Summoning Key

Lore & Background

In traditional and most contemporary usage, conjuration refers to a magical act of invoking spirits or using incantations or charms to cast magical spells. In the context of legerdemain, it may also refer to the performance of illusion or magic tricks for show. This article discusses mainly the original and primary usage, describing acts of a supernatural or paranormal nature. Within some magical traditions today, such as Neopagan witchcraft, hoodoo and Hermeticism or ceremonial magic, conjuration may refer specifically to an act of calling or invoking deities and other spirits; or it may refer more generally to the casting of magic spells by a variety of techniques.

In Their Own Story

The Latin word evocatio was the "calling forth" or "summoning away" of a city's tutelary deity. The ritual was conducted in a military setting either as a threat during a siege or as a result of surrender, and aimed at diverting the god's favor from the opposing city to the Roman side, customarily with a promise of a better-endowed cult or a more lavish temple. Evocatio was thus a kind of ritual dodge to mitigate looting of sacred objects or images from shrines that would otherwise be sacrilegious or impious. The calling forth of spirits was a relatively common practice in Neoplatonism, theurgy and other esoteric systems of antiquity. In contemporary western esotericism, the magic of the grimoires is frequently seen as the classical example of this idea. Manuals such as the Greater Key of Solomon the King, The Lesser Key of Solomon (or Lemegeton), the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage.

Reader's Guide

Each map features unique puzzles tied to these keys, requiring players to solve environmental riddles, collect elemental items, or defeat specific enemies. Understanding their placement helps decode the larger timeline, showing how different factions manipulate reality through these artifacts.

Did You Know?

• Evocatio was a Roman military ritual aimed at diverting a city's tutelary deity to the Roman side.
• The conjuration of ghosts or spirits of the dead for divination is specifically called necromancy.
• The Greater Key of Solomon the King and The Lesser Key of Solomon are grimoires associated with evocation in Western esotericism.
• In Neopagan witchcraft, hoodoo, and Hermeticism, conjuration may refer specifically to calling or invoking deities and other spirits.
• The Latin word evocatio literally means 'calling forth' or 'summoning away'.