That's an interesting idea...Steampunk could well develop into Dieselpunk...Or, if we want to combine genres with Post Apocalypse, we could do something like a city from the Fallout series...

It doesn't strike me as fair to consider a subgenre of another genre a separate category.

It's clear to me at least the popular winner was steampunk.

Also while it's a great idea to do the same place some years apart, that's just generating multiple versions of the same thing.  You've got to set one baseline (Here is The City in Year 0 for starters, here it is in Year 100 for the first revamp, etc.).

The anachronistic nature of the steampunk genre also incorporates the idea of things being out of their proper place in time inherently, and therefore the same geographical place being in different eras simultaneously is a consequence.

It's a standard trope or lazy writer's trick to make a city more manageable by breaking it into wards or districts.  This would be a good way to fold in subgenres.  One newly built ward could have a new infrastructure that's more advanced than the others (dieselpunk) for instance.

only one person said steampunk, but if everyone likes it, we could do something for that genre

I don't think it's necessarily a bad idea if the intent is something like dimension traveling.  Think Star Trek "Mirror, Mirror" with evil Spock.  Could be fun to do.

And to continue with your wards/districts thing... maybe something like Torg could be fun to come up with.  It would allow folks playing a game to change pace without needing to entirely roll up new characters.

It did occur to me that a multiverse type thing, like Cynosure, could be fun to do

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cynosure_(comics)

No three people did if you're not splitting hairs.  Four if you count any of the various "-punks" as subgenres.  That was my point, it's a little silly to draw such sharp lines between such very similar things.

I would suggest either a multiple choice opinion poll with hard, set answers based on the things that got more than one response or running with the overall genre that seems to be the most popular.

Sounds like we're headed towards Steam/Dieselpunk... though I think it might be interesting to have a little magic in the background, like you would in the "Modern Secret Fantasy" but with everything else around being Steam/Dieselpunk

Thoughts?

I'm fine with lumping steam and diesel together for voting, but I kind of figured if you wanted either, people would have said either.

what do people think of the cross-genre/dimensino idea?  that let's people focus on whatever interests them

+1 vote cross dimension multiverse thing

I'm down with the steam/diesel punk, I had just assumed magic was included in those.

You're thinking RunePunk (by Reality Blurs).
Haha so many 'punks' in this discussion.

I could be incorrect but I don't believe Steam or Diesel-punk by themselves include  magic.

I've got several references in mind, basically I just assumed it would be in there. (My vote is that magic exists alongside the steam or diesel power)

Deadlands (steampunk w/ magic)
Clockworks (webcomic steampunk world w/ magic) http://shawntionary.com/clockworks
And I just read Johannes Cabal the necromancer, also steampunk w/ magic, but no non-human races.

So that's two questions.  If we've decided on steam/diesel punk. Do we want:
a) magic
b) non-human races?

I'm for both... perhaps Magic has been driven underground by Science/Religion/etc (ala Clockworks)

How about an extension of Rippers where the "ether" is real and tech/magic is because of that?
=

So we're mixing Tech and Magic... I can dig it!

So what are we going to call this little town?

Any votes for the inhabitants having mental powers?
Psionics in general is handled pretty well in SavW isn't it?

Magics and Psionics are definitely similar to the extent that I really think of all the AB as just trappings for powers. But I guess you bring up a good question... what AB are we to "allow" in our little city?

Magic - manipulation of external forces via known forumla (aka spells)
Psionics - manipulation of external forces by force of will
Faith -  manipulation of external forces with the help of a deity
Weird Science - making things

If you're going to have a steampunk kind of thing, Mad Science has got to be in for sure.

The question becomes to me then, thematically, what kind of magic is contrasted against this techno-magic of sorts?  Hermetic magic?  Druidic?

two ways of doing it.  more or less make up a new cool one; 50F for example did elemental based magic, which isn't the default.

or use something standard, magic, miracles, etc.

personally, I like the idea of doing magic separate from religion.  Maybe have elementalists (manipulation of non-living physical matter), biomages (can buff or debuff, and heal, and plant/animal/nature), and mentalists.

I think for this to go forward, people have to "own" aspects.  someone needs to own ABs for exmple.  Own doesn't mean you do it all, it's that you drive the discussion and make the final call.

and it woudl be find for the AB owner to hand off Gadgeteering to someone, Psi to someone else, etc.

Sounds like a good idea to me... so who wants to do what?

Any and all ABs are possible (even variants of one type) if we go with a each-ward-is-a-multiverse-object thing.  That might be biting off a lot though... especially if citizens are going to be expected to travel between wards.

Not necessarily a bad thing if there are enough people interested and allows for everyone to work on something they're interested in.

Another idea:  what happens at the boundaries of the wards.  Maybe the various rules of nature each ward are subject to intermingle.  It'll allow for encounters between transhumans and dinosaurs for example.

An idea from Torg: maybe our intrepid heroes are Wild Cards because they can impose the rules of their own reality in a limited way wherever they are.  Maybe it's an Edge, like a Ward-walker or something.

Maybe one of the things, as people start to own pieces and parts, is to agree on a standard of the types of information.  It can act as a guide to get the juices flowing:

For example:

A city divided not only by political boundaries but by unexplained dimensional forces that cause the varying districts to be subject to different rules of nature.



City X
DieselPunk District
What does the ward look like
Notable features
General feel
Allowed ABs
Notable NPCs
Government
Strict laws?
Police?

Okay, we seem to have stalled this a little, so here's an idea: Everyone interested post up a complete city, part of a city, district, idea, what have you.

Together we'll sift through and see what pieces we like, and what pieces we like less.

1st entry:

City X: This city is essentially run by the guilds, what guilds you might ask? Why that's easy:
1) Transportation
2) Merchant
3) Arcanist
4) Public Works
5) Public Safety

The leader of each guild is reffered to as a 'Governor', and there is an election among these governors for the post of 'High Governor'.

There are minor guilds
a)entertainment
b)... (that's as far as I got)
they have a similar setup, but their 'high governor' only sits with the real governors as an observer/tie breaker.

Public Safety, as it is it's own guild, is prohibited from interfering/investigating the other guilds. For this, private contractors are used (we call them PC's...) The department of public safety is left to handle, essentially crowd control, crime not related to guild business (which isn't much), and security from external governments and such.

AB (miracles) is disallowed, I feel it is too... hopeful... for a Steampunk setting.
AB (weird science) clearly allowed depending on focus, could work for pretty much any guild except Arcanist.
AB (magic) allowed, they will be members of the Arcanist guild... or they had better be hiding, wouldn't want to be caught practicing magic w/out a license. - I like the elemental method for this setting.

My vision includes, more or less uniforms for guild members, at least a jacket or overcoat they should be wearing, which would relate their status in the guild, and which guild. (I wouldn't expect the Arcanist guild overcoat to be cut the same as the Public Safety overcoat).

guild structure, child apprentices => journeymen => member => some sort of local 'leader' position => minister (in charge of the guild in a larger area, either geographical or practice) => Governor

There would also be regions in the town.
Docks - dockyards and manufacturing area (these could be standard water docks, or airship docks, or (as in my head) both.
City Center - all guilds would have their main facilities here, including the immense Tesla coil atop the Public Works guildhouse.
High Town - a place where the upper crust live and shop
Low town - a place for the rest of us
...

And some other geographical areas as well, I am sure.

Where does the 'punk' come in, most of the oppresion is more in the vein of the Cyberpunk oppression, the power is all in the hands of the Guilds... sure you can scrape out a living on the fringe, but it ain't easy.  It's always the little guy who's taking the brunt, always...

not to mention that something about the tesla coil casts an almost permanent hazy gloom over the city. But in exchange there are all sorts of marvelous devices that just work. Electric cars, public safety has shock rods (tazers), etc.

Well, that's what I've been thinking about, more to follow, probably.

THE DEPARTMENT

The Department for Secret Operations and Subterfuge

Gwen absently stroked the deaths-head-clasp holding her cloak, a throw-back to the days when The Department was better known as the Thieves Guild, and from where she learned the valuable skill of hiding in the shadows.  It spoke volumes to the character of the city that it needed to absorb the once illegal guild of pickpockets and illusionists to function.

She searched upwards as droplets of cold rain fell from the dark sky, the sound further helping to conceal her as the carriage carrying the ranking members of the Guild for Public Safety came into view.  Above, as scheduled, a trio of metal-winged operatives glided silently into place in formation awaiting the moment of action.

As the wagon passed her position, Gwen leapt into action.  With a magically-assisted leap she easily landed on top of the carriage, her hands already beginning to glow misty blue.  With a wave of both hands, some of the rain droplets nearest her came together and formed into ice balls bulleting into the armored carriage.  Ultimately they did little if any harm but they had the intended effect.

A nearby group of hooligans, seeing the attack, joined in the harassment by rocking the carriage.  This eventually turned into a large mob. Three iron golems converged on the scene from nearby streets to clear the way.  As they approached, the winged gliders expertly dove at them and sent their carefully crafted payload into the golems.  With bright sparks of electricity marking the moment, the golems froze into lumps of inanimation.

The carriage would withstand the mob and eventually be on its way but the damage was done and it would be quite a while before anyone would pass the bill to include golems in the budget for use as the city-watch.

Under her breath Gwen spat, "Abominations," as she disappeared into the night, her mission complete.