Today is officially Something on a Stick Day, which is—on the surface—about corn dogs and questionable life choices.
But if you squint a little (and fantasy readers are very good at squinting), it becomes obvious that wizards got there centuries earlier and with considerably better branding.
Because what is a wizard’s staff, if not the most dignified “something on a stick” ever devised?
The Practical Problem of Being a Wizard
Let’s start with the boring truth: staffs predate magic.
Historically, a staff is a walking aid, a defensive weapon, and—importantly—a symbol of authority. If I were old, traveling constantly, and carrying objects people would very much like to steal, I’d absolutely want a sturdy length of wood in my hand. Less a fashion choice, more a survival strategy.
Which is why so many classic wizards—looking at you, Gandalf—lean into the “venerable but dangerous” aesthetic. The age explains the staff. The staff explains why attacking them is a mistake.
Convenient, really.
When the Stick Became the Point
Somewhere along the way, the staff stopped being just a stick and started being the stick.
In myth and folklore, rods, wands, and staffs are all variations on a theme: tools that channel authority. Kings have scepters. Priests have croziers. Wizards… aim higher.
The staff becomes a focus. A declaration. A way of saying, “the magic happens here, and not an inch to the left.”
That’s the idea I leaned into with Magorian.
His staff isn’t just for leaning on or looking impressive during tense conversations. It’s a pointer. A literal instrument for defining space—drawing the circle, marking the boundary, telling the magic exactly where to behave itself.
Which, if you think about it, is both elegant and slightly alarming. After all, if magic needs to be told where to go, what happens when someone points it… badly?
A Tool, A Weapon, A Quiet Surprise
Of course, Magorian’s staff has another advantage: it’s a quarterstaff.
And the delightful thing about quarterstaffs is that most people don’t recognize them as weapons until it’s far too late to be academically interested in the fact.
I like that overlap—the same object being:
- a practical tool
- a spellcasting focus
- and a weapon no one is quite prepared for
Wizards, in my worlds at least, are very fond of objects that do more than one job. Possibly because carrying three separate items would be inconvenient, and possibly because there’s a certain satisfaction in understatement.
Utility Disguised as Eccentricity
One of the enduring joys of wizard staffs is how practical they are while pretending not to be.
Even in the films, Gandalf uses his staff as a light source, a lever of power, and a general-purpose “do not argue with me” device. The pipe tucked into the top just reinforces the idea that wizards don’t separate the mundane from the magical. It’s all one toolkit—just used with different levels of consequence.
That’s very much how I see it in the Magorian and Jones books as well. The staff isn’t a separate “magic item.” It’s just… the tool. The one that happens to work on several levels at once.
So Why Do Wizards Have Staffs?
Not because they’re old.
Because they travel. Because they need a free hand. Because they require a visible, physical way to impose will on something that is otherwise inconveniently invisible.
And because a staff sits perfectly at the intersection of weapon, tool, symbol, and spellcasting interface.
Also—if I’m being honest—because “wizard with a stick” reads instantly, while “wizard with a complex internalized metaphysical framework” tends to lose people somewhere around the third paragraph.
Bringing It Back to March 28
So yes—this absolutely counts. On a day dedicated to things on sticks, it seems only fair to acknowledge the wizard’s staff as the most overqualified entry on the list.
It’s not edible. It’s not festive. But it is a weapon no one expects, a ruler for measuring reality, and—if you’re particularly organized—a place to store your pipe.
Which is more than I can say for a corn dog.
And if Magorian happens to draw a circle or two with his along the way, well… that’s just good use of the equipment.
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Coming soon: After the Quieting.
Newly Released: Veilbound — Firebird Omnibus — Sylvalight