What's the difference between mage, warlock, witch, sorcerer, shaman, druid, and a magician? And if you can, can you include the other types of magic users, and distinguish them from others?

 What's the difference between mage, warlock, witch, sorcerer, shaman, druid, and a magician? And if you can, can you include the other types of magic users, and distinguish them from others?

All the other answers here seem to be from people who are playing D & D and reading a lot of fantasy novels. That’s all fine and good, but it muddies up the definitions they’re trying to give. Here are definitions from a long-time Witch:

Mage: Not really a term most of us use. It’s more of a ceremonial magick term.

Ceremonial Magick: This is nothing that interests me, so I don’t know much about it. They seem to use elaborate rituals and don’t seem to have much to do with revering nature.

Warlock: This is not a term for “male Witch.” Male Witches are called Witches. Warlock comes from an old Scots term that means “oath breaker.” There are people who call themselves Warlocks, both male and female. It’s rather a new bunch; I’ve not kept up on exactly what they think makes them Warlocks rather than any other sort of Witch.

Witch: A person of any gender who uses Witchcraft. This person can be of any religion. There are Christian Witches, Jewish Witches, Buddhist Witches, etc., but most Witches tend to be Pagan and revere the earth, worship both gods and goddesses and take responsibility for their own actions. Outside of religions, Witchcraft consists of doing spells, being prophetic or some other sort of psychic, talking to spirits and faeries, doing divination, and using herbs and other earth energies for healing. Witches are not supernatural beings, they are simply people who have studied the Craft. 

Most Witches I know, and I know a lot of them, are the kindest, sweetest people you can hope to meet. We can’t be bothered by a negative twit like satan, who is really a Judaeo/Christian entity, although some Christians will tell you that we worship/serve him even if we aren’t aware of it. We know what we’re doing; they don’t. Anyone who thinks they’re in Harry Potter, Charmed, The Craft, etc., is not really a Witch. It doesn’t work like that. We simply are more open to and aware of the power of nature.

Wiccan: Wiccans are a denomination of Pagan who mostly believe in a god and a goddess who embody all the other gods and goddesses, and who try to live by the Wiccan rede, “An it harm none, do what thou wilt.” There are many sub-denominations of Wicca with their own rules and beliefs. Not all Witches are Wiccan.

Sorcerer: Again, more of a D & D or fantasy character. I don’t know anyone who calls himself/herself a sorcerer/sorceress.

Shaman: A Siberian term for someone who walks on the borders between the worlds of the living and the dead. Similar to a Native American “medicine man,” shamans help their tribes when they are ill, particularly when they are dying, and when they are trying to pull the pieces of their souls back together (soul retrieval). The Witch equivalent of a shaman is a Hedgewitch.

Druid: Historically, Druids were the healers, priests, historians, poets, story tellers, bards, lawyers, doctors, advisors, etc. of the Celtic Pagans. They were not a separate religion. They served their communities and were honoured as only one step down from kings. Druids trained for over 20 years to be honoured in such a way. 

Today, Druidry seems to be a denomination of Celtic Paganism and people who join get the immediate title of Druid. I’m not a fan of that, but that’s just my opinion and has no weight other than to me.

Magicians: Anyone who does or tries to do any form of magic.

Alchemist: A person who practices alchemy. Exactly what that is depends on the worldbuilding, since it’s been used to describe everything from potion-making/magical “chemistry” to magic in general. Real-life alchemy is both a chemical and spiritual process, concerned with the refinement of material (or the human soul) into a purified, divine state.

Conjurer: A wizard or mage who specializes in conjuring, either making things out of nothing or summoning powerful beings from other planes.

“Cunning” Man/Woman/Folk: Historical term used for real people who practiced folk magic in their communities.

Diviner: A person who obtains information by magical means, usually about the future. Divination involves using a combination of random chance and intuition to interpret symbols. There are so many different kinds of divination, and anything with a “-mancy” suffix falls under this umbrella. So does astrology and scrying.

Druid: An ancient Celtic priest. Very little is known about the real-life Druids due to a lack of sources. Druids in fiction are “nature wizards” with a pagan flavor, especially those who really like trees.

Enchanter/ess: A magic-user who specializes in enchanting, i.e. placing spells upon things. Often refers to someone powerful and ethereal, or as code for “fairy,” instead of being used for your garden-variety apprentice mage.

Illusionist: Either a stage magician, or a magic-user who specializes in conjuring images intending to deceive, disguise, or otherwise make things appear different than they really are. There are two kinds of illusions — projections, which make something that’s not there appear there, and glamours, which make things that are there appear different.

Mage: A generic term for a magic-user, often used in role-playing games to describe those who use magic in combat (like kinetic elemental magic, for example). It’s basically synonymous with “wizard,” but implies a more practical than scholarly approach to magic.

Magician: A generic term for a magic-user, not often used because of its association with stage magic.

Mystic: A person who uses magic as a means of spiritual ascension and obtaining enlightenment.

Necromancer: A person who does any kind of magic involving the dead. Originally referred just to contacting the dead for the purposes of divination, but since has come to refer to any kind of interaction with the dead.

Occultist: A generic term for a person in real life who studies magic. Not often used in fiction.

Psion/Psionic: Used more often in sci-fi than fantasy, this refers to a magic-user who primarily used mental power or mind-based magic — telepathy, telekinesis, and similar.

Shaman: A tribal medicine man/woman who is the spiritual leader of their community, and uses various methods of trance to travel to other worlds and communicate with spirits. (Originally referred to such people in Siberia, but now is applied to such people in indigenous tribes all over the world.)

Shapeshifter: Exactly what it says on the tin, a person who can change into something else at will. Some shapeshifters can turn into animals, some can change their appearance as long as they look humanoid, and some have no limits.

Sorcerer/ess: A generic term for a magic-user, often used to denote a particularly powerful and/or dangerous one. Sometimes used to describe an evil wizard, but it doesn’t have to be negative.

Thaumaturge: A miracle-worker, basically like “wizard” but for saints, angels, and other people who aren’t supposed to be doing “magic” per se. Basically synonymous with “magician,” might have a flair for theatrics. Could also refer to a person who specializes in powerful feats of good magic.

Theurgist: A person who invokes and evokes gods, angels, and other “higher-ups.” Literally means “god-working.” (Theurgy is the opposite of Goetia, which is working with demons and the like.)

Warlock: An Old English term meaning “oath breaker,” referring to a person who sells their soul to the Devil (the word “witch” referred to such a person in the Early Modern Period). Sometimes used as a term for a male witch, but considered derogatory by male witches in real life. It can designate particular kinds of magic in fiction depending on the worldbuilding, but don’t use it for a real person.

Witch: A person who practices divination and folk magic, such as herbalism, curses, and protection spells. Some witches work with spirits, but it’s not a defining feature. Modern interpretations have made the witch into a magic-user who works directly with nature. In any sense, the witch’s magical skills are practical. Has had a distinctly feminine connotation for centuries, but it’s starting to be regarded as more gender-neutral, and it’s mostly lost its negative connotations. Increasingly used as a more generic term for a magic user.

Wizard: A generic term for a magic-user, but with the implication that the person is a scholar. Regardless of what wizardry consists of, you have to study to be a wizard. Wizardry is spending a lot of time in towers, pouring over old tomes. It’s a magician who is also an academic. Sometimes considered a masculine term.

Warlocks tends to be demonic in nature. Not the individual, but rather the power(s) that they have. At the very least, their powers are Eldritch. Which is like an older (and usually poorly understood) form of arcane energy. It's typically associated with older beings/gods that predate the more modern concepts of gods. They typically gain these power(s) through pacts that are sometimes passed down from parent to child or by virtue of being taught the ways of their power.

Witches are 99% of the time portrayed as female. It's usually believed that the male equivalent is a Warlock. Witches (like Warlocks) gain their power(s) through one or more pacts. Witches tend to be more along the lines of protectors or caregivers as they are usually reclusive and will only (regularly) mingle with their coven. A witch will usually carve out a piece of land that's hers and will protect it and her allies. Their powers are usually centered around hexes, curses and afflictions (or magical sicknesses as it's usually portrayed). However not all witches are evil. VERY few are considered to be good in that they use their powers to fend off other witches.

Sorcerers can be tricky to understand. Typically a Sorcerer doesn't need such things like tome. Their powers aren't necessarily taught but are simply learned as they grow in power. Their power comes from within in that they simply have an inmate understanding of these things.

Wizard is the other side to the coin of a Sorcerer. Wizards are more academic in that they need to study far more often. A wizard needs things like a tome and/or a wand. However even with that said, the terms “wizard" and “sorcerer” tend to be interchangable depending on the setting. However, a constant across all settings is that a wizard can be an extraordinary force to be reckoned with.

Druid druids are like sorcerers except that they're much more tuned in with the Earth and nature as a whole. A druid seeks balance in all things especially if these things can have an impact on the natural balance of things.

Magician these guys are primarily for kids parties. They aren't and shouldn't be compared to wizards or sorerers.

Shamans are usually tied to the spirits and/or elements. Just as Druids are tuned in with nature, Shamans are tuned in with spiritual and natural elements. But this depends on the setting. Often times, they are something like faith healers or religious leaders that can cast spells similar to a priest or druid. They just know and understand these things but in a less religious way. For a Shaman, the source of their power can be things like the elements, their ancestors or even benevolent spirits.

Mages are something like a combination of a wizard and a sorcerer. Honestly, “mage” is just as interchangable as a wizard and sorcerer.

Archmage is a FAR more powerful and knowledgeable mage. Sorcerers and wizards that eventually become an archmage make considerable contributions to the magical world and gain enough power that allows them to become a force to be reckoned with. Basically it's a sorcerer, wizard or mage who reached the upper tier.

Mancers these guys come in different shapes and sizes. They're all basically mages, wizards and sorceres who specializes in a particular aspect of the magical world. Pyromancers are mages who specializes in fire, Cryomancers use ice. Necromancers use the dead. Hydromancers focus on water. Chronomancers use time, Floramancers use plantlife, technomancers use technology. The list is probably endless.

Demonologist is a specialized type of spell caster who focuses his or her efforts on the study of demons. Whether this is controlling them, summoning them or just studying them all amounts to the same thing.

Summoner this is pretty straight forward. These guys and gals specialize in summon magical beasts. But not necessarily demons. The critters they conjure up can be either something imaginative or an actual beast from who knows what kind of setting or lore. They have an intrinsic link to their summoned beast(s) that allows them to see, hear, smell, feel and otherwise interact through it. Depending on the power of the summoner, he or she could summon and control anywhere from a single beast to an army or them with varying degrees of strengths and size.

Artificer is similar to a technomancer only they excel at building machines or other robotics that can be as simple as a ball on a stick or as complex as Tony Stark's Ironman armors. For these guys, the imagination and resources available is the limit. For SCIENCE!!

Arcane Archer as the name would imply, these guys are archers who use magic of varying types. However, unlike a wizard, druid or sorcerer or would cast a spell at the enemy target, an Arcane Archer uses these same spells to imbue either their Bow, Quiver or the arrows they have on hand. Their repetoire of spells typically aren't as devastating as a pure spell caster, but they make up for this by using arrows that can cut, stab, slice, pierce, puncture or impale while also delivering their spell of choice. Being hit with a lightning bolt hurts. Being pierced with an arrow and having the lightning bolt go off on your insides is infinitely more painful

Spellthief is a truly unique kind of caster. Like a rogue, expect these guys tend to be very sneaky. However they EXCEL at taking out spellcasters in that their skillset allows them to impede and steal spells from other spell casters. Spellthieves are skilled enough in arcane knowledge that they can quickly gather the information needed to steal or impede the spell and use it themselves. Their magic isn't as powerful or as potent as a pure spellcaster, but between them sneaking around and stabbing people in the process, they can be a unique threat.

Spellbreaker these guys are unique. Very unique. They aren't much in the ways of spellcasting themselves. But they are MORE than capable of making up for this by impeding or outright negating outside magic. Thier magic is completely dedicated to stopping, nullifying, or erasing enemy magick(s). From here, they use their martial expertise (they're usually something like warriors or knights) to take on and take out their enemies