Spell

A wizardry constructed to produce a specific result. A spell may be diagrammed out and, when completed, read (the most common method): or it can be composed in the mind and then either spoken aloud or silently, in the mind (usually with considerably more effort required). Working a spell always required the use of the wizardly Speech to a greater or lesser extent, depending on the formality and complexity of the spell.

Considered less concretely, every spell is a request to the Universe or one of its components to behave in a particular way. Ideally, a certain amount of persuasion is involved: best results are not achieved by ordering the Universe around. The wise wizard considers the fabric of physical existence to be a partner in any given wizardry, rather than an object or obstacle.

The equation, though, is rarely one-sided, and never without a price....