Mages, Coups and Revolutions

[Cipiteca396]

They possess Anger, Frustration, and contempt for the Nobility— YET WHY NO REVOLUTION? NO COUPS? NO QUESTIONS?

Is it because Loyalty? Honor? FEAR? And most of those principles and qualities of the 'Knight' or in other words, a 'Model Subject' for the crown and their respective lords.

Please answer me (I'm sleep-deprive and I want answers), This is very Important for a Novel that I'm currently planning.

Bad writing. If all of the problems were solved before you got there, the MC wouldn't have anything to do. Alternatively, if the problems were so difficult that there was no solution, the MC would simply be powerless and have nothing to do.

So, you need a problem that's easy to solve, something that the MC can fix with little effort... Like a shitty political landscape with weak, corrupted nobles and hungry, resentful peasants. It's purely a matter of convenience for the author, or wish fulfillment where they are imagining all the shitty people they know in real life.

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Normally, it would be difficult for the situation to become so bad that revolution is necessary. A corrupt noble might get lynched by his followers, but those people aren't then going to start an entirely new government and declare war against the king. The immediate problem is solved, so there's nothing else to worry about.

Alternatively, if people are suffering, making other people suffer too isn't usually a viable solution. That kind of resentment can occur, but there won't be any motivation for a full scale revolution. Instead, the people with the will to lead something like that will try to solve their problems directly. 'If I can use magic, and people are starving, I'll use magic to make food.' It's easier that way.

Revolution is a last resort. Crimes like corruption will be punished within the bounds of the law or tolerated as long as possible. Difficulties will be endured with the hope that things will improve tomorrow. Oppression and despair feel impossible to defeat, so you don't even try. A trapped rat is the most vicious, but it's extremely difficult to back a rat into a corner, you know?

 

[Zirrboy]

This has been mentioned in other posts already, but there are essentially two reasons for acting against your ruling system.

One is desperation. Be it hunger or threat of death. If you have nothing to lose, you're a lot more eager to go for change.

The other is political agenda. Think civil rights movements, or usurpation, whatever you prefer. The current system doesn't let you grow any further, so you want to do away with the system.

While the latter was a minor factor historically due to it's supporters being far fewer, second place elites, technology and magic skew this proportionality of headcount and impact.
If you just slap lightning hurling lunatics onto a medieval setting, they might be able to do it based on strength alone.

But what's the point?
They strive for magic.
What favorable rule they need can be bought with occasional access to their services.

Open conflict is costly, even for certain victors.
So if there's no concrete goal, who will bother?


You can also compare it to military. What prevents them from usurping the government?
They have the weapons to seize almost all institutions.
So why is the world not full of military regimes?

Because aside from being power-hungry and expansionist, humans are also extremely economic and cowardly.

 

[T.K._Paradox]

Revolution is often caused by strong internal corruption, radicalism becoming more prevalent with the average person (this could because of external and/or internal influence) and extreme failure of the current system at hand.

I.E.: Communist revolution in Russia after World War I

Throw in martyrs and scapegoats and a charismatic leader figure and radical doctrine for more realism.

 

[Cipiteca396]

In fantasy world's why don't Commoner-born Mages, Wizards, Magic Knights and whatnot, Try and do a coup or revolutions?

I guess I should say this too.

If you as an Author have a question about a common cliché in stories, instead of asking, "Why did they do that?" ask, "What could I do differently to make an interesting story?"

Why don't they have a revolution? Because you didn't write it yet.

 

[T.K._Paradox]

World War 1.

I guess I should say this too.

If you as an Author have a question about a common cliché in stories, instead of asking, "Why did they do that?" ask, "What could I do differently to make an interesting story?"

Why don't they have a revolution? Because you didn't write it yet.

I mean to say world war I I know the red army was around before world war II.