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Magical Terminology used in The Heir Chronicles

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AELF-AELING
(DH) Mind-burner. Burning of the mind by enchantment; a drug used to enhance powers of wizardry on a short term basis.
Source: Anglo-Saxon

ANAWEIR
Non-Weir, non-magical people. Sometimes held in disdain by the Weir. Have difficulty resisting any member of the Weir, but especially wizards. Wizards often exploit their power over others.

ANAWIZARD WEIR
.Non-wizard Weir. The sorcerers, enchanters, warriors, and seers. Have narrower, more specific powers than wizards. Do not use charms or shape magic with words. Magic often requires direct or close contact. Often more integrated with Anaweir. Tend to work in non-traditional fields or artistic fields when they work for a living.

AMULETS
Magical pieces that enhance the power of the bearer, or confer new powers

ARTIFACTS
Developed by powerful sorcerers in the past, these magical pieces can be used by wizards to travel across distances or go unnoticeable. Use of those talismans is little known except among students of Old Magic. Examples: Dyrne sefa (trans secret heart from Saxon) Dyrne Derian; secret harm in Saxon.). Shadowslayer is one of the Seven Great Blades made by a powerful sorcerer centuries ago. The art of making these amulets has disappeared.

DRAGON HEART A powerful sefa (artifact) said to be a deadly weapon.

DYRNE DERIAN
A magical artifact; means “secret harm” in Saxon

DYRNE SEFA
A magical artifact with multiple uses that enhances the magical gifts of the wizard who uses it; made by sorcerers long ago who were more skilled than those of today

ELICITOR
One who has no magic him/herself, but draws magic out of others; also known as an eviscerator

ENCHANTERS
Masters of mind magic. Ability to charm and influence, create emotion, love and passion. Not easily identifiable by wizards even when their power is brought to bear. Can change appearance in the eyes of others to enhance their appeal. Some wizards can put up defenses to avoid being overcome by enchanters. Can take a wizard unaware, sometimes can even influence or persuade an aware wizard. Many enchanters align with a wizard sponsor or Guarantor for protection.

GEFYLLAN DE SEFA
Means heart killer, an artifact designed to kill wizards by destroying their stones

GLAMOUR
A sensory charm (visual, auditory, or both) that persists in the absence of a wizard

OLD MAGIC
Earth magic, as opposed to the High Magic used by wizards. A more basic, tactile, environmentally friendly kind of magic. Practiced by the Founders of the Guilds before the Covenant was signed in Raven’s Ghyll.

RAVEN’S GHYLL
Source of power for the Weir Guilds; traditional stronghold of wizards. Located in Cumbria in the Lake District of England

SEERS OR SOOTHSAYERS
Can predict the future in a limited way, although prophesy is often confusing. has more than one branch. Known as Wise Counselors. Wizards often keep seers as advisors. Thought of as trickY by wizards. Prophesy is always true, but often misleading.

SHADOWSLAYER
One of the Seven Great Blades made by sorcerers centuries ago; owned by Susannah Downey; passed to the Heir, Jack Swift

SORCERERS
A Weir guild that works with materials, poisons, potions, fabric, amulets. No spoken charms or through-the-air magic. Specialize in small magics, for everyday use. Unable to influence others except through materials. Perform some healing through use of herbs, hands-on treatment. Affinity for gardens and animals.

TALISMAN
An object that provides protection to the bearer.

WARRIORS
Also called Weirlind. Powers are primarily physical (no mind magic involved). Can overcome wizards in a physical fight, but usually controlled by wizards through mind magic.
Originally were the backbone of the armies in the Wizard Wars prior to establishment of the Rules of Engagement in the 1500’s. The Rules established a system of tournaments to replace the Wizard wars that had gone on since the War of the Roses. In the tournament system, warriors are the ones at risk, and are often either killed in tournaments or murdered by wizards from the opposing house before the tournament ever takes place. Because of this, WARRIORS are a dying breed, and WIZARDS spend considerable time trying to locate WARRIORS to train them for the tournaments. Powers are enhanced by magical weapons, swords and armor such as SHADOWSLAYER.

WAYMAKER
Another of the Seven Great Blades (see Shadowslayer).

WEIR
A family of people with magical powers with roots in Anglo-Saxon Britain. All carry stones or crystals behind their hearts. The stone is s repository of memory and power. If the stone is removed, the Weir will die. According to legend, the stones of power were originally taken from the Weirstone, a crystal outcropping in Raven’s Ghyll in Cumbria, England.

The gift is passed down through families, but not all inherit the stone, and some families are mixed, particularly in America. A family of Weir came to America in the 1600’s to escape the bloodshed in Europe. They later adopted the sigil of the Silver Bear. Many of the Weir in America are unaware that they carry the gift. Wizards have established genealogical databases to track and locate unaware Weir. Powers can be suppressed through the use of certain potions and preparations and are not effective in consecrated buildings such as churches.

Anawizard Weir are not usually identifiable by wizards when they are not using their powers. The Anawizard Weir can generally recognize wizards through a kind of power aura. With the possible exception of enchanters, use of power is usually immediately identifiable by any heir.

Powers are not influenced by gender; men and women can inherit any of the stones and so belong to any of the guilds.

WEIRBOOK
A magical and genealogical record book. Each member of the Weir has one. Traditionally, the book is commissioned from the Sorcerer’s Guild by the child’s parents, using the family Weirbook as a template. Where blood is mixed, the nearest Weir relation stands as godparent. Includes the specific genealogy of the child. Gifted heirs are indicated in the genealogy by the following colors:

Enchanters	Warriors	Sorcerers	Wizards	Soothsayers
Purple	Blue	Green	Gold	Red

WEIRSBANE
An extract of bracklewort, a seaweed that suppresses Weir powers.

WIZARDS
Most powerful of the Weir because of their ability to use High Magic and charms, and their ability to control and influence other people through mind magic. Wizards are very long-lived, and have long memories. Ability to use power over distance. Charms shape and control power and allow its sophisticated application. Can put up barriers, immobilize people. Have limited ability to heal injuries, particularly those caused by magic (use counterspells). Power varies among wizards, depending on training and genetics. Untrained wizards “leak” magic, causing bizarre events, and cannot put it to good use. Trained wizards can generally recognize each other through a kind of aura, although use of power is the most distinct sign of a stone. The touch of a wizard has an electrical quality.

Raven’s Ghyll is the traditional hold of Wizards in Cumbria, England. Members of the House D’Orsay have served as Masters of the Games for the past several centuries. During the Wizard Wars use of wizard power in battle was devastating. This resulted in the establishment of the Rules of Engagement in 1532 and the implementation of the Game, a series of tournaments that allocates power among Wizards.

Wizards who choose to involve themselves in the Anaweir world are often powerful politicians or very wealthy businesspeople because they can influence others so easily. They have to devote very little time to making a living, so have considerable time for Weir politics and intrigue. Wizards are even more powerful vis a vis the Anaweir than in relation to the other magical Guilds.