• Nobles of Null is a forum based roleplay site where sci-fi and magic collide. Here, Earth remains fractured and divided despite humanity reaching out to the stars. Worse still, the trans-human slaves of one major power have escaped, only to establish their own Empire, seething with resentment at abuses of the past. Even the discovery of aliens, though medieval in development, has failed to rally these squabbling children of Earth together with its far darker implications. Worse still, is the discovery of the impossible - magic. Practiced by the alien locals, nearly depleted and therefore rare, its reality warping abilities remains abstract and distant to the general populace. All the while, unseen in the darkness of space, forces from without threaten to press in. For those with eyes opened by insight, it is clear that an era is about to end, and that a new age will dawn.

State of the Galaxy as of 2320

Ray of Meep

Administrator
Wiki Moderator
So there's been a lot of questions of how magic plays into the setting right now even though there seemingly was none. Now is a good time to discuss the current state of the galaxy as of 2320.

As of 2320 in the setting, we are in Phase 1 of the overall meta plot. This is the period where the scope of the setting is limited to the human sphere, in which magic has a very limited presence due to past historical events. Nonetheless, magic still occurs from time to time, and becomes more pronounced as humans venture further away from the Sol system, the epicenter of the historical event that created this magic "Dead Zone". Other alien species in the human sphere are at an inferior tech level, but have ties to their brethren on distance worlds who still have access to ample amounts of magic.

The human sphere, then, is at a boiling point. With the Hawking's declaration of independence, there are whispers of independence of other American Union systems, sending a large, stabilizing force of the human community into chaos, creating ripples across the rest of the community. In the AU's crosshairs is the Soyuz, is has now allied itself with the rebellious state. Additionally, the Heaven Forged Republic has long grown discontent of AU occupation of its SLE's. Piracy and terrorism has grown rampant in the GDW occupied Silbern system, as corporations both in and out of the superstate seek to profit from the upcoming wave of chaos. Finally, the Daqin Empire is actively pouring gasoline onto the fire through trade deals, bribery, and black ops, as they have an incentive to keep the human community disunited so that they may survive.

This will all culminate in a human interstellar war that will upend the current status quo of international relationships. The end result will depend on in-plot actions, but it is likely that the human sphere will come out in an overall weakened but battle-hardened state.

Before or after the human interstellar war ends, a small team of scientists or rogues will come upon the Node on Earth and reactivate it. This will return magic back into this magic "Dead Zone" and give humans access to the rest of the galactic community, and the rest of the galactic community access to humans.

From here, we will have officially entered Phase 2, where humans interact with aliens at an equivalent or superior tech level on a regular basis, aliens who have access to magic. How Einsteinian technology interacts with magical technology will be a central focus during the early stages of Phase 2. Here, the floodgates open for alien interactions and stories.

Please put questions in this thread.
 

Ray of Meep

Administrator
Wiki Moderator
An article for the node system was recently written up: the_node_system.

As for the second question, logically it'd make sense that there are humans elsewhere in the galaxy who left Earth before the nodal collapse, who managed to survive thanks to the efforts of xenophilic aliens. This wouldn't disrupt the current direction of the setting and could add new creative options for writers. I'll edit this reply to make it a definitive yes once I consult Cadet.
 

LavaLung

GM
Wiki Moderator
Just to put a couple of questions on record, for how future events will affect things now;

-Is magic intended to be inherently superior to technology? Is this the reason why aliens must use magical means to travel, but are cut off from places with no node access?... If not, or if magic is simply a higher form of technology, why has nobody bothered to cross into human space in the time in between? Is it possible for an alien race that completely ignores magical development to still exist/be competitive?

-What kind of interaction does magic have with warped space and dimensions, that kind of thing? There are a bunch of technologies already in the setting that could abuse the current lack of magic, and make it so it could still be used, simply by linking to outside space... And when we get to beings that could be considered 'god-like', the distinction gets even more messy...
 

Acewing13

GM
Wiki Moderator
For the nodes, I'm a little confused about how magic propagates through space. For example, once the Earth node is fixed, does magic become accessible in Alpha Centauri?
 

CadetNewb

Administrator
Staff member
Wiki Moderator
No, magic is not intended to be superior to technology, and has its own rules to operate by. More importantly, it runs off of its own logistics train which like any other, needs to be tended to. It has advantages and disadvantages in comparison to technology for sure.

Meanwhile, to answer another question, I originally did not want humans to get outside of our little 'starting area' so to say, but the arguments being made in favor of having some outside of it is quite reasonable. I think it would be okay to have very small, minority populations of humans with or amongst other peoples, but would like to stay away from full on nations or worlds of them.

And yes, if the Earth node is fixed, magic will be present again in the area.
 

CadetNewb

Administrator
Staff member
Wiki Moderator
It getting fixed is not set in stone, yes. This way, there's multiple different ways to do things. It's possible that a lesser Node is fixed instead of that primary one for an example, or perhaps none of them ever getting fixed.
 
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