Hard vs. Soft magic systems (+poll~)

[DiegoPalacios]

Nothing stops a hard magic system from having bizarre powers XD

[DukeOfOool]

Indeed
"It just works."
doesn't it?

[sii]

I like both. I love reading both. But I hate writing hard magic because I'm lazy.

[Candlebite]

Mmm, I like me some hard magic system,
though a flexible medium is good too

Frankly i think my comic's system might fall into medium zone,

Being that characters start with a mix of my worlds "elements", and they can train themselves to use that mix a particular way of their choosing.
...here i go explaining magic rulings I haven't gotten to explain much in my comic yet.

[kmlangleyauthor]

Both or either

I had to write out some hard rules in a note for my story, but I’m trying to keep it as ambiguous as possible in the story itself because I don’t want the focus to be on the rules themselves.

I mostly needed the rules to figure out the best direction for my story to continue, otherwise I probably would have left it 98% soft

[rajillustration]

I think it depends on the medium, honestly--I love hard magic in novels because...I like all them words. But, hard magic in movies and in comics take up so much time to explain, and it usually isn't as interesting, so in that case I prefer it more soft.

[rajillustration]

OMG Midichlorians were so lazy. I'm still upset about that one, and I don't mind at all that they've sort of swept that lore under the rug.

[sii]

To this day I still gloss over the midichlorian talk whenever I rewatch the prequels.

It is the perfect example of why it's bad to try to impose hard rules to a soft magic system.

[rmdooley]

I prefer soft because it keeps magic as magic, rather than a science

I like the element of mystery, that magic goes beyond mundane classifications and never be fully mastered

Of course this isn't true for all soft magic systems, but it is the system that allows for it

[DukeOfOool]

I would actually enjoy hearing more of your magic system. I'm really interested in what other people's takes are.

Regading not introduced, in my comic the powers of the seven haloed won't be discussed for the next 100 chapters or so xD. But here I am explaining cosmic beings to people that haven't read my story. Well, reading won't help anyways.

[DiegoPalacios]

The midichlorian problem also comes with taking away the mysticism of the force by making it a sci-fi thing.

The force is supposed to be mysterious, mythical and spiritual in a way, so a soft magic system fits better in that case.

The truth is that what magic system works better will depend of the story and themes.

[ratscout]

Soft all the way. I can't stand it when a story gets so bogged down in the rules of magic that it takes 1. all the mystery out of it and 2. gets so bogged down in the exposition of its magic system that the plot doesn't move forward with ease. I don't know, it always seems that hard magic systems always somehow end up breaking their own rules, too.

Like, in my story, I wrote that some people just have magic in their bellies, some people can heal, some people can use magic offensively, and some people can use it to calm other people down, and that was really all I wrote.

[Candlebite]

Yeah, the road to explaining magic in a story is long.
I plan to explain some of my system sometime in this chapter, but it's still a ways off.

And sure, I'd like to discuss magic systems too.

[Saajing]

[DukeOfOool]

Can I take the lead then or do you have a certain magic type you want to talk about?

[Candlebite]

Sure you can go first.

[darkone4587]

Personally I like Hard Magic systems because it'll allows for a lot more specifics in terms of abilities and it could lead to interesting battles and unique ways for the characters to show off their own abilities and traits.

Soft magic is also fun for more wacky scenarios and grand displays.

[gempompadour]

I prefer hard magic systems because they come with a clear structure of rules and limits that acts almost like another set of laws of nature. It informs readers what can and cannot be done in the creator's universe. No matter how weak or strong the magic is I will always know where on the power curve the characters stand. It's tense to see two people on different ends of the power curve meet because you know the other will get destroyed. Intelligence, cunning and strategy plays a large role in hard magic for this reason.

Soft magic has its charm, though, and as others here have mentioned the Force is a good example of it. I prefer Yoda's original take on it as this mystical binding force that illuminates living beings. It makes the Star Wars universe magical despite being really similar to our own. Or did before the midi-chlorians thing.

[DiegoPalacios]

The trick is to pretend that midi-chlorians don't exist

"its not like we are seeing them"XD

[doomerC]

The way i roll is soft magic makes the governing rules; hard magic emerges from character based specifics. The overall system is very flexible and nigh all-inclusive, but by firmly tying it to a character's psychological profile, skill level and established image, on a character-by-character basis the ability sets have strictly defined functionality and limitations - kind of like MHA having a very loose and adaptable quirk system, but the quirks themselves being highly specific.