More on setting
Jun. 21st, 2004 08:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
forsythSo, let's see. Steampunk, Swashbuckling, Airships, and high magic. Hmm.
How to work steampunk in? Well, what if the magic's higher in the sky than on the ground, so the skyfolks rely more on magic, while tech can take a hold on the ground. But why?
What if the sun gave off magic. So higher up, it's more concentrated and more available. And then lower, of course, it'd still be around, and probably pool and run like metaphysical water, so presto, nodes and ley lines. Also neatly explains some things for races, assuming I use the D&D standard races. Dwarves live underground, so they're not very magical. Gnomes could then live above and below both, and become adept at mixing tech and magic, which seems like a good choice. Magic wouldn't exactly be inborn, it's learnable, but again, Dwarves, for example, wouldn't have evolved to control it as well.
So...hmm. What about other underground races? Well, lesse...maybe there's earth magic too...or elemental cleric magic, a la Dark Sun.
Solar magic also neatly explains why dragons mostly tend to like mountains and deserts, more sunlight (and by extension, magic) available there. Hmm, what about a tropical dragon, that lives under the canopy mostly, but survives on fruits that concentrate the magical energy the plants recieve? All sorts of interesting possibilities open up.
Halflings could fit the role of flexible wanderers, humans always have that. What to do with humans. Hmm.
Maybe everybody living up in the sky, since they're closer to magic and all, would have automatic spells. could give them a level of sorceror, but I think I'd rather do something like each person have a random cantrip they can cast X times a day. X being constitution bonus, or something, maybe.
Ideas, ideas.
How to work steampunk in? Well, what if the magic's higher in the sky than on the ground, so the skyfolks rely more on magic, while tech can take a hold on the ground. But why?
What if the sun gave off magic. So higher up, it's more concentrated and more available. And then lower, of course, it'd still be around, and probably pool and run like metaphysical water, so presto, nodes and ley lines. Also neatly explains some things for races, assuming I use the D&D standard races. Dwarves live underground, so they're not very magical. Gnomes could then live above and below both, and become adept at mixing tech and magic, which seems like a good choice. Magic wouldn't exactly be inborn, it's learnable, but again, Dwarves, for example, wouldn't have evolved to control it as well.
So...hmm. What about other underground races? Well, lesse...maybe there's earth magic too...or elemental cleric magic, a la Dark Sun.
Solar magic also neatly explains why dragons mostly tend to like mountains and deserts, more sunlight (and by extension, magic) available there. Hmm, what about a tropical dragon, that lives under the canopy mostly, but survives on fruits that concentrate the magical energy the plants recieve? All sorts of interesting possibilities open up.
Halflings could fit the role of flexible wanderers, humans always have that. What to do with humans. Hmm.
Maybe everybody living up in the sky, since they're closer to magic and all, would have automatic spells. could give them a level of sorceror, but I think I'd rather do something like each person have a random cantrip they can cast X times a day. X being constitution bonus, or something, maybe.
Ideas, ideas.
