Magic in the Badlands

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The Badlands do not have clearly defined magical regions the way the former Silver Moon Empire does. Because it is not focused, this energy suffuses the land, resulting in a higher proportion of elementals, demi-elementals, and beings with odd magical traits. By contrast, spellcasters are extremely rare and most inhabitants rely on runes and innate abilities to express magic. Spellcasting is a dangerous proposition in the Badlands, as the chaos of the leylines causes insanity and often death in the spellcasters. Not only does one constantly risk being torn apart by backlash, but they will inevitably go insane the longer and more they practice their magic. Mancers from the Badlands DO have the potential to become normal mancers if they leave for a place with more stable leylines before the ill effects set in, but mancers from the west who venture into the Badlands may find the raw power intoxicating, but risk their minds and bodies as any other Badlands spellcaster does. Full mancers face dangerous lives, as not only will their own power eventually drive them mad and tear them asunder, but they are shunned and even hunted by almost all of the societies in the Badlands, who fear the destruction these beings often come to represent... and deliver.

Magical "surges" can randomly occur in places, typically attuned to one of the seven elements. These surges often attract elementals and similar beings, but almost all of these wellsprings are temporary (though temporary can mean a matter of minutes to decades, depending). Rarely, more than one element may be involved, and even more rarely, an eruption of uncut leyline energy may occur with unpredictable results. Both such occasions can be understandly deadly. Many events in the distant past of the Badlands have assisted in the sundering, the splitting and destabilizing of its leylines, and little occurs today to alter this legacy.