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Magic: Souls, Runes, and Gods

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Half Centaur
Jun Member 2010

Half Centaur

Posts: 6,959 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
Hello! Quarter Unicorn here!

Lately a lot have questions have been bugging me about magic- why do we need runes when others don't? What is God Magic? How is Tuska like the world guardian?

Well, I sought out to answer these questions, in a new and improved collection of some older theories.

This is pretty much all theory here- built to explain the facts of how magic works. If you have a competing explanation or your own doubts about this theory, please feel free to contact me. If you want, I can even provide a link to any competing theory threads out there of enough merit.

Table of Contents-

1. Introduction
2. Runes and Mortal Magic
3. The Anima Mundi and souls
4. Elder Artefacts and Anima
5. The Threshold of Godhood
6. An Appetite for Anima
7. The World Guardian, Tuska, and the Edicts
8. A Wounded World
9. The Shield of Arrav and Elora’s Wand
10. Reserved "We call it being a hero"
"That's interesting, we call it utter stupidity"

27-Mar-2015 16:46:00 - Last edited on 09-Apr-2015 21:48:08 by Half Centaur

Half Centaur
Jun Member 2010

Half Centaur

Posts: 6,959 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
~Runes and Mortal Magic~


Many races of mortals don't require runes to perform magic, Goblins, Mahjarrat, Vampyres, even other humans like the Lunar Mages.

But what are runes, and why do we need them?

Rune essence is functionally like a battery. We mine the empty batteries- and we go to rune altars (or the Runespan) to fill up the batteries for later use.
What are we filling it with? Elemental energy (or Runic energy), and by elemental energy I don’t mean just air, water, earth, and fire, I mean all of the elements, right up to souls. This energy is tapped into through Rune Altars, which is how we as lowly humans and half-lings, are able to siphon it. I believe that the energy the altars tap into is already available about the world- merely spread thin like butter. Elemental energy is all around us, in many aspects of the world, we simply don’t have the magical capabilities to siphon it directly from the world.

By working with runes, we let ourselves deal with a more raw form of elemental energy, which is easier to manipulate, whereas other beings who don’t use runes, simply don't require this crutch. The real ‘power’ to use magic doesn't come from runic energy- but what allows us to manipulate runic energy.

When we use runes, we’re channeling and controlling the way in which the runic energy is released. This is (mortal) magic. My theory is that the thing that gives us the ability to manipulate runic energy is our souls.

This explains why several sources (including the Moonclan manual) do not regard runes as the true source of magical power- but that it instead comes from the self. "We call it being a hero"
"That's interesting, we call it utter stupidity"

27-Mar-2015 16:46:09 - Last edited on 08-Dec-2016 20:54:35 by Half Centaur

Half Centaur
Jun Member 2010

Half Centaur

Posts: 6,959 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
~The Anima Mundi and souls~


"What I will share is that all magic comes from elder gods, and that magic is fuelled by anima – that which philosophers fancifully call a soul."
-Zaros, Fate of the Gods.

We know the entire world of Gielinor has a soul, which we know as the Anima Mundi. The elders created this world for its Anima Mundi, so it could supply enough anima to power them for another cycle. Mortals also possess an animus or soul- which also contains anima.

Anima is the ‘fuel for magic’ or more accurately, what allows us to perform magic- with the Anima Mundi there would be no runic energy tied to this plane, and without our own animus, we wouldn’t be able to manipulate runic energy. In this regard, souls are like fields (think magnetism) that allows us to manipulate lower levels of energy (runic energy).

Zaros confirms in FotG that life generates anima. I believe that when sentient life dies- the anima contained within passes to the Anima Mundi- while the conscious spirit goes to the Underworld, which seems heavily linked to the Anima Mundi itself. All worlds have a reaper, so that the world might 'reap' the anima of deceased mortals.

In this way, the Grim Underworld is like a processing plant for souls- Death is just the assigned foreman to collect the resources that get put to use back in the Anima Mundi.

Normally, a mortal’s animus wouldn't grow- or they wouldn't gain any Anima energy that would strengthen their magical abilities. But this isn't always the case. "We call it being a hero"
"That's interesting, we call it utter stupidity"

27-Mar-2015 16:46:17 - Last edited on 08-Dec-2016 20:50:03 by Half Centaur

Half Centaur
Jun Member 2010

Half Centaur

Posts: 6,959 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
~Elder Artefacts and Anima~


The Elder gods created worlds with the intention to gather as much anima as possible for themselves. To this end, planets merely store Anima for their consumption. Life allows the amount of anima to grow- but they also needed the Elder Artefacts to create these perfect Anima collectors as well.

I believe Elder Artefacts impart their own energy unto souls- with worlds, they impart elder energy, which allows the amount of Anima they hold to increase (so the world may be of better service to the Elders). However, when given to mortals- they achieve the same thing with the mortal’s soul rather than the worlds- expanding the amount of anima within the soul.

As the Animus of a mortal grows- their magical capabilities grow in turn- being more capable of manipulating runic energy (perhaps without the need for runes). In time their anima supply will have grown so vast- that they will ascend.

But what does that mean? "We call it being a hero"
"That's interesting, we call it utter stupidity"

27-Mar-2015 16:46:21 - Last edited on 27-Mar-2015 17:12:05 by Half Centaur

Half Centaur
Jun Member 2010

Half Centaur

Posts: 6,959 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
~The Threshold of Godhood~


In the early days of the 6th age, some mods talked about godhood as a slider scale of sorts- regardless, there is a definite point in time when one becomes a god.

When you become a god- you-
1. Forfeit the ability to go to the after life.
2. When you die your body will turn to stone.
3. You no longer have access to simple Mortal Magic- and you operate using Divine magic (block-able by World Guardians) instead

But what could cause all of these? Well, when your Animus grows to a certain amplitude, it is logical that it would grow unstable, being past its original load. So now, when one dies- the Anima energy inside the soul rips apart the soul violently- splattering all about the world in pockets- and destroying the spirit’s consciousness along with it. The body turns to stone as a byproduct of this process of the energy rapidly leaving the body- leaving a husk devoid of life energy in its place.

But why can gods not use Mortal Magic? I believe that gods begin using divine energy because their Animus is so powerful- before it was weak enough that they could only manipulate runic energy- a basic form of energy about the world, However, once one’s Animus is powerful enough, their Animus begins to interact with the Anima around them. Rather than manipulating runic energy- gods manipulate the very anima of the world around them- which in turn manipulates the runic energy contained within on a much larger scale, creating much more powerful or enhanced magic.

Gods can't simply use mortal magic- it’s either divine magic or none at all- because their souls are now so weighed down that they cannot help but to create ripples in the Anima around them when they use magic.

At certain higher points within Godhood, gods gained more refined abilities to manipulate Anima.

At tier 1- they can create entire planets with new Animas using their power.
At tier 2- beings can permanently alter the Animas of individuals. "We call it being a hero"
"That's interesting, we call it utter stupidity"

27-Mar-2015 16:46:25 - Last edited on 27-Mar-2015 17:13:39 by Half Centaur

Half Centaur
Jun Member 2010

Half Centaur

Posts: 6,959 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
~An Appetite for Anima~


There are only a small amount of beings who are known to be able to absorb or consume the Anima of others.

The Elder Gods, Tuska, Amascut, and Nomad.
The former 2 can consume the Anima of worlds, taking its power as their own. The Latter 2 consume the souls of individuals, taking the anima lying within their souls as their own power.

It seems to be another means of ascension. By taking the power from other souls and bringing it into your own being, as Nomad does, he strips deceased souls of their Anima (and indirectly the World, which explains why Death was after him), possibly destroying said souls in the process.

The God Gielinor also arose in a similar means to Nomad- forming as an amalgamation of tons of souls from the Underworld forced together. We know that this confirms that the power locked within souls, when taken advantage of- can lead to godhood.


Loarnab has no apparent means of ascension, but we do know one thing:

“The locals paid tribute to it by way of sacrifice, in hopes of keeping it appeased, but they were only providing it with a feeding trough.” – Codex Ultimas

They weren’t just feeding Loarnab bodies- they were feeding him souls. As he devoured the souls, he would vastly increase in power.

The Corporeal beast seems capable of the same feat and is said to have increased vastly in power as it consumed the lost souls of the Wilderness- doomed to wander unable to access the Anima Mundi of the mainworld- and thus the underworld. "We call it being a hero"
"That's interesting, we call it utter stupidity"

27-Mar-2015 16:46:34 - Last edited on 08-Dec-2016 21:00:01 by Half Centaur

Half Centaur
Jun Member 2010

Half Centaur

Posts: 6,959 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
~The World Guardian, Tuska, and the Edicts *


As I said before, God’s perform magic by creating ripples in the Anima around them, making them effectively as Guthix would describe them as very agents of imbalance- as the very magic they used relied on creating a slight imbalance in the Anima Mundi.

Guthix used his power to alter our own Animus- making us agents of balance- our soul has the power to smooth out the ripples in the Anima Mundi created by the gods, should we choose to let it. We can cancel out their magic by Calming the Anima around us. That being said- we cannot completely dissipate the waves of magic sent our way by the gods- should they try hard enough, they can reach us.

“It is true. Thanks to the protection of Guthix... I cannot teleport you against your will, and much of my power seems ineffective against you.” – Saradomin, Doc.

Guthix was trying to pull the same trick with the entire world, making it impossible for the gods to even open a way into this world, unable to bore into the outermost of the Anima Mundi- but such a feat required constant attention, for the Anima Mundi’s soul is far more expansive then our own, and he lacked the needed power to permanently alter it. So, upon his death, the world could no longer cancel out God Magic on its own- allowing gods to once again enter this world.

Then there’s Tuska. Tuska didn't so much create a barrier- as she did destroy a world. Tuska managed to devour a world- but I imagine most of the Anima of said world she was unable to absorb most of it- like a child slamming their head into a cake, rather than eat it piece by piece. So- the Anima surrounding her isn’t balanced- but rather completely unstable. The Gods cannot get near her- for similar but opposite reasoning than why they couldn’t get into Gielinor. The Anima surrounding her is like a rapid torrent, constantly shifting, they are unable to calm it enough to enter or manipulate it. "We call it being a hero"
"That's interesting, we call it utter stupidity"

27-Mar-2015 16:46:38 - Last edited on 27-Mar-2015 17:16:51 by Half Centaur

Half Centaur
Jun Member 2010

Half Centaur

Posts: 6,959 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
~A Wounded World~


Upon Guthix death, the outerlayer of the Anima Mundi- the membrane of unbreakable balanced Anima Mundi- shattered, rupturing the Anima Mundi.

As such, Anima is spilling into the surface world, in the form of wisps. Divination is just the practice of channeling Anima back into its proper source. Nomad has taken advantage of this rupturing to feast on exposed Anima of the world, without the need for the soul absorbing apparatus he used in Soul War’s.

The Anima Mundi was also wounded on the creation of the Wilderness- it was wounded so deeply that I believe the Anima was slightly stripped away on this section of the world, stopping life from regrouping on its own, and stopping conscious spirits from tapping into the Anima Mundi to enter the afterlife. Spirits in the Wilderness are stuck- without a means of going to the Afterlife.

Yet, now there is more conscious life on this planet than there ever was on Freneskae- should the Elders awake, they would have a veritable feast- being able to consume numerous anima from the conscious life about the entirety of the Universe. "We call it being a hero"
"That's interesting, we call it utter stupidity"

27-Mar-2015 16:46:43 - Last edited on 27-Mar-2015 17:17:59 by Half Centaur

Half Centaur
Jun Member 2010

Half Centaur

Posts: 6,959 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
~The Shield of Arrav and Elora’s Wand*


I decided to include this post because of the sheer potential for these highly powerful mortal Artefacts.

First, the Shield. The Shield has a similar power as us- being able to block not the magic of Gods- but of Mahjarrat, and not only block it- but outright rupture their magical constructs, as seen when Dimintheis absolutely demolished Zemouregal’s zombie army. The potency of the shield seems linked to the bloodline of the wielder. Arrav could block Mahjarrat magic (where we seem to be unable to) and Dimintheis could destroy their constructs. If we could unlock the shields potential- we would expand our own abilities to perhaps block not only a god’s magic, but a mahjarrats, whose souls seem functionally in-between that of an average mortals, and a full blown god’s. Perhaps we would expand our own protection to extend to all of mortal magic. Either way, I wants it. I wants it baaaad.

Then there’s the Wand, the Wand is capable of reuniting a body with the Anima and spirit of a soul. It can heal the very tether between a soul and a body that is broken upon death (or cut by the Grim reaper’s scythe). It can seemingly be used for necromancy as well, as necromancy seems to function by entrapping the soul so it is unable to leave its body, and must obey the wishes of the necromancer who controls this bond. If we had the wand, and the power needed to wield it to its maximum potential, we could possibly restore even more twisted bonds of broken Anima, healing the world itself perhaps. Or zombie centaur army. Either way, I wants it as well. "We call it being a hero"
"That's interesting, we call it utter stupidity"

27-Mar-2015 16:46:48 - Last edited on 27-Mar-2015 17:18:32 by Half Centaur

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