Lost City of Amdapor

[Alenore]

However, what you are talking about is also a legitimate concern with both black and white magic. BLM and WHM utilize the aether of the world and living things to do their spells. In essence, they have to drain aether from other sources, which funny enough, is exactly what primal do to survive. That is why WHM and BLM have to keep their power in check, as over use of it saps the life out of the planet and they become no different than a primal.

Primal consume aether to make their body. Think about aether as water/food to them : they're made of it, if they don't have it they're dead.
The way aether is used for White/Black magic is as a power source : tap some power in the aether of the planet to cast terribly powerful spells instead of using your own, which would kill you or render you so weak from aether deprivation that you'd be useless after that.

[A_Magical_Unicorn_Rider]

Diabolos was summoned from the void thru black magic (blm quest line explains the link).

However, what you are talking about is also a legitimate concern with both black and white magic. BLM and WHM utilize the aether of the world and living things to do their spells. In essence, they have to drain aether from other sources, which funny enough, is exactly what primal do to survive. That is why WHM and BLM have to keep their power in check, as over use of it saps the life out of the planet and they become no different than a primal.

Now that you say that…

Shiva, anyone?

[Alenore]

Now that you say that…

Shiva, anyone?

How the hell is that related to Shiva?

[A_Magical_Unicorn_Rider]

How the hell is that related to Shiva?

Purely speculation, but it would be an interesting idea if that's how Shiva came to be. Was once a mage, went too far with the black and became something else.

[Alenore]

Considering Primals were here for a LONG time, and White/Black magic dates from the Fifth Astral Era, there's a small problem in your theory. Like a few thousands years.

[A_Magical_Unicorn_Rider]

Hence it was an idea. Not fact.

[Kicha]

Well, white and black magic as we know it only exist from the Fifth Astral Era. That's not to say that prior to that magic didn't exist at all. Perhaps there was ancient magic that existed, maybe functioned differently, and maybe called different things. It is like different ages rediscover different things, rename them, or repurpose them. I could be completely wrong. it is possible that in the First Astral Era, which we know nothing about, the world was mundane, and then something happened and magic started to be released into the world. In come the Allagans, who seem to be mostly technology based, but who knows if it is pure technology, and not technology infused with magic. Or even the reverse, that the First Age was full of powerful magics, some great cataclysm happened rupturing it and throwing it all out of balance, thus the Allagans turned to technology to make up for the lack of magic, and it was only in the 5th Age that Magic started coming back into the picture. /shrug

[Alenore]

snip

Obviously it existed, since summoning comes from that era. Now though, magic as we know it was discovered at the end of the Fifth Umbral Era, which lead the people into the Fifth Astral Era. As far as we know, thaumaturgy also comes from that era, and a very skilled thaumaturge (most likely Shatotto) managed to draw aether out of the land instead of her own, which created Black magic. Conjury came only way later, when people were accepted again in the Shroud.
As for the Allagan Empire, they most likely were skilled in both magic and technology (while Garlemald is only based on technology and, well, we don't have much "evolved" technology aside from what Garlond Ironworks brought us).