Banestormed Academics

[lachimba]

If you drop them in Caithness near Baroness Bronwyn of Durham then they can fit into her underground engineers pretty easily and probably avoid the Ministry of Serendipty (or the like).

I don't know if that would be a game I would enjoy though.

[Lord Carnifex]

Don't forget the benefits of the local ROTC cadre, as well.

[Captain-Captain]

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

It's the Ministry of Serendipity and it's strongly hinted that it has secret equivalents in other Yrthian nationalities.

Look striongly at how much you're re-writing the setting. You're trying to do something that the world has a big hairy Deus Ex Machina to prevent. Yrth was built for transpanted SCA types to revel in as is rather than Conneticut Yankees to uplift.

Do what you like of course but do look at the encessary changes and their related folow-ons.

Stated quite openly in Banestorm. There is the Chaplaincy of St something or other doing Serendipity's work in Cardiel. A branch of the Silver Hand in Caithness etc.

[dcarson]

Castle Defiant is a good location. Far from officials and they can really use the help.

[jeff_wilson]

Originally Posted by Captain-Captain

Stated quite openly in Banestorm. There is the Chaplaincy of St something or other doing Serendipity's work in Cardiel. A branch of the Silver Hand in Caithness etc.

Of course, you can always run this as a more embracing conspiracy rather than a murderous one. "Come with me if you want to live." The local outfit shelters people with technological skills because there's distrust between them and the other anti-tech groups.

[Dalillama]

Originally Posted by Apache

First off, instead of Flint's 1632 I suggest you pick up a copy of Piper's Lord Kalvan Of Otherwhen. John Carr, who had the rights now, IIRC, has written several sequals, but the original is still one of the best SF/alt universe stories ever written.

I third the recommendation. Unfortunately, that looks like about the only one of his books that is not available for free via project Gutenberg and Manybooks. It doesn't look like Lord Kalvan is there, although several of the other Paratime storiesare on there, so you'll need to find a hard copy somewhere. I'm forced to assume that Carr does indeed have the rights to theat one, as I can't think of any other reason it wouldn't be there.

[Witchking]

Originally Posted by Lord Carnifex

Don't forget the benefits of the local ROTC cadre, as well.

Ahhhh!!! Ninjia'd by Lord C...oh well. Definitely would want a School with an ROTC program...most schools of any size have them...even if they do not they would likely have a couple of cadets who are part of the program and drilling at Neighboring Larger School X . (FREX when Harvard U did not allow ROTC on campus there were still ROTC cadets at Harvard...they just Drilled over at MIT.)

The Lost Regiment series by William R. Forstchen is an interesting look at the "lost in time" genre. It also illustrates some of the benefits of advanced military science and motivated volunteer troops against what was known before...(plus I am a large fan of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain and the hero of the books is basically an expy of that great man). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joshua_...ce_Chamberlain

Actually now that I think of it he would make a nice model for your Lost U president...heroic veteran with military experience, some political and governmental experience (4 Term Gov of Maine), and taught every subject matter in the curricula at Bowdoin except Mathematics...

Also depending on the school age and location it is Possible they might have their own steam plant...even if they really do not use it anymore (except as an on paper backup and perhaps a teaching device).

[Astromancer]

Originally Posted by Hugin

Maybe set them in the middle of the Orclands?

That was close to my thoughts. Have a strong ROTC and a National Guard Unit associated with the school. The Orcs would be scared for long enough for the school to get better defences. Have an Elf who was scouting the Orclands teach them magic 101.

In the Orclands or in the Djinni lands southwest of the great forest, they'd have a chance to establish themselves. Technology might be attractive to the Elves as it might give them an edge against humans.

[Astromancer]

Rethinking the map of Yttarria, aren't there habitable lands west of the Great Desert? Drop the school on a Catalina sized island, with arable land and a mild climate, a few miles off Yttarria's west coast. It would take them several years to get to exploring, survival would have to come first.

The idea of a lost/exiled elf scout finding the school and teaching them useful magic would still be sound.

[Polydamas]

Originally Posted by Astromancer

Rethinking the map of Yttarria, aren't there habitable lands west of the Great Desert? Drop the school on a Catalina sized island, with arable land and a mild climate, a few miles off Yttarria's west coast. It would take them several years to get to exploring, survival would have to come first.

The idea of a lost/exiled elf scout finding the school and teaching them useful magic would still be sound.

If they are that isolated though they are likely to starve, not having seeds or livestock or anywhere to trade them from. Then there will be no materials to build a new technology base with, because the people in the Orclands in the NW are poor. You need a base of hundreds of thousands of people communicating with a whole continent to gear down from TL 8 to TL5-6 (what Eric Flint's books are good for in this scenario is that some very smart people debated the specifics of how building a modern industrial base in 1632 Thuringia would work).