Industria Nocturne is a setting that combines the steampunk and gothic horror genres. Primary influences include Dracula, Jekyll and Hyde, and Jules Verne.
Mood:
Dark but hopeful, Industry Nocturne features a world on the brink of dramatic change, and the problems that accompany it. There is brimming conflict between the old and the new.
Setting:
It is an age of fire and lightning. conflict and peril. Two powerful nations have arisen from the old world, eager to assert their power and bring about a new age of intellect and reason. Lurking in the corners of the world, ignorance, superstition and prejudice threaten to batter down this new order. The heroes of this world must find their place in a changing world.
The Science of Power
In Industria Nocturne, combustion techniques have not yet been discovered. However, technological inventions up to the 1950's have been discovered, such as primitive computers, automatic weapons, and lighter than air flight. Steam and electricity are the primary sources of power for the setting. Notably, there has not yet been a proliferation of cars, tanks or trucks. There are electrical and steam powered versions of these vehicles available, but they are notoriously ineffecient and toys of the rich. Military and civilian transportation centers around horse, train, ship, and airship.
Airships are of course, a staple transportation method, often used to deliver fast messages and to and from difficult to access areas. They are fast, but expensive, and used by the better-off for casual travel. Engineering techniques for airships have progressed in such a manner that have dramatically increased the structural integrety of airships, allowing for persistant aerial stations, and armored airships. Military airships have developed into the multipurpose workhorse of the modern army.
Electrical techniques have improved drastically, particularly in the area of storing energy. Batteries and capacitators can store energy to such agree that 'lightning' farms have been setup for use as municipal power sources. Homes and businesses typically run on electricity, and specialist airships are often employed to fly into storms and gather lightning for sale in capacitators and batteries. A budding science in magnetism and electromagnets is developing, with militaries incorporating dynamos and high powered electromagnets in various capacities, particularly as defensive countermeasures and non-lethal weaponry
The State of the Supernatural
The Saxon Empire and the Confederation both officially deny the existance of the supernatural. As a matter of public policy, there are no laws, protections or otherwise regarding the supernatural, and in courts of law supernatural causality is regarded as completely invalid.
There is some debate whether this should include religion and religious justification, and in cases where religion is a factor this matter is often up to the indivdual judge. (Much like our own world).
That said, both the Empire and the Confederation are said to maintain secretive organizations that activley observe and control matters of the paranormal. They generally leave alone witches and sorcerors who maintain a low profile, such as career fortune tellers and mediums, they do however actively try to eliminate or discredit supernatural practitioners that become too influential or dangerous.
Those who openly practice the supernatural arts can generally count on a life of being poor and ridiculed. Other then the rich and eccentric, the market for supernatural services is small, and a great deal of it is flooded with snake oil salesman. Any practictioner of the supernatural who gains too much influence, by mundane means or otherwise, can expect a visit from the government and be hounded at every turn. These people tend to be mysteriously murdered or disappear. As such, there are no long lines of blueblooded or wealthy open practiioners of magic.
Additionally, a real practictioner of magic is even less common than the average fortune teller or stage magician. They usually try to keep a low profile, and live in out of the way, relatively lawless places. Magical items are extremely rare and no longer made, as the time and materials required to manufacture them generally tend to be rather obvious. Other than simple charms, wards and pendants, all magical items tend to be from ancient civilizations. Only the East maintains a small cottage industry of government sponsored magical items, none of which are exportable on penalty of death.
The Art of Magic
Journals of magicians and 'scientific' studies have determined that there are two kinds of magic, Black and White. Black and White magic is diametrically opposed- delving to far into one side restricts access to the other.
Black Magic is aggressive, and used for attack and personal gain. It is quick and brutally effective, harnessing negative emotions to cast curses and bewitch enemies. Black Magic practitioners are typically anti-social and very dangerous.
White magic is defensive and healing in nature. It is the only magic typically sanctioned by governments and the Church of Creation.
There is some magic that is not White or Black, but simply colorless. There are no known organizations that publicly practice magic as such, although scientists have termed the holy prayers and practices of the Church of Creation as a form of White Magic.
Geography: The world is known as Terra. There are 5 main continents, Alexandria, Valum, Corpus, and Occulus. Each of the three major powers occupies a large portion of one continent. Alexandria lies to the West, Corpus to the north and east, Valum to the Far East, Occulus to the South.
Politics There are three major powers in the world, each vying for economic and political domination over the rest of the world. Thanks to airships and advanced optics, the globe has been completely mapped, however many lands remain mysterious, unexplored and unexploited.
The Saxon Empire
Language: Saxon
Capital: Victoria
Currency: The Golden Crown
The Saxon Empire occupies a large portion of the Alexandria, and is composed of a number of nationstates, some more recently conquered than others. It is a constitutional monarchy, with a royal family that rules in name. However, it is the Victorian Parliament that rules in truth. The Parliament centrally controls each vassal state, collecting tribute and organizing the military, and legislating general law and maintaining basic order. Each vassal has a state government that manages local affairs that answers to the central government controlled by Parliament. The Saxon Empire is a republic, allowing all male citizens to vote. Women are not allowed to vote, and face many societal restrictions, however legislation has been passed making prejudice due to race, sex or creed a federal offense. Many proponents of women's rights have argued that the inability of women to vote violates these laws, but they have yet to succeed. The Saxon Empire possesses a medium-sized, well trained and well organized military. It is primarily interested in making colonial and economic assets in smaller countries, and establishing a solid trade relationship with The Heavenly Kingdom.
United Democratic Republics of Milensk (UDRM)
Language: Common (Ussuran)
Capital: Milensk
Currency:The Rubel (Paper)
The UDRM is a coalition of allied states on the eastern half of the Alexandria, running onto the southern half of Corpus. It consists of a central military/economic bureaucracy that manages the affairs of each member state. This is known as "The Politik". The head of the Politik is also the head of the executive and military, and his title is "The Manifest General".
The central principle of every state is complete and total democracy. All citizens of any age, sex and creed (excluding convicts) votes directly for all elected officials. Other than that sacred principle, each member state is free to create any legislation that does not interfere with the policies of the central government.
All votes for any elections are counted by observers from the monitoring agencies within the Politik. Elections must be held every 5 years, although terms of office and other details are determined by the individual state. The primary task of the Politik is to collect taxes to fund the mutual defense of all members states. The Politik has interpreted this in fashion that grants it overarching power in a number of areas such as business, education and agriculture. The Politik encourages the practice of collective economies, science and propaganda. It portrays the ideal citizen as the Peasant, a noble yeoman that labors for the good of his fellow man. Finally, every member state must use the same currency (Sometimes alongside a local currency) and speak the same official language (Whether or not the majority of residents in the state actual know it)
The UDRM: The Principality of Maldova
The Principality of Maldova is a case study often quoted by Saxon historians as democracy gone wrong.
For generations, the Orlocke family had ruled Maldova, and when the UDR arrived, they had joined after years of bloody fighting. The current Count Orlocke has maintained his post as Prince of Maldova for several generations, winning by a large majority elections that are most certainly a sham.
The people of Maldova are ill-educated farmers that generally speak only a local dialect. The economy is poor and it's only exports are wheat, furs,cheap labor and superstition. Despite the region being populated by a number of ferocious predators, the Count has outlawed guns, allowing only his secret police, "the Valoy" to carry firearms. Only local constables are allowed to carry swords or any other weaponry beyond farming implements.
UDRM officials have acknowledged the many problems in Maldova, and have said they are working closely with Count Orlocke to resolve these problems.
The Heavenly Kingom (Huaxia)
Language: Xian
Capital: The Jade City
Currency: The Silver Tael
In the national language, the Heavenly Kingdom is known as "Huaxia". It covers 2/3 of the continent of Valum. Not much is known about this mysterious far eastern kingdom, except that it is very old and very powerful. It trades only in limited amounts, allowing trickles of prized spices, teas, oils and other luxury goods to flow out, while drawing in large quantities of silver, precious metals, electricity and technology.
According to the records of travelers, the Heavenly Kingdom is ruled by a single monarch known as the Tao Emperor. He rules by means of a complex centralized bureaucracy and a profuse state religion. His officers and administrators are all said to be practioners of sorcery, and few historians have yet denied these claims. The Heavenly Kingdom has numerous attempts at 'military persuasion' from the UDRM and Saxon Empire, and likely fields and impressive army.
Although the Tao Emperor rules over a centralized government, each Imperial province is also controlled by regional military factions known as Boxers. These Boxers run the day to day lives of the people under the watchful eye of Imperial Magistrates. Inter-regional conflict is relatively common, and it is said that the Tao Emperor struggles everyday to keep the Heavenly Kingdom from falling into chaos.
Saxon diplomats often decry the government's heavy dependance on superstition, as many laws and trading practices within the Kingdom on based on a state sponsored notion of a 'spirit world'.
The Church of Creation:
The Church of Creation is a globally spanning religious organization, that believes in a single creator deity that created the earth in a span of 14 days. The primary mission of the Church of Creation is to spread the word of the Creator God so that all mortal souls may be saved and returned to Heaven.
However, the most infamous task of the Church of Creation is the purging of Black Magic. The Church boasts a large clandestine and unofficial para-military organization that fields complaints about magic practitioners and fields verdicts based on an internal system of law. Justice is typically delivered through a mob of angry pitchfork wielding villagers, although it is believed the Church also commissions assassins to do it's dirty work.
Because of this militant, autonomous and unpredictable element, the Church of Creation has been banned from the Taoist Empire, and is merely tolerated by parts of UDRM. The Church does however have a strong base in the Saxon Empire, and owns several charter schools, churches, hospitals, orphanages and various other charitable organizations within that region.
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