Abracadab

Abracadab is a language spoken mostly by Magicians, though it can be learned by others given the right tuition or study. Unlike the Common Tongue, Abracadab is not simply a common use of words, but requires what is known as sleight of voice, allowing very simple words to express entire paragraphs or sentences of regular speech. These words are often similar to words in other languages.

Phonology

Abracadab tends to express large concepts by imbuing words or speech with an element of magic which is interpreted by the receiver. However, it is important to note that the listener does not necessarily perceive this as words. For example, a word can express a scene, a picture, a memory or even a paragraph of a popular book in the Common Tongue.

As Abracadab can use the same spoken word to express multiple meanings, it is important to follow the accurate Phonology of each particular sleight.

Some simple examples of speech are listed below.

Spoken Word	Meaning	Notes
Hello	A picture of a male dwarf waving.	Used commonly as a greeting amongst dwarf magicians.
Hello	A picture of an Elaphelk waving.	Much more informal than the above, due in part to the silly nature of the message.
Hello	Good morning, what a wonderful day.	Expresses the sentence in the Common Tongue. This would require the receiver to be able to understand the Common Tongue.

All the above examples use the base sound "Hello".

Grammar

Grammar in Abracadab is a critically important element of the language. For one thing it determines the structure of the communication. If the proper grammatical structure is not adhered to the receiver may be greatly confused. An example is as follows.

Spoken Word	Meaning	Notes
Yes	A gnome handing another gnome a newspaper whilst commenting on the news of the day.	Particular emphasis is on the arcane "e".
Yes	A newspaper handing a newspaper a gnome whilst whistling a popular tune about Kobolds.	No emphasis on the "e". Sleight mispronounced on the "s".

Without the care and attention of an expert speaker of Abracadab, communication becomes much more difficult. As a result many speakers choose to limit the imagery in each word. Most speakers limit themselves to one concept per word. For example, "Yes" could be used to refer to the simple act of a gnome handing another gnome a newspaper without the second part of the word. The receiver would find this much easier to understand too.

Abracadab speakers often choose to use one spoken word solely for their communication needs. This word can depend upon the speaker, their dialect, mastery of the language or simply what they feel like saying at the time. "Yes" remains a popular example in modern society for the shortness of the word.

Truly skilled Abracadab users can speak two languages at once, imbuing the real meaning of their words into Common Tongue sentences. An example is below.

Spoken Word	Meaning	Notes
Everything is fine. There is no need to worry.	Communicates the following sentence in the common tongue: "My apprentice cannot cast spells to save his life and yesterday he stood on my foot whilst we were escaping from the public house. I have a minor stomach complaint, too." Also shows a picture of a duck gliding majestically towards a castle whilst carrying a message which reads "We are stuck in a volcano, please send help".	Extremely difficult to execute properly. Requires a mastery of the sleight.