Wizarding School: Difference between revisions

* The Eight Colleges of Magic in the [[Warhammer Fantasy|Warhammer Fantasy Universe]] train the magically gifted to be of use to the Empire. Of course, many potential students are killed by superstitious peasants before they get there, and using magic when you aren't a member of one of the colleges is punishable by being burnt alive at the stake. Not to mention, because of all this, if you do have magical aptitude you have the choice of either join, dying or being a fugitive.

** The Imperial Colleges might be the greatest centres of magical learning in the Old World, but they were founded comparatively recently (about 200 years before the present time) by the young High Elf Archmage Teclis, and only teach about magic split into its eight constituent colours - because that's all humans are capable of grasping without going utterly mad. The far more magically-adept High Elves have the White Tower of Hoeth in the kingdom of Saphery, where the full secrets of High Magic (which combines all eight colours into one harmonious whole) are studied and taught by its Loremasters. Teclis, who studied at the Tower, became High Loremaster of the institution after founding the Imperial colleges. It also teaches absurdly skilled ascetic warrior-scholars the arts of sword mastery, and these swordmasters act as the Tower's emissaries, guardians and agents in the outside world.

** The Dark Elves, by contrast have the Seven Convents of Sorceresses, based in Ghrond.

== Video Games ==

* ''[[Mana Khemia: Alchemists of Al-Revis]]'' is completely based around this trope, specializing in alchemy.

* Sorcerer University, for the first two games of ''[[The Spellcasting Series]]''. There are competing schools, but SU is depicted as the [[Ivy League]] of spellcraft.

* ''[[Magicians Quest Mysterious Times]]'' is also based on this concept.

* In [[Wizard 101]], the game starts out inside a university dedicated to teaching magic. The University is devided into six schools: Fire, Storm, Ice, Life, Death, and Myth. Players start out as newly admitted students, and while they do not actually attend any classes in the games, most of the spells a character learns comes from the professors of those six schools. (Headmaster Ambrose also hands out a few spells as rewards for specific in game achievements.)

** Ravenwood also teaches a seventh school of magic, Balance, [[Fridge Logic|despite it not being given a classroom]]. Instead, it's classroom is hidden in Krokotopia. Students of this school learn their first few spells from another person that studied the basics of the school.

** The worlds of Dragonspyre and Celestia also had academies before they were destroyed by the Dragon and Storm Titans respectively. Fortunately enough of Celestia survived for the player to learn a few spells from the Sun, Moon, and Star schools.

** There is also the rival school of [[Expy|Pigswick]], which features the [[Expy]]s of Ravenwood's seven schools but with different names and almost backwards philosophies. Also only half the teachers there show any competence in there teaching. One even admits he has no idea what he's doing and is just using the previous proffesor's notes.

* ''[[Academagia]]: The Making of Mages'' takes place in a complex non-Earth-based magical academy.

* [[Magical Diary: Horse Hall]] revolves around an American high school for witches and wizards. It's mostly a [[Dating Sim]] but you do learn and use spells as well.

* ''[[Magical Starsign]]'' has two wizarding schools, which are central to the game's plot.

* The Silver Star Tower in ''[[Grim Grimoire]]''.

* Unsurprisingly, some Harry Potter videogames.

* The academy and surrounding area in ''[[Angelique]]''.

* The academy in Castle Galava in ''[[Nox]]''.

* The Red Wizard Academy in ''[[Neverwinter Nights 2]]: Mask of the Betrayer''.

* The Heroes' Guild in ''[[Fable (video game series)|Fable]]'' teaches magic as one of three disciplines that students must learn before graduating.

* GUE Tech from ''The Lurking Horror'' and ''[[Zork: Grand Inquisitor|Zork: Grand Inquistor]]'' fits this.

* WIT from ''[[Quest for Glory|Quest for Glory II]]'' (WIT = Wizards Institute of Technocery), possibly a wink to the real life MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology).

* The Arcane University in ''[[The Elder Scrolls]]''. Incidentally, we never get to see any schooling going on, other than public lectures on the courtyards - the whole building is locked off except for the ground and top floors, linked by teleporters. Still, [[Take Our Word for It|it's heavily implied that what goes on in there is pretty spectacular.]]

** Other centres of magical learning include the Crystal Tower of Summerset and the Psijic's Isle of Artaeum, neither featured in the games so far (at least not in their current roles).

** [[Skyrim]] has the College of Winterhold, which leans much more heavily on this trope, to the point where its questline might as well be called ''Harry Potter and the {{spoiler|Eye of Magnus}}''.

* Vane in ''[[Lunar Silver Star Story Complete|Lunar: The Silver Star]]'' and its remakes. And of course the magic school in ''Magic School Lunar'' and the earlier version ''Lunar: Walking School''.

* The Aurastery in Windurst in ''[[Final Fantasy XI]]''. Unfortunately, mage [[Player Characters|PCs]] don't get to attend.

* ''[[World of Warcraft]]'':

** The Academy of Arcane Arts and Sciences, housed in the Mage Tower, the centerpiece of the Mage Quarter in the human city of Stormwind. It has little signifigance in the actual game however, except providing a few mage trainers and mage-specific quests.

** The Scholomance (note the [[Shout-Out]] to the older version, see under Literature) instance is a Wizarding School catering entirely to ''necromancers.''

** Both Dalaran, a [[The Magocracy|magocracy]] and Silvermoon (not a magocracy though heavily influenced by the Magisters) are mentioned to have these too in background materials.

** Nar'thalas Academy in Azuna on the Broken Isles; it was, like most places in Azura, destroyed by the naga centuries ago, but the students and faculty - who are now ghosts - don't seem to know that. They assume you're there to enroll - which you are, though only until you find the artifact you need.

* New Shapers in ''[[Geneforge]]'' start at small academies to learn the basics. After that, they get apprenticed. Becoming a Shaper sucks.

* [[Breath of Fire|Breath of Fire II]]: There is a Magic School located in Hometown (they were really thinking outside the box with those names), which is where Nina is studying. Later on, you can also find the sorceress Deis/Bleu there, who claims learning through books is boring, and would rather go back out in the world to learn the good old-fashioned way.

* Magic use is one of the things taught at the [[Final Fantasy VIII|Gardens]], although they are more of an analogue for military academies.

* Princess Ceceilia of ''[[Wild ARMs 1|Wild ARMs]]'''s introduction begins with her taking leave from the local magical academy, and once the party is formed, you go back there to unlock the game's [[Summon Magic]] and kick off the plot.

* In ''[[Valkyrie Profile]]'', Flenceburg houses a magic academy. Unfortunately, its top student attempted to bring about [[The End of the World as We Know It]] in order to get laid.

* The [[Nasuverse]]'s Mage Association is both this and a [[Magical Society]]. It's split into three competing 'Great Branches', further subdivided into various 'Departments' led by professors, and the like. It also has its own military force which can be brought to bear against either vampires, or [[The Church]], if the prologue to [[Tsukihime]] 2 is anything to go by.

* There are plenty of these in the world of [[Dragon Age]], with the twist that they also function as prisons to keep mages carefully supervised and away from the general population. As such the academic politics are even more fierce than normal, with the ever present idea of 'fireballing the guards' proving an attractive idea for many.

* [[Dragon Quest IX]] has [[Captain Ersatz|Swinedimples]] [[Harry Potter|Academy]]. Amusingly one of the students is a troublemaker named Fred.

* Scintillus Academy in [[Ultima Underworld]] II

== Web Comics ==

* Warthogs, an obvious Hogwarts parody in ''[[The Order of the Stick]]''.

* Orthorbbae in the webcomic ''[[Drowtales]]'' is a prime example, having classes for every school of magic. Math and history are also mentioned as being areas of study, and comics on other parts of the site indicate that there are many other subjects taught at higher levels.

* Wonderella accidentally volunteers to substitute at such a school in [http://nonadventures.com/2007/07/21/lack-magic-woman/ this page] of ''[[The Non-Adventures of Wonderella]]''.

* [[Bardsworth]] university of the webcomic of the same name. Actually, it began as a college for bards, hence the name, but also teaches magic.

* Succubus and Incubus Academy in ''[[Dan and Mab's Furry Adventures]]''. [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin]] - a Wizarding School for [[Horny Devils]].

* Used as part of a ''[[Harry Potter]]'' parody in the "Torg Potter" stories from ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]''.

* ''[[Magiversity]]'', the College of Mages, obviously.

* The Astorian Mage Academy from ''[[Code Name: Hunter]]''.

* The Elven Magic Academy from [[Murphy's Law (webcomic)|Murphy's Law.]]

* ''[[Wizard School]]'' has Bumblebane's Magical Academy of the Wizarding Arts.

* The Everwood Magical University in ''[[Our Little Adventure]]''.

* The titular boarding school in ''[[Gunnerkrigg Court]]'' is a subversion. Due to their strained relations with Gillitie Wood, they prefer to consider their studies ([[Magitek|even magical ones]]) as scientific, even though plenty of magic [[Extranormal Institute|occurs within the school grounds]] and the few gifted students regularly practice their abilities (though away from the teachers).

* ''[[Thornsaddle]]'' is an American School of Witchcraft and Wizardry located somewhere in the deserts of Texas. It is part of the [[Harry Potter]] universe.

== Web Original ==

* [[In-Joke|Martha Corey High School]] in Nowhere, Ohio, is a Wizarding School in the ''[[Global Guardians PBEM Universe]]''.

* ''[[Grave Academy]]'s'' eponymous academy is one of these, the students are monsters, but they also teach things like: Medieval Torture, Divination and Mad Sciences.

* Memorial Academy in the ''[[Arcana Magi Universe]]'', featured prominently in ''[[Arcana Magi Memorial]]''.

* In ''[[Elcenia]]'', The Binaaralav Academy of Wizardry is one of the few schools of any type in Elcenia. Most skills are taught by the family; magic-use is one of the few anyone bothers to make an academy for.

== Western Animation ==

* ''[[Ultimate Book of Spells]]'' concerns three kids who are best friends and go to a magic school and who fight against an evil Wizard. One of them is a redhaired boy who is the least magically apt, and one of their teachers can turn herself into a cat... sound familiar?

* Alfea School for Fairies, Cloudtower, and Redfountain in ''[[Winx Club]]''.

* ''[[The Simpsons]]'' briefly turned Springfield Elementary into one during a Halloween special short as part of yet another ''[[Harry Potter]]'' parody.

* Toadblatt's in ''[[The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy]]'', another Hogwarts parody.

* ''[[My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic]]'' briefly mentions Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, whose name is a [[Shout-Out]] to [[X-Men|Professor Xavier's School]]. There's also a reference to "magic kindergarten", which is likely [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin]]: a school of magic for young unicorns.

* The Milkweed Academy for Wizards (a parody of [[Harry Potter|Hogwarts]]), Kyle's former school in [[Fanboy and Chum Chum]].

== Real Life ==

* In Medieval Europe, the Spanish cities of Toledo and Salamanca had the strong reputation of harbouring schools for sorcerers.