Black Mage
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A black mage is a mage who practices black magic.
The concept of malicious sorcerers responsible for all sorts of mischief is near-universal in human culture. This stereotype is projected on anything from the shamans of rival tribes to the priests of foreign religions to the satanists of today.
However, the term black mage or black magician is found only in western society, as similar roles in other cultures are usually known by names without the color association. It is often supposed that the term 'black magic' originated as a corruption of the latin "necromantia" (necromancy) to "nigromantia" (black art or magic). The color black does connote evil and death in other societies, as evidenced by the nordic Svartalfr (black elves) known to bring nightmares, but its application to magic and its practitioners is unique.
'Black' and 'White' shamans appear in the Siberian shamanic tradition, and the white ones deal with the powers of the upper world, while black ones work with the lower world, but their roles in society do not seem to reflect western concepts of black and white magic.
FFX2_BlackMage_Rikku.gif
Rikku from Final Fantasy X-2 as a Black Mage
In the Final Fantasy series of video games, the Black Mage is a character class similar to the Mage/Wizard in the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, except for the fact that in D&D Wizards have utility spells besides attack ones. They are usually depicted wearing a distinctive costume consisting of a robe and a large straw hat which obscures their face. The Black Mage traditionally casted lightning, ice, and fire spells graded by power, eventually gaining access to more powerful spells, such as Flare.
In the online sprite comic 8-bit Theater, Black Mage is name of a single man of that class, known mostly for his amusingly sadistic personality. He is known to kill old men for petty revenge and orphans for sport.