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in: Items, Magic, Canon Resources

Magic (Canon)

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This article uses content from the Magic article on the Once Upon a Time Wiki.
201MistClears
Magic
General Information
Origin: Holy Grail (partially)
Current Location: Everywhere
Physical Description
Type: See "Types of Magic"
Color: Various
Usage Information
Used by:
  • Various (See "Practitioners")
Used on:
  • Various
Used for: Various
Show Information
First appearance: "Pilot"
Latest appearance: "The Finale Battle Part 2"
Relevant Pages
GALLERY

Magic always comes with a price. I read the book, you know.

—Henry to David Nolan src

Magic is a metaphysical force featured on ABC's Once Upon a Time. It first appears in the first episode of the first season.

It can be used to override the usual laws of nature, but it always comes with a price. Magic is inherently neutral and cannot itself be split into light or dark, but it can be used for either purpose.

Magic is powered by emotion and thus the stronger the feelings the caster imbrues in a spell, the stronger the magic itself is.

Moral Use of Magic[]

Cora represents the darkness of magic and Emma represents the light.

—Adam Horowitz, Once Upon a Time: The Price of Magic

Magic is power and as such it posses the potential to corrupt those who harness it. Powerful magical practitioners like Cora, Regina and Rumplestiltskin became corrupted by their power and their magic grew tainted with them. Not all magical practitioners are corrupted, however, such as fairies but these seem to be exceptions because they cannot use magic in negative ways instead of choosing to not do so.

Magic can be used to override the usual laws of nature, but it always comes with a price. It is inherently neutral and cannot itself be split into light or dark, but can be used for either purpose. Since magic use is powered by emotion, the strength of the spell depends on the feelings of the caster focuses into the output of magic.

Laws of Magic[]

The Laws of Magic define the limits of magical abilities. There are three restrictions not even the most powerful magic can achieve: bring back the dead, force someone into love and change the past.

Price of Magic[]

The Price of Magic is the inevitable expense for using or casting magic. Often stated as a warning that "magic always comes with a price", but sometimes, the price is not foreseeable. Rumplestiltskin's curse has the heaviest penalty for gaining his Dark One powers. While the magic allows him to accumulate masses of power, it corrupts him both physically and emotionally.

Other prices include the Evil Queen's sacrifice of her father to unleash the Dark Curse upon the Enchanted Forest. In doing so, she creates a void in her soul that can never be filled. At another time, Regina's attempt to outsmart and get rid of Emma by putting her under a Sleeping Curse backfires, as Mr. Gold predicted, when Henry is afflicted with the curse instead. Even Mr. Gold himself, who knows all too well there's always a price to pay, brought magic to Storybrooke, which returned his powers, but the cost forces a barrier around town to form, preventing him from leaving to find his son with his old memories intact. A When Gerda asked for a powerful potion to erase the memories of her sisters from the citizens of Arendelle, the price may have factored in causing her daughter Elsa to inherit her sister's ice powers.

Magic Colors by User[]

Types of Magic[]

  • Belief
  • Blood Magic
  • Divine Magic
  • Fairy Magic
  • Foresight
  • Genie Magic
  • Ice Magic
  • Mermaid Magic
  • Persuasion
  • Potioncraft
  • Rock Troll Magic
  • True Love
  • Witchcraft

Magical Abilities[]

  • Age Manipulation
  • Heart Ripping
  • Magical Immobilization
  • Mirror Enchantments
  • Protection Spells
  • Shapeshifting
  • Teleportation
  • World-crossing

Practitioners[]

Belief
Blood Magic
Divine Magic
Fairy Magic
Foresight
Genie Magic
Ice Magic
Mermaid Magic
Potioncraft
Persuasion
Rock Troll Magic
True Love
Witchcraft


Appearances[]

Note: "Archive" denotes archive footage.

  • Magic is featured in Once Upon a Time's Season One novelization, Reawakened: A Once Upon a Time Tale.
  • Magic appears in Henry's storybook in "The New Neverland", "Snow Drifts" and "The Snow Queen".
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