Questions and Answers: Setting, Magical

A collection of Question and Answer sessions with Deculture, collected from threads or from his Ask.fm. This page contains questions and answers about magic and how it works in the world of MGNQ, including how magic and Magical Girls' bodies work, and supernatural-related setting info.

Questions from Threads

Thread 12

• Do we have a magic scan ability, or does it only work against witches? [1]
  • Chiaki can sense Witches. But being a Vindicare, she can't track or sense Magical Girls too effectively. You need a Culexus for that. [2]

• Could we have scanned lori's fake friend and knew she was fake? [3]
  • Not to give everything away, but as a Callidus, Midori is pretty good at her job. Callidus focus on undetectable subterfuge and espionage. There was a way for you to detect if she was fake, but you would have scanned the wrong person. [4]

Questions from Ask.fm

• Does Chiaki still have wings in her untransformed state?
  • Nope, they go away. [5]

• What all supernatural forces exist in MGNQ? Could a non-canon writeup mess around with them?
  • All kinds of supernatural forces exist. Ghosts and stuff. Vampires, werewolves...you can make the argument that they're actually magical girls, or that the Akashic Realm brought them to life. [6]

• How effective is training while transformed versus training while not transformed?
  • Some girls can train their non-transformed selves, but others really can't function in a combat-capable capacity without transformation. Those who can has the privilege of being able to 'stack' their normie training with the benefits of transformation, although it's generally recommended that you train in both states. The first to increase your natural strength and endurance, the second to be able to control your Magical Girl abilities better. [7]

• So some girls don't get any benefit from exercising when they're not transformed?
  • More like they can't exercise at all, or it would take too long for their normal bodies to get adapted to exercising (i.e. Chiaki). [8]

• So exercising in meguca form isn't as effective as exercising in civilian form?
  • It's mostly equal, but it really depends on what the Magical Girl wants to do, and what she wants to build on, and how her physical fitness is at the time. Sayaka trains as hard as she can in both states. [9]

• How often do the Venenum have to surgically remove soul gems that end up "going in too deep"
  • God dammit anon

Answer is: Not that often, but there's always an uptick in incidence when the recruitment period comes in. Newly-contracted magical girls get curious and try new things. It got so bad that the Venenum had to give out pamphlets for it. Magical Girls and hormones, man [10]

• How does a magical girl perceive the inside of her soulgem when confined to it (either by body destruction or otherwise)? Is it a surreal dreamscape, or does the MG consciousness go into a catatonic state?
  • I've always seen it as something of the Magical Girl just falling into a dark, dreamless sleep whenever they get their body destroyed (akin to being comatose, or when Space Marines trigger their sus-an membrane to preserve their minds and body when they get too damaged). But if they sleep for too long, they may have a chance of waking up in that sensory-deprived state - which could cause a Witch Out. To address that, Officios have trained their Magical Girls to either prolong the sleep as much as they can, or go into a 'lucid dreaming' state - where they force themselves to dream of things they like doing, in order to stave off Soul Gem corruption. That's what Kyoko is doing now, most likely. [11]

• Is fleshmetal and the results of horrible scientific experimentation inheritable because magic?
  • Sometimes, yes! [12]

• Do alpha witches usually retain their memories and personalities? Feel free to tell me on Skype if it's not a thing you want to answer in public.‎
  • Alpha will have some of that, yes. It's the Omega-class ones (and the Omega-class plus) like Pinky and Homucifer that have full consciousness. [13]

• Can meguca get sick to regular, non-magical illnesses? Cold, flu, STDs, cancer, etc? Or is it only the really strong, Thirteenth-Officio-is-out-to-get-you kind of stuff?
  • If a Magical Girl is too tired or too stressed for too long it starts to catch up, so you'll have them getting fevers and colds. Cancer should be right out, and STDs won't really stick. [14]

• What happens if a Magical Girl wishes to be a Kamen Rider?
  • She becomes a Hero of Justice! [15]

• Can a magical girl get physically exhausted to the point of passing out by using too much magic but without the risk of witching out? What about getting just purely exhausted?
  • Pretty sure they can! Or else Kharn would have made a lot of girls witch out in her bedroom! [16]

• Why would megucas wear corsets, hats, or capes? Aren't those a liability in battle?
  • They're also magical armor, if they're part of their costume! [17]