Ideas for Fantastical France?

[vitruvian]

Originally Posted by Huscurian

Interesting. I do know that England and France have been at war with each other for so long they'd want to cut each other's throats. I may not know a lot about the Middle Ages but the 1500s I put in would have been in the beginning of another war between France and England.

For reference, the 1500s is the century of Henry VIII and Elizabeth on the English side, Louis XII through Henry IV on the French side, and there were a few wars in there (notably Henry VIII allying with the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V against the French). This is the era of guns becoming really important in warfare, religious wars between Catholics and Protestants, colonization of the New World (France acquires Quebec early in the century), with the printing press, telescopes, scientists from Da Vinci to Tycho Brahe to Galileo right towards the end, etc. If you want High Medieval as opposed to Renaissance, you might want to go back a century or two.

Originally Posted by Huscurian

As for the relics of pagan Rome or no longer understood magical powers, the PCs cannot have magic since magic is rarely sought out. I would assume, from my fictional viewpoint, that France used to know magic in the times of the Roman Empire as the Gauls but that knowledge had died out slowly.

Funny, the 1500s was the time of the historical Faust, Pico della Mirandola, Cornelius Agrippa, Paracelsus (from whom we get the term elementals), Nostradamus, John Dee, and Judah Loew (supposed creator of the Golem of Prague). The people of the time believed that it was a time of resurgence in magical knowledge, if anything.

Originally Posted by Huscurian

While Rome may have relics with magical properties, it is likely these relics were sacked, taken, or robbed and sold to others. France may possess some of them but the King likely would have had them.

Historically, large numbers of relics that supposedly possessed miraculous powers could be found at all kinds of local churches and holy sites. You can certainly have these all be frauds, if you wish, but the King having them all seems unlikely - things were nowhere near as unified as we're used to.

Originally Posted by Huscurian

I like those ideas. I may use those for the serious version. I might, just might include Nostradamus as a small cameo in Paris, screaming and hollering about predictions, etc. :P I think my players might find that ... "er, ahem, odd."

That would be.... odd, considering Nostradamus only gave his supposed prophecies in print, and had no need to roam the streets in any case, being invited by the consort to the palace...