«
My name is Pharpetron, among those who have known me in Poseidonis; but even I, the last and most forward pupil of the wise Avyctes, know not the name of that which I am fated to become ere tomorrow. Therefore, by the ebbing silver lamps, in my master’s marble house above the loud, ever-ravening sea, I write this tale with a hasty hand, scrawling an ink of wizard virtue on the grey, priceless, antique parchment of dragons. And having written, I shall enclose the pages in a sealed cylinder of orichalchum, and shall cast the cylinder from a high window into the sea, lest that which I am doomed to become should haply destroy the writing.
And it may be that mariners from Lephara, passing to Umb and Pneor in their tall triremes, will find the cylinder; or fishers will draw it from the wave in their seines of byssus; and having read my story, men will learn the truth and take warning; and no man’s feet, henceforward, will approach the pale and demon-haunted house of Avyctes.» — Clark Ashton Smith: The Double Shadow
While almost every sword and sorcery tale seems to include a foul demon, an ancient wizard risen from the dead, or a cult of snake-worshipping priests, these settings are usually referred to as «low magic», at least when compared to the typical high fantasy, quasi-medieval settings so common in roleplaying games.
The major difference is that in sword and sorcery stories, magic is not used as a replacement for technology. Spells and magic items are not used to perform every little task and to make life more convenient for the caster. Rather, magic is a corrupting force that can be dangerous to both health and sanity; it is only used when the sorcerer deems it absolutely necessary.
Common people working their shops or fields, and the majority of soldiers, thieves and merchants, have likely never seen a true magician or seen a spell cast or held a magical item.
Magic is generally feared, and most magicians (but not all) are associated with dark curses, evil gods and unbearable secrets which «Man Was Not Meant To Know». Even priests are usually feared and held in awe by the common man.
In savage areas, magic is widely feared and misunderstood, the province of tribal witchdoctors and shamans, who claim to protect the rest of the tribe from the vengeful spirits and demons that surround them.
The select few who are able to use magic and cast spells guard their secrets jealously and attempt to use it to their advantage, often to the detriment of others, and sometimes also to themselves.
Magical items are rare and are almost never for sale, though on rare events one will turn up in a market, unrecognized for its true value. Spellcasters might be willing to cast some spells for pay, depending on the individual’s motivation or greed
