Invoker
In its earliest, and some would say most potent form, magic was
primarily the art of memory. It required no technology, no wands or
appurtenances other than the mind of the magician. All the trappings of
ritual were merely mnemonic devices, meant to allow the practitioner to
recall in rich detail the specific mental formulae that unlocked a
spell's power. The greatest mages in those days were the ones blessed
with the greatest memories, and yet so complex were the invocations that
all
wizards were forced to specialize. The most devoted might hope in a
lifetime to have adequate recollection of three spells--four at most.
Ordinary wizards were content to know two, and it was not uncommon for a
village mage to know only one--with even that requiring him to consult
grimoires as an aid against forgetfulness on the rare occasions when he
might be called to use it. But among these early practitioners there was
one exception, a genius of vast intellect and prodigious memory who
came to be known as the Invoker. In his youth, the precocious wizard
mastered not four, not five, not even seven incantations: He could
command no fewer than ten spells, and cast them instantly. Many more he
learned but found useless, and would practice once then purge from his
mind forever, to make room for more practical invocations. One such
spell was the Sempiternal Cantrap--a longevity spell of such power that
those who cast it in the world's first days are among us still (unless
they have been crushed to atoms). Most of these quasi-immortals live
quietly, afraid to admit their secret: But Invoker is not one to keep
his gifts hidden. He is ancient, learned beyond all others, and his mind
somehow still has space to contain an immense sense of his own
worth...as well as the Invocations with which he amuses himself through
the long slow twilight of the world's dying days.
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