Meta-physics and magic of my setting

[Superfluous Crow]

Yes, this is yet another magic system. There seems to be a current trend of writing magic systems, and since it is one of my favorite parts of creating settings, i felt i had to participate in the trend. So even though i can't give you any crunchy stuff to look at since i haven't decided on a system to use (i'm currently playing with a modified version of Unhallowed Metropolis with a Spiritual Attribute system mildly inspired by TROS, but haven't really done anything about magic in that yet), i have instead written some fluff on the meta-physics behind my (newest) system. And because i realize not everybody is up to reading a couple of pages on magic, i have tried to make a synopsis before each chapter, which you should be able to comment on to ensure everyone interested gets a chance.

ANOMALIES
Synopsis: The world, the Cosmos, although a deterministic structure by itself, is riddled with errors not only in the structure of matter but also in the way the Laws of Nature manipulate and govern the world. These errors give rise to 'Anomalies', unnatural phenomena that can be both unnoticeably subtle and incredibly overt. Humans can also be Anomalies, which gives them certain unnatural abilities.
[spoiler]The Cosmos, the Material Universe, is in essence nothing but a construction, matter tied tightly together by rules and laws to make a great machine with no purpose but to exist. Its path in time is predetermined and inevitable, as nothing is left up to chance but is rather all a direct causal effect of the workings of the Clockwork. Or at least, that's the way it would've worked if the Great Machine was indeed a perfect construct. But like all machines and creations, the world isn't perfect and neither is it eternal. If not taken care of, it will eventually deteriorate itself into nothingness. And we are not only talking about the erosion of mountains and the drying up of lakes; even the underlying fabric of rules and laws which ties it all together is subject to the decay. It might be a piece of stone that defies gravity, metal that hardens when heated, or flames that do not burn. The effects of the broken law depends on what rule is broken. These Anomalies are luckily few and far between and many will live their entire life without being aware of the existence of these unnatural objects. But some people are aware of their existence.
Of course, the people who are most aware of the existence of anomalies are those who are anomalies themselves. Most types of anomaly can't integrate themselves with life in any meaningful way and result in warped and stillborn children. But a few survive; yet the only life that awaits these 'lucky' individuals is the life of the outsider. They possess freakish abilities that defy the rules of mortal men, and can pose as either defects or gifts for the man in question. Human Anomalies are extremely rare and there are rarely more than two or three in a city and most probably believe that they are a unique case.
[/spoiler]

THE ENERGY WITHIN
Synopsis:  Humans have an inner energy, the essence,that can be shaped and molded inside the body so it is in an Inner Equilibrium that makes him capable of superhuman feats. Some human have such a powerful essence that their frames can barely contain it, in which case it escapes as electrical energy.
[spoiler]Humans have long been known to be creatures of both body and soul, but only the sages of Ieshyn have long known it for a fact that a third force was involved. The essence is the life force that both molds our body to its unique human shape, holds together the soul that is otherwise a stranger to the Material World, and moves our body and gives it life. For an ordinary, untrained human, this energy is in disorder and only allows for the training of the body. Through certain meditations and ancient techniques, though, it's possible to train the essence in such a way that the soul, essence and vessel will act in synchronized harmony, something that enhances both senses, reflexes, and the body itself. Many would claim that the power gained through this Inner Equilibrium is supernatural, yet it could be discussed that this is not so much above the human potential as the epitome of what humanity can achieve physically without the aid of either science or the occult.
A few people, though, do possess an essence that put them on the border of the supernatural, though it might also be said that their abilities are nothing but the product of nature. These people have extremely powerful essences. Now, even though it is life force we're talking about here, high amounts of energy coursing through one's body is rarely healthy, and most of these 'gifted' individuals, called Maruts, die either before or a few days after birth. Some survive though, their frames strengthened by the energies they constantly have to endure. This energy also occasionally escapes their bodies, resulting in spectacular displays of electrical arcs, or bolts of lightning. These can be extremely dangerous to both himself and perhaps especially the people around him. Some teach themselves to control these forces within them, but others have absolutely no control of when and where their powers are displayed. Goverments have long seen them as a threat to society, and either shun them, or drive them out. In the extreme case of Throne, the Maruts are used in a more direct manner, in that they have found a way to tap the power within the Maruts against their will to power their cities.
[/spoiler]

PSIONS
Synopsis: The psions, or druids, are extremely powerful individuals who can bend the world to their will.
[spoiler]A few extremely rare individuals seem to retain the ability to manipulate the world physically with the use of their mind. The wonders their minds can produce include telekinesis, telepathy, and precognition, but are far from limited to that. No one knows exactly where this power originates from, but the myths say that the souls of psions are directly connected to the soul of the world, and as such they can as easily move their limbs as they can a stone lying on the ground which is presumably a 'limb' of the world; their second body. This connection to the natural world is also what gives them their second name, Druids, presumably after a nature sect in the North whose practitioners claimed they were in direct contact with the spirit of the world. Unfortunately for the psions this contact seems to mess with their minds to such a degree that most of them cease to be able to function as normal humans and become crazed individuals who wander the wildernesses in search of peace of mind. A few remain somewhat sane; these are known as Pariahs. A psion is an incredible force on the battlefield, but only a few great folk heroes have ever been known to do so. Many military scientists strive to find ways to control the powers of the psions, and there are rumors of experiments on Maruts involving trepanation that caused a transformation into powerful demi-humans with psion-like powers, called Archons.[/spoiler]
 
PSYCHO-THAUMATURGY
Synopsis: Though not exactly magic, some people can train their minds to perform preternatural feats of calculation and memory. Various advanced disciplines cover the various types of psycho-thaumaturgy.
I should still have a thread somewhere on the forum with the fluff behind the disciplines of tychoestimology and mnemotaxonomy called 'Psycho-thaumaturgical disciplines' if you want to see some examples.

DEMONOLOGY
Synopsis: Demonologists have the ability to summon and bind demons to intrinsic occult objects or tattoos on their own flesh (or living or dead bodies if that is something that catches their fancy). Demons, being unnatural creatures of the mind from another world half-way between ours and the dreamscape beyond, aren't completely governed by the laws of our world and so have supernatural abilities.
[spoiler]Though the material world is not without its own mysteries, the world beyond is a mystery in and of itself. The Dreamscape is the most mystical of these, a realm of pure chaos and thought, it is everything that could have been or has been; or maybe even is. Of course, with this world being the negative opposite of the ordered existence of the material world, no interaction is possible between the two. A world that isn't governed by any rules can't be perceived in our world as none of it 'exists' in the way we understand existence. But even though it's impossible to build a bridge between these two distant locations, nobody says you can't explore the chasm between them. This border-world is the World Beyond, a world of thought given form. It is the origin of our souls, and it is the place the souls will return to after they shed the mortal coil. Here they will be broken apart and take part in the Oversoul, a composite maelstrom of thought. In this maelstrom, thoughts coalesce into new souls or, when powerful emotions, memories or thoughts coalesce, into unnatural spirits of the mind known as demons. These demons consume the natural energy of the plane, and turn into semi-material beings of energy and shadow. These are the creatures which demonologists sometimes draw into our world in search of pacts of power through occult and ancient rituals. The creatures are then bound to his body inside intricate binding tattoos. Here their spirit is melded to his own spirit, the demonologist essentially giving the demon permission to inhabit part of his body (giving rise to the ancient concept of selling your soul to the devil). This process is of course kept under control (if the demonologist is competent enough), and with his spirit, soul and body now being partly unnatural, he can call upon various powers of the demon, depending on the way he bound it. These abilities might include the spontaneous creation of energy, enhancing of senses or physical abilities, or the powers to transform parts of his flesh or regenerate. There are risks though; the demon will over time become a more and more fundamental part of the creature, and will start influencing his mental processes as well, and accomplished demonologists who have bound multiple demons are at great risk of losing control. In addition, damage to the binding circle tattoos risk setting the demon loose on the world and, maybe worse for the character, on his mind.[/spoiler]
Also, my demonology thread should still be available on the forum.    

SEERS AND THE FUTURE
Synopsis: Some creatures have the ability to let their minds wander into the dreamscape and make sense of future and past. Though they are at great risk of following a wrong path through time and thus end up with something that hasn't happened and never will, the rewards of seeing what the future will bring is great as well.
[spoiler]Though objects of the Dreamscape are just as non-perceivable as they are non-existent in our world, they do exist and can be perceived in their own. When souls sleep, their grip on the mortal world is loosened, and they drift to the dreamscape where they gaze at the wonders of chaos, until they are yanked back by the waking body. Souls can thus perceive the chaos as they are themselves only partly of the natural world. Of course, most things in the Chaos are nothing but figments of imagination, but the Chaos does contain everything that is, has been or could be, and thus, if you're very lucky, you might end up watching a scene from the future or past. Some might also be drawn to images of the past through the emotional connection they have to that scene, and others yet can use their will to perceive either future or past. These seers navigate the parallel worlds, searching for those that are slightly more real than their brethren. Of course, an incomprehensible multitude of these worlds exist. For every action taken by a living soul, the world changes ever so slightly, resulting in a branching out of the world, where there is a separate world for every possible action the creature in question could have taken. This continuous branching out is often depicted as a tree, dubbed the Tree of Eternity by temporal theorists. But as stated before, some worlds are infinitely more likely than others, and this enables the disjointed mind of the Seer to find a path of probability through the worlds of possibilities. These 'likely paths' are commonly known as destiny lines. With this knowledge, and with considerable skill, it is possible for a seer to follow the world into a likely future. Seers don't see the Chaos like dreamers, through imaginary eyes, but rather perceive the entire structure of the world at once. This is extremely dangerous to the mind, and the Seer must quickly limit his perception field to a specific area to limit mental strain.[/spoiler]

MAGI
Synopsis: Magi (singular: magus) are sages and scholars trained by various Syndicate-controlled Institutes, and they are widely believed to have supernatural abilities. Unfortunately for them, the magi have no powers over nature or demons, but are rather mere scientists. But although they can't manipulate matter with their minds, they might argue that what they create through science are wonders as well.        

Hope that you a) find this interesting, b) feel inspired and/or c) wish to comment. Both comments and ideas are welcome.  

[Snargash Moonclaw]

Is this in an alt/modern setting then? - (Unhallowed metropolis - unfamiliar, sounds anime)

[Superfluous Crow]

No, this is fantasy. And yeah, unhallowed is technically a (awesome) victorian-ish setting (definitely not anime), but i converted the rules into fantasy, since i found out that the rules of riddle of steel didn't work that well with my gaming group (unnecessarily complex). But i'm going to cook up some new rules, perhaps when i get my hands on 4ed in a week or so. But this is written with no system in mind, for a fantasy setting.

[Superfluous Crow]

Okay, i dislike the idea of me boosting my own thread, but is there any chance of getting some kind of feedback on this? It doesn't have to be much longer than "it sucks" or "it's brilliant" or whatever best fits your thoughts on it.

[Nomadic]

I like how it takes in entropy as such a vital part of the system. Entropy actually leading to magic. I think that is an interesting way to use it.

The demonology part is curious as well. Have you thought of perhaps allowing people to actually explore the realm that demons come from?

[Superfluous Crow]

The way i envision the World Beyond is mostly as an imphysical "maelstrom", of sorts, of essence and demons, since i think the idea of demons being suddenly ripped away from their daily life seems odd (so i removed the daily life). I was thinking of it as a partly overlapping plane, but it would be possible to add some sort of "ground" to it, if you think it would add anything to the idea.
Otherwise, you could always have your mind explore it, taking part in the esoteric hive-existence. Probably not that healthy for your mind though.
Oh, and thank you very much for the feedback  :D

[LordVreeg]

I like magic systems.
but...
[blockquote=CC]Okay, i dislike the idea of me boosting my own thread, but is there any chance of getting some kind of feedback on this? It doesn't have to be much longer than "it sucks" or "it's brilliant" or whatever best fits your thoughts on it.[/blockquote]
I understand exactly how you feel.  I am the guy who came out and said, "I post onto someone's thread a few times, try to put a little brainpower into it, but not too much at first.  If they return the favor and comment on posts on my settinf, I keep up my responses to posts on their setting.  But If I post 2-3 times responsing to them on an owner's posts on their setting thread (or wiki, now) and don't have the favor returned , I stop posting on their stuff.  

I say as I often have.  The best way to get reviewed is to review.

Now, how common are your above catagories?  With a sub-title like anomalies, probably not to frequent on that one.

Are the anomalies bad sometimes?  Are their freaks of nature also wandering around?

So the magi are more common, being the one group here that is taught, and does not have to be found by cerebro.  How much (like the demon binding) must be taught as well?  They must have an innate talent and tutoring as well, correct?  And what is the population density going with this setting, so I can better understand that.

And do the priests or representaives of the gods have a favored magic?  Or are all miracles dark?

[Superfluous Crow]

Anomalies are very infrequent, but there are usually a couple of them in every major city. It's not impossible for a gaming group to include 1-3, but they are special after all, so that'd still be a rare event indeed. But there might be an anomaly for every 10.000 persons. I'm not so good with populations, so that might be a bit too much?
And yes, there are bad anomalies (although PC's are probably likely to choose the beneficent anomalies more often).

Magi are as you said, relatively common, but they don't possess any magical powers (people just think they do).
Demonologists, psycho-thaumaturges, and the Inner equilibrium-guys (no name for them yet) all require extensive training, but this training isn't offered by any institutes or universities. No natural talent is needed, although it, like with all skills, could come in handy. Psycho-thaumaturgy especially requires a special mindset.
Maruts are born with their "powers" and only some of them can teach themselves self-control. Seers as well are born with the power, but formal training can help them acquire the needed expertise to reliably predict the future.
Psions require absolutely no training as they barely have any idea what they are doing themselves. They have no control over what exactly their powers will do, but they can try an predict it (if they still have coherent thought). For example, they might realize that if they want to open a door, but they are angry, the door will fly off its hinges (or something like that).
Not sure i can help you with the population density yet... the way i envision it, humans live quite close together in a few large cities with villages in the vicinity, and then a stretch of wilderness between the cities. I like the idea of metropolises, so the density might be quite large in a few locations.
And priests can perform no miracles unless they are formally trained in one of these systems (something they almost never are). There is one sect of mystics from the south who have been guarding the secrets of demon binding though, so they are most often trained in that form of magic.
And i can try and comment on your setting if you want, it's just that your setting is so... massive. So where should i start? I have a vacation coming up, so maybe i can find some time to read it. (this "massive amounts of text"-issue was also why i tried to do synopses so it was more easy to read and comment. Not that it worked).