Mana

Mana is a form of energy that resides in most living beings in the world of Tortus. It is the driving force that enables people to use magic.

Overview
Mana is a planet’s energy given concrete form, which circulated evenly throughout the world. The humans and demons of Tortus are generally born with mana, while beastmen are usually incapable of wielding it. Mana has been perceived as being a gift from the gods, and for that reason, beastmen were typically persecuted by the other races as godless heretics. If a beastman is born with mana, they are deemed as cursed, and immediately executed.

Mechanics
In order to cast magic, one would typically need to chant an incantation in order to transfer their mana into a magic circle, and thus cast the spell inscribed within that circle. Furthermore, the length of an incantation was directly proportional to how much mana one could pour into a magic circle, so the effectiveness of a spell was directly proportional to the amount of mana used to cast it. However, if one possessed the Skill "Mana Manipulation", they they could freely manipulate the flow of their mana without chanting. However, even if a person is capable of wielding mana, they may not be able to use magic unless they have right affinity for a particular element. In rare instances, certain beings are born called "Atavists" with the ability to manipulate their own mana, as well as having a special magical Skill. They are typically regarded as children of god.

Each person has their own distinct color of mana (even among those with similar colors). In addition, humans and demons have a slightly different mana signature from each other.

Beings with mana are able to improve their abilities and skills at a faster rate than others individuals.

Mana can be very versatile, in that it can be coverted into various forms of energy, including healing, stamina, and kinetic. In some cases, it can also be converted into another form of bioenergy, such as electricity.

If a person is running low on mana from continued use, they can take certain supplements or potions to replenish it. A person can also experience a medical ailment called "Mana Overload", in which too much mana builds up inside their body with no means to regulate it. The only way to truly cure someone from this ailment is to consume a powered form of a special mineral called Stillstone. If let unchecked, it can be fatal.

Animals are capable of wielding mana as well, but since they can't cast magic, many of them would either die of mana overload, or it would turn into a crystal within them and transform into a monster. All monsters are capable of freely controlling their mana, as well as containing a unique magical skill. Also, in contrast to beings of other races having their own unique color of mana, every monster's mana is typically a dark shade of red.

The mana crystals gathered from monsters are an important component in magic circles. Althought magic circles only needed to be drawn to be able to cast the spell inscribed within, its power would be reduced to approximately one third without powdered mana crystals used it's engraving. Mana crystals allowed for more efficient transferal of mana, which was why they improved effectiveness so much. In addition, most commonplace magical tools used mana crystals as a power source.

If enough residual mana is pooled together over the course of centuries, then it forms into a powerful crystal called a Divinity Stone. However, due to the planetary flow of mana being evenly distributed, a natural convergence of so much onto single spot is a very rare occurrence.

Trivia

 * "" is a term that has several meanings. In and  culture,  was once regarded as a spiritual life force energy that permeates the universe. In,  is regarded as a source of pride in a person's mind that leads them to harm others. More recently, the concept of mana has become very popular in , and is an attribute assigned to characters within a role-playing or video game that indicates their power to use special magical abilities or "spells". Magic is usually measured in magic points or mana points, shortened as "MP".