Integral to the vivid universe of Rifujin na Magonote's Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation, magic spells refer to the various elemental and supernatural effects rendered by the manipulation of mana by an individual. Central to Rudeus' fighting style and development as a character throughout the narrative of the original light novel series and its ongoing manga and anime adaptations, magic spells can produce a broad range of effects at varying scales. They can also be cast in different ways depending on the skill of mage in question, and their potency is graded according to the scale and strength of the effect produced by the caster, the amount of mana consumed, and the skill required to cast each spell. Magic spells are one of the first world building elements introduced in the story, beginning with Rudeus' first attempts at casting them.
As all living beings in the immaculately detailed world of Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation possess mana, their souls dissipate into this form of energy after their passing, to become one with the natural environment. While it was believed that an individual's magical capacity is determined at birth and cannot be increased for the entirety of their life, Rudeus was able to disprove this with his own experiments, deducing that it is vital to stimulate one's potential from an early age in order to expand their abilities too their absolute limit. Magic spells have been used for various purposes in the series so far, and they can also be categorized into specific classes accordingly. The form of magic practiced in the series is the human race's approximation of the spells used by the High elves and spirits to control natural inorganic elements. As a result of magic primarily being used for battle, the vast majority of magic spells are combat spells.
Silent Versus Conventional
For the most part, magic spells are cast with the aid of predetermined incantations which trigger the desired effect without forcing the user to focus too much on the actual manipulation of mana. Most also channel their mana with the aid of a wand, which can take on a plethora of appearances and sizes. Virtually all mages use this method from their earliest exploits with magic, till their ascendancy into more complex areas of the discipline. The spells in this case are quite rigid and predefined but are relatively easy to make use of. Incantations can range from short phrases to long, drawn out passages of prose depending on the complexity of the spell. Some mages also use truncated incantations to speed up the process of casting for combat applications. Another method is with the aid of magic circles, which activate whenever mana is poured into them and serve as a slightly faster route to produce the required result.
One of the things that set Rudeus apart from other mages was his ability to cast spells without any incantation. Although most mages in the world of Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation make use of chanting to cast their spells, some, such as Rudeus and Sylphy are able to make do without it. It has been speculated that this ability is also linked to training one's magical capacity from an early age. Additionally, silent casting is made possible through the direct manipulation of mana by a mage. The process behind this is based on a three-fold calculation. First, the user calls forth the shape of the spell in their mind, then they add more mana to increase its power, and finally, they set the velocity at which it will be fired. This simple yet effective method allowed Rudeus to master silent casting at an early age, setting him apart from most other mages in Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation.
Attack, Healing, Summoning, And Unique Typologies
Magic spells are primarily subdivided based on the intent behind casting them. Under this method of classification, the categories include: Attack Magic, Healing Magic, and Summoning Magic. The first among them, Attack Magic, encompasses the broadest range of spells, with each focused on manipulating mana to create tangible elements which can be fired towards targets after defining their size, form, power, speed, and range based on the amount of mana poured into the spell. Attack Magic predominantly molds natural elements such as fire, water, air, and earth, into attacks that can be used against enemies. Another subcategory within this sphere is Melded Magic, which combines consecutive spells to augment the effect of one. Casting such spells requires a keen knowledge of the attacks that are being combined, as well as a basic knowledge of science to determine which elements will complement one another.
Healing Magic is the next most significant group under this method of classification, used to deal with injuries, poisons, guarding against attacks, or for use against otherworldly entities. This category can be divided into: Healing to deal with injuries, Detoxification to remove poisons or ailments, Divine Strike which is used against incorporeal monsters or demons, and finally, Protection to create barriers and erect defenses that nullify or reduce magic regeneration rates. Summoning Magic is the next up in this list, divided into two classes: Fiends, which calls beasts that are self-aware, and Spirits, which summons a being to reside within an artificial body.
Besides these two, there is a third miscellaneous category for spells that do not fall into either of the aforementioned ones, dubbed Unique Magic. This includes effects such as Teleportation, Time Travel, the Doldia's Howling, Gravity Manipulation, Hypnosis, Magic Disruption, Reincarnation, Divination, and Temporary Soul Summoning. Since they do not have any of the characteristics of Attack Magic, Healing Magic, or Summoning Magic, a special category had to be devised for such types of spells.
The Magic Rank Title System
While the previous set of categories classify magic spells based on the effect they render, there is another ranking system used to define the difficulty of a spell and the level a caster needs to attain before attempting them. In ascending order of difficulty they are: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Saintly/Holy, Kingly, Imperial/Emperor, and Divine/God. The difference in scale, mana consumption, and complexity varies greatly between all these divisions. For example, Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced Magic is powerful enough to affect a medium to large area around the observer, whereas Saintly/Holy level spells are capable of affecting the weather in the region, creating conditions such as rain, blizzards, or tornadoes.
More difficult still, Imperial/Emperor type magic expands the area of effectiveness seen in earlier categories, extending to entire regions. Lastly, Divine/God level spells are capable of affecting entire continents or more, and few, if any in the world of Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation are able to cast these spells effectively. A mage's rank is determined by the highest level of spell they can cast, and the level itself is proportional to the amount of mana consumed. Hence, the higher classes of spells require massive quantities of mana to cast successfully, severely limiting the subset of people who can even attempt them. With the premiere of the second season of the series approaching soon, it is certain that fans will gain more insight into this system in the near future.