#robin spent a lot of his early life in ferox

[iturbide]

Aw, you don't want Steampunk Emblem? (/Neither do i/) I like the idea that the different countries develop in different ways. Plegia's got magic for sure, but Regna Ferox, which values (presumably physical) strength and uses combat as politics would probably develop very differently than a country of mages. (Also I would very much like to see both Marth and Merric dropped into modern Archanea. Merric can freak out about magic while Marth is all *why am I semi-worshipped*)

oh thank goodness I'm not alone like. Steampunk tactical RPG is fine in theory. But I really can't imagine a Steampunk Fire Emblem being fun.

(Fun Fact: this is actually why I had initially planned to skip Three Houses. The general vibe of the world design and characters, with the whole academy focus, was starting to feel a little too modern and it just doused my enthusiasm until that last minute timeskip reveal trailer.)

But also: this is exactly the reason why I didn't bring up the concept of magic as a measure of societal progress in the original post. Because not all civilizations are built on the same foundations or value the same things. You don't use wheels for travel in the desert because wheels and sand don't mix well -- but it's been flaunted (by European society) as a basic technological achievement, so not using them for travel purposes probably makes the Ylisseans look down on Plegia as uncivilized.

I really like the idea that magic is a marker of progress -- but it needs to be taken in a specific context. Ferox seems to have little interest in magic, preferring to cultivate personal strength supplemented with armor and weaponry: for Ferox, their marker of progress is in their blacksmithing, and I tend to think that the strongest, most durable, and highest quality armor and weapons can be found in Ferox (along with some frankly batshit weapons because they push the envelope in every direction, including the weird).

(Basically, if you want a flamberge, go to Ferox.)