cerebel | (no subject)

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I'm on the lookout for fantasy novels with interesting magic setups, to help with working out all the magical systems in the RPG that I currently mod.

I'm not a huge fantasy reader, but I've covered Discworld, Dark is Rising, Lord of the Rings, and a couple others - and not really looking for fantasy epics or good stories (though good stories are nice) but again more the interesting magic setup. Any kind of magic is good too, from magecraft to witchcraft or whatever.

Anyone have any ideas? The internet isn't really turning up what I want.

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Have you looked at Mercedes Lackey's Elemental Master's Series? There's a brief Wikipedia article with a list of the books here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elemental_Masters. It has a well thought out system of elemental magic, educational process, organizations. Also, they're very well written and great fun to read.

You know, I think I might have read one or two of those, but I don't remember jack about it now. So, thanks!

I'm a huge fan of Sarah Monette's Doctrine of Labyrinthine series, and while I like it more for the characterization and voice, there is some interesting stuff going on with the magic. I mean, one of the main characters is a magician and he sometimes goes on tangents about magical theory, when he's not crazy, that is, and there's all these different schools of magic that don't agree. My favorite bit of magic theory in those books is the power of mazes, but there are also dream-constructs, binding-by-forms and blood-witches, etc... The thing is I wouldn't say the magic system is at the forefront, but it is there.

Also, Jonathan Strange and Mr.Norrell is really cool and academic about magic, and is also very based on English/Celtic folklore (i.e. the fairy realm).

*shrug* Hopefully that was semi-helpful ^_^

Yeah, that sounds totally like what I'm looking for.

Man, I love Johnathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. Have you read the short story collection in the same universe - erm, I think it's called something like The Ladies of Grace Adieu?

Piers Anthony's Incarnations of Immortality has some interesting gem and soul magic to start with. Xanth has various strange and bizarre magic, if you're willing to put up with Anthony's constant puns.

Most libraries probably won't carry many straight-up role-playing guidebooks, but reading the novel Dragons of an Autumn Twilight or the webcomic Order of the Stick will get you a pretty good idea of mainstream D&D magic.

FullMetal Alchemist manga or anime will give you some good drawing symbols and diagrams magic.

Mercedes Lackey's Heralds of Valdemar has some good stuff, particularly about mind-magic vs. real magic vs. other people's version of real magic. It would probably be a bit much to wade all through, but I'd particularly recommend Arrows of the Queen, the Wilds and Storms trilogies of all of them. Her 500 Kingdoms series is a rather strange system. I'd suggest highly the first book, The Fairy Godmother, at the least.

I gather Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time has an interesting system, but I've never read it. Weis and Hickman's Death Gate might also have some interesting things in appendixes. Chronicles of Amber are famous for dimensional and reality magic, though I don't know how well explained it ever is. Foster's Spellsinger I gather is what it sounds like.

The light and rainbow magic in Garth Nix's Seventh Tower series is fun.

Bakker's Second Apocalypse has fairly standard magical effects with really complicated explanations and moral/sociological implications, but that might be a bit much for use in any of the cultures/the world you already have.

One of your co-mods knows Sarah Monette quite well. She can talk about the differences between architectural thaumaturgy and thaumaturgical architecture for a while, as I recall. Ooh, Nix's Abhorsen/Old Kingdom trilogy, she knows that one too. Wonderful magic of various sorts, with particular emphasis on necromancy. Avatar: The Last Airbender has various elemental magic set-ups and uses. Young Wizards has some good power of words and formulas magic, particularly in the earlier books. There's Tamora Pierce's crafts magic from Circle of Magic, which I'm pretty sure belongs here in the "your co-mod is familiar with" section. I know she's already mentioned The Last Unicorn as one type.

That was a lot. Unfortunately, I'll probably think of more later.

Incarnations of Immortality I've read, same with Wheel of Time though it was a while ago and I don't remember much. Seventh Tower I remember as being interesting, I might have to check that out again. Tamora Pierce was already on my list, as was Abhorsen - I own the first book of that - but the rest of these are quite useful.

Thanks!

I can't remember the author's name, but the book is called Wit'ch Fire. James something. Very weird and cool.

Am drawing a blank on other things but will come back when my brain works better.

I'll have to see if I can find that.

This probably isn't what you're looking for, but have you ever heard of Randall Garrett's Lord Darcy stories? They're set in an alternate universe where the laws of physics are unknown, but the Laws of Magic are codified and performed by licensed magicians. The internal combustion engine doesn't exist, but weather prognosticators give a perfect forecast 100% of the time. One of the main characters is the Chief Forensic Sorcerer for the Duchy of Normandy, helping Lord Darcy investigate murders and crimes. I enjoy the books because they're really detective stories that get classified as science fiction stories, but the magic is fundamental to the story but presented in a practical way.

Hah. That actually sounds really interesting, and might be handy.

I'm a fan of the Sabriel trilogy by Garth Nix. It's YA, so if that bothers you, don't read them but I think they're pretty good. They're about necromancy and there's a bandolier of bells and something called The Charter, which is some kind of binding on "good magic."

The Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind is also not bad. Talks about subtractive and additive magic.

"Eye of the World" by Robert Jordan. First book of the Wheel of Time series. You can read the rest once you're hooked. ;)

I have no suggestions but I would like to express my icon love. <3

Yay Jericho xD I'm so glad this is one of the ones that got kept when my account reverted.

C S Friedman's Cold Fire trilogy has an interestingly well worked out magic set up (the first book is Black Sun Rising) There are distant echoes of Blake and Avon in the leading characters, but these books are very much original fiction

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