Cosmology and Magic

Cosmology

The Five Elements

"...And so the God said, 'Let there be five elements, Fire, Earth, Air, Water, and Spirit, each in its own domain, and of these five elements shall the world be composed.' And it was...."

From the Librera, First Book, chapter II

From this passage, Crescent's sages and philosophers know that the world is composed of five elements: earth, air, spirit, fire and water. They postulate, and evidence seems to bear out, an arrangement of alliance and opposition, as pictured right. Spirit, also known as Will, seems to be all-pervasive, tying the other four together in a fashion only the god can decipher.

Magic

"...And the God said, 'let there be, running through this world, two threads of power, the Arcane and the Divine, like night and day, like dark and light, like female and male.' And there is. And the God said 'Through each of these elements let there be creatures, great and small, and in the joining of these elements let the greatest of beings reside, that of elf and man, dwarf, halfling and gnome.' And there are..."

From the Librera, First Book, chapter II

Like two sides of a coin, the divine and the arcane power reside throughout the world, each woven with threads of the elements. Divine magic, that which is utilized by clerics and paladins, is woven mostly with threads of air and water, whereas the arcane is mostly composed of fire, and earth - although all four run through both threads and all of them are bound together by the fifth, spirit.

For centuries, virtually all magic practiced on Crescent has been of the divine type, as the Church outlawed arcane magic over five centuries ago. Sorcerers and Wizards were unheard of.

With the return to prominence of the Jade Tower, arcane magic has publicly returned to the world. Still, it is not unheard of to burn a 'witch' at the stake. Even clerics of the other gods are viewed with suspicion, as they are not recognized members of the Church's hierarchy.

Magic items are not uncommon for adventurers, although purchasing them is nearly impossible (except in Haven). The Church doesn't sell most of its items. If an adventurer is working for the Church, or is a member of one of the orders, then they may have access to or be granted special magic items for their quest, or as a reward for faithful service.

If found, arcane magic items have often been subject to rites of purification or even been destroyed.