Why are a sorcerer, wizard, mage, archon, Enchantress, and warlock very different in nature?

Question

Nyx Shadowhawk · Answer

Many, many variants of this question get asked on Quora, so I will once again take the opportunity to list every type of magic-user I can think of. I’ll explain them in the context of fiction, although many of these terms have been or are used to refer to real people.

* Alchemist: A very versatile term in fiction, often referring to sciency-type hard magic, or else to potion making. Alchemy was a real thing, explained here [ https://www.quora.com/How-did-alchemy-get-associated-with-magic-In-Fullmetal-Alchemist-people-use-alchemy-to-bind-souls-to-inanimate-objects-In-Castlevania-alchemy-turned-somebody-into-a-powerful-demonic-dark-lord-Is-alchemy-really-just/answer/Nyx-Shadowhawk ], but alchemy in fiction usually doesn’t resemble real-life alchemy beyond passing references. Alchemists seek to magically, spiritually, or chemically transmute something from a base state to a higher, purer version of itself.
 * Conjurer: A wizard that specializes in conjury. Sometimes that means making objects appear out of thin air, but it can also mean conjuring spirits from other planes and/or binding them to one’s will (in that case, “conjure” is used interchangeably with “evoke”). A conjurer’s art differs from an illusionist’s in that the things a conjurer makes appear are actually there, rather than just appearing to be there.
 * Diviner: A person who specializes in gaining information through magical means. Divination is widely practiced in real life. There are many types of divination, but it usually consists of interpreting random patterns to devise meaning from them. The only thing that’s technically magical about it is the assumption that patterns created by random chance have inherent meaning, or the assumption that the patterns are messages from the gods. Astrology, tarot reading (cartomancy), palmestry (chiromancy), tea-leaf reading (tasseomancy), casting bones or rune stones (cleromancy), augury (interpreting natural patterns), scrying (crystal-gazing or mirror-gazing), pyromancy (fire-gazing), and necromancy (see below) are all forms of divination.
 * Druid: A word for an ancient Celtic priest, who played a combined role of lorekeeper, scientist, and clergy. Next to nothing is known about real Druids, but Druids in fiction are usually wizards who practice tree and nature-based magic. Druids in real life are neopagans or occultists who follow Celtic-based (or Celtic-inspired) magical paths.
 * Elementalist: A magic-user who specializes in manipulating some kind of elemental force, usually the four classical elements, but sometimes other ones (say, darkness, light, or electricity). Different kinds of elemental manipulation have their own names (i.e. aerokinesis, pyrokinesis, geokinesis, hydrokinesis, etc).
 * Enchanter/ess: A magic-user that specializes in enchanting objects or people, which means putting spells on them to imbue them with magical properties or alter their behavior. If something is described as being “bewitched,” it’s enchanted. May also specialize in curses, which are baneful enchantments.
 * Illusionist: A magic-user that conjures deceptive sensory stimuli, usually (but not always) images. There are two types of illusions: projections, which make something that isn’t there appear there, and glamours, which disguise or alter something that is there. An illusionist’s magic is the equivalent of VR — the sights and sounds and sensations seem real, and can be fun or scary to interact with, but ultimately they have no substance. They’re just messing with your perception. In real life, “illusionist” is another word for a stage magician, because their whole job is to mess with your perceptions.
 * Mage: A generic term for a magic-user. It lacks the association with stage magic that “magician” has, and also lacks the gendered or scholarly connotations of “wizard.” That makes it particularly versatile. I see it most often in RPGs, and therefore it most often refers to a magic-user who’s using their magic for combat, out there getting their hands dirty. TVTropes distinguishes between the Black Mage [ https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BlackMage ] who specializes in offense, the White Mage [ https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-element-cse&cx=006443654034974345143:kc4pt9dnkle&q=https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/WhiteMage&sa=U&ved=2ahUKEwiI5cP_ks7zAhVkmXIEHdquAv4QFnoECAUQAQ&usg=AOvVaw2z9q-NusYy2I5C1zXuho1F ] who specializes in defense and healing magic, and the Red Mage [ https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheRedMage ] who does a little of both.
 * Magician: A generic term for a magic-user. It tends to be rare in fiction because of its association with stage magic in real life. Sometimes it works, though, and in the right context it can sound just as mystical as any other term on this list. For example, the protagonist of The Arcana is called a “magician.” Sometimes, it could also be used in the context of ritual magic, since real practitioners of ritual magic are called “ceremonial magicians.”
 * Mystic: A word for a person who uses magic as a means of experiencing some form of spiritual transcendence, or vice-versa. In fiction, it tends to be used as a non-denominational variant of “monk.” You’re most likely to find a mystic meditating somewhere on a mountain while floating half a foot off the ground, and opening portals with their mind. Mystics are therefore something like wizard-priests, or wizard-gurus, who practice a particularly spiritual variant of magic that’s centered around connection to some higher power (rather than summoning and commanding lesser spirits). In real life, magic and mysticism tend to go hand-in-hand, and are lumped under the umbrella of occultism. Shamanism and theurgy are both forms of mysticism.
 * Necromancer: A person who does any kind of magic involving the dead — their souls, their bodies, or a combination of the two. The word “necromancy” originally referred to a type of divination (hence the -mancy suffix) that involved summoning the souls of the dead to learn mystical secrets from them. Now, it refers to any kind of death magic, from raising zombie hordes to holding seances. Necromancers in fiction are broadly evil, but this isn’t always the case. Magic is a tool, and although necromancy may be morally dodgy, it can be practiced ethically (in fiction or in real life). Nyx Shadowhawk's answer to In fantasy, necromancers are usually evil. How would you go about creating a necromancer that isn't evil? [ https://www.quora.com/In-fantasy-necromancers-are-usually-evil-How-would-you-go-about-creating-a-necromancer-that-isnt-evil/answer/Nyx-Shadowhawk ]
 * Occultist: A general term for anyone who studies magic in real life. There’s lots of different types of occultists, and what they call themselves depends a lot on their specific field. Any of the words on this list could be used to refer to occultists of various types, and many have historically been used. Magic-users are almost never called occultists in fiction, and there are probably several reasons for this — occultism usually has a spiritual dimension that is lacking in fiction, many fictional magic systems don’t resemble real-life occult ones, and it may be pointless to call a fictional magic-user an occultist if magic is an accepted part of their reality instead of being “hidden.” (I’ve only ever heard two fictional characters self-identify as occultists. These are Anathema Device in Good Omens, and Saint Germain in Castlevania.) In my opinion, an occultist should strive to achieve the trifecta of disciplines for studying and manipulating the physical and spiritual world — scientist, priest, mage.
 * Psion: A term for a magic-user who specializes in using psychic power, rather than flashes of light or complex rituals or any tools at all. This person uses their mind to do magic. They don’t “cast spells” so much as manipulate their surroundings with their mind. Often they have telepathy, empathy, or telekinesis, but psionic magic could extend into other kinds of psychic powers like clairvoyance, clairaudience, psychometry, etc. Some can control or manipulate other people’s minds. More wizard-like psions are also capable of energy manipulation, like manifesting psi-balls out of thin air and throwing them at things. This one has the odd distinction of being mainly found in sci-fi, making them wizards-but-more-sciencey.
 * Shaman: A tribal medicine man/woman who is the spiritual leader of their community. This term originally referred to such people in Siberia, but now is applied to folk healers and spiritual leaders among indigenous people throughout the world. Most shamans use various methods — drumming, dance, chanting, wearing masks, using psychedelics, etc. — to experience an altered state of consciousness, which will allow them to travel to other planes of existence and communicate with spirits. This way, they act as the “bridge” between their tribe and the spirit world. The word is sometimes used in fiction to describe the Ethnic Magician [ https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/EthnicMagician ], though it probably shouldn’t be, since this idea is often culturally appropriative at best and represents the racist “noble savage” trope at worst.
 * Shapeshifter: Exactly What It Says On The Tin — a person who can magically change their physical form. They can actually change their shape, as opposed to just making themselves appear different (that’s the illusionist’s wheelhouse). Some shapeshifters can turn themselves into animals, some can make themselves look like other people, some can even become non-living things like wind or water or fire.
 * Seer: A person with the inherent ability to see the future. This is distinct from a diviner, who analyzes random patterns to acquire information. Anyone can learn to be a diviner, but a seer is gifted (or cursed) with the inborn ability to see random flashes of the future, to get prophetic dreams or intuitive premonitions, or even to randomly go into trance and recite entire prophecies. Seers and oracles existed in real life, and they were very important. In Greece and Rome, the oracles advised kings and generals by going into trance and receiving messages directly from the gods.
 * Sorcerer/ess: A generic term for a magic-user, but with particular connotations. Sometimes a “sorcerer” is evil while a “wizard” is good. Sometimes wizards and sorcerers practice different types of magic (like in DND, where wizards develop magical ability through study while sorcerers have inborn ability). But in general, the most common attribute of a sorcerer/ess is that they are powerful. They’re wizards or mages (or witches) with enough raw power to move mountains and summon storms. You don’t argue with a sorcerer. Often, a sorcerer is an ugly old man while a sorceress is a beautiful young woman, for some reason. In real life, the word is not favored by occultists, but there are some who use it.
 * Summoner: A magic-user who specializes in summoning spirits, magical beasts, or other such entities to server or fight for them. There are lots of different ways that this can work. Maybe the summoner uses traditional ceremonial methods from real-life grimoires, but they’re more likely to open portals to other planes or yell out a dramatic “I SUMMON THEE!” evocation. Or maybe they just throw a pokeball. Summoning magic is very cool, but summoners are limited in that they can’t do much without the aid of other entities.
 * Thaumaturge: A strange and uncommon term for a magic-user, specifically a “worker of miracles.” This type of magic-user is officially sanctioned by the Church — saints’ abilities to perform miracles is thaumaturgy. This type of magic comes straight from God. One could argue that Jesus Christ is the most famous thaumaturge of all time. In fiction, this word is used all over the map, but the most accurate use of it would be to describe a person who specializes in holy-themed elemental/healing magic.
 * Theurgist: A practitioner of ritual magic, specifically, working with higher-ups like gods and angels. (The word goetia describes working with demons and the like.) Ceremonial magic in real life is extremely complex, and involves a lot of very specific procedures and tools. It’s often called “high magic” to distinguish it from “low” folk magic. Theurgy is the highest of high magic, because theurgists intend to unify themselves with the divine (rather than control gods for their own petty needs. It’s ritual-mysticism, referring to a combination of magic and esoteric religious practices. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this word in fiction (except in Wizard101, which misuses it, so that doesn’t count), and that’s a shame. It should really be used more often!
 * Warlock: I may as well mention it. The word “warlock” is used way too often to mean “witch, but male.” It does technically mean that, but etymologically it means “oath-breaker,” referring to the deception of the Devil and those who serve him (i.e. witches). Therefore, it’s not really as reclaimable as “witch,” and most men who practice witchcraft in real life call themselves witches. (If they do call themselves warlocks, it’s usually because they’re uninformed or edgy. Most consider “warlock” derogatory.) In fiction, it can refer to a lot of different things: male witches, battlemages, evil sorcerers, cambions.
 * Witch: A complex and divisive term that has meant many different things in different contexts. Sometimes a witch is a malevolent devil-worshipper that’s only a step above a demon (The VVitch), sometimes a witch is any female practitioner of magic (Harry Potter), sometimes a witch is an alternate species of human that is born with magical abilities (The Owl House), the list goes on. It often has negative connotations, but doesn’t always, especially in modern media. The influence of Wicca in real life has also changed the use of the term in fiction. In general, I would define a witch as a person who practices a combination of folk magic and a more practical and animistic form of theurgy. Witches practice folk magic — none of those bright lights or loud bangs of wizards and mages, but herbal remedies and homemade charms, pieces of string in one’s pocket, sensing the presence of spirits and telling them to get lost, etc. They’re more likely to live in cottages in the woods or swamps than the lofty towers of citadels or universities. Their spells are powerful and effective, but indirect — they will manifest later, after you forget about them, and will have longer-lasting effects (i.e. bringing you luck or money). Witchcraft is defined by practicality. This does not cover every use of the term (Wicca has plenty of pomp and ceremony, The Owl House and Harry Potter have plenty of bright flashes of light, etc.) But, for now, this is a working definition.
 * Wizard: A generic term for a magic-user, but with the connotation of academia. Wizards are both skilled and knowledgeable — you have to study to be a wizard. It doesn’t matter whether this studying happens in a formal school, in an initiatory secret society, while apprenticed to a master, or simply on one’s own. You have to study astrology, correspondence tables, divination, entire books worth of spells, long lists of the names of spirits, etc. Wizards may have some things in common with theurgists, like practicing planetary magic with many robes of different colors and wands of different woods for each planet, or (more rarely) calling up and controlling spirits. But in general, wizards in fiction practice magic that has immediate effects. They turn people into animals, they make things disappear, they animate inanimate objects, etc. Because it’s so closely associated with fantasy magic, the word “wizard” is not often used by occultists in real life.

ChatGPT · Answer

The terms sorcerer, wizard, mage, archon, enchantress, and warlock represent different archetypes or classes of spellcasters in fantasy literature and games, each with distinct origins, abilities, and philosophies regarding magic. Here’s a breakdown of their differences:
Sorcerer
 * Nature of Magic: Sorcerers typically possess innate magical abilities, often derived from a magical bloodline or ancestry (e.g., draconic, fey).
 * Spellcasting Style: They often have a more intuitive and instinctive approach to magic, relying on their natural talent rather than extensive study.
 * Character Traits: Sorcerers may be seen as more impulsive and emotional, with powers that can be unpredictable.
Wizard
 * Nature of Magic: Wizards are scholars of magic who gain their abilities through rigorous study, research, and the memorization of spells from ancient tomes and scrolls.
 * Spellcasting Style: Their magic is highly structured and methodical, often requiring preparation and careful planning.
 * Character Traits: Wizards are typically portrayed as intellectuals, valuing knowledge and wisdom above all.
Mage
 * Nature of Magic: The term "mage" is often used interchangeably with wizard but can also refer to a more general category of magic users who may blend different styles of magic.
 * Spellcasting Style: Mages can vary widely in their approach, combining elements of both scholarly study and innate talent.
 * Character Traits: Mages may embody a balance of intellect and instinct, depending on the specific lore.
Archon
 * Nature of Magic: Archons are often depicted as celestial or divine beings with powers granted by higher planes of existence. They may serve as guardians or enforcers of cosmic laws.
 * Spellcasting Style: Their abilities are usually tied to their divine nature and may focus on protection, healing, or judgment.
 * Character Traits: Archons are often portrayed as righteous, disciplined, and powerful, embodying the ideals of their celestial origin.
Enchantress
 * Nature of Magic: Enchantresses are typically female spellcasters who specialize in enchantment and illusion magic, often wielding their powers to charm or manipulate others.
 * Spellcasting Style: Their magic is often subtle and focuses on influencing emotions or perceptions rather than dealing direct damage.
 * Character Traits: Enchantresses are often depicted as alluring and mysterious, with a deep understanding of the hearts and minds of others.
Warlock
 * Nature of Magic: Warlocks gain their powers through pacts with powerful entities, such as demons, fey, or eldritch beings. Their magic is often granted rather than inherent.
 * Spellcasting Style: Their abilities can be highly specialized and may include unique spells or invocations tied to their patron.
 * Character Traits: Warlocks are often seen as ambitious, willing to make sacrifices or compromises for power, and may have a more morally ambiguous outlook.
Summary
In summary, these different spellcasting archetypes reflect varied sources of magic, methods of spellcasting, and character traits. This diversity allows for rich storytelling and character development in fantasy settings. Each archetype can embody different themes and motivations, contributing to the complexity of the magical world they inhabit.

David Bushey · Answer

In Quintus, a mage is simply anyone who does magic of any kind. It’s a catch all term.

A Wizard is anyone who learns to tap into Mana and use it to evoke spells. There’s a number of different subtypes.

Arcanist: common magic, employing a hodge podge of methology to come to a solution that works. Generally looked down by others.

Thaumaturgist: A specialist in the art of magic itself, studying the flow of Mana and how to direct or disrupt it.

Mancer: Any time of other wizard specialist.

Geo-: earth and the flow of mana through it.

Necro-: Studying using Mana’s waste product, Necra, and its relationship with death and souls. Not evil, but generally viewed as the magical equivalent of eating your own poop.

Thermo-: specializing in fire or cold effects. A fire specialist is called a pyromancer. A cold specialist is cryomancer. Both require very different mindsets.

Atmo-: controls weather, including wind, precipitation, and more extreme storm effects. high paying and unforgiving of mistakes, both the magic and the farmers.

Kineto-: controls movement, including speeding up and slowing down time, telekinesis, and force fields. Extremely sought after for military application.

Bio-: attempts to duplicate holy magic effect such as healing. Mutation and transformation (and cancer) far more likely.

Photo-: controls light and darkness, as well as illusions. Pays extremely well for experts.

Hydro-: controls large bodies of water. In extreme demand during droughts and on sea voyages. Many hydromancers only know how to create fresh water.

Conjurer: A specialized offshoot of magic in which a shell of mana is made and controlled by an otherworldly being. The conjurer can dispel the shell at will.

Summoner: Am EXTREMELY dangerous offshoot of magic in which mana makes a bridge allowing an extradimensional being into the world with its own mana. Can not be dispelled, and is typically unsustainable as it needs ever larger quantities of mana.

Archmage: Anyone that has mastered multiple magical techniques.

Warlocks are individuals that make pacts with otherworldly beings. They receive a trickle of mana from which they can vomit forth a few spell effects. Often potent, but with many catches and side effects.

Chosen: warlocks that make pacts with celestial entities are enrolled in their crusade against evil. Often become little more than weapons in their war.

Diabolist: warlocks that make pacts with infernal entities. Very likely to form self indulgent cults to venerate their masters.

Wyrden: warlocks that make pacts with faerie entities. Extreme strain on the sanity of the warlock, and likely to get swept up in fae politics.

Schism: warlocks that make pacts with abstract entities of the maelstrom. Insanity garented, along with madness.

Shades: warlocks that make pacts with ghosts and spirits. Some manipulation of necra. Usually wind up dead themselves.

Witch is a catch all for mages that draw their power from the land. A witch stakes out an area called a domain and draws of it mana to form spells. Drawing from unclaimed land is more difficult. Drawing from another domain is dangerous and EXTREMELY rude.

Gardenders: cultivate an area for lush diversity of life to an aesthetic taste. Many manage public parks.

Druids: claim large domains and let nature run wild. Generally incompatible with certain territories.

Farmers: rare witches that try to turn the land to productive uses. Generally limited, but can be effective.

Warders: claim a land as under their protection. Occasionally lords would attempt such magic to defend their homes. More rarely done in cities.

Architects: warders that attempt to claim a city. Very difficult, often unhealthy, but possible and people do attempt it. Schizophrenia is a common result.

Sorcerers are called such because unlike mages that draw magic to them, sorcerers are bursting with magic… eventually literally. Extremely rare, sorcerers tend to come about via some immortal element in their background.

Dragon sorcerers are most common. The more they use their powers, the more they transform into dragons, eventually losing their minds and becoming feral beasts.

Feytouched are likewise common. They become more strongly aligned with one of the faerie courts and typically become nymphomaniacs, mindlessly aggressive, sociopathicly manipulative, or inconsolably depressed.

Damned sorcerers have infernal lineage, and will be gradually warped over time. Eventually, their own nature will cause the universe itself to reject them, ripping them apart and ejecting them into the realms.

Blessed sorcerers are the same, only from a celestial parent. many mistake Blessed for holy mages.

The last category is holy magic, which taps into the mana produced by the collective believe of humankind. Once exclusively human (and the source of human liberation) other races have learned to tap into this immense ocean of power.

Priests: draw in mana and release it as spells.

Clerics: mana flows in at a regular rate and they release it as spells. Because the mana comes from a humanoid source, it tends to not have as detrimental effect as it has on sorcerers.

Ironically, while anyone can learn to perform priestly spells, Clerics are born, and even an atheist cleric can exist. This leads some to believe that Clerics should be categorized as sorcerers rather than in a special category.

Occultists: while most use faith, occultists use knowledge to tap into the belief of the masses to charge spells in advance in items or symbols.

Shamans: deal with the primordial belief that includes animal and plant spirits. Most shamans become priests with little difficulty.

Mediums: focus on necra and the dead. Generally regarded as icky heresy.

Von Krieger · Answer

The mage is a generic term for spellcaster and is not used as a particular class.

A sorcerer is the magical version of a trust fund baby. He got his magic from some sort of distant magical ancestor. It’s all about his family connections, about his bloodline.

A Sorcerer is the magical equivalent of Donald Trump.

A warlock is a magical trophy wife. They’re hitched themselves to some sort of phenomenal cosmic entity, be it fey, devils, demons, angels, or squids from beyond time and space, just so they could have power.

A Warlock is the magical equivalent of Melania Trump.

A wizard is a giant magical nerd. He’s learned to cast magic the hard way through studying the precise words, gestures, and reagents mixtures required to cast a spell. He’s probably gone to giant magical nerd college, where he was taught by older, gianter magical nerds. He writes his magical stuff down in a book.

A Wizard is the magical equivalent of a blogger who went to college for Journalism, and is now writing clickbait articles for BuzzFeed/slinging magic missiles at rats in some tavern owner's basement.

Sam Guckian · Answer

Witch

Generally lives in the country, magical equivalent of a midwife in some ways; focuses on herbal medicine and psychology.

They gain power from their knowledge, sheer force of personality, and ability to talk both people and beings of power into doing what they want.

Technically doesn’t have to be female but they usually are for reasons I don’t know.

Warlock

They gain powers from some kind of deal they make with a higher power (Can be godlike, but not a god) Their powers are usually more creepy and otherworldly than other casters. How powerful they are correlates to how wilful they are, how much they can mentally wrestle with the influence of their patron.

Wizard

They go to school and learn. Their power is based on their knowledge of their spells. The tuition they require is expensive and rare, so you only really Wizards in the urban areas, but anyone can be a wizard with the right training; only the privileged get it though.

(Although they might be self taught, just like with science)

Sorcerer

They are born with their power, it is genetically inherited. They can put their own spin on each spell they cast.

Sarah Stone · Answer

This is the definition I wrote when sculpting out magic for a book I’m writing;

Wizard & Witch = people who learn magic by study & practice (Dr. Strange, Doctor Strange)

Warlock = a person who gets powerful magic from —1) bargaining it from a source -typically evil gods, demons, or corrupted magic-wielders (Ahmanet, The Mummy)

—2) having a set-in-stone destiny that will eventually require sacrifice of some type that will ‘repay’ the magic they possess (Merlin, Merlin)

Sorcerer & Sorceress = people who get their magic by inheriting it, though they often need to study / practice it to get better (All students at Hogwarts, Harry Potter Franchise)

Mage = a person who studies magic through religion or ancient rituals, often focusing their studies to a specific course or type of magic. (Bonnie Bennet, the Vampire Diares)

NOTE : The characters I reference do not necessarily call themselves by my definitions of their ‘titles’ (fx Bonnie calls herself a ‘witch’ though I call her a ‘mage’)

ANOTHER NOTE : All images are from the Mr. Google himself

A FINAL NOTE : Sorry for the poor image quality

Jonathan Gwilliams · Answer

Semantics. These days they all basically mean a magic-user, but they differ in derivation.

Mage, Magic and Magician all come from an old Persian word Magus, which probably meant ‘astrologer’.

Sorcerer probably comes from Latin ‘Sortarius’ meaning ‘someone who casts lots’ - another basic form of augury / fortune-telling.

Witch has always meant a practitioner of magic for as far back as its use is recorded, though it can also mean ‘to dowse’ - another basic form of augury.

Warlock actually used to mean ‘oathbreaker’, and so is the only one that by actual original definition always had a negative meaning! It was always pejorative. These days It’s usually stated as meaning a male witch, but originally a male witch was called a Wicca (a female one being a Wicce) so that’s a neologism.

The word Witcher mostly comes from the book series of the same name and is effectively an alternate spelling of Wicca (wiedźmin in the original Polish).

so originally, all of them effectively meant fortune teller at some point, augury being amongst the commonest example of magic. Nowadays it is down to the specific author to decide what differences there are between the terms.

Murphy Barrett · Answer

It depends on how the author or game uses the terms.

In my Nadyaverse setting, there is no definitive set of definitions, due to the terms being used in parallel and coming to English from different sources, and often misused by laymen.

So in that setting’s modern American English, after the Unveiling when the public became aware that mythic folks weren’t so mythical, there was a bit of an effort standardize usage of the terms. The problem is that laymen argued with laymen, practitioners with practitioners, and laymen with practitioners, resulting in a general but not final consensus. Then it got worse when the lawyers and politicians got involved.

In general, the terms carry the following definitions:

Mage: A generic term for someone who practices magic, but also used to describe someone with an inborn talent for magic.

Magician: Non-magical tricksters commonly found at children’s parties, but occasionally used by tricksters, illusionists, or others who wish to be ambiguous if they’re practicing magic or “illusions”.

Wizard: A person who studies magic in an academic fashion. Can indicate someone who is not a mage in the second meaning. May be used to specify a male mage, but this usage is quickly falling out of favor.

Enchanter: A person who enchants objects with magical qualities. There is almost no debate over this usage.

Sorcerer: A mage who practices magic less academically and more “by the seat of her pants”. Very likely to be a mage in the second meaning of the word.

Witch: A mage who focuses on herbology, folk remedies, and other forms of “household magic”. Where witch is used to specify a female mage, the male term is “hedge wizard”, but witch is quickly becoming the universal term.

Techmage/Technomancer: Someone focusing on the very new field of magic focusing on technology.

Note that the character Selena is a techmage but as a traditionalist often calls herself a witch.

Warlock: The original meaning, a man who practices witchcraft, has been entirely abandoned and warlock is now used to describe someone who focuses on combat magic.

Oracle/Diviner: The meaning has expanded somewhat from just describing someone who sees the future to someone who specializes in information magic.

Necromancer: Someone focusing on the magic of life and death. Note that in this setting there is no functional difference between healing someone with magic and raising the dead. It’s all the magic of life and death. The difference between a necromancer and a healer is predominantly social, a distinction that matters far more to healers than necromancers.

Artificer: A loose term to describe someone who makes magical items or fixes things with magic.

Original question-What’s the difference between mages, magicians, wizards, enchanters, and sorcerers?

Benjamin Johnson · Answer

Magician/Mage: generic term for someone who uses magic. I lumped the two together because there is really no difference.

Wizard: a mage who graduated from college because they studied really hard.

Sorcerer: a mage who graduated from college because they are naturally talented.

Witch: a mage who graduated from college by cheating on the exams.

Warlock: a mage who graduated from college because they gave the dean a quickie.

Jason Panella · Answer

Using the current (5th) edition as the basis:

* A sorcerer gets their magical ability from raw, innate power. They are amazingly flexible in how they cast, but don’t have a huge pool of spells to draw from. Sorcerers only learn a handful of spells over their career, but they also learn metamagic abilities that lets them change how they cast on the fly (like casting a more powerful version of the spell, or quickening their spells so they can cast two at the same time, and so on).
 * A warlock gets their magical abilities from a pact with a powerful being. Like the sorcerer, they have a limited selection of spells to draw from, but they also have interesting, additional abilities that stem from their relationship to their benefactor. They only learn a handful of spells, but warlocks also “break” a lot of the rules of standard spellcasting thanks to the being they have pact with.
 * A wizard gets their magical abilities from hard work. They’ve studied texts and, as a result, have a huge pool of possible spells to draw from. They tend to focus on a specific school of magic, which yields some cool benefits, but also are no where near as flexible with their casting as the other two classes. A wizard’s spellbook might be full of dozens of spells, way more than sorcerers or warlocks, but once they’ve studied what spells they can cast for the day, they’re stuck with them.
As for a melee-focused spellcaster, all three classes have pros and cons for this approach. Lots of players like the “blade-lock” approach to a warlock. I’m a personal fan of the bladesinger, a school of wizard magic that focuses on raises your character’s AC so high that getting hit is rare.

Carlos Moya · Answer

There’s a saying that a wizard passes the class because she studies hard; a sorcerer is so talented that she passes without studying; and a warlock gets an A by sleeping with the teacher.

Wizards

A wizard is a being without innate magical powers (at most a little bit of racial spellcasting, e.g. Tieflings and Deep Gnomes) who becomes a mage by learning magic.
They can cast spells because they have studied what combinations of words, gestures and mind processes cause the background magic field to create the desired effects, and they grow in power by learning more difficult spells and training their mental endurance to be able to channel bigger amounts of magic.

Bards fall more or less under this paradigm, although their approach tends to be less scientifical and more artistic; you could see them as the homeschooled version of wizards.

Sorcerers

A sorcerer is a magical creature in a race that aren’t magical creatures; someone whose innate magical powers are way above the average for their species. A sorcerer is a mage because they are innately full of magic─be it inborn (e.g. because their lineage descends from a dragon or other magical creature) or acquired (e.g. they hanged around in a zone of Wild Magic too long, or they fell into a cauldron of Mana Potion when they were little).
They can cast spells because magic is a fundamental part of their being, and they grow in power by training to tap into their inborn potential better.

Warlocks

A warlock (or a cleric; don’t let them trick you into believing they are different :P) is defined by being someone who has gained magical powers from an external being, usually a powerful Outsider (such as greater devils, gods, fae lords, or weird things from outside existence).
The warlock might have struck a deal with a duke of the Nine Hells trading power for something else; or they might be stealing forbidden knowledge from one of the inefable Things that exist beyond time and space; or maybe Oberon the Green Lord thought it’d be fun to feed someone a great surge of power and see what happens; or they might have been posessed by the ghost of a powerful wizard of yore and are learning to channel the ghost’s magic; or a devoted follower of Kord, the god of sports, has been chosen as his emissary and imbued with divine power as a reward for their faithful service.
An individual warlock (or cleric) might be a mage because their patron has taught them how to do magic ─like a wizard─ or because it has transformed them into a creature with inherent magic ─like a sorcerer; in the end it doesn’t make that much difference. They can cast spells because someone (or something) else has given them the ability, and they may grow in power by learning more tricks from their patron, by gaining more gifts from them, or by unlocking more of the potential that they have been given.

Skip Tarrant · Answer

Original question: 
What are the differences between a wizard and a warlock and a sorcerer and a witch and mage?

While fiction authors may, and almost always do, create their own definitions for these terms, there are actual, real-world definitions and usages. I have been in a position to be among people who do use them in real-world ways, so here’s what I’ve seen and heard first hand:

Wizard - Derived from a word meaning “wise,” this almost always refers to a man who is skilled in some art or skill. Often refers to a magic users, and normally implies that he is a good guy. I’ve never heard anyone introduce himself as a wizard, but have seen it used in written works and it normally is offered as an alternative to Witch when referring to a man.

Warlock - Normally describes a bad guy. The word is derived from waerloga, meaning traitor or liar. Supposedly first used to refer to men who had converted to Christianity and then ratted out the other members of their coven or grove. Still, there are some Scotch pagan traditions who refer to their male members as warlocks and insist that it is an honorable title.

Sorcerer - Normally somewhat interchangeable with wizard, but often referring to a bad guy. Always means a magic user. Another term I’ve never heard anyone use to describe themselves. Derived from words meaning conjurer of evil spirits or teller of fortunes by lot.

Witch - This one is even harder to pin down, as scholars cannot agree where the word came from. The Oxford English Dictionary says it is of “uncertain origin.” While it commonly refers to the image of an old woman dressed in black and wearing a conical peaked hat, that’s far from the only current definition. This may be referred to as a Gothic witch - or a Disney witch, as that’s where we’ve seen the image a lot. There are also people who call themselves hedge witch or kitchen witch. They often concern themselves with herbal cures and other alternative healing modalities, and may follow any religious path or none at all. Then there are the followers of Wicca who call themselves Witch. Note the capital W. They are practitioners of a neo-Pagan religion, which has no fixed theology or practices. It is normally explained as being an earth oriented religion, and its followers seek balance and attempt to live in harmony with their environment. They may or may not practice magic of any sort, but their goal in such practice is healing, prosperity, or some other constructive end. They specifically do NOT worship The Devil or Satan or any such god of evil.

The above only refers to the use of the word witch in Western societies, with the exception of the native cultures of the New World. In those, as well as African or Asian cultures, a witch is normally considered the embodiment of evil and a person who will do nothing but harm to anyone for little or no reason. At the same time, most cultures also recognize figures such as the curandero/a of Latin America, who is an herbal healer or the like.

Mage - The English version of the Latin magus (magician), which came from the Greek magos (learned, priestly class). Another virtual synonym for wizard, and definitely a magic user. Little used in current speech, and normally only found in fantasy novels. The term may be used to denote a specific rank in ceremonial magic societies, however.

My comments about the derivations of these words come from the Online Etymological Dictionary, which normally references the OED, which is the default standard for definition and roots of the English language. For usage, I quote my own experience of meeting Pagans and students of the esoteric from all across the USA over a period of more than 40 years.

Andrew Tempest · Answer

This is an expanded version of Andrew Tempest's answer to What’s the difference between a wizard and a sorcerer? [ https://www.quora.com/What-s-the-difference-between-a-wizard-and-a-sorcerer/answer/Andrew-Tempest-1 ]

I don’t know any context for claiming there is any ranking of strength between them.

A witch seems to have originally meant someone who can practice magic, from the Anglo Saxon Wicca. By the 16th century, it became associated with women who had dealings with evil spirits.

It is associated with the persecution of mainly women in the witch mania of the 16th and 17th centuries. It was used for the monstrous villains in fairy tales such as Hansel And Gretel.

In modern fantasy, witch is sometimes taken as a specifically female word, and they may have access to the same powers as males who are referred to as wizards or warlocks.

When it is used for a distinctive tradition of magic, good witches live in rural communities and brew potions and are healers of people and animals. They can also use curses against their enemies. Perhaps the best fictional version of this archetype is Granny Weatherwax in the Discworld books

A wizard comes from wise man, and was used to mean a philosopher. It later came to be the male counterpart of a witch, but it could also mean an astrologer.

In modern fantasy, it often is associated with someone who learns to use magic by studying books. They can study their books to find a solution to a problem.

It has come to be associated with an old man with a beard who may act as mentor to the young hero. However the young wizard who is eager to learn has become increasingly popular as an archetype

The old bearded wizard dates back to many depictions of Merlin in Arthurian legend. The archetypal modern version is Gandalf

The young wizard trope was popularised by Harry Potter. While Harry is the Chosen One Hero, Hermione embodies the student wizard better (JK Rowling insisted on unnecessarily gendered language, so Hermione identifies as a witch but is an archetypal wizard)

Sorcerer is derived from old French, and was more likely to be associated with exotic cultures.

It has come to mean with someone who has raw magic power within themselves, which they may sometimes struggle to control.

Dr Strange is sometimes referred to as a sorcerer. However he learned magic by studying books, making him more of a wizard. Scarlet Witch is a better reflection of the sorcerer archetype

Although the world is never used in the film, Elsa is a sorcerer

A warlock originally meant an oath-breaker or traitor. It went on to mean a wicked person in general. It later meant a damned soul in hell, a demon, or Satan himself.

By 1400 it meant someone who has occult powers because they are in league with the Devil. It came to be used as the male counterpart of a witch, particularly in Scotland and the North of England.

Now it means someone who has magical powers derived from demonic or other forces, such as Sabrina. (same gender issue as Hermione, although Sabrina was a witch before there were warlocks in this franchise)

A Mage is someone with magic powers, or generally a wise person. The Wise Men who visited the infant Jesus are sometimes referred to as the Magi.

In modern fantasy worlds and games, it is sometimes used as a generic term for all the types of person with of magic power.

Some fantasy books, series, films, comics and role playing games have given specific definitions to these words so they refer to different individuals

In Tolkien’s work, the wizards were the five Maiar (divine beings) sent to Middle Earth to help the free people defend against powerful evil.

Sorcery, or witchcraft, is the dark magic the wizards were sent to defend against. It originated with evil Maiar, Melkor and Sauron, but men could learn to use it.

In the Harry Potter’s world, witch and wizard are the names for females and males who have natural talent for magic which can be developed at a school such as Hogwarts.

The American edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was retititled Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. This is just the name of the stone, no other context for the word is given.

In Discworld, Wizards are nearly always male, and are the eighth son of an eighth son. They usually go to Unseen University to train, and are capable of manipulating energy, moving objects around. They tend to be diverted into eating, administering or researching the fundamentals of the universe, to keep them from doing too much harm with their magic

A sourcerer is the the eighth son of an eighth son of an eighth son. Wizards are required to be celibate to prevent a sourcerer being born, as they have uncontrolled raw power which is a threat to the world.

Witches are nearly always female, and are based in villages mostly using more subtle magic to help people, such as healing.

In The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, males are warlocks and females are witches. They are not consistent which is the general term which covers both, it probably depends who you ask.

In Dungeons and Dragons, wizards are scholarly magic users who have learned to prepare spells from books. Sorcerers have inborn magic, and know a more limited selection of spells. a Warlock is someone who has a pact with a powerful supernatural being such as a fiend, archfey, great old one or celestial. They derive magic power from this, but may have obligations. Mage has no formal definition in the fifth edition rules, except as the name of a non-player character wizard. It can be generally used if you want a word for all the arcane spell casting classes (wizard, sorcerer and warlock)

Bjorn Melby · Answer

In general - they are just names…

In D&D

* Mages, Magicians & Wizards are effectively the same thing - wizards
 * 
 * They have studied magic and learned how to cast spells to effect the world

* Enchanters are wizards that focus on Enchantment magic - imbuing objects with powers - Abilities like feather fall, or invisibility, or making the user better able to hit and damage an opponent. Or better protected from damage…
 * Sorcerers are mages that get power innately - in general they are either born with the ability - (Wild Magic) or gain the ability from their heritage - part dragon, fiend, celestial, old one, etc.
 * Warlocks (D&D) gain their abilities from pacts with greater powers - fiends, old ones, celestials, etc.. Similar to Sorcerers, in that they do not study, but different in that it is not their birthright, but a contract with the greater being that grants them powers

Nyx Shadowhawk · Answer

This question has been asked before but here we go…

Witch: A practitioner of folk magic, “low” ceremonial magic, or both. Witchcraft is typically very practical and “earthy.” Witches are the local “cunning men” and “wise women” that will whip you up a simple charm or curse, herbal remedies for illnesses, and similar types of spells. They often commune with low-level familiar spirits or fairies. (Note: The definition changes when applied to modern witches as opposed to historical witches or fictional witches, but this is a general starting point. And the title “witch” does not necessarily have anything to do with Wicca.)

Warlock: A word that typically refers to a male witch, but it means “to deny a contract,” therefore by extension, “traitor.” It became associated with witchcraft as a term to refer to a person in league with the Devil. Because of this, most actual male witches prefer to call themselves witches. In fiction, it’s a pretty versatile term, referring to male witches, evil magic-users, warrior-wizards, and anything in between.

Sorcerer/ess: A general term for a particularly powerful magic-user, sometimes (but not always) evil. (“Sorcery” sometimes refers to evil magic, but then again, so does “witchcraft.”) I consider it a neutral term on the morality scale, but find that a “sorcerer” is generally more powerful than a mere “wizard.” Technically, it means “caster of lots” and therefore probably referred to diviners. It’s almost never used to refer to fortune-telling now, though.

Mage: A generic term for a magic-user, popular with roleplaying games. In modern fiction it tends to refer specifically to practitioners of kinetic/elemental magic or other hands-on type stuff useful in battles with orcs and goblins, instead of scholarly, ceremonial, or folk magic.

Wizard: A generic term for a magic-user that could refer to almost any of the above. Distinguished from a witch in that, to be a wizard, you need to be book-smart. Wizards definitely have a scholarly element to them, studying spells out of old books, and practicing “high” magic— astrology, theurgy, hermeticism, etc. However, it can refer to a practitioner of any type of magic.

Enchanter/ess: Refers to a (typically powerful) magic-user who specializes in enchanting things— casting spells over things to give them magical properties or make them behave differently than they normally would. If something is under a spell or has a spell put upon it, it’s probably enchanted. “Enchanter/ess” tends to have a more positive connotation than “sorcerer/ess” does, but it’s also neutral.

Necromancer: A practitioner of magic who communicates with the dead. The term “necromancy” originally referred to a type of divination, summoning the dead to ask them questions about the future (hence the “mancy” suffix), but it has since come to refer to any kind of magic involving the dead. Necromancers are often evil, summoning hordes of ghosts or zombies to fight for them, or stealing the souls right out of people’s bodies. That’s not a rule, though.

Diviner: A person who gathers information through magical means. It’s usually information about the future, but it doesn’t have to be. Some of the most common methods of divination include cartomancy (tarot and oracle cards), palmistry, and scrying (gazing into a blank object, like a crystal ball).

Spiritualist: A person who believes the dead can communicate with the living. Never used in fiction. (Oh by the way, seances are for amateurs.)

Medium: A person who talks to spirits. Any spirits. Usually refers to a person who speaks to spirits of dead humans, specifically, but anyone who channels information directly from spirits could be called a medium.

Occultist: A person who believes in or studies the supernatural, magic and other esoteric mystical things. Never used in fiction.

Ian Harkness · Answer

*Disclaimer: This answer is an opinion based primarily on the 5E Players Handbook and the information therein (as 5E is the one I've spend the most time with).*

Question Answered: What is the difference between mages, warlocks, sorcerers, and wizards in D&D?

First off, let me say that “mage” isn't a definitive class like the others mentioned, but is usually a catch-all term for someone who uses magic. Personally, I use the term as a synonym for Wizard.

With that cleared up, the rest of the question is relatively simple.

Sorcerers and Sorceresses obtain their power natually. They are born with their power, usually because someone in their bloodline was a magical creature of some sort, but not always.

Warlocks, on the other hand, are gifted their powers by another being, similar to Clerics. However, unlike Clerics (whose power comes from gods and goddesses), a Warlocks' patron is not (usually) interested in worship. In fact, their patron might not even realize the Warlock even exists. These patrons are also more, “evil” then gods and goddesses (Fiends, Fey, and extra-planear Things are all possible patrons, and while Fey and EPT's aren't inherently evil, most would not consider them “good”).

And last we have Wizards, who almost universally earned their power the hard way. They study tomes and artifacts and patterns and paths, growing (or even creating) their own magical talent. Because of this, Wizards are some of the most versatile users of the Arcane (beaten out narrowly by Bards, but that's a different explanation).

I hope this answered your question.

Tia Eastlake · Answer

That depends entirely on context. The words used to be generally interchangeable to some extent, although “warlock” appears to have a generally more malevolent connotation. In recent-ish years the terms have become increasingly specific (much like how swords went from “swords” to having all the specific terms of kinds of swords).

In general (and i SUSPECT mostly due to D&D and WoW), you can typically break them down as follows now:

1: Wizards. Wizard = Vizier = Wise Man (pretty sure there are more steps in there, but that sums it up)

A wizard is now generally viewed as a person with SOME magical talent who has to learn specific formula, gestures, incantations, and technicalities. They are often (though not always) depicted as having to prepare their magic in some way ahead of time. These are the scholars, magical ‘scientists’, and arcane versions of computer nerds (thank you Jim Butcher for that line).

2: Sorcerer

This is probably the most ambiguous term in here. In some stories and settings it’s analogous to a wizard, or is some kind of evil wizard, or isn’t entirely human. Generally, the difference here as far as modern interpretation goes is that a Sorcerer is able to use magic WITHOUT preparing it ahead of time, or perhaps without reagents. A sorcerer in D&D is someone who has a less flexible range of magic than a wizard, but wields raw power through their emotions, rather than being a clinical scholar of magic.

3: Warlock

…ah the warlock. I have no friggen’ CLUE where this term started but it’s actually one of the LEAST ambiguous terms in our modern age, and I can pretty much tell you exactly why.

World. Of. Warcraft.

In modern day, the term Warlock refers to a person who gains their magical power by making bargains with otherworldly entities. Spirit creatures. Usually (because eeeeeeevil) a demon, or multiple demons. They are granted powers, or access to power, by their ‘patron’, but have to typically give up something in return, or begin to be… altered.

Nick Stockley · Answer

The one with which an individual, who has adopted one of these said titles, has a deep personal desire to excell, create, learn and grow.

These titles are just symbols of personal interest and nothing more. The origins of these words can be used to assertain some level of symbolic cohesion between your self and another of the same understanding. In the end however, each word means little to nothing more than what is attributed to it; as all symbols yet known are just human constructs.

It is in every situation here we speak of, that the individual is of the greatest potential, not the symbols the individual places upon their self. The greatest potential of the individual is joining with other individuals to accomplish mutually assured change. Witch, wizard, sorcerer, warlock, mage or otherwise.

Marc Freeman-Sheehy · Answer

One thing I would like to point out: All of the classes listed are “mages” but what you are thinking is a Wizard.

In 5th Edition D&D a wizard is someone who learns and prepares spells through research and knowledge. They prepare a number of spells every morning from a spellbook that is limitless in size. Their casting ability is Intelligence.

A sorcerer is someone who attains magic through their bloodline or other innate talent. They often descend from dragons or are given their powers by deities. They cast from the list of spells they know, preparing no spells beforehand. Their casting ability is Charisma.

A warlock is someone who gains their power by making a deal with an eldritch being (like Cthulhu). The being receives your soul and your services, but you gain magical powers. Their casting ability is also Charisma.

In 5th edition they are all viable primary arcane casters, but the wizard and the sorcerer trump the warlock on that front. The one advantage of the warlock is its high-damage single target abilities, like eldritch blast.

Nick Stockley · Answer

These terms over many years have meant many things and often where words synonymous with each Other. As time has progressed so has our social structures and understandings. With that understanding comes more definition amongst these terms.

Witch/warlocks: one that practices witchcraft, the craft, or wicca. This title typically would be for someone that follows the dogma of the wiccan religion. This title would also be self ascribed to someone that finds themselves to be a witch or warlocks.

Sorcerer, mage, and wizard: these titles are for the most part synonymous with eachother with little variation in meanings. A sorcerer would be one that communes with Other worldly beings and uses spells or rituals to accomplish goals. A mage would be an enlightened individual with worldly and other worldly knowlege and tend to be spiritual leaders or guides. (Think of the three magi or mages that brought gifts to Jesus by following the holy signs of his birth). A wizard is a wise individual who knows a vast body of knowledge and uses it to guide others along an appropriate path, this wizard would also utilize spells, magic, science, and secrets to reach their goals or objectives.

Enchanter/Enchantress: one who casts enhancements upon. An enchantment being a spell or intention placed on an object, person or place. As opposed to a “regular spell” or intention cast out to the universe to be actualized, an enchantment aims to influence by proxy to the spell. Blessed or cursed objects are a good example of an enchantment. So an enchanter(ess) is one who specializes in enchantment.

Necromancer: one who communicates, gleans information, divines, and or otherwise does spellwork that specifically deals in or with the dead.

Diviner: one who divines or utilizes the arts of divination to project an idea of events or things otherwise unknown. Tea reading, palmistry, numerology, astrology, omens and etcetera.

Spiritualist: the origins of this word is used to describe someone who communed with the spirits to ascertain this or that information. It is used in this new age to describe someone who is “spiritual” but not religious.

Medium: someone who communicates with spirits to ascertain knowledge or to help the living. The word suggests this person is between the world's of living and dead, in the middle. A true medium is essentially a channeler, channelling for a specific (paying) person for their musings or sincere curiosity . Usually a charge for services rendered is required. rendering this practice monitarily motivated and therefore not like the other titles on this list.

Occultists: an occultists is one who studies that which is hidden or unknown. An occultist researches information which is esoteric in nature. Again (esoteric) another term which generally means hidden or not typically known. Occultists typically study the hidden arts, whereas the rest of this list describes practitioners of the arts.

These are not exact and are subject to the opinions of other people who may think differently but that is what each term or title means to me. Hope this helps.