Universe

The Dark Mod has its own setting

Welcome to the "official" setting of The Dark Mod. While FM authors can create stories in any world they like with our tools, they have been tailored to suit the world described below.

Disclaimer: Just to be clear, The Dark Mod does NOT take place in the same universe as the Looking Glass 'Thief' games (or the setting of the recent Thief from Eidos Montreal). There are no Keepers, no Hammerites, and no Garrett. That said, the settings of both The Dark Mod and Thief are based on a steampunk-influenced version of our own history, so there will be certain similarities.

Overview

The Dark Mod world can be viewed as an alternate, low fantasy version of our own. It is a mixture of several historical periods, with architecture ranging from medieval castles to victorian mansions. In this world, steam and clockwork technology were discovered much earlier in history, allowing for odd inventions and industrial warehouses to exist side-by-side with gothic cathedrals and sword-wielding city watch. Magic is also a tangible force, though it is rare to for most people to encounter anything but subtle magical effects. Missions have established the date of the setting as around 1630 AD.

Tone

The Dark Mod is set in a world that is dark, gritty and adult. It is a setting that strives to be immersive, and to feel as believable to the player as possible. Neither campy humour nor climactic battles between good and evil fit the style of The Dark Mod world.

Characters talk and act in ways that are appropriate to their upbringing and station. Most guards are rough, uneducated brutes who spend their lives drinking, gambling, and bedding whores. They certainly don't recite poetry or discuss philosophy in their spare time. Aristocrats are often just as brutish, but with a slightly more educated veneer.

With plagues, infection, and drunken brawls spilling into the streets on a regular basis, life is much cheaper in this world than ours. The heads and corpses of criminals line the roads, and public torture and hangings are one of the most popular forms of entertainment--watching criminals have their entrails cut out and burned while still alive is considered a good way to teach children moral lessons. Even the Church, the main provider of hope and beauty in this age, enthusiastically tortures and burns heretics.

Places

Although much of the setting material for The Dark Mod focuses around the city of Bridgeport, that city does not exist in isolation. It is part of a larger world, with political connections, trading agreements, and hostile neighbours that could be possible plots for FM missions.

• The City of Bridgeport
• Builder Roads
• Other Cities and Towns
• The World at Large
• The Empire
• Choosing Place Names

"Factions"

"Factions" are not necessarily organized groups, and should not be thought of as homogeneous. Even within factions there are plenty of disagreements and sometimes outright conflicts.

• Builders
• Pagans
• Inventor's Guild
• Mages
• Necromancers
• Thieves

Creatures

While the TDM setting generally looks like our own world, there are strange and unusual creatures in existence. The stranger the beast, the further from civilization it is generally found.

• Creatures
  • Giant Spiders
  • Fire Elementals
  • Undead

Notable Characters

A catalogue of significant characters from the TDM setting. These include important figures as well as characters drawn from existing Fan Missions.

• Thief Characters
• Noble/Wealthy Characters
• Clergy/Builder Characters

Daily Life

A few historical details can go a long way towards making a mission seem more "real".

• The kinds of Food people eat
• The importance of Letter Writing
• The running of a Wealthy Household
• Types of Jobs people might have

Other

Other information about the setting.

• The invention of several unique arrows
• What kind of technology is available?
• What about magic?
• How to choose good-sounding Names
• Glossary of terms