D&D General A Konitikat Kamigawan in king Kenrith's court.

[LuisCarlos17f]

A lot of webcomics are isekai, about people from our reality who travels to a fantasy world, some times by means of tensei(reincarnation), but it is not only about this.

The different D&D worlds in the past didn't share the same technologic level, or at least when these were created by the designers, but now the travel between wildspaces is possible, and canon, thanks the updated reedition of Spelljammer.

Shouldn' we talk about the cultural and social impact in a world with the arrival of people who a higher scientific knowledge? It is not only about gunpowder and firearms, but also other ideas. For example a motor in a crossbow to reload itself, or in a war chariot could be the end of chalvary. A drilling machine, even animated only by magic, could be used to destroy doors and walls in castle sieges.

Let's imagine a nurse from New Capena or Neon Dinasty reincarnated into Krynn, Greyhawk or Mystara. All that information about biology would be a true for the medicine deities. A lot of people could be healed without magic, but also new biological weapons could be created by evil cults.

Or the materials from XXI century, for example the graphene, could be crafted by an isekai alchemist. Couldn't it?

Maybe the industrial revolution couldn't start because there isn't enough coal in the mines, and the nature deities wouldn't allowed tree be cut for firewood of steam engines.

Or there is a great taboo about the machines because infernal outsiders could controll these, like Christine, the car from Stelphen King's movie.

And several factions wouldn't allow mankind to become too powerful thanks technology: feys, dragons, giants..

And the risk of the reverse engineering. It can be stolen or copied by the bad guys. Let's imagine goblings and kobolds using machines to take revengue against bigger enemies.

Or the music. Some bard who was a musician or singer in the previous life could play bardcore of famous music. Do you know the movie "Yesterday"?

Or the printer is reinvented to publish more books, but then we would need a way for industrail production of paper.

 

[James Gasik]

I mean this has happened canonically in various D&D settings. Examples:

*Technological items scavenged from the spaceship in Expedition to the Barrier Peaks.
*Psionics supposedly introduced to Greyhawk when an Illithid spacecraft crashed onto it.
*The Arquebus being introduced to the Forgotten Realms (as well as purchasable Smoke Powder) by the Lantanese, after being taught by an avatar of Gond.
*Wheelock pistols being introduced to the Forgotten Realms by a Tradesman landing in Waterdeep.
*Some odd inventions introduced to the Forgotten Realms (see Aurora's Whole Realm's Catalogue).
*The Tinker Gnomes of Krynn.

What generally seems to occur is that either the items have unforeseen limitations that make common folk loath to adopt them, or the Gods say "knock it off!" and said technology stops being used.

There's an old Dungeon adventure (Mightier than the Sword, as I recall) where someone creates a better pen for writing, and is then murdered by the Scribe's Guild, as the invention threatened their livelihoods, which shows how lucky we are that the same thing didn't happen to Johannes Gutenburg in our world!

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

Tinker gnomes suffer a special curse linked with the Graygem. They can create a lot of things, but the technologic advancement is relatively blocked. There are tinker gnomes in Mystara.

Greyhawk is relatively late comparing with the advancement of other wildspaces.

Maybe the technology is discovered, but kept totally hidden and secret. Maybe the industrial revolution can't start because there isn't enough no-magic energy for the machines, and these are too easy to be sabotaged by means some "gremlin effect".

No-magic tools could be created (and used by no-spellcaster) by means of alchemy and magic, for example plastic or aluminium.

Spiderweb silk coulb be used to craft bulletproof clothing. I am not kidding. Paper armours were real in the ancient China.

Maybe some industrial machines can work without magic, but only after decades of work while they were "attuning" with the zone.

If warforged or autognomes can be created. Why not a no-sentient exo-suit as a construct monster mount?

* Any rule about spending spell slots or psionic power points to reload batteries or create oil for machines?

Timeline of historic inventions - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

Now I am thinking a new idea about a D&D isekai plot but with weird twist.

There is an alien spaceship piloted by fraals (little grey aliens). Their mission is scientific exploration, with rules of no-interference, but with the natives are attacked by other aliens with advanced technology. They are collecting tissue samples for genetic studing, and also information about native cultures...(really the true intention of one of the fraals is the native music, because they have used too much for telepaty, and then they don't use the voice to sing).

The fraals were in the world of Gamma World, gathering information about the native culture to be saved for the future. Then they discover unknown hostile aliens. They reject the attack by these, and a chase starts. The fraals follow the bad guys, both with their space ships. Then to escape these create a planar gate and suddenlgy both are in a strange "wornhole". Minutes later both exit the wornhole and they are in other unknown place of the universe, with an exchange of shots, and in the next moment the alien enemies are destroyed, and the fraals are crashed into a planet, but saving the day.

They don't survive, but as if they did. The alien spaceship is found by a group of natives, also the corpses of the fraals, who are they are taken to the temple. The alien spaceship was designed to avoid reverse engineering but they couldn't imagine this couldn't be enough in a world with magic.

In the temple the local cleric realises they are't a known specie, and then the prayers work as a report to the deities. The spirits of the fraals notice not only they are ghosts, spirits, but there is a celestial being who wants to talk with them in the name of the deities. The fraals try the diplomatic way, but they don't want to tell too much to avoid the cultural and ecological shock if the technology of the natives advances too soon or fast. The angel ask them help because the deities with the gift of the prophecy have watched a no-very-good future.

The world is going to be invaded by the sheens, biomechanical horrors. But also later by the Phyrexians, and if these found remains of the sheens, by means of reverse engineering, they could create new horrors (let's imagine a version of Robotix franchise but for mature audiences).

They tried to reach a deal, but the agremeent is not total complete. Then the fraals are reincarnated into "blues", a gobling subrace known for their innate psionic powers. Do you know the tower defense, survival and farming-simulation videogames? Now our "stelar children" have to use the remains of the crashed spaceship to build a base and a camp. The goal is to stop the future sheen invasion, and later the Phyrexians. If the targets are completed then the rewards will be not only reincanated into fraals again but being sent to a fraal colony within Mechalus.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

I was thinking about a special trope from isekai manga, the floating interactive holographic screens. This is common in fantasy manhwa but not in D&D. Maybe some computer technician from Kamigawa(Neon Dinasty) who learnt magic (or magitek) could invent or create one.

Maybe the industrial revolution started time ago in the D&D multiverse, but the "industrial zone" is in Mechalus (because this is the safest zone of any possible ecological impact), and from this is sent to Sigil or Radiant Citadel for trade. Then a tavern in the city of Greyhawk could be using aluminum cutlery imported from another world/plane/wildspace.

The reason because manufactured products (created by hand) are preferred over factory products because they have a special resonance, and thanks this they are better to create magic items, or they are easier to be fixed or repaired by magic.

Other reason is "camouflage". If technologic objects are relatively a luxury product, then these could become the goal of thiefs. To avoid this they are created with the look of ancient objects. For example a lamp with the look of an ordinary canddle, and a fridge would be a simple pantry.

Do you remember the biohacker class from Starfinders, and the lifesaphers from Dark Sun? Let's imagine the potential impact of technology based in living tissues, for example artificial muscles to reload crossbows.

And not only the social impact by technology from Kamigawa Neon Dinasty, but also from New Capena and Kaladesh.