Hard Magic vs. Soft Magic: Choosing Your System

Gandalf's magic has no rules. Allomancy has nothing but rules.

The hard magic vs. soft magic distinction shapes entire stories. Here's how.

What's the Difference?

Hard Magic: Clear rules, defined limits, consistent mechanics. The reader understands how it works. Magic as science.

Soft Magic: Mysterious, undefined, wonder-focused. The reader doesn't need to understand how it works. Magic as miracle.

This is a spectrum, not a binary. Most systems fall somewhere in between.

Sanderson's Laws

Brandon Sanderson articulated useful principles:

First Law: "An author's ability to solve problems with magic is directly proportional to how well the reader understands said magic."

Translation: Hard magic can solve problems. Soft magic shouldn't solve problems—it should create them.

Second Law: Limitations are more interesting than powers. What magic CAN'T do matters more than what it can.

Third Law: Expand what you have before adding new magic. Depth over breadth.

These laws aren't universal truths, but they're useful guidelines for thinking about magic systems.

Hard Magic Characteristics

• Defined rules: X causes Y, consistently
• Clear costs: Using magic has price (mana, physical strain, material costs)
• Known limits: What magic CAN'T do is explicit
• Systematic: Often categorized/classified
• Problem-solving: Magic as tool the character uses deliberately
• Learnable: Reader could theorize solutions
• Quantifiable: Often has numbers or levels attached

Soft Magic Characteristics

• Mysterious origins: Where does it come from? Unknown.
• Undefined limits: What CAN'T it do? We don't know.
• Wonder-focused: Meant to amaze, not explain
• Narrative device: Creates problems as often as solves them
• Atmospheric: Contributes to tone and feeling
• Unpredictable: Can't theorize what it will do
• Symbolically rich: Often carries thematic meaning

Famous Examples

Hard Magic

• Allomancy (Mistborn): Metal-based powers with clear rules
• Bending (Avatar): Elemental control with defined limits
• The Force (Star Wars prequels): Midichlorians made it measurable
• Magic systems in most LitRPG: Gamified by definition
• Sympathy (Kingkiller Chronicle): Energy transfer with rules

Soft Magic

• Gandalf's magic (LOTR): We never know what he can really do
• The Force (Star Wars original): Mystical energy, intuition-based
• Magic in fairy tales: Wishes, curses, transformations without rules
• Narnia's Aslan: Divine magic, undefined capabilities
• Much of Harry Potter: Inconsistent limits, wonder-focused

When to Use Hard Magic

Problem-solving stories. If the hero will use magic to solve problems, readers need to understand it. Otherwise solutions feel like cheating.

Progression fantasy. Growth requires clear systems. You can't show improvement without metrics.

Fair play mystery. If readers should be able to figure things out alongside the protagonist.

Battle focus. Combat with magic needs rules for tension to work. We need to understand who's winning and why.

LitRPG by definition. Game mechanics are inherently hard magic.

Strategic planning. If characters will plan around magic, readers must understand what's being planned.

When to Use Soft Magic

Wonder focus. When magic should feel truly magical. Hard magic can become mundane.

Horror. Fear of the unknown. Defined magic isn't scary.

Literary fiction. Metaphor over mechanics. Magic as symbol.

Villains and obstacles. Antagonist powers can be mysterious—we don't need to understand how they'll be defeated.

Atmosphere. Tone over function. The feeling matters more than the mechanics.

Myth and legend. Traditional storytelling uses soft magic.

The Hybrid Approach

Most successful fantasy uses both:

Hero's magic: Hard (we understand it) World's magic: Soft (mysterious larger forces) Allies' magic: Sliding scale based on plot needs Enemies' magic: Often softer (for threat)

This combination works because it provides both satisfaction (we understand what we need to) and wonder (mysteries remain).

In Web Fiction

Web fiction tends hard:

• LitRPG requires systems
• Progression needs clear metrics
• Readers expect to understand power levels
• Power scaling demands rules
• Stats and numbers are genre expectations

But the best web fiction includes soft elements for wonder. Pure hard magic can become sterile.

Building Your Own

Questions for hard magic:

• What can it do?
• What can it NOT do?
• What does it cost?
• Where does the power come from?
• How do you get better at it?
• What are the categories/types?

Questions for soft magic:

• What feeling should it evoke?
• What mysteries should remain?
• When will it appear?
• What are the thematic purposes?
• What mood does it create?

Generating Your Own

narrator can create either type:

• "Hard magic system with clear rules and limitations"
• "Soft magic atmospheric fantasy with mysterious forces"
• "Progression fantasy with systematic magic development"
• "Fantasy where protagonist has hard magic in a soft magic world"

Specify where on the spectrum you want the magic.

The Magic Balance

Neither is better. Both serve purposes.

Hard magic satisfies. Soft magic wonders.

The best stories know which they're using and why.

Hard magic is a tool. Soft magic is a miracle.

Choose wisely. Or use both.