Lines of the Ley

Lines of the Ley

Type	Textbook
Author	Tolah Tera
Language	Common
Date Written	Harvest 9th, 6495

Lines of the Ley is an educational textbook that covers the field mechanics of the Ley.

Volume I

The Ley, also known as the "Weave", is the field that permeates the multiplane. It is the summation of the arcane energies that flow from the point in the multiplane of pure enthalpy or "lawful" energy, and towards the point of pure entropy, or "chaotic" energy. In the Standard Model of Planes, These points are respectively known as Singularity and Abyss.

Between these points of pure law and chaos are the multiple realms we know as the various planes: the 4 planes of Law, the numerous Neutral planes, and the 3 planes of Chaos. (Author's Note: theories of the discrepency between the number of Law and Chaos planes will NOT be explored in this series.)

Volume II

Ley Lines, as we know them, are the pathways by which the energies flow through the Ley. They can be divided into various "Orders" that are determined by their strength, with the most elementary being the Order I Ley Line. This order is the most rudimentary and common of the lines and cannot be decomposed further.

Ley Lines of all orders tend to attract one another, and will readily synchronize to flow harmoniously together. Higher orders of Ley Lines are merely the collection of lower level lines that have aligned to flow together. Following this, one can deduce, for example, that a Order III line is merely the collection of several Order II lines, which themselves are collections of several Order I lines. This behavior, like many arcane phenomena, tends to follow the Rule of Twenty. Ley Lines have a natural "desire" to be made up of twenty of the previous order's lines. The composition of a line is one of the several factors that determines its stablility - that is to say, the closer a line matches the ideal of perfect twenties all the way down, the more stable it will be.

Volume III

Lower Orders of Ley Lines (usually below Order III) are the lines that make up our souls, for each soul can be viewed as a sort of knot or tangle in a line. This concept may already be familiar to readers who have studied conjuration mechanics, as a conjurer's familiar is linked to its master by means of having its soul on the same line!

Higher Orders of lines, the ones traditionally given the proper name of "Ley Line", are usually in the realm of Order IX (collectively around 1.28 billion Order I lines). The World Line, the line that is the sum of the energy of Thyscia, is an Order XI Ley Line. Larger still is the Grand Universal Ley Line. This is the multiplanar line that the entire Material Plane lies on, and is an Order XX Ley Line (around 104.8 septillion Order I lines). An order XX line is the ultimate form of a Ley Line, this itself following the Rule of Twenty. Further orders of ley lines are purely hypothetical, and are theorized to instantly decay into constituant Order XX lines.
One may ask how regional IX lines form in sparsely populated regions. Indeed, there are lines much stronger than one would expect merely from populations of intelligent races. However, the souls of these races make up a mere minority of the existent lines. The soul of every creature, be they an animal, man, or dragon has its line. The souls of beasts are usually Order I, man Order II, and dragons and other powerful creatures at Order III. Further still are the "souls" of enchanted items, and even the souls of nature that reside in trees, rivers, and mountains.

Volume IV

Being able to manipulate one's Ley Line is the core of one's ability to use magic. To aid with this, a caster has many tools in their repertoire. Material componants, somatic gestures, vocalizations, and even spell focuses are vital for a caster to bend and direct the flow of their line to cause desired effects.

One use of this is in simple evocations. A jet of fire or frost is manifested by simply directing the energy of the caster's line into a physical form.

Another use of this is the creation a familiar. As briefly mentioned in the previous volume, a familiar's soul is on the same Ley Line as its master's. To be more precise, a familiar's soul is a piece of the "tangle" of its master's soul that has been partitioned off as its own. It remains closely linked, yet has its own distinct form. (And in the case of a familiar's demise, its soul merely rejoins with its master's)

Some theorize that the worship of deities is another form of manipulating one's line, but rather than evoking some physical effect, it lends power to the deity, and that the divine powers of clerics are granted by the opposite: a deity lending power to a mortal. This would imply that the eldritch powers of warlocks are granted via the same means. This is a controversial idea, and this text explicitely takes no stance on the matter of the divine and the eldritch.