Technology

Worldwide

Throughout all regions of Atharen, technology caries wildly based on a plethora of contributing factors. The universal rule tends to follow that countries and kingdoms with relaxed laws on the practice of magic have fewer technological innovations because the populace can more reliably lean on ether than it can on physics, chemistry, and biology. Vice versa applies, in which societies that outlaw and prohibit the application and use of magic see greater technological growth and development, as to substitute for the lack of magic in everyday life.

Examples of this are like the circumstance of Atharen's medical field. Some areas of the world trust in the abilities of accomplished necromancers and alchemists for their healthcare while others swear solely to doctors and pharmacists. Both excel in different fields, but it's difficult to find a medium in which both are employed to their fullest potential.

Both magic and science have had a massive impact on the face of Atharen as a whole, but this article is dedicated solely to the application of Atharen's sciences and world magics, and the extent that can be learned/achieved in character.

Scale

Due to the crutch known as magic, Atharen's technology varies greatly between kingdoms and regions. Some parts of the world live in what could be compared to the Medieval Era and prior; riding on horseback, hunting with longbows with bards to sing for their entertainment. Other societies have climbed as high as the Victorian Era, with trains to take them from city to city, firearms in their militaries, and recorded music playing on phonographs and vinyl discs for entertainment on demand.

Culture shock is fairly common on Atharen, as one such mortal accustomed to the comforts of a prosperous city might find despair without all the devices and technologies they rely upon elsewhere on their travels. Likewise, simple country folk are often starstruck by electric lighting and steam engines on trains.

Fields

Below is a composed list of all Atharen's innovations and the extent to which they have been developed/discovered.

Medicine

Atharen's most advanced doctors largely apply bloodletting and leeches as a means of fighting infection and disease. The common belief is that by expelling all the 'tainted' lifeblood, they allow room for healthy material to grow in its place. In a similar fashion, laxatives and induced vomiting are employed for the sake of 'cleansing the body'. There is no means of combatting infection other than the application of leeches, which may feed on the compromised tissue.

Surgeons with some knowledge in necromancy might employ an experimental treatment in which they manually cut out the rotting, infected meat before it infects the blood. Skin grafting is popular among these experimental surgeons, who often cause just as many infections as they treat. Surgery is normally only skin deep except to remove bullets, arrows, and debris from wounds, in such cases, the wounded might be opened up for the removal process.

Generally, it's known that open wounds should be kept clean to avoid infections, though this is typically done with water to quite literally 'wash' off the wounds, then later wrap them. More advanced areas of Atharen employ alcohol for the task of cleaning wounds prior to wrapping them with bandages that may or may not be compromised with bacteria. The existence of bacteria is not known, and such, the cleaning of wounds scarcely involves more than washing off loose dirt and debris, which are known to cause problems in the healing process.

Broken bones are typically splinted and wrapped to keep them secure, but with no ability to x-ray the extent of the break, a lot of injuries of this nature leave the patient disfigured in some way.

Transportation

Steam engines are huge, expensive, heavy appliances that require a very specific set of conditions to work. Across Atharen, these conditions extend exclusively to trains. Their application on naval vessels has been theorized but is currently too advanced to apply. Steam engines require a feed of burning coal to keep the water of the tank boiling. The steam from the boiling water is funneled through a regulator valve in the engine which powers the front of the train and enables it to pull the following carriages across the tracks. The speed is controlled by the valve, which the driver can open to release pressure and reduce the vehicle's speed.

Trains are largely used for the purpose of transporting goods long distances but also serve as means of personal transport for the middle-clas. At large, horses and carts are employed for the sake of moving smaller distances through cities and between towns.

At sea, Atharen's most advanced societies still use sailships for the sake of transporting goods and people. They also serve as weapons of war in the case of frigates, which are built for speed and mobility. Clipper ships are generally regarded as the fastest means of naval transport, though they are relatively new. Steamships have yet to be made