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[poll] Opinion on Steampunk settings

Started by Numinous, March 04, 2006, 10:48:13 PM

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What do you think of Steampunk settings?

I'd make a setting like that, and play in one too
11 (47.8%)
I wouldn't build one, but I'd play in one
8 (34.8%)
Yuck!  Definitely not fantasy
4 (17.4%)

Total Members Voted: 0

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Numinous

March 04, 2006, 10:48:13 PM Last Edit: March 04, 2006, 11:02:08 PM by Xeviat Tranion
I've heard people both praise and look down upon the "Steampunk" setting.  So, what I'd like to ask is how you would efine such a setting, and what do you feel their place is in D&D?
Previously: Natural 20, Critical Threat, Rose of Montague
- Currently working on: The Smoking Hills - A bottom-up, seat-of-my-pants, fairy tale adventure!

Raelifin

#1
March 05, 2006, 12:58:38 AM
I dislike steampunk. I don't disrespect it, but it just isn't my thing.

Kalos Mer

#2
March 05, 2006, 01:52:12 PM
I agree with Rae.  There isn't a proper option in the poll to express my opinion.  It's certainly 'fantasy', but being 'fantasy' is neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for me to actually like it.
My Setting:   

CYMRO

#3
March 05, 2006, 04:33:28 PM
Define steampunk.  Seems to me like it is an ill defined description about things I have seen for decades.

Numinous

#4
March 05, 2006, 05:14:01 PM
Well, the poll won't let me edit it.  i jst thoguht this would be a good idea to discuss...  maybe it wasn't such a bright idea...
Previously: Natural 20, Critical Threat, Rose of Montague
- Currently working on: The Smoking Hills - A bottom-up, seat-of-my-pants, fairy tale adventure!

Kalos Mer

#5
March 05, 2006, 05:15:03 PM
Oh no, it's good for discussion purposes, but not for a poll so much, as opinions tend to have much more nuance than a poll can handle.
My Setting:   

Ishmayl-Retired

#6
March 05, 2006, 07:25:13 PM
I think the term steampunk is confusing.  What exactly does it mean?  Does it just mean that you have industrial cities in a fantasy world, magic and technology colliding with lots of spikey-haired punks and gangs roaming the streets?  Does it just mean modern/futuristic technology options are available in a fantasy?  I'll vote sometime, but I'm not sure the question is votable at the moment.
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For finite types, like human beings, getting the mind around the concept of infinity is tough going.  Apparently, the same is true for cows.

Raelifin

#7
March 05, 2006, 11:44:47 PM
To quote the wiki: "Steampunk is a subgenre of speculative fiction which came into prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s. It concerns works set in the past, or a world resembling the past, in which modern technological paradigms occurred earlier in history, but were accomplished via the science already present in that time period. It is often associated with Cyberpunk and shares a similar fanbase but developed as a separate movement."

CYMRO

#8
March 08, 2006, 09:22:23 AM
I think we used to call this, in the old days (the eighties), speculative fiction, the whole Confederacy with needle guns bit.

I might play in this sort of setting if it was like the old Wild, Wild West show or The Assassination Bureau, but I do not think I would have enough interest to run such a game.

Xathan

#9
March 09, 2006, 12:05:32 AM
I'm a huge fan of steampunk, personally. Love it. It's fun to make and to play in. My current setting was originally going to be more steampunk, though I ended up using magic to power things instead.
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Soup Nazi

#10
March 09, 2006, 07:48:30 AM
If done well, then yes, but Steampunk can be grossly mishandled. Train-Jackings, Murder on the Orient Express, and numerous other Lovecraftian themes mesh well with steam punk. I have coal and steam engines in Hazra'Ghalduur, which mimic the Trans-Siberian railroad, connecting a vast nation that might otherwise be too big to manage without them.

As for other some other options, Steam-powered iron golems seem like a natural fit. Steel foundries, curious tinkerers, and a burgeoning scientific community could really add some tasty flavor.

The clash between magic and technology (or feudalism and industrialization) can lead to ample opprtunities for story-fueling conflicts. I do like the idea, I just don't like most anime renditions of the subject. The turn of the 20th century was a fantastic and interesting period of history. If one can mix the best elements of the industrial revolution with those of a fantasy setting, it could be wonderful. In many ways I've trying to do just that with my homebrew.

-Nasty-
The spoon is mightier than the sword

Ishmayl-Retired

#11
March 09, 2006, 05:48:08 PM
Eh, I like "Iron Kingdoms," and "Final Fantasy 7," but I really have nothing else useful to add to this conversation...
!turtle Ishmayl, Overlord of the CBG

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For finite types, like human beings, getting the mind around the concept of infinity is tough going.  Apparently, the same is true for cows.

Xeviat

#12
March 19, 2006, 04:44:12 AM
I intend to design a steampunk-ish setting eventually, but I don't think they fit into the traditional fantasy role. As a literature student, I believe that the soul difference between science fiction and fantasy is quite simple: fantasy stories center upon the journey of the hero and magic/technology is just a tool or part of the atmosphere, where science fiction stories center upon how magic, technology, or "the other" (aliens, creatures from another dimension, robots) interact with and change society. Steampunk tends to be written with a more science fiction feel; my take on a steampunk setting would fit the fantasy mold of story telling.

Remember "any suitably advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic".

In my standard setting, though, I do have a world where steam power and gun powder are accessed technologies. There are coal powered trains and the militia carry muskets and front loaded pistols. I've made it simple by treating firearms as marial crossbows (they just have better threat ranges than crossbows, damage is the same).

Like psionics, industrial technology doesn't fit some people's views of their setting, but I think everyone already knew that.
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Soup Nazi

#13
March 22, 2006, 06:57:58 AM
I am a HUGE Aasimov fan...so I can indeed see what you mean Xeviat. Good Sci-Fi is more focused on society, than it is on heroes. Aasimov used robots to tackles issues like prejudice and soul-searching. Really almost all of his stories have a metaphoric relation to issues that we as people deal with in normal life, but they are noticably missing traditional heroic figures.

-Nasty-
The spoon is mightier than the sword

Ishmayl-Retired

#14
March 22, 2006, 07:32:10 AM
So if a typical fantasy setting (say, Greyhawk) all of a sudden has an invention of guns, pistols, rifles, and cannons, does it become steampunk, or are firearms not considered high-tech enough to warrant the title?
!turtle Ishmayl, Overlord of the CBG

- Proud Recipient of the Kishar Badge
- Proud Wearer of the \"Help Eldo Set up a Glossary\" Badge
- Proud Bearer of the Badge of the Jade Stage
- Part of the WikiCrew, striving to make the CBG Wiki the best wiki in the WORLD

For finite types, like human beings, getting the mind around the concept of infinity is tough going.  Apparently, the same is true for cows.
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