A Grimlock's view of Shadow Magic
While in the under dark Alan Cardew encountered two grimlocks guarding the home of a beholder. Sensing that he sought the power of Shar they engaged him in a conversation about their God.
As they talked, Alan asked them about what he considers her greatest conversation, the Shadow Weave .
The Weave draws in energies from extraplanar sources and from the world around it leaving holes in reality where those energies come from. This is the Shadow Weave, a sort of "negative" magic drawing power from the Plane of Shadow. To fully understand you should know that before creation, darkness was all there was. And in the end, that is all there will be. Many thing that light chases away the darkness - and while that is true for a time, darkness always returns. That is the Doctrine of Eternal Night. Darkness is the only true eternal and therefore the greatest. Most don't believe that the Plane of Shadow exists. They may know of the Shadowfell, but the Plane of Shadow is different. It overlaps the material world - and many others. It is the shadows of those worlds and planes, not cast by any light but by the magical energies that hold creation together. But you are more interested in using its magic, perhaps another time we will talk about the Plane.
Like affects like. If you control a thing similar to your target, you control the target.
Some people use dolls that look like the creature, others use hair or other body parts of their target. Or maybe something that belongs to the target like clothing.
Shadow magic takes this a step farther - actually much farther - by using the greatest example of sympathy. Manipulating your targets shadow. By doing so you can control their minds, their souls, and even their physical form. Reflection
For every action, there is an equal, yet opposite action.
Most casters do not pay attention to this.
Like when someone casts a fireball no-one seems to care about the brief amount of flame that vanishes from the Plane of Fire. Or when someone heals another, no one thinks about the power that is drawn from that God. Mostly because these small amounts of energy makes no difference compared to the vastness of the Plane or the God.
But shadow magic uses this effect, creating strength from weakness, dark from light.
But we can tell you that those who practice Shadow Magic say that it is difficult to learn. That those who teach are few. And that only a few organizations truly know where to seek such information.
There are tales of lost libraries, ancient ruins and tomes of shadow lore - but usually those are not enough to learn actual magic, just lore. Perhaps you should seek members of the Tenebrous Cabal, there are tales that this group, if they exist, understands the magic and seeks new talent to add to their ranks.
Their reply
It is rare that a caster understands that a second source of magic exists in the gaps of the Weave.The Weave draws in energies from extraplanar sources and from the world around it leaving holes in reality where those energies come from. This is the Shadow Weave, a sort of "negative" magic drawing power from the Plane of Shadow. To fully understand you should know that before creation, darkness was all there was. And in the end, that is all there will be. Many thing that light chases away the darkness - and while that is true for a time, darkness always returns. That is the Doctrine of Eternal Night. Darkness is the only true eternal and therefore the greatest. Most don't believe that the Plane of Shadow exists. They may know of the Shadowfell, but the Plane of Shadow is different. It overlaps the material world - and many others. It is the shadows of those worlds and planes, not cast by any light but by the magical energies that hold creation together. But you are more interested in using its magic, perhaps another time we will talk about the Plane.
The Methods of Shadow Magic
Shadow magic is subtle and indirect. It involves two fundamental principles of mysticism. SympathyLike affects like. If you control a thing similar to your target, you control the target.
Some people use dolls that look like the creature, others use hair or other body parts of their target. Or maybe something that belongs to the target like clothing.
Shadow magic takes this a step farther - actually much farther - by using the greatest example of sympathy. Manipulating your targets shadow. By doing so you can control their minds, their souls, and even their physical form. Reflection
For every action, there is an equal, yet opposite action.
Most casters do not pay attention to this.
Like when someone casts a fireball no-one seems to care about the brief amount of flame that vanishes from the Plane of Fire. Or when someone heals another, no one thinks about the power that is drawn from that God. Mostly because these small amounts of energy makes no difference compared to the vastness of the Plane or the God.
But shadow magic uses this effect, creating strength from weakness, dark from light.
Learning Shadow Magic
Sorry, but we aren't casters nor do we focus on that aspect of Shar.But we can tell you that those who practice Shadow Magic say that it is difficult to learn. That those who teach are few. And that only a few organizations truly know where to seek such information.
There are tales of lost libraries, ancient ruins and tomes of shadow lore - but usually those are not enough to learn actual magic, just lore. Perhaps you should seek members of the Tenebrous Cabal, there are tales that this group, if they exist, understands the magic and seeks new talent to add to their ranks.
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