Newtonia
By Richard BellEditor's Note: This piece doesn't discuss the fact mentioned in Mage books that Earth is the only source of real Quintessence.
Newtonia is governed by the paradigm that the results of the Michelson-Morley experiment were properly interpreted. Light travels at constant speed with respect to the ether, the Earth is at rest with respect to the ether and the Earth is at the center of the Universe (supported by Hubble's observations). The major effect of this was to prevent the need to create quantum physics to explain the effects of an etherless universe.
Everything is determinate. There is no uncertainty. Newton's Clockwork reigns supreme.
All of Newtonia is ordered. The landscape has been sculpted into what people think Nature should be like. The roads twist and turn, not because they follow an old cow-path, but because curves in the roads make the towns and cities more pleasant.
Economics
The economy of Newtonia is driven by tass. To make the Sleepers comfortable with the idea that "Prime is money", most of the nodes were shifted to the mines, oil fields, factories and universities. Tass is available in low-grade and high-grade forms. Coal, oil, natural gas and mineral ores are all low-grade tass (a few tenths of a point per ton), while ergominium (at one point per kg) is high grade. Coinage is minted with a Matter 2, Prime 3 effect to remove any undesirable resonances. The fact that the currency contains quintessence makes counterfeits impossible to pass off on Scientists with at least Prime 1, and criminals who circulate counterfeit coinage among the Sleepers are actively hunted. Scientists could cause rampant inflation, in theory, by meditating at nodes and flooding the economy with new coins (a single point of quint is a lot of money). The consumption of quint in experiments offsets this effect (three points of quint spent to reduce the difficulty of an effect would be three months' pay for a day-laborer). To keep the tass flowing, rail lines, pipelines, canals and roadway all run along ley-lines.
Technology
Without Quantum Physics, there are no electronics, but that does not eliminate high technology. There are mechanical and fluidic computers driving the information technology, and there are no quantum effects to limit possibilities of miniaturization. The television is based on reciprocity of an interesting effect: when certain crystals are mechanically stressed, they emit light, so when they are impinged upon by light, they deform. There is an equivalent of every high-tech device in Newtonia, it just works differently. Laser beams are emitted by incredibly small klystrons and magnetrons; supercomputers based on the wave interaction of beams of light are every bit as fast as semiconductor processors, even though they are fundamentally different.
The industrial prime mover is the steam turbine although, extensive use is still made of the piston internal combustion engine, and gas turbines where specific power is important (automobiles and aircraft). Mass transit is powered by steam or electric locomotives. Air travel is by lighter-than-air, gas filled dirigibles; winged and rotorcraft; or cavorite (gravity shielded) airships. Water-borne transport is by steam or sail.
Standard of Living
There is little crime and no unemployment. The Economists ensure that there are opportunities for all of the Sleepers. Psychiatric specialists can adjust deviants when they crop up, so there are also no prisons. All homes and apartments have gas lines, waterlines, compressed air lines, along with the microbore tubing that carry the basic four audio, and two video information and entertainment channels (the television is a shuttered gaslight with mirrors controlled by a pneumatic computer). Mechanical devices in the home are powered by either air or gas turbines depending on size. More affluent residences have electricity and electrical appliances, and can receive radio broadcasts. Within the city, the limited pneumatic, or hydraulic information lines is not a problem, and electric telephone lines link up the cities.
Society
The society is structured along the lines of Victorian England and any Sleeper at home in one would quickly get used to the other. Mages would find startling differences. The Sleepers know about the existence of SCIENCE! and understand that Scientists are striving to improve everyone's lot. Mages who are not Scientists are accepted, so long as they do not indulge in luddism. Tribals, as non-Scientific mages are called, often find work as mediums and faith healers, and the greatest criminologist of the realm is a cultist of Ecstasy. The Sleepers know that if they are in dire straits, they can go to the Scientists, and in return, they allow the Scientists to govern. Scientists are expected to always help Sleepers for no more than the Sleeper can reasonably afford. Many members of Newtonia's elite are Sleepers, as the Scientists often have more important things to acquire than wealth and power. The education system sifts through each generation to ensure everyone finds their place, and no task is left undone.
Mage society centers around the University which is divided into the colleges of Dimensional Science (Correspondence),Thermodynamics (Entropy and Prime), Physics (Forces), Chemistry (Matter), The Humanities (Mind), Biology (Life), and Chronology (Time). Some Dimensional Scientists dabble in Spirit, but such research is not considered important. The seven faculties are housed in a huge ring of buildings around the Great Meeting Hall. The Hall is situated above the only node in the capitol city of Philosophia (which encourages Scientists to take part in the discussions of State). All of the other regions of Newtonia also have research institutes above nodes where Scientists gather to discuss business (and aquire quintessence). These gatherings are called symposia.
Scientists are charged with the care of the Sleepers and disputes are almost always decided in favor of the Sleeper. Mage crimes are Luddism, (attacking the State), theft of resources (tass), and abusing the Sleepers. These crimes are always dealt with promptly, and with great severity. For example, any mage who kills Sleepers by rending them for quintessence will be gilgulled, and then pattern bled at regular intervals until he has learned his lesson, before being finally executed.
Police, and Other Petty Officials
Because of the temptation to meddle with the minds of annoying constables and bureaucrats is very great, they are selected for very high willpower and/or implanted with devices that record external mental influences. As the eugenics movement is strong in Newtonia, strong willed Sleepers are shockingly plentiful. Thus petty officials have, depending on their authority, Willpowers of 8, 9 or 10. The exception are the customs officials, who have 10 willpower to a man. All peace officers are perceptive and aware, even though they are Sleepers. All influencing mind effects against peace officers are vulgar with witness.
Kindred
The rules of the Masquerade are different in Newtonia, due to the ruthless efficiency of Awakened vampire hunters. No killing, no forced taking of vitae and never drinking deeply of any vessel. Creating progeny is very difficult, due to the trouble of finding someone that no one will miss. Due to the sects feeding and breeding habits, the Sabbat has been totally wiped out.
Unscientific Mages
Visiting mages will be conferred with the status of 'tribals'. Dreamspeaker and Virtual Adept mages will have the most difficulties. Newtonia is more attuned with the Shadowlands than the near Umbra, and the computers of the Virtual Adepts are quite vulgar. Son of Ether mages will fit right in with society, but there may be paradigm clashes with local reality.
NOTE: Because the Sleepers know what Scientists do, and they actively support the Scientific paradigm, and mold static reality to strengthen the Scientists, the Scientists can ride roughshod over all perceived enemies of Ascension.
Newtonia's Darker Side (this is the WoD, after all)
Newtonia is stagnant. Only the inability of anyone else to interfere on the Scientists' home turf keeps out the enemies. If the trail that the Scientists are blazing to Ascension doesn't get there soon enough, the velvet glove will peel off of the mailed fist. When Newtonia's opponents can overcome her security, Newtonia will disintegrate faster than Socialist Romania. I have described Newtonia in its summer.
Interesting Inhabitants
Professor Emeritas Otto Van Heeswyjk
This small inoffensive little man appears to be a Marauder, but is really an oracle of Spirit. He is affectionately known as "Uncle Otto", and the Sleepers view him as an intercessionary figure between them and God. He does not visit Newtonia often, but he arrives to either meet interesting new people, or to preside over trials of capital crimes. Anyone who attacks him must counter his shield, a Forces/Correspondence/Life/Matter/Mind/Prime/Spirit/Time/Entropy effect that preemptively strikes entities that direct harmful effects his way with hostile intent from anywhere (even through the Gauntlet) that removes all of their weaponry, strips them of any quintessence and reduces them to incapacitated with aggravated damage. The effect is coincidental, with six successes, that does (per success) four levels of damage and steals three points of gnosis/blood/quint, as appropriate and removes all clothing, non-talisman possessions, teeth and nails. Talismans lose three points of quintessence per success. Garou also lose one point of rage per success. Only the first seven points of unsoaked damage are applied. The effect is coincidental due to Sleeper belief in Otto's powers. If encountered outside of the court and not attacked, Otto will babble meaninglessly. At 10 Arete he is too disjointed from reality. He will nod politely, do something nice in an incomprehensible fashion for unfathomable reasons, and then depart.
Sherlock Holmes (call a spade, a spade)
A tribal of high repute who helps solve all manner of crimes. He is a Cultist of Ecstasy with Arete 5 and at least one pip of each sphere. Sherlock has at least Mind 3, Time 2, Correspondence 2, to enable him to look about crime scenes and determine what happened, by whom, and why (I wish I had my notes with me).
Arthur Trvithick
A Customs Officer, Arthur is unAwakened, but aware. He derives significant pleasure from making mages respect his authority. His high willpower makes him immune to the Veil, and almost impossible to dominate. Majesty improves his efficiency, not his temperament.
Game Effects
The Gauntlet between Newtonia and the Near Umbra is 9 in the cities and towns and 8 elsewhere. Linking with the shadow lands is difficulty 7 and is otherwise treated like the near umbra.
Technomancy based on the Bohr atom, the photoelectric effect, special and general relativity, probability waves, particle wave duality, Heisenburg uncertainty, the strong nuclear force, the weak nuclear force, any subatomic particle besides electrons and a lot of other things that I can't think of offhand are all vulgar. Most Technocracy talismans will cease to work when imported into Newtonia, unless infused with quintessence, and they have the minimum Arete necessary to perform their function. The following is a short, and definitely not exhaustive, list of these talismans: digital watches (Time 1), video cameras (Time 2, Corr 2, Forces 2 with TV), and everything else with at least one transistor. Any use of these devices will garner paradox.
For a visitor's magick to be coincidental, it must be within the mage's paradigm and Newtonia's governing paradigm.