Besides that big old question of whether one prefers more role-playing or roll-playing in their fantasy games (also phrased as whether one prefers role-playing or hack-and-slash), there’s another question out there that’s just as important to many fantasy gamers – “What level of magic do you like in your games?”

While JRR Tolkien’s Middle-Earth can be said to have single-handedly given birth to the fantasy genre, there are currently as many fantasy worlds out there as there are writers. Many of these writers may be paying homage to Tolkien’s work when stretching their world-building muscles – you’ll definitely come across a handful of standard fantasy tropes that some writers find so difficult to escape from, but each writer likes to have at least one thing about their world that sets it apart from the “standard fantasy world” that we (readers and writers) are all too familiar with.

The world’s system of magic is one of the elements that, when properly thought out, can have a large hand in making the writer’s fantasy world seem truly unique and special. The writer can decide on the world’s level of magic, or lack thereof, and then weave that into his/her world’s mythology. One of the first things a reader remember about a particular series’ is the presence of magic in that world, and what form it takes -  the best worlds are those where there’s some consistency and rationale between the level of magic and all the heroic stuff that goes on in said world.

What do we mean by consistency and rationale? Well, if the world has a high level of magic, and more than a handful of people have access to all-powerful magic, then has the writer thought about what would happen if just one of these all-powerful magic users decided to utter a secret power-word of magic that will obliterate every living soul in the world? There has to be a check, a counterpoint of sorts, in the world to prevent this from happening.

Or, on a smaller less-morbid scale: if magic that allows one to fly is commonplace in the world, then has the writer taken that into account when creating adventures for the heroes? Have the writer also taken that into account when designing the world’s various governments and their standing army? Because if it’s that easy to access magic that allows one to fly, then the heroes would never need to brave the dark, evil Noxdarin Mountains in order to reach the Beautiful Elven Land – they’d just skip it by flying all the way to the end destination. And if every Brave Adventurer and their mother had access to such magic, you’d be left wondering just how believable the world can be if the writer has forgotten to place anti-air units in all the standing armies of his/her world’s governments.

Small little things like this add to the consistency and believability of the story. Sure, it’s fantasy, so readers have to deal with things that don’t make sense in our world – like magic! – but readers can only suspend their disbelief so far. 

And now that we’ve explored how a fantasy world’s magic system and level of magic can help define and shape that world, let’s have a look at the various levels of magic that can be present in the different types of fantasy worlds out there…

No Magic

It’s the rare fantasy world that has totally no magic in it. After all, this is the fantasy genre we’re talking about here – people expect swords and shields, blood and war, diabolical monsters and fantastic creatures, and yes, magic!

However, it’s not impossible to create a fantasy world devoid of magic – it’s not the magic alone that makes the world what it is, it’s a combination of a lot of factors, including the various cultures, governments, ideological factions, religions, creatures or monsters that inhabit your world, etc. If you leave out the magic, then it just means you’ve increased the “realism” level by a couple of notches, but that doesn’t translate to having no fun – after all, the world we live in, Earth, is devoid of what most fantasy fans would think of as “magic”, but there’s still plenty of adventures to be had by all, as evidenced by the many exciting action and adventure books hitting the Top 100 Best Seller’s List every month, or the massive blockbusters that come our way every summer.

Sure, if you’re a fantasy fan, you’re probably looking for more “fantasy” rather than more “realism”, but just because there’s no magic in the world doesn’t mean it has to mirror an Earth-like setting. A setting in which there’s no magic at all is limited only by your creativity and imagination.

For example, one way to go with a no-magic environment is to place the world in a Stone Age setting – also known as going Cro-Magnon! Heroes could play the parts of the first settler-type humans who discover a strange new land, ready to be inhabited and developed into a mighty empire. But they soon discover that there are other beings who call this land home – the very first humans, who have conquered all the strange and deadly creatures found in this part of the world… and they’re not exactly too happy about their home being taken from them. Not happy at all…

Low-Magic Level

A more common alternative to a totally no-magic world is to have one where magic is present, but far from commonplace. Most commoners might tell their children fairy tales that contain magical elements, like wizards who can control the earth and air, or dragons who can breathe fire and acid, but in their minds, those are just fairy tales; if anyone were to suggest that those fairy tales have some basis in reality, they’d just chuckle and shake their heads. Even those with access to education (like high-born nobles) scoff at the notion that there’s real magic in the world. There might be those who claim they practice magic, like herbalists, alchemists or witch-doctors, but learned individuals will know that the people who take up these trades are merely practicing a craft and not real magic.

Real magic is the province of  very rare individuals, those that come along every half-century or so – they are the only ones who can wield the magic without getting burned by it.

Or maybe, magic could have once been very commonplace, playing a very prominent role in the world, but something happened, and the magic started dying. Decades or even centuries later, what remains is no more than a spark compared to the raging inferno available to magic-users previously. The common-folk might wonder about the decline of magic, but they just go about their lives and struggles as best they can.

When magic does appear, it’s never bright and flashy, but still leaves a deep impact on those witnessing it. Maybe it takes the form of a few notes whistled before battle, which will strengthen the wizard’s resolve and morale. Or a few whispered words that causes the pitiful flame in the lantern to burn brighter, giving more life-saving illumination to the party before they descend into the black dungeon cells of the evil-hearted King Vornack.

Robert E. Howard’s Conan (the Barbarian) and Fritz Leiber’s Fafhrd and Grey Mouser are but a few examples of heroes whose adventures take place in low-level magic worlds, where magic is hidden far from the eyes of the common man, to be found in secret spots and dark places, at the outskirts and fringes of civilization and within the deep recesses and dusty passageways of ancient temples and fortresses.

And look at how popular their stories were, despite the lack of fireball casting pyromaniac mages.

Medium-Magic Level

This is your standard issue fantasy world – magic is reasonably common, and for a sizeable proportion of the population, present in their everyday lives. Maybe not everyone can wield the magic, but there are enough who do such that magic is not relegated to some frightening folk tale that parents tell their kids in order to get the little tykes to quiet down and behave. In fact, there might even be tales of magic and lore which are inspiring, which tell of famous wizards besting enemies or adversaries with powerful magicks and the clever use of spells.

A commoner who toils his fields day in and day out might not know the existence of the “Magic Missile” spell, but he knows that there are wizards in the Capitol Academy who can cause a body a lot of grievous harm through their flashy and dangerous spells; he might never have seen one actually cast the spell, but he knows that wizards can do such a thing.

Magical items, while still rare, even for those who have access to vast amounts of wealth, are more commonplace than in worlds with a low-magic level. While a peasant or even distinguished member of the smallfolk might never get the chance to lay their eyes on one, nobles and aristocrats might come across a handful of such items during their lifetimes – it could take the form of a prized heirloom of a particularly powerful and rich noble family, a small magical trinket that somehow made its way into the local black market, or maybe they catch a glance of the magical sword the King is reputed to have at his side at all times.

Adventurers, who risk their lives to satisfy either their insatiable wanderlust or hunger for shiny treasure (and often both!), will see far more of the magic than even the high-born. After all, they usually adventure on the fringes of civilizations, to lands where even the most accomplished soldier fears to go. And it’s exactly at places like these, where after defeating dragons, krakens or some ancient evil or other, that they discover wondrous magical items, hidden away for who knows how long. And maybe, just maybe, they will even discover a magical artifact hidden in the dust and cobwebs, so powerful that using it will have world-shattering repercussions…

High-Magic Level

Fantasy worlds with high-magic levels eat, live and breathe magic. Magic is ubiquitous and even common folk have some access to it.  The innkeeper has magical steins that always keep the ale smooth and frosty. The seamstress in the upper districts has the ability to cast small little glamours on the clothes she creates for her wealthier patrons. The peddler knows a minor cantrip that will add a dash of shine and sparkle to his wares.

A sizeable number of the world’s governments are magocracies (ruled by wizards or magi) and wizard guilds abound aplenty in every major city. Such guilds are often powerful and most play a heavy role in the smooth running of the city – they may be in charge of using their magic to design and run a public transportation system (short-distance teleportation), sewage disposal system (water purification spells) or even take part in some urban planning by designing the layout of buildings, streets, alleys, etc. (to ensure that they integrate with the land’s arcane ley-lines, and thus creating a strong defensive matrix that protects the city from any potential invaders).

Adventurers who lives in such a high-magic level world would possess a wealth of magical items, ones they consider must-haves in order to ply their trade. After all, if the King of greatest city in the world offers a substantial reward to any adventuring group who can rescue his kidnapped daughter from her cloud giant captives, who live on the thick clouds just above Mount Elysius, your adventuring group would be at a very serious disadvantage if they didn’t have the one item that all the other groups already possess – a magical flying carpet.

In a way, worlds with a high-magic level are very similar in many respects to those with advanced technological levels; mages and wizards can cast magical spells that simulate future technology, like the aforementioned short-distance teleporting spells that have been designed to be used for the purpose of public transportation.

The similarity can be even more apparent when we do a quick comparison with a world that is relatively modern in terms of its technological level – our very own Earth.

There is a very strong similarity in the aforementioned problem of an adventuring group not having a magical flying carpet which puts them at a huge disadvantage, to a modern-day scenario where competitive swimmers who do not have the latest friction-reducing swimwear face an uphill struggle competing against those swimmers who do.

The carry-away message here is that, if you want to be at the top of your game, you’ve got to ensure that you have the latest in gear. In worlds with lower levels of magic, having the right magical item will give you an edge, but in a high-magic level world, you need the right magical item just to stay in the game.

Summary

In conclusion, what level of magic you have in your world needs to fit the rest of the setting. If you are a GM and you’re designing a world for your players to adventure in, one thing you could do would be to discuss with the players what sort of magic level they enjoy the most, and then tailor your world’s magic system according to what they’re looking for. Fun should, after all, be the end result of any game!

 © written by Timothy Nakayama

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