Shadow magic?

Good afternoon, everyone. Hopefully your days are going well, and that your writing is going even better! I'm considering writing a short story about an aging assassin, who quite frankly won't leave me alone! He is tasked with rescuing the Queen's daughter, whom was kidnapped in an attempt to force a peace between The Dark Hand and the Crown.

The Dark Hand (yes, I know the name needs work) are assassins and enforcers that use specific brands infused with magic to manipulate shadows, including but not limited to being able to travel through said shadows. And yes, the aging killer I mentioned above is a former member.

I apologize for the back story, and yes that needs work too. I'm curious about the limitations I should place on these shadow powers. I do have a few ideas and am intensely curious what you all may have to offer!

1. Shadows must be interconnected to allow travel. Traveling is not instantaneous, nor indefinite.

2. Using this ability is like being surrounded by extreme cold and can cause physical damage if caution is not taken.

3. To enter a shadow, it must be approximately equal to the user's build and height. A person cannot enter their own shadow, but can appear within another persons provided that it is connected to a larger shadow.

4. Excessive light can affect these powers and prevent them entirely.

5. Extremely skilled users can manipulate shadows to strangle others, form solid masses, move objects etc. Only A few practitioners are this skilled.

What do you think? I'm seeking honesty, so if it sucks, please tell me!

John Ayliff said:

This looks like a cool ability, and it's good that it's clearly-defined and themed. Everyone knows what shadows are, so the reader will immediately have a sense of what the person can and can't do.

I don't understand point 1, though. What does it mean for shadows to be interconnected, and what do you mean that travel is not indefinite?

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As far as point one goes, the shadows being interconnected simply means that a person cannot travel from one shadow to a completely different, isolated one. Say an assassin is waiting for a target in the forest and is hidden in the shadow of a tree. He cannot go from that tree shadow to another one 20 feet away, that is not how it works. The shadows must be touching for that to occur.

As far as traveling forever or over extreme distances within the shadow realm, the strains put on the body by the cold make that not possible. I want this ability to be used thoughtfully, rather than as a deus ex machina.

An interesting fact is that among the commoners, these "shadow killers" are more or less a myth. Bogeymen effectively. The royal court keeps their existence as secret as possible, especially following a failed coup a decade ago. Not that the group lets witnesses survive, that is…

Going back to their magic, I believe it should be detectable otherwise it becomes extremely overpowered. So I thought process is that maybe a controlled shadow shimmers around the edges or radiates darkness outwards. The trained eye can detect this far easier than untrained, of course.

Thoughts?

AnnieColleen said:

Oh, you can have all sorts of fun with this idea. Are you sure it's only a short story?

Thoughts:
(snip)

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Good evening Annie, how are you? I'm pleased that you like my idea. I will address your questions one at a time, just because it's easier for me! LOL.

My setting is lower fantasy, magic isn't overly common here. It is quite limited and its teaching is mainly from generation to generation, or in the assassins' case, kept secret until applicants prove themselves.

Yes, there are definitely tactics involved. Much like you said, shadows can be created to influence the battlefield conditions or to set up traps. Environment plays an important part in this, and I like to think adds a good deal of tension when used right.

You raised an interesting question, what does happen when an occupied shadow is erased by a light source? At this moment, I'm inclined to say that depending on severity, the subject may very well die. Or alternatively, perhaps the "doorway" out becomes closed for the time being. It stands to reason that these people wouldn't use this ability if it was that easy to defeat. Going with the "doorway" idea, it becomes a race against time and against the cold of the realm.

Your brother's question is a no, purely because the shadow must be cast by something whereas, in my opinion, a blanket over the head constitutes darkness. But I'm willing to hear his point of view on this, LOL.

The manipulators can "glide" across a stone wall, because it is still a singular shadow. What they cannot do in this case would be to stick their body out from the shadow at an unnatural angle, they still have to be in a standing position. The glass window would be an entirely separate shadow, so no they could not go from one to the other right in that case. Lastly, the slit beneath a door wouldn't work because they would be light separating the two shadows.

The prisons in this world have dedicated cells in which to hold these men, entirely flooded by light. Torches, candles etc. Yes, there are paranoid and/or superstitious court members who believe themselves to be targets, so their homes are almost fortresses of light. The commoners have their superstitions as well. Many of them won't sit with their backs to a wall or against a wall unless a room is well lit.

For experienced members, the threat of unintentional shadow manipulation is low. First of all, they are experienced and well versed in many techniques. Second, they need to touch the shadow with their hand/arm that bears the magic glyphs/runes while having the intent to use their powers. A practitioner's fingertips almost look like they been frostbitten and this affect can travel farther up the arm as they perform the skills more often.

Arcs said:

I would try to have a stable source for what a 'shadow' is in order to avoid a lot of dues ex machina issues, like hiding-in-the-shadow-of-a-blanket type of thing, and also to set your shadows magic apart from what has come before.

Like, say, have the sun (and the moon to a lesser extent because that is also a kind of mirror for the sun's light) be your main light for determining if something lies in a shadow or not.

So inside a house (without any natural light) during the daytime would always be in a shadow, just by virtue of the roof and walls blocking sunlight. But this would be a 'Shallow' shadow. And a shadow-caster would not get too cold working their magic inside this type of house.

But on a moonless night, anywhere, no matter the brightness of artificial lighting, would be in the shadow of the planet. The 'Deep Shadow'. And while magic would come easy, a caster could easily freeze to death trying any type of spell.

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I'm genuinely trying to avoid deus ex machina, Arcs. You're right in that it would be smart to settle on a 'power source' for their shadows.

Excellent ideas raised

Thuro said:

Just a random thought honestly. But it sounds like a great set up for a puzzle game or a stealth mechanic in a video game.

On topic. You have mentioned that advanced practitioners can manipulate shadows. Could they move manipulate it to link it to another one?

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I enjoy video games, so nice observation.

They could, yes. However, this would not be an easy feat. There are variables like distance, "strength" of the shadows involved etc.

Thuro said:

I would probably have a 'master' (don't know what you call them in your story) practitioner in your story travel in a small group. Bending shadows to all unfettered access for your underlings tasks would be an interesting dynamic.

Also a question. If one person were to bend a shadow and another to move through it, would the passage of the second person create feedback for the first?

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The assassins are being actively hunted and their leaders only appear if absolutely needed (not to say that one wouldn't be an active character)

While shadow feedback wouldn't be caused by traveling through a shadow, only one person can travel from point A to B at a time.

engmajor2005 said:

Can the shadow assassins bring people into the shadows with them? For example, say one of them has to eliminate a target quietly, but they can't isolate them long enough to do so (such as if they were at a public gathering). Is it possible for them to drag the person into a shadow, if given the opportunity, and do the deed there?

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I want to say yes, but to prevent this from being too powerful, you must be a highly skilled user to do it.

PeteMC said:

This is an exceptionally cool idea.

One thing that springs to mind - when is a shadow not a shadow? Is it the obstruction of light, or is it darkness?

This is going to make the difference between the ability being all-powerful at night, or virtually useless at night.

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Obstruction of light, in my mind.

PeteMC said:

Ok, so say you're stalking someone in an alley at night, lit by torches. The torches produce light, which can be obstructed to cast a shadow. You can walk through those shadows to the end of the alley where the torches stop and it's just dark - where does the shadow stop and the dark start?

Not saying it doesn't work, it's just something to think about.

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Solid point, I am just concerned that it being based around darkness is too strong.

PeteMC said:

I think that's wise, otherwise these guys are going to be virtually invincible in the dark.

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Bingo

BabySealWriter said:

I really like this idea. You seem to have a clear understanding of what you want, and I agree with previous statements that readers will immediately connect with the "magic" part of your world. In my opinion, I would not overcomplicate things. Simple, elegant, and identifiable will be your strong point hear. Thanks for sharing!

Also the ideas for implication are almost limitless. One that comes to mind could be "shadow riding" or "shadow skiing" or "shadow surfing" where a small group of shadow ninja guys use each others shadows as a team, to travel great distances, quickly, quietly, and effectively by slipping in and out of each others shadows. Like leap frog.

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I agree that the potential uses for this skill are limitless, but I do not want these guys to be gods on earth.

Aside from keeping them humble, the plot feels a bit cliche. "Rescue a princess" is overdone. Any tips or thoughts there would be appreciated.

PeteMC said:

Well it's your story but if I was writing it the princess would have rescued herself and the retired shadowmage would be being forced to assassinate her against his will because of <somedarksecretinhispast>, until <someshithappens> and he rebels against whoever's pulling his strings and <slaughtersthepeoplewhosenthimtokilltheprincess>. Or something along those lines.

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Pete, the idea of the princess escaping on her own is definitely valid. In fact, I like it. The difficult part is how to pull it off without it being cheesy. A friend of mine suggested that she have been born with the abilities to walk through the shadows at a very basic level. That could work, but it would require, in my mind, her father having been one of the assassins.

I suppose I could make it the retired/exiled MC, but even that feels cliché. However, perhaps he doesn't know…