Technology of Aletheia

A Practical Reference

Aletheia operates at roughly late medieval technology (TL3) with emerging early-renaissance developments (TL4). In practical terms this means the world possesses advanced metallurgy, complex craft traditions, and growing urban scholarship, but has not undergone the technological revolutions that define the early modern period.

Magic exists alongside technology and often replaces or outcompetes technological solutions. As a result, some developments that appeared historically in our world never became dominant in Aletheia.

Technology Level Summary

Baseline: Late TL3 (late medieval)

Emerging: Early TL4 technologies appear in cities and specialist workshops.

General rule:
Most TL4 equipment exists but may be uncommon, expensive, or limited to specialists.

Cost guidelines:

Standard TL4 items: normal price if available
Advanced TL4 craftsmanship: +25% cost
Precision instruments: often +25–50% cost

Firearms do not exist as practical weapons.

Materials and Craftsmanship

Aletheia possesses strong traditions in:

metallurgy
armor production
weapon smithing
glassworking
mechanical engineering

Guilds and master craftsmen dominate production of complex items. Most villages rely on simpler tools and equipment.

Cities and major trade centers are where advanced craftwork appears.

Weapons

Common battlefield weapons include:

spears and polearms
swords and sabres
bows and longbows
crossbows (including windlass and cranequin types)
shields and heavy infantry weapons

More refined weapons such as rapiers and smallswords exist but are largely urban or aristocratic weapons associated with dueling or officers rather than battlefield combat.

Firearms have never developed into practical weapons.

Armour

Armor technology is advanced and widely practiced.

Common types include:

padded armour
mail
scale and lamellar
brigandine
partial plate
full plate harness

Brigandine and plate armour are widely used by professional soldiers and knights.

Highly articulated or master-crafted plate armour may cost 25% more than standard listings.

Optics and Long-Distance Viewing

Primitive spyglasses exist but are uncommon.

Basic Spyglass

Simple naval or military viewing tube.

low magnification
narrow field of view
heavy distortion
useful only for spotting distant movement

Typical use:

detecting sails
spotting ships or riders on the horizon

Identifying details is rarely possible.

High-Quality Optics

Rare specialist devices produced by master glassworkers.

Clearer and more reliable but still expensive.

Magical Viewing Devices

Magic often replaces technological optics.

Examples include:

enchanted lenses
scrying instruments
magical farsight devices

These are extremely expensive but vastly more effective than mundane optics.

Mechanical Devices

Mechanical engineering is well understood at large scales.

Common devices include:

watermills
windmills
cranes and lifting machines
siege engines
mechanical clocks

Clocks

Large mechanical clocks are common in:

temples
monasteries
universities
major cities

Smaller indoor clocks exist but are luxury items.

Portable timepieces are rare experimental devices.

Pocket watches do not yet exist.

Gunpowder and Explosives

Gunpowder is not used for weapons in Aletheia.

Alchemists are aware that certain chemical mixtures can produce explosive reactions, but these mixtures are typically:

unstable
dangerous to transport
difficult to manufacture consistently

Magically stabilized explosive compounds exist but are rare and extremely expensive. These are sometimes used for:

mining
demolition
specialized engineering

Because magic already provides reliable destructive power, there has been little incentive to develop explosive weapons further.

Seafaring technology is well developed.

Common instruments include:

astrolabes
compasses
navigational charts
measuring tools
surveying instruments

Spyglasses are beginning to appear in naval contexts but remain uncommon.

Magic is often used to supplement navigation.

Medicine and Alchemy

Medicine combines traditional knowledge with alchemical practice.

Common features include:

herbal medicine
surgical knowledge
alchemical compounds
magical healing

Universities and temples often serve as centers of medical learning.

Alchemists frequently experiment with chemical reactions and substances that have no obvious practical use — some of which are later discovered to be very useful or very dangerous.

The Role of Magic

Magic often replaces technological solutions.

Where a technological innovation might require:

decades of research
expensive infrastructure
dangerous experimentation

magic may provide an immediate, if costly, alternative.

As a result, technological development in Aletheia often progresses more slowly than it did historically in our world.

The world therefore combines advanced craftsmanship with a technological pace shaped heavily by magical alternatives.

In Practice

In daily life, Aletheia resembles a late medieval world with pockets of emerging renaissance innovation.

You will find:

knights in plate armour
crossbows on the battlefield
mechanical clocks in temple towers
universities debating natural philosophy
primitive spyglasses aboard ships
and wizards doing things technology has not yet learned how to do.

Which, all things considered, keeps life interesting.