Historical Fantasy Gripe: 'The Smart MC'

[owotrucked]

Oh what that's that? You can't make a Main Battle Tank with this modern schematic I pulled out my a**?

Average warthunder player leaking national secret schematics even in isekai

What makes me insane is modern mc "revolutionizing" cooking recipes. In medieval setting with little dopamine entertainment, meals are the biggest thing people look forward each day, so cooking culture is always refined in stable places and their skills are incomparably more trained than time traveling MC who lived with all conveniences.
Even the soy sauce the japanese MC are so proud of are dated back from 2000 years ago lol

While it's true ancient ppl would go bonker over culinary novelty as a break from their routine, it's not to the point that they'd say "wow its the best thing I had all my life"

 

[Syringe]

While it's true ancient ppl would go bonker over culinary novelty as a break from their routine, it's not to the point that they'd say "wow its the best thing I had all my life"

There was a scene from an anime that did the same thing with mayonnaise. Whole town went crazy eating spoonfuls. I was retching the entire time because you KNOW how gross a spoonful of mayo is. Surprised they didn't send the MC straight to the gulag (where they would have escaped using their modern knowledge after having watched the Escape From Alcatraz documentary).

 

[melchi]

You're telling me you wouldn't be able to make a revolver out of stone and raw, unprocessed ores? Isn't it obvious that you can use any barrel and metal for a chamber without it blowing up the gun?

Oh what that's that? You can't make a Main Battle Tank with this modern schematic I pulled out my a**? Damn, you Dwarves are useless.

Daaaamn, you guys are still using wooden cups but not plastic? One second, let me go whip up some fresh polyethylene. I'll teach you all how to make it later. It's easy I swear.

The kingdom's getting wrecked? Perfect. I, a teen from a different world, will know exactly what to do. Thanks for trusting me, wise king.

I read the Art of War (knows only like 3 quotes). I know what I'm doing. Your generals with decades of war experience got nothing on me.

Damn the bows aren't doing much damage to them huh? Don't worry, we'll use modern bows. I heard in a youtube comment they do more damage than bullets! Luckily, I looked at the schematics once on the way home from school after tripping over an ice cream slick, exactly at an intersection before I was hit by a truck.

Here, let's add some red dot sights, a suppressor, foregrip and a bluetooth chip for wireless coms and Apple Play.

Wait, this world doesn't have certain metals? Don't worry, I know the perfect composition of them at the molecular level, so we can make an alloy that is 100% similar to them.

ICBMs? C'mon, which teenager wouldn't know how to make them? Aren't you like 1,000 years old? How aren't you even at that level yet?

You want me to stop an illegal drug trade in this fantasy world? Easy. I have a Master's Degree in Breaking Bad. I know how the game works.

/s obviously.

But in all seriousness, it's fun. I really do enjoy seeing fantasy stories introduce modern stuff, even if it's unrealistic as hell (Arifureta comes to mind. But I love it so much). Just slap magic onto it and I'm easily convinced lol.

While Arifurita went from absorbing monster flesh to miniguns rather quick, there is just something so badass about mowing down thousands of monsters with a minigun mounted to your magitech humvee.

 

[gaylolis]

I just feel that if they actually went on the realism route, I would be too stupid to even understand them or probably bored from the technical infodumps.

When it comes to technology, I do prefer the sci-fi side of things instead of going to the past and introducing modern technology. or fantasy tech that's actually more advanced than earth.

Imagine if one of these stories are actually written by aliens who are leaking the teleportation hub to instantly transfer to Alpha Centauri. all with DIY materials from earth. In there you can buy the wholesale PC at dirt cheap (like just barter them with your garbage) and it outscaled our current PC for about 100 years. it's also portable and ball-shaped, just like mini glados and it comes with screen and keyboard + mouse projection that you can actually utilize.

 

[AliceShiki]

And here I am wondering why trench warfare isn't common in magic settings with grenade fireballs going all over the place.

Well, if mages are scarce, then it's because they don't have enough numbers to function with trench warfare.

... If there are a lot of mages, then the author probably didn't want to write fight scenes like that, which is honestly a perfectly legit reason to not introduce trench warfare.

I just get annoyed if the isekai'd MC introduces it to a setting where it could exist without the MC. They would have surely have already developed it on their own in that case.

 

[Deleted member 54065]

Also speaking of said review I am trying to at least read up your current novel about the Elf Saint @Hans.Trondheim.

Look forward to my review of the series, as it will also be a talk on isekai in general.

Would like to apologize to you @T.K._Paradox , man. It's my fault for this stupid misunderstanding.

I'm pretty sensitive about this, since I'm wary of ScribbleHub's bias against harem isekai. Still, it's not an excuse for my childish attitude.

Once again, thanks for the time checking out my work. (I'll just rest for a bit since I got a really bad cold.)

 

[AliceShiki]

Would like to apologize to you @T.K._Paradox , man. It's my fault for this stupid misunderstanding.

I'm pretty sensitive about this, since I'm wary of ScribbleHub's bias against harem isekai. Still, it's not an excuse for my childish attitude.

Once again, thanks for the time checking out my work. (I'll just rest for a bit since I got a really bad cold.)

Rest well! I hope you recover soon! >.<

 

[Kenjona]

I dunno about the other things where "the ancients did it better", but this is definitely not the case for the Roman Concrete.

Let me quote the most important part related to this from the article I linked a bit above.

So, it really seems like a case of losing the recipe. Especially because...



So like, we definitely have had access to plenty of the material to make the Lime Clasts that make the Roman Concrete durable.

We just... Lost the knowledge, and it took us a huge amount of time to figure out what was missing.

... Though apparently we hadn't figured it out for so many years mainly because of incompetence tbh. Like...

How did nobody think this until now? Like... Seriously? Nobody tried experimenting with the Lime Clasts until just now and instead just assumed that they were there due to low quality control? o.0

Feels like incompetence on the part of the researchers to me, but it doesn't change the fact that the recipe wasn't lost due to losing access to the materials.

Sweet that is very new information I had not seen yet. Now if they can get past the lower starting strength and longer drying time verses modern concrete, that would be very good. Environmentally and monetarily.

 

[Cipiteca396]

I was retching the entire time because you KNOW how gross a spoonful of mayo is.

I thought the same thing, but I ended up finding a clarification that says Japanese 'mayo' is different from other types of mayo. It doesn't use the egg whites and it has a different type of vinegar in it. I've never tasted it, so I don't know for certain... But it may very well be something you can eat from a spoon?

Sweet that is very new information I had not seen yet. Now if they can get past the lower starting strength and longer drying time verses modern concrete, that would be very good. Environmentally and monetarily.

I must be crazy, because I swear they taught us that stuff in high school... Some real time travel shit going on here.

 

[Syringe]

I thought the same thing, but I ended up finding a clarification that says Japanese 'mayo' is different from other types of mayo. It doesn't use the egg whites and it has a different type of vinegar in it. I've never tasted it, so I don't know for certain... But it may very well be something you can eat from a spoon?

Does Kewpie Mayo count as Japaneese? I love that shit to death. It's sweet, savoury and delicious, and... Well I think you might have a point!

Because while I wouldn't eat a spoonful of it, I can actually eat a decent amount in one bite and love it.

 

[Paul_Tromba]

And here I am wondering why trench warfare isn't common in magic settings with grenade fireballs going all over the place.

I feel like barbed wire would have been very applicable through the Roman sieges and medieval warfare.

 

[georgelee5786]

And here I am wondering why trench warfare isn't common in magic settings with grenade fireballs going all over the place.

No no, he's got a point

 

[Cipiteca396]

I feel like barbed wire would have been very applicable through the Roman sieges and medieval warfare.

I think the metal would be better spent on tools and armor. Reminds me of the 'adventurers steal the front door and leave without entering the dungeon' story.

Though, if we have magic... You could grow some thorned/poisonous plants instead.

No no, he's got a point

As for the fireballs... Trenches are more meant for line of sight attacks like bullets. A fireball would be closer to artillery, which is a somewhat decent counter to trenches. But a cloud kill, acid fog, or sleet storm would be even better.

If you're fighting mages, maybe you should just run away, yeah?

 

[georgelee5786]

As for the fireballs... Trenches are more meant for line of sight attacks like bullets. A fireball would be closer to artillery, which is a somewhat decent counter to trenches. But a cloud kill, acid fog, or sleet storm would be even better.

Assuming the mages are working in tandem with archers and ranged siege weapons(catapults, ballista, trebuchets, etc.) trenches and dugouts might prove useful in protecting your troops.

If you're fighting mages, maybe you should just run away, yeah?

fight fire with fire, get some counter-mages

 

[Paul_Tromba]

I think the metal would be better spent on tools and armor. Reminds me of the 'adventurers steal the front door and leave without entering the dungeon' story.

Though, if we have magic... You could grow some thorned/poisonous plants instead.

I disagree as metalsmiths would have been able to efficiently form barbed wire at a faster rate than chainmail or even spearheads, the most costly and efficient weapon of the period. This is without magic being brought into play so calvary and cloth armored soldiers would be greatly hindered by this. Archers on the other hand would be OP as hell and would need to be nerfed.

With magic being brought into play, thorns and magic briars would work far better and be more efficient. However, the mere existence of fireball is enough to make it obsolete. Still be a bitch of a trap to get stuck in no matter what magic or class.

 

[Kenjona]

I feel like barbed wire would have been very applicable through the Roman sieges and medieval warfare.

If the Romans had access to it, I am sure they would have used it. Though with magic, you could magickly grow and prune bunch of Osage Orange bushes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maclura_pomifera Also Concertina wire https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concertina_wire is what you want for defending trenches, and other fortifications instead of barbed wire.

<Everything after this line got merged into this post>
One issue with barbed wire everyone might be missing, or at least it is not stated. Barbed wire is great for STATIC defenses and the way to win most wars is to be aggressively offensive and maneuverable. Barbed wires biggest impact in battle was during a 20 year period, the 1st great World War. Just a mile length of trenches required about 900 miles of barbed wire; 6,000,000 sandbags; 1,000,000 cubic feet of timber; and 360,000 square feet of corrugated iron.

Trench warfare was broken by going around it or through it with mobile pillboxes backed by having air superiority, using artillery and then infantry to hold the ground. By the time barb wire was invented we had the technology to defeat it, just not the tactics to defeat it yet. Just like Vauban's fortress designs, they were good for awhile, but technology rapidly made them obsolete. Fortress designs which stood up with huge walls, literally disappeared into the ground, eventually becoming trenches.

Nearly all modern militaries are less about static defenses then they are on being as maneuverable as possible to lessen the enemies ability to concentrate fire on the modern battle field. It is a rare few militaries that concentrate on static defenses above their maneuverability in warfare. Those are because of the either geo-political stance of the nation, its inherent resources and/or the geography of the nation. Major examples: Sweden, Finland, Switzerland, Japan (Its stances and treaties over its militaries have shifted several times since WW2), and Taiwan. Several other states mainly because of their size and access to resources also fall into this.

 

[DestroyatronMk8]

It's the old Mary-Sue problem. If you make your protagonist overpowered and unstoppable, you take away all the tension. We aren't wondering if our heroes are going to make it. We're just waiting for them to sail on through. Worse, no weaknesses means there's no room for character growth. Sure, you can steadily make them more powerful, but there's a big difference between "inevitable growth" and "change through effort and trauma."

Take Iron Man for example. He's tough, but he's not invincible and he's very flawed. Throughout the movies, we see him repeatedly make mistakes and force himself to adapt and learn from them. When his suits get better, it's usually a direct result of something going wrong, and his constant struggle keeps us invested just as thoroughly as Robert Downey Junior's excellent portrayal.

Then there's Rey from Star Wars. She never struggles. She gets everything on the first try, and she can do whatever the story needs her to do with very little effort. She's never on the ropes, and you never get the sense she's in real danger. She gets more powerful as the movies progress, but you never see her have to work for it, so it doesn't feel impactful. She's got no flaws, no weaknesses, and no way to grow. Daisy Ridley does a fine job with what little she's given, but no amount of charisma can change the fact that Rey is boring as hell.

You can totally have your MC leverage science for an advantage in a primitive world, but if you don't apply limitations you take away the danger. No danger means no impact, and no reason to grow. No one roots for the guy who has it easy. We root for the one who has to work for it.

 

[owotrucked]

I might be retarded about the trench discussion but I was pretty sure the Romans build wooden walls for siege to enclose enemies instead of trench. Trench doesnt help against curved trajectories of primitive weapons and give the high ground for enemy melee attackers while reducing your height and range of your own projectiles.

About barbed wire, isnt it cheaper to use wooden stakes? Fulfills the same hampering function without the cost to process metal. Besides you dont have to worry about the logistics and drag your wire with your army, and youre less likely to have a shortage of wood than metal wire when setting up a perimeter

If magic is involved, wooden walls still offer some cover, just gotta keep some distance when it explodes. If enemy set it on fire they'll trap themselves in firewalls, or make it harder for themselves to break through the frontline.

 

[Paul_Tromba]

I might be retarded about the trench discussion but I was pretty sure the Romans build wooden walls for siege to enclose enemies instead of trench. Trench doesnt help against curved trajectories of primitive weapons and give the high ground for enemy melee attackers while reducing your height and range of your own projectiles.

About barbed wire, isnt it cheaper to use wooden stakes? Fulfills the same hampering function without the cost to process metal. Besides you dont have to worry about the logistics and drag your wire with your army, and youre less likely to have a shortage of wood than metal wire when setting up a perimeter

If magic is involved, wooden walls still offer some cover, just gotta keep some distance when it explodes. If enemy set it on fire they'll trap themselves in firewalls, or make it harder for themselves to break through the frontline.

Yes, stakes would be cheaper but wouldn't serve the same purpose. Barbed wire would catch the person's clothes, hair, and/or flesh in order to make it difficult to move, let alone escape. This would have been good for defending archers and spearmen alike as their enemies wouldn't be able to escape and rarely defend once caught. The spearmen would benefit the most as they were usually the peasants.

 

[Lloyd]

I did the smart MC well