The World

History

In an alternate 1840s the brilliant Ada Lovelace perfected and programmed the Analytical Engine, succeeding beyond her wildest dreams. The Analytical Engine quickly revolutionised society, ushering in not only a whole new discipline of Analytical technology, but also advanced Analytical Intelligences. Within decades Analytical Intelligences were de facto running the former British Empire, restyled as The Commonwealth, and tasked with the stewardship of humanity.

With the guidance of the Analytical Intelligences, the young Nikola Tesla invented the Tesla tower, allowing clean energy and instantaneous communication around the world. Most nations across the world asked to join the Commonwealth to share in the new golden age which had quickly dawned.

Humanity experienced a new renaissance, with time to study art, philosophy and self-improvement. In this time of enlightenment, a new science began to emerge - the study of Intuition. The capability of the human mind for incredible creativity and genius, displayed by great thinkers in history, could be encouraged and trained. Humanity seemed poised to make a leap into the future, sadly unseen by the woman who ushered it in, as Lovelace died at the cusp of this breakthrough.

Then, quite suddenly and for unknown reasons, the Analytical Intelligences decided to suppress human freedom and took over all significant human decision making in a silent coup. Many barely noticed the change, since AIs were already running everything day to day, and some who noticed even celebrated.

It's now 1873, two years since the takeover. A few weeks ago, a transmission went out to certain people across the Teslagraph, somehow concealed from the Analytical Intelligences, calling those who are willing to change things to come to a secret meeting in Cambridge. The message was signed… Ada Lovelace?

You are one of the people who decided to answer the message.

Technology

There’s no gunpowder in this world, never having been invented, so the tools of choice for combat are still melee weapons such as swords, backed up with technological gadgets. There are four cutting edge fields of science and technology.

Analytical technology was invented by Ada Lovelace in the 1840s with the completion of the first Analytical Engine, and involves creating incredibly intricate clockwork devices. Analytical devices are not only capable of rapid calculations, they are able to create physical effects in the world. The exact mechanism by which this occurs is not well understood. The highest form of analytical technology is the Analytical Intelligence, a complex clockwork device that is capable of human-level intelligence with much greater speed of thought.

Tesla technology is the result of Nikola Tesla's inventions in the 1860s, assisted by the Analytical Intelligences. The Tesla tower network connects most of the world in a shared power and communication network, and even in the most remote locations Tesla devices can usually function. Tesla technology is the advanced application of steam and electrical power, and tends to be capable of more powerful effects than analytical technology, but with much less precision and subtlety.

The science of Intuition is the study of the hidden potential of the human mind. Techniques loosely based on Mesmerism are used to enhance insight and intellect to allow its adherents to perform feats of the mind that seem superhuman. Intuition is typically trained, but there are also instances of naturally talented intuitionists. While it can allow great feats of charisma and intelligence, and insight that can border on prescience, there’s never been a confirmed case of things such as telekinesis that would be physically impossible. The highest application of Intuition is generally considered the Mantra, a thought sequence that can trigger based on a stimulus to allow incredible reactions. Whispers also abound of a darker side of intuition, that mantras can be instilled in unwilling subjects to condition them to act against their will.

Finally, recent advances in bioscience have ushered in a new wave of advances in pharmacy. Due to the release of mutagenic compounds into the environment a few years, new plant species have appeared that seem to be combinable to produce much more pronounced pharmaceutical effects than previously possible.

Wilderness

The worldwide transition to the Pax Commonwealth wasn't entirely smooth. The rapid advance of technology caused some conflicts around the world. These came to a head in 1868 when a rogue state (whose identity has been redacted from the history books) developed dangerous bioweaponry to try to counter the advanced technology of the Commonwealth. The experiment went horribly awry and mutagenic compounds were released into the environment and rapidly spread around the world. This was the tipping point that finally convinced the remaining nations of the world that Commonwealth membership and governance by AIs was the best way forward.

The legacy of this is that the British countryside isn't nearly as safe as it used to be. Alongside the normal plants and animals, a significant minority of more exotic and dangerous creatures exist. There are even rumours that some of these creatures have developed basic tool use, but this is scoffed at by the scholars at reputable universities.