Mental Magic

Mental magic is best summarized as the interactions between two minds. Every mind capable of thought leaves a slight trace of itself in the Void and it is this leak which allows mental magic to work. Things such as thoughts, emotions, and desires are intangible by nature and thus drift beyond our plane of existence into others, such as the Spiritual and Voidal realms. Using the Void is how a mental mage shapes their work so a Voidal connection is required in order to learn or use this art.

History

It is said that in the lands of Asulon there was a place that living creatures would avoid at all cost. This Wretched Grove had a horrible past full of death and pain yet was home to a being known as the Tree of Minds. This tree was able to send violent hallucinations into the minds of anyone who got too close yet those who showed curiosity, knowledge, wisdom, or intelligence were allowed to enter the grove and gifted the same powers. These chosen individuals became the first ever mental mages.

Spells

The abilities that arise from interacting with another mind are vast, and all of them involve the manipulation of the target mind. These skills and abilities are as follows:

Reaching

This skill is the most basic of the abilities and the foundation for manipulating minds. To perform the mage must first connect to the void then allow their mind to slip into it. If simply seeking minds for the first time, with no aid, they would be flooded with thoughts, feelings and instincts from every thinking creature around them yet unable to detect the exact location or thoughts of these minds. With visual aid the Mage may locate the mind of a specific target. By using sight to hone down the distance, direction and mental state of their target, the mage is able to identify the mind amongst the cacophony.

Redlines

• You must know where your target is in order to form a connection. Visual aid is required for the most part though a mage can remain connected if they look away or lose sight provided they still know where the target is located (aka the target hasn’t moved).
• You cannot use an illusion of someone to connect to their mind as this does not provide the actual location.

Mind Melding

Once a target has been reached out to then, with additional effort, a mental mage is able to connect to the mind and sense all the complex processes that run through it as they happen. The mage’s mind shares a small amount of thoughts with the target as well - the drawback of reaching out - though this can be greatly limited by practice. Once this connection is formed the mage may perform the remainder of their abilities and the successful connection is signaled by a second twitch/tell from the mage. Specifically a connection allows the mage to view the current thoughts, emotions, feelings and more of the individual. Though they are unable to view any more than this, this technique in itself is one of the most useful. With verbal or illusionary coercion (the latter of which will be explored below), the mage may cause a person to think upon or recall certain memories. For example, either the mage, or another present, may mention an event causing the target to recall that event in the form of a memory. If their minds are melded the mage would be able to view the brought up memory as the target remembers it, and may choose to ask more questions regarding it. Another quirk of melding would be what individuals call ‘telepathy’. By allowing their own thoughts and emotions through a mage may communicate with their target, choosing to either converse or relay information in a silent, reliable manner. Doing so, however, puts the mage at risk of intrusion from their target, should this target have the ability to do so.

Redlines

• A mental mage may not read through someone’s memories like a book; in other words, a mental mage cannot force someone to think about something and then view that thing.
• Connecting to the void requires one tell, whilst connecting to a mind requires another, separate tell.
• Whilst one target may have more than one mental mage connected to them, a mental mage may not connect to more than one mind.
• It is extremely difficult to fully avoid thinking of something if it is brought up in conversation, or caused by mental illusion, and utterly avoiding this without a mental barrier is powergaming.
• A mental mage will always let a small sliver of their own thoughts or emotions slip through, usually when first connecting to a mind. This can be reduced by practice but it must be present. Most individuals would rarely consciously detect the tiny slip-up of a master.
• When mind melding a mage exposes themselves to retaliation of their target’s own mind should the target have the capability to do so (e.g. they are a mental mage themselves).

Mental Magic and Warding

When interacting with a ward that halts mental magic,the mage would find that they can see the individual but are unable to detect their mind, as it is defended by the ward. With persistence one may continuously attempt to reach out towards where the mind should be, weakening the ward over time. More forceful attempts to reach out and connect would cause a faster draining of the ward, too, though it has the added effect of draining the mental mage of their own mana.

Redlines

• No ward is infinite or unbreakable, though they can be too powerful for a single mage to break through (in such a case, they cannot be powered by a small or even medium mana gem).
• Effort is required to break wards. One cannot effortlessly drain the ward of its supplying mana. The more powerful the mage, the less effort required to break such a ward.

Mental Barriers

Mental Barriers are less a defined thing and more a plethora of techniques all grouped under a single name and goal. The prevention of a mental invasion of privacy. They come in many shapes and forms though the most common are repeated mantras that prevent the mental mage from directing the individual’s thoughts. Other examples include scenarios created in one’s mind, false thoughts and memories, chaotic barriers of random thoughts or even being in a fully vegetative state. Really any train of thoughts that prevents a mage from gleaning specific memories can be considered a Mental Barrier.

Redlines

• Mental barriers do not prevent someone from the effects of mental illusions or diversion of consciousness, it merely prevents divulging information to a mental mage.
• Making a mental barrier requires conscious effort and knowledge that a mental mage is intruding or about to intrude. One cannot typically have a constant mental barrier.
• All mental barriers must have a way to be broken, else they are impossible to create. At any time, a mental mage may call upon a member of the MT to make sure there is a way to access a mind.
• One must be taught how to make an efficient mental barrier by a mental mage (who must be able to vouch for it). If taught by a non-mental mage, the individual will not have someone to scrutinise their technique and thus will have an inferior barrier. Either way, training to put up an effective barrier takes many years.

Mental Illusions

Upon connecting and melding with a mind, the mental mage is able to create feelings, emotions, and/or thoughts and press them upon their target’s consciousness. This ability is vast and capable of creating illusions that are almost impossible to pass off as false as it is the very mind of the target that is perceiving them, not simply their senses. Whilst it helps to have personally experienced the events that are being illusioned, a mental mage with enough creativity may create any sort of illusion that obeys the laws of logical understanding. Should something be too unbelievable, such as the target suddenly teleporting into an alternate dimension, the mental illusion would fail. With mental illusions senses may be dulled, altered, increased or even removed entirely, though these must once again adhere to a reasonable amount of believability. By using mental illusions one may even find a way to break a mental barrier. The means of doing so vary greatly, and are often specific to the barrier the mage is faced with.

Redlines

• Mental Illusions must fall within the spectrum of believability, though this may be bent a good deal due to the mind being directly targeted. Utterly unbelievable illusions cannot be pressed by simple mental illusions.
• It is difficult to make someone feel something they would not otherwise feel in a situation (such as making an individual feel joy as they see their beloved wife die before their eyes) without breaking the believability of the mental illusion.
• One cannot control an individual with mental illusion or mental magic, merely coerce or affect how they perceive things (and thus indirectly altering how they might react).

Diversion of Consciousness

Formerly named ‘Catalepsy’ this technique can be described by its very name; it involves diverting a mind’s consciousness away from its body and into a dreamlike state. Doing so causes the person’s physical body to fall unconscious though it may still be awakened by any typical means that wake a person from very deep sleep. Whilst in this state of diverged consciousness an individual is entirely open to any form of mental illusion as they are, by all technicalities, dreaming. From this a mental mage may access deeper memories or direct the person’s consciousness towards far more specific areas of their mind, and they may even view the more basic structure of a person’s mind. A mental mage may choose to let the person believe they are still awake, never letting them realise their body has fallen asleep, apart from a small lapse in their thoughts.

Redlines

• This is the only exception to the ‘Mental Illusions’ red lines, where some form of believability is required.
• The body may still be awakened if certain actions cause such a thing, though one must be aware that it is in a state of profound sleep.
• At the very least, a lapse in thoughts and a brief loss of senses must be used as an indication for the target when they slip into this state (similar to when one walks into a room and forgets what they were doing).
• Bringing an individual into this state requires great concentration, and it cannot be done in scenarios where the mage is focusing on something else (such as in direct combat against an opponent).
• The target is still capable of resisting the mental mage’s attempts to bring them into this state, especially if they are aware of the mage’s mental presence. They may also provide a far more powerful barrier if they are aware that their consciousness has been redirected to a dream-like state. Again, this barrier must follow the red lines of Mental Barriers.

Removal of Memories

Requiring the target to be in a state of diverged consciousness, a mental mage may remove certain memories of an individual. These range from fresh memories - the easiest to remove - to old, well-kept memories - the most difficult to remove. The process of memory removal includes the location of the desired memories and then the throwing of these memories into the greedy expanse of the Void. For an Elven (IRL) week after this these memories linger, though they fade and become less clear until they are - typically - entirely gone by the end. Doing so is incredibly difficult for long-term memories and in either case the target experiences a burning pain within their mind, with the mage sharing a similar discomfort along with magical exhaustion. This is one of the most powerful of the mental magic spells, and a master of the art may typically only perform it up to twice or thrice at any given time though this varies depending on the amount of memories removed.

Redlines

• OOC consent is required when removing long-term memories. To clarify, this OOC consent must be given before the memories are removed, so that the players may discuss the terms of said removal.
• OOC consent is not required when removing recent memories. Recent memories are defined by any memories that would be lost if someone were to die and be revived at that very moment (i.e. events leading up to the death OR events 30 minutes before the death).
• Removed memories leave a large, blank gap in one’s recollection that can be found by a mental mage that both knows what to look for and is using mind melding or diversion of consciousness. Whilst the target can attempt to make thoughts or memories that explain the gap in memories this rationale is often easily seen through.
• Entirely removing an individual’s memories requires OOC consent, and is exhausting to the point of passing out to the most masterful of mental mages.

Memory Manipulation

Once again, this ability requires the diversion of the target’s consciousness into a dreamlike state. The mental mage may then choose to target an already existing memory (by first discovering it) and explore it with the target’s conscious recollection of it. They may then force the target to relive the memory and use mental illusion to edit certain parts of it. Though the entire memory may not be entirely changed, aspects of it can be altered, such as the presence of certain details or the sudden appearance of previously non-existent details. For the memory to be anchored and accepted as true by the target’s mind one must ensure it is as believable as the original, unaltered version. Anything straying from this would be impossible to do. If all parameters pass the target’s mind is made to accept the manipulated memory as real. The process is uncomfortable and a sense of panic is often felt in the target when their memory is manipulated whilst the Mental Mage experiences greater exhaustion. Mental mages are also capable of manipulating memories so that they are not blocked by the shroud of confusion, stress-related amnesia, or more. This type of therapy is heavily dependant on the condition that represses these memories, but the fact of the matter is that they must still be present and existing to be able to be manipulated into being accessed again. Grave consequences can be had from this, however, as a mind often causes forgetfulness to relieve itself of the stress said memories cause.

Redlines

• One cannot make entirely new memories, merely edit and manipulate current memories to one’s satisfaction. These edited memories must be as believable as the original, unaltered memories, and the changes made cannot be too great. Working with the target is essential here.
• The process takes almost as much effort as removing memories, and the same rule of OOC consent applies when manipulating long-term memories (i.e. any memory that goes beyond the death-rule). To clarify, this OOC consent must be given before the memories are manipulated, so that the players may discuss the terms of said alterations.
• OOC consent is not required when manipulating recent memories (i.e. memories that would be lost if the person died).
• Manipulating certain memories can cause Spirits of Mental Instability to detach, though the exact memory must be targeted for this.
• Entirely manipulating an individual’s memories requires OOC consent, and is exhausting to the point of passing out to the most masterful of mental mages.

Memory Restoration

When faced with blank memories a mental mage is able to put their target into the same state of deep sleep as mentioned before. They may then seek out the memories that have been tossed into the Void, provided they are still somewhat linked to the person who had lost them. These memories are then dragged back and returned to the mind that originally hosted them though they may be slightly faded and distorted due to their time in the Void. When faced with manipulated memories a mental mage is forced to find any subtle inconsistencies in said memories and alter them - in much the same way there memories were first manipulated - to return as they were.

Redlines

• Restoring memories needs OOC consent and must be done within a week of the memories being removed (if done by the Removal of Memories). Any memories that have been magically removed by mental magic require the mental mage’s OOC permission to be restored if the removal occurred more than a week ago (IRL times are used in this red line example).
• The Mental Mage that removed the memories of an individual must be contacted if the memories are restored, as it is for them to discuss and debate how many memories can be regained and how clear they are.
• Restoring manipulated memories is extremely difficult, as the target has been made to relive them in an entirely different way. The mental mage that manipulated the memories must be oocly contacted if an individual wishes to have them restored.
• Restoring certain memories can cause Spirits of Mental Instability to detach, though the exact memory must be targeted for this.
• Entirely restoring an individual’s memories requires OOC consent, and is exhausting to the point of passing out to the most masterful of mental mages.

The Current Mental Magic Lore