Mana

The lines -- or streams -- of mana flow through everything in/on Elanthia, even through the planet itself. Spells manipulate these lines of mana away from their natural state to form spell patterns. The body of every animate being naturally resists the manipulation of the mana lines passing through it, causing Magic Resistance.

The Spectrum

Mana is a spectrum of energies with different frequencies. From highest to lowest:

• Divinity
• Holy (Clerics and Paladins)
• Life (Empaths and Rangers)
• Elemental (Warrior Mages and Bards)
• Lunar (Moon Mages)
• Gravity
• Time

Divinity, Gravity and Time are considered the "basic building blocks of reality", and cannot be manipulated by mortals. Attempts to do so usually end with disastrous results.

Holy Mana

Holy Mana results from the past, present and future presence of the Immortals. Because of its short wavelength, Holy mana requires something extra from the caster. The purity of a Cleric's devotion and a Paladin's soul state allows them to tap into the latent Holy mana. May be slightly influenced during holidays of religious importance.

Life Mana

Life mana is the result of continuing struggle between order and chaos, the antithesis of entropy. May oscillate slightly between solstices.

Elemental Mana

Elemental mana derives from the actions and reactions of the elements of Elanthia, as well as trickling rawly from the Elemental Planes. Elemental mana best resonates with the physical reality rather than the abstract. May be slightly influenced by strong weather conditions.

Lunar Mana

Lunar mana derives from large kinetic forces at work; interactions between heavenly bodies -- moons, planets, stars. Its long wavelength allows spells like Moongate to border on Gravity. May be slightly influenced by special celestial events.

Mixing Mana

As an evolution of magic, mixing different types of mana produces inherently unstable and volatile magics, known as sorceries and necromancies. Sorcery is defined as the mixture of non-Life mana types; while Necromancy is defined as the mixture of Life mana with others. Holy and Life mana cannot be mixed together because of their high frequencies. Note that there can exist different sorceries with the same mana combination in varying ratios. Known books of such magics are:

• Evocation Sorcery (elemental + lunar)
• Domination Sorcery (holy + lunar)
• Blackfire Sorcery (elemental + holy)
• Teleologic Sorcery (lunar + holy + elemental)
• Corruption Necromancy (life + lunar)
• Perversion Necromancy (life + elemental)

Notes

• Mana cannot be carried with you.
• Cambrinth holds the energy generated when manipulating mana, not the mana itself.
• See the Harness Ability article for information on the utilization of mana.