Hey gang. While I'm still trying to work out a general series bible for the concept, I am more than willing to take questions. Answering them may help me solidify things for the series bible. So wing any questions or what have you my way on this thread!

Hmm. . . .

Well, I suppose the first question would be this:

How do the various race's magic styles differ from one another?

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How do the various race's magic styles differ from one another?

Ah! A very good question indeed!

Magic works very differently in the world in which the Shogunate exists, because there's more than just the pony magic we know. In addition to the obvious users of magic we see in the ponies and zebras and Alicorns that you might expect, humans, dragons, griffons, and a number of other species all use various forms of magic, ranging from the classic White and Black magic of high fantasy, to Divine and Demonic magic— both of which have drawbacks that can affect the caster even if done right since it takes great skill, experience, and/or luck to doing it without screwing yourself up when channeling magic that is essentially from either heaven or hell— to a type exclusive to the Shogunverse called Heavy magic, which is a form of magic that is more difficult to use because the magic has a more potent source and thus has a kind of 'weight' to it that is designed to force the user to put everything they have into using it to make sure that they really want whatever effect they're going for since Heavy magic is also very difficult to dispell or disrupt once it's been cast. Heavy magic is in many ways more powerful than the other types because it is harder for all the races to channel, and doing so incorrectly can do damage on a physical, mental, and spiritual level to the caster, as opposed to a spell simply not working if one botches it with other types. People have died from trying to use Heavy magic improperly. However because it takes greater focus and skill to use, anyone who can use Heavy magic is going to be one of the greatest magic users alive. The Shogun is a Heavy Magic user, as is Anarchy Helios. Dusk Shine was a victim of Heavy Magic as a child.

A particularly dangerous magic type is Summoning magic. As the name suggests, it is used to summon and control other creatures. This type of magic is borderline taboo among most of the races because these rarely go well even if done right, and often carry a price that the Summoner either cannot or is unwilling to pay, which often offends the Summoned being. The Baron is foolish enough to try this in The Shogun Six and it is only through outside help that he didn't end up a snack for his own Summoning. Anarchy Helios was known to use Summons before his defeat at the hands of the Shogun.

One particular form of magic that any non-human is able to use is a form that is capable of turning them into an anthropomorphic state, with varying degrees of how human an individual looks. Ponies use this commonly, while the other races vary in their use. It is not necessarily an instinctive power, as it can be taught. However some do manage to learn it on their own. It's worth noting that this magic can be learned by those from other realities, as this particular magic seems to be multiversal, although it appears to originate within the Shogunverse.

Of course, we also cannot forget the three primary pony types. (Yes I said primary. There's a bit more to ponykind in the Shogunverse than most know. Yet.)

Unicorn magic is in some ways partially the same as seen in canon. However it has been applied in a broader spectrum than the way we've seen in the show, particularly in regards to magic when used in combat, technology, and medicine. Unicorn magic can physically alter other things, as we see in the show, but it can also be used for affecting others or oneself internally. For example, Dusk can use his magic to enhance his strength, a talent which comes in handy during a fight. This is an internal use and does not register visually by the sight of a glowing horn. Internal magical use on one-self is risky and few try it. However this kind of magic, when in the hands/hooves of a proper mage can be the difference between life and death as this kind of magic has been approved for use in operations and surgeries of various types. However, advancements in science are slowly closing the window of necessity for this kind of magic, to the point where only some of the best of the best of the best still practice this kind of internal magic on any real scale for medicinal purposes.

Unicorns are born with an innate ability for using overt magic, which is often seen in the show in the form of the telekinetic grip that all Unicorns seem to be able to use after a certain point. But those who learn the more subtle variances can be absolutely deadly in combat. Dusk, for example, is powerful enough that he can affect the internal organs of another being in combat using the magical skills mentioned above. He feels it's a cheat, however, and so rarely does it.

While Unicorns are effective at magic due to being born with the ability to channel it from the word go, this does not make them all powerful. There are pony types that once existed that make unicorns seem like rank amateurs. (There's a rumor that one of these breeds survives to the present day.) Magic use is as natural for many unicorns as breathing, even before one factors in the innate magic that all ponies learn to tap which allows for them to shift between pony and anthropomorphic forms. However it is not solely their purview among the Tribes, as it is in canon Equestria. Indeed, this universe's greatest wizard, Merlin, is said to have taught not only Starswirl the Bearded, but also took ponies of various types under his wing. Starswirl was simply the one who had the most academic interest in it, and so published a number of papers on the matter, which is why he is still well known ages after his passing.

Unicorns have an easier time using various types of magic, but a harder time actively understanding them. Barring a few prodigies such as Starswirl, and perhaps Dusk, most unicorns find using magic other than unicorn style to be often more trouble than it's worth, and so don't often engage in it. However for those few who are willing to indulge, such as The Baron and Dusk Shine, it makes them more formidable fighters. Dusk enjoys learning about the other magic types and uses a number of types, and has a fascination for human magic, which can be used via either incantation or gestures of varying complexity.

Pegasi do not control the weather on this world, and indeed have not for millennia, due to the fact that the way their world merged with Earth and altered their respective histories means they effectively never did. Instead, Pegasi have developed a resistance to weather that rivals, if not exceeds, the pegasi of canon Equestria's past, as many pegasi are known to still make homes in the clouds. However this requires Heavy magic to create. As such, most Pegasi settle for the anti-gravity fortress cities that replaced cloud homes over the ages. Some Pegasi, however, can become endowed with certain magical command over certain aspects of the weather, a throwback to their Pre-Merger existence, though nobody is entirely sure why. Lightning Blitz's Sonic Shockblast, for example, has multiple uses, but it still boils down to the fact that it is an elemental control over his very namesake; lightning.

Pegasi can use magic of all types the same way any non-unicorn magician would. This ranges from simple gestures to actual incantations. Most who use magic among pegasi tend to use it to enhance themselves aerodynamically, granting themselves greater speed either by use of magical enhancement, or simply supplementing their natural airspeed. Those who choose to apply their magic to martial pursuits often use it in a variety of ways related to weakening opponents via draining their personal resistance to damage and using it to bolster their own, or else picking a particular set of battle-related skills and honing them. Prior to the fall of Anarchy Helios, a team of pegasi known as the Shadows of Wind—effectively an elite flying combat unit in those days— battled the mad Alicorn, bending shadow and light themselves to their whim to use as weapons against him.

Earth Ponies are not all that different from human mages in that while they have little natural talent for any form of overt magic, they can learn virtually any kind with greater ease than the Unicorns or Pegasi, who are born with particular specializations such as overt use and weather resistance. This is not to say that there isn't a certain magic that comes more easily to Earth Ponies, however. As with their canon counterparts, Earth Ponies in the Shogunverse have a particular tie to nature itself and are great agriculturalists. However this also grants those who choose to engage in combat an easier time controlling elemental magic. Ash Jade is known to summon electricity as a weapon (much to Lightning's annoyance, as he feels that's his schtick), along with fire, ice, water, and has even used his magic to cause miniature earthquakes around adversaries, attempting to use his link with the earth to swallow enemies. He can also enhance his already prodigious strength with magic.

Like Pegasi, Earth Ponies tend to cast magic the same way non-unicorn types often do, with gestures or magical incantations.

Other forms of magic also exist, but these are the major ones you need to know about right now.

Plus, trying to describe the magic Peanut uses is...mind breaking.

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Intavesting, vewy intavesting indeed.

Next up, on the topic of magic again, what kinds of magic are the other races 'Adept' in. Like, what are Humans best at, Minotaurs, Gryphons, etc.

Additionally, you mentioned, and have repeatedly shown, that Ponies and other non-human spell casters can change their shape to that of a more humanoid one. I'm assuming that's because of the merger between worlds; the real question I have is, did Earth have it's own magic 'network' as it were before this, and if so, was this what influenced the change in the way magic worked on...

... Actually, what WAS the world the Ponies, Gryphons, etc, lived on before the merger? Can't recall if you mentioned that or not yet.

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What kinds of magic are the other races 'Adept' in?

Another good question. The answer's a bit difficult to pin down however. So I'll edit this post as necessary as I figure out how to word said answer as it applies to each race.

Because of the political climate, magic is as much an every day thing as it is a weapon. So each race tends to hoard the knowledge of it's best stuff.

This isn't to say that there isn't information to know.

Humans are basically a jack of all trades, with a few of the greats achieving truly legendary status by mastering just about everything. Merlin is the most obvious example, but there are others, many of whom are known in "fiction". *(There's a reason for the quotes) Among humans of the modern day, one or two are known as Archons, a title indicating they are something just below being considered ultimate masters of every form of human magic known to humanity. These users can also tap the magic types of other species. About all they can't access is Alicorn magic and the energies that power certain artifacts that have been used throughout the history of both Earth and the revised history of the world created by the Great merger.

As far as the name of the world the ponies and the like came from? I haven't nailed down a name, because no official name was ever given for it in the series, so I had nothing to extrapolate from.

Next question~

At what point in time did this alternate Earth crossover with the alternate Equestria? What kind of stuff happened between then and the merger? Like, were the presidents the same? Were there different people in charge? At what point did the history of that world deviate from ours, assuming it was like ours in the first place?

I'd ask the same about the Equestria, but, well, it really wasn't Canon at all at any point, I'd assume.

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This is a very good question. Because of the situation that exists on the merged world, I can't really pin down a proper point in time for this, especially as it might be a bit too spoilery due to the nature of this combined world. Some events did still occur in the history of Earth both before and after the merge, which itself had affects on history, so World War I and II, for example, happened, but didn't play out exactly the same.

I can tell you that the time period of the Shogunverse in which the stories take place is set at least seven thousand years from 'now'. However 'now' still plays out in odd ways in their world.