Conceptual Tolkien-Esque Magic System

There are 4 types of Sorceries. Sorcery of the Mouth, Sorcery of the Hands, Sorcery of the Feet, and Sorcery of the Blood.

Sorcery of the Mouth is the magic of songs, riddles, and spoken words. Sorcery of the Mouth is a very learned and cerebral knowledge; the more is learned, the more powerful is the user. To name something is to give it a place in this world, and the power to name spirits and bind them is a key power of the Mouth Sorcery. To call upon the name of a mortal is a little magically potent, to call upon the name of a supernatural being is much more so. Even the most powerful beings cannot resist a call if their name is said 3 times. This is why so many of them take titles, to hide their true names and nature.

But the true power of Mouth Sorcery is in inspiration and speech. To inspire men of an army to greater deeds, or to advise truthfully and with wisdom. It can also be used for ill; in the method of cunning lies and dark threats that can make even the stalwart cower. The magic of the mouth is among the most powerful all of the Sorceries for that reason, but only an especially sharp tongue and sharper wit can learn to use these powers.

Sorcery of the Hands is the magic of craftsmen and artifice. It is one of the most feasible magics to learn, but also one of the most powerful and hardest to master. This Sorcery extends to almost anything involving using skill and personal magnetism to create magical objects; enchanted food and wine, magical music, and enchanted arms and armors. The skills of a healer are closely tied with this magic. This sorcery also includes masonry and the making of great fortifications, the deepest mineshafts, or secret passages that may open with a password.

The Sorcery of the Hands also includes the incredibly powerful subset of Ringlore- the creation of magical rings, as well as other forms of jewlery. This type of magic is mighty and magical rings can greatly improve the innate powers and abilities of their wearers. Some may even pour their essence into their magic rings, to grant them even more power but to tie themselves to their craft permanently. Magical items sometimes have minds of their own, and may turn up in the hands of promising youths or suddenly disappear by those who abused their powers.

Sorcery of the Feet is a slow growing and broad power. There is no concrete answer to what it is; the Sorcery of the Feet is the magic of traveling and of acquired experiences. To walk on a land is to gain connection to it, and to live in a culture is to gain connection to them. Hearth skills and folk tales from one land may appear as almost supernatural in ideas or applications in another, and Sorcerers of the Feet are well traveled and versed in many kinds of lore. To cast a spell over a place you have not been is nearly impossible- so if you have been everywhere, there is no land you cannot reach with magic.

The Sorcery of the Feet also applies to feet planted firmly. The longer one stays and lives in a land, the more one knows it. Mountain hermits have special connection to where they live, and to the animals and beings that live there. Sorcerers of the feet can ply these connections; their pets may act unnaturally protective or loyal of them for an animal, and the weather or brush of a land may attempt to conceal the movements of a closely tied Sorcerer or block the movements of his enemies. Sorcerers of the Feet disappear without a trace.

Sorcery of Blood is the rarest and least capable to acquire of all the sorceries. It is the magic of kinship and ancestry. Those born into long running families of many generations all practicing either magic or a similar craft will find their own powers just naturally “better” then those not. Common folk have a way with plants and animals when born on the same farm for many generations. Smiths with strong traditions and families find their great, great grandsons creating greater and greater works; almost rivaling the Sorceries of the Hands. Naturally the most powerful and obvious of these are the powers innate in the blood of Kings and Queens; both as warriors and leaders they have an innate charisma and pull tied with their blood.

The Sorcery of Blood also includes the blood bonds between siblings and close families, and even friends and brothers-in-arms. For those closely related and spending their lives together, they may have an innate sense of when their other is in danger. Twins are especially prone to this, many claiming to be able to “see” out the others eyes when they close their own, and fighting with fanatical or supernatural strength to defend them. Those who swore magic oaths to one another are also thought to be symbolically invoking the powers of blood. While not very powerful on its own, it can boost the power of everything else those who possess it do, making it an incredible magic indeed.