The Laws of Magic: Part 8 of 8
The Seventh Law
Never Seek Knowledge and Power from Beyond the Outer Gates.
The Outer Gates are what keeps the world safe from such things, what locks them away and keeps them outside—and thus, such things are called Outsiders. They are so alien, so not of this world, that few methods of assault stand a chance of giving them more than a moment’s pause. And the intentions the Outside has for us are so dark, so dire, that the Seventh Law is the only one on the books that isn’t conditioned upon casting a spell. Even doing research on the Outside is verboten, setting aside actually pulling power from there.
The Gates are never fully closed. It’s through the tiniest of cracks that the darkest of things come into our world (like He Who Walks Behind). And when someone does pull power from there, forging a bond with a malevolent Outsider force, one of those cracks widens, just a touch. The human race is lucky that few have ever managed such an effort for long, thanks to the efforts of the White Council a particularly zealous enforcement of the Seventh Law.
The Gatekeeper’s Job DescriptionAs much as the Gatekeeper watches over the flow of time and those who would meddle with it, such actions are really a side-project, related but separate from his main duties (as you might guess from his title). The Gatekeeper is our first line of defense against the Outsiders, performing perhaps the most important job in all of Creation. At the least, he maintains the alarm spells that shriek when the Gates budge, spends the lion’s share of his time walking the Nevernever looking for signs and portents, and may even act as an “off the books” emissary for the White Council with the major realms of the Nevernever. The Merlin may lead the White Council, but to many supernatural creatures, it’s the Gatekeeper who truly speaks on its behalf and commands the greatest respect.
If anyone knows how the Outer Gates came to be in the first place, they’re not talking.
In your game
Actually drawing down power from beyond the Outer Gates, in full intention and knowledge about what that means, is a pretty villainous thing to do. Even if you aren’t fully apprised of what you’re doing, this is the kind of ink-black magic that will stain your soul right quick.
This doesn’t mean that the Seventh Law can’t be relevant for players. The biggest villains of the Dresden Files may well be tapped into some kind of Outsider mojo, so there is, at least, that; and while the Gatekeeper is our cosmic First Responder for matters involving the Outside, he has been known to tap others from inside and outside of the Council when things are particularly bad.
But players can also stumble across the Seventh Law, thanks to the particulars of its wording—namely, the prohibition against even researching the Outside. A GM looking to put a particularly nasty choice in front of her players could easily “hide” a piece of knowledge within a forbidden tome of Outsider lore. And if a life is on the line, isn’t it worth the risk? (The Outsiders certainly hope so.)
Does Demon Summoning Break the Seventh Law?The answer is: usually not. Compared to the Outsiders, most demons a wizard might summon are comparative “locals”, though they might have plenty of notions about how it would be a grand thing to hoof it on over to the Outer Gates and kick them open with a big welcoming party.
It’s still risky. Many times, Outsiders have masqueraded as standard spirits and demons, so the White Council tends to frown on summoning them unless they are quite confident in your competence and judgment (and how often does that happen, really?). As a rule of thumb, the Council sees it as a privilege allowed its own members, but off-limits for the rest of the supernatural practitioners out there. So even though it isn’t directly in violation of the Seventh Law (or any other), the Wardens get real antsy about amateurs messing around with summoning. Even non-Outsider demons are dangerous in their own right.
Think of this as licensing on explosive compounds. If you know what you’re doing, have a legitimate reason for their use (construction, demolition, mining, etc)—and you know how to be cautious, you can get them, even if you aren’t someone military, and you’ll have official (if occasionally supervised) approval to use them. If, on the other hand, you’re just some guy who likes storing a few kilos of plastique in his garage, the authorities are not at all amused to find out about you.
The Blackstaff
The Blackstaff is both the name of an artifact of great power and the nigh-secret office filled by an experienced member of the White Council (sometimes, but not always, a member of the Senior Council him or herself). Alone out of all others, the Blackstaff is given leave to break any and all Laws of Magic in order to take down the Council’s most dangerous enemies. No higher position of trust is accorded anyone in the White Council, though the Gatekeeper may be considered a peer in that capacity. Unknown to many, the current Blackstaff is not uncoincidentally Harry Dresden’s mentor and surrogate father-figure, Ebenezar McCoy.
But what does the actual Blackstaff—that dark length of gnarled, spellcrafted wood—do? Theories abound. Perhaps it acts as a “filter”, somehow preventing the violation of the Laws from having the usual darkening effect upon the spellcaster. Or maybe the spellcaster faces those as anyone would—but the Blackstaff prevents his transgressions from affecting the natural order at large. More exotic theories can be proposed—anything from the Blackstaff being a semi-sentient familiar to a bound up Outsider itself—but in the end, its very existence is a guarded secret, and for anyone other than the Blackstaff, looking into its origins might be taken as a violation of the Seventh Law by itself…
Has the Blackstaff item actually appeared in any of the books? I can’t recall it being specifically mentioned, nor I do I remember McCoy having a black staff-like object at any time there. So is this something that was created specifically for the RPG? If so, is it considered canon?
Also, I think there’s a letter/spirit law distinction here, at least on the “knowledge” side. Reading a book that contained information ABOUT the outer gates might be a violation if that book contained information ABOUT the gates that could have only been obtained as a violation of the 7th law. But if the book was this-side-of-the-gates only, I’m inclined to think that someone with a good wizard-lawyer might be able to get away with it. Then again, how much information can you really get on the Gates without having violated them? And, reading a book, how are you to know the exact nature or origin of the knowledge contained therein? Regardless, when the Wardens find out you’re dealing with the Outer Gates at all, they may still decide it’s better to behead now, ask questions later – especially if you’ve got anything but a sterling reputation.
Technically, I don’t think it’s a prohibition against researching the Outside. Practically, though, it might as well be.
@Niall, the Blackstaff is explicitly mentioned and detailed in, I think, Blood Rites, the 6th book.
“The old man’s staff was shorter and thicker than mine, but the carved sigils and formulae on it were noticeably similar, and the texture and color of the wood was identical.”
The book details the Blackstaff as Ebenezar’s position, but says nothing of any powers it has. Pretty sure I haven’t seen anything else on Ebenezar’s staff’s appearance, much less any powers it has, in any of the other books.
The prohibition on knowledge is probably a prophylactic measure, on the assumption that some knowledge either changes the possessor or is too dangerous to be allowed to run loose. Sort of like locking up a plague carrier who hasn’t done anything wrong, but who is nevertheless a huge threat to others.
That said, there has to be some gray area there, as a practical matter, or the Wardens would find themselves unable to enforce the Law.
@Niall
It’s just made an appearance in the latest novel, “Changes.” It’s…spooky, to say the least.
after thinking over the subject for a while i am begining to think that the blackstaff is enchanted black magic congealed into a form to be used as power. the appearance it makes in changes leaves the impression that it wants to be used as often and viciously as possible. it also tries to “infect” it’s user much as black magic leaves a stain wizards. Seeing as harry spent years trainging with Ebenezar and never noticed the black magic that would be on him like a thick coat one can assume that it has to go somewhere….into the blackstaff to give it more power.