Quick Updates and General Brainstorming Sessions

this is an interetsing vid i watched awhile back, maybe it would help with ideas

The pure idea of a fantasy discworld is funny, but there is Terry Pratchett's one already.

admin

I think we'll need a thread for Temple Nimbus soon. Also one related to the armed forces of each nation. Unless we're consolidating it with the Bestiary.

If you have the time, please give feedback in the Magic System thread.I can't move forward without input. The only post you need to read is the Magic 3.0 post near the very bottom of the first page.

Thanks

By the by, are there guns in this world?

I know you could make a very effective form of matchlock with a magically heated bit or an ever-burning wick. A wheellock wouldn't be too hard either what with the mechanical monstrosities that abound in this world.

Or self-loading crossbows? If they can enchant a sword to burn then why not a crossbow that draws itself?

I had been sketching up my sword entry (should they ever be accepting entries again) and it wasn't too hard to come up with a couple types of gun that would be possible with 1440's technology. 



Match and Magelock are completely possible with 1440's tech, Wheellock is an inference from the existance of mechanical guardians, and the magic ring apparatus should be possible so long as there are magic rings in this world.

If there's a place for tardy sword designs I'll put up my alchemist's sword too. Just didn't see anywhere for it so...

I like this idea. +1!
Self-loading crossbows do exist in the world, just somewhat rare and expensive because they're difficult to manufacture.

One question, though. Are these guns you designed muzzle-loaded? 

Guns were probably recently developed in the world, and it still has fierce competition with Longbows, Composite bows, and any other type of bows. 

I imagine archers to be somewhat dismissive or even show outright hatred towards these new weapons, calling them 'cumbersome and noisy' whilst vehemently defending Archery as the best form of ranged combat.

For some reason, I almost want to picture Sentinel Gunners wielding early gatling guns...But that is probably way too overpowered for a world of swords. Maybe a fixed emplacement, like an Anti-Aircraft gun?

Yes, they are all muzzle-loaded except for the alchemist gun which has a breech block. It's mis-labeled rolling block, it's actually just a hinged block.



The magic rings are just that- magic rings. Same principle as a rings of speed or rings of +1 piercing damage, the projectile is imbued with magic as it passes through the rings, the properties depend on the rings used.

I can see the archery guilds having some beef with guns and bows were better than them for a long time, it's just a gun takes no muscle power and little training time to learn to use properly.

For those reasons I actually see guns being a very popular sidearm for wizards. They require little muscle power, and can be enhanced with magic just as well as a sword or crossbow.

They could also have a niche - in POE guns are much slower than crossbows or bows, but the speed of the projectile means that they can pierce magical veils and wards. Going against a group of humans or Orcs you'd get better use out of an archer, but against a wizard or something with heavy armor or skin you'd want a gunman.

Well, for the first shot at least.

The second downside of guns is the load time. If you are fighting a single target, the gun may do serious damage or outright kill them depending on the gun's construction and the target's durability. However one shot is all you get at close range. From a distance and with use of terrain you may be able to get off multiple shots before they close, you could also use multiple guns.



But extra weapons are heavy and cumbersome, and after that shot you'd be very vulnerable without a good melee weapon.

I think dedicated gunmen would either be part of a unit, or be a sort of fast-moving, shoot-and-hide rouge. Primarily good against magic defenses, but plate armor is going to give the bullet pause and large creatures may shrug off a single gunshot.

If I were commissioned to be fighting your sentinels with humans, I would want plate armor with warhammers in front, and guns with maces in back. Line of guns fires, warhammers engage and hold the line while the second rank reloads, second rank gives the shout: "down!" warhammers kneel and second rank fires, fighting resumes.

For 1v1 I wouldn't take only a gun. There's too great a chance the sentinel survives the shot, or it goes wide, or what have you and then the fight is sentinel vs secondary melee weapon.



There are other examples I can think of.



A ranger fighting Orks would probably prefer a crossbow or bow, the ammunition is easy to craft without specialized parts and the rate of fire is much higher. A mage-hunter or a wizard with rivals would want a gun for the single-target anti-magic capabilities.

A siege army will want archers who can arc their shots over the (likely warded) walls. A ship will want guns because the ocean is mostly flat and there's little terrain to bother with.

An assassin will want a bow or crossbow because it's quiet and can be poisoned... or a gun because it can hit from a far away rooftop.

You'll always need melee soldiers in this fantasy world. A block of riflemen will die horribly to an animated armor that a group of warhammers could beat to pieces and a mage could just dispell, and might get charged by a beast that a mage could spook away.

So in short.




Archers > Gunmen

Mages > Archers

Gunmen > Mages

Plate Armor/Shields > Archers

Guns > Plate Armor/Shields

Magical Constructs > Gunmen

Mages > Magical Constructs

Mages > Plate Armor

Plate Armor/Magic Weapons > Big Monsters

And so on.




(Don't use magic guns or swords when fighting mages. Use a regular gun or sword. Mages tend to be able to screw up magical objects really easily and you might end up having your rune-heated bit go cold or having your fire sword's fire spread to the hilt.)

You know when you have one of those days when you should have just stayed in bed? Well, today is one of those days..

I awoke this morning to find that the dedicated site is down again at the start of a second weekend, so there goes my plan to burn the midnight oil on it over the weekend..

So then I spent about 2 hours typing out my detailed reply (and I mean wall of text detail) for the magic system, and then my browser crashes. So all that was lost..

Now the pressure from SBG related work is screaming for attention, so I guess that is that for now..

To say I am annoyed at the computer and the internet in general right now is an understatement.. Will have to do it all again later, sorry guys..

The guns ideas is great by the way. I wrote out a detailed reply on this too - and started on the evolution of swords, but of course that was lost as well with the browser hand and crash.. Grr.. Feel like a rampaging Northman right now..

So please bear with me while I try to catch up and get this back on track..

admin

Same advice I've given to Onekelvin: why not write what you need to write in Word and then replying or posting only once you're ready. This is what I do for longer posts.