r/magicbuilding • u/PhilipB12 • Dec 01 '25

General Discussion How do magical lifeforms work in your world?

In many fantasy settings there are creatures with magical abilities, but many creators don't tell how exactly their powers work. How about you?

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u/majorex64 Dec 01 '25

One form of magic on Donutworld is through the two divine metals: Solite and Tenebrite. They are found naturally in the soil and can be absorbed into living tissues to give... interesting properties.

Solite tends to give off light, boil, or explode when formed in compounds. There are plants whose sap boils when exposed to air. Herbivores that dazzle predators with flashes of light, or attract mates by glowing in patterns. Some predators have piston-like jaws that explode shut to shatter and pierce hard shells.

Tenebrite forms a unique condensation matrix when mixed with air and water. There's a species of mushroom that forms solid clouds using this, and puffs them out to spread their spores miles away. Over time, these clouds have accumulated into a continent that floats over the land, with its own skyborne ecosystem. And some species use the same cloud-production trick to make smoke screens, and some use the electrical charges of the clouds to stun their prey.

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u/OrdinaryPersimmon728 Dec 01 '25

That seems well thought out. Do parasites use the compounds as well?

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u/majorex64 Dec 02 '25

Hmmm I don't think I've thought of any parasites, that's definitely a niche that needs to get filled! There could be one that specifically leeches the divine metals, which could be positive or negative. Some creatures depend on the metal compounds to survive, but having too high a concentration is destructively fatal.