Logo of the Mages Academy
Based in Germany, the Mages Academy is an organization with colleges and universities in multiple countries of Europe, that has made it their business to research and teach the use of anomalous abilities in form of “magic”. Whereas the Foundation categorically considers all anomalies as a threat and tries to control them with all measures, the Academy sees anomalies as a natural part of the world, and through a broadly peaceful approach tries to achieve a harmonic coexistence and a scientifically based dealing with anomalies. They see themselves as pioneers of a new domain of natural science.
While the Academy sees the anomalous as natural, it advocates the position, that mankind must be protected from the dangers of the anomalous, as well as from itself. There is no need for destructive magical artifacts; should magic become credibly known to the public a catastrophic mass-hysteria would follow. Thus the Academy secretly supports the Foundation since the 1950s, for example by taking magical anomalies into custody or by neutralizing them, or by bringing them to the Foundation's attention and, as the circumstances require, weaken the effects beforehand. Also, they occasionally remove hindrances, hold personnel that is hostile to the Foundation at bay, or create distractions. Thereto, the Academy has embedded agents in many larger facilities in the germanophone Foundation and a few in other European branches, that keep track of the Foundation's work, that influence here and there, and coordinate covered support or countermeasures by the Academy. Until 2018, they were able to remain undetected by the Foundation, however, since they had been set up for a trap by 4R, an incident during which an embedded agent had to break disguise, the Academy was uncovered and classified as Group of Interest, that is considered hostile to the Foundation for its embedded agents. Until further notice, the Foundation rejects offers for cooperation by the Academy, and holds discovered agents captive as E-Personnel. However, these events did not result in the departure of the agents, but rather to an intensification of disguise; a step which impedes their work and has lead to a latent increase of findings of magical and thaumaturgic anomalies, and more accidents and casualties during contact therewith as well as with 4R.
The Academy has banned “black magic”, and considers the demonologist Rass as an enemy not only for morale, but also for magio-ethical reasons, and they probably are the only group of interest that actively and aggressively takes action against 4R, especially as several members of 4R are former students of the Academy. The Magisters of the Academy are seeing the unyielding attitude towards the Academy with an increasing lack of understanding, as this position evidently costs lives.
Despite the feud with 4R and the activities inside the Foundation, the Mages Academy is mainly an organization for teaching and researching the anomalous. All agents that are embedded in the Foundation, fight 4R or research anomalies and take them into custody, are volunteers and only represent a small portion of the activities of the Academy.
One might think, the students of the academy were walking about in gandalfesque flowing robes and pointy hats, or were dwelling in anomalous castles where gifted children are taught in Harry-Potter-mannered parallel societies. None of this were the case. The schools are private universities at which the students - all of them adults - alongside their magic abilities acquire a civil academic title. Most schools of the Academy are having technological or scientific faculties.
Practicing magic
Practicing magic is not to bend but to manipulate reality. The magic that is taught at the Mages Academy is assertively not reality-bending, even though this may be the result of some spells. Therefore Scranton Reality Anchors are noneffective, especially on high ranging mages.
Rituals
The basic form of every spell the Mages Academy teaches is a ritual, in which all safety measures, safeguards, and the whole spell-matrix are performed extensively and complex. During the ritual, the mage forms astral energy by their will, to achieve a magic effect. For this, the mage uses auxiliary resources like candles, objects representing the used elements, chrystals for controlling, cleaning, and storage of magic, and other components like rune-tables and wands. These mundane components are used to focus, and mnemonic devices, to internalize the rituals. As only mastering the ritualistic basic form of a spell leads to mastering a standardized spell, ritualization is the first that an Apprentice learns after learning the conscious sensing and channeling of astral energy. It can sometimes take quite long until an Apprentice is able to perform the simplest rituals, like lighting a candle. And also advanced mages prefer to learn and develop new spells in the ritual form, though they often learn faster and can skip some steps they have already deeply internalized from learning other spells.
Theoretically, rituals allow to cast every thinkable spell, provided the ability to develop the required ritual and handle the required energy. Due to the safety risks, it is reserved for Masters and Grandmasters, who are alleged to be capable and sensible enough to develop their own spells. However, Adepts learn how to develop their own rituals, but only under supervision and with strict restrictions. Usually, a self-created ritual is part of the examination for the rank of Master.
Due to their complexity, rituals require much more energy than the actual spell. As in a ritual, the energy is not released at once, rituals - different to ad-hoc-spells - are not reserved to certain ranks, but are merely limited by the total potential that the mage can provide before they are exhausted.
Experienced mages often vary from the standardized form of rituals, to modify them according to their preferences, and use other components. At this, sometimes optimizations for the standard form are invented; the Mages Academy is very pragmatic regarding discoveries. Most mages have their own set of ritual objects and magic components with which they connect strong associations, which enable them to invoke effects without thinking, similar to spontaneous memories while hearing a certain song.
Rituals are usually prepared by arranging the components on a table or pedestal. Often ritual circles are drawn with chalk and serve the mage as orientation and component. In larger rituals that are performed on the floor of ritual-rooms, ritual circles mark the physical borders of safety measures like protection-circles. At this, precise work leads to a precise ritual - the preparations are an essential part of the ritual because the mage focusses on what is coming, and prepares mentally.
Spells
According to the practices of the Mages Academy, spells are compressed rituals. Once a mage has internalized a ritual, they begin to compress it by optimization and reduction to the essential. For instance by omitting components whose effect they have deeply memorized or by skipping whole sections of the ritual the mage has internalized. Compressing a ritual to a spell is a long process that requires much training and discipline, yet the successful compression of an apprentice-level ritual is a requirement to become an Adept.
Spells are recalled via association, the mage should not have to think much while casting. Therefore usually mundane components the mage associates with the spell are used, combined with rehearsed movements and magic words so that the only conscious thing the mage has to do is to add astral energy, to cast the spell.
Though spells require far less energy than rituals, the energy is released spontaneously, which is the main obstacle when casting spells. Besides the usually insufficient understanding of lower ranks for magic and the ability to memorize complex spells. The division in Apprentice-, Adept-, Master- and Grandmaster-spells, serves as a protection of the mage from overloading themselves and to prevent concomitant accidents. For example, an Adept may learn Apprentice- and Adept-spells. They will have a hard time learning Master-spells, and if they are caught, they get into hot water.
Most mages use a spell-book containing the standard-spells with the standard-components, as a mnemonic device but also often as a component. As long as the goal is reached, the Academy allows all mages of Adept level and above, to use their own components and to deviate from the standard. For example, some mages favor a magic wand (or multiple wands) as a component. Other mages however think wands antiqued and childish. The standardized spell words are written in a pseudo-Latin that was introduced by an Arch-Magister in the 18th century, who did not speak actual Latin. While traditionalists still use it, others repulsedly use correct Latin. Still, others use German, Old-Germanic, or -Norse, French, Japanese, Quenya, Sindarin, or other fantasy-languages. At least one high-ranking mage is known who - to the dismay of his colleagues - casts in Klingon, the Black Speech, or the language of the Warhammer-Chaos. Runes are used similar - magic runes function only through the mages' association. Additionally, a mage rarely can use the personal components of another mage, unless the other uses standard-components.
The standardized spells of the Mages Academy are, by the current state of scientific knowledge, the most efficient and safest ways to reach the desired effect. Some higher-ranking members of the Academy constantly research on the optimization and enhancement of the standards and sometimes research in wholly different approaches and paradigms of magic. Outside of the Academy, all higher-ranking mages are allowed to - within the Charta - to deviate from all standards and regulations, though on their own risk.
Principally, mages have to be differenced from wizards who cast spells with the aid of external forces, like shamans or well-natured possessed, and inherently also druids who are a mixed form.
Natural magical talent
Every Homo Sapiens is sensible to magic. The measure of magic talent though is very different, present at birth, and depending on the parents' magic talent as well as the positions of heavenly bodies (Astrology basically is nothing else than the completely amateurish interpretation of magic potential), where the prefix “astral-” originates from which is often used in magic terminology. Normal humans are not the only ones who can sense magic; some animal species have a magic sense and use it for orientation or to recognize prey or dangers. It is assumed that already some dinosaur species had this sense. Actually, the mental capacity of the human is considered to be in correlation to the humans' magic talent. Except for some paradox exceptions, humans, apes, and whales have a far higher magic talent than other animals. Furthermore there exist some other humanoid races with a sense of magic, which in some cases have an extensive natural understanding for magic and natural magical abilities. However, most of these races today have been decimated or eradicated by the human by the destruction of their habitats and persecution. Other reasons are evolutionary dead ends, inner social conflicts, and climate change. Some genetically compatible races have merged with modern humans - some anthropologists assume that in some cases high magic talent of the modern human is to owe to the Neanderthals' heritage. Today, most of these species survive hidden from humans in the most remote corners of the world, or in their midst on the edges of society. The Mages Academy attempts to find and research these species, or to include them in the Academy if they are suitable; however, this is rarely successful and at times they get caught in the clutches of the SCP Foundation or the GOC.
The natural average potential of a human lies below 0.1 T, and therewith is neither usable nor sensible without further ado. A human with a natural potential as of 0.5 T is considered magically talented and may be accepted into the Academy. As of a natural potential of circa 2 T, the person may instinctively and unknowingly cast minimal magic, often in form of little changes to their surroundings and the people in their sphere. This usually manifests by the person having exceptionally much “luck”. As of circa 5 T, the affected notice that they are different from others. They often have an alleged sixth sense, however, without proper training, they often are over-challenged by their intuitions and often suffer psychological issues. As of 10 T, the affected are usually latently aware that they have esoteric abilities. Some therein find their fortune and manage to sell their abilities (for example as mediums, ghost-healer, escapologists, and conjuring-artists). Others consider their enhanced perception as psychosis and therewith become an easy target for magical creatures of good and bad nature. Sometimes these talented develop actual magical abilities which in turn raises their potential whereupon they often seclude themselves out of fear to be considered to be insane or imposters, or that they would get caught by secret services to research and weaponize them (this worry is the most mentioned, and also very likely). If they are not found by the Mages Academy or another organization, they often develop into mightly mages, however, their spells often are unstable and have side-effects, and they often are permanently besieged by demons or suchlike and haunted with nightmares.
Magical hazards
Most of these species are mundane and not dangerous for mages, especially as even aggressive rational species are usually letting off of mages as capable mages are not less rare then them. Yet there are creatures of extrareal origin, like elementals or demons, that stalk on mages out of curiosity, malice, pressure, or hunger, and try to attack these from their world, or use breaches in their spells to get into this world.
The Academies' standardized spells are safe though and can be used by an Adept or higher without any risk while following the standard procedures. Higher leveled mages can defend themselves from such attacks and Apprentices are protected by the facilities' shielding.
Other dangers of magic are to exceed the controllable amount of energy, which can result in back couplings or discharge. In the worst case, destructive sphere-conjunctions may occur, during which nor rarely “wild magic” sinks into the real-space which leads to a localized extension of the universal laws which in turn results in the appearance of anomalies. Most accidents with magic - like involuntary summonings - happen outside of the Academies' facilities, almost exclusively because of hubris, noncompliance to the rules, autodidacticism, and lacking education of naturally talented mages.
