Arcanatech
Arcanatech is a catch-all term for the mix of magic and technologies in the world of Caerwyn.
Manufacturing
The process of forging Arcanium is a closely guarded secret of the Dwarves of the Boundary Mountains, where the metal is most commonly found. They developed the Rune Forges, which are used to refine and forge Arcanium into ingots usuable in enchantments.
The production of enchantments is more widespread, with even the most basic magicians able to produce Minor Enchantments with the more mundane materials. There are larger production lines, usually owned by the empire and used for producing Grand and Major Enchantments, which require much more assembly. The machines built with these technologies also form the basis for many of the other technological wonders that exist in the major cities - Arcanium powers Arcane Engines, which in turn power the rail lines, elevators, and other mechanics found around the Empire.
Access & Availability
Arcanatech is fairly ubiquitous in Caerwyn, though not evenly distributed. There are four types of enchantments typically discussed in academic settings: Ancient Apparati, Grand Enchantments, Major Enchantments, and Minor Enchantments.
Ancient Apparati, working relics from the Ancients with immense power and unknown functionality, are incredibly rare. It's believed that the Colleges have collected a few of these devices, but for the most part the are the stuff of legends and myth. Some historians believe many of the old stories of ancient heroes with immense power were in fact Mortals weilding Apparati.
Grand Enchantments, like those imbued into Arcanium, are very rare, save for explicit uses in the major cities and in the Imperial Colleges. Grand Enchantments are a relatively new technology and new use cases are frequently being researched in the Colleges.
Major Enchantments are usually only owned by powerful spellcasters or experiences adventures with the coin to acquire such tools. These are frequently weapons and armor, though many wonderous items also can be found in this category.
Most citizens of the Empire have access to Minor Enchantments, allowing them to use simple machines that make daily life much easier. From Prestidigitizers to Continual Flametops, the average urban household in Caerwyn has a good amount of technology to work with.
Outside of the larger cities however, access to technology is quite different. Rural villages and towns typically have a few major pieces of technology and most is saved for special cases, since most enchantments require a Practical Magician or Artificer to recharge them and keep them tuned correctly.
Artificers - knowledgable spellworkers with a knack for Arcanatech - create all sorts of wonderous items, imbuing the with a bit of magic power and increasing their utility. Many of these brilliant folk travel the world, seeking work in the towns and cities where technology has begun to fail. Others settle in the cities of Eclin's Fall and Freeport where they design many wonderous inventions to improve the lives of those around them.
Complexity
Many peices of Arcanatech are realtively simple - small motors and gears driven by enchantments or uncomplicated contraptions that fire off spells at certain intervals or triggers. As the complexity of the task increases however, the complexity of the device increases as well.
Discovery
Research into Arcanatech has long been a goal of the scholars and mages of Caerwyn. Since the early discoveries of buried Ancient technological caches, practitioners and students of magic have tried to recreate the sophisticated technologies found within.
Early work in the field resulted in the first magical enchantments, spells worked into wood or metals that provided some amount of magical effect. However, most enchantments can only be so powerful, limited by the materials they are imbued upon, the power of the spellcaster creating them, and the ambient conditions in which the are produced. Because of this, the use of enchantments remained steady, but innovation in the field all but halted.
Then 50 years ago came the discovery of Arcanium, a rare, powerful metal which, when refined into ingots, holds enchantments with much more power and longevity than previously used materials. Arcanium allowed for an explosion of industry in the major cities - factories, train systems, airships and more became common place, many utilizing newly created Arcane engines.
The rarity of Arcanium means it is very controlled item, with most of it being funneled to the Imperial Colleges and the Middle Empire. Because of this, most individuals in Caerwyn have little to no direct interaction with the metal, instead using smaller charms and enchantments in the less rare materials.
In addition, Arcanium is a very soft metal, making its applications fairly mundane - it can't be used directly in weapons or armor and war-time uses are rather limited.
Comments