"'Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.' I suppose we all thought that, one way or another." - J. Robert Oppenheimer, 1965.
Germany, 1941
It's the eve of World War II. Hitler is waging lightning wars across Europe. France has fallen, Great Britain is besieged by air strikes, and Jews across Europe are fleeing persecution. In both the United States and Germany, scientists are scrambling to discover new military technology, something that could end the war once and for all.
Here’s where we deviate from history. Forget nuclear physics. Our characters stumble upon a far more terrifying discovery:
magic.Magic
Magic in this world isn’t some cutesy thing that is randomly inherited. We aren’t dealing with “elementals” or “spells.” Magic is an unknowable source of power and energy. It’s terrifying. It’s chaotic. It’s unpredictable. And it’s just been discovered in a laboratory at the Humboldt University of Berlin.
Think of it as dark matter, but scarier. Radiation, but even less predictable. This is an untapped source of energy that seems to exist on another plane altogether, and it has the researchers baffled. People who don’t have advanced degrees in theoretical physics don’t have a chance of even grasping its existence. This is a force no one has ever dealt with.
The scientists certainly can't control it very well, if at all, even in a laboratory setting. Accidents happen. People are hurt. Those who are exposed to it start developing strange abilities. Repeated exposure to magical particles has left some scientists with bizarre magical attributes. They're floating at random, setting things on fire, walking through walls. They don't know what's happening to them. Researchers don’t know if they’re excited or terrified.
The Third Reich, however, is thrilled.
The Plot
But one thing’s for sure: the military potential is tremendous. Yeah, you see where I’m going with this. Magical nuclear weapons could be the end of civilization. The scientists know this. The Nazis certainly know this. The plot, then, boils down to a motley group of German scientists and their allies trying to keep magical secrets out of Hitler’s reach.
The plot possibilities, really, are endless. We could have a struggle to defect to the United States. We could have scientist-led resistance groups trying to take down the Third Reich from within (White Rose, anyone?) We could have a plan to assassinate Hitler. I have an idea of where the plot is going, but am down to hash it out with other play.
Misc
This will be a more intricate RP that will require careful planning in the OOC, so I’ll limit it to a group of 4 or 5.
We'll try to stay as historically accurate as possible, but some deviation from record is inevitable. Most of the action will happen in Berlin near the capitol of the Third Reich. Some roles I have in mind:
- German scientists who struggle with loyalty to their country, sense of self-preservation, and ethical principals
- Activists bent on using magic to take down the Third Reich
- Magically-endowed German Jews in hiding
- Nazi spies infiltrating the university
It’d be great if we could fill those roles, but don’t feel limited. Feel free to propose ideas in the OOC before working on a CS.
For the CS template and more info on magical abilities, jump over to the Characters tab.
