Valdemar (fictional country)

Velgarth is the planetary setting created by Mercedes Lackey, the author of the Valdemar Saga novels. The continents are not named. The Valdemar Saga primarily focuses on the story of the nation of Valdemar, and as of 2017, at least 34 novels, nine anthologies, one sound recording, and an "encyclopedia" have been published.

Many of the inhabitants of Velgarth possess supernatural abilities. These skills primarily fall under the categories of Magic and Mind-Magic; though a number of them fall outside of either description.

Magic, in Velgarth, refers to the ability to use a normally invisible form of energy to produce fantastic results. This energy, also referred to as "Mage-power", is present both in living beings and the environment. Powerful streams of energy, known as ley lines, may be utilized by some mages; and only the most skilled "Adept-level" mages can control and use the powerful nodes, or reservoirs, where two or more ley-lines meet. These lines and nodes can occur naturally, or can be created by extremely skilled mages. From these nodes, the energy is slowly siphoned into a desolate nether plane called the Void; and later returned to the world (Storm Warning). Magic is said to act much in the same way that water does. It is present in nature everywhere, but slowly gathers together - first in runnel-lines, which come together into feeder-lines, which then join together into ley-lines, and points where ley-lines converge are known as nodes: similar to how brooks and creeks slowly become streams, then rivers, and then crossings of these magical rivers form deep natural reservoirs similar to lakes of variable sizes. After the final cataclysm was averted (Storm Breaking), all magic was taken from the earth and now falls like rain back down upon it. It is believed that, given time, magic will once again begin to behave the way it did before. (Owlflight)

Three of the best-known Schools of Magic, which align themselves with Valdemar during the Mage Storms trilogy (meaning they most likely practice magic that is of good moral fiber), are the Fireflower School, the Blue Mountain School, and the White Winds School. The Valdemar Saga does not describe these schools in great depth. A White Winds Adept is obliged to, when they attain Adept status, settle down and construct a White Winds School of their own to teach future mages the way of the White Winds. The White Winds School was founded by a hertasi mage, quite possibly "the Lizard Wizard" whose songs are mentioned occasionally in the series. The Blue Mountain and Fireflower Schools of Magic are virtually undescribed to any degree, as characters who are from these schools do not seem to be shown in any of the novels of the Valdemar Saga as of March 2009.

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