Spells are the expression of mana channeled through a wizard’s wand or body. Spells are divided by class: charms, morphology, alchemy, and psionics.
Charms are a catch-all that most enchantments fall into. Charms add properties to objects. Dark charms, a form of dark magic, fall under this catagory.
Morphology changes the innate properties of objects in order to turn them into other objects.
Alchemical spells change the elemental properties of an object, such as transforming water into ice or steam (changing water into earth and air respectively).
Psionics affect the human mind, and while light-magic has a place here, most psionic spells are dark magic.
Wands are comprised of a mana-enriched core material - such as leaves, strips of organs, or other living material - within a sheath - which are commonly made of wood, but other materials such as rock and bone have also been used - and tipped with a precious gemstone.
Spell-locking occurs when the spells of two wands that share an aspect of each other (sheath, core, tip) collide, sending magical feedback into the cores of the opposing wands. The wands "battle" for dominance, and the losing wand shatters due to the immense magical energy feeding back into it.