History Main / AllAccessibleMagic

** ''[[TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragonsThirdEdition 3rd Edition]]'': Binders have their negative reputation in part because [[PowersViaPossession binding a vestige to your soul]] is an extremely simple process where the hardest part is [[GeometricMagic drawing its symbol correctly]]. This is represented by a feat chain which grants any character the ability to bind low-level vestiges, regardless of class (albeit gaining only a subset of the abilities a Binder would).

* ''UsefulNotes/PoweredByTheApocalypse'': Liberalization of the supernatural is a common feature in {{Tabletop RPG}}s (ones that feature magic at all) of the [=PbtA=] family and of its "cadet branch", UsefulNotes/ForgedInTheDark, owing to the design choices made in their respective progenitor games:

* ''TabletopGame/{{Exalted}}'': Thaumaturgy is available to anyone with enough of an "Occult" score. Some thaumaturgy is so basic that it's not even necessary to specifically learn its Arts and rituals; all that is required is a single dot of Occult and you know how to use it.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'': Every living being in the world is, to some extent, made up of aether. Essentially, anyone can manipulate aether in various ways to cast magic, to the point that people using such magic to enhance everyday tasks is treated as ordinary. For instance, a cook might have a MundaneUtility of controlling heat to perfect their cooking. As a result, anyone can learn magic, but very few people bother because of how much aether is required to do so and the complexity of learning the correct spells. Those that do learn it for combat (such as [[PlayerCharacter the Warrior of Light]]) use it to either cast spells outright or enhance their abilities, such as swinging weapons faster or allowing them to hit supernatural creatures like ghosts.

[[quoteright:250:[[Manga/WitchHatAtelier https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/wha_aam_8.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:250:It seems like a sweet deal, but where they get you is the price for magic ink refills.]]

* ''TabletopGame/DCHeroes'': The skill Occultist includes the sub-skill Ritualist, which allows anyone to use a form of magic that is lengthy to cast and demands props and ingredients, as opposed to the superpower-like magic of actual sorcerers. In the game's system, normal human sorcerers like Characters/HellblazerJohnConstantine are said to use the sub-skill Ritualist to represent their magic, while flashy superhuman sorcerers like ComicBook/{{Zatanna}} and ComicBook/DoctorFate have one or more actual powers to represent their magic. This might or might not accurately portray how things happen in the comics themselves.

* ''Manga/FullMetalAlchemist'': {{Alchemy|IsMagic}} is the discipline of transmuting matter into other sorts of matter without changing its mass. It normally requires [[GeometricMagic inscribing a ritual circle]] which serves to confine that specific alchemical transmutation to itself. Its application is considered to be essentially an advanced type of science, and alchemists act as a combination of wizards, scientists, researchers, spec-ops, and military officers.

* Downplayed in ''Manga/DeliciousInDungeon''. Magic mostly involves reciting or inscribing incantations in a LanguageOfMagic, fueled by an inner reserve of {{Mana}} that people replenish through their normal diet. However, the average size of this reserve varies by race, setting limits on how ''much'' magic they can do at once. Marcille the elf demonstrates this very clearly [[spoiler:after being changed into a {{halfling}} by changeling mushrooms: a single explosion spell, of the sort she'd previously been able to cast willy-nilly, now completely depletes her mana and knocks her out of the fight.]]

->''"You know that man in the ambulance right now? The man capable, and having'' '''''already done,''''' ''absolutely horrible things?'' '''''There is NOTHING special about him.''''' ''He's just an average jerk, who, when younger, stumbled on a way to gain use of magic that'' '''''almost anyone on the planet''''' ''could use. You want a real-life, non-hypothetical example of'' '''''why''''' ''there's [[TheMasquerade so much secrecy?]] It's lying in the back of that ambulance."''

* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'': [[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-zagged]]. Some magic requires an innate gift or a DealWithTheDevil, but some spells work for anyone who follows the correct procedures. The main characters don't see themselves as witches but regularly use GeometricMagic like [[SupernaturalSealing demon-trapping circles]] and sometimes dabble in more advanced spells, like {{summoning|Ritual}} Death with an EyeOfNewt and a MagicalIncantation.

* ''Manga/WitchHatAtelier'': Everyone believes that witches are born and not made, that you have to be born special to be one and that certain lineages have more magic users in them that can cast spells. The first chapter of the manga reveals this actually a lie that's been maintained for eons, as everybody and anybody who can draw [[HermeticMagic the right symbols]] in a specific type of ink is able to cast magic. However, as this makes it far too easy for evil people to dominate others, this is a closely guarded secret.

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'': Every living being in the world is, to some extent, made up of aether. Essentially, anyone can manipulate aether in various ways to cast magic, to the point that people using such magic to enhance everyday tasks is treated as ordinary. For instance, a cook might have a MundaneUtility of controlling heat to perfect their cooking. As a result, anyone can learn magic, but very few people bother because of how much aether is required to do so and the complexity of learning the correct spells. Those that do learn it for combat (such as [[PlayerCharacter the Warrior of Light]]) use it to either cast spells outright or enhance their abilities, such as swinging weapons faster or allowing them to hit supernatural creatures like ghosts.

** ''[[TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragonsFourthEdition 3rd Edition]]'': Binders have their negative reputation in part because [[PowersViaPossession binding a vestige to your soul]] is an extremely simple process where the hardest part is [[GeometricMagic drawing its symbol correctly]]. This is represented by a feat chain which grants any character the ability to bind low-level vestiges, regardless of class (albeit gaining only a subset of the abilities a Binder would).

** 4th edition distinguishes between class-specific powers, which for the more magical classes are defined as spells and can be used quickly and particularly in combat, and rituals that anyone with the right feat and appropriate skill(s) can use as long as they can pay for the components and have the time. Wizards and clerics get the requisite feat for free right from the start, while other classes can obtain the feat provided that they're trained in Arcana or Religion. Even non-magical fighters can perform rituals by using a scroll.
** ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragonsFifthEdition'':

* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'', every living being in the world is, to some extent, made up of aether. Essentially, anyone can manipulate aether in various ways to cast magic, to the point that people using such magic to enhance everyday tasks is treated as ordinary. For instance, a cook might have a MundaneUtility of controlling heat to perfect their cooking. As a result, anyone can learn magic, but very few people bother because of how much aether is required to do so and the complexity of learning the correct spells. Those that do learn it for combat (such as [[PlayerCharacter the Warrior of Light]]) use it to either cast spells outright or enhance their abilities, such as swinging weapons faster or allowing them to hit supernatural creatures like ghosts.

* ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'': This, as it turns out, is the primary reason for TheMasquerade. Almost anyone who is exposed to magic for long enough will eventually "Awaken," gaining the ability to learn new spells. Magic in this world is easy and forgiving to use, and also runs off of PersonalityPowers. Which means that not only will the rapists get date rape spells, but they'll keep getting ''better'' date rape spells as they practice.

* Downplayed in ''Manga/DeliciousInDungeon''. Magic mostly involves reciting or inscribing incantations in a LanguageOfMagic, and the ability to perform it is never suggested to be an innate trait. The catch is that magic is fueled by one's inner reserve of mana, and the average size of this reserve varies by race, setting limits on how ''much'' magic they can do at once. Marcille the elf demonstrates this very clearly [[spoiler:after being changed into a {{halfling}} by changeling mushrooms: a single explosion spell, of the sort she'd previously been able to cast willy-nilly, now completely depletes her mana and knocks her out of the fight.]]

* This seems to be the case with magic in ''Film/BedknobsAndBroomsticks''. Initially, it seems that Professor Browne is a {{Muggle}} fraud since he got his witchcraft lessons out of an old book and had no idea they were actually useful to a real witch like Miss Price. However, in the end, Professor Browne is able to work a magic spell on his own once he learns to believe in himself, meaning he never actually lacked the ability to perform spells.

* ''Literature/OldKingdom'': The [[OldMagic primordial power]] of Free Magic is usable by anyone with a strong mind, though because most of the world's magic is now bound up in [[BackgroundMagicField the Charter]], most sorcerers look for a concentrated power source like [[{{Necromancer}} Death]] or a subservient [[OurSpiritsAreDifferent spirit]] to expand their capabilities. The bigger problem is that Free Magic does horrible things to human bodies and minds over time.

[[caption-width-righ:250:It seems like a sweet deal, but where they get you is the price for magic ink refills.]]