Mana and the Elements
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In time immemorial, innumerable calamities beset the realm that would become the Splinterlands. Subsequently, the boundaries between it and other realms and planes broke down. Creatures never before seen spilled forth, and great tides of mana poured in from the Beyond, filling the ether.
Eventually, the realm healed. Its ley lines solidified, restoring the boundaries that separated it from the other realms and planes of existence. However, the damage was done. Now, these boundaries remain tenuous and, sometimes, the preternatural slips through. So too does a steady influx of mana.
Today, nowhere in all the planes of existence is mana so rife than the Splinterlands. It is everywhere, although you cannot see it, smell it, or touch it. However, those attuned to mana can feel its vibrations in the air and are able to channel its power to cast spells. Others have discovered the means to store it in magical vessels.
While it can be harnessed in its raw form, mana can also be combined with one of the elements—fire, water, earth, life, death, or dragon—to change the nature of its magic and increase its potential. For instance, infuse a blast of raw mana with the fire element to create a fireball capable of even greater devastation.
Likewise, elements are neither good nor evil; they simply are. The same is true of those who wield them: a wizard who wields life or death magic may be evil or good, depending on their ethos.
Not all individuals and creatures that inhabit the Splinterlands are attuned to the elements, and most are unable to harness mana at all, let alone combine it with the elements. Those that can gain the ability through various means. Some are innately magical or born with a natural affinity. Others gain it through study, environmental influence, or some other event or force. Some cultures may have a proclivity for a certain element or elements due to religion or beliefs. However, political affiliation, community, and governance have no direct bearing. Examples include:
Two Silver Shield paladins, one who learns to wield life magic, the other earth magic.
Creatures of the sea that gain an affinity to the water element due to their proximity and exposure to it; likewise for those that live in or near volcanoes.
An individual able to harness the death element after exposure to the vampiric virus.
An individual born with a natural affinity to an element for reasons unknown.
Other than dragon, most elements can be accessed anywhere and anytime. For example, body heat and moisture and the earth beneath one’s feet contain the elements of fire, water, and earth, respectively. Similarly, both life and death are everywhere, from the world around us to the microcosms of our being. However, certain environments contain higher concentrations of each element, which enhances the potency and prevalence of the respective elemental magic.
The fire element is concentrated in areas of exceptional heat and dryness.
The water element is concentrated in streams, rivers, lakes, and seas, as well as in rainfall.
The earth element's mana is concentrated in the rock and soil of the terrestrial world and propagates into the trees, grasses, and other plants that grow from it.
While mostly concentrated in the upper planes and areas of illumination, the life element is also woven into the fabric of time and space. Do not be fooled by its name, though; like all other elements, life magic can both heal and destroy.
The death element is concentrated in the lower planes and areas of darkness and shadow. Like the life element, the death element is woven into the fabric of time and space.
Dragons are the only creatures that generate their own element, and true dragons—highly intelligent, wise, cunning, and willful—have mastered its use in ways that other species find incomprehensible.
