Life magic should be just as capable of being disturbing as death magic.
A life magic practitioner should be capable of pumping so much healing energy into a person that their immune system goes rogue and attacks their own body.
Excess healing energy should be capable of making the body fill with tumors.
Excess healing energy should give a person the mother of all allergic reactions.
Excess healing energy should kick a person's natural healing and growth mechanisms into overdrive while there's nothing that needs to be healed.
The reason being is that most practices will grow and change.
A year ago would I have thought my death practice would shift to a death and life duality based practice? No!
When I began worshipping the old gods of Ireland would I have ever thought that I would now be testing the waters of helpol as well? No!
It’s important to allow yourself the opportunity and freedom to change. If you say never then you are going to limit yourself. I promise you it is alright if your practice shifts away from what it was. Your path should grow as you do, not tie you down.
Behold! The cover for my upcoming adult fantasy novel, featuring life/death magic, growing up in a world at war, and characters forced to come to terms with the destiny that the gods have chosen for them.
For more insight on how the cover got made you can check out my author website!
In my thirst for more Wizard101 lore, I've been compiling a heck load of information about various things and it's frankly become a mess. One of my first endeavors was to find resources about the Schools of Magic. This first rabbit-hole was about the School of Life. As a disclaimer, my main school is not Life, it is actually Balance. However, I've recently made a Life wizard and wanted to scrape the barrel for lore that I could potentially use for their story.
This is a working "document", and is separated into 4 sections:
I. Information given from the game
II. Theories
III. My own ideas
IV. Sources
Things will be updated as I find more stuff or if I have more ideas (which I definitely will).
I. INFORMATION GIVEN FROM THE GAME
From the official Wizard101 website, the School of Life is described as follows:
“Life is spirit, the force of awareness and existence. It is about constant growth and movement. Practitioners of Life Magic, known as Theurgists, are positive, enthusiastic people who seek to appreciate the simple pleasures. At times, however, they can be too flighty or frivolous when circumstances demand otherwise. Theurgists use Songs to breathe life and spirit into a vessel. Unlike other magic, which relies on summoning, coercing, or beseeching, Life Magic harnesses the power of the Song of Creation to create something new. Scholars believe that Theurgy channels the tapestry of music from which the Spiral was created, and that in echoing portions of the great symphony, a Wizard can bring forth and create Life where none previously existed.
Life Magic rests between Fire and Storm, for the spark of Life comes from those two forces.”
And I believe this is from when you first pick Life as your school:
“The Life School will train its student wizards to heal themselves and other players. Life Wizards are given the ability to heal themselves the most effectively, as well as the unique ability to heal other players. Combined with this, they do low to moderate damage attack spells with extremely high accuracy rates. They also possess the sole group heal spells.
Life Wizards are often Social, Charming, Funny and Spiritual. Famous Theurgists include Queen Titania, Leonardo DaVinci, and Thomas Jefferson. Life Wizards are great at healing themselves and others.”
From the History of Life Magic:
“Life Magic was said to have been discovered by the earliest inhabitants of Ravenwood, guided by none other than Grandfather Tree himself. He instructed his early disciples to plant trees and tend to a grove to learn the complex interactions of all living things. As these early Theurges advanced in their studies, so too did their gardens improve, eventually sprouting the sentient Spell Trees. Not just of Life Magic, but all of the Schools. Each tree embodied a new form of magic, a new aspect of existence. It was through their growth, study, and teaching that Magical Law was tested, explored, and codified.”
From one of the Life School Quests:
Moolinda Wu: “Music is the language of Life. When we sing, our Songs can take form, and with each new Song, a spirit is born! Imps, Pixies, Sprites… the Fairy spirits are the essence of Music.”
Lady Oriel: “Greetings, little one. I am Lady Oriel, Princess of the Seraphs. We are the Guardians of Life. We protect the Song of the Universe and seek out those who will help us keep our World alive.”
The Rota of Reading:
“Summer is coming in. Loudly sing, Cuckoo! The seed grows and the meadow blooms, and the woods spring anew!”
II. THEORIES
Life Magic is, in my opinion, the School of Music. Their symphonies and their songs uplift organisms and give them the courage to grow. Theurgists breathe vigor into others and are strong in their convictions. Movement and change are the tunes they dance to, proving time and time again that it is difficult for them to remain stagnant.
The History of Life Magic states that Life Magic was discovered by some of the earliest inhabitants of Ravenwood. While I believe this to be true for the world of Wizard City itself, I believe that Life Magic, whether spoken of in a different font, existed in the Spiral. This is based off the running theory I have that every living thing is made of magic, that all one must do is channel what they have within in order to wield it. Older worlds such as Azteca would apply here.
Throughout the story of Azteca you’ll read that many Aztecasaurs say they heard the Song of Creation, which is directly tied to Life Magic. Perhaps they formed their own version of Life Magic? We truly don’t know. Maybe the “earliest inhabitants” of Ravenwood were from Azteca? Or at least knew a shred of the teachings and influences of that world? Again, we don’t know. There’s a reason why this section is called “theories”.
Another interesting part of the lore is that the School trees were first sprouted by none other than the newly formed disciples of Life Magic. This seems to supplement my theory mentioned above. Furthermore, at the epicenter of each School tree is Life Magic. Many things come back to Life Magic. However, did they also create Niles, the Balance tree? Who is not in Ravenwood, but in Krokotopia?
Moolinda Wu says that music is the language of Life. This has me thinking that perhaps the Theurgists best weapon is not a staff but a musical weapon. In the game we have flutes and guitars of many shapes and colors. Ocarinas would be viable for Theurgists as well. In one of the first Life quests, you make a flute from Blossom’s branches.
Life Magic also reminds me much of White Mages from the Final Fantasy Series. See here:
“Conjury is an art that takes life and the living for its domain. Its primary purpose is the salving of hurts and the granting of protection. Adventurers such as yourself oft stand upon the front lines of battle. Owing to this, you are like to find yourself in many situations wherein a capacity for healing would be advantageous. Mind you, there is more to conjury than that. By harnessing the power of earth, wind, and water, conjurers are also capable of weaving spells that wreak havoc. In terms of sheer destructive power, conjury may pale in comparison to thaumaturgy, but its capacity to defend one against aggression more than compensates for this relative shortcoming.” – E-Sumi-Yan
Theurgists should want themselves to be known and have the uniqueness to stand out from a crowd. Their songs should be used to not only heal but to draw attention and command. Generals, leaders, commanders, and the like can utilize Life Magic in this way.
Here’s another part of conjury that I find interesting:
“Conjury calls upon the elements of earth, wind, and water and concentrates them to a potency at which spells can be weaved. Through practiced meditation on the essences of creation, conjurers draw forth and absorb aether from their immediate surroundings. A wand or cane made from unworked wood is then utilized to focus the aether until it manifests as the desired spell. Versed also in magicks that restore and strengthen, conjurers are regarded as accomplished healers.”
Life Magic, through Songs, can be similar to Conjury in that it can bring together Fire and Storm magic and blend them to a point where Life is sparked, where certain spells can be achieved. Note that while Conjurers/White Mages in FFXIV draw their power from the surrounding aether, it is not the same as Theurgists in Wizard101. Theurgists use the power they have within them to put into their Songs. However, like Conjury, it can be theorized that the best Life weapon is not only a musical instrument, but one made of a certain wood. This wood could be different for the specific Theurgist.
III. MY OWN IDEAS
This section will be the section that is most edited. I will make sure to provide changelogs at the beginning of this post.
IDEA ONE - To begin, I had this idea of a potential fairy world that existed in the Spiral. Recall that Moolinda Wu says that spirits are born from Songs. Specific spirits include Imps, Pixies, Sprites, Fairies, etc… There could be a world based off of this! A magical, whimsical world, perhaps one that’s sort of bug-like in nature. This “fairy world” would be the antithesis of Khrysalis. Furthermore, my idea was that this world would’ve been part of Khrysalis before being separated in some way.
The fairy world would feature a story based off of A Midsummer Nights’ Dream, maybe from a different point of view, or with another plot element added in.
IDEA TWO – Many Theurgists have some sort of Imp, Pixie, or Fairy ancestor in their lineage. Because of this, they are shorter individuals with more dainty features, and pointed ears. They are shorter than other Wizards, and depending on how closely tied they are to their spiritual family, could even have wings.
IDEA THREE – Theurgists have a natural green thumb, whether they choose to admit it or not. It is up to them if they wish to pursue an agricultural hobby, but the more they practice Life Magic the better. These individuals, with time and practice, are able to communicate with surrounding flora and fauna. I believe it is much like how some people in FFXIV’s setting can talk to the elemental sprites that are most prevalent in The Black Shroud and other settings. While some can distinctly make out words and sentences, most people who can communicate with the elemental sprites are only capable of feeling their emotions.
