As soon as magic becomes explainable it is no longer magic, it's technology. That works for some stories, and some worlds, but it is no longer magic. - ThreadSky

8onfire.com • 60 days ago

As soon as magic becomes explainable it is no longer magic, it's technology. That works for some stories, and some worlds, but it is no longer magic.

Reposted from 8onfire

Today I came to the realization that magic systems are completely missing the point of magic, and that Minecraft's magic being vague is what makes it feel so magical.

Comments

furguston.bsky.social•60 days ago

What's your take on redstone being a magic system, cause I remember one of the dev said that

8onfire.com•60 days ago

Redstone is probably the only example of a true magic system in Minecraft. We can know the outcome of a circuit, but we cannot explain why an observer sends a Redstone pulse when it sees a block update. The magic behind how these contraptions work is out of our reach and yet we are able to direct-

8onfire.com•60 days ago

them in a controllable manner. This is why, in my opinion, Redstone feels like technology. It's almost like a system of Runes the player can learn. It's more adjacent to Hextech from Arcane, where the Gemstone is magic but the Hextech itself is not- its technology.

8onfire.com•60 days ago

That being said, if you look anywhere else in Minecraft though, you don't find systems so explained. Instead we have Totems of Undying, Hearts of the Sea, Elytra, Ender Pearls, Golden Apples etc. Wonderous items that cannot be explained. We just accept they work, because it's magic.

8onfire.com•60 days ago

Even half-systems, like the Experience system, are completely unexplained and we are unable to really harness the power we see without outside help. The Enchantment table gives us random Enchantments, and there are multiple instances of Enchanted Items the player themselves cannot recreate. It's-

8onfire.com•60 days ago

implied this system is learnable, through villagers and enchanted loot found in Ancient Cities, but it's something the player will never be able to obtain themselves. I do think Enchantments could feel more magical though, if they were done differently. Finding a mythical item that sets enemies on-

kodaarktos.bsky.social•60 days ago

I like the Minecraft Dungeons magic being sort of explainable? Like we don't know how it came to be or how the artifacts function precisely but we know Souls = Energy = Magic

zaffreaqua.bsky.social•60 days ago

This is a big portion of why Tolkein sticks out. It's mystical, it's mysterious.

That said, realistically speaking "magic" as we know it would be studied and refined into a science by any civilization worth their salt. Rules also make things feel grounded such as with Avatar The Last Airbender.

typographicl.bsky.social•60 days ago

This is an interesting take on the definition of magic. And I guess is a counter to people who say "Science is actually magic" due to the fact that with science, you can explain what's being pulled off. But with magic it's like "woah I don't actually know lmfao"

lying.bsky.social•60 days ago

I think it's more complex than that. I think of magic as something that is only Empowered by fully appreciating how the trick is done.

Magic is in how a star emerges from a cloud of dust, or symphonies leap from a single memory, or a child learns to talk.

lying.bsky.social•60 days ago

My job is to teach what are fundamentally boxes of rocks and lightning to think and what is that if not magic.

8onfire.com•60 days ago

Personally, I think what you're describing is a feeling of awe and wonder.

Magic is unexplainable and unobtainable, by principal. While all of these examples are wonderful, they are all also explainable. If a baby never hears speech they will never learn to replicate it.

8onfire.com•60 days ago

The Ring is one great example of Magic. We will never understand why it allows the wearer to turn invisible. If such an item existed in real life, it would change our entire view of the world. Nothing in it's world is like it.

There are few things like that which exist in real life, if any at all.

lying.bsky.social•60 days ago

I think this is somewhat of a misnomer. Magic might not be understood by the observer, but generally we expect that the person performing it (a wizard, sorcerer, warlock, witch, etc.) Does understand it. Which means that it must logically be comprehensible given the proper investment of time & study

8onfire.com•60 days ago

That's just not magic. Traditionally, Wizards, Sorcerers, Warlocks, Witches, Mages and other magic users just HAVE abilities. They use powerful items that JUST exist. There is no system of runes or elements to study, magic is different from person to person. The most "studying" one of these older-

8onfire.com•60 days ago

characters would do, is explore the reach of their powers. Sometimes they'd learn new abilities- often this came with a deeper understanding of self, but never through just outright understanding of magic. Witches are probably the closest to what you're imagining, traditionally they harness the-

yirmiri.zeus.kitchen•60 days ago

@kekecreations.bsky.social

charterposting.bsky.social•60 days ago

What about charter magic?

8onfire.com•60 days ago

I ✨think✨ Charter is a system of magic, so more akin to technology if you understand it. I don't though, I have absolutely no clue what's going on so pretty much everything Charter feels very magical to me.

humblegallipot.bsky.social•60 days ago

I somewhat agree. I believe if the fictional characters understand what magic works, they should not call it "magic".

When we barely understood how our world works, we wrote magic as unknowable. Our current understand of the world as shifted how we write magic. Both takes are good.
magic = power

8onfire.com•60 days ago

Exactly, magic is the unobtainable- such as The Ring turning its wearer invisible, or Ponyo turning human after consuming human blood. These, in my opinion, are true magic. They don't have an explanation, and they never should.

There are very few things in the real world which are magic, and we-

8onfire.com•60 days ago

can't even be sure they are magic because they might be able to be explained. I do think we will eventually get to the point where we find something we cannot explain- not because we are not smart enough to explain it but because it is truly unexplainable. That's magic, at least to me.

humblegallipot.bsky.social•60 days ago

How do you feel about Arcane? It's all about 2 scientists investigating how magic works and engineering tech from it. They never fully understand magic though

8onfire.com•60 days ago

I love Arcane, I'd probably say it's Hextech is much closer to regular technology though- the Hexcore however, that is magic. Uncontrollable, unfathomable magic. The only way Viktor was able to comprehend it at all, was to become one with it. From then on, Viktor is magic. That's my take a least :3!

humblegallipot.bsky.social•60 days ago

That's neat. Also, thanks for recommending bluesky. I am enjoying it

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