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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Tyler Do'Urden" data-source="post: 2017780" data-attributes="member: 4601">This is a favorite subject of mine too, at least as far as fantasy is concerned.  I think that several things have to be taken into account-What is the nature of progress in the world?  Is it a process of holarchical evolution (the theory I generally accept to be true of our own world, though some of my less progressive colleagues think I'm blinkered), a process of apocalyptic decline (the world is "winding down" through cycles, ala Tolkien's ages or the ancient greek ages of man), or a process of Aeonic shifts (a common principle among occultists and mystics, in which "shifts of the ages" change the rules by which the universe functions, and the eschaton of a given age dies with it, never to be fulfilled, in a kind of eternal loop).Using the Forgotten Realms then as an example--Holarchic Evolving Realms-In the early DR 1400's, rapid advances in transportation and weapons technology, combined with the unstable Faerunian political situation, causes a wave of imperialistic activity in which Faerunian potentates begin a race to collect resources, populations, and trade routes "off-continent"- in places such as Maztica, Zakhara, Kara Tur, and other currently unknown continents.  The rapid process of imperialist globalization causes an explosion of wealth and research on the home continent, including a massive codification of magical and metaphysical laws by organized bodies of magic users.  The increased democratization of magic and resource power, combined with a swollen merchant class, inspires a wave of liberalization throughout the land, accompanied by rapid advances in production technology.  Frequent wars against races with greater fecundity (orcs), more sophisticated magic (elves), or advanced millitary science (dwarves) drives humans to adapt ever greater magical technologies and processes of organization.  By the 1800's, Faerunian resource depletion and realpolitik leads to a series of devestating wars (on such a scale the Gods would be all but forced to intervene).  If the Realms survive this, they're probably bound for a sort of magi-tech singularity, in which all beings are pulled to a state of immortal, arcane disembodiment- thoughts become reality, and the entire crystal sphere is transformed into a new non-material "outer" plane.-cyclic realms-The realms are clearly standing near a chasm- an apocalyptic throwdown the like of which has not been seen since the fall of Netheril.  Gods and alliances are coming together in such a way that almost promises a complete realignment of affairs in Faerun (and elsewhere).  The fallout could erase magic from the realms completely, or leave it in an even further weakened form.  Alternately, the Time of Troubles could have been this cataclysm, and no progress- magical, technological, or otherwise- is bound to occur for the next few millenium, other than the usual decay of nations and cultures.-Aeonic realms-The Time of Troubles was a sort of "Equinox of the Gods", realigning affairs in as of yet unknown ways.  The laws of magic (or even reality) could be undergoing a dramatic shift that could take the next few centuries to resolve- centuries that could be characterized by the fall of empires, the rise of empires, the discovery of new sources of magical or technological power, the birth of new gods, philosophies, or cults- in any event, these actions will shape the next few millenia in unknown ways.In any event though, if you want to study these theories of historical progress, there are lots of good books.  Robert Wright's Nonzero, as well as the works of Teilhard de Chardin and Ken Wilber are interesting looks at the first theory, while the classic of the second is Oswald Spengler's Decline of the West.  Though there aren't any scholarly works on the third that I can think of, the novel The Plato Papers by Peter Ackroyd is a witty look at what such a world looks like- in which dramatic shifts of metaphysical laws completely change our view of reality periodically...</blockquote>

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