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Runic Magic: An Observation

Runic magic is unique to Humans, relying on the innate creativity that lets them thrive wherever life takes them. I have gleaned that it uses more estoric fields of study: Temporal, Spacial, Force, and Emotion. It is alone of the three known magics that cannot create its own light source. If it even is a magic.

Runes are created and stored in patterns and sentences, another oddity from the two major magics. While the two most people are familiar with are created usually when they are cast, runic is created ahead of time. Once made, it cannot be modified without modifying the so-called "source". This is unlike Focus/Faith spells, which is eternally modified by a number of factors such as the casters mental state, levels of fatigue, external pressures1, and so on. Runic magic was still acted on by external pressures et al., but the spell was never modified by "internal" pressures, such as the caster's mental state. The only internal pressure was that the "caster" had to be in contact with the rune. This observation makes me think that runes are nothing more the sophisticated magical devices, ones that we have merely forgotten how to make.

Not all users of this magic could apparently use Runes, but only create them, yet another oddity. These "Scribes", as archaic texts describe them, could use some "magic", namely so-called Passive Runes. I make the assumption these Passive Runes were mainly Emotion-type spells, as the texts described many of Emotion's as "non-reactive". However, they seemed to supply there counterpoint, the "Knights".

The Knights were, apparently, the antithesis of the Scribes: Able to use, but not create, Runes. This should not be possible, and yet the texts claim to a degree which cannot be ignored that they did exactly this. This only furthers my hypothesis that this "magic" is nothing more then the creation, and use of, powerful magical devices. However, I am still unable to figure out why the Scribes are unable to use the devices they themselves were able to create, nor these so-called Passive Runes.2

The texts also claimed of a third type of user, a "Lord" of sorts, who was both a Scribe and a Knight. Other then vague references to the previous point, they did not elaborate. These "Runic Lords" will require further research. There is an expedition to Kwanza in the upcoming months, and if I can secure a spot upon it, I shall certainly discover more about this "magic". Again, if it even is a magic.

- From the collected writing of of D. Armos, researcher-in-good-standing of Oxford [E. Union, German branch]

1: The presence or lack of an element, intervening spell work, or traits/conditions out of the control of the spell caster

2: To tell the truth, though I think all this Passive Runes talk is marlarky, the sheer discrepancy that they create between "Scribes" and "Knights" is driving me insane. May my Lady help me, I will figure them out.