In this setting, magitech, and arcane magic in general, is common, and alchemical fluids used to power steam engines. There are no firearms. With this in mind, what magitech and steampunk devices do you think should exist? I'm interested in anything you can think up.
Airships (dirigible or literal flying ships), submarines, Forged, and electric lamps come immediately to mind. Probably you'd see Dwarves developing "ironside" ships. What would be considered a "fire arm" here? after all, cannons have been around a while and some mage could create a wand with re-loadable cartridges of magic missiles or similar.
I thought I saw another topic on this once before. I'll edit and add it into my post if I can find it.
Warjacks!
Unsinkable ice ships. - The hull is made primarily out of ice with wood shavings in it. Basically ice is highly buoyant and even when fractured still floats. The shavings make the ice less vulnerable to explosive fracturing.
This is actually a real thing. It was created as an anti submarine technology during WWII, but was abandoned for a reason I can't remember.
I can see a steampunk barge made of ice and a bunch of machinery to keep things cool.
Hand mirrors that can become transparent on command with a "detect magic" HUD, or allow you to communicate with other mirrors of its kind if you know the individual you'd like to speak with.
Artificial intelligence constructs (any intelligent item given the ability to project a magical image of its persona). Cortana anyone? :D
Want to make stuff cold? Open a very small gate to the plane of shadow and put it inside a box; now the heat in that box is siphoned off into the frozen wastelands in the eternal darkness.
"Virtual reality" theaters where junkies go to have wizards cast illusion spells on them. Think Minority Report.
I find that the easiest way to do this is to first pretend that you're playing a sci-fi game and pick the tech you want to replicate, then make it magical instead. Not always the most innovative, but it helps tremendously when initially forming your magitech setting.
Too cyber-punk for you? Steam and magic don't mix in quite the same way, or my brain isn't on that wavelength. :/
Unsinkable ice ships. - The hull is made primarily out of ice with wood shavings in it. Basically ice is highly buoyant and even when fractured still floats. The shavings make the ice less vulnerable to explosive fracturing.
This is actually a real thing. It was created as an anti submarine technology during WWII, but was abandoned for a reason I can't remember.
I can see a steampunk barge made of ice and a bunch of machinery to keep things cool.
It's called pykrete and it was abandoned because they basically had eyes bigger than their budgets. Basically, they wanted to make a ship so big from it that it'd be cheaper to make it out of steel - which is exactly what they were trying to replace because it was too costly...
I found some other threads that might be helpful:
http://paizo.com/forums/dmtz4qgf?I-need-as-much-speculative-technology-as-y ou
http://paizo.com/forums/dmtz4v2k?I-need-all-the-steamtech-and-magitech-you- guys
http://paizo.com/forums/dmtz2fc7?Steampunk-Setting-Machines-Firearms-etc
http://paizo.com/forums/dmtz4p8s?Techno-Magic
There are more if you search for steampunk. I hope these help!
Trains everywhere. Tracks that can meld into the ground and reform when a train is coming. Also Air Conditioner. Make sure you separate rich magic areas from the poor and magic lacking areas.
Trains everywhere. Tracks that can meld into the ground and reform when a train is coming. Also Air Conditioner. Make sure you separate rich magic areas from the poor and magic lacking areas.
Coldfire. It's a magical thing, much like regular fire, but instead of heat it produces cold. Voi la, magical air conditioners.
You could also have a form of taxi/mass transport in teleportation circles that are located at various points in the city. The mage running them gets paid according to how many folks are using it. There could be any number of reasons the circles won't work between cities, though, and since they can usually only teleport to a preassigned destination, they'd be of only limited use.
Why no firearms?
There's alot to think about in setting alone.
Why no firearms?
Style. I like to have either a guns everywhere, everybody uses them setting or a guns nowhere setting, not something in between like Iron Kingdoms or Arcanum. For this setting, I really want swords, axes, and bows, so that means no guns. I just don't like mixing swords and plate armor with firearms, even though it is historically correct.
In this setting, magitech, and arcane magic in general, is common, and alchemical fluids used to power steam engines. There are no firearms. With this in mind, what magitech and steampunk devices do you think should exist? I'm interested in anything you can think up.You should look at mining the 3.5 version of Eberron Campaign Setting. 4th Edition is good for descriptive text but adapting that is much more work.
Keep in mind that magitech and steampunk aren't the same. The latter is for an essentially non-magical millieu. Steampunk is essentially our 19th century with a few different twists, i.e. Babbage's Difference Engine actually gets built. And some of it is the implementation of existing tech of that time such as punch cards. (originally invented for use in textile pattern weavers)
So, the fact that I have steam power does not steampunk make, is what you are saying?
wand with re-loadable cartridges of magic missiles or similar.
Hand mirrors that can become transparent on command with a "detect magic" HUD, or allow you to communicate with other mirrors of its kind if you know the individual you'd like to speak with.
I love these two ideas. good ideas for some fun items, might put these in my game sometime
Oh, clockwork; lovely, magic clockwork.
Infinite Winding Springs:
*Through a variety of alchemical processes and enchantments, these springs are capable of generating and storing gobs of potential energy. The making is expensive, and gets moreso the larger the spring in question, so most of them are tiny -- wristwatch-sized or thereabouts. Vehicles can be driven by middling-large ones, and the Imperial Air Brigades use "Bertha," the largest IWS on record for semi-ballistic launches of glider-bombers from near the capital out to the borders.
A perpetual motion machine, using magic to get over the hurdles of entropy and the laws of conservation of energy. Can be crosswired/rigged to blow with a high enough craft/clockworks or disable device check. Expensive, but sometimes you need a bomb. "Sigh. I hate to part with grandad's pocket watch, but those centurions are going to breach the wall." >twist/bend/hammer< "Set it under that wagon, and RUN!" >BOOM<
Brass Couriers
*Clever simulacra of animals with integral inertial compasses. Can carry a page or two folded up inside them, and can be sent to any place they've been. Some have fly speeds, some have swim speeds, etc., etc. (Animal Messenger in a reusable form. Powered by IWS, of course.)
If not guns what about devices physically similar to guns but work similar to wands?
That setting and that level of tech is hard to imagine without guns. Erberron is definately the place to look. With magic and industry opperating side by side you will need to look at what magic is able to do better and cheaper than tech and what tech can do cheaper than magic. Given some of the things that magic can do and has been doing in a world like this technology is the new comer that means some fun rp choices need to be made for the setting. How do religions feel about magic, given the likelihood it is older and more entrenched perhaps magic is accepted and common but tech is the "dangerous immoral" threat growing in society.