#I might even be able to defend my thesis on SVE lore at this rate 😅 pffff! 'thesis on SVE lore'

[studentinpursuitofclouds]

Hello, an anon with long question had arrived! 😭 I've brought some virtual foods and drinks so you won't be bored on what I'm about to ask you~~~ 🍔🍟🍕 🥤🧋

I don't know if this would interest you, but what do you think about the perception of magic in SVE? (I'm basing my question on my Farmer's lore below.)

My Farmer's parents despise magic, viewing it as a destructive force that can only harm others, based on their past experiences, particularly with Farmer's grandmother (RSV lore). Because of this, Farmer grows up avoiding magic and initially fears it due to his parents' influence. However, his views start to change over time.

Farmer sees Rasmodius using magic to protect Pelican Town, encounters the benevolent Junimo restoring old buildings, and witnesses a fairy enchanting his crops. In Castle Village, he observes battle mages using magic to defend the weak and elixirs with diverse medical uses. Additionally, magic has practical everyday uses. It can summon bubbles without soap, animate puppets for traveling performers, enhance sound for festivals, even had a very simple spells such as all-purpose cleaning, birthday reminders, or sweetening placebos spells for those who cannot consume sugar!

Ultimately, Farmer realizes that magic, like weapons, can be used for both good and ill. The witch who curses his plants at night is one of the proof of the latter. But alas, he understands that like weapon, when used by the right people, magic can improve lives.

... This turns out to be ramblings about my Farmer, and I'm sorry.

But in conclusion, how do different people's perceptions of magic affect their lives, just like Farmer's did? Are there others like Farmer's parents who hate magic? Or are there families who see magic as a special status, where greater understanding of magic elevates social status in the mage world? (It would be an interesting headcanon if either mages in the game like Ras, Lance, Camilla, or Jadu came from such families but disagreed with their views and chose to keep their distance from them.)

Dear anon, don't apologise for this, I love all your discussions and theories about my favourite game, especially this mod and your Farmer OCs 😭💕 And thanks for the virtual food! (gosh, I miss pizza so much! 🍕😋). Have a wonderful day! (Send you some virtual cookies 🍪🍪🍪🍪🍪)

_________________________________________

First of all, thanks again for sharing your Farmer OC and his lore, it was interesting to read! We have quite similar views and headcanons on SDV/SVE/RSV lore, and I tried to describe all my thoughts about it here (apologise for a very, very long text 😅)

So, about your ask....

You're absolutely right about magic being both a tool and a weapon. There was an interesting quote I remember about magic, but I don't remember if it was a quote from a video game or if one of my friends said it to me when we were discussing game lore (not SDV). Basically, magic was compared to an axe, but it's up to the individual to decide whether to chop wood for the winter with that axe or kill their neighbour. It is the same with magic: it can be used as a useful tool in everyday life, or as a way to bring chaos and destruction - all depends on the person. But, as it often happens in fantasy world, people who are not familiar with the concept of magic at all, are afraid of incomprehensible power, and if they had negative stories in their past (witch curse, for example), they will definitely consider all those who are somehow connected with magic as evil.

About the question of how magic has affected people's lives and whether or not it's being treated as only evil... If you're referring specifically to the inhabitants of the Stardew Valley, dear anon, it's pretty ambiguous. Looking back at the vanilla lore, some villagers simply denied the existence of magic (Shane in his dialogue at the Feast of the Winter Star), some were frightened by the strange noise coming from Magnus's tower and showed fear and distrust (Marnie). And at the same time, no one had any preconceptions about the maze in Spirits Eve, which miraculously appeared in just one day. "Yeah, that weird ourple dude did it all," and no one would show any concern. Not even the same Shane (free food and pumpkin cider, so he doesn't care too much, I guess 🤷). Also the fact that almost everyone considers the life elixir a universal liked gift. I don't know if I can attribute monsters to this as well, because in my mind, where there are monsters there is dark magic, but maybe the inhabitants see them differently (like mutated animals or something).

As for the Expanded mod specifically, nothing much has changed here either in terms of the vanilla game's residents. But! Victor, our beloved spaghetti man, stands out among all of them. In his event we are already introduced to the fact that Victor openly and directly reveals that he knows for the existence of adventurer clans, and that they - attention! - use magic to fight monsters and to protect people. Also worth noting is his separate dialogue where he tells Farmer that the Ferngill Republic government want to cut down the magical forest here in order to find useful things that can help in the war with the Gotoro Empire. And, most interestingly, as I quote, "that wizard won't let them do it." "That wizard." A wizard! Not "strange man", but a wizard. So, he believes in magic, and he's a man from big city with modern technology. Victor is not speaking negatively about magic in these examples, but more angry at the realisation that the government is intent on greedily gnawing at any opportunity to achieve its goals, in this case at the cost of the unique ecosystem of the Stardew Valley. But Magnus isn't giving them that. This means that people (at least some) also realise that magic exists. I wonder though: if the local authorities respect Magnus's word that it's strictly forbidden to cut down the forest, or if they're just afraid he'll send them away with fireballs if they go into the Valley without asking? I'm leaning more towards the second scenario.

With the Ridgeside Village mod, coming to a conclusion about people's attitudes (both in Pelican Town and Ridgeside Village, and in the rest of the world) is a little easier. And it's all because of Gabriella, the main antagonist of the RSV mod. As far as I understood correctly, her goal is to wreak havoc in the whole world (for what purpose - Hell knows, probably for funnies or whatever), and her minions, soulless shel, faithfully serve their dark queen: killing local politicians (all politicians, not to be confused with the Cult of the Lady with the Red Tail), committing attacks, cursing forests and sources of magic, as it was with Spirit's Realm. Of course, ordinary people who are either victims themselves, or their family/relatives/friends who are affected by it, will see magic only in a negative way and consider it the source of all their troubles. And most won't realise that it's all up to the person (Gabriella isn't a person at all): magic is evil, period. No buts. Because for them, it's easier to deal with pain and loss, to protect yourself and your loved ones.

The moment where wizards and witches lead a rather secretive life from the rest of the (modern) population only adds fuel to the fire of the problem with distrust. Consequently, some magicians also distrust people due to this discrimination. And so the endless wheel of distrust goes on.

People like our Farmer, who in their work as farmer/fisherman/gatherer/adventurer/miner use both magic and modern technology, can be the ones who help these two different social societies find common ground. Or on the contrary, the Farmer will be considered an outsider everywhere, despite helping both modern society (improving Pelican Town's economy, rebuilding many important buildings) and magical society (protecting people from monsters and fighting renegade wizard/witches).

What about our SVE mages...

I used to hold the idea that Lance was NC/LC (no contact/low contact) with his parents for just such a reason. That he, a man with a "gift", was at odds with the views of his parents, who shunned magic like a plague. But over time, I like the idea of his parents being retired noble adventurers with magic better (*looking at my mutuals with their lovely headcanons 👁️👁️💕), so Lance had no problem with that.

Jadu on the other hand, fits more into the category of someone whose views on magic have changed over time. I think he suffered the same fate as Morgan, Magnus' apprentice, when they were taken away from their parents and not even allowed to contact them. Naturally, when you, a child, are taken away from your parents or guardian so abruptly, you're going to see wizards as a source of evil because they came to your home, almost forcefully and threateningly took you from your parents' nest and sent you to who knows where and who knows who, "to learn the arcane knowledge". Even in a fantasy world, that sounds very sus. The witches and mages themselves, under whose wing the young talents were given, can be both the reason for the child's revision of the concept of magic (magic not bad, but also good), and make the situation worse. Later, this can then lead to the formation of renegade mages, thirsty for revenge, they hurt ordinary people in the process of revenge, and the fear of magic in general will be even stronger.

I like to think that Camilla was so determined and opinionated that she wasn't the one they came for, but she somehow fucking came to the Ministry and was like, "teach me!" At least it's sounds funny 😅

Magnus, oh well... I honestly don't know, but he was probably taken into the care of a wizard when he was young to learn spells and alchemy to protect people and help adventurers with "monsters clean up".

Got a bit of a chaotic answer again, but I hope I've answered all the questions!