Worldbuilding, nonhumans, and the inaccurarcy of Earth parallels

[Fenes]

Well, as long as you have humans, there's likely to be some sort of "technological progress" unless you have a good explanation why there isn't. Technological stasis, especially in well-populated worlds, needs some sort of justification.

If magic is a relatively reliable force and can be invoked by proved procedures, and if it is possible to come up with new rituals, then magic instead of "mundane" technology might become the driving force of technological revolutions.

My humans progress within the limits of the universe - I achieve this by not advancing the timeline that far, and by making the past a bit more primitive than the present.

 

[White Whale]

Much of your reasoning relies on that the physics and nature of the fantasy world are the same as in the real world. Maybe fossil fuels don't exist? Maybe the steam power engine is unfeasible because evaporating water doesn't expand? Electricity: there is no such thing as atoms and electrons don't exist, in fantasy there are elements (air, earth, wind, fire). Etc.

 

[Fenes]

Much of your reasoning relies on that the physics and nature of the fantasy world are the same as in the real world. Maybe fossil fuels don't exist? Maybe the steam power engine is unfeasible because evaporating water doesn't expand? Electricity: there is no such thing as atoms and electrons don't exist, in fantasy there are elements (air, earth, wind, fire). Etc.

That's what I use - gunpowder doesn't work, etc.

 

[Toras]

A rather significant thesis, though I suspect that other major reasons for humans not developing technology are likely to come into play. That is not to say that in a multiverse approach that Technological process is completely out of the question. To use great wheel terms, there is as likely a prime that has much of what we would understand as industrial revolution.

I would submit that Magic will find itself in many of the same places as higher technology depending on how easy it is for your average citizen to learn how to use it. It isn't by accident that most of major empires run by humans are those of high-magic (netherel and the like)

 

[Jack Daniel]

This is actually kind of an inspiring thought... once it's turned on its ear, that is. My campaign world is dominated by powerful and imperialistic nation-states, gunpowder, and 19th century technology. The O.P. asks a legitimate question: how could this have developed in a world where humans have to compete with monsters and demihumans for resources, and where monsters are obviously going to create too much chaos and instability for any advanced societies to emerge?

The best answer that I can come up with: it's not likely, so obviously, the humans weren't actually competing with anybody.

Demihumans live in hidden enclaves that might as well be pocket dimensions of faerie (or, for those of you that play the new edition, I believe "feywild" is the preferred term). Elves, dwarves, and hobbits just stay out of the way. And monsters haven't been seen or heard from in three-thousand years of campaign time. Three millennia of monster-free peace, with neither hide nor hair seen of even a kobold -- these beasties have become legend. As far as human civilization is concerned, they do not exist. Think about how frightening even a lowly orc is in a world like that? And once the campaign starts, and the orcs come pouring out of the ground by the tens of thousands, faster than any well-drilled army could hope to reload muskets, that's darned horrific. It even makes common elves and hobbits as mysterious as they ought to be if they're rarely encountered and half-legendary.

So... I like these ideas, but not for suppressing technology and industry in fantasy worlds. They just help to make the nonhumans more fantastic, which is much more useful.

 

[Fenes]

I don't really see orcs as frightening as humans united in fanatism. Give the humans 19th century tech, and I'd have those orcs pour out, and regret it as soon as they meet 19th century style armies.

 

[Rhianni32]

I think a problem with this theory is the idea that everyone of a non human race acts the same.
Most fantasy settings divide up humans into countries and kingdoms. Each with its own traditions, customs, and laws. Yet non human races are just races. Dwarves live near a human kingdom. What kind of dwarves? You know dwarves, they craft metal good and live underground. Even the PHB lists humans as being diverse movers of the world that are varied but all the other races are stereotyped into personalities.

FFG's sci-fi setting made an interesting point. In the real world our magic is electricity. It allows for massive machine to move, gives us transportation and allows for computers to run. It was explored and worked with out of necessity. In a magic system where everything electricity does you can do with magic is there really a need for technological advancement? Magical advancement I can see.

Cultural exchange. Its only been a recent idea that you take other countries ideas and technology and use it based upon its own merrit. What I mean is nationalism and racial pride in doing things your way. "Bah country X doesnt know how to do anything. Our way has worked for years." After the Mongol conquests shouldnt everyone be using recurve bows and discard their old designs? How long did it take gunpowder to finally replace the pike as a main infantry weapon?

 

[Rhianni32]

I don't really see orcs as frightening as humans united in fanatism. Give the humans 19th century tech, and I'd have those orcs pour out, and regret it as soon as they meet 19th century style armies.

I always saw orcs as a good philosophy point vs humanity. Orcs being the imbodiement of raw human emotion and anger. Just look at the Hulk and the conflict with Banner. The hulk is just a big orc really.

 

[pawsplay]

-Industrial development requires fossil fuels to be able to power a lot of the machines that are eventually created. But what happens if a lot of that oil and coal is controlled by hill giants or orcs?

They use any of a number of alternatives available before the oil boom. Honestly, mineral oil started as a patent medicine business. This whole "industrial fuel" thing was a spinoff. Coal is useful but there is nothing wrong with charcoal.

You want to develop gunpowder? It's a pity, then, that so many of the chemicals needed to develop it on a large scale are in the hands of giants and goblins who you'll have to fight fang and claw to take it from.

They've cornered the market on seagull poop?

 

[Fenes]

I think a problem with this theory is the idea that everyone of a non human race acts the same.
Most fantasy settings divide up humans into countries and kingdoms. Each with its own traditions, customs, and laws. Yet non human races are just races. Dwarves live near a human kingdom. What kind of dwarves? You know dwarves, they craft metal good and live underground. Even the PHB lists humans as being diverse movers of the world that are varied but all the other races are stereotyped into personalities.

If dwarves/elves were as diverse as humans, would they be anything else than short/thin humans?