Wintermark magical traditions

The most common Winterfolk magicians are the Kallavesi mystics, but there are skilled practitioners among all the peoples of the Wintermark.

Runesmiths

The majority of Steinr magics are performed by Runesmiths who work the runes into magical materials to create potent objects. All crafting is magical to some degree, but the Steinr make the ancient magic of their runes an integral part of all craftsmanship. Whether or not the runes are visibly etched into the finished item, you can be certain the proper symbols were painstakingly inscribed during every stage of the construction. Runes represent primal powers and are used not just in metal and stonework but everywhere from a set of clothes, to a banner, to a loaf of bread.

Runesmiths who learn battle magic can make formidable combatants or powerful healers; they use the runes to enact immediate magical effects. The original runesmiths developed their strength working the anvil, but as they gained a reputation for daring in battle, more Steinr magicians began to emulate them. They prize boldness and vigour, and may be as comfortable in the thick of melee as any warrior. Many runesmiths wield a heavy oak staff or rod carved with runes when fighting, and like to spar with other runesmiths or warriors through unarmed combat, pugilism and wrestling.

Some runesmiths focus their attention on the mastery of the rituals, often of the Summer Realm. These runesmiths use their runes to mark out their allies and grant them strength and protection. Others prefer to concentrate on Autumn rituals, feeling an affinity for the magics of skill and wealth.

Icewalkers

The Suaq see magic as a practical tool, either wielding it as a weapon in battle or weaving rituals to enhance the effectiveness of their hunters and trappers. Notable Suaq magicians are called icewalkers, a title granted to those who are thought to show wits and cleverness as well as skill with magic. They strive to embody the best values of the Suaq people; erudite, pragmatic and shrewd.

Icewalkers favour using ritual magic of the Day Realm to perform divinatory and scrying rituals to help find their quarry. Suaq magicians are widely known for their clever negotiations with Eternals, trying to use their wits and glib tongues to negotiate bargains that favour the icewalker and her people more than they favour the Eternals. Outwitting a powerful creature of another Realm is sometimes seen as the pinnacle of heroism for an icewalker.

Ritual magic for the icewalkers often involves invoking natural things or creatures, and drawing parralels between them and the target of their magic. For example, an icewalker who wishes to divine an area might create a parralel between himself and a high-flying eagle, while one who wishes to grant his comrades great strength might compare them to a flood, storm, earthquake or herd of wild boar.

Mystics

The enigmatic Kallavesi approach to life leads many of their heroes to become skilled magicians, of which the most famous are mystics. As well as magic, the mystics study the skeins, the idea that there are fated paths down which individuals travel. At critical points in life there are choices to be made, moments when your skein can shift, for better or worse, as a result of your decision. Divination allows a shaman to determine the most auspicious choices to make, while magic can help create more forks in the path to allow choices to be made. Shamans use a bewildering array of divination methods. The flight of birds is favoured when it is available, as is oneiromancy, the study of dreams, but droplets of hot wax in water and even runes from a bag can all be used by skilled shamans.

Artok

In Tsirku, the most northern point of the Empire, lies Sydanjaa, the never-ending ice-storm, sometimes called the Heart of Ice. This vast blizzard is a great mystery, blowing night and day across the tundra without respite. Beasts frequently emerge from Sydanjaa that possess magical powers and their bodies often provide magical components. The most important are the great ice golems known as Artok. These creatures emerge from the storm to tread fixed paths before they head back into the ice. They can be tamed for a time by carving them with runes, and are then used for transport and heavy labour. Unfortunately they are difficult to take south, as they need the cold to function for long.