Magic is, in its simplest form, a way to influence the world around you in a manner beyond what conventional physics could explain. However, the insufficiency of physics to explain the impact of magic on the world must not be equated with its explanation being impossible. There is a way to explain its impact on the world. But before getting into that, we should first explain where magic comes from.
Magic comes from three primary sources. Willpower, Leylines, and Information Energy. Any of these three may be converted into potentia, which is the source of all magic power. Potentia is stored in an organ which all sapients, fae folk, and draconics have, called the olum.
Willpower is, in brief, a measurement of one's own desire to impact the world. It can help to channel one's manaflow in a more directed, focused manner. It is important for any magic user to develop a strong will, in order to keep their magic under control. Willpower can also be burned, itself, in order to fuel a spell after one's potentia has run out, via will magic. However, this is extremely dangerous, and no self-respecting magic scholar would ever recommend trying this.
Leylines are the safest and most readily accessible source of inner power for a magic user. If you are within a leyline's area of coverage, it is almost always safe to use magic, as far as your own physical health is concerned. Understanding the significance of an area (that is, why there is a leyline there) will make magic cast in that area more potent. A deeper understanding of that significance will result in higher magical potency. Gains of this sort are of course primarily applicable in a specific area, but gains in any leyline's area will slightly improve one's potency in all other leyline areas. The highest possible magical potency derived from this sort of understanding is only possible for the fae folk whose leyline it is, followed by the draconic who initially generated that leyline, followed by those who have heard firsthand from the draconic or the nature spirit of the area's significance.
Information energy, or alternately, the power of knowledge, is a source of magical power that is the result of extended focus. Through focus and study, power may be stored in an object or movement and then drawn out later. The most obvious example is a magic scroll. A dance or song may also store information energy which can be used to fuel magic. In addition to acting as a relatively safe source of potentia, applying information energy to a spell, taking advantage of a person's familiarity with the magic they're using, will improve the potentia efficiency of that spell. No upper limit has been found for the efficiency increase. In extreme cases, a person can cast a spell which consumes almost no potentia. The Oracle of Tainar is a living extreme example of an individual who has practiced levitation so constantly that she has not touched the ground in fifty years, even maintaining the spell in her sleep. She has stated that her potentia consumption is so low that it may as well be zero.
Now that you understand the three primary sources of magic, you should also try to understand that a mage who has practiced using all three sources to the point of basic proficiency will always outperform a mage who has neglected even one of the three, regardless of the degree to which they have mastered the other two.
To recap:
This is why it is so important to ensure all three sources are used in balance with each other. Using Will and Leyline magic but neglecting Knowledge magic will result in you running out of potentia in mere seconds. Using Leyline and Knowledge magic but neglecting Will magic will result in your spells being so inaccurate and imprecise that they are worthless, and may even cause collateral damage. Using Will and Knowledge magic but neglecting Leyline magic will result in your spells being so weak that they'll barely have any impact.
Internal and External magic are the two domains of magic. No one is a born magic user, but at any point in their life, anyone can become an external magic user by completing the intermediate opening of manaflow ritual.
Internal magic is magic that affects you, yourself. There's a common misconception that it's just plain weaker than external magic, but that isn't the case at all. Internal magic users come in all kinds, and the strongest among them can go toe-to-toe with the strongest external magic user.
Do you want to become strong enough to rip a tree out of the ground? Internal magic. Do you want to grow to be twenty feet tall? Internal magic. Do you want to become immune to electricity? Internal magic. Do you want to move so quickly that you exceed the limits of human vision? Internal magic.
So many magic users think that the first step to becoming a powerful mage is the full open mana ritual. But jumping straight to that without exploring the other possibilities, and whether internal magic might suit your needs better, is just foolish. You like the thought of hurling lightning and ice spikes at your enemies, you can certainly do the full open mana ritual. But you do that at the expense of ever being able to use magic to heal your own body or improve your physical characteristics ever again.
The Oracle of Tainar who I mentioned earlier? She's an internal magic user, but she's also regarded as one of the greatest mages who has ever lived. Are you going to become as renowned as her? Probably not. But that's what's possible with internal magic.
Surely, you'd expect me to dunk on external magic, given that I was certainly talking up a storm against it just now. But I'm not going to do that. You see, I myself went through the open mana ritual. Do I regret it? Not at all. I only said it isn't right for everybody. Some people, it's just the thing they need to really realize their potential.
Yes, ripping a tree out of the ground is great. But so is chopping it down with a blade made of wind. Yes, growing to be twenty feet tall is great. But so is making a twenty-foot golem out of stone and dirt. Yes, becoming immune to electricity is great. But so is hurling lightning like a spear. Yes, moving so quickly you exceed human vision is great. But you know what else is great? Stopping someone else from moving, instantly, with raw kinesis.
If you perform the open mana ritual, your body is never going to be as strong as the body of an internal magic user. If you find yourself out of potentia, you can't use willpower for a burst of physical strength anymore. There are going to be times when you wish you'd never gone through the open mana ritual. But if this path is right for you, there'll be plenty of times when you'll feel like you could never possibly regret it.
And, of course, gaining an inditech is a pretty good incentive if you're on the fence.