History Main / MasterOfOneMagic

* Mages from the ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' series tend to focus on the type of magic they are named after, such as the famous BlackMage, WhiteMage, {{Summon|Magic}}ers and so on. Not to mention jobs such as the Time Mage, who's wholly dedicated to controlling, well, time.
* Elementalists in ''Videogame/GuildWars'' can use Fire, Water, Air or Earth magic, but because of the limit in skill slots and skill points it's best if the player specializes in only one element (often Fire, which does the most damage to multiple enemies). This does not hold true in its sequel, ''GuildWars2'', where the most powerful Elementalists will switch their attunements in combat for a given situation, usually to make use of their combo fields.

* Zigzagged in ''Manga/BlackClover''. Most mages are capable of using only one element, and all known exceptions are instances of PowerCopying. TheProtagonist Asta can only use AntiMagic, Magna can only use [[PlayingWithFire fire magic]], Julian can only use [[TimeMaster time magic]], etc. However, they quickly learn how to use their magic types to do many different things, with the most skilled mages able to do [[SwissArmySuperpower near anything they want]] with their designated types.

** The Icemen are a race-wide example of this trope. They draw ElementalPowers from the same source the Alerans do, but their variant only allows for watercrafting. The fact that they've spent centuries focusing on this element alone has allowed them to do things with it that most Alerans wouldn't think possible, including large-scale weather control and advancing a watercrafter's natural [[TheEmpath empathy]] to the point of being practically telepathic.

If there's any magic-user organization that specializes in one type of magic, you can expect the Master of One Magic to be the [[AuthorityEqualsAsskicking head of the group]]. They're often subject to CripplingOverspecialization, especially if they [[WhenAllYouHaveIsAHammer only rely on the magic they excel at]] when they can generalize their abilities. Also keep in mind that "magic" [[MagicByAnyOtherName doesn't always have to go by that name]] when adding examples. EnlightenmentSuperpowers, KiAttacks, PsychicPowers and the like can be counted as well.

** Aang is the best [[BlowYouAway Airbender]] by default of being the LastOfHisKind as the show's title character.

* In ''Literature/{{Mistborn}}'', each of the Mistings in Kelsier's crew is a master of their particular Allomantic power: Breeze in [[ManipulativeBastard Soothing]], Marsh in [[ScarilyCompetentTracker Seeking]], Ham in being a [[SuperStrength Thug]], Spook in being a [[SuperSenses Tineye]], Clubs in [[BeneathNotice Smoking]], and Kelsier himself in [[ExtraOreDinary Pushing and Pulling]]. Mistings in general are this; since they have only one of the sixteen allomantic powers (as opposed to a Mistborn, who has all of them), Mistings who take their abilities seriously tend to get very good with them. Full Mistborn, by contrast, are much more powerful and versatile, but generally have less finesse in any given power because they're spred thinner.

** Charles Xavier is recognized by everyone, friend and foe, to be ''the'' premier mortal telepath in the entire Nine Realms, capable of, amongst other feats, telepathically slaughtering demons by the dozen and projecting an image all the way to Asgard (albeit only after Loki showed him the way, so to speak). The only time he ever has trouble in a telepathic duel is with [[spoiler: Dracula]] in the second book, a PhysicalGod and VampireMonarch who's been practicing for several centuries. Having built Cerebro to enhance and focus his skills, he is very much not to be messed with.

* ''FanFic/ChildOfTheStorm'' has Charles Xavier, recognized by everyone, friend and foe, to be ''the'' premier mortal telepath in the entire Nine Realms, capable of, amongst other feats, telepathically slaughtering demons by the dozen and projecting an image all the way to Asgard (albeit only after Loki showed him the way, so to speak). The only time he ever has trouble in a telepathic duel is with [[spoiler: Dracula]] in the second book, a PhysicalGod and VampireMonarch who's been practicing for several centuries. Having built Cerebro to enhance and focus his skills, he is very much not to be messed with.

** The TabletopGame has this type of magic-user as a playable "class", called the Focused Practitioner, whose main advantage ([[CaptainObvious obviously]]) is that they get to be very, very good at the one type of magic they practice. The sample Baltimore setting detailed in the "Your Story" gamebook has a character described as a Caffinomancer, a Focused Practitioner whose magic exclusively deals with [[MundaneUtility the brewing of coffee]].

** Ernest Armand Tinwhistle better known as [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Binder]] is a "one trick hack" who can summon up some FacelessGoons. [[TheMinionMaster By the dozen in under a minute.]] And while nothing next to most of the supernatural baddies readers have seen, [[WeHaveReserves their sheer numbers]] make Binder the head of his own personal army capable of standing off forces technically far superior to himself and being a general nuisance enough to earn a good living as a mercenary. Just as long as nobody [[WeaksauceWeakness draws a circle]] around his lads that is.
** Mortimer Linquest is an Ectomancer, who specializes in magic related to ghosts and spirits. He's even better at it than most wizards, and can do things like borrowing combat skills from them. We later find out he's served as almost a second Wizard of Chicago preventing all manner of ghostly threats from hurting anyone.

** This trope is deconstructed in regards to [[MeaningfulName Hannah Ascher]], who's very good at PlayingWithFire but sucks at pretty much everything else. While she is very, ''very'' good with fire, quite a bit better than Harry (who's certainly no slouch with pyromancy himself), she has little combat versatility, and is no real match for a more experienced combatant.

* Zigzagged in ''Manga/BlackClover''. Most mages are capable of using only one element, and all known exceptions are instances of PowerCopying. TheProtagonist Asta can only use AntiMagic, Magna can only use [[PlayingWithFire fire magic]], Julian can only use [[TimeMaster time magic]], etc. However, they quickly learn how to use their magic types to do many different things, with the most skilled mages overlapping with GreenLanternRing in how much utility they can derive from their designated types.

* In ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', Archer has the unique ability to analyze, reproduce, and modify and weapon he sees. Their quality is so high, they're nearly indistinguishable from the originals, but they're one-rank down from the originals due to the limits of this ability. He makes up for the difference in quality with quantity, being able to make as many weapons as he likes for as long as he has magical energy. He's used this technique to stock numerous [[InfinityPlusOneSword Infinity+1 Swords]] in his HyperspaceArsenal.

* In ''Fanfic/ChildOfTheStorm'', Harry seems to be shaping up into this. Like [[NamesTheSame the other Harry]], [[Literature/TheDresdenFiles Harry Dresden]], he's got an extraordinary and instinctive knack with fire, proving talented enough to impress even his uncle Loki. Of course, the downside to this is that he's UnskilledButStrong and in general, isn't actually any better than his peers -- while he's got more power by some way, and he can use wandless magic, the latter is only thanks to being taught the techniques by Loki: Hermione and the Weasley Twins can use it too. And frankly, the state of affairs is such that at best, he's still a GlassCannon and has to rely on [[GuileHero his]] [[IndyPloy wits]]. After chapter 60 he starts developing other abilities and starts using them with greater expertise.

!!Examples

* Sylphiel in ''{{LightNovel/Slayers}}'' is a master of healing and protective white magic (she can cast such powerful healing spells as Resurrection), and almost completely inept in other kinds of magic. In the first season, Lina tries to make her cast Flare Arrow, a simple shamanic attack spell, and the spell comes out as a harmless carrot. Later, however, Sylphiel surprises everyone and learns to cast [[UnholyNuke the Dragon Slave]].

* Louise François [=LeBlanc=] de la Vallière of ''LightNovel/ZeroNoTsukaima'' fame seems to be the poster girl for this. In the [=ZnT=] world, mages have elemental alignments that can be stacked (a single-element mage is a Point Mage, one who can use two elements is a Line Mage, three elements give a Triangle Mage and so on). Louise is constantly mocked for her absolute inability at producing a single spell of any element... Until it's discovered she's aligned to the legendary [[GameBreaker Void]] element, and she's ridiculously and '''''scarily''''' skilled in using its Explosion spell.

[[folder:Fanfic]]
* Littlepip from Fanfic/FalloutEquestria has no ability to cast spells like other unicorns, all she can use is telekinesis, an ability innate to all unicorns, but she is very, ''very'' good with it, as one of her companions put it.
-->'''Velvet Remedy''': "Your special gift isn't being limited to only one spell, it's being able to use that spell better then any pony in the last 200 years."
* The ''FanFic/PonyPOVSeries'' inverts this in the case of Trixie -- most unicorns specialize in one field of magic or another, usually relating to their special talent. Trixie, however, never exceeded in any particular field, being modestly talented at ''all of them''.
** While this caused serious issues, it also leads to one major bonus. She's second only to Twilight, who is an EXPERT at ''all of them''.
* In ''Fanfic/ChildOfTheStorm'', Harry seems to be shaping up into this. Like [[NamesTheSame the other Harry]], [[Literature/TheDresdenFiles Harry Dresden]], he's got an extraordinary and instinctive knack with fire, proving talented enough to impress even his uncle Loki. Of course, the downside to this is that he's UnskilledButStrong and in general, isn't actually any better than his peers - while he's got more power by some way, and he can use wandless magic, the latter is only thanks to being taught the techniques by Loki: Hermione and the Weasley Twins can use it too. And frankly, the state of affairs is such that at best, he's still a GlassCannon and has to rely on [[GuileHero his]] [[IndyPloy wits]].
** After chapter 60 he starts developing other abilities and starts using them with greater expertise.

* In ''Literature/{{Mistborn}}'', each of the Mistings in Kelsier's crew is a master of their particular Allomantic power: Breeze in [[ManipulativeBastard Soothing]], Marsh in [[ScarilyCompetentTracker Seeking]], Ham in being a [[SuperStrength Thug]], Spook in being a [[SuperSenses Tineye]], Clubs in [[BeneathNotice Smoking]], and Kelsier himself in [[ExtraOreDinary Pushing and Pulling]].
** Mistings in general are this; since they have only one of the sixteen allomantic powers (as opposed to a Mistborn, who has all of them), Mistings who take their abilities seriously tend to get very good with them. Full Mistborn, by contrast, are much more powerful and versatile, but generally have less finesse in any given power because they're spred thinner.

* In ''Literature/CodexAlera'', everyone (well, [[MissedTheCall almost everyone]]) in Aleran society has Elemental powers, though most people have access to at least a couple and the nobility have them all, with single-element crafters generally considered fairly lowly. However, there are certain single-element crafters who show that they can do a ''lot'' with what they've got- [[MamaBear Isana]] with her watercrafting is the most obvious example.

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** Since it follows on from the precedents set by D&D ''Pathfinder'' has a similar situation. However, normal specialist wizards merely find it harder to train in spells from their "weak schools", and can actually choose which two schools they are denied access to. They also gain special abilities cementing their mastery over that school. (Suffice to say, there are very few generalist wizards.) The "Thassilonian Specialist" archetype/option is a MythologyGag to D&D, where they function almost exactly like specialist wizards of 3.5 edition D&D.

** The Medium, which is functionally like a Summoner who utilizes a powerful spirit instead of an Eiodlon.

** Since it follows on from the precedents set by D&D ''Pathfinder'' has a similar situation. However, normal specialist wizards merely find it harder to train in spells from their "weak schools", and can actually choose which two schools they are denied access to. They also gain special abilities cementing their mastery over that school. The "Thassilonian Specialist" archetype/option is a MythologyGag to D&D, where they function almost exactly like specialist wizards of 3.5 edition D&D.

* In ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', Archer is this: perfect mastery of tracing and reproducing weapons. Their quality is so high, they're nearly indistinguishable from the originals. He's used this technique to stock numerous [[InfinityPlusOneSword Infinity+1 Swords]] in his HyperspaceArsenal.

** Aang is the best [[BlowYouAway Airbender]] by default of being the LastOfHisKind.
** Toph and Bumi are the best [[DishingOutDirt earthbenders]].

* In ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', Toph and King Bumi are the best [[DishingOutDirt earthbenders]], Master Pakku is the best [[MakingASplash Waterbender]], and the best [[PlayingWithFire Firebenders]] are [[BigBad Firelord Ozai]] (until[[spoiler: he's BroughtDownToNormal]]) and Jeong Jeong. Aang is the best [[BlowYouAway Airbender]] by default of being [[LastOfHisKind the only Airbender]].

* The Master Trainers in their respective magical disciplines throughout ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'' series.

Compare TheArchmage, a powerful and learned wizard, which a Master of One Magic often is. Also compare TheRedMage, who isn't a master of any one field but has a nearly unparalleled versatility. PoorPredictableRock is when someone is dedicated to a single element in a ElementalRockPaperScissors universe.

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* Louise François [=LeBlanc=] de la Vallière of ZeroNoTsukaima fame seems to be the poster girl for this. In the [=ZnT=] world, mages have elemental alignments that can be stacked (a single-element mage is a Point Mage, one who can use two elements is a Line Mage, three elements give a Triangle Mage and so on). Louise is constantly mocked for her absolute inability at producing a single spell of any element... Until it's discovered she's aligned to the legendary [[GameBreaker Void]] element, and she's ridiculously and '''''scarily''''' skilled in using its Explosion spell.

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[[folder: Literature ]]

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[[folder: Tabletop Games ]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

[[folder: Visual Novels ]]

[[folder: Web Comics ]]

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

They're often used as {{Old Master}}s from whom TheHero must learn his ultimate powers. TheHero may even learn from [[AllYourPowersCombined several of them]]. Getting apprenticeship from these characters may comprise a bulk of the story. Of course, there's nothing stopping a writer from making TheHero into a MasterOfOneMagic, although they usually claim that title only through [[UnskilledButStrong sheer power alone]].

If there's any magic-user organization that specializes in one type of magic, you can expect the MasterOfOneMagic to be the [[AuthorityEqualsAsskicking head of the group]]. They're often subject to CripplingOverspecialization, especially if they [[WhenAllYouHaveIsAHammer only rely on the magic they excel at]] when they can generalize their abilities. Also keep in mind that "magic" [[MagicByAnyOtherName doesn't always have to go by that name]] when adding examples. EnlightenmentSuperpowers, KiAttacks, PsychicPowers and the like can be counted as well.

Compare TheArchmage, a powerful and learned wizard, which a MasterOfOneMagic often is. Also compare TheRedMage, who isn't a master of any one field but has a nearly unparalleled versatility. PoorPredictableRock is when someone is dedicated to a single element in a ElementalRockPaperScissors universe.

** In Occult Adventures we get the Kineticist class, embodies this in regards to the use of one of five elements: aether, air, earth, fire, and water. One can eventually do two elements, but the second will almost always be weaker, and it it comes with the opportunity cost of taking your element UpToEleven, i.e. intensifying your fire blasts so they glow blue and hit like a pyromaniac's guilty dream.

* In ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', Toph and King Bumi are the best [[DishingOutDirt earthbenders]], Master Pakku is the best [[MakingASplash Waterbender]], and the best [[PlayingWithFire Firebenders]] are [[BigBad Firelord Ozai]] (until[[spoiler: he's BroughtDownToNormal]]) and Jeong Jeong. While Aang is the best [[BlowYouAway Airbender]] by default of being [[LastOfHisKind the only Airbender]], he doesn't really count since he can bend all of the elements.
** Every Bender is eventually one of these. You can only ever learn one type of Bending, unless you are The Avatar.
** Aang himself does count, actually, in that while he can bend all the elements, he is only really the ''master'' of air: with the rest he is powerful but not as powerful as some of his friends, nor does he ever pick up the advanced techniques associated with them.