It was in the 1690's that Sigil was finally given to the people in the form of a new source of power. Rudolf Diesel, an ex Priest-thaumaturgist and scientist, developed a highly refined form of Sigil that, when consumed in a unique engine, produced an explosive output of both raw work energy and magical output. As "Diesel's Refinement" or just "Diesel" grew in popularity and use, it's power soon matched, and in many cases outstripped, the potency of Gramarye, the Classical magic taught by the church. Diesel Sigil allowed for the creation of a number of advanced mechanical devices, called Derricks, which used a combination of Steam, Diesel, and Sigil-hydrolics to move and act.

After the American revolution, exploration into the deeper parts of the country discovered rich sigil deposits in many areas, spawning a renewed struggle for the country. The American Military, under Codename Manifest Destiny, Moved to claim these deposits in Alaska, Texas, and California.


* * *

This is just a very barebones idea so far, just a spark of something that I thought about and wanted to get some feedback on.

Sounds neat.

So... one person thinks it's "neat".

Ok....

>>6728253
Sorry, we're just kinda slow right now...

Not a bad idea. As far as just a bare bones for a story goes, I like the concept.

Anything else you have planned for this? Is it for a particular system or are you building from the ground up?

>>6728253
Sounds good... so it's industrial magic now?

I like it, OP. Keep up the good work.

Doesn't sound like anything I haven't heard before.

So I take it combat would be magic with weapons as backup/conduit rather than weapons with magic support? I like it too, btw.

Sorry, went to bed last night.

At any rate:

>>6729998
I don't see a reason to build a whole new system for it, there are plenty that can be retrofitted easily (Deadlands comes to mind for obvious reasons, but a D20 system or any of a dozen others can be used too).

This is primarily a setting idea.

>>6730011
Basically, yes. The "dark ages" came and went, and while most technology was halted, oil and coal production and refinement got roughly the equivilent of a 200 year headstart on the industrial revolution (hence why Diesel made his engine in the 1690's intead of the 1890's. Different Diesel.)

While more people can manifest magic at a young enough age to be competent mages, there's less reason for pure magecraft now that magic/diesel engines are coming into prominence.

>>6730035
I see it as both. While magic is widespread, it's not the giant world-shaping stuff of a D&D or similar high-fantasy worlds. It handles utility things and personal magic (changing shape, enhancing abilities etc), but as for 'attacks' it's relatively smaller in scale.

Plus, it's easier to learn to slap iron than to sling spells.

For magic there are True Gramarians and Lesser Gramarians (pure mages who've learned their craft from a master. True Gramarians are from the Church[of some sort] while Lesser Gramarians are those who learned their craft from an unaffiliated master). There are also Sparks(for lack of a current bettter term), people who have awakened to magic but have not learned any real magical skill. They are able to use Sigil Guns(weapons with a resevoir of Liquid Sigil that channel magic into attacks) and Sidearms(elaborate dieselpunk light armours that amplify magical talents). Their are also Wyrd, people who can't learn Gramarye, but have an inborn magical talent.

All of the magic users, though, smaller in number to the number of normal people who have access to War Derricks(large Diesel, Steam, and Hydrolic automata) and of course good old fashioned guns.

fucking love the idea!!!! keep it going...great camp setting imho. would love to play it!

I am wondering, though, how "fantasy" to take this.

I mean, as in adding alternate races. It would be easy enough... in a world with magic, elves, goblins, etc could easily be likely.

Creatures like elves and fae would be flocking to the New World, still untouched and unspoiled by the physical polution of Sigil and Coal, while others, goblins, dwarves, and the like would be "reverse immigrating", heading to London, Rome, Berlin, and other "Old World" Sigil powers where two centuries of high magic pollution makes for easier crafting of magic armaments and equipment, as well as a more "comfortable" environment for creatures who don't care about getting dirty.

Makes me think, too, of the "conflict" of the New World.

The Louisiana Purchase gave the US a large chunk of it's land (what we didn't take form the Indians and Mexico, obviously).

So I can see the US and France as allies as we seek to expand our boarders(and, of course, acquire more Sigil).

I'm not a History buff, so I'd need to do some more intense research on just who was doing what at this timeperiod to fully set up the alternate history though...

>>6732672

ever think that those dwarves elves etc are mutations from the sigil / deisels over use? born from it's abuse... idk just throwing some shit out there...

>>6732767

Napoleon !!!!! he was the first of the dwarfs hungry for more sigil!!!!

( he also did the LA purchase )

>>6732802
I was thinking this aswell.

>>6732993
WESTERN OIL DERRICK RUNNING DORFS! DO IT!

I'd love to join in this great campaign setting.

My question is; Is it harder to cast magic spells in a highly industrialized area rather then one un-touched by technology?

what differences are there between the two Gramarians and the Wyrd ?

>>6733123

interesting point.... i think it would be easier (in industrial since there is a ton more magic), but maybe your spells might take to the magic in the air and mutate ( random percent ? ) because of to much saturation.

>>6732802
>>6732993

That's a posibility, and one I considered as well... Some, I think, will be natural creatures, and some permutations due to Sigil influence.

>>6733123
Actually, if anything it would be the Opposite. People are gaining magic earlier and easier because of "magic polution". (Think Coal Miner's Lung, only instead of cancer, it gives you the ability to spit fireballs)

So Industrialized areas would have an easier time with magic... it's a self-reinforcing system. The more techology there is in the area, saturating it with Sigil and coal soot and waste magic, the easier it is to perform magic, and thus the more industrialization that will take place to make magical items, etc, etc.

In game terms, the benefit for a Mage on the Street would be minimal, a small boost (you'd be talking something on the order of extra part per million over and above the normal), but over the long term, and over a wide area, a Decade or two of Arcanocoal smoke would saturate the area, making it more "magic friendly".

>>6732889
Again, something I was thinking about... For instance, what if, because He was using Sigil Derricks to support his cannons, he won at Waterloo, though his advance was later halted, and he remained the emperor or France. He contiues to ally with and support the US in the hopes that He'll share in the Sigil deposits we're aiming to claim to further his empire in France.

I also like the idea of him being a Dwarf who rides on a mechanical planquin that holds him a head above the rest of his advisers and staff..

>>6733170
Wyrd are mutations or gifted people(depending on how you look at it) that have a single, potent talent such as Teleportation, or shapechanging.

They are touched by magic, but are not "mages" in the classical sense. They can technically learn some gramarye (anyone can), but they don't have the same magical spark that real Gramarians do.

True Gramarye (His Word, as Law, So Passed Down By Man in the Name of the Father, and Son, And His Arcane Spirit) is magic taught by the Christian Church. Catholics held the stranglehold on it for a number centuries. The Protestant Reformation and the breaking off of the Anglican Church splintered this power, and ex-Priests and former priests began teaching it more openly in defiance of the Catholic Church. Even in the west with the prevalence of Baptists and other Christian Factions, True Gramarye continues be handled through the Church on the whole. Other religions don't have the same association, per se, as it was the Catholic Church which drove the Soot Age(see above), but they all have their own rituals and rites.

Lesser Gramarians (called that mainly by the Catholics, not because they are any less powerful) are unaffiliated mages who learned or created their own magical forms. These more freeform mages tend to have wider arrays of spells, and know more, but they aren't as potent as the highly refined traditional magic of the Church.

You should have a natural magic as well, so there are benefits to living outside the cities. Wanderers and the like sound like fun in this setting.

Not OP but bump for more thoughts.

>>6733468
There IS natural magic, but it's usually limited to the older generation (the average person is gaining access to his "Spark" at around age 35-40 at this time period, which is quite old, though the youngest are getting it at 20-25).

Magic existed everywhere, it just concentrates in certain areas...

There's a reason witches live in swamps: peat bogs, tar, etc = concentrated carbon, and thus higher magic potential. Swamps, jungles, and particularly old forests all have higher magic potentials.

It's just that the industrialization means that "magic pollution" is amplifying the total magic in the world.

Magic permiates and saturates everything Carbon, such as living creatures, absorbs this Magic. Eventually some either become "control rods", able to absorb and reidrect larger amounts, or they "mutate" into Wylds.

When a creature dies, it's magic goes with it into the soil, slowly being redistributed.

When Sigil, Arcanocoal, and other fossil feuls are burned, they let off magic as well as heat, both of which are harnessed for work.

But, just like they produce waste heat, they produce waste magic as well, and this waste magic means the overall amount of "free magic" in the world is double what it was two centuries ago.

And Growing. Fast.

Bump for more.

Waste magic in the atmosphere is, of course, leading to changes in the genotype of Homo Sapiens.

This process is called "Primate Change".

>>6727354
I second this.

The little hobgoblin of an imagination that lives inside my head is rubbing its hands, gleefully, and drooling a little bit. But it hasn't been fed enough!

Guns, guns, and More guns.

Sigil Guns:
Touched on before, these weapons are based on the the Archaic wand and staff ideas of the Old World, a resevoir of liquid sigil in the handle functions as a conduit so that raw magic can be fired as a projectile.

Simple, effective, and deadly in suitibly powerful hands, they require the person to be touched by magic to function(a Gramarian or Wyrd).

They can be shaped like anything, really, but most are actually shaped like guns so they can also fire regular bullets as well as Plugs.

Plug: A magic bullet, the lead is Sigil quenched, rune etched, and propelled by a small internal reserve of Sigil infused powder, rather than regular gunpowder.

Plugs function in a number of ways, including being magical attacks(transforming in flight into a bolt of flames, or freezing the target), or of enhancing natural talents (channeling a spell through the gun, into a focal bullet for greater effect).

A certain Railroad Baroness, believe to have murdered her way to the top of her company though no-one can prove it, is known to carry a Le Mat-styled Sigil gun who's 18 gauge shotgun shells are plugs that summon rather potent demons, bound in service to her family for generations.

Derricks - Large mechanical implements used for a variety of jobs. Powered by a combination of Steam, Diesel with Sigil Hydrolics, they're used for labour and combat.

Iron Horses, quadruped and easy to guide, serve as transportation, particularly for riders expecting danger. The Sigil Express, a band of rather intrepid letter couriers use them to deliver letters cross country, never having to stop to change out for fresh horses makes it easier... though the large Diesel reserves each carries within it makes them targets for bandits and thieves.

Labour Derricks are usually common around Refineries and industrial locations. Most are between 8 and 10 feet tall, and are a frame that a single operator rides in. They are elaborate contraptions requiring a fair amount of maintenance. And, of course, large Diesel supplies. They can lift heavy objects, carry heavy loads, and are used in mining and construction. After dockworkers turned their Derricks into makeshift firefighting rigs during the Great New York Fire of 1835, Breaking up the East river's Ice for Water and using their Engines to keep it warm enough to spray, most municipalities have incorporated one or more dedicated Derricks for Firefighting and Rescue efforts.

War Derricks, of course, come in a variety of sizes as well, including human-sized and shaped armoured walkers, as well as Striding Platforms (large, spider-legged platforms equipped with a variety of guns who use this mobile platform to launch attacks from). In the Water, the first fully Submersible Derrick, the "Alligator", conceived of by a French scientist and built in anticipation of the short lived "One Week Revolution" as an Ironclad Killer, never saw combat.

Combat Derricks are reserved for the Military and Law Enforcement... and, of course, the Rich and Corrupt.

good thread so far.

Sidearms
A combination of armour and enhancement, Sidearms are Diesel Driven hydraulic armatures that fit over standard character's arm. While they make fine manipulation tricky, most are fitted with built in weapons (usually Sigil guns), as well as focusing elements that enhance the power of both Gramarye and Wyrd.

They do draw somewhat on the power of their user, however, which makes them less dependant on outside sources of power, but in return it can quickly exhaust its wearer. Those without magic power can still use them, but they burn much more quickly through their onboard fuel.

A Typical Sidearm is steel and Brass, with overlapping plates or scales the protect the hydraulic chambers. Favoured by Western Sheriffs, the Colt Company has produced the Peacemaker Line, each fitted with a large, Sigilquenched Star Shield which can turn away blasts from other Sigil guns specifically for sale to Law Enforcement.

Perils of Sigil

As the burning of Sigil, Diesel, and Coal have increases, so have dangers associated with it...

Sigil Poisoning
A blanket term for those exposed to high levels of raw fossil fuels, Sigil Poisoning(or the Sicks) manifests as extreme nausea, weakness, and dizziness. Common to Oil refinery workers and coal miners, at leas those that that are human. It fades with time spent away from Sigil and Sigil smoke, however once symptoms appear, the victims are considerably more prone to further outbreaks, sometimes relapsing as soon as they approach high-concentration Sigil areas.

Magescar
Caused by exposure to Burning Sigil, particularly in it's raw form. Even magically assisted healing struggles to halt it's progress, and in many victims the burns continue to expand for days after the actual flames are extinguished as it consumes their own magic. The pain is said to be hideous. The actual burn scars created by these accidents do not fade over time and cannot be disguised with magic.

Black Lung
A common ailment amoung coal miners, who constantly breath in particulate matter from the mines, they victims suffer a double edges sword. Wracked with terrible coughs, shortness of breath, and nausea similar to Sigil Sickness. They find, however, as their bodies attempt to metabolize the dust that they have a greater degree of energy, they need little sleep or food, and do not tire.

Sadly, though, even if caught in the early stages Black Lung is almost always ultimately fatal as the victims body destroys itself from the inside out, and most simply choose to continue working, often take 20 hour or more shifts in the mines, heedless of danger in order to secure money for the families they'll be leaving behind.

this awesome :D

ARCHIVE THIS SHIT

>>6737919
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/6727224/

>>6738435
Forgot a pic.

OP if you ever run this shit online ..or in NYC let me fucking know...this is amazing. fucking brilliant and amazing.

Sounds neato. If you run an online playtest, I'm sure you'll find no shortage of volunteers.

Dear OP.

This is far more than just "neat".

Bump.

Two godlike Weird West settings in as many months?

Bless you, /tg/. Bless your wormwood-ridden heart.

You really thought that the trans-continental railroad was just about moving people from one coast to another? Oh sure, it has the obvious effect of making it easy to move arcancoal, but that was just the commercial justification. Why do so many rails run next to indian reservations, why do they go to all the trouble of digging under mountains and sacred tribal grounds. Every rail in that thing is worked sigil steel. I heard a guy stole a couple of rail road ties, they found his skin tied around a cooling tower and their still finding his teeth in different parts of the line.

>>6739930
There was another?

I don't think I caught the other, offhand.

>>6737624
call me selfish, but i really want to see something with american indians. the idea of sharply tribal and grandfatherly magic excite me greatly
tl;dr: INJUNS

>>6741604
They're going to be in there, of course, with their own magic.

Most of their magic users are the older shaman and medicine men, of course, however they've developed some interesting magic.

By combining the right pigments and Sigil, and inscribing the proper symbols, their warpaint brings about any of a number of effects.

Bampu

Jesus, MAry, and Joseph I love this idea.

Hey.

Hey OP.

Combine your idea with the Wild Cards weapons that /tg/ fluffed up previously. Threads should be on sup/tg/. It will be ultimate win.

buming and added my email incase there is ever an online game for this.


holy shit - i would PAY to play this with a good party and you OP

Right now I'm working on an alternate universe timeline for everything from about 1500 to 1870-ish. (Hitting just a handful of big points for the pre-1700 years).

I'm also running out of Cowboy-esque Steampunk and Dieselpunk pics....

needs trains

>>6747360
There are trains.

Oh yes, there are trains.

Two factions are squaring off, the older Coal-burning steam engines and the brand new LE Diesels.

The Coal Burning crew have created the so-called Dragonfire Engine, which harnesses almost 80% of the so-called 'waste magic" from coal burning to reinforce the engine, and make it burn hotter. It goes faster, and each shovel of coal lasts longer than any previous Coal Engine. They're hoping that it will prove the match of the newer, smoother Diesel Engine... only there's something they don't know.

With the help of Nikola Tesla and LE (Ladies Electric, owned by Mina Edison, the Widow of Thomas Edison, who's death was reported as an accident, though the body was never recovered. It's rumoured Edison's death was the result of a Duel with Nikola Tesla, who married Mina less than a year after Edison's death, but no evidence was ever found connecting Tesla to Edison's Death/disappearance) the first ever Diesel Electric Engine has been created that uses Diesel power to generate Electrical Current for it's brand new induction coil engines.

The two unrevealed technologies are on a collision course, set to run a Rally Challenge Race along the Intercontinental Railway for the bid on a lucrative series of Contracts.

Between the unsavoury characters lining up on either side to ensure the victory of their supported technology, and the unsavoury types who are hoping to cash in on the hoopla surrounded the race(including the betting opportunities) it looks to be one hell of a race.

>>6748407
And before people point out "Nikola, married, lolno" etc, etc. I'll point out that it's a marriage of convenience for the sake of channeling Nikola's creative energy into newer technologies...

>>6748440

then this will mean that telsa is never kicked from the US? Or he never made it to the US? Why would he have to leave russia ( i think it was russia ) if his tech was that good? Russia would recognize this and force him to stay imho...

Have the waters been contaminated as well? Would that lead to water like mutatations much like "dwarfs" and "elves"?

You might also put in something of the Current Wars (Alternate vs Direct). In a remixed edition, of course.