The Spellcrafts mod, pre-DF Steam Release. This version of the mod will no longer be updated.

Here is an upload of my secrets, interactions, and creatures associated with magic. Currently working on some new things and improvements to the system and delivery methods.

Short summary:
This mod adds various night creatures, secrets, and ways to learn "magic" through interactions, reactions and syndromes in Dwarf Fortress. The player can learn magic in both fortress and adventure modes, through multiple means. The mod is intended to be compatible with vanilla DF and other lightweight mods which dont change many of the basic game's files. As such it is intended to run off of the vanilla DF files and does not modify them.

Be sure to read the installation instructions in the readme, whether you choose to install everything all together or piecemeal through the "addons" folder.

In fort mode reactions are accessible primarily through the magicians studio and conjuring circle. In adventure mode they're accessible from the crafting menu.
In either mode aether salts are the primary reagent of reactions. They can be produced by sacrificing various materials through the magician's studio or crafting menu. Aether residue is also necessary for many reactions and can be obtained directly from aether salts or as a byproduct of attempting to generate essences.
Essences are the basic form of magic, which must be ingested or inhaled to acquire the powers they represent. These can be stored in the food stockpile and controlled/moved around from there. Essences can be cooked in the kitchen into meals, combining the powers of multiple essences into a single dish or multiplying the number of meals that contain the essence, providing it to more dwarves.

Mundane Teachings available from these methods include:
Generic - a collection of weak abilities unafiliated with any deity or demon
Aetheric - spells associated with direct manipulation of magic itself
Hyazith - spells of fire and ice
Kineroch - spells of storms, floods and telekinesis
Medisephos - magic of healing and divine blessings
Polybestia - druidic shapeshifting magic and protection from shapeshifting
Dementia - evil magics of torment and misery, becoming undead, and weak necromantic abilities.

Powerful magic comes from the gods themselves, however. These can only be obtained in slab form, or written into books by those who learned them from a slab or master.

Secret spheres included:
ANIMALS
BIRTH
BLIGHT
COURAGE
DARKNESS
DEATH
DEFORMITY
DEPRAVITY
DISEASE
EARTH
FATE
FIRE
FOOD
HEALING
METALS
NIGHTMARES
SILENCE
SPEECH
SUN
THRALLDOM
TREES
STORMS
WATER
WAR
WIND
WISDOM

There are also various night creatures, including spouse converters, bogeymen, nightmares, werebeasts, vampires, magic constructs, and angels and demons. There are also several megabeasts as well.

For further reading and help visit the forum thread at http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=149426.0

Recent version history:

Version 5zF
- Addition of some new night creatures
- Fixed a crash related to witchlights
- Added extra results to summoning - aether exchange reaction

Version 5zA
- removed some causes of worldgen crashes
- added a couple new plant creatures
- blight sphere now zombifies plant creatures

Version 5.15
- updated summoning creatures in conjuring circle to essence > summon-unit interaction
- fixed some bugs causing worldgen crashes and errorlogs.
- aether salts can be generated for free over time (a 1% chance of producing one each time the reaction is run)
- Kineroch magic school almost finished. - available in "test magic" reaction in adventure mode.
- First rendition of new racial and cultural magic distribution almost finished.

Check version history.txt in "Vanilla entity and extra info" folder for further version history.

Credits:
Eric Blank - I did lots of typing and copy/pasting. At least some of the ideas I generated of my own accord, even if they aren't entirely original.
Putnam - I like their solutions to problems so much I implement them occasionally if I hit a roadblock.
Gizogin - who posted the ice spike spell that I used to help me understand other parts of the interaction system, and is still included.
With ideas shamelessly stolen from; everyone who dares to post on the bay12forums, popular culture, and mythology.
Help catching bugs and such from: gnome, Nahere and hertggf
And the entire Bay12games forum community for their support and help throughout the years