The definitive VICE guide to what magic mushrooms are, where they came from, and how best to prepare for a psychedelic experience. Like the endless mycelial networks that thread through our planet’s ecosystems, magic mushrooms are now thoroughly entangled in 21st century culture. Shrooms—defined by their main psychedelic compound, psilocybin—are the new weed, and the act of taking consistent, sub-perceptible doses of them (microdosing) is now a common way to dip your toes in psychedelic waters. Meanwhile, the benefits of embarking on a full-dose mushroom journey is fast becoming a hot topic among therapists, researchers, and laymen alike, as anecdotal and scientific evidence increasingly suggest that psilocybin can do wonders for depression, anxiety, and trauma.