Magic in the Malazan Book of the Fallen, a high fantasy series by Steven Erikson, involves tapping power from inside the mage, taking power from spirits, or most commonly using the power of a Warren or Hold. The effects created varies depending on where the magic is taken from, how it is combined, and the intent of the mage. Warrens are themselves complete realms or worlds containing sentient and non-sentient creatures, geography and a ruling creature, usually a god. The power of warrens are theorized to come from dragons, each of whom have an aspect the same as the warren. Most races have a racial Warren that exhibits particular effects or properties; humans generally tap Warrens based on an innate preference, that produce limited or specific effects. The books have stated that Warrens are best described as closed doors in the mage's mind. Accessing the power behind it requires careful, and deliberate opening to unleash and shape the power within. Controlling an open Warren is a draining process, and to open the door too far is to invite madness, physical harm, or death upon the mage. Racial Warrens are Elder, unavailable to humans in most cases, and significantly more powerful, in addition to being immune to the magic-deadening effects of otataral.
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Some characters in the novels have theorized that some Warrens are descended from Holds and others from Elder Warrens (such as Telas, the human Warren of Fire, from Tellann, the Imass' racial Warren, itself stolen from Kurald Thyrllan, the racial Warren of Light of the Tiste Liosan).[1] It was revealed in Memories of Ice that the Warrens are shaped by K'rul, Elder God of Warrens, through his own flesh and flowing with his blood. The Warrens are also personified by various Eleint, with each Warren being somehow related to one or more specific dragons. The dragons themselves are generally sealed into the Eleint Warren.
Effects of warren magic are large-scale blasts, personal enhancement, item manipulation, and travel through the physical Warren across great distances in a short period of time. Only a minority of humans can access Warrens, usually tapping and working with a single one, though the High Mage Quick Ben can access seven at any single time out of his repertoire of twelve, and non-humans can access up to twelve as well (although not usually at once). An example of personal enhancements is when Quick Ben in Memories of Ice used Serc, the warren of the sky, to fly and D'riss, the warren of Stone, to walk through a wall. An example of item manipulation is Mappo Runt's pack which is larger on the inside than it is on the outside. Certain Elder races have access to racial Warrens, that seem to be significantly more powerful and cannot be completely blocked by the magic-deadening ore otataral, though may be weakened.
On at least one continent, Lether, Warrens do not function due to the effects of a large-scale, long-lasting stasis cast over the continent by a Jaghut. Magic on the continent was arrested in its development, and retained the primitive yet powerful form of Holds, which are capable of great destruction, but lack the nuanced abilities and fine control of the Warrens found elsewhere on the planet.
Warrens can be used to enchant physical objects through a process called investment. Examples include the unbreakable flint weapons of the T'lan Imass, which permit knapping useful blades of a size that would normally shatter, Icarium's arrows which had warrens carved into them, and a stone slab used to trap a Forkrul Assail for thousands of years.
Warrens can be both an access point to power and a physical realm, though some do not appear to have a linked realm. The Warrens that exist as physical worlds come with complete geography, history, and ecosystems of non-sentient and sentient races different from the Malazan world. As well, some Warrens manifest with variations in different parts of the human realm, resulting in a certain duplication of purpose (i.e., Meanas and Rashan, both essentially being Warrens of Shadow). Warrens may also in some ways mirror or reflect the circumstances and physical properties of the Malazan world. Warrens also exist as the realms of Gods only accessible to priests instead of mages, though the distinctions between the two types of Warrens have not been clarified. Warrens link to each other, and mages can move between them given sufficient knowledge and mastery of magic.
| Formal name | Other names | Other names and attributes |
|---|---|---|
| Starvald Demelain | Elder Warren of Dragons The Tiam Warren The Dragon Hold |
Open to the Eleint (dragons); the First Warren |
| Ahkrast Korvalain | Elder Warren, possibly belonging to the Forkrul Assail | Open to the Forkrul Assail |
| Kurald Galain | Elder Warren of Darkness | Open to the Tiste Andii |
| Kurald Emurlahn | Elder Warren of Shadow The Shattered Warren The Empty Hold |
Open to the Tiste Edur; currently sundered |
| Kurald Thyrllan | Elder Warren of Light | Open to the Tiste Liosan; in most cases sealed off from access by other races or Warrens |
| Kurald Liosan | Elder Warren of unknown aspect, presumably light | Presumably open to the Tiste Liosan; mentioned only in passing as sourced from a being posing as a Liosan god. |
| Omtose Phellack | Warren of Ice The Ice Hold |
Open to the Jaghut; exerts an influence of preservation or stasis |
| Tellann | Warren of Fire | Open to the T'lan Imass; created from Kurald Thryrllan by the Imass Bonecasters to grant immortality through intelligent undeath while the Tiste Liosan believed their Warren sealed |
| Denaeth Rusen | Elder Warren of the Sea | Possibly open only to Mael; where life first originated |
| Kaschan | Elder Warren (aspect unknown) | Open to the K'Chain Che'Malle; Born of sounds our ears cannot hear, formed into words that loosen the bindings that hold all matter together. |
| Aral Gamelon | Path of Demons | Open to humans; allows the summoning and control of demons; related to Hood's Path |
| Denul | Path of Healing | Open to humans; allows treatment of injuries and diseases |
| D'riss | Path of Stone | Open to humans; allows petrification of wood and passage through solid stone, the flesh of Burn, the Sleeping Goddess |
| Hood's Path | Path of Death | Open to humans; allows animation of corpses, communication with spirits and control over demons; also the Warren of the God of Death |
| Imperial | Imperial Warren (aspect unknown) | Open to humans; formerly Kallor's Empire, made into a warren by the Elder god K'rul to contain the destruction of a continent |
| Meanas | Path of Shadow and Illusion | Open to humans; allows the manipulation of color and sound, also Shadow |
| Mockra | Path of the Mind | Open to humans; allows manipulation of thoughts and emotions of individuals and groups. Interestingly it is the only warren to be given a consciousness, as of Reaper's Gale, when it reveals itself to a natural talent. Whether this is unique due to it being a warren influencing the mind is not yet clear. |
| Rashan | Path of Darkness | Open to humans; allows concealment through shadow/darkness, |
| Ruse | Path of the Sea | Open to humans; priestly warren of the Elder God of the Seas, Mael; allows manipulation of pressure and summoning of underwater creatures |
| Serc | Path of the Sky | Open to humans; allows travel through the air and the perception of and movement through the temperature and layers of gases in the air |
| Telas | Path of Fire | Open to humans, allows powerful blasts of fire |
| Tennes | Path of the Land | Open to humans; Burn's warren, allows the reshaping of the earth, as seen in Toll the Hounds |
| Thyr | Path of Light | Open to humans; actions uncertain, can create magic shields. |
Certain Warrens are alluded to, but not explained in great detail. These include the realm of Fener (the Warren of a God that is open to priests of Fener). Certain Thelomen Toblakai are able to create personal Warrens, though how this occurs and what abilities it allows are not explained. The Toblakai appear to lack an overall racial Warren, though they do possess Ascended gods. Another example is the Warren of Poliel, Goddess of Disease,mentioned by Lady Envy in Memories of Ice.
Otataral is a magic-deadening reddish ore, generally sold in the form of dust, which superficially resembles rusted iron. It not only prevents the use of magic, it also prevents mages from accessing or opening their Warrens and can drive them insane (this may be due to otataral itself or the forcible removal of access to their warren); an attempt to do so, or use magic on an individual holding otataral causes the effect to fail in a gust of chilly air. The effects of otataral can be circumscribed somewhat through encasing the metal in a dense material (such as a granite box) or a weapon's sheath. Elder racial Warrens such as Kurald Galain and Tellann are immune to its effects.
In addition, any individual who is in the presence of the ore for a long enough period (such as by carrying an otataral weapon or inhaling or absorbing otataral dust through skin) will experience unpredictable side effects, at least one of which appears to be a transfer of the magic-deadening properties. The Teblor tribes of northern Genabackis may exhibit this trait through their use of the otataral-suffused blood-oil.
Another possible side effect is increased rate of healing. This is rather beneficial as it helps make up for the fact that a person thus affected by otataral may be immune to the magic based healing ministrations of a Denul healer.
Otataral is too brittle to be forged directly into a weapon. Instead, most weapons are forged as normal, then quenched in otataral dust while still hot. Attempting to counter magic with hot otataral can cause catastrophic explosions.
The Malazan Empire tightly controls the mining and sale of otataral. The most prominent source are the mines at Dosin Pali, at the edge of the otataral desert just off the coast of the Seven Cities. When the mining of otataral results in contact with the jade figures, the shaft of the mine is immediately closed as spending time in their presence inevitably causes death. Other sources of otataral are speculative, including the Teblor's blood-oil. Should the Malazan Empire discover these sources, it would probably immediately move to control them.
There exists a dragon composed completely of otataral chained in the Malazan Imperial Warren, discussed in House of Chains. This dragon was speculated to act as a counter-balance to the existence of all other dragons who are the source of magic for the Malazan world. The dragon was found by the Claw Pearl and Red Blade Lostara Yil, and appears to have been chained by at least 3 magic aspected dragons.
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