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Science and Technology on Helca
Overview: Due to the many calamitous events and happenstance in the history of Helca, Technology has not had much of a chance to advance the general levels of Science and Technology on Helca. The Lightbringers have begun to bring about a form of Magitech by imbuing machines and automata with the high concepts of divine Virtues. The Year of the Firewheel in CY 8431 where the warlord Jansh ravages the southern Merchant Cities using a manifestation of technology earned mechanists and machinists a bad reputation and gave more power to the city of Ados. It has caused those who follow the path of The Friendless technologists to go even more underground. Mechanical lathes and mills exist using hydraulic or pulled motion in many places but are expensive to maintain.
The Mech Belt: The Mech Belt describes the Merchant Cities of the North and South, and the heartlands in between (including Ados) them that have adopted the most uses of technology and where the most advanced forms of it inn the Steel Realms. Karolak, Ados, Teilhard, and Poelitz are the main cities of the Mech belt.
Facts About Technology on Helca
Pervasive Knowledge / Very Easy Difficulty
The rudimentary understanding of “electricity” and “chemistry” is present in several cultures and places – though interpreted in many different ways. A few species and cultures have harnessed its power – usually in combination with some divine or occult augmentation. Umbak has the greatest understanding in all this.
Gun Powder/Explosives: This is known, but unstable and varies in degrees of purity/strength/safety and considered “mysterious” and “magical” by commoners. Fireworks are the provenance of a few of the Merchant Cities, a few occult orders and Umbak has a display off the Queen’s Coast in the north where Halflings from Loamwold and Dunstrandians from the mainland and Tarmysia gather to be amazed. It is in service to the Mother Aerna, a veneration of her beauty and the power to quell and hold at bay the evil spirits that threaten the sacred hearth and family.
Common Knowledge / Easy Difficulty
Steam power is known to the Ducateon and a few of the Merchant Cities. Umbak has the greatest understanding in all this.
Uncommon Knowledge / Average Difficulty
Machinery is also known to the same cultures as steam power is. Umbak has the greatest understanding in all this.
Darvoshir Batteries: Storing Rackle energy – named after the Umbakian artificer that invented them around CY 6010.
Scarce Knowledge / Hard Difficulty
Empowered Technology: The easiest way to supply power for Technology is through magic means. The Umbakians push the envelop of pure technology farther than anyone, while the Ducateon are not far behind but find it easier to use Elementals as a power source. Umbakians refer to the celestial entities that power their tech as “Virtues”. Both approach with limiting forced servitude to a minimum.
- High Praise: Umbakians priests worship the celestial powers and adore them, adorning them with items of beauty, cleaning, caring, and servicing them in perfect order.
- Ur-Hu: The Ducateon hum softly, using vibration and sound to clean and revitalize the elementals while generating positive vibes with which to entice them to further task.
Rare Knowledge / Very Hard Difficulty
There are forces actively at work to inhibit science and its outcomes on Helca.