[dcarson]

If there hasn't been a whatsit attack for a century population will expand outside the city walls and money will not be "wasted" on expanding the unneeded walls. Magical artificers will devote most of their time to making magic items that help industry and agriculture etc. All the normal human patterns of this time the bad stuff is gone for good thinking. So when it hits magic weapons are not common, large parts of the population are in undefended buildings, etc.