Malazan is a soft magic system due to its reliance on location, Warren, or god, which is largely dependent on plot. The magic system in Malazan is anti-mechanical and strictly opposite to science, making it difficult to grasp if parsed in a traditional way like a system of fixed rules.
The Malazan Book of the Fallen is a series of epic fantasy novels written by Canadian author Steven Erikson. Published by Bantam Books in the U.K. and Tor Books in the U.S., the series is no longer in operation as of early 2024. Ian C. Esslemont’s new Malazan novel Forge of the High Mage is now available.
Magic in the Malazan Empire is an interesting business, with one predominating in the books. The rules of magic are very loose and not truly defined, and power is determined by who is more scared of who. Magic in Malazan is pure meaning, where meaning coalesces, making it real and tangible instead of just an abstraction.
Erikson has said that the magic system in the Malazan Book of the Fallen is inspired by shamanism in the real world. Shamans interact with what they perceive as the “warriors” in the Malazan world.
In summary, Malazan is a magic-heavy and unapologetically genre, embracing larger than life warriors, demons, and gods. The author discusses the various aspects of magic in the Malazan books, aiming to provide a better understanding of the magic system in the universe.
📹 Malazan – Magic System Explained!
Malazan has one of the greatest worlds the fantasy genre has ever seen. From Gardens of the Moon to the Crippled God, let’s talk …
Is Malazan a tragedy?
Midnight Tides is a tragic novel in the Malazan series, focusing on two families on opposite sides of a conflict between the Letherii Empire and the Tiste Edur. The Beddict family, consisting of three brothers, Hull, Brys, and Tehol, is a well-crafted story with depths and empathetic characters. Tehol is one of the series’ favorite characters, with his antics and schemes beyond expectations.
On the other hand, the Sengar family, an important part of Tiste Edur society, is portrayed through the eyes of Trull Sengar. Trull is a great character, trying to keep his arrogant younger brother in check while the rest of his family disapproves of his methods. When tragedy strikes, the family finds themselves torn between their culture and the loyalty they must give to the warlord. The pain of the Sengar family is visceral, and readers feel for them all, even as some make terrible choices. The novel is well-crafted and well-crafted, with a Shakespearian level of pathos and pockets of positivity.
Is Malazan based on D&D?
The Malazan world, created by Steven Erikson and Ian Cameron Esslemont in 1982, was initially used for role-playing games using a modified version of Advanced Dungeons and Dragons. By 1986, the GURPS system had made the world larger and more complex. The world was developed into a movie script called Gardens of the Moon, which was not successful in finding interest. The two writers agreed to write a series set in their shared world. Steven Erikson wrote Gardens of the Moon as a novel from 1991-92, which was not published until 1999.
He also wrote several non-fantasy novels. When Gardens of the Moon was sold, he agreed to a contract for an additional nine volumes, worth £675, 000, making it one of the largest fees ever paid for a fantasy series. Ian Cameron Esslemont wrote the Novels series from 2004 to 2014. After finishing the main series, Erikson and Esslemont continued to work on further projects in the Malazan universe.
What age to read Malazan?
Joseph Malazan’s complex fantasy novels are suitable for children, with a grade 9 reading level. The book falls under various genres, including art, biography, business, children’s, Christian, classics, comics, cookbooks, ebooks, fantasy, fiction, and more. It also falls under various genres such as fiction, graphic novels, historical fiction, horror, memoir, music, mystery, nonfiction, and poetry.
Is Malazan good for beginners?
The Malazan series is a complex and challenging read. While it may be suitable for those who enjoy its dark, but not nihilistic tone, it is not recommended for beginners.
What is the oldest magic system?
The earliest known written magical incantations date back to ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt, with cuneiform clay tablets found in Uruk dating back to the 5th and 4th centuries BC. The Egyptian magical system, known as heka, was significantly influenced by the Macedonians’ invasion in 332 BC. The Coptic writing system evolved during Hellenistic Egypt, leading to the opening of the Library of Alexandria and influencing the development of books on magic.
The legendary figure of Hermes Trismegistus, a conflation of the Egyptian god Thoth and the Greek Hermes, was associated with writing and magic. Ancient Greeks and Romans believed that books on magic were invented by the Persians, with Pliny the Elder claiming that magic was first discovered by philosopher Zoroaster around 647 BC but only written down by magician Osthanes in the 5th century BC. However, modern historians disagree with these claims.
Does Malazan have a magic system?
The Malazan series aims to create a world without sexism by creating an egalitarian magic system that allows anyone to access it, preventing gender-based power hierarchies. Author Steven Erikson suggests that warrens may serve as shortcuts to alternate realities, referencing The Bonehunters where Taralack Veed and Icarium follow the Tiste Edur assault force through a warren. Ian C. Esslemont speculates that a Warren’s character’s limitations on spell types, such as creating a ball of fire, are self-imposed and dependent on the individual’s imagination.
The limitations are self-imposed and are based on the individual’s imagination, rather than the limitations of the magic system. The series explores themes of sexism, warrens, and the limitations of individual magic.
Does magic exist in Middle Earth?
Middle-earth is a world with a diverse range of races, including the godlike Ainur, immortal Elves, Dragons, and Dwarves. Men and Hobbits, though not directly able to work magic, could use magical artefacts made by others, such as Númenorean swords and the Phial of Galadriel. The One Ring, made by the Dark Lord Sauron, is the most powerful. Tolkien believed a magical cosmology was necessary to counter modernity’s war against mystery and magic. Magic, the use of power to dominate others, is considered evil and associated with technology.
Enchantment, on the other hand, is the opposite, as Frodo experiences it in the Elvish realms of Rivendell and Lothlórien. However, this can be a trap, as the Elves must let their Rings and realms fade, just as the Fellowship of the Ring must let the One Ring go, corrupting the wearer’s mind to evil. Middle-earth is described as both natural and supernatural, with magical powers shared by many races and a variety of magical artefacts.
What is the point of the Malazan Book of the Fallen?
The series begins with Gardens of the Moon, focusing on the power struggle in Darujhistan, the war on Genabackis, and the Pannion Domin. The second novel, Deadhouse Gates, follows the Whirlwind rebellion and Sha’ik’s rise on the Seven Cities subcontinent. The third novel, Memories of Ice, takes place on Genabackis, following the alliance between warlord Caladan Brood and imperial Onearm’s Host against the Pannion Domin. Both novels take place during the same time frame.
What genre is Malazan?
The Malazan Book of the Fallen is a ten-book epic fantasy series by Canadian author Steven Erikson, set in the turbulent history of the Malazan Empire and other nations like Lether. The series features a vast array of characters, storylines, subplots, themes, and locations. Unlike most fantasy series, the Malazan sequence consists of single novels with their own self-contained storylines, with only subplots and some characters continuing between volumes. The closest thing to a main storyline in the books follows the machinations of an alien deity called the Crippled God, who has been imprisoned on the Malazan world and seeks to escape.
Which Malazan book is longest?
The list of the most extensive and longest novels in the world of fantasy literature is a complex and varied one. Some of the most notable works include Lord of Chaos, Toll the Hounds, Maia, Magician, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell, Temple of the Winds, The Order of the Phoenix, and The Sword of Shannara. These novels span a wide range of lengths, from 35, 000 words to over 250, 000 words.
The Riftwar books, for example, form nine distinct series but also have narrative elements spanning all twenty-nine books in the series. The Shannara series, on the other hand, has a more diffuse structure, with some volumes being more than others. For instance, The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson has 15 volumes, while The Shannara Series by Terry Brooks has 28 volumes, with incomplete ones.
The Riftwar Cycle by Raymond E. Feist has 29 volumes, with 3, 831, 670 words. The Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson has 10 volumes, with 3, 274, 000 words. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon has 8 volumes, with an incomplete list of 11 novels. The Sword of Truth by Terry Goodkind has 11 volumes, with 2, 761, 170 words.
The Wars of Light and Shadow by Janny Wurts has 9 volumes, with an incomplete list of 12 volumes. The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant by Stephen Donaldson has 12 volumes, with 1, 062, 000 words. A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin has 5 volumes, with 1, 749, 000 words. Worm by John McCrae has 30 “arcs” and 1, 680, 000 words. Crown of Stars by Kate Elliott has 7 volumes, with 1, 622, 720 words.
The Night’s Dawn Trilogy by Peter F. Hamilton has 4 volumes, with 1, 247, 000 words. Otherland by Tad Williams has 4 volumes, with 1, 189, 000 words. The Second Apocalypse by R. Scott Bakker has 7 volumes, with 1, 172, 000 words. Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn by Tad Williams has 12, 500 words, including The Heart of What Was Lost and The Witchwood Crown. Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling has 7 volumes, with 1, 084, 170 words. Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson has 6 volumes, with the Elenium/Tamuli by David Eddings.
Why is Malazan so popular?
Malazan: Book of the Fallen is a popular fantasy series by Steven Erikson, known for its expansive narrative and over 400 POV characters. The series spans several continents and magical dimensions, with ten books averaging over 1000 pages each. The author started reading Malazan thirteen years ago, finishing the first two books, ten years ago, and four years ago, reading the series from start to finish in three months. They have been discussing the series multiple times, highlighting both its love and off-putting elements.
This is not an exhaustive review or a critique of the series from any literary viewpoint. It is a rant about the author’s feelings about the books, with varying degrees of spoilers, especially regarding the general fate of certain characters and the overall shape of the series. The author’s rants aim to help people understand their feelings and provide a point of reference for those interested in the series.
📹 Malazan | Magic Systems
Hello everyone! This is me rambling about the magic systems in the Malazan World 🙂 Hope you enjoy! Have any questions you …
This is the least sure I’ve been about a magic system when making a article like this. You don’t get repeated straight forward explanations within Malazan like you do WoT, so if I made any mistakes please leave them here! Special thank you to Andy Smith for helping make this: youtube.com/channel/UCw9jFR-Nd_PxHkwS9MQ1pIg
I think you did a good job using bubble universe/pocket dimension analogy. Even the practitioners themselves don’t totally know the limits and capabilities and are constantly surprising themselves and others with what they’re able to achieve. Thanks for continuing to shine a lot of the series—I really enjoyed the article!
Very interesting article, Daniel. Thanks for posting it. A minor point that might help to explain the magic better is that Esslemont and Erikson have compared the magic as similar to music in our world. Every one could possibly learn to play an instrument (Warren) but not everyone has the same natural ability. So if you want to learn magic you need to find a teacher. Humans typically only have access to other humans as teachers so they are unlikely to be taught how to access Elder Warren’s. So, if you find a teacher willing to teach you the drums that doesn’t mean that you will be able to play piano. As magic is so powerful it is not easy to find someone who is willing to teach you. You could become a rival or a tyrant, so why would they trust you enough to impart their hard won knowledge. Lastly for this analogy, while learning guitar could result in calluses and bloody fingers, a misstep learning magic could be fatal to you and everyone around you, so there is a risk reward aspect that helps limit the numbers of active magic users. The system becomes even more complicated when you add in the spiritual magics and pacts with supernatural entities that can confer magical power.
Some notes I’ve made while reading the series. We’re told that all life is magic. We’re also told multiple times that warrens are K’rul’s blood. The Errant tells us directly that holds are fed by spilled mortal blood, and is pissed that K’rul upset that system by offering humans this magic by making availble to them his own blood. Worship is also critical in becoming a god, and I think “worship” in a more nuanced personal way can also give access to certain types of magic depending on how a person is or what they may become, hence why some people are born with an affinity to something and why other people learn access later in life. As for the terminology of where elder warrens sit, I think it’s just nuance based on language and knowledge. Outside of Lether the knowledge of holds is esoteric, but worship of the holds and some of the gods associated with them still allows access to them. I.E. Mael is still worshipped by some and the hold of water can still be accessed. The beast hold through the worship of Fener as a god of war by cults in the Malazan military, as well as the cult of Fener’s Reve, is also still active, and is lost when Fener is taken from his seat. Warrens are refined magic and easy to use, and holds are raw and uncontrollable. Holds are not flexible in their use, and hold magic often gets out of control and causes mass destruction. This is directly related to some of the themes in the book when talking about cultures and how adaptable their social systems and beliefs are.
hey Daniel, thank you for this! as a writer, super interesting to see how others are doing this. but on another note, as a disabled viewer, i’m hoping you’ll add captions one day? this article was especially complicated for me because the music was too loud compared to your voice, and i had a very hard time understanding some of the things you were saying. i hope you’ll consider having captions on your articles, be it from yourself or a third-party. thank you for your work!
I really like the Malazan magic system because it feels very grounded in sociology/anthropology. Like especially the way Holds relate to Warrens and the way gods ascend or get forgotten and the way power builds up around people, places, and ideas feels very much based in how belief grows and changes in human societies. Erikson really drives home how magical/divine power is created by layers and layers of belief over generations.
What great visuals you’ve found to explain complex fantasy physics! This has made me want to read Malazan more then any other article so far – though Brittany made a great one recently – but I still feel I must work my way up to it, only got back into big fantasy reads (and reading in general) a year ago. First the Wheel of Time.
One thing to add about the younger and elder warrens. It is hinted at that at least some of the younger warrens are somehow connected to the elder ones, making the younger warrens kind of the PG-13 version of the elder warrens. If a mage is willing to face the considerable risks and expend the necessary research and willpower, they CAN access an elder warren that is close to their younger warren. In most cases, it just isn’t really worth it.
This was really good for me. I started reading Malazan because i consistently see it mentioned in top 10 lists where I’ve already read most of the list. I got to book 4? I think, its very fuzzy, but I think that was the point? Anyway, I really appreciate the immensity of what the authors have created, and all the interviews ive seen with erikson leave me with the impression that he is a smoart dude. I will go back to this series for sure (after I finish my “pre-show” WoT reread and catch up on my sanderson, and maybe read broken earth haha, but eventually…) and I appreciate having this breakdown of the magic system – because not understanding the magic was one of my main holdups with the series (and the fact that everyone is a demi-god with absurd power levels). sorry for the long brick of text
MINOR SPOILERS MAYBE One thing I would add to “The Magic System Explained” is the concept of ascension. I think the books make it clear that there are multiple pathways to godhood and power and the magic of the warrens is just one way. But, the act of ascension can bring power to an existing warren or can even carve away its own place separate from the warren or elder warren it originally came from. It seems just as possible that ‘beings’ have the power to pull additional power from chaos itself, to theoretically create infinite warrens. However, I expect this isn’t being done because its dramatically easier to ‘take your neighbor’s hill’ than to ‘build a brand new mountain out of the sea’. Hence the struggle for power over the existing warrens. To find a path to ascension is to carve a new space for yourself in the pantheon or to take somebody else’s. This is heightened by the notion that warrens can also be sundered, blockaded, or destroyed. One last thing I would add is that warrens and their worship and correlation to those magical practice is the influence on geography and culture. It seems very abundant throughout the 10 books that the local cultural practices and customs are linked to the practice and potency of specific magics and their prominence or absence in specific geographic places. A great example is the dichotomy of ‘developed cultures’ versus ‘hunter gatherer’ societies that are depicted. There is an obvious correlation between the “progress” of society and the need/development/creation of beliefs and therefore warrens that reflect these more diverse values in more complex socio-cultural places.
I hear the name Malizan and bet the shivers. It always feels like I need to re-read the whole series again before reading any newer book in the setting because the series is so huge with loads of charecters and details that by the time a new title is released, I have forgotten too much for the contents to make sense.
6:19 when that Attack Titan image first popped up, I thought it to be really random, but actually, it is quite meaningful considering the 4th season of AoT. Eren is indeed becoming a demon. I don’t know if you did this on purpose Daniel, but either way, it’s obvious that you’ve put LOTS of time and energy into this article. Good job man! Note: Mentioning AoT in a Malazan article is pretty weird, I know, but I found that little detail really interesting 😀 Also, this article made me want to read Malazan. I think I’ll give it a shot.
Something to keep in mind is that not all magic originates from the Warrens or the Holds. There are other paths to power, usually through making deals with local spirits of the land and drawing upon their strength. You see this with the Wickans and also with Samar Dev. Both make distinctions between what they do and magic stemming from Warrens and Holds, calling it “ancient magic.”
Could you make a version of this article with full spoilers? I have finished TCG and would love to hear this same article produced with relevant examples and characters, where you could actually reference the text and say “In scene X when Y used C Warren, this is an example of how Erikson allows Y to manipulate C” or “We see that J has access to not only the warren of C but also B and A and this is because of Reason”.
Pretty good summary. One thing to remember is that no-one in Malazan knows exactly how the magic works, and what we get is always from the perspective of someone in the world. So of course we are not going to get full, consistent explanations. Magic is available to anyone in Malazan provided they are willing to apply themselves to it, and they can find a teacher. In that sense, it’s like any other trade or field of knowledge. And some people are much better at it than others. Also, there can be good reasons why someone does not want to get involved in it, just like with anything else. The Holds are an older system, which sort of combines what later becomes the Warrens and Houses. There are Warrens that don’t have Houses associated with them. Also, divination with the Holds is done with tiles, and not with the Deck of Dragons as it is with the Warren/Hold system. I like to think of this as Erikson and Esslemont’s joke about switching from the D&D system of gaming to GURPs, which allowed more flexibility and rounded the corners of the wheels.
I’m just a few chapters into Gardens. I like the story and the prose, but man is it hard to follow. I liked hearing that it’s kind of supposed to be that way. I’ve already listened to several sections more than once. I’m now looking around for content like this to get some insight without spoilers. Good article. Thanks.
For a more in depth perspective of Elder magic and the younger magic, you’ll need to read Forge of Darkness and Fall of Light. They give better lines to define by because they give the origins of the younger magic. It’s still incredibly vague, but you get to see the things only hinted at in the OG series. The caveat being having to read the prequel series, which isn’t completed yet and won’t be until after the release of The God is Not Willing, a sequel series to the 10. They are very different that the OG series and ICE books. I like them and find them non-negotiable when trying to understand the whole, but you can skip them entirely.
Sounds amazing, I’ll have to give them a try. I had a go at Wheel of Time based on how much you love it, but I just can’t get in to. Halfway through book two and it’s feeling like a chore. Makes me sad, feel like I’m missing out on one of Fantasy’s greats. 🙁 Hopefully Malazan won’t be like that for me.
This is one my main issues with Malazan, even though I believe it is within the top 5 best fantasy series of all time. While the broad strokes of the magic system are easily understandable, in many cases the power differential between gods or even “human”-like characters is SO unclear that it utterly destroys the feeling of stakes in a fight, simply because we don’t know the limits of 80% of the characters in it or how they came to that power in the first place. Rather than mysterious it just ends up being annoying imo, with the metaphysics feeling very inconsistent.
Beautiful thing about the magic is that it’s available for everyone. You just need to work at it. Some special few are born Savants, to whom the Warren’s dragon will approach and have conversations with once their abilities start manifesting. Others have to train for it. (K’rul created the Warren’s by tying pure dragons to them, and doing other things I’ll leave for discovery.) Because magic is egalitarian, healing magic is widely available. Because healing is everywhere essentially, people live longer, ailments are dealt with. Thus there’s no need for more childbirth to compensate for infant mortality. Women therefore don’t have to be kept home for child bearing and as such the society is largely not sexist. Just one thing the magic does for the world.
Minor: I missed the Toblakai Warren in the flowchart. Beyond the topics you undertook to describe: Alike the step from holds to warrens there are hints of further development called paths in Esslemonts books, working along the intersection between different warrens, seemingly connected to D’riss (Blood and Bones)
Spoilers for later Malazan and especially for the Kharkhanas trilogy!!! The difference between Warrens and Holds is who made them. Warrens (including the elder Warrens) were created by K’rul. The Holds were created by The Errant, another elder god. The core of the story is (SPOILERS!!!) is that K’Rul actually created the elder warrens first. The Errant saw what he did and realized he could do the same but charge blood sacrifice for it. K’rul offered his magic/Warrens for free for all by becoming the blood sacrifice himself. The Errant on the other hand realized that he can tie the magic to himself and make the mortals make the bloody sacrifices for it on which he would parasite. So, K’rul created Warrens/chained Chaos in order to offer magic to all. The Errant did the same in order to gain power over the mortals and gaining powerful source of might. A lot happened later that blurred and complicated the whole situation, but this was the original move. So simply put, the Warrens and Holds are originally two rival magic sources/systems that partially merged, meddeld and connected later. Edit: I’ve forgot to mention that the creation of younger Warrens was essentially a K’rul’s reaction on what The Errant did. That is the reason why he chained (volunteering) dragons in them – to provide them protection (root) from meddling that happened with the elder Warrens and Holds.
after ive read gardens of the moon, i saw the system as “magic highways” that are specific to magic individuals. some users seem to only use one type of warren, but some mages like Quick Ben can use all of them(?). some people have extremely rare warrens to their disposal like Tattersail and Hairlock.
My read through(s) I got the impression that the difference between Warrens and Holds were the age of order set on them ” Deck of dragons ” (Mankinds age ) and Age of “elders?” they had stones/tablets ? these both were tied to the treehouses “azath” that instilled order in chaos and separated them out, but even while typing this I can already see holes in this. damn it gets more confusing the more you attempt to explain it.
Read all the books loved them at the time now I’m way to scared to start them again since only thing i remember is that I did not really understand everything since english was my third language at that time and srsly I just remember that warrens did some magic and ye totally lost … I loved quick ben kalam and Tool awesome characters there were more still and I’m srsly looking up scenes in my head atm and I just wanna read but still I’m scared of those 10 huge books that might take my sleep away for months
I like Quick Ben well enough as a person, but I feel as if his whole backstory makes him a tad too Mary-Suish. I think Kamahl is the more interesting and (somewhat more) relatable character, since he’s only human (even though the last scene of the Bonehunters blows him WAY out of proportion imo), and he’s had to work hard physically and mentally to be as good as he is, rather than bestowed with might as Quick Ben was.
Based on the fact that Malazan started as a D&D campaign, I always thought of Warrens as Planes and that magic users either tap them for power or they get it from their patron gods, in the case of priests. And Holds were a more primal system to the warrens, more powerful but less eloquent, a legacy of magic systems from holds, to elder warrens to warrens of men.
Holds aren’t exactly inaccessible to humans, just most humans don’t even know about them let alone how to access them. Beak for instance was taught to access pretty much every hold and warren. Holds can be accessed and traveled through by certain high mages, like the Trade Guild does. Basically holds are more wild and primitive than warrens. Warrens were given some kind of order by K’Rull and the various dragons he used. They follow certain rules. Holds….they are usually a lot less structured magically. I think some holds are referred to as warrens simply for communication sake, like asking for a kleenex and not really caring if it’s the actual brand or a different tissue. Also there is the things Bottle/Nil/Nether/Quick Ben can do that don’t really fit in nicely with warren or hold riding the sparks and all that. The stick figures. The wax witch’s candles, soul shifting, reading the deck or casting tiles etc etc. Basically……Malazan truly is amazing(always fighting WoT for my favorite series ever) but don’t expect to finish knowing everything or having it all fit into a nice little logical box. A god damn undead giant dragon was carving a path through all the holds and warrens, and some folks on a boat decided to ride that dragons wake through the wounds between warrens to try to….some things just aren’t really going to make sense from an earth perspective.
You should read the Runelords, that has a cool magic system. In summary, you can be tribute and sacrifice a piece of your own magic and transfer it to a lord or lady of the kingdom that you reside in, making that being stronger and faster for the good of the land. However, you are linked to that person in life and death, meaning if you die the Lord loses their abilities, but if the Lord dies your magic returns to you. There’s no limit to how many tributes you can be linked too, and if you get enough you become the Sum of All Men, an eternal being.
My understanding is that the Holds are the elemental (using that term loosely) elder Warrens. They were the magic accessible to everyone, as opposed to the racial Elder Warrens you mentioned in the article. Accessing Holds generally requires a blood ritual or blood sacrifice. This is part of the big theme of creation requiring destruction, everything having an opposite, Newton’s Third Law, etc. However, this blood magic escalated over time and culminated in the major events 120,000 years ago involving a certain hated warlord, 3 gods, and a cabal of wizards. After that K’Rul made the Paths (or New Warrens) which were basically direct replacements to the Holds that didn’t require blood sacrifice from the user. This is because K’Rul is continuously sacrificing himself to power them (self sacrificing for the greater good being probably the largest theme of the series).
I recently discovered your website through some research on Brandon Sanderson. I am impressed by what I have seen. Do you have a website with summary reviews in text form of the books and authors you’ve read? Have you ever thought about creating an annual periodical thru Amazon kdp? Leonard Maltin used to publish an annual movie review book for many years. It was traditionally published, so they eventually started losing money. However, I think review periodicals can still work in print on demand (meaning a book is only made when there is an order) and ebook. Put the review book on Kindle Unlimited, and I bet fantasy ebook readers would gobble it up.
Excellent job! This really helped me put it together. Also, next time you talk Malazan Magic I’d add: 1. How the world resists influences from warrens and the dynamics this can create between our reality and other warrens etc. 2. The deck of dragons which seem to be attuned to the warrens (and other things), and 3. Spirits which I think are personifications of forces of our natural world (I think).
I’ve been a hardcore Malazan fan for over a decade, and seeing others besides Iskar Jarak take on the Malazan universe like this is a beauty to behold. I will come with a minor opinion on K’rul and the creation of the warrens. This is of course pure speculation from my part here, but imagine if K’rul didn’t plan for this to happen prior to the events that take place in the beginning of Memories of Ice. What if K’rul deciding to act on mercy inadvertedly may have saved “this realm” as it were, and by extention the rest of the warrens as well. Remember that the Imperial Warren is the very first that K’rul “took in withim himself” as it were. Because, as he said to his companions back then “this world is too young to carry such a scar”…. Gosh it’s difficult to offer opinions without needlessly spoiling parts of the book for potential future readers….
This is very well explained but it’s still just a surface level stuff. It doesn’t include dragons and the way magic in Malazan and the warrens themselves are inherently tied to them (so killing dragons – bad for magic and also for life itself because life cannot exist without magic). And also how it all ties to the anti-magic otataral. Generally the older something is the more powerful it is but less controllable. So Hold gives one more raw power so ggreat when your aim is destruction but useless for any precise task (it’s like trying to make a meal over a piece of sun instead of stove). Also Holds were kind of Proto-Warrens. The Elder Warrens evolved from Holds (so they were Holds first) but some mages can still access the original Hold energy. The Younger Warrens were then created by Dragons on K’rul’s bidding in his blood so K’rul is also encompassing the warren system with the 2 Eldest Warrens – Starvald Demelain and Kurald Galain – being chambers of his heart. It’s complicated.
It’s been years since i’ve last read the series that i’ve forgotten what book i’m in. The last i remember is that (major spoilers. Do NOT read more if you haven’t started reading malazan yet) 1. the bridge burners died and was on the way to becoming god. 2. Shapeshifters gathering and dying. 3. The dessert becoming a sea once again. 4. The first sword of the tlan imass(?) Having flesh again.
Anyone who hasn’t read Malazan yet should much rather read the series and have the nature and origin of the Warren’s unveiled to them through revelations. Its amazing to witness it all unfold. Omtose Phellack (Warren of the Jaghut) and Starvald Demelain (Warren of the Eleint/Dragons) are the most fascinating to me. Also, new readers are in for much more revelations regarding the elder Warrens and their connections to the elder races.
Magical elements are just elemental forces in play in the Malazan world that haven’t been fully understood yet by the societies using them so there is no good hard explanation that any of them would be able to provide, except it just works when they do this. I think Malazan’s magic system follows a similar understanding of earlier civilization’s grasp on sciences. It is still all soft and pliable because no one knows the hard science rules yet. This also reflects Erikson’s writing style. Plenty of people in the 1200s knew gravity worked and science basics but none of them could explain the rules surrounding all that.
Not sure if this makes me more or less likely to read Malazan. Plus points for a clever soft magic that is mysterious yet still specified. Minus points for a looooooot to remember and weird terminology. You can just read 1 or 2 books from the series and have a satisfying ending to each book, right? I don’t want to be stuck in a neverending series again. (I just finished the slog in Wheel of Time.)
The elder holds represented the world/dimension the corresponding race inhabited, with the exception of the race of azanthani. They were capable of becoming or were born to rule specific elements/holds/warrens. It’s not super defined in the books but as they are muy favorite and I’ve read them all at least 2 dozen times, that’s the gist.
I see many people frustrated with this magic system and want to compare to other magic systems. Don’t get mad at magic for not being science. If you can completely wrap your head around how the magic works, I don’t think its magic anymore. There has to be some element imo thats still unexplainable for it to be magic and not just some weird science, like birds flying powers, and electric eels shocking powers or a trees telepathy. It all seems magic until explained then it’s just biology.
As a fan of the series, I personally would have found it more interesting if you didn’t make this a spoiler-free article, and fully went into the details and examples of the various warrens. This article feels like a very high-level overview that doesn’t actually describe very well what any of the warrens can do, due to the limits of a spoiler-free article.
I’m only on book 6 chapter 7 the bone hunters I don’t really like to reread books I like to donate books to charity’s or any place I can donate them to do othere people can benefit from them othere than the bin, I don’t whant to store them away because incase they get damaged but I am going to keep signed and first edition books I get, because I only have enough room for almost 300 books and the cost of living being the way it is and I allways buy the books new, so I’m not shure wethere to keep the books fore future and store the, some where safe or re buy them ain second handed in the future because the whole 10 book series was a set of 10 so that’s plb why do maybe if I can I’ll be re buying them in the future second handed so it might not be as bad and I’m not exactly rich.
In another article it might be worth explaining that the warrens are not entirely separate worlds but also are layered on top of each other. There are a few examples of people accessing one of the shadow warrens to travel through shadows in the “real” world and viewing other people in the “real” world as smudges in the shadow warren.
not bad, but i’ll leave a thought… is each warren really a separate thing? in the same way as you can talk about each facet of a diamond yet they are all part of the same diamond… where is the boundary between mockra, menas and shadow or… the same applies to holds-> elder warrens-> warrens of the deck of dragon -> warrans of Icariums coins… where is the border between the new warren of time and the elder jaghut warren Omtose Phellack that may often be desribed as ‘of ice’ but is more like stasis etc etc etc…
I just wanted to post this on your most recent article sorry .I just wanted to leave a comment and say thank you for writing your book, I just finished the audiobook and will be completely honest I was shocked by how good it was. I should have known with all of the time and effort that you have put into studying writing styles and other authors that it would be good but it honestly blew me away. I can 100% say that it is the best first book that I have ever read(listened) from a new author and thank you so much for creating this world that I could immerse myself into for a couple hours. The only complaint that I have of the books is that it wasnt long enough so chop chop on the next one :). I am so glad to have purchased the audiobook and the physical book thank you once again for everything.
Nice one 😃 Coming at it from a D&D background, I’ve always found it interesting that there is essentially no difference between wizardly and priestly magic. They access the same warrens, the difference is more what they dedicate their lives to. Interesting topics might be.. a historical breakdown of the Malazan empire prior to GotM, and beyond. Or a look at Malazan army structure and tactics. An overview of cultures. Favourite characters is always fun. 😉
Okay, so this is my impression – and it may well be wrong – but it’d be interesting if you can test it: In DG there is a discussion implying the Gods being fickle as a result of time, and more importantly, needing to feed on unexpressed feelings and unaccomplished goals… So I’d suggest that consciousness is important (and this is tied to the efficacy of blood sacrifice, and later forms of sacrifice e.g. through historical events or as byproducts of the feeding frenzies of convergences). However, prior to worship and sacrifice the elder entities may have just created and recreated power through their interactions… and sometimes created other things (aspects, species, animistic spirits) as a result of these interactions. The Azathanai are less defined, powerful, and shape-shifting. The d’vers and soultaken are also stated to predate the elder races. So, I could definitely see an era of more amorphous shape-shifting primordial powerful beings… which then give rise to the other races and the holds. Somehow actions of consciousnesses then lead to the the development of the warrens. In DG there are ‘spirits of the land’ which are locally powerful, but don’t seem tied to a warren (just the world) and have no clear origin. They might be a fairly recent (i.e. <500,000 year old) generation of animistic spirits which developed from worship or interactions with various inanimate or animate objects... but might not actually be ascendants.
It’s fair to note without being spoilery that Erickson deliberately violated the idea that magic has to have “rules” to solve problems. And he specifically references animism and the role of magic as a mysterious force of the unexplained and unexplainable in myth to justify refusing to provide rules of magic, as such. His answer was essentially, “Why would you want the mystery removed? That denies the very purpose of magic in storytelling.” Somewhere Sanderson’s teeth ground. 😛