Discussion: "Abjuration" magic school name misleading?

[fireinthedust]

According to the Chicago Manual of Style 16th edition, page 263 (Glossary of Problematic Words and Phrases) or section 5.220:

abjure; adjure. To abjure is to deny or renounce under oath (ie: the defendant abjured the charge of murder) or to declare one's permanent abandonment of a place (ie: to abjure the realm). To adjure is to require someone to do something as if under oath ("I adjure you to keep this secret") or to urge earnestly (the executive committee adjured all the members to approve the plan).


It would seem that the Aburation school of magic ought to be called the Adjuration, as it forces others (creature, objects or effects) to leave on alone, or to effect a resistance to said object. If my Wizard uses Mage Shield, he's deflecting attacks with magic: go away attacks, block those Magic Missiles. To say that he would be excusing himself from the effects of these (nouns) would seem to be side-stepping the general intent of the spells: protection-based spells.

Can I get some feedback from others on this?

 

[Ahnehnois]

It is somewhat off. Do you have any suggestions for a more appropriate (and suitably mystical-sounding) word? I assume the reason it's called abjuration is that someone couldn't think of anything better.

 

[The Crimson Binome]

I dunno. It makes sense to me, because it's like you are protecting yourself from evil spirits, and the phrase "I abjure thee spirits of evil" is totally something that is said. You are denying the powers of evil spirits and their mortal agents. (Where "evil" may be relative here, but the key aspect is the denial.)

Abjuration is the school of denial. You shoot me with Magic Missiles? I use Shield to deny that action. You use Divine Power to get all big and scary? I use Dispel Magic to deny that action.

 

[fireinthedust]

I dunno. It makes sense to me, because it's like you are protecting yourself from evil spirits, and the phrase "I abjure thee spirits of evil" is totally something that is said. You are denying the powers of evil spirits and their mortal agents. (Where "evil" may be relative here, but the key aspect is the denial.)

Abjuration is the school of denial. You shoot me with Magic Missiles? I use Shield to deny that action. You use Divine Power to get all big and scary? I use Dispel Magic to deny that action.

But that's just it: You can't (according to CMS 16) Abjure someone who isn't yourself. I can't Abjure the powers of evil (unless they're me), but I *can* Adjure them. Teleport would be a better Abjuration, to abjure from this location. Protection from Evil would be Adjuring the forces of evil from a location.

As well calling the school Invocation/Evocation for spells that shoot things. Really to Invoke something is to call upon the power of something/someone to do a task. I invoke the power of "the ancients" to aide me with a task. I evoke a sensation, a feeling. Shooting someone with a standard, run-of-the-mill fireball WITHOUT calling upon dark powers to do so (ie: "I strike the with the flames of the faltine!") is NOT invocation OR evocation.

I'd use Conjuration for things like Fireballs: conjure up a flame. If I had to. Odd how the schools are function-based rather than thematic (except for Necromancy, which has/had such a small spell list it was/is laughable: do anything so long as it's undead-themed!!!)

 

[Remathilis]

But that's just it: You can't (according to CMS 16) Abjure someone who isn't yourself. I can't Abjure the powers of evil (unless they're me), but I *can* Adjure them. Teleport would be a better Abjuration, to abjure from this location. Protection from Evil would be Adjuring the forces of evil from a location.

As well calling the school Invocation/Evocation for spells that shoot things. Really to Invoke something is to call upon the power of something/someone to do a task. I invoke the power of "the ancients" to aide me with a task. I evoke a sensation, a feeling. Shooting someone with a standard, run-of-the-mill fireball WITHOUT calling upon dark powers to do so (ie: "I strike the with the flames of the faltine!") is NOT invocation OR evocation.

I'd use Conjuration for things like Fireballs: conjure up a flame. If I had to. Odd how the schools are function-based rather than thematic (except for Necromancy, which has/had such a small spell list it was/is laughable: do anything so long as it's undead-themed!!!)

I still think Gary went for Style over substance on naming magic schools, but its what we have.

 

[the Jester]

It might be instructive if someone were to quote Gygax' description of the Abjuration school from the 1e PH. (I'd do it, but mine is at my gf's, since I run a 1e game there.)

EDIT: Ahh, my bad- I was thinking of Jeff Grub's description in the 1e MotP:

Aburation spells are primarily concerned with the prevention and exclusion of particular magical and nonmagical effects, situations, or individuals, and include most spells of protection, avoidance and repellence.

Not much there.

The more I think about it, the more likely I think Gygax named it after the "I abjure you, evil spirits!" line. (I've seen it as both abjure and adjure, by the way.)

 

[Scrivener of Doom]

Abjure - "to deny on oath" (a literal translation of the original Latin) - seems to be a reasonable word for a type of magic that, by the power of word and will, denies the effects of other magic.

Adjure - "to swear to" (again, a literal translation of the original Latin) - does not.

 

[fireinthedust]

Abjure - "to deny on oath" (a literal translation of the original Latin) - seems to be a reasonable word for a type of magic that, by the power of word and will, denies the effects of other magic.

Adjure - "to swear to" (again, a literal translation of the original Latin) - does not.

Source?

 

[Scrivener of Doom]

Source?

You could use any dictionary that pays any attention to etymology, even the online ones.

 

[pemerton]

But that's just it: You can't (according to CMS 16) Abjure someone who isn't yourself.

Yes you can. In your OP you give an example: "I abjure [= renounce] the realm".

I think the school of Abjuration is the school of renunciation of adverse effects - its a bit like the Oathsworn effects in Monte Cook's Arcana Unearthed/Evolved, where the oathsworn gets various sorts of immunities by renouncing thirst, disease, poison etc.

That's not to say that Gygax was incapable of infelicity: he describes monks as aesthetics, for instance (PHB p 30) when presumably what was intended was "ascetics".