All Aboard! Discussion Thread.

[LoA]

The first thing you have to understand about me is that I'm a huge train nut. i've been obsessed with trains since literally when I was a baby. My dad would have to drive around until he saw a train pass by and it would lull me to sleep at night. Well I suppose it's by nature that I would have to eventually come up with the idea for this setting.

Why did I choose Eberron as my first setting? The lightning rails.

Why did the Nostalgia Critics Review of Thomas and the Magic Railroad make me laugh the hardest? One of my darkest shames.

Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks is becoming my favorite zelda game. Why? Trains!!!

But really the main inspiration came from this:
[spoiler][/spoiler]
Yes this is a real game. I've been wanting to play this for a long time, but couldn't find it anywhere that's not over $100 dollars... So why not make my own fantasy train game! I'm such a nerd...

[Seraph]

So Trains and Dragons seems to be the basic idea so far.

Ok, I can get on board with that (pun intended)

Since you put a lot of emphasis on major trade routes, I'd say make sure your research includes things like the Silk Route from Europe to China, and modern major railways across the US, like the Transcontinental, and so forth.  The latter was probably rather obvious.

I like the idea with the dragons—that there are specific things about HUMANITY that makes dragons feel the need to attack them.  Maybe play up the features in dragons that make humans a problem.  Humans are noisy—perhaps Dragons have very sensitive hearing, and the noise of human settlements that get too close cause them real pain.  Perhaps this is why many dragons tend to live deep underground, or high in the mountains; they need quiet.  In fact, you also mentioned the smell of humans, so maybe dragons just have really heightened senses in general.  When humans come a-dragonslaying, do the dragons only get angry because of the threat to their lives, or do they become enraged before that, such as the humans entering their lairs at all?  If the latter, is it more a territorial thing about their space, or is it about the treasure?

I'd like to see you go into some detail on the nature of these magical trains: what types of magic and spells make them function?  Is it telekinetic?  Or perhaps closer to the way trains actually run.  Perhaps fire spells (or a trapped fire elemental) heat water to create steam power.  Or it runs on the electricity provided by lightning spells.  We don't need an exact and detailed model of how they work, but an idea of the PRINCIPLE on which they work would be helpful for fleshing out the setting. 

[LoA]

So Trains and Dragons seems to be the basic idea so far.

Ok, I can get on board with that (pun intended)

Since you put a lot of emphasis on major trade routes, I'd say make sure your research includes things like the Silk Route from Europe to China, and modern major railways across the US, like the Transcontinental, and so forth.  The latter was probably rather obvious.

Thanks for the resources!

I like the idea with the dragons—that there are specific things about HUMANITY that makes dragons feel the need to attack them.  Maybe play up the features in dragons that make humans a problem.  Humans are noisy—perhaps Dragons have very sensitive hearing, and the noise of human settlements that get too close cause them real pain.  Perhaps this is why many dragons tend to live deep underground, or high in the mountains; they need quiet.  In fact, you also mentioned the smell of humans, so maybe dragons just have really heightened senses in general.  When humans come a-dragonslaying, do the dragons only get angry because of the threat to their lives, or do they become enraged before that, such as the humans entering their lairs at all?  If the latter, is it more a territorial thing about their space, or is it about the treasure?

The thing about humans that drive dragons mad is that they are always doing stuff. Giants can be much louder than humans and even more obnoxious, but that's usually in short bursts. Humans on the other hand just never stop. Not for a second. There's always someone somewhere doing something... And worst of all humans are a sociological group. Unlike giants who tend to stay apart from each other. Humans are like a rash. You know you shouldn't scratch it and make it worse.. But it keeps itching... and Itching.. Until you can't take it anymore! Then you scratch and scratch, and a moment of relief... Then it itches worse...

Also there's something off about human stench... It's just not natural... It may not be as toxic as other species stenches but it's just... off...

I'd like to see you go into some detail on the nature of these magical trains: what types of magic and spells make them function?  Is it telekinetic?  Or perhaps closer to the way trains actually run.  Perhaps fire spells (or a trapped fire elemental) heat water to create steam power.  Or it runs on the electricity provided by lightning spells.  We don't need an exact and detailed model of how they work, but an idea of the PRINCIPLE on which they work would be helpful for fleshing out the setting.  

Oh It's coming.. Believe me it's coming.

[Seraph]

I came across this image, and had to share.

[LoA]

I came across this image, and had to share.

Seraphine, I love you forever. How do you find this amazing stuff?

[Seraph]

deviantart.com.  It is a source of much fantastic artwork.  I browse it fairly regularly, looking for inspiration.

[LoA]

deviantart.com.  It is a source of much fantastic artwork.  I browse it fairly regularly, looking for inspiration.

Actually I'm a fairly regular peruser of DA.

I should have been more specific. What magical words do you put into your search engine to find such amazing things on deviantart?

[Seraph]

In this particular case it was just a chain of "more like this."  I forget which images specifically, but it started with the DD of Eowyn and the Witch King. 

[HippopotamusDundee]

I like the idea with the dragons—that there are specific things about HUMANITY that makes dragons feel the need to attack them.  Maybe play up the features in dragons that make humans a problem.  Humans are noisy—perhaps Dragons have very sensitive hearing, and the noise of human settlements that get too close cause them real pain.  Perhaps this is why many dragons tend to live deep underground, or high in the mountains; they need quiet.  In fact, you also mentioned the smell of humans, so maybe dragons just have really heightened senses in general.  When humans come a-dragonslaying, do the dragons only get angry because of the threat to their lives, or do they become enraged before that, such as the humans entering their lairs at all?  If the latter, is it more a territorial thing about their space, or is it about the treasure?

The thing about humans that drive dragons mad is that they are always doing stuff. Giants can be much louder than humans and even more obnoxious, but that's usually in short bursts. Humans on the other hand just never stop. Not for a second. There's always someone somewhere doing something... And worst of all humans are a sociological group. Unlike giants who tend to stay apart from each other. Humans are like a rash. You know you shouldn't scratch it and make it worse.. But it keeps itching... and Itching.. Until you can't take it anymore! Then you scratch and scratch, and a moment of relief... Then it itches worse...

Also there's something off about human stench... It's just not natural... It may not be as toxic as other species stenches but it's just... off...

I must admit that when I first read Seraphine's post I hadn't registered the idea of magic-powered trains yet and immediately thought "the humans and their trains are using up all the coals the dragons need to eat to breathe fire and other stuff".

Granted it seems that isn't totally applicable given that these trains seem non-steam powered, but could there still be an element of competition between species over the same element that happens to power both trains and dragons?

[LoA]

I like the idea with the dragons—that there are specific things about HUMANITY that makes dragons feel the need to attack them.  Maybe play up the features in dragons that make humans a problem.  Humans are noisy—perhaps Dragons have very sensitive hearing, and the noise of human settlements that get too close cause them real pain.  Perhaps this is why many dragons tend to live deep underground, or high in the mountains; they need quiet.  In fact, you also mentioned the smell of humans, so maybe dragons just have really heightened senses in general.  When humans come a-dragonslaying, do the dragons only get angry because of the threat to their lives, or do they become enraged before that, such as the humans entering their lairs at all?  If the latter, is it more a territorial thing about their space, or is it about the treasure?

The thing about humans that drive dragons mad is that they are always doing stuff. Giants can be much louder than humans and even more obnoxious, but that's usually in short bursts. Humans on the other hand just never stop. Not for a second. There's always someone somewhere doing something... And worst of all humans are a sociological group. Unlike giants who tend to stay apart from each other. Humans are like a rash. You know you shouldn't scratch it and make it worse.. But it keeps itching... and Itching.. Until you can't take it anymore! Then you scratch and scratch, and a moment of relief... Then it itches worse...

Also there's something off about human stench... It's just not natural... It may not be as toxic as other species stenches but it's just... off...

I must admit that when I first read Seraphine's post I hadn't registered the idea of magic-powered trains yet and immediately thought "the humans and their trains are using up all the coals the dragons need to eat to breathe fire and other stuff".

Granted it seems that isn't totally applicable given that these trains seem non-steam powered, but could there still be an element of competition between species over the same element that happens to power both trains and dragons?

Oh the whole conflict derives itself out of my fascination of what Terry Pratchett once wrote.

"Racism was not a problem on the Discworld, because — what with trolls and dwarfs and so on — speciesism was more interesting. Black and white lived in perfect harmony and ganged up on green."

It's been an idea that I've been wanting to explore. So it just sort of popped up when I was writing up this setting in a big way.

So to answer your question, no there not really in competition for resources. Humans are just obnoxious, and have gotten even more obnoxious.

Also the magical locomotives aren't actually that far off from steam powered locomotives.