Archoverse

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Kingmaker
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Archoverse

Post by Kingmaker »

Well, I found this website through a link on SDN, and thought I’d check it out. I didn't see any intro thread, so I'm just going to dive right in.

This is an industrialized fantasy setting I’ve been working on/thinking about for a while. The name comes from the initial (now abandoned) story I wrote for it, before major revisions happened. This was originally inspired by Perdido Street Station, which I like for the novelty of a fantasy setting that was industrialized, but I felt it had too much emphasis on the weird and on the grimdark darkness.
__
Four thousand years ago, humanity was ruled by four gods, the Archons. They established a powerful and magically advanced but astonishingly brutal and oppressive theocratic civilization. During this time, many grotesque wonders were created, called forth from the demented whims of the Archons. Eventually, the humans and a number of lesser metaphysical overthrew the Archons with the aid of a fifth Archon. The world was badly damaged in the struggle, leaving a number of interdimensional scars. Three of the Archons were shattered into countless lesser entities, one was reduced to idiocy, imprisonment, and madness, and the fifth left humanity to its own devices, having completed some divine political ploy. The ten leaders of the human uprising found themselves elevated to positions of lesser godhood.

The human race was plunged into a dark age by the cataclysm, but quickly recovered magic and developed science and philosophy. These tools allowed humans to build their own civilization and plot their own destiny. Mechanical and magic technology has developed hand in hand. The power to bend over the laws of reality is a university education away. Aerial battleships held aloft by arcane science and jets armed with missiles support riflemen as they fight against extradimensional invaders and the legions of malevolent deities. Clockwork warrior-monks stand guard at the frayed edges of reality while impulsive archaeologists crack open the tombs of things best left forgotten. Alchemists bind elementals to fuel the creation of impossible substances. Sovereign corporations squabble with magocratic city-states and necropolitan superpowers while demonic crime cartels rule society’s underworld.

The world is a place scarred by magic and ruled by superpowers and megacorporations. Magical discovery has been one of the prime driving forces behind scientific discovery. To the people of the Archoverse, there is no distinction, and nearly everyone will grow up handling arcane devices. The political situation of the modern world is quite tense, even though it has been thirty years since the end of the Eidolon War, a global conflict caused by several third-string gods gaining control of major governments. The result has been an explosion of minor conflicts around the world, often supported discreetly by major powers.
__
Basically I’m trying for post-cyberpunk meets military sci-fi meets high/urban fantasy.
Also, having looked at the Thunderverse, I feel a bit upstaged.
When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Heading said: "Stick to the Devil you know."
-Rudyard Kipling
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Re: Archoverse

Post by Heretic »

Welcome to O1, Kingmaker! I'm Heretic, the forum's local nutcase. :mrgreen:

Cool, a mix of steampunk (or clockworkpunk) and magic it looks like. Oh, don't worry about the Thundarverse. Competition is good. Good for business, especially. :lol:

Anywho, what is post-cyberpunk? Is it a movement after the 80s and early 90s when people starting going elsewhere in themes other than mega-cities with hackers who actually have a life, or am I missing the point completely?
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Re: Archoverse

Post by Acatalepsy »

One, Google is your friend.

Two, basically postcyberpunk contains many of the same basic assumptions and perspectives about about technology and the future - things like the ubiquity of the computing, brainhacking, AI, that sort of thing - but shifts the type of character, focusing on someone who is within this new society rather than an outsider. A perfect example would be Ghost in the Shell, where there protagonists are police fighting to protect the system, rather than loners and rebels outside the system trying to subvert it.

I like the universe idea, but one thing that always bugs me in particular when people do a magitek universe is that the different aspects become incongruous rather than supportive. How exactly do you have both magocratic city-states and megacorporations? The devil is in the details, and while it sounds good in a blurb if the details don't work right, each element can take something away from the universe.

Also, be warned that most military science fiction in particular tends to depend heavily not just on setting details, but technical details. It's probably a good idea to have an idea for how your magitek stuff works at a basic level, rather than just applying "a wizard did it" to everything.
Last edited by Acatalepsy on Wed Jan 13, 2010 6:39 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Archoverse

Post by Kingmaker »

Thanks for the welcome.
what is post-cyberpunk?
Acatalepsy nailed it in one. I've always like post-cyberpunk more because of the attitude it takes (sure we have a lot of problems, but we actually try to solve them instead of deciding to bring down civilization in a fit of nihilistic pique).
How exactly do you have both magocratic city-states and megacorporations?
The magocratic city-states are pretty few in number, and are able to leverage their scientific discoveries and disproportionate amount of magical firepower into independence. Of course, some are also simply relics of an earlier era that never changed because they avoided the major conflicts of history. For the most part they aren't power players, though.

The number of megacorps is similarly small (current draft of the world has three, of which only one is a serious political player). Mostly their sovereignty comes from being absolutely crucial to some aspect of the world economy, which they leveraged into forcing the major powers to recognize them as extraterritorial (such as one being the single largest financial entity in the world. How's that for holding a gun to the head of civilization?)

Besides, one of the benefits of posting your universe in a place like this is that other people can point out inconsistencies. Then you can eliminate or fix them.
Also, be warned that most military science fiction in particular tends to depend heavily not just on setting details, but technical details. It's probably a good idea to have an idea for how your magitek stuff works at a basic level, rather than just applying "a wizard did it" to everything.
I know. Oh god, do I know. I've driven myself crazy trying to figure out how this stuff works within the confines of the setting's magic system.
When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Heading said: "Stick to the Devil you know."
-Rudyard Kipling
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Re: Archoverse

Post by Acatalepsy »

Kingmaker wrote:I know. Oh god, do I know. I've driven myself crazy trying to figure out how this stuff works within the confines of the setting's magic system.
Well, I'd strongly suggest you stick to the conservation of mass/energy, momentum, and the laws of thermodynamics with any exceptions to those being very tightly controlled. As long as you have a basis for things making sense physically, you can write in the magical "exceptions" and make them work in the context of the physical.
Anything that can be done to a rat can be done to a human being. And we can do most anything to rats. This is a hard thing to think about, but it's the truth. It won't go away because we cover our eyes.

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Re: Archoverse

Post by Somes J »

Combining magical/psychic powers with Singularity technology definitely has some intriguing possibilities.

I remember in one story in Charles Stross's Lovecraftian The Attrocity Archives they gave security camera systems pyrokinetic abilities by having the computer behind them simulate the brain of a type of pyrokinetic. I always wanted to see that approach taken to magic or psionics. Give a computer magical powers by having it simulate a magic users brain as he performs a spell. For extra kickass point have it run a whole bunch of copies of the simulation for massive power.

It'd be hilarious to have some powerful magic user/psychic go up against some muggle with such a system on his side and get his ass kicked.
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Re: Archoverse

Post by Kingmaker »

A little bit of detail about each of the major powers. Hopefully I will get around to making a more detail post for each of them. I’ll also add more later if I remember them.
___

The Major Powers

Saevenok Clan: a megacorporation/distributed republic of Tyrran extraction. It is one of the wealthiest entities in the world, and the Saevenok Artificer Company has a lock on large-scale engineering projects and space exploration and exploitation. The Saevenok Clan has the smallest population of any of the major powers.

Republic of Tyrre: A federated republic containing the eponymous island republic and a few other, smaller nations. It has elements of a distributed republic, with minor members all around the globe. It is the least populous, but also most advanced of any of the major powers that can properly be considered a proper country. Notable for cycles of belligerency in foreign policy, large numbers of soulforged citizens, and being the originator of two of the world’s major megacorporate clans (The Saevenok and Errynt Clans).

Myreth Empire: the most poorly regarded and most populous of the major powers, with almost a third of the world’s population (1.2 billion). It has a totalitarian government and an extremely insular and stratified culture. The population has been organized into social castes, and mobility between the castes in nigh impossible. State alchemists have concocted mind control drugs that keep the lower castes docile, and attempts have been made at engineering the castes to make them dramatically biologically distinct.

Kingdom of Lysmer: a necropolitan absolute monarchy, with an extensive magocratic aristocracy composed of necromorphs. The ruler is an eidolon, the Maggot King, that has possessed the mind and body of an extremely ancient archmage. The living population is not well treated, and many of the nobles regard them as little more than breeding stock. Others take a somewhat more benevolent approach.

Outremer: a former Lysmerian colony that declared independence two centuries previously, and made it stick with the aid of Tyrre and Altar. It has cast aside the necropolitan traditions of the parent nation in favor of a limited republic, and its aggressive industrialization and scientific mindset have elevated it to the ranks of the world’s leading political and economic powers.

Kingdom of Altar: a constitutional monarchy notable for a somewhat paternalistic foreign policy that has drawn criticism from its ally, the Republic of Tyrre. In the past it established many colonies and still routinely interferes in their internal affairs. It lags a bit behind Tyrre and Outremer technologically and economically, despite comparable living standards.

Aurian Church: established by the living saints after the Deicide. The Aurian Church lacks the explicit economic and political power of the other major powers, but with 1.5 billion practicing adherents worldwide, it wields a staggering amount of social influence. It also controls a powerful military apparatus and intelligence service, which it uses to combat extradimensional and metaphysical threats, as well as prosecute violent heretics. The Church is funded by the charity of the faithful and selling the surplus from their arms foundries.
When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Heading said: "Stick to the Devil you know."
-Rudyard Kipling
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Re: Archoverse

Post by Kingmaker »

The Faust Cartels
The Faust Cartels are a group of closely allied criminal groups that control the majority of the world’s organized crime. They are not affiliated with any state, and for the most part stay out of world politics in order to minimize the attention they receive from the major powers.

Different groups emphasize different specialties, from drugs to weapons to prostitution to blackmail. The common trait running through all the Cartels is that both the leadership and the rank and file are dominated by demonic spirits called fausts. Fausts possess a host, either bargaining with the host or overpowering a weak mind. These hosts, called faustians, are altered mentally and physically, although to what degree varies depending on the person and the faust. Some are warped into inhuman monsters but retain independent thought and their original personality, while others are completely controlled by the possessing spirit but appear perfectly human. Most fall somewhere in between.

The Cartels are not well liked, but efforts to suppress and eliminate them have not borne fruit. Political support tends to dry up as anti-Cartel politicians end up dead or backing down, and law enforcement and military forces often find Cartel enforcers to be quite dangerous.
When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Heading said: "Stick to the Devil you know."
-Rudyard Kipling
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Re: Archoverse

Post by Kingmaker »

Magic

Magic, also commonly known as Arcane Science or Arcanics, is the study and application of metaphysical forces and how they affect the world. Magical technology has grown hand in hand with mechanical technology, and in some fields has completely overtaken or displaced it. The origin of the study of magic is unclear, but the most popular theory is that a scholar of some sort bargained with a faust to learn magic. Magic is not an inherent ability, and anyone with the intelligence, discipline, and access to education is capable of learning it.

Using magic requires several things. The first is the arcane symbols: 148 geometric runes that are used to compose all arcane equations. The more complex and precise the arcane working, the longer and more complex the corresponding equation will be. Due to the difficulty of memorizing these equations, foci that store them are a practical requirement. Most commonly, mages will create a focus that spells out the equation but leaves a few variables to be filled in at the time of casting.

The second requirement is a source of metaphysical energy. The most readily available source for a would-be mage is their own soul, but that presents risks. While the human soul is a rich source of arcane energy, extensive use of one’s own soul for energy tends to cause emotional and psychological damage, followed by a rapid decline into insanity. Storing of insane mages come from those who had a tendency to draw on their internal power. More popular are captured elements. In particular solars (sunlight elementals) and yags (fire elementals) are commonly used as power sources, because they are easy to bait and catch, and have little difficulty recharging themselves—though they do tend to be more volatile than karzeleks (earth elementals) or bessemars (metal elementals). Other human’s souls, as well as other metaphysical entities, can also be used to power magic, but are considerably more difficult to obtain. It is impossible to get more energy out of an arcane system than is put in.

The third requirement is the physical components required for the arcane technique. What these are varies. In some cases, no physical components are necessary (i.e. psychonomy, basic transmutations). In most cases, it is whatever object is to be affected, and additional materials may be required. Alchemy is the most common example of this, where creating many special alloys requires certain metaphysical reagents.

Arcane Disciplines

Psychonomy: used in dealing with thoughts, memories, and emotions. It can create, magnify, or suppress any of those things, and is commonly used in treating mental problems. It is also used in crime fighting and the military for interrogation. Psychonomers can also detect the distinct thought patterns of different people, though learning to identify someone solely by their thought pattern is difficult. Because of their ability to subtly alter people’s thoughts, psychonomers are not well liked by many.

Theurgy: used for dealing with metaphysical entities of all kinds, from eidolons to elementals. With the proper preparations and the right kind of vessel, a theurge can summon and bind most metaphysical creatures. Given that these creatures had the ability to affect reality in numerous ways, the applications of theurgy are myriad. Theurgy, along with Alchemy and Cosmourgy, is regarded as one of the primary disciplines of combat mages. It also finds application in computing, manufacture, medicine, and is crucial to transportation technology.

Bioccultics: used for altering and enhancing organic materials. It shares a great deal with Alchemy, and can be used to temporarily endow organic material with properties it would otherwise lack, such as giving a human superior nightvision, or enhanced strength. With more work, these qualities can be permanently worked into the subject. Homunculi, human constructs created with bioccultics, are becoming more common, though the fact that each must be custom made limit them primarily to those among the extremely wealthy who desire designer children. They tend to possess limited superhuman qualities, thanks to the ease of working permanent enhancements into a homunculus. Other kind of bioccultic constructs are called biomorphs and are used extensively across fields. Bioccultics is central to medical technology, being able to regenerate damaged tissue and eliminate most diseases. Cosmetic bioccultics can freeze and reverse aging, and flesh sculpting is both an art form and sign of prestige (if it is done well). More applications for bioccultics are being developed daily.

Alchemy: used for transmuting the qualities of physical, and to a limited extent metaphysical, materials, as well as creating alchemical compounds that possess metaphysical properties. Examples of minor transmutations include altering the temperature of a material (commonly used in warfare), temporarily altering the melting and boiling points of a material, and temporarily altering the hardness—none of which require reagents. The creation of alchemical alloys requires special reagents, and is used extensively for making materials with unusual or blatantly impossible properties. There is a whole family of alchemical alloys of steel, for example (blacksteel, silksteel, aquasteel, etc…). Alchemical drug creation (pharmaceutical alchemy) is another major area. It requires fewer, if any reagents, instead relying upon more complex processes that create the components from a handful of simple reagents. Commonly used drugs include anti-hypnotics (eliminate the need for sleep, temporarily), regeneratives, stimulants, and psychoarchic (influence and control the emotions, thoughts, and perceptions of the user).

Cosmourgy: used for manipulation of force and energy. Includes telekinetics and teleportations, though the later in extremely difficult. Cosmourges can also manipulate sound, electricity, and other forms of energy. Commonly used in combat and entertainment (for the creation of illusions).

Technomagy: used in the creation of constructs, automata, and the like. Metaclockwork devices can replicate the effects of other schools of magic, though typically with less fine control. They are also used in the creation of prosthetic limbs. The development of technomagy is responsible for the Arcane Revolution, in which magic was industrialized.

Credit to Tim Powers for calling fire elementals yags.
When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Heading said: "Stick to the Devil you know."
-Rudyard Kipling
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Re: Archoverse

Post by Acatalepsy »

Looks awesome to me, the only big thing that needs to be answered is the question of the elementals themselves - where they come from, how much energy each has, and where they get their own energy from.

One good baseline question is, if you decided to convert all of a person or elemental's soul into energy, how big of a bang results? Is there a function that governs that sort of thing, IE, E = MC^2 = F(S), where F(S) is a function of the "strength" of a soul. One interesting way to do it would be to say that souls have a ton more energy than even direct matter-energy conversion, but actually harnessing that energy and not just badly mangling the soul with a little bit of energy as a byproduct is difficult.
Anything that can be done to a rat can be done to a human being. And we can do most anything to rats. This is a hard thing to think about, but it's the truth. It won't go away because we cover our eyes.

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Re: Archoverse

Post by Kingmaker »

Looks awesome to me, the only big thing that needs to be answered is the question of the elementals themselves - where they come from, how much energy each has, and where they get their own energy from.
Elementals come from, uh… the stork, probably. Call it metaphysical evolution or say a wizard/god did it. Yeah… lets go with that. How much energy each has is quite variable, and depends on how big/powerful one was when it was trapped. Elementals, like all metaphysical entities, generate their own energy when put into the right conditions, usually associated with the physical reflection of a metaphysical ideal (i.e. a human soul is self-sustaining as long as it inhabits a human body). So, a powerful yag (fire elemental) could be found in an extremely hot and/or large fire, a powerful karzelek (earth) in rock or dirt uncontaminated by life, a powerful bessemar in a large, pure chunk of metal, etc. Elementals (and other metaphysical entities) can also grow by consuming soul-energy directly, but most aren’t really set up to metabolize that, and would require and external device to do so. This is occasionally done to convert one kind of elemental into another.
One good baseline question is, if you decided to convert all of a person or elemental's soul into energy, how big of a bang results?
A big one, probably. Your typical person's soul, converted entirely into energy with 100% efficiency, would be pretty similar to setting off a MOAB bomb.
Is there a function that governs that sort of thing, IE, E = MC^2 = F(S), where F(S) is a function of the "strength" of a soul.
In universe? Probably. I don't have one, though, and I don't intend to come up with one. The other trouble is that magic energy doesn't line up with physical energy exactly. Some things are harder, some are easier.
When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Heading said: "Stick to the Devil you know."
-Rudyard Kipling
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Re: Archoverse

Post by Acatalepsy »

Kingmaker wrote:So, a powerful yag (fire elemental) could be found in an extremely hot and/or large fire, a powerful karzelek (earth) in rock or dirt uncontaminated by life, a powerful bessemar in a large, pure chunk of metal, etc.
Could you stick one in a really, really hot fire, and just...start sucking at it, converting energy into soulpower into useful spells? Get a sort of generator set up, so that your local wizard can start flinging high energy spells all over the place.

That would be really cool if you could then figure out a way to transfer that energy from great distances...laylines or something? Then you have the magical equivalent of a power grid.
Kingmaker wrote:A big one, probably. Your typical person's soul, converted entirely into energy with 100% efficiency, would be pretty similar to setting off a MOAB bomb.
That's actually quite small. Compared to setting of an entire human's mass in to energy, which would be about a gigajoule or seven. That right there will vaporize small to medium sized nations.

Also, if I'm reading this right you could in theory start selling small chunks of your soul for cash? Selling a little bit wouldn't be guaranteed to hurt you, as the bit would grow back but...it's probably a Really Bad Idea (not the capital letters there). That sounds like it could be a major source of income for the Faust Cartels? Selling drugs and whatnot to the poor, and if they can't pay in cash, no problem! Just sell a tiny, tiny, chunk of your soul, and its good. Sort of brings a new meaning to the name to the name.
Anything that can be done to a rat can be done to a human being. And we can do most anything to rats. This is a hard thing to think about, but it's the truth. It won't go away because we cover our eyes.

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Re: Archoverse

Post by Kingmaker »

Could you stick one in a really, really hot fire, and just...start sucking at it, converting energy into soulpower into useful spells? Get a sort of generator set up, so that your local wizard can start flinging high energy spells all over the place.

That would be really cool if you could then figure out a way to transfer that energy from great distances...laylines or something? Then you have the magical equivalent of a power grid.
That's basically what they do. It helps that elementals are totally mindless and will do nothing unless forced to. This is the reason why fuel like coal and oil is still valuable--you burn it to attract fire elementals. Extremely pure metals are even more valuable in the Archoverse than in real life because they allow self-sustaining enchanted objects without needing any clumsy wires and batteries.
That's actually quite small. Compared to setting of an entire human's mass in to energy, which would be about a gigajoule or seven. That right there will vaporize small to medium sized nations.
I know, but I need to limit civilization's access to power somehow. If everyone is walking around with enough metaphysical energy to turn Cuba into a sandbar, well... Things would get out of hand really fast. I'm open to better ideas for limiting access to power, though.
Also, if I'm reading this right you could in theory start selling small chunks of your soul for cash? Selling a little bit wouldn't be guaranteed to hurt you, as the bit would grow back but...it's probably a Really Bad Idea (not the capital letters there). That sounds like it could be a major source of income for the Faust Cartels? Selling drugs and whatnot to the poor, and if they can't pay in cash, no problem! Just sell a tiny, tiny, chunk of your soul, and its good. Sort of brings a new meaning to the name to the name.
*yoink* Selling bits of your soul won't kill you. It will merely cause progressive insanity as your brain breaks down under the stress of having chunks of your metaphysical essence ripped out. And of course insanity makes you more vulnerable to possession :twisted:
When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Heading said: "Stick to the Devil you know."
-Rudyard Kipling
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Re: Archoverse

Post by Acatalepsy »

Kingmaker wrote:I know, but I need to limit civilization's access to power somehow. If everyone is walking around with enough metaphysical energy to turn Cuba into a sandbar, well... Things would get out of hand really fast. I'm open to better ideas for limiting access to power, though.
Just because the energy is there doesn't mean getting at it is easy. I'd image a straight up conversion from soul energy to heat is down right impossible. After all, we have plenty of mass to go around be no matter->energy total conversion bombs. In fact, you could rule that attempts to actually drain the soul of a sentient being for energy are extremely inefficient, with most of the energy going into a sort of metaphysical backlash that produces no visible effect but rends the souls of everyone nearby, with only a tiny, tiny portion of it going into actual energy. Spells that are more metaphysical in nature (ie, if you WANTED to rend the souls of everyone in a large radius) can use sentient souls much more easily, but getting energy from them is a Bad Idea.
Kingmaker wrote:yoink* Selling bits of your soul won't kill you. It will merely cause progressive insanity as your brain breaks down under the stress of having chunks of your metaphysical essence ripped out. And of course insanity makes you more vulnerable to possession :twisted:
Of course, but I could imaging if the effects aren't immediately and obviously dangerous I could see an addict or desperate person starting to think that if they only do it once, they'll recover. If they're desperate, well, what's a little bit of soul compared to having food for your children. And the first time, it's not so bad. But the next time? Maybe. The time after that? Before you know it you're possessed.

Just thought that that would be an interesting activity for the Faust Cartel, and an additional reason no one tangles with them - everybody sometimes needs that "extra power" but can't or won't go through effort of setting up a system to collect human souls. So the major powers need the Cartel around, as they provide a service that the major powers can't (or won't) provide on their own .
Anything that can be done to a rat can be done to a human being. And we can do most anything to rats. This is a hard thing to think about, but it's the truth. It won't go away because we cover our eyes.

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Re: Archoverse

Post by Siege »

'Kay, well, you certainly have me convinced. What would you want this universe to be named?
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Re: Archoverse

Post by Kingmaker »

'Kay, well, you certainly have me convinced. What would you want this universe to be named?
:shock:

How about Arcane Steel.
That sounds suitably magitechnological.
When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Heading said: "Stick to the Devil you know."
-Rudyard Kipling
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Re: Archoverse

Post by Siege »

Okiedokie. And lo: Arcane Steel. Get cracking!
"Nick Fury. Old-school cold warrior. The original black ops hardcase. Long before I stepped off a C-130 at Da Nang, Fury and his team had set fire to half of Asia." - Frank Castle

For, now De Ruyter's topsails
Off naked Chatham show,
We dare not meet him with our fleet -
And this the Dutchmen know!
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