obsessed, psychotic people who have some kind of death wish". |
| 84 | * There is an epic occurrence of this trope in a slightly NSFW comic named "The Broadsword". Unfortunately, the whole plot must be told. The [[{{Pun}} Broadsword]] is the sword that the hero carries to slay the local evil magician, as a quest before he may marry his broad. As he is bored on the long journey and speaks her name, the sword turns into her. Because the good magician has built in a toggleswitch so the hero is not bored on the long journey. (You have one guess what they do to counteract their boredom.) Woes, oh woes, the evil magician has a mag(ic)netic field around his lair: no trespassing with swords. He has to toggle and promptly the mooks grab him and drag him before the overlord. But suddenly, his broad slips him a dagger and he slices-and-dices the baddie. |
| 85 | * The ''ComicBook/{{Exiles}}'' version of Mimic had a very specific brand of PowerCopying: |
| 86 | ** He can mimic any power (up to, and including the ''[[PhysicalGod Phoenix Force]]''). |
| 87 | ** He has to be within a certain range of the person he's mimicking. E.g., if there's no one nearby with a healing factor, he can't give himself one. If there is, he can. |
| 88 | ** He can only mimic five people's powers at any one time. If he wants more he has to "switch" one power set for another. |
| 89 | ** Each power he mimics is at approximately half the strength of the original user. |
| 90 | ** He can mimic a power instantly, but it fades very quickly if he doesn't spend a prolonged period of time (about six hours) in relatively close proximity to the person he's mimicking. |
| 91 | * ''ComicBook/{{Fables}}'' is a bit confusing. AllMythsAreTrue, and exist in another universe. However, Nick Slick (apparently the devil) and the Frankenstein monster seem to have always existed in the real world, and even mundane world wolves appear to have a complex language and even a religion, implying that they're far more intelligent than real-world wolves. It's partially resolved in that over the course of the series it becomes apparent that it is not our world. ''Jack of Fables'' makes it much more noticeable as it shows superpowered abstract entities already exist in the Fables universe. |
| 92 | * The ComicBook/GreenLantern Power Ring should be able to avoid this, as it is advertised as being capable of anything the wearer can imagine. People still complain when it does something exceptional, though, mostly because it stands out as being extremely unusual. However, most of the Green Lantern [[TheChosenMany Corps]] don't exercise the full advantage of imagination when wielding one. This is why people like Kyle Rayner, an artist, stand out. And when handled properly, John Stewart, an architect. |
| 93 | ** With the former, he is considered utterly unpredictable because of his artistic imagination, making figures like mecha or {{Magical Girl}}s to fight. With the latter, John Stewart actually takes time to apply his architectural knowhow when constructing items, so they have a lot more 'solidness' to them. |
| 94 | * In ''ComicBook/JLAAvengers'', Wanda Maximoff is able to tap into the Chaos Magic of the DC Universe just as she can use such magic in her home universe, although the power in the other universe is stronger and harder for Wanda to wield properly, resulting in more uncontrolled attacks. |
| 95 | * Subverted in Matt Wagner's ''ComicBook/MageTheHeroDiscovered''. Kevin Matchstick's mentor Mirth told him that "Magic is Green". Subsequently, Kevin's various magic feats are invariably depicted in a greenish hue. In the sequel, ''The Hero Defined'', Wally Utt ([[spoiler: a different face of Mirth]]) said that Kevin was taught "Magic is Green" so he could visualize magic more easily. As Utt revealed, "Magic isn't any color. Magic ''is'' color!" |
| 96 | * In ''ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicIDW'' Chrysalis tries to drain Twilight of her magic power to gain access to Twilight's more powerful spells. Twilight points out that even if Chrysalis drained her of her magic, the Queen still wouldn't be able to use Twilight's spells because Twilight [[spoiler:gained her power through focused study; Chrysalis would [[UnskilledButStrong have power without knowing how to use it]]]]. |
| 97 | * Jesse Custer, from the comic ''ComicBook/{{Preacher}}'', possesses the Voice of God, which cannot be disobeyed. While this falls more under the purview of divine power, it is not without its limitations: |
| 98 | ** First, Jesse must be physically and mentally able to speak. If he's gagged or delirious, no Voice. |
| 99 | ** Second, the subject must be able to hear Jesse. Jesse's recurring nemesis, Herr Starr, managed to escape Jesse's voice simply by covering his ears and repeating the word "no" over and over. |
| 100 | ** Finally, the subject must be able to understand the order Jesse is giving. In one instance, Herr Starr takes advantage of this by sending hitmen to kill Jesse that didn't speak English, and it's worth noting that wild animals don't speak ''any'' kind of human. |
| 101 | * ''ComicBook/{{Runaways}}'' features the Staff of One, which can do practically anything (save bring someone back to life). However, its spells can only ever be used once, and attempting to cast the same spell twice would do something random. Despite this, Alex Wilder once got hold of the Staff and managed to cast the same spell repeatedly; this hinted at a loophole where you could get a similar or identical effect by using a synonym or the same word in another language. In the first ''ComicBook/{{Runaways}}''[=/=]''ComicBook/YoungAvengers'' crossover, Nico took advantage of the Vision's on-board thesaurus and language capabilities to wreak utter havoc. |
| 102 | * In ''ComicBook/TheSandman1989'', the Endless have immeasurable power, but it's stated repeatedly that they can only use it according to rules. For instance, Dream is only empowered to [[spoiler:take a human life]] when it threatens the Dreaming; conversely, he cannot harm any visitors to the Dreaming due to the rules of hospitality. This applies to straight magic users such as Roderick Burgess and Thessaly as well. |
| 103 | * Franchise/{{Superman}} is an interesting example. When he was first published in UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks, he was simply "leap an eighth of a mile or hurdle a 20 story building", "lift tremendous weights", "run faster than an express train" and "Nothing less than a bursting shell could penetrate his skin", or as later adaptations more eloquently put it: "faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap tall buildings with a single bound". Then, UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks started a ''massive'' PowerCreepPowerSeep, with his abilities including powers as ludicrous as Super-Ventriloquism and ''Super-Weaving''. It wasn't until later when his powers finally settled in the most accepted set nowadays: flight, invulnerability, super-strength, super-speed, super-hearing, X-ray vision, heat vision, and super-breath. Additionally, the basic/familiar power set above had become cemented by the early Silver Age (heat vision became a permanently separate power from x-ray vision in the early 60s). [[note]] The tacit rule in UsefulNotes/{{the Silver Age|of Comic Books}} was that Superman could do (or learn to do) anything a normal man could do, only much faster and more powerfully. So if he weaves a large item in a matter of seconds, that can be called "super-weaving" without anyone actually considering it a distinct power. The Ventriloquism is an odd case, though: it was once a popular misconception that a ventriloquist could ''literally'' throw his voice; and so, "logically," if a normal man could do it, then Superman could do it exceptionally well. Once more sensible writers came along and noticed that it was now established canon that Supes ''could'' literally throw his voice, they just kept it--especially since it provided a handy explanation for how Superman and Supergirl could talk to each other in the vacuum of space. [[/note]] |
| 104 | * ''ComicBook/XMen'' explicitly tries to be internally consistent with mutant powers in that each mutant gets one mutation, along with any RequiredSecondaryPowers. Then "Secondary Mutations" throws that right out the window, not that it hasn't been broken in the past. |
| 105 | [[/folder]] |
| 106 | |
| 107 | [[folder:Fan Works]] |
| 108 | * ''Fanfic/AvengersInfiniteWars''; |
| 109 | ** In chapter 23, Peter compares the Force to what he's heard about Chi and similar concepts on Earth after talking with Ahsoka and Barris. It is eventually confirmed that the Force is another name for what the Franchise/MarvelUniverse calls the "Power Cosmic", which has been used by characters such as the ComicBook/SilverSurfer. |
| 110 | ** Speculated; while lightsabers will always require Kyber Crystals to be created, [[spoiler:Celeste Morne]] wonders if a Master of the Mystic Arts could create one with their abilities as a 'substitute' for the ability to use the Force. |
| 111 | * ''Fanfic/BoldoresAndBoomsticks'': |
| 112 | ** The Aura from [[WebAnimation/{{RWBY}} both]] [[Franchise/{{Pokemon}} sources]] is the same, but Remnant has a more in-depth understanding compared to Earth's. Pokémon are born with unlocked Auras that are naturally their Type, though they can convert it into other Types to use different moves. Humans and Faunus have Typeless Auras, but depending on their effect, some Semblances give the Aura used a Type. This fact allows humans with unlocked Aura to learn moves. |
| 113 | ** Similarly, Dust, evolution stones, and Gems are the same substance in varying concentrations. Weiss apraises a used stone to be very high-quality by Remnant's standards and nervously notes that unused stones have the same amount of power as a Dust crystal the size of a car. |
| 114 | * ''Fanfic/TheBridge'' points out Equestrian and Terran magic runs on different rules and can't be used to counteract each other. Equestrian magic works by using your emotions like ThePowerOfFriendship, ThePowerOfHate, and ThePowerOfLove to draw out your energy and manipulate it. Terran magic, however, works by harnessing and manipulating the mana in your body and the surrounding environment. Each type of magic has a 'nexus' from which it originated [[spoiler:[[BigBad Bagan]] for Terran magic and [[BigGood Harmony]] for Equestrian magic.]] While Light Magic and Dark Magic are both Equestrian magics, they are also distinct from one another, [[spoiler:to the point that Bagan realizes that Harmony ''can't'' have been the source of Dark Magic and it turns out Grogar is the nexus for it.]] |
| 115 | * ''Fanfic/ABrighterDark'': It's not quite explained ''how'' magic works, much like its [[VideoGame/FireEmblem original source material,]] however it does establish that there are certain things that can't be changed, at least in regards to healing magic. Healing magic can accelerate the body's natural healing abilities, nothing more, and thus can't do anything about things that wouldn't naturally heal or would otherwise heal incorrectly like [[ScarsAreForever scars,]] [[AnArmAndALeg amputations, crippling injuries,]] and [[AllDeathsFinal death.]] |
| 116 | ** Gets further expanded upon by the introduction of Nyx, currently the oldest living character and most powerful dark mage. She explains that what stands out about dark magic is that it specifically ''averts'' this by being completely unlimited in scope and being able to completely break the rules of nature, however there is a cost to each spell. The cost being amplified based on how much you're breaking the natural order. |
| 117 | ** Meanwhile, ordinary magic works within the natural order and is thus incredibly limited. After all, wounds ''want'' to heal. Fire ''wants'' to burn. Wind ''wants'' to blow. There is no cost to using ordinary magic because, unlike dark magic, it isn't doing anything that nature isn't already doing on its own, just directing it. |
| 118 | * In ''Fanfic/TheConfectionaryChronicles'', Gabriel learns that the magic of the wizarding world comes from Hecate, who sought to escape the faltering power of pagan gods by creating natural magic users (as opposed to those witches who used demon deals to gain power). After Hermione pledges her servitude to Loki in exchange for him punishing the bullies who drove her older sister to suicide, Gabriel removes Hecate’s gift from Hermione but grants her a portion of his own power in turn, not wanting to ‘share’ Hermione with another pagan god but equally not wanting to deprive her of her own potential. As a result, Hermione has the ability to use Trickster-style magic while retaining the ability to learn the magic taught at Hogwarts. It is later revealed that Hermione is not the only such witch to gain power from a source other than Hecate; [[spoiler:the Ollivander family received their magic from a Babylonian god who has since died out]]. |
| 119 | * Taylor's power in ''Fanfic/ADarkerPath'' is known as Path To Ending which allows her to (plan out the steps to) kill anything. The author has specified that it does not allow Taylor to gain anything as part of the path unless it's something she needs to kill her target. While she will find ways to gain resources as part of killing something, said resources are almost invariably used up in doing so. The few exceptions are when the resources are best reused for later paths, such as her costume, which she got right after killing Oni Lee. Though her power has [[SwissArmySuperpower a great deal of versatility]][[labelnote:*]]Killing misunderstandings, someone's self-confidence, a forum ban, or even the odds of her being identified[[/labelnote]], the end goal can ''not'' be Taylor gaining something. So she can't say, kill the fact she's broke, or that she'll die one day, as both are about gaining rather than ending. |
| 120 | * ''Franchise/PowerRangers''; |
| 121 | ** "[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/2806786/1/Dino-Thunder-Generations Dino Thunder: Generations]]" starts off with Hayley (''Series/PowerRangersDinoThunder'') relying on a version of this after the Dinozords are damaged. Seeking substitute zords, Hayley is inspired to find a means of accessing the Shogunzords, on the grounds that the colours of those five zords match the colours of the available five Dino Thunder Rangers, allowing her to easily adapt the zords to take orders from the Dino Gems rather than the Power Coins. |
| 122 | ** "[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13550638/1/Forever-Yellow Forever Yellow]]" also relies on the way certain Ranger powers interact when various Yellow Rangers join forces and observe the more subtle links between their powers. Most notably, while Lily's Cheetah spirit (''Series/PowerRangersJungleFury'') doesn't get along with the Red Lion Wildzord (''Series/PowerRangersWildForce''), Maya (''Series/PowerRangersLostGalaxy'') is able to communicate with the Wildzords just as she used to talk with the Galactabeasts. |
| 123 | * ''Fanfic/{{Game Theory|LyricalNanoha}}'' does this with the magic of ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha.'' Clear rules are presented for things like [[MadeOfMagic mana constructs]], spell design, mana itself, and much more. |
| 124 | * In ''Fanfic/TheGhostChildAndTheGhostbusters'', the anti-ghost technology of both groups is equally useful, but they recognise that the other has their own strengths and specialities, such as the Fentons being able to keep ghosts out of particular areas with the Ghost Shield while the Ghostbusters' Ghost Trap technology wouldn't be capable of keeping ghosts out in the same manner without putting the humans inside at risk. |
| 125 | * ''Fanfic/GuardiansWizardsAndKungFuFighters'' clarifies that that the magic used by the [[WesternAnimation/{{WITCH}} Guardians and Meridianites]] (called Raw Magic) is different from the Chi Magic used by [[WesternAnimation/JackieChanAdventures Uncle, Tohru, and Wong]]. However, [[spoiler: [[MysteriousWatcher Nimue]]]] later makes it clear that it's possible to use both types. |
| 126 | ** [[Fanfic/OutOfTheCornerOfTheEye Another story]] by the same author also makes clear that the [[EldritchAbomination nature]] of the [[Literature/CthulhuMythos Outer Gods/Old Ones]] is utterly separate from Chi Magic. |
| 127 | * In ''Fanfic/HarryPotterAndTheAlienReality'', Harry learns that occlumency allows him to resist other forms of mental manipulation as opposed to just legilimency after he is able to use it to resist Hathor's use of ''nishta''. He is even able to teach a version of it to SG-1 after this event, which makes it even harder for the Keeper to read their minds. |
| 128 | * ''Fanfic/HeroesOfTheDesk'' depicts characters of ''VideoGame/HeroesOfTheStorm'' who have come to life in the style of ''Literature/TheIndianInTheCupboard''. The process that made them real [[AppliedPhlebotinum isn't explained]] but it follows a defined set of rules that [[ExploitedTrope the characters learn to make use of]]. |
| 129 | ** Any Hero character created in plastic comes to life when placed in a specific chest. |
| 130 | ** Any Hero character who "dies" disappears in blue mist before reappearing inside said chest. |
| 131 | * The ''[[Fanfic/TheEquestriaChronicles Legends of Equestria]]'' continuity establishes some extra rules around those discussed in the ''My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic'' entry below. Among them: |
| 132 | ** There are two over-arching types of magic: light magic which is available to most ponies by default and includes the Pegasi's abilities with the weather and the unicorns' natural abilities; and dark magic, which is an independent entity that flows from the earth. Dark magic is significantly more powerful than standard light magic, but [[ThisIsYourBrainOnEvil tends to corrupt everything it touches]]. |
| 133 | ** The story also makes a clear distinction between the concepts of magical power and magical complexity. While any unicorn, regardless of study or skill, can cast simplistic spells (such as the standard telekinesis), and can cast very ''powerful'' versions of these spells when properly motivated (i.e. being able to lift large objects or throw items with great force), skill and instruction are required to master ''complex'' magic. So only a pony that has studied extensively can work with transmutation, teleportation, time spells, thought control, etc. |
| 134 | * This is discussed in ''Fanfic/ManehattansLoneGuardian''. During a duel, Gray phases through Leviathan's body for an attack. Afterward, Shining Armor points out that Gray is pushing the limits of what a pony can do with their special talent; even if their Cutie Mark comes from acting like a cat, that doesn't mean that they should be able to pass through solid objects. Gray says in response that she's not breaking the setting's rules on magic, just exercising them in a different way: logically, if she were trying to break the rules, she wouldn't be able to do anything of the sort. |
| 135 | * “[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/6030382/ A Mingling of Magics: The Legacy of Merlin]]” reveals that the magic used in ''Film/TheSorcerersApprentice'' is the modern version of the magic used in ''Series/Merlin2008''. As time went on, the magic of the Old Religion began to retreat from the world after the Golden Age of Camelot, so now most sorcerers require rings or other artifacts to channel their magic. |
| 136 | * In the ''Series/{{Farscape}}''/''Series/StargateSG1'' crossover "[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/1345146/1/Pathways Pathways]]", it is revealed that, despite the differences in the wormholes between the two series, the wormholes found by Crichton and the wormholes used by the Stargates are basically the same system. Carter and Crichton speculate that the Stargates serve to keep the wormholes contained to a single universe while the [=DHDs=] make them easy to use, whereas Crichton deals with ‘wild’ wormholes that require more effort to navigate properly. |
| 137 | * In the ''[[Anime/PokemonTheSeries Pokemon]]''/''ComicBook/DarkNightsMetal'' crossover "[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12638414/1/Pokemon-Dark-Multiverse Pokemon: Dark Multiverse]]", Ash and his allies are horrified to realise that the Dark Knights' origin from the Dark Multiverse means that they are all essentially Dark-type Pokemon, giving them full immunity to Psychics and thus eliminating one of the most powerful Pokemon types as a possible "weapon" against them. On the flip side, [[spoiler:Z-Crystals are revealed to be at least similar to magic, allowing Ash to repel some of the Nightmare Supermen who serve the Batman Who Laughs with a Z-Move]]. |
| 138 | * A variation is featured in "[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/22273345/ Reality vs. Infinity]]", when [[WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom Danny Fenton]] loses his friends and family in the Snap (''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'') and approaches Clockwork for help. Clockwork reveals that the Infinity Gauntlet is essentially an amplified version of the Reality Gauntlet used by Danny's old foe Freakshow, the Reality Gauntlet only capable of modifying reality in a limited area around itself where the Infinity Gauntlet could affect all of reality. [[spoiler:Clockwork helps Danny devise a plan to use the Reality Gauntlet to restore the Infinity Stones by meeting the Avengers as they develop time travel and going back to borrow the Reality Gauntlet from himself (Clockwork can't send Danny into the past as any trips to the past he makes are reset); the Reality Gauntlet cannot undo the Snap, but if taken to the planet where Thanos destroyed the Infinity Stones, it can bring them back long enough for the Hulk to undo the Snap]]. |
| 139 | * The ''Franchise/HarryPotter''/''Literature/TheTwilightSaga'' crossover series ''Fanfic/TheSecretKeeper'' has the following; |
| 140 | ** Alice's abilities are clearly established as being unable to perceive anything non-human or non-vampire, with the result that just sitting beside Hagrid blocks her abilities when she’s attending a quidditch match, [[spoiler:and Death Eaters are able to bypass her by forcing a house-elf to accompany them on raids]]. |
| 141 | ** While vampires’ special abilities are distinctly separate from wizarding magic, there are enough similarities that Edward can be blocked with occlumency, and Jasper’s abilities are similar to the effect created by a potion known as Empatheia. |
| 142 | * The ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys'' fanfic, ''Fanfic/SomethingAlwaysRemains'', the ghosts are bound to their vessel and its limitations, hence no spooky shenanigans from 6am - 12pm, [[spoiler: with the exception of Spring Bonnie, who was never programmed with this rule]]. Furthermore, [[spoiler: only one ghost at a time can take control]]. If a ghost is freed from their vessel, they lose the ability to interact with the world aside from giving off a GhostlyChill. More than that, [[spoiler: imagine having ''the building'' as your vessel. Good thing ghosts can switch to different vessels with enough effort]]! |
| 143 | * ''Fanfic/{{Stardust|Arad}}'', a crossover with ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' and ''VideoGame/XCOMEnemyUnknown'', equates Equestrian magic with the advanced abilities and technology the aliens display in the original game. The element "elerium" from the game is stated to be identical to Equestrian "arcanite," and is used to combine magic and technology, allowing for a positively dizzying array of MagiTek weapons and devices. The author gets pretty much about as in-depth as is possible without a degree in physics when it comes to explaining the mechanics of magic. |
| 144 | * In the ''Series/StarTrekVoyager''/''Series/BattlestarGalactica2003'' crossover "[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/3699108/1/To-The-Journey To the Journey]]", the Colonial jump-drives are established to operate on a similar principle to the geodesic fold that was featured in "[[Recap/StarTrekVoyagerS7E6InsideMan Inside Man]]". While Starfleet was never able to find a way to use a geodesic fold without killing the crew of the ship that used it due to the radiation, the Colonials received the jump drive from “the Elder Gods” (speculated to be the Preservers), who were able to modify the jump drives to avoid this radiation exposure. |
| 145 | * As a crossover fic between ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'' and ''Manga/OnePiece'', ''Fanfic/VoyagesOfTheWildSeaHorse'' has two very distinct forms of magic in [[PowerUpFood Devil Fruits]] and [[TransformationRay Jusenkyo Curses]]. It's even lampshaded by Umok TheImp that he has no way of predicting what might happen if a Jusenkyo cursed person eats a Devil Fruit. [[spoiler:It turns out that, in the case of a [[{{Animorphism}} Zoan Fruit]] at least, it causes the magics to fuse in quite unexpected ways. Shampoo eating the Rabbit-Rabbit Fruit causes her cat form to change into a cat-rabbit hybrid and gives her two Zoan-hybrid forms only usable when splashed by cold water.]] |
| 146 | [[/folder]] |
| 147 | |
| 148 | [[folder:Films -- Animation]] |
| 149 | * Disney's ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'': |
| 150 | ** The first movie puts rules on genie magic. They [[ThouShaltNotKill can't kill anyone]] or force someone to fall in love, and you can't wish for more wishes. Genie doesn't mention it at first, but also eventually adds that they can't use their magic to serve themselves. Genie adds the rule about him not bringing people back from the dead, but it is not so much of an absolute rule as something ''Genie'' doesn't want to do ([[CameBackWrong "It's not a pretty picture. I don't like doing it!"]]). |
| 151 | ** The direct-to-video sequel, ''WesternAnimation/AladdinTheReturnOfJafar'', goes more in-depth into the "can't kill" rule -- namely, that it's open to LoopholeAbuse. Genies can't kill, but they ''can'' manipulate others into killing or place someone in an situation that would lead to their death. And if all else fails, [[ArcWords "You'd be surprised]] [[FateWorseThanDeath what you can live through".]] |
| 152 | * In ''WesternAnimation/TurningRed'', any song will work for the ritual so long as it comes from the heart and as long as someone is within the chalk circle they can be affected by the ritual. |
| 153 | [[/folder]] |
| 154 | |
| 155 | [[folder:Films -- Live-Action]] |
| 156 | * ''Franchise/BackToTheFuture'' trilogy established three things about how their TimeMachine works: you need to be moving at least 88 MPH, you need 1.21 gigawatts of energy, and the [[AppliedPhlebotinum Flux Capacitor]] makes TimeTravel possible. The lack of the proper energy source to create 1.21 gigawatts is what drives the story of the [[Film/BackToTheFuture1 first movie]] and after a visit to the future Doc Brown installed "Mr. Fusion" that eliminated the dilemma by being able to use anything to create that energy. In the [[Film/BackToTheFuturePartIII third movie]] a lack of proper octane gasoline fuel for the engine to get them up to speed is a different issue (they even made sure to specify that Mr. Fusion doesn't apply to the internal combustion engine). Some fans also noticed that the lightning strike in the [[Film/BackToTheFuturePartII second movie]] that shot Doc into the old West happened while the Delorean was mostly stationary, filmmakers clarified that the car ''rotated'' at 88 MPH which is seen with the fire trail after it happened. |
| 157 | * ''Film/FastColor'': The central rule of the family's superpowers is that they can only turn things to dust and then back to normal. They can't repair anything that was already broken before their powers touched it. The one time Lila tries to fix a broken window with her power, it promptly shatters to pieces again. |
| 158 | * The original ''Franchise/{{Ghostbusters}}'' films establish that the Proton Pack's stream is very dangerous to property and physical beings, but is incapable of harming ghostly entities, instead restraining them and allowing the 'Busters to lasso them into a ghost trap. Future adaptations would play faster and looser with this setup, but both movies stick to it pretty well, with BigBad Vigo from part II going down because the team doused him with a mood slime that could actually ''harm'' his non-corporeal form, while the proton streams still did their main job of keeping him in place. |
| 159 | * ''Film/IronManFilms'': [[Film/IronMan1 The first film]] establishes that the Iron Man suits only function while they have sufficient power, and Tony replaces the Mark 1 arc reactor with a more powerful one to power the Mark 2 and 3 Iron Man suits. Given that they're designed for sustained flight, they need the extra power. When he has to use the prototype reactor in his Mark 2 suit, he has notably less power. Each part of Mark 42 is implied to have its own reactor because it's made to come apart and move remotely. It's also an example of what happens when you push this trope too far: it's so complicated that it rarely works as well as it's supposed to. |
| 160 | * For ''Film/TheLastAirbender'', Creator/MNightShyamalan changed a significant aspect of Firebending so that it aligned better with the other bending arts. In [[WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender the show]], Firebenders can create their own fire, but for the movie, they are now required to have an external fire ''source'' to manipulate. As he said, [[ElementalBaggage Katara needs a bag of water and Toph needs to be touching the earth, so why don't firebenders need fire]]? In the series, Iroh explains that this source is the bender's own body heat. In the film, it's suggested that creating your own fire is a skill lost over the ages, and that Iroh is one of the few who have mastered that element of firebending and is subtly teaching Zuko to do the same. |
| 161 | %%* ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'' is built around this trope, in accordance with pirate superstition and lore. Or rather, the writers made a concordance out of pirate superstition and lore. |
| 162 | * It's probably more accurate to say that ''Franchise/StarWars'' gets away with this, rather than embrace it wholeheartedly. |
| 163 | ** The original trilogy depicts [[SentientCosmicForce the Force]] through the eyes of a character who is [[TheHerosJourney gradually learning how to use it]], so new powers and abilities can be introduced to the canon without breaking the system because there are so little definitive rules presented. When the Emperor breaks out [[ShockAndAwe lightning from his hands]], the best foreshadowing that is given is Yoda telling Luke not to underestimate the Emperor. The few definitive rules are the need for training and discipline to use the force and that there is a [[TheDarkSide dark side to the Force]] that [[DangerousForbiddenTechnique promises great power]] but confers PowerAtAPrice. Individual powers get different focus depending on the story, with some dependent on which alignment you are (i.e., [[HealingHands Force Healing]] and [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence Force Transcend]] for Jedi and [[ShockAndAwe Force Lightning]] for Sith). |
| 164 | ** The Prequel Trilogy featured a form of making the force feel more mundane because [[UniquenessDecay the Jedi were at the height of their power and common across the galaxy]], with talk of Midichlorians [[DoingInTheWizard in the blood of force users to explain their abilities]]. This in turn reduced the number of powers introduced for Jedi to use because much of it was already introduced or hinted at in the Original Trilogy. But as the films progressed and the particular era is explored more in supplemental media it better shows [[EndOfAnEra the transition]] from TheAgeOfMyth to ShroudedInMyth. |
| 165 | ** The Disney sequel era films was the first time Creator/GeorgeLucas was absent from Star Wars development and it was noted that aspects of the setting started to be reimagined into something less coherent. Most notably using hyperdrive to travel around the galaxy required careful calculations and "isn't like dusting crops," with a HyperspeedEscape a common aspect across numerous works, but as a whole it was presented as mostly a method to get from one place to another and speed does matter. Travel time in the sequels became less carefully considered and hyperspace tracking introduced in ''Film/TheLastJedi'' was dependent on a belief that it was previously impossible to track ships in hyperspace, which was technically never stated either way but still came across as throwing out TechnoBabble to undermine a Star Wars trope rather than working within the established rules. The Hyperspace Ram used later in the film also went against assumed rules, requiring ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'' to have to explain it as a OneInAMillionChance, even though there's no obvious reason why it ''shouldn't'' work every time, so long as the crew is willing to pull a SuicideAttack. |
| 166 | * ''Film/SupermanTheMovie'': |
| 167 | ** Richard Donner directed the first ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'' movie using the word "verisimilitude" as the production motto in scripting and crafting the film. They devoted a lot of their effort to figuring out how to have things make sense within the framework of the premise and plot. Why doesn't Superman solve all the world's problems? Jor-El's dialogue explains (piecemeal) that there is an intergalactic law not to interfere in the course of another planet's history. This rule was put into place as the result of the early history of "the twelve known galaxies" being rife with warfare due to interference (presumably resulting in stringent vigilance for that sort of thing now, creating the potential for the intergalactic equivalent of an international incident). He is already bending the rules just being Superman in the first place. If the name "Superman" was invented by the media, why is there an S-logo on the outfit? Marlon Brando came up with this idea: The fancy traditional attire of Kryptonians included family crests in a chest insignia, and the symbol on the seal of Jor-El's clan coincidentally happens to look somewhat like an S. And so on. |
| 168 | ** One of Donner's criticisms of Richard Lester's ''Film/SupermanII'' was that it gave Superman a variety of powers that he'd never had before, including teleporting, telekinetic beams and [[BigLippedAlligatorMoment the power to pull off a cellophane "S" shield and throw it at your enemies.]] The audience has no trouble accepting a man who can shoot laser beams from his eyes or start hurricanes with his breath, but will immediately balk when the fictional boundaries of his abilities are overstepped. |
| 169 | * In ''Film/{{Transformers|2007}}'', one of the implied consistencies (enforced by Creator/MichaelBay) is that the robots don't do any of the "[[HammerSpace mass shifting]]" that has permeated all of the prior incarnations. The Robots have to fit inside their vehicle modes, no more and no less. This resulted in Optimus being a larger semi-truck model to allow for a bigger robot, while the largest robot in the first movie, the huge helicopter Blackout, has a hulking robot form. They figured that by keeping these things consistent, they could manage the (more difficult to accept) mass shifting of the [[MacGuffin All Spark]] because it was used as something special and not as a generic power of all the robots. |
| 170 | * ''Film/{{WarCraft|2016}}'' adapts the magic from the game it's based on, so this happens. Every spell requires hand gestures, InstantRunes and a spoken incantation, and overall, the spells are distinct enough that after one use, you can guess what's being cast while the runes are still forming. |
| 171 | * ''Film/Warlock1989'': At one point, Kassandra is hunting the Warlock through a train yard, driving nails into his footprints to slow him down. The Warlock then holds a board against his feet to protect himself. At this point, Kassandra quickly notices that he's not screaming anymore, but also notices an interesting set of prints where the Warlock not only sat down, but rested his head against a pile of dirt. Kassandra gets an inquisitive look on her face and drives a nail into the latter. Turns out that ALL of a warlock's body-prints have that weakness. |
| 172 | [[/folder]] |
| 173 | |
| 174 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 175 | * Creator/BrandonSanderson's magic systems are regulated to the point of almost being science. In one case, once the series was over and only about half the magic system was revealed, fans were able to correctly determine the rest of the system by extrapolating from the rules that had already been revealed. Sanderson has named his outlook "SandersonsFirstLaw." You can find his essay on the subject [[https://brandonsanderson.com/sandersons-first-law here.]] |
| 176 | ** As an example, in ''{{Franchise/Mistborn}}'', the primary magic power is Allomancy. In Allomancy, you have to ingest metals and then "burn" them to produce very specific effects. Each "set" of effects are based on burning an elemental metal and an alloy of that same metal produces a generally opposite effect. For example, Iron allows you to pull nearby metal and steel allows you to push against nearby metal. Zinc gives the ability to enhance emotions in people and brass allows you to reduce emotions. This elemental/alloy relationship even allows an InUniverse deduction when a character is exposed to a new elemental metal and realizes there must be an alloy that produces an opposite effect she figures it out and actually gains an edge against other Allomancers for a while. The effect of a metal never change but its science-like nature allows characters to get really creative with applications. |
| 177 | ** Each of his other series and books thus far have had very different but similarly complex, highly developed rules-based magic systems. Not only that, but a subset of his works take place on different planets in a universe called ''Literature/TheCosmere'', which comes with a magical version of a Theory of Everything that all the other magic systems are special cases of (including the aforementioned Allomancy). This underlying super-system is slowly revealed over the course of the metaseries, though you'd have to be paying close attention to figure out the connections without reading [[AllThereInTheManual Sanderson's annotations, Q&As]], and other bits of WordOfGod. |
| 178 | * Creator/JohnDicksonCarr's commitment to the FairPlayWhodunnit, where everything necessary to solve the mystery must be laid in front of the reader, meant that in those rare cases where he wrote a story involving the supernatural, the rules the magic operated by were clearly explained. For example, in ''The Devil in Velvet'', Professor Nicholas Fenton makes a DealWithTheDevil to go back in time and try to solve (even better, prevent) a murder; he and the devil hash out a detailed contract as to how this is to happen. He will go to the 16th century by inhabiting the body of his ancestor Sir Nicholas Fenton, suppressing the latter's personality, though the devil warns that Sir Nick's personality might come to the fore in moments of strong emotion. Unfortunately, Sir Nick's wife is murdered on schedule and Prof. Fenton still doesn't know who did it. [[spoiler:Turns out Sir Nick did; Fenton wasn't aware of having blacked out because of a moment of rage, during which Sir Nick took over.]] |
| 179 | * The stories of Australian children's writer Creator/PaulJennings often revolve around this trope -- each has a TwistEnding which (however disturbing or disgusting) follows logically from the established rules of an item's or character's special power. |
| 180 | * In both of Creator/TamoraPierce's universes, magic is bounded by rules but there's quite a lot of undiscovered territory. |
| 181 | ** In the first series of her Literature/TortallUniverse, ''Literature/SongOfTheLioness'', we find that classical 'pseudo-medieval fantasy magic' is around. Some people are born with it and are called Gifted, but they are under no particular obligation to become Mages. Some people have enough innate power to level a building, some people with the Gift can just about light a candle and little else. |
| 182 | ** In the next series, ''Literature/TheImmortals'' we discover a Magic B: Wild Magic. This seems bound up with the natural world and the gods, inherent in all living things but only available as usable magic to a few (also born with the talent innately). |
| 183 | ** In ''Daughter of the Lioness'', it has been confirmed that there are further types of innate magic: one heroine has 'the Sight' which enhances her perception skills in various ways. In ''Provost's Dog'', one has the ability to communicate with certain beings (ghosts and wind-spinners). It is implied these types of magic aren't inherently different from the more common Gift, but that the way these skills are classified is more of a societal invention. |
| 184 | ** There are plenty of other magical things going on too which don't fall into these categories (the magical communion of the Bazhir tribes, the magical abilities of dragons etc). |
| 185 | ** In Pierce's other universe, ''[[Literature/{{Circleverse}} The Circle]]'' magic works along similar but different lines. |
| 186 | *** As in the Tortall-verse, some people are born with an inherent capacity for sorcery. This is known as Academic magic, and is an all-purpose force that can be turned to many different tasks. |
| 187 | *** A second form of inherent magic is the one focused on in the series: Ambient Magic. A person can have an affinity for a particular craft, activity, force or thing (in the series we see Ambient Magics for weaving, weather, forging/fire, plants, dancing, glassworking and stones amongst other things). The wielders can only express their magic through the thing they have the affinity for, but with a little imagination and a lot of practice and study this doesn't have to be limiting at all: for example, Sandry the thread-mage is able to work with all sorts of materials by stubbornly persuading herself to think of them as weavable or spinnable. In addition, when desperate, Ambient Mages are able to work with their raw power rather than through their 'thing', but since this uses their own life-force rather than accessing the power inherent in the activity or object of their alignment it is swiftly exhausting. Furthermore, Ambient Mages are bound by the natural order of their 'thing': the weather mage Tris is able to push storm clouds around but more often than not she finds it's either pointless or a bad idea to mess with what the weather wants to do. Lastly, the abilities of the ambient mages vary between people and have certain limits: Lark, an ambient thread mage, must work with physical cloth and thread to represent the thing she is trying to spin or weave, while Sandry can spin and weave ''magic itself.'' Neither of them (nor any other ambient mage, as Briar discovers) can heal, even if they try to think of veins or nerves as part of their magic. It just doesn't work. |
| 188 | *** Interestingly for this trope, the 'rulesiness' of Ambient Magic makes it maligned in-universe: Academic Mages are often contemptuous of what they see as limited, folksy magics bound in the superstitions of the temple-folk who teach it. Unlike the Tortall-verse there doesn't seem to be any conformation of magics beyond these human ones: whereas in Tortall we meet the gods and see their god-magics, there's no conformation of any god's existence in the Emelan-verse; there are no magical creatures (e.g. dragons, unicorns etc). |
| 189 | * ''Literature/AlexVerus'' has a fairly definite set of rules for the powers the mages can use. The author even has a series of articles on his website called the [[http://benedictjacka.co.uk/encyclopaedia/ Encyclopaedia Arcana]] talking about it. |
| 190 | * ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'': The rules of morphing are quite well defined, if slowly revealed, and usually quite consistent. The exceptions to the rules are also well defined. |
| 191 | ** To be able to morph into an animal/human/alien, you must first physically touch it in your natural form. This allows you to acquire its DNA, and then you just have to think about it to start morphing. You may not acquire DNA from someone else who is morphed, you must touch the ''actual'' creature. Once you have acquired a creature, that DNA is a part of you and will not have to reacquire it. The exceptions to this are if you acquired the DNA in a timeline that then collapsed, known as a ''sario rip'', as this version of you never acquired the DNA in the first place, or if you are allergic to the creature's DNA, in which case you will eventually expel the DNA from your body and create a new version of that creature, a process known as ''hereth illint''. |
| 192 | ** Morphing gives you the instincts and natural abilities of the creature, but not the memories or personality. |
| 193 | ** You can only morph into something from your natural state. If you want to change morphs, you must demorph from you current form to your natural state and ''then'' remorph. This process is tiring, time consuming, and leaves you exposed. The exception to this if you acquired the aforementioned allergy, in which case you will randomly morph when you feel strong emotions, even from other morphs. |
| 194 | ** Once you morph, you can stay in that form for two hours (and change) before you suffer ShapeshifterModeLock, known as a "''nothlit.''" The only way out of this is either through the help of a SufficientlyAdvancedAlien or a natural metamorphosis, such as caterpillar to butterfly, which rests the clock to two hours. |
| 195 | ** Morphs allow a form of telepathy, called "though-speak". The exception to this seems to be humans, even if the human form is a morph. |
| 196 | ** ShapeshiftingHealsWounds because it effectively reboots your DNA, which unfortunately means it doesn't heal genetic diseases or amnesia. ShapeshiftingExcludesClothing, unless its skintight, though the kids get better at it over the course of the series. A visiting Andalite was also able to morph into a human wearing clothes, apparently because she was just that skilled. ShapeshifterBaggage meanwhile is explained as the extra mass is stored in a pocket dimension...which is what ships travel through for faster-than-light travel. Extra mass for larger forms presumably comes from the same place. |
| 197 | * The rules of {{Immortality}} in ''Literature/{{Baccano}}'' are made clear-cut early on in the books (and in episode 7 of the anime adaptation). The rules in the book are elaborated on a bit more (primarily because at least two immortals have been spending 200 years testing the constraints), but the principles are still the same: |
| 198 | ** The only thing that can kill an immortal is to be "devoured" by another immortal. |
| 199 | ** Any immortal who consumes another [[TheAssimilator attains all of their knowledge and memories (including muscle memory).]] |
| 200 | ** Immortals are unable to give a false name in the presence of other immortals. |
| 201 | * ''Literature/TheBelgariad'': |
| 202 | ** There has to be "the Will and the Word" -- you gather your Will and focus it with a Word. This uses the same amount of energy as doing it any other way, but means you can pull in energy from your surroundings and apply it with more flexibility. The exact nature of the word isn't important (though Belgarath chides Garion several times for choosing insufficiently impressive words), but there does need to be a word. |
| 203 | ** The one thing magic ''cannot'' do is "unmake" anything. It can kill and destroy, for that it just changes live people to dead people or whole objects to broken ones, but it cannot erase anything from existence. Doing so causes the universe to take ''massive'' offense, protect the targeted object, and annihilate the sorcerer. (As a corollary, this means that there is one object any sorcerer can freely unmake -- ''themselves''. Several characters have either attempted or committed suicide this way.) |
| 204 | ** It is theorized that many mages who never had any practical training accidentally killed themselves by trying to annihilate objects. When the group meets a two-hundred-year-old scholar whose work was ignored because all of his apprentices mysteriously vanished, they find that he is a really nice guy and the worst thing he ever did was teleport an assailant out to sea. |
| 205 | ** It also includes the fact that Newton's laws of motion still apply, and not pulling energy from elsewhere will drain you quickly. The main character, Garion, tries to lift a large rock when he first learns of his power. He succeeds, but [[spoiler:then becomes very dizzy, falls asleep with his head on his arms, and only upon awakening realizes he didn't lie down. Instead, he is up to his armpits in soft soil.]] |
| 206 | ** There is also the warning that just because something can theoretically be ''done'' doesn't mean it should be ''attempted.'' There are many things that no experienced sorcerer is stupid or crazy enough to attempt under normal circumstances, such as bringing the dead back to life. This comes from the fact that for it to work, the sorcerer has to be completely ''committed'' to making it work, and that the smallest bit of doubt can cause it to fail. |
| 207 | ** There are also other forms of magic, such as wizardry -- demon summoning, witchcraft -- some sort of natural magic, and various others such as seers and necromancers who get even less explanation. Even if the rules of one form of magic prevent you from doing something, there's probably another type with different rules that would allow you to do it. |
| 208 | * ''Literature/TheBrightestShadow'': Sein is deeply embedded in culture and always has been. They may not be completely understood by people, but there is never any doubt that they *could* be completely understood. |
| 209 | ** It should be mentioned, however, that the story is ongoing and as of December 2017, it does still include other, more mysterious forms of magic or magical artifacts, which may or may not see more detailed explanations given to them in the future. And given the author's apparent love of both [[TeasingCreator playing with his audience]] AND writing [[MrExposition characters whose greatest joy is explaining things]], it's anyone's guess what will happen. |
| 210 | * ''Literature/TheBrokenCrescent'': The Language of the Gods operates much like a programming language for reality. Once you know the words and syntax, you can precisely define and predict the effects. |
| 211 | * In Creator/JohnCWright's ''Literature/ChroniclesOfChaos'', there are six different, mutually exclusive paradigms of magic. Working out their relationships and interactions in a form of meta-magic is a major plot point, and the paradigms can, in fact, be charted. |
| 212 | * ''Literature/CodexAlera'' takes ElementalPowers into Magitek levels. Furycrafting uses [[BondCreatures furies]] to control the elements, as well as providing [[ComboPlatterPowers other abilities]], with all Alerans being capable of furycrafting to varying degrees. Legionaries are required to have basic abilities in all six varieties of crafting, but they tend to specialize in just one or two. High Lords and Ladies are strong in all six elements (earth, air, fire, water, metal, wood). GuileHero Tavi also specializes in using the well-established rules coming up with surprising new twists, yet still within the rules. |
| 213 | * ''Literature/CollegiaMagica'': Subverted, in that this is certainly how it is ''taught''... whether the true nature of magic follows this trope or not is a different matter. |
| 214 | * The "magic" in Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman's ''Literature/TheDeathGateCycle'' ''is'' treated almost like a science, complete with a {{Technobabble}}-filled appendix describing how all of it works. |
| 215 | * ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' magic hasn't been terribly consistent over the course of the books (VancianMagic or {{Mana}}? It depends how far along in the series you are), but one rule Creator/TerryPratchett has more or less stuck with is the Law of Conservation of Reality, which says that doing something by magic takes as much energy as doing it without magic (although there are "cheats", such as ''where'' the energy is coming from). This stops Discworld wizards from being all-powerful {{Reality Warper}}s, but unfortunately doesn't apply to [[PersonOfMassDestruction Sourcerers.]] |
| 216 | ** Because this is Terry Pratchett, the lack of consistency in the magic systems isn't (always) authorial oversight, it's intentional. Magic's tropes are lampshaded, discussed and played with a lot over the course of the books, both in the narrator's voice and by various characters who take issue with magic's messiness. Rincewind -- at least at first -- was depicted as being so bad at magic partly because he didn't really believe in it despite it patently existing. He thinks the world ought to make more sense than that. Discworld's magic is bounded by one important rule, which is: Don't Do Magic. Books from the series that particularly explore the different iterations, applications and limitations of magic on the Disc include ''Equal Rites'', ''Sourcery'' and the Tiffany Aching books. |
| 217 | ** ''TabletopGame/{{GURPS}} Discworld'' and, especially, ''Literature/TheScienceOfDiscworld'' take it to a whole other level by examining how magic works by its own rules, including both NarrativeCausality and even the RuleOfFunny. Magic has rules, but they're almost anti-rules, the opposite of how science works, and they explicitly allow for "breaking" the rules if the story demands it. Of course, the stories might then become about following and exploiting ''these'' rules. |
| 218 | * In ''Literature/TheDivineCities'', miracles can be used by anyone who knows what they're doing. Granted, most people are unaware that there are even any miracles still available after the (supposed) death of the gods. As such, they almost take on the role of LostTechnology. |
| 219 | * Magic in ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'' has a very well-developed and consistent set of established rules. Working within these rules (and finding loopholes) is a major part of the story in most of the books. Among the most common ones: |
| 220 | ** Magic is generated by a variety of sources, primarily living things and emotions. Shown when Harry is trapped in a magic-sealing field in an aquarium, and notes that there's still lots of magic inside the field because there's a lot of living things inside and that the aquarium is routinely visited by large numbers of people with strong emotions as they witness the animals inside. |
| 221 | ** Magic is affected and fueled by emotions. Powerful emotions like rage, fear, true happiness, etc., can make spells more powerful than usual or even fuel spells by themselves, but any sort of delicate magic, such as complicated rituals, requires total calm lest they backfire and blow your head off. |
| 222 | ** Magic is bound by the laws of physics. Harry's wind spells still need air to move, fire spells suck the oxygen from an area (and the energy can be drawn from ambient heat - once Harry froze part of a lake by using a strong ''fire'' spell, and it sucked all the heat out of the water, freezing it. He did it this way because he isn't (yet) good with ice magic), and force spells still operate based on Newtonian physics. Creatures with SuperStrength are helpless if airborne, for example, as they are at the mercy of physics without anything to push against. |
| 223 | ** Magic is defined by human thought. This is why wizards use a variety of dead languages to cast spells. The words simply help the wizard shape exactly what they want the spell to do in their minds. Amateurs need rituals, lengthy chants, and meditation to do even simple spells while more experienced wizards can do the same with a single word. You use a dead language because the magic becomes linked with the word in your mind. Use the word "fire" for fire spells and you'll be burning your house down within a week. Don't use words, on the other hand, and the magic comes out raw. The one time we've seen this in the books, the person trying it turned into a human Taser(R) while having a seizure. |
| 224 | *** The exceptions to this are the ''very'' powerful or experienced wizards. Senior Council members can potentially cast spells without using words, like Ebanezar [=McCoy=], and the Archive can fling literally dozens of spells off without speaking. Of course, the Archive is the living archive of all recorded knowledge, and knowledge is ''power''. Note that "Ivy" (Harry's nickname for the Archive) is not a magic practitioner in the conventional sense. Normal people can use magic to a limited extent, but it's like an armless person trying to paint. Ivy has the same amount of magical talent as most people. Her immense magical ability is nothing but skill and knowledge, like an armless person painting ten Mona Lisas with their feet. |
| 225 | *** Expanding on the previous point, magic is defined by human thought, but this is dependent on the user in question. In one book, Harry marks out the boundaries of a protection spell with blue Play-Doh. When Murphy asks why, he explains that he mentally associates the color blue with safety, and that another wizard might use an entirely different color. This also comes into play with potion-making, as all the ingredients must fit the central theme. For example, a vigor potion might use strong coffee as the base liquid and include ingredients such as high-energy music and a piece of tie-dyed fabric. |
| 226 | ** Religious faith has been described as something "like" magic, but not quite. Magic is compared to feeling like electricity, while faith more like a deep ocean. The main use of faith seen is that it can harm certain supernatural beings (most prominently vampires) and can negate supernatural powers (Michael's duel with Nicodemus in ''Death Masks''). |
| 227 | ** Using magic physically tires out the spellcaster. Throwing around magic wears one out like doing any other act of physical exertion. Dropping lots of energy can make one black out if used too quickly or too hard. And just like doing a lot of physical activity builds up muscle, casting a lot of spells builds up your ability to cast them -- Harry has gotten a larger and larger "reservoir" to draw from as the series has gone on, while he was pretty much out of juice after only one or two big spells in the first few books. |
| 228 | ** Magic can be targeted using connections between objects, i.e., a spell can be targeted against a person by using a sample of hair, skin, or blood, or an object can be tracked by using a small piece of it. This is used throughout the series to do everything from tracking down lost items to eavesdropping on conversations to launching heart-exploding spells at targets. Harry takes this to a rather impressive extent by taking tiny samples from every building, tree, and street in Chicago and making a precise scale-model replica of the city that allows him to work tracking and eavesdropping spells across the entire city. However, this magic can only be used so long as the two objects have a direct connection--hair clippings, for example, could not be used to find someone who'd shaved his head at some point after the clippings were taken because the clippings no longer matched up with any of the hairs on his head. |
| 229 | ** Mortals and certain other entities have will and choice, which are actual forces in the setting. It is what separates humans, the various types of vampires, and other denizens of the mortal world from denizens of the Nevernever. Humans and other creatures with willpower can create [[GeometricMagic circles of willpower]] that trap, cut off, and contain magic and can hedge out entities without willpower. |
| 230 | *** In the novel ''Literature/ColdDays'', mortal willpower becomes an even more crucial force, making the entire difference in several life-or-death battles. |
| 231 | ** Physical contact between magically-sensitive mortals generates a detectable field. Making eye contact with a person with strong magical ability triggers a "soulgaze" that shows both participants the true nature of the other. Anyone with sufficient talent at magic can initiate the "Sight" which allows them to see reality as it "truly" is -- letting them see magical auras and determine the true natures of creatures and locations -- with the downside that the person who uses the Sight will retain that knowledge with perfect clarity (so if you look upon a victim of a psychic mauling or an EldritchAbomination, time will not dull the edges of the memory). |
| 232 | ** Another very important aspect of the magic is that in order to use magic you have to believe that what you are doing is right, which is why killing someone with magic is such a terrible thing--you have to believe that you have the right to kill them. This creates a psychological effect on anyone who uses magic to kill or tamper with the free will of another human, which inevitably leads to JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope and becoming a raving psychopath. This is the basis for most of the Laws of Magic enforced by the White Council. |
| 233 | * ''Literature/TheEmpiriumTrilogy'': There are only seven elements that a human can potentially control. Once discovered, the elemental can control that element and only that element. In order to manipulate that element, the elemental must create their own casting in order to help channel their power. The only elementals that buck these rules are the Queens of Prophecy. |
| 234 | * ''Literature/TheGrimnoirChronicles'': Superpowers fall on a grid that is one part [[http://www.profantasy.com/rpgmaps/?p=62 The Quade Diagram]] and one part ROYGBIV. All supers start out with a single power which either comes from one part of the grid or the overlapping of two or more parts. In turn, the [[GeometricMagic kanji]] [[PowerTattoo brands]] are two-dimensional [[LocardsTheory sympathetic]] representations of whichever part(s) of the grid the user wishes to draw power from. |
| 235 | * The ''Literature/HeraldsOfValdemar'' series is quite consistent with its depiction of magic and "mind-magic" -- which starts to confuse the main characters in some of the later series, when characters from far-distant locales come in with techniques that break rules they thought were unbreakable. In particular, Gates from one location to another always require an arch or similar frame, and a single mage's own power... until an eastern mage shows up and says they've always done it in teams, and that frames are just a convenience for them. The Adept Firesong once gave a speech declaring that most rules and limits of magic were all in the mage's head -- they couldn't do something simply because the way they were taught made them think that it was impossible. And indeed, he and others did manage to do things that other mages couldn't -- then a few books later he met the aforesaid Eastern mages who treat magic as a science complete with mathematical tools, and is forced to work with a group of engineers in figuring out a scientific approach to solving a magical crisis, proving that there are ''some'' real rules out there after all. |
| 236 | * ''Literature/HighSchoolDXD'': |
| 237 | ** The precise rules that magic and other powers operate on is never discussed in much detail, but there are ways to break the rules. Such "Balance Breakers" range from simply being obscenely powerful, to a supposedly uncontrollable YinYangBomb. |
| 238 | ** It's established fairly early that due to the effects of the GreatOffscreenWar ([[spoiler:Namely, GodIsDead]]), the rules in the setting are starting to break down. This results in such plot-relevant oddities as a sword that has both holy and demonic properties at the same time, and [[spoiler: Issei being able to incorporate a fragment of Divine Dividing into his Boosted Gear, despite the two being ''designed to cancel each other out''.]] |
| 239 | * ''Literature/TheHollows'': Magic has a different set of laws for each magical species, and several arcs on the series rest on the relationships between the species and the rules of their magics. |
| 240 | * Magic in the Literature/InheritanceCycle is limited by several strict rules that are generally obeyed as the series goes on. The most important of which is that magic always [[CastFromHitPoints drains the mage who uses it,]] and the bigger the magic, the more LifeEnergy is required...except when dragons or any other kind of ''wild magic'' is concerned. Dragons are more innately magical than humans. |
| 241 | ** Magic in general seems to work off of Newtonian physics. Throwing a small pebble at a certain speed requires as much energy as if you did it by hand. Then you have to consider how far away the target you're enchanting is and even the very ''wording'' you're using in the ancient language, all of which can determine how much energy you could spend on a task. This law can get abstract when you're dealing with metaphysical concepts like turning invisible, healing wounds ranging from cuts and bruises to broken bones and birth defects, and amalgamating enough particles of pure gold to be the size of your fist, to the point that experimenting with magic is extremely dangerous because you don't know exactly how much energy it will require, and it WILL kill you if you try to use more energy than you have. It's possible to get around this by pulling energy from other sources (plants, animals, dead dragons, etc). |
| 242 | *** The problem is compounded because the ancient language used to cast magic is also a LanguageOfTruth, so if you frame a spell as an absolute statement, you're effectively forced to commit energy to it until either the spell is successful or you die. |
| 243 | *** The adherence to physics is further demonstrated when a character in the past is revealed to have ended a battle by telling his own body to "be not", creating a huge explosion. Although the characters don't know the specifics, it's pretty clear to modern readers that he converted his body to energy and turned himself into a literal FantasticNuke. |
| 244 | ** Angela knows a spell which uses dragon bones to predict the future, although she herself admits that interpreting them is tricky. A group of elves at some point created a spell which could outright see the future, no interpretation necessary....and it killed them when they tried using it. |
| 245 | ** Trying to raise the dead will also cause instant death because that would be a HUGE energy drain. In the last book, Eragon considers trying to bring Brom back. However, what he seems to be suggesting sounds more scientific (use magic to repair the body, repair the brain, use telepathy to give the brain its memories and personality, then jumpstart) than summoning Brom's soul from beyond the void, which is specifically what he was warned against. In any case, he decides against doing it. |
| 246 | ** Most, if not all of these rules, however, can be bypassed under one condition. As knowing the true name of something gives absolute control over it, knowing the true name of MAGIC ITSELF would therefore give you complete control over magic and its rules. This is not an easy task, though, as the only person to actually discover it on their own had to spend over a century of research to even figure it out. |
| 247 | * In ''Literature/TheIronTeeth'' web serial, magic is done by growing crystals using alchemy. Each crystal can then be used by a mage to produce some effect. |
| 248 | * ''Literature/JourneyToChaos'': Magic is a consistent and learnable skill in this verse and [[Literature/AMagespower Eric spends the first book doing just that.]] ''Introduction to Magecraft'' was written two thousand years ago and it is ''still'' the most popular reference guide for beginners because regardless of time or practioner, the basic rules of magic don't change. The Three Laws of Magecraft are as immutable as the Three Laws of Motion. |
| 249 | ** 1.''{{Mana}}''. You can't do magic without mana because it is the root of all power. |
| 250 | ** 2. ''Knowledge.'' You have to know what you're doing. You can't just say say "Fireball!" while focusing hard if you don't how that spell is supposed to work |
| 251 | ** 3.''Willpower.'' Since mana flows from the goddess Chaos, all magic can be seen as WildMagic. Magecraft is the tamest of all forms of magic but a mage still needs a strong will to force mana to take the shape he/she wants and go into the direction that he/she desires. |
| 252 | * ''Literature/TheLightbringerSeries'': The main form of magic, drafting, consists mainly of being able to conjure and control one or more of seven different varieties of "luxin" (a sort of solidified colour or light). Each kind of luxin has very specific physical properties, and the way drafters work magic usually resembles engineering problems more than anything; for example, combining blue luxin (which is hard but brittle), red luxin (which is highly flamable) and yellow luxin (which is unstable and releases energy when dissolving) in the right form lets you create timed explosives. |
| 253 | * The ''Literature/LordDarcy'' stories by Creator/RandallGarrett use self-consistent Laws of Magic to determine what can and can't be done by the characters. It's appropriate, since in this alternate world magic is a science. "Witchcraft" is used to refer to doing things that the Laws of Magic say are nonsense -- like using willowbark to cure headaches when everyone knows that there's no symbolic affinity between the willow and pain. Magic as Science, and Science as Magic... Though there is starting to be some of what we would consider more normal technological development: a top secret military research project has developed...''a flashlight!''\ |
| 254 | A few of the simpler rules are explicitly named in the stories. For example, there's the Law of Contagion, which allows a forensic wizard to determine whether a particular bullet was fired from a particular gun. Occasionally hints of greater detail are given; for instance, the bullet has a strong affinity for the gun, but the gun has a fairly weak affinity for the bullet... it's all explained in-story. It's strongly implied that at the higher levels Theoretical Magic is at least as complicated as Quantum Physics; one of the characters mentions that he has only a Master's degree and not a Th.D. (Thaumaturgiae Doctoris) because he couldn't handle the math. |
| 255 | * ''Literature/MagicByTheNumbers'': In ''Master of the Five Magics'' there are, oddly enough, five different schools of magic which all operate under a strict set of foundational axioms. The sequel adds a new set of higher level rules which govern how the other rules can be manipulated. Though the rules themselves can change, each magical system is itself internally consistent. |
| 256 | * ''Literature/MagicExLibris'' involves libriomancy, the magic of pulling items from a book with the powers they're described as having. This leads to [[ReferenceOverdosed many references]] but a few hard limits are laid out, too. No necromancy, no time-travel, no wishes. Minor exceptions occur, but these are clearly marginal examples of these things happening in a far more limited form. |
| 257 | * Referenced in ''Literature/MagicForLiars'' when Ms. Webb attests that magic is ''exactly'' like science in that both are documenting information derived from experimentation and that the body of knowledge is constantly growing. The underlying rules are assumed to be unchanging. |
| 258 | * ''Literature/MagicInc'' uses it more or less conventionally -- the magic in the story follows strict rules, which turns out to be important to the plot. |
| 259 | * In ''Literature/MasksOfAygrima'' magic moves like a liquid, can only be seen by people with "The Gift" and can only be used by a few gifted people, magic comes from living beings and comes in many colors and each color has a specific ability, all but a few gifted can only see one color of magic, magic is drawn to Black Lodestone and can only be used by someone who touches it, there are some gifted who can see and use all colors without touching it and can also tear magic from people's bodies but if someone dies near them, especially if they killed that person with magic, then they will be haunted by images of that person (called a Soulprint). Finally Black Lodestone exists only in the country of Aygrima and Soulprints are less prominent outside of Aygrima. |
| 260 | * ''Literature/TheNameOfTheWind'': Magic is surprisingly mundane and consistent. The most common type, sympathy, follows (''really'' follows) the law of conservation of energy. For example, if you bound two coins, lifting one would lift both, but it would weigh like both, not accounting for the loss of energy (the more similar, the less energy lost). One can use an outside energy source, though (like, say, using a fire's power to move an iron wheel). Sygaldry is sympathy, but based on written runes, and Knacks are individual and very mundane skills (always getting sevens when rolling dice, growing very large fruits). Lastly, [[IKnowYourTrueName Naming]] is barely explained, but it's rare, far more powerful than sympathy, and described as "fairy tale magic". There are also the even rarer Fae magics, grammarie and glamourie, the art of making things BE, versus making things SEEM. The same University that teaches these arts also teaches medicine, informatics, rhetoric, and linguistics, which aren't exactly magic. |
| 261 | * ''Literature/NewArcana'': The magic system is partly based on fantasy rpgs, but also has its own rules; for example, technology drains mana, and female mages can cast spells only on themselves, while male mages can cast spells only on things other than themselves. |
| 262 | * ''Literature/TheOnceAndFutureKing'': While Merlin can display spectacular power (such as causing a tree to instantly grow and bringing about a snowstorm in the middle of summer), he has some clear limits on what he can do. The only two powers to which he has continual access are insight (being able to see events going on at the present) and foresight (being able to see future events, part of this is due to Merlin's being born circa the late 20th century and living backward through time). It is stated that Merlin could not use magic to imitate the Great Arts, such as Falconry or Sculpture, as it "wouldn't be fair". Also, Merlin was "given" his magical powers for the specific purpose of helping Arthur prepare for the kingship, which is why he cannot transmute Kay into an animal like he does Arthur. |
| 263 | * ''Literature/{{Otherverse}}'' has a very complex and intricate set of magic rules for the setting. One of the big ones being that lying is forbidden, and if you do lie you will lose access to magic to varying degrees based on the severity of the lie (including the possibility of permanently losing magic altogether). The author describes it as "a bunch of different systems of magic all clashing together". Interestingly, the rules are not necessarily set in stone; a powerful enough being is capable of altering existing rules or imposing new ones. One example from the backstory being the Seal of Solomon, created by Suleiman bin Daoub several thousand years ago, which governs the relationships between humanity and Others worldwide and is the foundation for much of the magic in the series. |
| 264 | * During the ''Franchise/StarTrek''/''Franchise/XMen'' crossover novel ''Planet X'', Geordi La Forge spends some time studying the X-Men to learn more about their abilities, and notes that when Nightcrawler teleports he returns to real space covered in verteron particles, a form of particle created in the subspace dimension that starships travel through when at warp. La Forge observes that this suggests that Nightcrawler is teleporting through the same dimension as starships at warp, impressed at the idea that Nightcrawler can do by himself what Starfleet needs an entire ship to achieve. |
| 265 | * Magic in ''Literature/APracticalGuideToEvil'' has multiple competing systems, all of which are internally coherent, but none of which can entirely explain any of the others. It's also stated that trying to learn two different systems of magic has a tendency to [[GoMadFromTheRevelation send the practitioner insane]]. Most of the major characters are trained in Trimegistan theory, which uses [[FormulaicMagic Spell Formulas]]. Its crowning principle is stated as "Usurpation is the essence of Sorcery", and most of its major works are characterised as taking apart Creation, which is the work of the Gods, and putting it back together how the practitioner wants it to be. Did we mention that Trimegistan theory was developed by [[TheEmpire The Dread Empire of Praes]] based on the original works of the [[BigBad Dead King]]? |
| 266 | * ''Literature/RainbowMagic'': Spells don't work unless they rhyme. |
| 267 | * ''Literature/ReignOfTheSevenSpellblades'': |
| 268 | ** Most spells require incantations consisting of [[LatinIsMagic Latin words]], and the longer the incantation, the more powerful the spell but the harder it is to cast (and therefore the more vulnerable a mage is to attack while casting). It's normally impossible for a first-year magic student (roughly equivalent to a high school freshman) to "double-cast" (cast a spell with a two-word incantation), [[spoiler:though Chela can pull it off in elf form]]. These escalate up to reality-warping "Grand Arias", which require incantations minutes long. Mages also traditionally carry short swords, called athame, for self-defense, because within a radius called the "one step, one spell" distance (roughly twelve feet), no mage can cast a traditional spell faster than an adversary can strike with a weapon. Conversely, certain very weak spells, called "spatial magic", can be [[SimplifiedSpellcasting cast nonverbally and quickly]], but you have to be creative and quick-thinking to use them effectively. |
| 269 | ** Mages' powers are also reliant on elemental affinities and on their "etheric body", which appears to be an extension of their souls. An injury to the etheric body can dramatically weaken a mage even if there's no sign of physical injury. |
| 270 | ** Mages require some external focus to cast, which can be either a white wand or an athame. Alvin Godfrey once uses spatial magic in combination with grappling techniques, casting spells through a small wand glued to one hand. |
| 271 | ** Spells can be {{counterspell}}ed if you synchronize to their elemental cores. [[TheLancer Nanao Hibiya]] can [[ParryingBullets parry spells]] instinctively with just her sword, which becomes known as one of her {{signature move}}s. |
| 272 | * Magic in ''Literature/RiversOfLondon'', at least the type practiced by human wizards, appears to be exceptionally rules-based and its apparent violation of the laws of thermodynamics greatly worries apprentice Peter Grant. [[spoiler: Beverley Brook, a minor river goddess, seems to do magic in an instinctive fashion.]] |
| 273 | * The Endowment magic system from ''Literature/TheRuneLords'' books is very much MagicAIsMagicA. Internally-consistent and thought out rigorously well, it was actually one of the inspirations behind Sanderson's ideas for the Mistborn books. |
| 274 | * ''Literature/ShadowsOfTheApt'': Humans all possess the Art, giving them powers and abilities based on the particular insect-archetype. This is all inherited -- if you have Beetle parents, you're a Beetle yourself and you get Beetle Art. There's also Aptitude -- either you're Apt, and can use -- and learn to create -- technology, or you're Inapt and can't even open a door with a spring-latch. However, the Inapt can learn magic -- another interesting part being that if you ''see'' Art, you ''know'' it's Art and not magic. |
| 275 | * ''Literature/SkulduggeryPleasant'' uses this, with two separate magic systems. It describes exactly how the magic works -- e.g. instead of "he snapped his fingers and a flame appeared above them," it's "she snapped her fingers, felt the spark and heat generated by the friction, and fed it her magic until it grew into a visible flame". |
| 276 | ** Further development on the system is given in the spinoff book, ''The Maleficent Seven''. Magic is similar to a tree that's growing two trunks: Adept Magic and Elemental magic. The Elemental branch is pretty bare, just being the use of the four classical elements. The Adept branch contains all other branches of magic, from Necromancy (which is based heavily on the manipulation of shadows), to the multi-branch Sensitivity (which contains most psychic powers: LaserGuidedAmnesia, mind reading, prophecy, etc.) to the quite-popular Energy Throwing ([[ProjectileSpell Projectile Spells]] from the hands, eyes or for one character, the mouth). Some branches, like Wall Walking (which makes gravity pull you towards the wall or ceiling), have twigs, tiny branches that break off from the main branch, but main branch users can easily master them, in the case of Wall Walking, magically opening locks and strengthening doors. Trying to use two or more separate branches interferes with the magic you originally began studying. Some people can use multiple magic types, the two examples we've seen so far both using Necromancy and Elemental magic. |
| 277 | ** Furthermore, before adulthood, a person can freely choose between different magic types. However, at the end of puberty, around the 18/19 area, a sorcerer experiences "The Surge", which locks you into one magic branch and increases your ability. Essentially, teenagers get versatility in exchange for raw power, but they cannot keep it forever. |
| 278 | ** Symbol Magic seems to be an exception, as it seems any branch of magic can use it. For the most part, it requires precise measurements and years of study. |
| 279 | ** Finally, the source of magic in the series is uniform for all: a person's True Name, the name they are born with, provides it. Knowing your True Name gives god-like power, anyone else knowing it makes you a slave to their commands. It's protected with your Given Name, the name your parents give you, but power can be exerted on you through its use (you're more likely to answer someone if they call you by name). The Given Name is protected by the Taken Name, a name the person gives themselves. Sometimes, it's something quirky but still normal, like Deacon Maybury. Most of the time, it's completely out-there, going from those who use at least one normal name (e.g. Philomena Random, Gracious O'Callahan) to those whose names would probably be rejected by the birth register (e.g., the titular Skulduggery Pleasant, China Sorrows, The Torment, Neferian Serpine). |
| 280 | * ''Literature/StoriesOfNypre'': Magic may at first sound like a bunch of gibberish. That is until each of the words used in the incantations are given meanings. It grows to the point where it's almost a separate language! |
| 281 | * ''Literature/ThirteenthChild'': There are three different traditions of magic, but the differences are mostly ''how'' you go about it. There's three main schools. |
| 282 | ** Avrupan (European) magic is mostly FunctionalMagic. It's very individualistic, and to achieve the really large spells, multiple mages will each cast a part of the spell, which can then be fitted together. It's the best style for everyday stuff, but is usually weaker the greater you go. |
| 283 | ** Cathayan (Asian) magic involves a group of mages pooling their power to cast spells together. This results in better large-scale spells, but if you wanted to use it to, say, light a campfire, you're out of luck. |
| 284 | ** Aphrikan (African) magic is less direct and mostly about manipulating magic that's already in things. While this means it uses less power than the other two styles and can achieve different things than them, it also has less of the straightforward effects the other styles have. |
| 285 | * ''Literature/TimeScout'': There are a few rules to time travel that aren't broken. |
| 286 | ** No paradox. Don't bother trying. |
| 287 | ** If you exist twice in the same time, you'll die. It's called shadowing yourself. You can't cross your own shadow and live. |
| 288 | * The Rules of Magic (or how it works) are seldom explained in Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium -- the lore and magical words are well outside the ken of the hobbits. Even people who ought to know (such as Elrond) express some ambivalence on the potential effects of, say, destroying the Ring. Still, this doesn't stop fans from getting into debates about whether the Nazgûl wore their Rings or if Sauron had them on his person. |
| 289 | ** It also seems that what is considered magic by, say, Hobbits, isn't always thought of as such by, say, Elves, which makes explanations difficult and/or unnecessary. This is because, as Galadriel points out, the word for "magic" used by the hobbits covers what to the elves are two distinct concepts, both elvish "art" and "sorcery" which is the term for the works of Sauron and the Ringwraiths. Of course, even in Sindarin the term for "sorcery" is just the prefix for "dark" or "black" (mor-) thrown on the word for art, lore, or knowledge (''gul'', thus sorcery or "the black arts," is ''morgul'' as in Minas Morgul and the morgul blade.) |
| 290 | --->"Are these magic cloaks?" asked Pippin, looking at them with wonder.\ |
| 291 | "I do not know what you mean by that," answered the leader of the Elves. "They are fair garments, and the web is good, for it was made in this land. They are elvish robes certainly, if that is what you mean". ("Farewell to Lórien", ''The Fellowship of the Ring''.) |
| 292 | ** Additionally, as is made more clear in ''Literature/TheSilmarillion'', elves simply don't think of what they can do as "magical". It's just a natural ability to them, like carpentry is to a human being -- as far as the elves are concerned, they're just better at making things than weakling humans. Basically, an elven sailor could get so good at sailing that he could make his ship fly. Likewise, the "wizards" (''istari'') like Gandalf aren't stock fantasy wizards so much as a group of minor gods (the same kind of being as Sauron and the Balrogs). |
| 293 | ** A point is made in ''The Silmarillion'' that many great works that might be considered magical can only be accomplished once. The great trees Telperion and Laurelin created by Yavanna could only be created once. The Silmarils created by Fëanor could only be created once. One may presume the One Ring created by Sauron could also only have been created once and it would make sense that reason for this is as given that he put his own power into the ring thus diminishing it in himself. In this respect, the act of using one's 'magic' to create a great artifact appears to forever diminish the creator of the artifact. |
| 294 | * ''Literature/TheToughGuideToFantasyland'': It's stated the Rules of Magic rarely change, but some secrets often will be reserved to have a nasty surprise later on a "Tour". Additionally, usually at least three different kinds of magic will exist, all with their distinct Rules. |
| 295 | * ''Literature/TheTravelersGate'': Travelers use Gates to "Territories" from which they summon monsters and allies. They can also use the Gates for travel (hence the name). Those are the general rules, but each Territory also has its own quirks. Endross Gates get bigger the longer they are open and eventually run out of control, Lirial Travelers can only summon things if they know exactly where they are, Valinhall Travelers summon powers into themselves rather than summoning allies, so on and so on. |
| 296 | * ''Literature/TheUnexploredSummonBloodSign'' has an extremely complicated system of SummonMagic. The basic idea is that a summoner must be partnered with a vessel, and uses a long stick (the titular Blood Sign) to spell out the name of a particular Material (supernatural being), who possesses the vessel. |
| 297 | ** All Materials belong to one of three classes. In ascending order of power, these are the Regulation-Class (monsters created by humans, as a means of accessing the higher classes), the Divine-Class (gods and other legendary figures) and the Unexplored-Class (all-female beings who represent the laws of the world itself). |
| 298 | ** Within each class, the power of a Material is directly related to the number of letters in its name. This means that, for example, [[Myth/AztecMythology Quetzalcoatl]] is stronger than [[Myth/GreekMythology Zeus]] or [[Myth/NorseMythology Odin.]] |
| 299 | ** The 26 letters of the alphabet are divided into four categories: vowels, 'low' sounds (the first seven consonants), 'middle' sounds (the middle seven consonants) and 'high' sounds (the last seven consonants). All Materials belong to one of the three sound ranges, based on the composition of their name. For example, a Material with two high sounds and one low sounds would be 'high'. This leads to a form of TacticalRockPaperScissors: 'high' has an advantage over 'medium', 'medium' over 'low', and 'low' over high'. |
| 300 | ** Materials are [[NighInvulnerability completely immune to non-magical means of attack,]] and can only be harmed by other Materials. While summoning, summoners are surrounded by a protective circle which protects them from all forms of harm, including Material attacks. |
| 301 | ** All Materials contain a Silhouette, a core which houses the vessel's mind. If this is destroyed, the Material will leave the vessel, and both summoner and vessel will experience a supernatural shock for 24 hours. In this state, they won't take any actions of their own accord, but will follow simple orders. |
| 302 | * ''Literature/{{Waldo}}'' is an in-universe example. The title character (after whom remote-control manipulation machines are named IRL) is an expert technologist and problem solver who is called in when remote power receptors are failing mysteriously. He finds that someone is fixing broken receptors ''by magic'', and is told that magic can do anything -- no rules. He disbelieves this and proceeds to discover the rules of magic and applies them, becoming a very successful magician as well as technologist. |
| 303 | * ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'': |
| 304 | ** The One Power has a convoluted system, especially [[GenderRestrictedAbility when it comes to differences between male and female "channelers"]] and how [[GeometricMagic various weaves are constructed]]. Once the author figured out how he wanted things to work (around the second or third book) it became perfectly consistent. Before that, the rules were slightly looser. |
| 305 | ** There also are other forms of magic besides channelers-- Perrin's wolf powers, Min's viewings, Hurin's sniffing -- these don't fit within the rules and confuse channelers. The [[SummonMagic Horn of Valere]], has less to do with magic and more with the story's cosmology. Then there's [[HumanoidAbomination Padan Fain/Mordeth]], whatever ''he'' really is, who has all sorts of bizarre abilities that aren't connected to the One Power, though mercifully he seems to be the only wielder of the "Mordeth Power". |
| 306 | ** It's further complicated by the fact that the setting is full of LostTechnology, PoorCommunicationKills and {{Culture Clash}}es, and is set [[AfterTheEnd after multiple different apocalypses]]. When something weird pops up, it's anyone's guess whether it seems completely impossible to the current viewpoint character but would be well-known and understood by someone from another country; was commonplace during the Age of Legends and has been forgotten by the present day; or has truly never been seen before by anyone in the world, often to the incredulity of the QuirkyMinibossSquad who have been [[SealedEvilInACan Sealed In A Can]] since the Age of Legends. |
| 307 | * The core theme of Rick Cook's ''Literature/WizBiz'' series is the technically-inclined protagonist's creating a new kind of magic by applying the techniques of computer programming to the magic system in the fantasy world he's thrown into. While the base rules of magic appear not fully comprehensible (any attempt to model or simulate them starts breaking down reality as it gets more predictive), there's a limited subset of magical operations that while still not actually reliable can be combined and cross-checked in ways that let work get done. Most magic in the setting remains unknown in detail. |
| 308 | * ''Literature/TheWorstWitch'': Magic is rarely used to make practical tasks easier, such as tidying up, repairing breakages, aiding learning: many menial tasks still have to be done by hand, such as training cats to fly on broomsticks, and lighting lanterns around the school. Use of spells is also governed by the Witches' Code, which is occasionally referenced by Miss Hardbroom, especially concerning turning people into animals, which is generally forbidden, except in self-defence. |
| 309 | * The powers in ''Literature/TheZombieKnight Saga'' are handled this way. They are broken into six separate classes, including [[ThePowerOfCreation materialization]] and [[BodyHorror transfiguration]], among others. Each servants power has unique elements to it, like the type of material they can create, but the core functionality is the same. Even the arguably main source of magic in the story, that of [[GrimReaper the existence of reapers]], is explained as [[spoiler:a genetic trait which manifested in humans several millennia ago]]. |
| 310 | [[/folder]] |
| 311 | |
| 312 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 313 | * ''Series/{{Bewitched}}'', the UrExample of many shows about magic, was surprisingly consistent in its rule system for casting spells. The basic rules were as follows: |
| 314 | ** Typically, only a particular witch or warlock could undo any charm they had personally cast. |
| 315 | ** If it was possible for another magic user to reverse a spell, they had to get it ''exactly'' right, often by determining what movements and words the caster used in the first place. |
| 316 | ** Generally speaking, magic had to be done with extreme precision--one wrong word or movement would either make the spell fail, or cause some kind of strange side-effect. |
| 317 | ** Mortals were unable to learn magic, though they could use enchanted objects. |
| 318 | ** ThePowerOfLove was far too great for any magic user to control; similarly, witches and warlocks couldn't raise the dead, although it was possible to ''summon'' famous individuals from their own time period, when they were still alive. |
| 319 | * The rules of time travel were fairly consistent in ''Series/QuantumLeap'', insofar as Project Quantum Leap was concerned: Dr. Sam Beckett could travel in time, but only within the range of his natural lifetime (starting on his date of birth, or possibly date of conception). He "leaps" into someone who already exists at that time, and he retains his physical form and abilities while everyone around him sees the image of the "leapee" (conversely, the leapee is kept at Project Quantum Leap because they look like Dr. Beckett). Children, animals and psychics [[GlamourFailure can see Sam's true form]]. The times this was broken were explained as extremely unlikely events: |
| 320 | ** Sam and Al exchanged places and leaped to a point before Sam's birth due to a [[LightningCanDoAnything lightning strike]] hitting Sam and Al at the same time just as Sam was leaping out. |
| 321 | ** Sam leaped into one of his Civil War ancestors because the ancestor and Sam were close enough genetically to cause a cross-time jump. |
| 322 | ** Similarly, Al (as the Observer) has very strict rules - he can only be seen by Sam and certain others (animals, children, the mentally disabled, and those whose brainwaves are similar to Sam's). Sam can see Al because Al is "tuned" to Sam's brainwaves, and anyone else who tries to fill in as Observer when Al is not available is seen by Sam as a distorted or ghostly image due to the mismatch. And Al cannot interact with anything except what he brings into the Imaging Chamber because from his perspective ''he's'' real and everything else is a hologram. |
| 323 | * Meanwhile, ''Series/QuantumLeap2022'' is consistent with its own rules for time travel. Leaping outside of one's lifetime, or leaping forward into the future, is now possible thanks to some new code Ben uploaded into Ziggy, with the ability to do so likened to a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravity_assist gravity assist]]. Also, Ben's leaps don't involve a temporal switcheroo and Waiting Room; rather, Ben and the leapee are in the same place at the same time due to quantum superposition, with Ben even retaining the leapee's physicality and muscle memory -- which is great when he leaps into an athlete, but not so much when he leaps into a middle-aged man -- while still surrounded by the leapee's aura. That said, Addison explicitly states that Ben has to SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong in order to leap, adding that it's just how it apparently works based on what Sam Beckett did. |
| 324 | * ''Franchise/SuperSentai'' / ''Franchise/PowerRangers'': |
| 325 | ** ''Series/MahouSentaiMagiranger'' had a well-mapped magical system. There were multiple tiers with 10 words each, but said words could be combined in any which way by a character wanting to do different things. The fact that the main heroes were breaking the tier system by the end of the season gave a feeling of "they're more powerful than any magicians in history" instead of ruining suspension of disbelief, because the usage still remained consistent within the tier breaking. |
| 326 | ** ''Magiranger''[='s=] system was lost in the adaptation, ''Series/PowerRangersMysticForce''. Whereas the original version had magic syllables that were made up words to signify general intent, this version dropped much of the magic and more or less used them as ByThePowerOfGreySkull. Which phrase was used for the basic transformation, the SuperMode, etc., was still consistent but it wasn't as well-mapped as the original. |
| 327 | ** ''Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger'' has magic called Mojikara (literally "symbol power") invoked by writing the appropriate kanji character in the air using their magical paintbrush/cellphone transformation device. Writing the kanji for "rock" (石) will cause a rock to materialize, and writing the kanji for "horse" (馬) will also cause a horse to appear. Each of them has their own transformation kanji, which itself represents their own elemental power affinity. The kanji also has to be written properly. Chiaki's terrible penmanship prevents him from using Mojikara early in the series, demonstrated by his inability to summon plant life after failing to use the proper stroke order to write the kanji for "grass" (草). Genta, who does not have the paintbrush/cellphone, instead uses a text-messaging interface on his sushi-themed cellphone transformation device. |
| 328 | ** ''Series/PowerRangersSamurai'' kept Shinkenger[='s=] system, but uses different kanji in some situations. To their credit, this series hasn't fallen into the [[AssPull "make stuff up"]] trap that ''Mystic Force'' did; replacement characters are still real kanji and still relevant to what the Rangers want to do. For example, to change their HumongousMecha out of their SleepModeSize, the Shinkengers use the kanji for "big" (大); the Samurai Rangers, however, use "super" (超) since they wear adaptation-exclusive armored costumes while piloting. |
| 329 | ** The MetaOrigin of the Morphing Grid was very loosely defined throughout most of the series, as every Ranger team would have a different source for their powers via [[SufficientlyAdvancedTechnology technology]], magic or {{Magitek}}. The assumption is that what makes a Ranger a Ranger is tapping into the Morphing Grid using whatever power source to give them access to their costume and gear, while other characters with a transformation external to that (such as ''Series/MaskedRider'' in the crossover) are not Rangers. An offhand line by Zordon "Too much Pink Power is dangerous" sounds silly at first, but as noted in ''WebVideo/HistoryOfPowerRangers'' whenever there is a duplicate Ranger of the same color apparently makes their powers unstable, possibly fatal. |
| 330 | * ''Franchise/StarTrek'' attempts to follow its own internal rules regarding technology, with varying degrees of success DependingOnTheWriter. Storytelling usually comes first, though, which is why {{Technobabble}} exists to create exceptions when the rules become inconvenient. They had teams of technical designers work out how things like their FasterThanLightTravel and other internal mechanics of the starships worked, and in some cases would veto script suggestions because it went against their established rules. That said, there were some interesting deviations: |
| 331 | ** Warp Speed factors would be inconsistent depending on the incarnation. About the only thing clear is that the scale is exponential rather than linear. The original Enterprise was said to have a max speed of Warp 8, but had aliens modify the drive to temporarily reach warp 13. By the Next Generation era it was said that Warp 10 is infinite speed and was thus a theoretically unattainable speed for conventional warp drive [[note]]Voyager featured an episode that said Warp 10 would bend laws of reality and mutated the pilot who reached that speed[[/note]], with the fastest ships topping out at 9.995. The future depicted in the GrandFinale made mentions of Warp 13, which made the technical advisers suggest the warp factor scale has been recalibrated several times rather than BrokeTheRatingScale. |
| 332 | ** The holodeck was pretty well arbitrary at times with how it worked, and prone to the HolodeckMalfunction. In "Elementary, Dear Data" it is stated clearly that holographic material cannot exist outside the holodeck for long, but they were able to take a piece of holographic paper outside the holodeck to show how a character inside had become aware of the Enterprise. Other times characters get wet in the holodeck and remain so after leaving, even developing a cold. Most explanations of how the technology works is that it uses a combination of HardLight and MatterReplicator to simulate the environment, objects and people, which means that theoretically it could make simple items like paper or water that could be removed from site, but later works emphasize that the system is primarily force fields holding photons together and require a holographic emitter to maintain form. |
| 333 | ** It's often stated that a warship with an InvisibilityCloak must decloak before it can fire its weapons. Any ship that can fire while cloaked is treated as a major game-changer and leaves the heroes scrambling to find any weakness to exploit. |
| 334 | ** An implicit rule behind the use of FasterThanLightTravel for Starfleet ships is that they have twin engine nacelles, which need to have line of sight with each other and facing forward into open space (Intrepid class ships like Voyager had variable geometry nacelles, allowing them to move in sight of each other for warp and flatten out when not in use). The pairing was considered important, with some ships using four nacelles. Over time a number of ship designs have been shown with one or three nacelles, and the assumption was that while odd numbered nacelles was workable, even numbered nacelles were more reliable and consistent. |
| 335 | * In ''Series/WizardsVsAliens'' wizards only get three spells a day and their spells are recharged at sunrise. There are plenty of other rules about how magic works that that are the focuses or solutions of several episodes. The Nekross eat magic, so it cannot be used directly against them. (With the exception of grim magic, but that's another story.) Benny Sherwood reckons the reason the Nekross eat magic is because it is a form of energy. |
| 336 | [[/folder]] |
| 337 | |
| 338 | [[folder:Myths & Religion]] |
| 339 | * Any number of superstitions regarding behavior of mythical creatures that "haunt" people are internally consistent. They make sense if you know from what leaps of logic they spring. For example, salt keeps evil spirits at bay. Salt keeps food preserved, rot is caused by unclean spirits, ghosts are unclean spirits, therefore salt = no ghosts. Where it gets complicated is when you combine several internally consistent systems, i.e. cultures. Similar things from different cultures and times can sometimes result in a lot of mythological mashups. The result being many different rules that were consistent becoming inconsistent because they're being applied to each other. |
| 340 | [[/folder]] |
| 341 | |
| 342 | [[folder:Podcasts]] |
| 343 | * Played with in ''Podcast/TheMagnusArchives''; the supernatural forces ''do'' have rules that they follow strictly, but they are explicitly compared to dream logic rather than anything like physics. Characters who can wrap their head around abstract reasoning and symbolism can manage to get the results they want, while characters who try to apply strict logical rules will inevitably be frustrated. [[spoiler: Specifically, it revolves around what makes people afraid. A good example is episode 63: at one point, every light carried by the statement giver and her companion go out and can't be reactivated. Why? Because at that moment, [[NothingIsScarier it was more frightening for them not to see what was happening]]. Then, a few seconds later, the statement giver activates the flash bulb on her camera, and that works fine. Why? Because at ''that'' moment, it was more frightening for her to see what had just happened.]] |
| 344 | [[/folder]] |
| 345 | |
| 346 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 347 | * In ''TabletopGame/ArsMagica'', wizards can do virtually anything, but every spell they cast must be formed by combining and constructing a Latin sentence consisting of one of five "techniques" (the verbs, all with the subject "I") and one of ten "forms" (the direct objects). For example, throwing bolts of flame would be "Creo Ignem" ("I create fire"), while making someone forget something would be a "Perdo Mentem" spell ("I destroy the mind"). Every wizard has varying levels of ability with each form and technique which determine how powerful of an effect they can generate (someone with a high score in Creo is good at making things in general; someone with a high score in Mentem is good at working with people's minds in general; someone with high scores in both Creo and Mentem would be extremely good at putting thoughts in other people's heads). Each edition of the game also has a few hard-and-fast rules beyond the verb/object format, such as it being impossible to raise the dead or travel back in time, although whether those things are literally impossible or simply unknown or forbidden to members of the Order of Hermes (the organization player character magi are assumed to belong to) is generally unclear (by design). |
| 348 | ** In addition, these rules apply to Hermetic magic and only Hermetic magic. Other forms of magic exist in the setting, and even Hermetic mages often have access to some quirky abilities that violate the rules. Hermetic magic is uniquely powerful for two reasons: one, the sheer breadth of its verb/object format, which allows for virtually any effect that doesn't run up against the limits of Bonisagus' theory, and two, the jealously-guarded knowledge of the Parma Magica, [[AntiMagic a universal defense against magic]]. Incidentally, the Parma Magica is ''not'' "Hermetic magic" in the strictest sense: It doesn't use the verb/object format and can't be tinkered with by Hermetic experimentation, [[WrongContextMagic except when it can]]. But the latter has only happened once. |
| 349 | ** ''TabletopGame/MageTheAscension'' (which draws from ''Ars Magica'' to some extent) and ''TabletopGame/MageTheAwakening'' have spheres that work like the "mind" side, and can also be combined (e.g. Correspondence + Mind to mess with someone's head from a distance). ''TabletopGame/ChangelingTheDreaming'' uses a two-factor system (along the lines of "the mind of a human" or "the mind of another fae"), as does ''TabletopGame/GeistTheSinEaters'' (where a Key determines general dominion and power source and a Manifestation determines what you can do with it). |
| 350 | * ''TabletopGame/TheChroniclesOfAeres'': Aside from the standard ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' classes of Cleric, Druid, Sorcerer, Warlock and Wizard, there are also the primal magic-wielding Witch, the [[DreamWeaver dream-manipulating and summoning]] Dreamcaller, and the [[AlchemyIsMagic Alchemist]], who attempts to magically manipulate the raw fabric of creation with often-explosive results. |
| 351 | * ''TabletopGame/TheDarkEye'': Played mostly straight with a few notable aversions. In general, magic within the setting is an organized, mostly rigid system drawing on a finite, regenerating resource ("astral power", i.e. Mana). There are several "representations" of magic that differ in-universe, but work more or less identically rules-wise: |
| 352 | ** All player characters and the vast majority of NPC magic users makes use of said organized, restricted magic, with spells being described as specific patterns of astral energy ("matrices" in in-game terms) with set effects, duration, range, cost etc. It is possible to modify things like range and duration on the fly, albeit to a small extent, but the effects are set in stone. In-universe, the spells are codified in definite formulas ("theses") that a guild mage (the "scientific", organized study of magic) can learn. There are also the druidic and witchcraft representations, as well as the magic of elves and the few magic-capable dwarves, which are not as rigidly stratified and considered more like "wild magic" in the fluff, but are mostly similar in gameplay terms to guild magic, only with a different set of spells and some additional bonuses and restrictions. |
| 353 | ** The aversion comes in the form of "free magic" (''Freizauberei'' in German), which is off-limits for player characters and is also a very seldom form of magic among [=PCs=], restricted to a few legendary figures of Aventurian history, the (extinct) High Elves, the higher (i.e. sentient) dragons (of which there are only a few) and the entire kobold species. These magic users are still limited in capacity, having a limited, regenerating pool of astral energy just like all other magic-capable characters, but theoretically unlimited in power: they can achieve any effect they wish, essentially creating unique spells on the fly, with the only limitation being that greater power (in nature and scope of the effect) costs them more astral energy. There are no further rules and no spell list for free magic, seeing as it is not meant to be used by [=PCs=] anyway -- the GM is encouraged to get creative with it. |
| 354 | * ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'': |
| 355 | ** The [[PsychicPowers Expanded Psionics Handbook]] has no less than two sets of alternative rules for running a "Psionics are just different" game -- either making them 100% independent of magic (so spell resistance, Dispel Magic and so forth don't work on them), or making them about 45% independent (so you need to make a caster level check to use Dispel Magic on a psionic effect, and your power resistance is 10 lower than your spell resistance). The default (and balanced) setting is one where they are interchangeable for such purposes and at least one setting, the ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'', has psionics as an explicitly separate type of magic. |
| 356 | ** In earlier editions, psionics did not interact with magic. The system was a completely bolted-on addition which barely fit the rest of the game and could be horribly broken when a wizard or paladin, no matter how powerful, was just as vulnerable to a 2nd level psionic character as a peasant would be. Additionally, the rules for psychic powers required ability score checks against variables and had their own, separate, entirely different mechanic for psychic combat. Defenses against psionics for non-psionicists barely existed. Gaming groups often would rather forget psionicists existed than deal with the headaches you get from averting this trope. |
| 357 | ** There's two different flavors of magic, depending on what its source is -- Arcane or Divine. Arcane magic comes from wizards memorizing spells and using hand gestures to cast them (and so can be screwed up by wearing armor that restricts your movement and gets in the way), whereas Divine magic comes from the Gods and has no such restriction. Also, for the most part, healing spells are limited to divine only (except for Bards, who do things their own way). |
| 358 | *** The fluff regarding the difference between Divine and Arcane magic varies by setting. In some of the official worlds, such as Dragonlance, Arcane magic is separate from Divine magic, and yet still comes from gods, and you get it by worshiping them. One ''very'' common tendency is that divine magic requires one to act as one's faith would have it (or at least to be able to convince oneself of that), whereas arcane magic have no such compunctions -- that highly religious, saintly wizard can one day wake up and decide to become evil for his own sake rather than for any god, and it would not impact his ability to cast magic in the slightest. By contrast, the priest would himself BroughtDownToNormal. |
| 359 | *** Clear rules were designed for exceptions to the armor rule, with corresponding limitations. It ''is'' possible to get a wizard to use magic in armor, but with a drastic restriction in which spells they can then use as they have to then specialize in just one type of magic and only in specific spells. Look up the Battle Wizard build, which allows for casting in medium armor without penalties, but with a drastic reduction in versatility and number of spells they can both learn and use. |
| 360 | ** Then you get into all the alternate forms of magic: |
| 361 | *** Binding: A character makes a [[DealWithTheDevil Deal With an]] EldritchAbomination, and can gain some really cool powers from it ({{Breath Weapon}}s, wings, the ability to see magic, etc.). |
| 362 | *** [[CastingAShadow Shadowcasting]]: A form of magic that is fuelled by the shadow plane. It resembles Arcane magic at early levels, but later on, you can use the mysteries (their equivalent of spells) as spell-like or supernatural abilities, which are less limited. |
| 363 | *** Incarnum: Shaping magical, item-like effects formed of pure soul-stuff to your body. These effects can be augmented with Essentia, which can also be put to other uses. The color blue is a common motif. |
| 364 | *** Martial Adepts: Ranging from [[MyKungFuIsStrongerThanYours advanced martial arts]] to straight-up {{Kung Fu Wizard}}ry, this system was introduced while Wizards was testing out similar mechanics for 4e. |
| 365 | *** Invocations: The most spell-like system, Invocations are spell-like abilities used by Warlocks and Dragonfire Adepts. They tend to pack less punch, but totally avert VancianMagic. |
| 366 | *** Truenaming, which draws on the power behind [[IKnowYourTrueName using the true names of beings]]...or, at least it's ''supposed'' to, if it weren't accidentally made almost useless to play. |
| 367 | ** 4th edition at once simplified and diversified its magic. Magic is divided between three categories: Arcane ("pure" magic), Divine (magic coming from the gods and the astral sea) and Primal (magic coming from the spirits of nature), with the third being spun out of the Druid (traditionally a "Divine, but somewhat different" caster in older editions). Though each kind of magic has its own themes in general, and classes in particular have completely unique spells, there's a lot of overlap between them -- for example, healing used to be strictly a Divine magic ability, but now all sources can provide healing spells via their Leader class. |
| 368 | *** Psionic power is still the odd man out but this time in a much more marginal fashion. Psionic classes differ in their ability set-up alone, in that rather than having At-Will, Encounter and Daily powers, they instead have At-Will powers, Daily Powers, and a number of level-determined "Augmentation Points", which can be spent as a {{mana}} system to super-charge their At-Will powers and make them as strong as Encounter powers. |
| 369 | *** Towards the end of 4th edition's lifespan, Shadow and Elemental magics were brought in as "sub-sources", piggybacking upon the original four. This is one of the more contentious decisions of the system by its fans, as many were anticipating fully fledged Shadow and Elemental power sources in their own right. |
| 370 | ** In 5th edition, the distinction between Arcane and Divine magic is mentioned in a sidebar, but has no effect in game mechanics. There are several ways for a caster of one style to pick up spells from the other, or in some cases bridge the gap. Aside from rangers, Divine casters have access to all possible spells for their class, and pick and choose what they prepare-easily justified as the caster's deity granting spells. Some spells are not available for wizards, warlocks, or sorcerers, being restricted to divine magic. Other spells are restricted to arcane casters. However, certain cleric domains give access to spells normally restricted to arcane casters, while some abilities and features grant divine magic to arcane casters (in particular, a sorcerer variant allows him/her to cast cleric spells). Bards, however, draw magic from the fabric of the universe. Their basic spell list draws from both the cleric's and wizard's primary spells, and can also pick spells from any list to add to their repertoire via a class feature. |
| 371 | ** The setting ''TabletopGame/{{Maztica}}'' presents a continent whose native humans never developed the same arcane magic as those on the main continent of [[TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms Faerun.]] Instead, they developed a talismanic magic that uses animal body parts to craft tokens that serve to channel magical energies, with the art divided into two schools; the protection-focused plumaweavers (feathers), and the offense-focused hishnashapers (claws, fangs, stingers)--5th edition would add a third school, the water-manipulating teoatltamers (seashells and other marine materials). The magical style is actually infamous amongst those aware of the obscure setting for how incredibly ''weak'' it is presented as being compared to magic from the main continent, which was one of the reasons why the {{Evil Colonialist}}s were able to curbstomp an entire nation with the aid of just one high level wizard. This element is an OldShame that attempts to revive the setting in 5th edition dropped. |
| 372 | * ''TabletopGame/{{Exalted}}'': |
| 373 | ** There are three set rules for magic: "No time travel", "Once Exalted, you cannot Un-Exalt".[[note]]Elaborating: Un-Exalting results in death, no exceptions.[[/note]] and "No resurrections". This being ''Exalted'', those rules exist mostly for Solar Circle Sorcerers to kick them in the nuts and steal their lunch money, but you will never see official Charms or Spells from White Wolf that allow you to break those rules; Bend, maybe but break, no. Below are some examples. |
| 374 | ** The 'no unexalting' rule has found some limited exceptions. It assumes that on a mystical level, the Exalt remains fundamentally human. Green Sun Princes who 'ascend' to full Primordial status via (Yozi) Cosmic Principle[[note]]an Essence 10 Charm which essentially turns whoever learns it into a conceptual copy of the Yozi in question[[/note]] find their Exaltation flitting off to find a new host (not that they need it at that point). Likewise, Exalts who chose to take up a job offer to divinity extended via Greater Sidereal Astrology find their Exaltation moving on once they become Gods. Becoming a God or a Primordial results in the end of mortality... which looks like death to the Exaltation. It should be noted that in both of these cases, the exception is allowed because the action of releasing the Exaltation is a choice, and cannot be driven by any supernatural or unnatural compulsion at all else the powers fail to work. The more precise law would have to be "Exaltation cannot be taken away from Exalts, ever". |
| 375 | ** Another example is found in the First Age. There the Solar Queen K'tula twisted herself into a fundamentally inhuman cephalopod horror to the point that many of her Solar charms ceased to function properly (because she was no longer remotely human), but her Exaltation lingered because she was still unmistakably alive and mortal (in the sense that her lifespan wasn't infinite). |
| 376 | ** There is an exception to the "No Resurrection" rule, and it's a long story why and how it can be achieved. When the Primordials surrendered to the Exalted hosts, they forewent their ability to rewind time and undo death in Creation. Said Primordials were then imprisoned/became Hell. In Hell, they can do whatever they want, as long as the aforementioned term is not violated. In practice, now-Yozi Primordials can undo the causality of something that happened within the last 5 days in Hell. This means that if your significant other died in Hell, you can surrender his or her thread of Fate to the Yozis, and if the Yozis see something to be gained from undoing the demise of the deceased, then a resurrection is in order. [[CameBackWrong Considering who the Yozis are, it's an almost-certainty that the person will no longer be the same as who they were...]] |
| 377 | ** The Liminal Exalted's creation also bends the "no resurrection" rule. When their "dark mother" takes note of a suitably obsessed person attempting to raise the dead, she can intervene, giving the body new life. What rises isn't the person -- or people -- who died, but a new being entirely. The Liminals themselves can resurrect so long as their brain and most of their body is intact (or at least survives). |
| 378 | ** The "No Time Travel" rule was repeatedly broken during the Primordial War(s), and there is nothing stopping you from playing a game set during that turbulent period. This was a time when Reality itself was the casualty of the war, so don't expect that rules taken for granted today existed in any form back then. |
| 379 | ** Sorcery cannot alter heavenly bodies but this rule is the easiest to get around though: [[CelestialBureaucracy you just need to go to heaven, get the permission of the god whose celestial body you want to move, and fill out the proper paperwork]]. "Bureaucracy" is a stat in Exalted for a reason. |
| 380 | ** There are hardwired rules on just what certain Exalts can do that other Exalts can't. |
| 381 | *** Sorcery's available to all Exalts, but Dragon-Blooded only have the ability to power first circle (Terrestrial) spells and only Solars can power third circle (Solar) spells. The only way around this is with extremely powerful artifacts, such as the one that allows the Scarlet Empress to use second circle sorcery. Necromancy can only be learned at the highest levels by the Abyssals, and everyone else is capped at one less than what they have learned in Sorcery, meaning Dragon-Bloods can only cast necromancy if they forsake the ability to use sorcery. |
| 382 | *** Martial arts are likewise available, with a slightly different theme of everyone being able to attain a level above their station with huge enough effort. Mortals can enlighten their essence and use Terrestrial Martial arts, Terrestrials can refine themselves to use Celestial martial arts, and Solars/Abyssals can use Sidereal martial arts if they somehow manage to find a teacher, which is probably harder than the former two examples. The exception here are Lunars who cannot learn the highest tier of martial arts at all, only their own Celestial tier. Dragon-blood can learn celestial martial arts but it takes significantly more effort. |
| 383 | ** Technically everyone can learn all of these charms and spells even if their exaltations are too weak for them to put them to use. |
| 384 | * ''TabletopGame/GeniusTheTransgression'': [[MadScientist Mad Science]] is the order of the day, and Wonders can run however you want them to. The thing is, every Wonder ''has'' to have a theory behind it, even if that theory is utter nonsense to everyone but the Genius who built the thing -0 and it will run ''exactly as that theory states'' without deviation or alteration. In short, the Genius ''defines'' what "Magic A" is in this scenario, but once it's defined, it ''stays'' defined. |
| 385 | * ''TabletopGame/{{GURPS}}'': Thaumatology is a sourcebook dedicated entirely to making up bizarre, yet internally consistent, magic systems. GURPS ''also'' has a completely separate system for "psionics," which can be the same exact force as magic, but which are administered in the form of traits specific to a given character, rather than general rules that all magic users have to follow. That's where you go for WrongContextMagic. |
| 386 | * ''TabletopGame/InNomine'': There are two distinct magic systems, which in-universe are decidedly different things; their main shared traits are that they manipulate the Symphony, the supernatural "tapestry" on which creation is founded, and are powered using Essence. Notably, neither is considered "magic" in-universe -- Celestials, ethereal spirits and knowledgeable mortals all consider what humanity defines as magic to be simply a muddled attempt to describe the powers of supernatural beings, and includes both fragmented knowledge of the two in-game systems plus a great deal of nonsense and superstition. |
| 387 | ** Songs are the type used by Celestials. They're essentially on-demand miracles, usually but not necessarily invoked through literal singing, and allow the performer to temporarily call upon a theme in the Symphony to override the laws of physics to create a desired effect. Each Song has a very specific effect; there's some ability to tweak them, but the basic core of what a single Song does is immutable. All possible Songs already technically exist somewhere in the Symphony, and as such new Songs are discovered rather than created -- Celestials desiring new Songs are by necessity limited to the ones that they can find, and, although in practice the number of Songs in existence is near-infinite, finding a specific one can be extremely difficult. All Celestials and Ethereals can perform Songs, but only mortals with unusual spiritual strength can do so. |
| 388 | ** Sorcery can only be used by mortals -- Celestial and Ethereals can learn or devise sorcerous rituals, but cannot perform them themselves. Sorcery is done through complex, customized rituals, used to delineate the general thing you're trying to do, at the heart of which is a raw exercise of will; essentially, in performing the ritual, the sorcerer tries to force the Symphony or some element within it into shaping itself according to his desires. The key elements needed for sorcery to work are immense strength of will and a genuine belief that you have the right to impose your wants onto the universe. Most actual sorcery is little more than parlor tricks in the eyes of more powerful beings, but certain experienced sorcerers are rumored to be able to do things that should theoretically be impossible. |
| 389 | * ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'' bases everything around its Golden Rule: when a card contradicts the rules, the card takes precedence. This makes sense, since the players are Planeswalkers, beings explicitly stated to be able to violate a particular plane's magical laws by nature. So while the basic rules of the game and its universe are in a constant flux, the reasoning behind it is consistent. |
| 390 | ** They also attempt to keep each colour with fairly consistent mechanical themes, even if the execution varies and they occasionally permit a degree of "bleeding". Each color has its own specialties, like summoning token minions and [[HealThyself life gain]] for White, or Blue's expertise in {{Counterspell}} use and card drawing. |
| 391 | ** Every spell characters cast within the lore is fueled by mana drawn from planes. The different effects all come from the way the mana is channeled. |
| 392 | ** Planeswalking is generally kept pretty consistent. Only someone with a Spark can planeswalk, you can't bring much more than what's on your person, and organics objects not immediately on your body can't withstand the Blind Eternities. It is also hard to control where on a Plane you appear, but you can follow another Planeswalker's 'trail' to appear near them if they planeswalked recently. There are some exceptions (Yanggu can bring his dog Mowu with him), but those are due to unique properties of the Planeswalker in question. |
| 393 | * The indie superpowered-sleuth system ''TabletopGame/MutantCityBlues'' uses this trope. Sure, there are mutants in the setting, and they can fly, shoot assorted kinds of energy bolts, read minds and even steal each other's powers. All these abilities are meticulously catalogued in the so-called Quade Diagram which provides solid insight about what powers can concievably coexist in a person. Some, like supernatural analytical abilities and remote control of electronic devices, are very *close* so that the person possessing one can be routinely assumed to possess another. Others, say, the ability to fly and become invisible, are so far apart in the chart that it is impossible for one man to have both (without breaking the setting and/or having Infinite Experience Points). This diagram, along with more conventional investigative methods, makes the task of solving "Heightened" crimes more of an unusual analytical exercise and almost none of the "whoever got more control of The Force" thing. |
| 394 | * ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}'' |
| 395 | ** First Edition is almost exactly like its parent ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragonsThirdEdition'' when it comes to Arcane and Divine magic, with only a few minor differences. It lacks official support for the other systems, however[[note]]except for psionics, Paizo would have to write around copyright, and with psionics they basically went "We want to take it in a bit different direction, and anyway those people over at Dreamscarred have already done a brilliant conversion of 3.5 psionics to Pathfinder"[[/note]], but also adds the Psychic magic type, which is similar but not identical in theme to psionics (as an example, psychic magic is heavier on the magic ultimately coming from interaction between the mage and other things, even things like concepts, while psionics leans more towards psionic effects coming from the wielder's mind and self), and uses the standard VancianMagic as the base. Alchemists and Investigators also use the standard VancianMagic system; however they flavor it as the character [[AlchemyIsMagic simulating spell effects with alchemical potions]]. |
| 396 | ** Second Edition uses four types of magic, but they all interact in a unified system. Divine and Arcane are back. They are joined by Primal, similar to Dungeons and Dragons Fourth Edition, and Occult magic. Each of these traditions of magic affects the world differently; Arcane magic can do the broadest range of things, but is bad at manipulating the soul or healing, Divine magic appeals to powers from beyond the world, Occult magic can deal with the esoteric and strange, and Primal magic is the magic of nature and the natural world. Wizards are the prototypical Arcane magic user, Clerics Divine, Druids Primal, Bards Occult, and many other classes are actually variable. Sorcerers, for example, get their tradition based on their bloodline. A Fey-blooded Sorcerer casts Primal spells, while a Demon-blooded one casts Divine magic. |
| 397 | * ''TabletopGame/{{Shadowrun}}'': There are a few things that magic absolutely cannot do: no resurrections, no time travel, and no teleportation. Furthermore, if you do not Awaken naturally, there is (practically) no chance that you ever will. There are several different flavors of magic-user. |
| 398 | ** '''Adepts''' are limited to one type of magic; this can be casting spells (sorcerers), summoning spirits (conjurers), or enhancing the capabilities of their own bodies ("Phys-Ads"). |
| 399 | ** '''Magicians''' can both cast spells and summon spirits. The exact style and trappings of each magician's talents varies from one practitioner to the next, but the two most common catchall terms are [[HermeticMagic hermetic mages]] and [[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve shamans]]. It should be noted that, despite the names, there's no arcane/divine magic split; anyone capable of sorcery can learn and use any spell. |
| 400 | * ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'' has a more detailed system that has most people drawing on a collective library of spells, though Lizardmen, Chaos, Undead, Orcs and Goblins, High Elves, and Dark Elves all have access to an extra group of spells. |
| 401 | * ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'' has a very simple magic (all right, "psychic powers") system allowing various psykers to do different things (mostly attacks or buffs), though they all have a chance of suffering the [[MindRape consequences]]. |
| 402 | * ''TabletopGame/WorldTreeRPG'' uses a noun/verb system (7 and 12 of each), but lets several of each be combined in one spell. Eg. a life-extension spell involves "Sustain/Body+Mind+Spirit". And that's the standard "pattern magic", one of several systems the main races know, each with known rules. The trope is played straight in that the rules exist, but subverted in that ultimately the gods control magic and don't do it predictably. |
| 403 | [[/folder]] |
| 404 | |
| 405 | [[folder:Theater]] |
| 406 | * In the original play of ''Film/BellBookAndCandle'', Gillian explains that the effects of spells have to look like coincidences: "I can't bring Niagara Falls down to Grand Central Station, or turn this house into the Taj Mahal. It doesn't work that way". |
| 407 | * In ''Theatre/DerRingDesNibelungen'', Wotan's power is constrained by the treaties written on his spear; he cannot use his power against people he's previously made treaties or agreements with, or he'll lose it all. This plays out to a conclusion when [[spoiler: Siegfried shatters his spear, robbing him of all his power.]] |
| 408 | [[/folder]] |
| 409 | |
| 410 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 411 | * ''VideoGame/BaldursGateIII'', in keeping with its origins in ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'', has the different ways in which each class that is capable of using magic actually harnesses that magic. One book in-game, specifically, explains the differences in how Wizards, Sorcerers, and Warlocks use magic: Wizards use magic by studying the [[BackgroundMagicField the Weave]] and how it can be molded to one's purpose. Sorcerers are inherently capable of using magic without the need for study. Warlocks gain their magical powers through a pact with a supernatural entity. The same book also outlines the weaknesses in Sorcerer and Warlock-used magic compared to Wizards: Sorcerers use WildMagic which can run out of their control, while Warlocks are bound by the will of the entity who gave them their powers (something Wyll knows [[DealWithTheDevil all too well]]). |
| 412 | * ''VideoGame/ChoiceOfMagics'': The five arts of [[FantasticNuke Negation]], [[{{Magitek}} Automation]], [[CharmPerson Glamor]], [[{{Seers}} Divination]] and [[GreenThumb Vivomancy]] each have their own rules, powers and drawbacks. Saints of the Church claim to use divine miracles, which [[spoiler: are exactly the same magic everyone else uses, albeit focused on Glamor, Vivomancy and Divination]]. Interestingly, though, one of Vivomancy's rules is that it ''doesn't'' work in an entirely consistent manner, having unpredictable side-effects that are partly tied to humor and whimsy. |
| 413 | * There's two forms of magic in the ''[[VideoGame/DivineDivinity Divinity]]'' series; regular magic and Source magic. Regular magic is the usual fantasy magic, with fireball and polymorph and the like. Source magic tends more towards esoteric powers, like blessing people or producing orbs that can heal any ailment. |
| 414 | ** Source magic also seems to come from a different origin than regular magic and is especially prone to breaking. There's never been a ''Divinity'' game where Source has been present and worked as intended the whole way through; at best, it just doesn't work. At worst it'll [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity make you go crazy]] or summon [[EldritchAbomination eldritch horrors]]. Despite all this, regular magic has never had such problems. |
| 415 | * ''Franchise/DragonAge'' has, among other restrictions, "The Rules" which apply to magic: it's impossible to raise someone from the dead, it's impossible to use magic to travel any faster than "putting one foot in front of the other" (anyone who appears to be teleporting is actually just using an illusion to make them appear to be in one location while they hide and run somewhere else), and entering [[SpiritWorld the Fade]] physically, while it's ''technically'' possible, requires an EXTREME amount of resources (lots of [[GreenRocks lyrium]] and HumanSacrifice) and is a VERY bad idea likely to result in divine retribution. In addition, magic requires that mages expend mana (and/or lyrium) or [[BloodMagic blood]]. Exactly how other things work (magical healing and the [[TheCorruption darkspawn taint]] in particular) sometimes varies. |
| 416 | ** The rules change drastically in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition''. Following the Breach event, the limitations of magic are significantly loosened in ways that even the most learned scholars are struggling to comprehend. Even a form of time travel becomes possible following this event, albeit in an extremely unstable fashion. Surprisingly, an entire new school of magic revolving around manipulating the newly released energies arises mere months afterwards, although not without significant risks. |
| 417 | ** The trainer for a Mage Inquisitor in Rift Magic is literally the only person to not die and/or disappear out of 20 mages experimenting with the rifts. And even then it's quite clear that not all of her made it back. The lore of the Specialization in the Codex has an account about how the writer's master found that the rules had changed, which led to her drawing far more magic than she could control. Both Cole and Solas recognize it, however, since they're both attuned to the Fade, and know that a Rift mage is using spirits themselves as a source of energy. |
| 418 | * ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'': {{Magick}}a crosses over with FunctionalMagic (mixing "Rule", "Force", and, including enchanted items, "Device", magic). To elaborate: |
| 419 | ** Anyone can practice magic in their spare time, but it is also the subject of substantial research by [[MagicIsMental magical and scholarly]] communities across Tamriel. There are also some very clear rules. For example, to enchant an item, you must know the spell you'll burn into the item, you need a [[YourSoulIsMine soul gem with a soul inside]], and clothes and accessories can hold much more magic than weapons. While enchanting is consistent within each game, the exact mechanics tends to vary wildly throughout the series as a whole. |
| 420 | ** There are many esoteric rules that are referenced throughout the series but don't appear in actual gameplay. For example, some magic requires "rituals" to perform, such as {{necromancy}} or permanent [[SummonMagic conjuration]], which explains why the player can't use them in-game. "[[OurGodsAreDifferent Daedric]] magic" is mentioned as a quick way for eager mages to get their hands on volatile power, though this isn't elaborated upon. |
| 421 | ** Finally, it appears some, most, or maybe even all rules of magic can be stretched, if not necessarily broken; Ancotar states that permanent invisibility would "violate the Conservation of Perception," but has created a spell that can keep a whole village invisible for at least a year. |
| 422 | ** ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIDaggerfall'': As a result of the game's {{merg|ingTheBranches}}ed MultipleEndings, Mannimarco, the King of Worms and legendary [[OurLichesAreDifferent Lich]][=/=]Necromancer, ascends to godhood as the God of Worms, patron deity of necromancers. Later works reveal that his ascension allows him to temporarily block the power of Arkay, [[OurGodsAreDifferent Aedric Divine]] of Life and Death, who normally protects the souls of sapient beings (Men, Mer, the Beast Races). This allows mortal necromancers to convert Grand Soul Gems into Black Soul Gems during this period. Black Soul Gems can be used to capture sapient "black" souls, the most powerful type of souls. |
| 423 | ** ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind'': You can trap the souls of [[spoiler:Vivec and Almalexia, two of the Tribunal {{Physical God}}s]], and they are ''very'' powerful indeed. Trying to mess with how magic works also tends to end badly, especially with Necromancy and (ritual) Conjuration, which is a big reason why they've been outlawed by the [[CorruptChurch Tribunal Temple]]. |
| 424 | ** ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion'': |
| 425 | *** Two ''Oblivion'' quests also center around the consequences of using magic to travel into your own mind. In one of these quests a divine artifact gets involved and the dreamworld imposes itself on reality inside of the poor [[MageTower wizard's tower]]. Except with the Khajiit, which has resulted in a tangle of lore to reconcile those inconsistencies that puts [[EpilepticTrees most fandoms]] to shame. |
| 426 | *** It's hinted at with the [[GameBreaker Sigil Stones]] in ''Oblivion'': at higher levels, they're more powerful than Soul Gems, but they can only bestow one spell effect on a weapon or piece of armor. In short, it's a quick-and-dirty way to get a super-enchantment on anything you want, and they don't even require skill in Enchanting or an Enchanting Altar. |
| 427 | ** ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'' introduces another form of magic in the form of dragon Shouts, or "Thu'um". Distinct from magicka, it is the dragons' LanguageOfMagic, with their very voices capable of manipulating reality to their whim (they don't so much breathe fire as conjure it into existence with their words). Mortals can learn how to use Shouts as well, but to do so normally takes several years of study and training, and a great deal of restraint to prevent losing control over so great a power... unless, of course, you're the [[PlayerCharacter Dragonborn]]. |
| 428 | * The lore of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' has very in-depth analyses of the workings of magic in Hydaelyn: |
| 429 | ** All magic is performed using [[BackgroundMagicField aether]], which seeps into the world from TheLifestream, the life force of the planet itself. |
| 430 | ** Teleportation spells send the caster's body and aether through the planet's [[TheLifestream Lifestream]]. Large aetheryte crystals act as beacons that guide a person safely between two points on the planet via the Lifestream. While it is technically possible to teleport anywhere on the planet without the need for aetheryte, to do so is extremely dangerous, as without aetherytes, one can be lost in the Lifestream until their bodies and aether break down completely. |
| 431 | ** Primals are a form of SummonMagic which entails concentrating large quantities of aether through prayer and reverence to give form and life to simulacrums of godlike beings. This has been a major issue in recent years, as beast tribes summon primals of their gods to protect them from incursions by Spoken races. The dangers posed by primals are twofold: in addition to being summoned to use against the Spoken races, their bodies require massive amounts of aether not only to be summoned, but also to maintain their form: left unchecked, they can potentially drain the planet of its life force. While it was initially believed that primals could only be summoned by beast tribes, it has been recently discovered that those of the Spoken races can summon primals as well. |
| 432 | ** Each class of magic has its own methods of being used. Conjury draws aether from one's immediate surroundings to focus through their staves into spells. Thaumaturgy uses aether from the caster's own bodies, which they attune to specific elements. [[WhiteMage White magic]] and [[BlackMage black magic]] have the same basis in spellcasting as conjury and thaumaturgy (respectively), albeit on a much larger scale, such that their destructive potential makes their usage [[DangerousForbiddenTechnique highly restricted, if not outright forbidden]]. Arcanists use complex calculations to essentially program unaspected aether into desired functions, most commonly in their carbuncle familiars. Summoners use arcanum to create smaller-scale, controllable primals, while scholars use arcanum to summon fairies to provide support. Astralogians use star globes and cards to foresee the immediate future, allowing them to cast spells as needed. Red magic was born from both white and black magic, and while it uses aether from the caster's body similar to black magic, it is out of a philosophy of preserving the planet by not overusing environmental aether. In addition, red mages have mastered the technique of using special magic crystals to amplify the effects of small amounts of aether, minimizing the risk to themselves while maximizing the potency of their magic. Blue Mages use spells that replicate the abilities of monsters, first by observing their techniques, then by absorbing their aether after they are vanquished, gaining both the power of that monster and the knowledge of how to perform that monster's techniques. |
| 433 | * ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'' has two different schools of magic: reason and faith. Reason-based magic is based on academic knowledge, while faith-based magic is based on piety towards the goddess of Fódlan. Reason-based magic is entirely offense-oriented, while faith-based magic is primarily supportive with only a handful of attack spells. |
| 434 | * ''VideoGame/FirstEncounterAssaultRecon'': Although the games do not generally provide hand-and-fast rules on how the [[PsychicPowers psychic abilities]] of [[PersonOfMassDestruction Alma]] work, the abilities of the Point Man and Paxton Fettel are fairly consistent. For example, the Point Man's [[BulletTime slo-mo]][=/=][[SuperSpeed reflex]] abilities can only be used for short periods, while Fettel's [[DemonicPossession possession powers]] will kill anyone he possesses shortly after taking over their bodies. [[spoiler: Including Michael Beckett.]] |
| 435 | * ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' plays with this, where certain things will be described and appear consistent... until something comes along that 'breaks the rules'. The authorities on that particular subject will subsequently be as confused as the player, demonstrating the Aesop of "Attempting to apply strict rules to natural phenomena is foolish, as the world is chaotic and wonderful". |
| 436 | * ''VideoGame/{{Magicka}}'' revolves around this. Players have eight basic elements with which to cast spells. Each element has given properties and can be cast directly forward like a projectile, in an area around the caster, or on the caster. There are also opposing elements that will cancel each other out if used while conjuring a spell, [[StuffBlowingUp or worse.]] It is very possible to [[PressXToDie kill yourself with ease]] or heal the enemy by accident. |
| 437 | * ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'': Even the Pokémon of the Elite Four and other powerful Trainers, as well as Legendaries, still have to work with Power Points and type advantages and disadvantages. Immunities are kept consistent as well -- unless "Miracle Eye" is used, Dark types are immune to Psychic attacks, for example. |
| 438 | * Magic in ''VideoGame/RuneScape'' seems to follow the rule that energy can not be created or destroyed. Magic always needs some kind of source of energy to be cast. For the player character, this takes the form of rune stones, an energy absorbing mineral that has been charged with elemental energy. Whenever the player character casts a spell, they consume rune stones. Wizards in game have theorized that the temples where rune stones are made might have only a limited amount of energy that may one day run out, forcing them to find another source of energy. Other characters in the game may get magical power from other sources. In the quest Nomad's Requiem, it turned out that Nomad was collecting souls for a SoulPoweredEngine that grants him a massive amount of magical power. The Mahjarrat do not require any runes to cast magic. It has been strongly implied that their powers are CastFromLifespan, because a Mahjarrat named Kharshai was able to completely stop himself from aging by erasing his own memories of being a Mahjarrat which made him undetectable to other Mahjarrat and prevented him from using any of his Mahjarrat powers. Another interesting thing is that when a god in Runescape dies, their power does not disappear with them, some of it is transferred to the person who killed them while the rest is dispersed back into the world and can then be collected by anybody who happens to find it. This dead god energy apparently is completely different than the energy used for magic and so its uses are very different. Another interesting rule about power in Runescape is that the different tiers of godhood have specific rules about what they are capable of doing depending on how high their tier. Currently the only rule that has been revealed so far is that only an elder god can create life out of nothing. Young Gods, no matter how powerful they are can only create life by altering what already exists. |
| 439 | * ''VideoGame/TalesSeries'': |
| 440 | ** In the ''Aselian Continuity'' ([[VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia Symphonia, Symphonia: Dawn of the New World]], and [[VideoGame/TalesOfPhantasia Phantasia and its spinoffs]]) magic is magic, but only Elves and Half-Elves can do it. Healing Artes, Light-elemental magic (which are amongst Healing Artes), Angel Skills and {{Summon|Magic}}ing are something else entirely. ''Symphonia'' and ''Dawn of the New World'' have a rare mineral called Aionis that allows that rule to be broken. |
| 441 | ** ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'': "Fonons" are used. They are listed from One to Seven and each have their own properties. All magic depends on understanding these and how they work. They play a significant and often heartbreaking part in the plot -- even to the point of explaining exactly why the BigBad's EvilPlan requires destroying the world. They also lead to much of the character development of reformed MadScientist Jade Curtiss, who simply cannot do some things [[spoiler:like saving Luke from vanishing due to fonon separation]], no matter how skilled he may be at fonic artes. |
| 442 | * The older models of the ''VideoGame/YokaiWatch'' are incompatible with the newer types of Yo-kai Medals. [[MerchandiseDriven Better get the new one]]! |
| 443 | [[/folder]] |
| 444 | |
| 445 | [[folder:Visual Novels]] |
| 446 | * ''Franchise/AceAttorney'': |
| 447 | ** There are specific rules regarding [[WillingChanneler spirit channeling]]. First, in order to have the ability to channel at all, you must be a [[GenderRestrictedAbility female]] descendant of a character known as the "Holy Mother", and even that isn't a guarantee. The ability to channel spirits also requires training to properly develop, although this training [[HandWave remains largely abstract]]. To channel a spirit, the medium must know both their face and their full name. When a spirit is channeled, the medium's body takes the form the spirit had in life, aside from their clothes and hair. While a spirit is being channeled, it can be called away by a more powerful medium, but a less powerful medium cannot do the same. The medium surrenders control of her body to the spirit while she is channeling. As this series is a LawProcedural first and foremost, these rules are sometimes used as the basis for arguments in cases revolving around spirit channeling (2-2, 3-5, 6-5). |
| 448 | ** In ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonVsPhoenixWrightAceAttorney'', any spell that can be used by the Witches in Labyrinthia is written in the Grand Grimoire, along with any conditions needed to cast a spell (for example, a portal spell which needs both sides of the wall to be painted green beforehand). |
| 449 | * ''VisualNovel/AnOctaveHigher'' goes into great detail on how its magic works. All people are born "gifted" with a combination of two out of five magical Traits, [[PersonalityPowers which determines what kind of magic spells they can cast;]] four of those traits result in ElementalPowers, while the fifth, Compassion, [[HealingHands lets you cast healing magic]]. These Traits can also be combined (either by a single mage acting alone, or two or more working together) to produce more complex spells. There are clear limitations as well: you need to drink {{Mana}} in order to cast spells, and all spells require [[MagicalGesture hand gestures]]; people without hands thus cannot cast magic. Spells [[EquivalentExchange do not actually create matter or energy, but take them from somewhere else in the world]]. You can heal a person's injuries and revive them from unconsciousness, but you cannot treat disease or resurrect the dead; and although [[{{Magitek}} magic machines]] that run off the other four Traits are abundant, Compassion magic cannot be used on inanimate objects. A scientific attempt to disprove that last limitation is what sets the plot in motion. |
| 450 | * There are hard rules and limitations for magic spells in ''VisualNovel/TyrionCuthbertAttorneyOfTheArcane''. Each one has a set duration, an incantation, and a gesture. It's common for some spells to have a maximum radius, size or distance, or require extended concentration from the caster. Also, spells leave magical traces that persist for 48 hours. Each trace has [[ColourCodedForYourConvenience a distinct color which represents which school of magic the spell belongs to]]. |
| 451 | [[/folder]] |
| 452 | |
| 453 | [[folder:Web Animation]] |
| 454 | * ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': All living beings have a soul that produces an energy known as Aura; every person and animal have Auras, although only Huntsmen are trained in how to fully master using their Aura to produce certain effects, such as surviving potentially lethal injuries. Every human has the potential to produce a single manifestation of their Aura, known as Semblance, which is unique to each individual. For example, one person might be able to channel their Aura into super-speed or creating clones of themselves. Meanwhile, Dust is a naturally occurring energy resource, mined from the ground as a crystal. There are both natural and artificial forms of Dust, which produce different elemental effects. Different forms of Dust can also be produced by combination to produce new effects. Dust requires Aura to be triggered, can be woven into clothing, used raw, infused into a person's body, or manufactured into cartridges. Dust's importance is paramount in the survival of Remnant, but no one is sure where it originates from. It also will not function outside the planet's atmosphere, making Dust-powered space missions impossible. While Dust, Aura and Semblances sound like magic, they're not. Dust is regarded as energy, and Aura and Semblances are regarded as natural. [[WrongContextMagic Real magic]], that doesn't use Dust or rely on Aura, does exist on Remnant; it's kept a secret by those few who know about it because its existence hides an AwfulTruth about the planet that most of humanity doesn't know. |
| 455 | [[/folder]] |
| 456 | |
| 457 | [[folder:Webcomics]] |
| 458 | * In ''Webcomic/AnecdoteOfError'', the local WizardingSchool exclusively teaches magic derived from [[AppliedPhlebotinum dust]] called tshetsha, and the classes consist of the students learning how to mix it to produce the desired effect. Then {{subverted}} when [[spoiler:the heroes gain the inherent ability to manifest household objects just by willing it]], [[WrongContextMagic an old discipline taught in Alemi which has since been forgotten]]. |
| 459 | * ''Webcomic/CucumberQuest'': |
| 460 | ** The Ripple Kingdom's magic gachapon machine. All of the capsules provide spells that will work, but they create items so mundane, or the ability to do things in such incredibly specific situations, that they're basically useless. Nautilus eventually saves everyone with her ability to order a pizza only if nobody is in the mood for it, allowing the group to escape an airship crash by jumping into the delivery vehicle--but she can't repeat it when she's in Rosemaster's prison, because she actually ''is'' in the mood for pizza. |
| 461 | ** Rosemaster can alter the memories of people with botanical names. This makes Carrot, Cucumber, and Almond subject to her plot, but she throws Nautilus and Peridot in the dungeon because she can't mess with their heads the same way. |
| 462 | * Despite the craziness of ''Webcomic/{{Educomix}}'', certain things about the ecos are firmly established, e.g. urine is better than water. Also, the magic system is coincidentally based on letters -- the known types of magic are Qmagic (used by Qwizards, and essentially the same as "normal" magic), Wmagic (used by the Whats in the VideoGame/{{Portal}} parody), Emagic (there's only one spell, but its effects are [[{{Magitek}} programmable by computer]]), Rmagic (SummonMagic), and Tmagic([[TimeMaster affects time]]). |
| 463 | * ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'': |
| 464 | ** The magical rules are being explained to the audience as the main characters learn them. Every time a new spell is introduced, the readers are told exactly what it is capable of. In addition, it has been explained [[http://egscomics.com/?date=2007-01-31 how characters gain new spells,]] and [[http://egscomics.com/?date=2008-11-13 how someone can gain access to magic to begin with]] (continued on the next two pages). It has also been stated that it is impossible to bring the dead back to life, create undead beyond telekinetically using a corpse as a puppet, and [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1285 to travel through time]] (though according to the author, time travel is only impossible because Tedd having access to time travel would make him an InvincibleHero). |
| 465 | ** Later it is revealed that Magic itself has [[SentientCosmicForce sentience]] (as well as [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1116 a flair for the dramatic]]). Apparently, the rules of magic can occasionally require for one of multiple events to occur, [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1456 which is when its consciousness takes over]]. [[spoiler:[[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1832 It can also alter its own rules for how it works whenever it chooses]], [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1833 though usually some things will stay constant]].]] |
| 466 | *** And one of the largest consistent rules of magic is basically 'anything magic has to do with something related to magic'; [[spoiler:the will of magic's 'flair for the dramatic' comes from an inability to see anything that has not come into contact with magic, which includes large populations. This means it typically observes and takes data from LargeHam mad wizards when they're high from casting spells and powerless muggles cowering in fear, and assumes that's what humanity's two archetypes are.]] |
| 467 | * In ''Webcomic/GunnerkriggCourt'', Reynardine's [[DemonicPossession possession abilities]] and [[RestrainingBolt contract of ownership]] with Antimony follow specific and consistent rules. Some of them are given in-comic, but some are only spelled out by [[WordOfGod the author]] on [[AllThereInTheManual the forum]]. |
| 468 | * In ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'' the video game Sburb (or Sgrub), around which the plot is based, has a series of strict, consistent rules. Its TimeTravel rules are also internally consistent. The few "magical" concepts that pop up (usually with Rose Lalonde) tend to be loosely defined and fairly inconsistent, because ''real'' magic (ie. not based on an explicit RealityWarper's powers or on Sburb itself) is fake as all shit. |
| 469 | * In ''Webcomic/JupiterMen'', all superpowers in the story are expressions of dimensional energy usage as the ability to channel it descends from the Primari who left for other dimensions. From turning into slime to SuperStrength to magic, everything can be tied to the use of dimensional energy. This also means that the PowerNullifier handcuffs that Nathan uses are universally effective on human-sized superhumans. |
| 470 | * ''Webcomic/AMagicalRoommate'' is fairly flexible, but has some strict rules with its magic system. When it appeared that one of these rules had been broken, Aylia immediately rushed to figure out how... only to discover LoopholeAbuse was the cause. |
| 471 | * ''Webcomic/MissingMonday'' has rules for who is eligible to visit another world and how to open the magic door. Monday followed the instructions in her favourite childhood storybook. |
| 472 | * ''Webcomic/{{morphE}}'' is set in the TabletopGame/MageTheAwakening canon and follows its rules of magic. |
| 473 | * In the world of ''Webcomic/{{Oceanfalls}}'', everyone possesses an ability tied to their very existence. These abilities are formed during an awakening, usually a crucial moment in a young persons development. [[spoiler: Diana in a flashback]] explains further. Abilities work by an outside input prompting the creation of an ability by the soul. The ability is then given form by the mind, which is then released through the body to create various effects. Because of this, no two abilities are ever exactly the same. Additionally, all abilities have restrictions and powers tied to them, but the only way to know these is by experimenting. |
| 474 | ** The average power of abilities varies depending on race. Humans naturally have the weakest abilities, and Monsters are more powerful, but Winged abilities are stronger than both and can awaken more than one to boot. |
| 475 | ** Later on, [[spoiler: it's made clear that [[MuggleBornOfMages some people just can't awaken abilities at all]], but the effects of this vary depending one's race. Humans are physically completely fine, and only lack an ability; Monsters are born weak and sickly, and usually die within a few years of being born; and Winged with no ability [[CriticalExistenceFailure instantly die upon spawning]]. Nino points out the correlation that [[NecessaryDrawback more power means more dependency]]]]. |
| 476 | * ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'' does this with ''D&D'' rules (specifically 3.5th edition), except when the result would be really funny or sufficiently cool. For an example, there's a strip where Durkon uses Control Weather to attack a group of treants warded against electrical attacks...by generating a thunderclap so loud that it breaks the treants in half. When an angel tells Thor (Durkon's patron god who enabled the spell) that that's not how the spell works (Control Weather cannot cause sonic damage, thunderclaps or no), Thor tells him to be quiet [[RuleOfCool because it was awesome.]] Though it later turns out that the [[EasternZodiac Southern Gods]] didn't appreciate Thor breaking the rules within ''their'' territory, and prohibit him from making further such interventions on Durkon's behalf. |
| 477 | * ''Webcomic/TalesOfTheQuestor'' has "magic" that is, essentially, [[SufficientlyAdvancedTechnology Sufficiently Advanced Science]]-- Magic is a natural ability to manipulate an exotic form of energy, can be used via technological means, and generally follows the known laws of physics (Conservation of mass and energy, for example, still apply). |
| 478 | * ''Webcomic/{{Unsounded}}'' calls its magic system "pymary", because calling it "magic" would imply something unknown and mystical. Not so with pymary, which has been researched extensively and functions according to clear-cut rules and limitations. And while it's channeled through a LanguageOfMagic, a translated snippet of that language sounds a lot more like ''programming code'' than any regular incantation. [[http://www.casualvillain.com/Unsounded/world/index.php?title=Pymary Here's an article]]. |
| 479 | * Magic in ''Webcomic/{{Widdershins}}'' is based entirely around magic circles that channel and summon spirits of human emotion. A trained wizard can then imbue objects with the specific emotion, such as using impatience on a train to make it travel faster, or imbuing your baked goods with hunger to increase customer demand. When we see these spells being cast, it's a long process that usually involves some kind of deal with the spirit in question, or channeling a particularly strong emotion in the surrounding area. If something goes wrong with the summoning or the spirit is not properly dispelled, it manifests as a supernatural being called a malform (officially) or "buggerup" (commonly). |
| 480 | ** In later chapters it's also shown that both water and [[spoiler: electronic technology]] interfere with magic, and magic itself becomes more common/powerful the closer one is to "anchors:" points of strong magical energy in various parts of the world, including the titular city. |
| 481 | ** The main exceptions to these rules are Witches, extremely rare people who have strong intuitive magic and are tied to one of the aforementioned Anchors... but even then we mostly see this as being able to detect spirits outside of summoning circles, usually through a specific manner such as hearing, sight, or even smell. |
| 482 | [[/folder]] |
| 483 | |
| 484 | [[folder:Web Original]] |
| 485 | * In ''Literature/ArcanaMagi'', Mana is a source of energy akin to electrical energy, with kinetic and potential types. Mana energizes magical items and can be drawn from nature by people with magical powers to cast spells, but cannot be drawn from other people or creatures due to willpower and instinctual resistance. Mana is 100% pure when the object it's drawn from is natural, like copper and wood, and slowly but surely the natural object will lose all its Mana when changed into something else, like when copper and electricity is used in a computer. Though in ''Literature/ArcanaMagiZero'', different types of magical groups have different ways of drawing mana and casting spells. For instance, Alysia Perez and Megumi Miyazaki are Circular Magi, so all their magical powers come from Magic Circles. |
| 486 | * ''Website/ChatoyantCollege'': There are strict rules on what can be achieved with each type of magic. |
| 487 | * [[HandWave Handwaving]] lack of internal consistency with extreme applications of BellisariosMaxim is discussed in #3 of ''Website/{{Cracked}}'''s [[https://www.cracked.com/blog/6-common-movie-arguments-that-are-always-wrong 6 Common Movie Arguments That Are Always Wrong]]. |
| 488 | * [[https://www.youtube.com/@TheCriticalDrinker The Critical Drinker]] stresses this as an important component in a story involving supernatural powers of any sort. Failing to clearly establish the boundaries and capabilities of such powers from the get-go makes it harder for the audience to get invested in the story (because setting no limitations on your hero's power means it's difficult to tell when the stakes are genuinely high) and it encourages laziness in writing (having a hero with no limitations means the stakes ''can't'' be high because nothing provides a real challenge to them). It also tends to create {{Plot Hole}}s of a "Wait, if they can do [x], then why didn't they just [y]?" nature whenever a writer [[NewPowersAsThePlotDemands makes up new capabilities that a character wasn't already established to possess]]. |
| 489 | * ''WebAnimation/HomestarRunner'': In the WebAnimation/StrongBadEmail "[[Recap/StrongBadEmailE192Shapeshifter shapeshifter]]", Strong bad riffs on this by listing possible downsides that would accompany the power of shapeshifting. For instance, he imagines the power to turn into any species "of ''balloon'' animal", the power to turn into legal tender (which causes him to blow away in the wind after turning into a hundred dollar bill), and the power to turn into ''almost'' anybody in the world (that is, one-half of the intended person, [[ExactWords hence the "almost"]]). |
| 490 | * ''Literature/SagaOfSoul'': After the main character acquires [[FunctionalMagic magical powers]], the first thing she does is run experiments to try and fit her new abilities into a scientific framework. A large part of what makes her effective in battle afterward is her ability to [[BadassBookworm figure out the most efficient applications of what powers she has]]. |
| 491 | * Website/SFDebris often points out violations, typically phrasing it as "All I ask is that you be consistent with your nonsense". |
| 492 | * Franchise/TheSlenderManMythos is an interesting example; the character is shared between several projects by different groups, and one of the reasons he's so effectively frightful is that the most well-known Slenderblogs and vlogs keep things consistent. They accomplish this while retaining wiggle-room for variation without angering the fandom: In ''WebVideo/MarbleHornets'', audio and video distortions show up when something bad is about to happen, whereas in ''WebVideo/EverymanHYBRID'', video usually doesn't distort unless Slender Man himself is both in the shot and very close to the camera. |
| 493 | * The ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'' tries to be consistent about this. Given that the major characters now include a mage who is part-Sidhe, a half-demon who has psychic abilities but deals with magic regularly, and an ActionGirl with a magic sword, keeping the details consistent across authors must be fairly involved. |
| 494 | ** One story has a character begin to talk about a phenomenon that underlies everything in the universe which is what gives her her powers, only to be told by the other characters that it doesn't exist, or at least, they've seen absolutely no evidence of it. It's a nice thought about how theories are subjective, so when a character explains their own or someone else's powers, they could be completely wrong yet still come up with an explanation that covers the bases. |
| 495 | ** Phase got his via some sort of virus that was non-contagious and nobody else displays any other form of symptom and Tennyo got hers via what are best described as "Magic Brownies". |
| 496 | ** Part of what helps keep the Whateley Universe canon stories straight is the secret "[[AllThereInTheManual Whateley Academy Universe Bible]]" that only canon authors are allowed access to -- this lays out every single "rule" for the storyline, canon characters, backstory, etc |
| 497 | * ''Literature/{{Worm}}'', while not calling its superpowers magic, has this in full force. |
| 498 | ** Every cape has limitations to their powers, dictated by an in-universe law known as the Manton Effect |
| 499 | ** Even [[spoiler:[[BigBad Scion]]]] has these limits in place, despite outward appearances. |
| 500 | [[/folder]] |
| 501 | |
| 502 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 503 | * ''WesternAnimation/AladdinTheSeries'' added to the rules mentioned in the movie that mixing different kinds of magic is a bad idea, because it produces unpredictable results. This is used as a reason why Genie can't just undo any magic used by villains. It's also hinted that lamp-bound genies are more powerful than free ones, presumably because the bound ones have wishes to grant. |
| 504 | * Bending in the ''[[Franchise/AvatarTheLastAirbender Avatar]]'' franchise, featuring ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'', mostly follows this: |
| 505 | ** Certain characters can use various martial arts derived movements to telekinetically control one of the classical elements. It is possible to utilise this basic mechanic for more esoteric uses, e.g., "Bloodbending" is the act of a Waterbender controlling the water in someone's blood, and by extension the blood in all of their bodily tissues. "Metalbending" is the act of an Earthbender controlling the leftover impurities in metal to indirectly bend metal. Firebenders can generate lightning. |
| 506 | ** At least some types of bending are affected by celestial bodies. Waterbending is stronger at night and, like ocean tides, is affected by phases of the moon, being strongest during a full moon. Firebending, on the other hand, is stronger when the sun is up during the day and can receive an immense enhancement by the presence of a certain comet, but fails completely during a solar eclipse. |
| 507 | ** Lightningbending can only be generated by a firebender who can clear their mind of emotion and distraction -- something the internally conflicted Zuko finds himself unable to pull off. When Azula performs it during the climax, it gets complicated. She seems to have no difficulties wielding it even while in the middle of [[VillainousBreakdown emotional turmoil.]] Either she's just that good (she ''is'' a prodigy that bends hotter blue flames), the power-boosting CometOfDoom in the sky had something to do with it, or she has no internal conflict at all about being a psychotic sociopath...probably the third thing. |
| 508 | ** Firebending doesn't require an external source of the element like other the three, because all firebenders have a ''internal'' source. Iroh explained that the bender's body heat was the source of their bending. When Zuko was enduring hypothermia in Season 1, he was easily floored by Katara until the sun came up. |
| 509 | ** Combustion Man's "sparky sparky boom ray", which allows him to focus his firebending to an extreme level, is a power that he was born with, [[AllThereInTheManual according to the Nickelodeon site.]] It also appears that it is the only form of firebending he is capable of. |
| 510 | ** A universal trait of all the styles is the more skilled the bender, the less physical effort required to do so akin to a muscle. A master like [[DishingOutDirt King Bumi]] can bend just by moving his ''[[BewareTheSillyOnes face.]]'' |
| 511 | ** Even Ty Lee's chi blocking is based off of the idea that acupuncture can block chi, and that bending uses chi as well. The sequel proves that anyone can learn this if they practice, [[spoiler: and can be used in conjunction with bloodbending to semi-permanently take away someone's bending.]] |
| 512 | ** It's shown that the characters are still learning and developing their understanding of those rules: Metalbending was only discovered in the original series by Toph due to her DisabilitySuperpower, but is now understood enough to be taught to others and also to be defended against: platinum was found to be free of the impurities needed to bend it. Likewise, [[PeoplePuppets bloodbending]] was once thought to require a full moon to boost a Waterbender's power, but people have been found that are powerful enough to bloodbend at any time. |
| 513 | ** A combination of SuperpowerfulGenetics and [[TrainingFromHell early training]] is what can apparently overcome the bloodbending full moon restriction. In the time between the two series, [[TheDon Yakone]] exploited the unknown nature of the loophole to disguise what he was doing, but Sokka eventually saw through him. The fact that they share this ability outs two other characters as his sons, [[ManipulativeBastard Tarrlok]] and [[spoiler: Amon/Noatak,]] the latter of whom is skilled enough to not even need to do the familiar gestures. The wiki refers to it as ''psychic'' bloodbending, while he passes it off as [[SoulPower energybending]] [[MissionFromGod from the spirits.]] |
| 514 | ** With ''Korra'''s episodes "Beginnings, Part 1 and 2", the history of the Avatar is set out. [[spoiler: Notably, bending was ''given'' to people by lion-turtles, who acted as guardians to humanity in a world ravaged by spirits. At the end, Wan becomes the first Avatar by merging with the Spirit of Light Raava and becoming the first person capable of bending all four elements at once. With the coming of the Avatar, the lion-turtles relinquished their position as guardians of humanity and notably claimed that they will not give humans the power to bend elements anymore. This provides for two possibilities: All benders are descendants of those humans who kept their bending powers after the lion-turtles left. Or, subsequent generations of humanity really did learn to bend the elements by watching animals (and the Moon) do it. The show vaguely implies the second, as the effects of energy-bending were shown to not be hereditary, meaning that the people with bending granted by energy-bending can't pass it on to their children.]] |
| 515 | ** The ability of spirit-world interference to bestow bending is further built upon at the end of Season 2 of ''Korra'', when the Harmonic Convergence causes [[spoiler: random non-benders around the world to suddenly become airbenders, correcting the imbalance caused by the Fire Nation's earlier genocide.]] |
| 516 | ** In Season 3 of ''Korra'', the members of the Red Lotus are capable of bending in unique and unusual ways, but even then they don't seem to deviate from the previously-established rules. Indeed, other people are shown being able to use those powers. |
| 517 | *** Ghazan is an Earthbender capable of creating and controlling lava. While lavabending was previously thought to be restricted to Avatars using a combination of earthbending and firebending, it seems that Ghazan can convert rock between liquid and solid states the same way waterbenders can change water to ice and back again. [[spoiler: Bolin gains the ability to do the same in the finale of Book 3.]] |
| 518 | *** Ming-Hua is an [[HandicappedBadass armless Waterbender]] who fights by using her element to create [[ArtificialLimbs temporary limbs]] of liquid water. These usually take the form of CombatTentacles and [[BladeBelowTheShoulder ice blades.]] This is consistent with the aforementioned master rule. |
| 519 | *** P'Li shares Combustion Man's explosive ray, but has the additional power to ''curve her shots'' to hit targets behind cover, in addition to regular firebending (which Combustion Man [[CripplingOverspecialization couldn't use]]). |
| 520 | *** Zaheer starts off the most normal of the bunch, but [[spoiler:he becomes an airbender following the Harmonic Convergence. He goes on to confirm what many people feared was the reason why Airbenders are taught to be pacifists. Zaheer was able to literally take the breath out of another person, suffocating them to death.]] Later, [[spoiler:he gains the ability to fly unsupported, becoming the first airbender to do so in four thousand years.]] This has its own rules--it requires [[spoiler:[[EnlightenmentSuperpowers severing all earthly ties,]] including relationships, so he can't achieve it until his girlfriend is killed.]] |
| 521 | * ''WesternAnimation/BeastMachines'': a planet-wide virus on Cybertron incapacitated anyone who didn't change and those who did have a transmetal form reverted into their first forms. While it had some nasty side-effects such as memory loss and the inability to transform, that ended up being what saved them from certain capture. |
| 522 | * ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'' Franchise/{{Transformers}} had the "Transmetal" subline, which was forced on them by virtue of being MerchandiseDriven. Essentially the story goes that they had to destroy a doomsday device in orbit that was threatening them with DeathFromAbove. The resulting "quantum shockwave" changed the bodies of Transformers on both sides, but due to budget (CGI models take a lot more effort to redesign than with traditional animation, especially in TheNineties) only a handful of current characters were redesigned. To try and explain why some changed while others didn't, those who weren't altered were otherwise incapacitated in a repair chamber or something else. It wasn't perfect and there was still a few inconsistencies with a couple of characters. Then the Transmetal process was refered to again. A device from the same aliens that sent the "Planet Buster" emitted a paralyzing pulse at the transformers around it. Those who with some form of transmetal in them proved to be immune to its effects. |
| 523 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddParents'' has consistent rules for making wishes. These come from a [[GreatBigBookOfEverything Great Big Book of "Da Rules"]] (allowing for new rules when the plot demands), but the same few rules tend to recur. |
| 524 | ** For example, you can't wish to break true love, or to win a competition. For example, when Timmy used wished-up skills to play basketball, he only lost the skills when the clock hit five minutes, because the last five minutes are the only competitive part of a basketball game. |
| 525 | *** Notably, wishing for death wasn't banned until at the earliest ''1914'', when a little girl wished for the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, starting UsefulNotes/WorldWarI. |
| 526 | *** Several plots feature a situation develop where a wish that had gone awry could not be revoked because doing so would violate one of the stated rules. This often requires an explanation, or at least Wanda's best guess as to why the rule is unexpectedly in effect. In these cases, the fairies sometimes didn't know it would be a violation until they attempted to fulfill the request and their wands failed, prompting them to consult the book. This demonstrates that the rules control the magic itself and not their decision whether to use it. In these scenarios, Timmy has to scramble to use mundane means to change the situation so the rule will no longer apply and things can be wished back to normal. |
| 527 | ** In TheMovie, there is a magic muffin that allows a certain amount of unrestricted wishing for those trusted with it. The only wish that can't be made is for the magic muffin to taste better (yeah, the muffin is all-powerful, but it tastes horrible). |
| 528 | ** [[GenieInABottle Genies]] can break the rules, though it [[JackassGenie might not be wise to go for it.]] The reason for this is that "Da Rules" aren't inherent to magic, but rather more like an unbreakable code of law for fairies. In at least one case, they had to add a new rule because Timmy screwed things up in a way that wasn't anticipated. |
| 529 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' lays down a few rules of magic and sticks with them: |
| 530 | ** Magic is sourced from energy, and the relative power of magic is simply a factor of the energy put into it. Magical energy can also be matched by energy created by other means, like electricity -- at least in theory. Actually ''doing'' so is another thing entirely, as powerful magical beings (like the Children of Oberon) are basically the raw energy equivalent of the world's nuclear arsenal. But technology can keep up for a while, such as in "The Gathering", where Xanatos uses a force field to temporarily fend off Oberon. That episode also features an explicit invocation of this trope: |
| 531 | --->'''Owen:''' Energy is energy, whether generated by science or sorcery. |
| 532 | ** The stronger the mage, the less effort they have to put into the actual act of spellcasting. For example, Demona has to cast spells by chanting in Latin, Puck can work magic in English but has to use rhyming verse, and Oberon can knock out a whole city just by yelling "Sleep!" |
| 533 | ** A CurseEscapeClause makes casting spells easier, so most magic includes one (and mages make them ludicrously implausible to compensate). |
| 534 | * ''WesternAnimation/MightyMax'' established how the portal system works that Portal A leads to Portal B and vice-versa. In order to travel the world they need to move through a series of portals to arrive at their destination, like a subway train map. In multiple episodes they show that the portal underneath Max's house leads directly to [[BigBad Skullmaster's]] cavern, and a portal overhanging a lava waterfall some distance away leads them to Australia, with the nearest portal on foot is 50 miles away. |
| 535 | * In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': Twilight Sparkle, an ardent student of the subject, insists that real magic has some rules. These are left vague, but she speaks of how it comes from within, and also how it is done consciously and studied. However, rather than a single cohesive "ruleset", there seem to be lots of different kinds of magic (too many to list here), each with their own rules. There are two, however, that stand out as important. |
| 536 | ** One rule that remains consistent is how each race of ponies have innate magic that allow them to do things that other races can't. Unicorn magic is obvious, Pegasus magic allows for cloudwalking and flight, and earth ponies have increased strength and attunement with the earth, though this appears to vary depending on individual. Alicorns, like Celestia and Luna, seem to have access to at least unicorn and pegasus magic, though it's obviously hard to confirm if they have earth pony magic as well. |
| 537 | ** Cutie marks are their own kind of magic, which ponies are either born with or develop during adolecense (it's unclear). This is unique to each pony, and allow them to perform feats within a specific field. The form this usually takes is mastery of a certain skill that others would require practice with, such as baking, sewing or certain spells, but it can also allow ponies to do things that would be impossible for anyone else, such as Rainbow Dash's sonic rainboom. Finally, cutie mark magic is unique to each pony, but it can interact and form bonds between ponies; Rainbow's aforementioned rainboom kickstarted the awakening of her friends' cutie mark magic. |
| 538 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': |
| 539 | ** Witches draw circles in the air to cast spells, either with their limbs or with staffs, and decide which spell to cast mentally. This is possible due to witches having an extra organ near the heart that produces magical bile, though this organ can run out, in which case they can't practice magic like this anymore. |
| 540 | ** Magic glyphs, which were practiced by witches in the ancient past and is being rediscovered by the show's protagonist Luz, involved drawing a glyph within a circle and tapping it to activate, the spell being cast decided by which glyph is drawn. There are only four glyphs (Light, Ice, Plant, and Fire), but they can be modified and chained together to perform almost any spell of traditional witch magic. Unlike regular witch magic, glyphs are powered by the BackgroundMagicField of [[GiantCorpseWorld the Titan]], [[spoiler:which means that they don't function outside of the Demon Realm and cease to work altogether once the Titan's spirit dies for good (at least until King's own powers start to develop, but even then it's with a brand new set of glyphs)]]. |
| 541 | ** [[{{Familiar}} Palismen]] are capable of using magic without the need for gyphs or spell circles due to being carved from a special type of magical tree and can enhance a witch's own magic, though their spells are innately weaker than traditional witch magic when on its own. |
| 542 | ** [[BigBad Emperor Belos]] and [[TheDragon the Golden Guard]] break this system entirely, instead practicing a type of magic unique to them. Both carry staffs with red gems at the end, which seemingly incorporate some kind of {{Magitek}}. Their magical auras are red, and the primary use seems to be advanced telekinesis, teleportation and conjuration. This system also doesn't require them to draw circles, and Belos can even cast spells of the usual system without the circles. [[spoiler:It's implied that Belos' powers are a combination of all the palismen souls he's devoured over the past 350+ years along with specialized glyph arrays he carved into the flesh of his arms.]] |
| 543 | ** The cubes within the VoidBetweenTheWorlds can let you communicate with anyone in both the Human and Demon realms, but in order to make the cubes appear you have to both [[IKnowYourTrueName say the person's real name]] and there has to be a reflective surface somewhere near them. If one or both of these conditions is not met, then the proper cube will not materialize. |
| 544 | * As ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'' progresses, the rules and limitations of [[SiliconBasedLife Gems]] and their “[[ClarkesThirdLaw magic]]” become more defined, with the audience learning the mechanics [[AudienceSurrogate alongside Steven]]. These rules are set in stone, to the point that it’s possible to catch characters in lies based on how their description of a magical event lines up with the established rules. To whit: |
| 545 | ** [[EveryoneHasASpecialMove Every type of Gem has a power]] and/or [[SpontaneousWeaponCreation summonable weapon]] unique to that type; every Sapphire can predict the immediate future, every Lapis can [[MakingASplash manipulate water]], and so on. There are three caveats to this: |
| 546 | *** Gem types can only have ''one'' such power, with the exception of the [[GodEmperor godlike]] Diamonds who [[MonsterProgenitor apparently created the rest of the species]], and [[SuperpowerLottery have multiple versatile powers]]. Rose Quartz (and by extension Steven) [[WrongContextMagic seemingly breaks this rule]] by possessing a litany of powers no other Quartzes have, [[spoiler:which is actually a hint that she’s ''not'' a Quartz; she’s a Diamond disguised as one, meaning she still conforms to the rules.]] |
| 547 | *** Gems born with defects and flaws (Off-Colors) still possess the power of their Gemtype, but in [[PowerIncontinence a different, usually flawed form]]; all Sapphires can make predictions, but Padparadscha, an Off-Color Sapphire, [[OxymoronicBeing can only predict events that already happened]], allowing her to discern details about a situation that others can’t (e.g., predicting Lars pressing the wrong button on a console just as he does so). |
| 548 | ** Gems who are [[BizarreAlienReproduction created using insufficient resources or take too long to coalesce (overcooking)]] still have powers, but said powers are significantly less potent and may not activate for ''years''. Peridots, for instance, [[spoiler:have metal-controlling powers, but our Peridot initially doesn’t know she has them and is mostly limited to stuff like throwing soda cans, all because she was born during a resource crisis and had less resources spent on her than she needed (which is also why she’s much shorter than average).]] |
| 549 | ** All Gems have a degree of VoluntaryShapeshifting, but changing to and maintaining any form other than their current ShapeshifterDefaultForm takes effort and concentration. Holding a temporary form for too long can result in a loss of control and eventual involuntary return to default. Further, any form they take [[MorphicResonance will possess their default form’s color scheme]], no matter what; Amethyst is always purple, even when turned into something like an owl or bulldozer. Their HeartDrive is also always located on the same spot on their body. [[spoiler:Rose Quartz/Pink Diamond works around these handicaps by [[PaletteSwap palette-swapping]] her hair and skin, while also rotating her gemstone to conceal its shape without actually moving it.]] |
| 550 | ** Gems can [[FusionDance fuse into a stronger being]]. These Fusions [[AllYourPowersCombined possess all the powers and knowledge of their components]], but the more Gems that take part in the Fusion, the less MorphicResonance it has; the two-Gem Opal looks and acts like a mix of Pearl and Amethyst, but the five-Gem Obsidian has only vague similarities to any of her components. Fusion also works on both physical and [[MentalFusion mental]] levels, which mixes badly with another bit of Gem magic, TheCorruption. Any healthy Gem foolish enough to fuse with a Corrupted Gem will immediately contract the Corruption themselves, [[spoiler:as Jasper learns the hard way.]] |
| 551 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Trollz}}'' has a complex system of magic. |
| 552 | ** Only girl trolls can use magic. Originally everyone could until the BigBad grabbed most of it and turned it evil, minimizing magic as a result. |
| 553 | ** Spells don't work unless they rhyme, and can vary depending on how they're worded. |
| 554 | ** The most powerful magic is done with five trolls from five different gem alignments (the Magic of the Five). |
| 555 | ** Most spells are cast using spell beads, though a beadless transformation spell required the Magic of the Five to be used correctly. When Onyx and Topaz tried it on their own, it worked, but caused the woman they used it on to become mute and ill. |
| 556 | ** Magic is powered via amber, found in the Amber Caves. |
| 557 | [[/folder]] |
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/context.php
FollowingContext Main / MagicAIsMagicA
Go To
- Show Spoilers
- Night Vision
- Sticky Header
- Wide Load
