Ambient Magic and Metamagics

Five Magiks can be considered a high magic system. For those unfamiliar with the terms high magic, low magic, and no magic, the labels are fairly self explanatory. In a system with no magic, there isn’t any magic. Most would consider earth and some sci-fi settings to fall into this category. Low magic means that magic exists to a limited degree. In a low magic setting, magic is often extremely limited either in scope, potency, or availability. Lord of the Rings is a good example of a low magic setting where the magic is typically subtle and very few characters have any access to it. A high magic setting means that magic is potent, available, and impactful. The M5 setting assumes that magic is so prevalent that literally every creature that exists has access to supernatural magical effects, which are called metamagics in the system.

Ambient magic exists as freely as air and those who use metamagics frequently learn to enhance their own actions with it. Metamagics like Warrior’s Might and Extending Strike allow an otherwise non-magical warrior, or even a simple beast, to temporarily exhaust the ambient magic of a particular flavor(or wavelength) to strike harder or further. In due time, usually 10-20 minutes, the ambient magic recovers and the ability can be used again, but other events which stir the magical aether can quickly recharge the ambient magic of a location, such as the arrival of a fresh wave of enemies.

Ambient magic is also baked into the lore of M5. Although the inhabitants of the M5 world have a working understanding of many types of magic, natural ambient magic causes a plethora of effects that no wizard can honestly claim to understand. Elementally aligned magical creatures, zones where the dead rise, and every other oddity can be explained by the complex and poorly understood rhythms of ambient magic.

So, the first time a character runs into a predator outside their home village, bear in mind that even a common wolf gains the same benefits from hit dice as a player character and can be expected to be far more dangerous and frightening than any mundane beast has any right to be.