Æthursday – Random Setting!

Today’s Random Setting is a World War II, diesel tech, heroic high fantasy

Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic, but sometimes, it really magic. The industrial revolution came, and with it came an economic arms race. While most nations advanced technologically, a handful of other, developing countries turned to their witch doctors, shamans, and magi to help gather raw materials and mass produce goods for the world. While most of the world turned to pure manpower to build, expand, and become wealthier, these countries tapped into the arcane for the same goals. It went… poorly.

At first, they were laughed at. Then they were called abominations. Finally, they decided that if they couldn’t be respected, at least they could be feared.

They conjured fantastical creatures; built magical weaponry; twisted men into monsters; and waged a great war against a world who would reject their arcane ways in favor of technology. They enthralled their enemies when captured, and decimated enemy lines when they didn’t. Traditional weaponry did little in the face of elemental spells and teleporting reinforcements. The Techs, as most of the world was labeled, suffered great losses.

But the Magi were not without losses themselves. Techs had to dig deep and advance their science at a rapid rate. They developed chemical weaponry, anti-magic armor, and adjusted their tactics from traditional, to guerrilla warfare. The discovery and refinery of oil fueled the horrors even more. Battles became bloody, and world progress ground to a halt. The Techie leaders and the head Magi soon realized that peace negotiations were necessary if they wanted to survive.

And so an uneasy peace came to the world. And, as happens, advancements made in wartime found a place in peacetime for both sides. Conjured beasts left to roam war zones bred, populated, and ran wild. Twisted men and women carved identities for themselves as dwarves, elves, orcs and the like, and offered services designed to their particular set of abilities. Magical items crept into Techie countries and made mundane tasks easier. Advanced technology crept into the magical lands to make large tasks more automated and less magic heavy. The world, it seemed, had found balance.

Old ways die hard, though, and not long after the world had settled into a groove of mutual prosperity a new threat began to rise. A shadowy affiliation of countries, both Techs and Magi, bent on ruling everyone. Taking what they thought was the best of both worlds and blending them together. They went big, and they went far down the rabbit hole. Animated corpses melded with hydraulic machinery. Diesel engines powering autonomous juggernauts. Old prejudices arose, and the world was plunged into another war to end all wars.

Those wanting to maintain the peace gathered together to fight this new evil. Men and women joined the standing armies, and lent their abilities to the cause. Those who survived epic encounters soon found themselves promoted. A few of those truly hardened soldiers found themselves in an elite group designed to combat the menace at its heart. Techs, Magi, and regulars — each bringing a set of particular skills to their squad. Each mission they’re sent on is harrowing. Each success a blow to the opposition. Heroes of this level are hard to come by, but they’re even harder to kill.