Magical World

The World Basics page gives an overview of life in general, but the world of Dragon Eye is also a magical world. The presence of magic changes many aspects of life, for some more and for some less. This page outlines how it affects life:

Healing Magic

Diseases of all kinds were often fatal in the middle ages, especially for young children. Around half of all children born didn't reach adulthood, and many of them succumbed to diseases and illness. Magic can cure most diseases with relative ease. However, it requires either the presence of a mage with the appropriate knowledge, or of magic potions, scrolls or artifacts that can accomplish it.

While most kings and high nobility and some of the richest commoners have both mages in their entourage and an emergency kit of healing and curing potions or scrolls stored, lesser people cannot afford such expenses. Still, for most somewhat wealthy commoners who live in or near a larger town or city, it is often possible to get hold of healing magic in an emergency.

Assassination by poison still happens, and nobles are still afraid of being poisoned, especially since no reliable general "Detect Poison" spell exists. It is possible to magically detect specific poisons, but not any and all poisons in any quantity. Most herbal and mineral poisons are just highly concentrated and are present in much lower quantities in everyday food or spices. Cyanide, for example, occurs in low concentration naturally in apple seeds, cherry pits and peach pits.

However, thanks to magic, it is much more likely to survive a poisoning and the strategies of poisoners are changed. Instead of targetting one indvidual, a poisoner will try to take out a group of targets, such as the entire royal family, in the hopes of overwhelming the Cure Poison potions available and the casting abilities of the court mage. With a good timing, he might even ensure that minor targets are helped first, exhausting the resources, before anyone realizes that the main target was also poisoned. Or he might apply different poisons to secondary and primary targets, hoping that in the heat of the moment the primary target is given an inefficient treatment and dies before anyone realizes the mistake.

Diseases allow for more time to react and more attempts at healing, so high nobility only rarely succumbs to diseases unless they take out the court mage first. Only kings generally afford multiple healing mages on staff, other high nobles might have two or three court mages, but only one of them will have advanced healing magic knowledge.

Same same holds true for wounds and accidents. Infection and festering wounds are a major killer in a world that has no knowledge of microbes and whose standards of hygiene are based on religious customs if they exist at all. The ability to magically heal wounds dramatically reduces the probability of such complications. But again, battlefield healing magic is available only to the high nobility, with lower nobility sometimes getting basic treatment, especially when in an organized army with enough resources.

Only among the high-magic realms such as Palan and most elven realms is magical healing available to most troops, and the capacity is always limited and will be overwhelmed if too many wounded pour into the field hospital. Most soldiers do not carry healing potions as they are expensive and deteriorate over time. Those who carry potions also realize that you need to be able to drink them which is unlikely when you are being cut down - which is why if a soldier carries a potion, he will do so visibly so that his comrades know about it and can pour it into his mouth when he is down. An unwritten law within most militaries states that a soldier's healing potion is for him, unless he willingly uses it on someone else. Like everything in war, of course, that law is not always obeyed.

Protection Magic

Long before healing, protection spells are a game-changer in a world with magic. Most high nobles can afford to have a protection spell cast on them before they ride into battle. Magic enhances existing armor, and it requires high-level spells to equal the protective value of a chain mail or plate armor. Most importantly, though, magic protection can be dispelled. For all these reasons, knights still ride into armour with a full set of heavy armour, and enhance it with magical protection.

Protection spells, especially against ranged weapons, are also extremely popular when a king or high noble must make a public appearance in a hostile area or has other reasons to worry about an assassination attempt. It may not stop a bolt or thrown knife completely, but it can well make the difference between a painful wound and death.

With long-duration spells being very costly, even the highest mages and kings are not under magic protection around the clock. As assassins already try to hit their targets when they are relaxed and not expecting trouble, not much has changed in these matters.

Battle Magic

For single combat, a sword through the chest is as if not more efficient than a harmful spell. When it comes to warfare, magic brings not necessarily more damage, but one important game-changer: Area of Effect.

Almost all battle magic is large-scale effects. Siege engines such as catapults are the only medieval weapon that can cover an area, for all other weapons you need to bring a lot of them if you want to get any area effects - such as the huge archer contingents of ancient Greek and Persian armies.

But magic can accomplish that. Spells that do damage in a large area are costly and difficult, but possible. The main issue is that they need to cover a damage dimension, must be cast at range and with an area-of-effect. That means only Tier 3 and above spells need to apply for battle magic, and with the distances common on a battlefield, at least the range dimension will be relatively high as few mages join the frontlines.

Artifacts or one-use enchantments can change this, as they can be given to the frontline troops. Against a magically powerful army such as those from Palan or Aluraba, an infantry or cavalry charge could head straight into ice storms, crystal shards or other damage.

Once melee is joined, however, magic falls to the sideline. Spells do not discriminate and would hit friend and foe equally. Magic attacks will move the the archers and siege engines at the back, or the flanking cavalry. Which means that any army going against a magically superior foe will always attempt to get deeply into melee as quickly as possible, in order to minimize the amount of magic damage they need to take.

Magic also changes siege warfare. The ability to damage or destroy walls by magic gives to the world what in the real world cannons did. Walls are still important, as such siege magic is limited in effect, area and availability. But any army that is under siege will expect a breach of its walls through magic, and be prepared for it. Larger fortresses are even more strongly built with layered defenses and multiple rings of walls, so that a breach in the outer wall can be contained.

As mages are much less numerous than mundane folks, their effect is lesser the larger the conflict. In a skirmish or small battle, the side with magical support will often prevail. In a full-scale war or large battle, sheer numbers often overwhelm any magic.

Movement and Teleportation Magic

This page is still incomplete and missing content or details that are planned, but have not been added yet.

Utility Magic

This page is still incomplete and missing content or details that are planned, but have not been added yet.

Scrying Magic

This page is still incomplete and missing content or details that are planned, but have not been added yet.

Necromancy

This page is still incomplete and missing content or details that are planned, but have not been added yet.