VictoriaBent

[Ra Zarudo]

I got in on this idea by pasturPasturevich in which tl;dr the imperial powers of Victorian Europe colonize Alternia through the magic of portals.

The following is pP's content unless otherwise noted, reposted with his express written permission.

This AU rests upon some fundamental assumptions:

1. You know how Earth and Alternia reside in separate universes? Let’s just disregard that entirely.
2. Trolls don’t use guns. It seems that we see few guns on Alternia aside from ship’s cannon, from which we can deduce that Gunpowder was never widely employed by Trolls, as well as by the Troll characters’ choice of weapons, and various references made to divisions in the Alternian army being defined by various melee weapons.
3. I imagine that the Alternians never got very advanced in ground technology or general purpose things, even when they achieved space flight, such that, for example, when they had, in Mindfang’s time, working mechanical prosthesis, but still used sailing ships of the 18th century, such that, I imagine, during the setting of this AU, the Trolls have no steam power.

History

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In 1876 AD, during the Height of the Victorian Period, an English scientist working with electricity discovers a way to portal, through stationary ‘gates’ of a conductive metal, like copper, with a proper electrical current (Can’t decide how to explain this…), to what he terms an ‘Alternate Earth’. Though through it he can only see a barren wasteland, it is deemed extraordinary enough to gain an audience before Her Majesty Victoria, and her government.

The government asks for larger versions of this gate so as to send an expedition through to this ‘Alternate Earth’, which is soon dubbed ‘Alternia’. The expedition, consisting of not more than 100 men of the British army and some civilian scholars with them, encounter the Troll civilization (that of Mindfang’s era in terms of technology, or even actually.)

Upon encountering a settlement of Trolls, the expedition is surprised by, and mobbed by them and killed but for five men, who manage to make it to the location of the portal at the established time, and report their actions to Her Majesty’s Government. This entire event being quite publicized by British press, the public is shocked and outraged, and demands recompense. The British Army is sent to extract by force payment for the British dead. After a short victorious war, the British conquer some small part of Alternia in the name of the Crown, from which they in the future shall expand.

The other Great Powers (Austria-Hungary, France, Russia, and the newly formed German Empire), Hearing of this, engage in a race to find their own ways of portaling, seeing this discovery as another part of the ‘Great Game’ of imperialism, and carve out from the trolls, their own lands there.

The Trolls of course are shocked to discover these strange pale creatures with their frightening weapons, and insultingly red uniforms, not only invading, but very thoroughly beating their armies, previously seeming so invincible, at every turn. The lower classes see this as an opportunity for revolt amongst the less faithful, while most of the aristocrats flee away from invading armies towards what remains of the old Alternian Empire.

The Powers That Be

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Each of these Great Powers has a different way of governing.

Great Britain
The British rule with an even hand, only getting themselves dirty with military campaigns in emergencies. They integrate some elements of society; they offer remaining aristocrats local peerages and titles to be passed through their signs, though only the more opportunistic, or liberally minded accept, and recruit local colonial regiments of volunteers (Alternian Fusiliers, Lancers, etc.), though they, like other native levies, can be less then reliable at times. A Troll under the British flag can expect a decent life, and perhaps even an English education for the more fortunate. Most blood based class designations have been removed, save for the British made titled aristocracy mentioned before.

France
The French maintain their colonies for little more than prestige, and, aside from patrols around the main cities, are mostly nonexistent save for when a rebellion happens. They do recruit Alternian Volunteers, but only as part of the Foreign Legion. France being a republic, all hemospectral divides are dissolved.

Austria-Hungary
Though the Austrians were never very active on the colonial side of things, they chose to take advantage of the nature of portaling to establish themselves on Alternia, requiring no ports to do so, unlike with other colonial areas. The Austrians, though having and autocratic state, rule their Alternian possessions much like any other Habsburg dominion, and use local troops to fight in the area. The Austrians were also the most prolific at funding missionaries of various Catholic orders, the Habsburgs being themselves famously pious.

Germany
Germany is the most recent player on the Imperial stage, having arisen just 6 years before the discovery of Alternia, and they are also the most militarized, being mostly dominated by old Prussian ideology. German areas are often the most strictly controlled, but also have the most local recruitment in terms of native levies into the main body of the army.

Russia
Russia is perhaps the state most similar to the old Alternian Empire: a centralized, Autocratic monarchy whose rule of law is based upon the sword, rather than the pen. The Russians have organized the Trolls into a native government, not unlike a Cossack host, to be raised in war time to the service of ‘Holy Mother Russia’, and dissolved thereafter, such that the Russians mostly leave the Trolls to themselves, so a decent cross-section of old Alternian society still exists in Russian Alternia, simply with Tsar replacing Empress at the top.

Spain
Having lost their empire in the Americas, the Spaniards seek some kind of comeback. Although their colony is one of the smallest, they are backed by their more opportunistic use of their faith as well as support from the Vatican. The idea of "Troll Jegus" meshes well behind the closed doors of the Conclaves, and perhaps a certain forgotten cult might find refuge under the wings of the Reconquista.

The old Alternian Empire still exists, having been pushed back (presumably over an ocean from the European areas, though I haven’t got a map to tell from), and now lies at a crossroads: it must reform, or die.

Piracy remains a large problem in the seas of Alternia, though the British do have some naval elements in the area.

The Cast

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Trolls:

Karkat:
British Infantryman

Tavros:
British Lancer (Cavalry)

Sollux:
Austrian Light Infantry

Equius:
Prussian Hussar

Eridan:
Feferi's fish-feeder... still.

Gamzee:
Weird clown-cult tribe thing (Subjuggulators)

Feferi:
Crown Princess (or whatever) of the remnant Alternian Empire (still wish I had a map for these things)

Rest: To Be Determined

Humans:

To Be Determined Also

Additional Ideas?

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by Ra Zarudo - I also proposed the idea of a double portal reacharound, in which trolls start arriving on Earth. Low-to-middle-bloods start immigrating to the United States of America (and end up suffering like minorities were treated in the 1880s) while the more high-blooded Condesce loyalists form a secret alliance with Imperial China to boot out the foreigners from their respective lands.

Right now I'd prefer to develop the Alternia side of things before we continue.

ART:

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by LadydeLuxembourg

[pasturPasturevich]

Just posting to show my assent as well as to say that some of this is still subject to change as needed, and that feedback is appreciated, especially that which is sent to me via PM.

[LadydeLuxembourg]

Oh hey!
You posted my silly doodle.
Hopefully I'll have more serious art to post soon, but for now have this silly thing colored.

[Ra Zarudo]

Updated the art section.

Also trying to figure out how the redcoats would be able to drive the Battleship Condescension back. Perhaps taking on the guerrilla tactics of those damned Colonials from back in the day?

[pasturPasturevich]

You see, I intended this to take place at a time roughly equivalent with that of Mindfang's journal, rather than the current era of things, thus no interstellar empire to deal with.

[Ra Zarudo]

Ah, pre-Revolution, before the Condesce banished all adult trolls.

And when you have trolls eventually forced to choose between one Empire and another, things get interesting.

[LadydeLuxembourg]

Aloha!
More art! This time less silly!
Actually, it's still silly - it just has referenced uniforms and rifles this time. : )



Enjoy - the only British infantryman ever to have eyes that match his uniform.

[pasturPasturevich]

Since this does need a bit of direction, and since LdL and I had decided on it in person before, the characters do/will have places we think they are in universe.
Note that we have only come up with positions for a few of the characters, so this list will have to be updated as we come up with ideas.
The list so far (in no particular order) :

Trolls:

Karkat:
British Infantryman

Tavros:
British Lancer (Cavalry)

Sollux:
Austrian Light Infantry

Equius:
Prussian Hussar

Eridan:
Feferi's fish-feeder... still.

Gamzee:
Weird clown-cult tribe thing (Subjuggulators)

Feferi:
Crown Princess (or whatever) of the remnant Alternian Empire (still wish I had a map for these things)

Rest: To Be Determined

Humans:

To Be Determined Also

If you would be so kind as to add this to the top post, Ra Zarudo.

I would like to ask actually, that a map be made for reference's sake, with the colonial holdings of the Great Powers, and the Remnants shown, were it possible.

[Ra Zarudo]

Done and done.

Eridan - Dreams of being part of the Royal Navvy.
Vriska - Taking her FLARP dreams to the next level, she adopts the mantle of Mindfang for reals.
Gamzee - Cossack. hOnK hOnK cOmRaDe!

Human Ideas:
The Prospit kids are essentially immigrating from the old world, looking for BRAEV NEW FRONTEERS.
Jake (as Grandpa Harley?) and Jade - Attracted by the lure of new species to hunt and flora to collect, respectively, the Islander siblings have arrived on Alternia to mount expeditions into the wilderness. Jade being Asian/half-Asian - my headcanon Jade for some reason is Hawaiian - could provide an interesting twist for trolls who've only seen the Europeans. Also had the idea that she could be Jake's servant girl if we're not going with Grandpa Harley.

John Egbert - A travelling performer and prankster from some inner city in the Western United States looking to explore BRAEV NEW HORIZONS and perhaps find an audience where his acts in the Wild West fell flat. His father has tagged along, presumably to make sure his son has arms to come crying back into when he eventually does fail. Obligatory 90s movie influence could be An American Tale.

Jane Crocker - A prim and proper girl from New England (or just England proper) looking for a way out of a surefire path to finishing school and homemaking, she heads to New Alternia as part of, say, Scotland Yard or something. Or to start a catering business. Although she is a master of concocting the finest in baked goods, she also has a penchant for English mystery and starts solving crimes in her spare time.

Not sure what the Dersite kids would be there for. Rose, perhaps, to find a new environment for which to pen a masterpiece. Dirk/Bro might be a hired mercenary trained in "some devilish Eastern martial art" that the empires may use to perform assassinations, in the guise of some traveling ventriloquist.

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also for some reason I want to try running the VictoriaBent Earth section, with ancestor "parallel" characters.

[pasturPasturevich]

Ideas for the kids sound fine, as do Gamzee and Vriska (Who I figured would be a privateer, for legal purposes, and then just do whatever she felt like doing), Eridan, I figured would eventually become the heavily overdressed Grand Marshal-Admiral (other grandiose titles may apply) of Fef's reformed empire.

[LadydeLuxembourg]

I like the idea of Rose as a traveling anthropologist/writer.
And I thought we were going with a Zulu inspiration for Gamzee?
I really wanted to draw that.

Here, have art.

[Ra Zarudo]

I wasn't privy to any ideas for Gamzee at the point, so yeah, I think we could go for it. Perhaps one of the colonial powers constantly keeps him...opiated in order to keep him from going on a rampage.

Anyhoo, more human ideas:

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Jacob "Jake" English and Jade Harley
Born and raised in an island manor off the cost of Ceylon, the Islander siblings are no stranger to adventure. Hearing of a new world, they board a freighter to Alternia and set off in search of new adventure (and heads for their walls). Although Jade is formally Jake's family indentured servant and his "gun-carrier," the fact that they have grown up so close have resulted in them forming a more brother-sister bond.

Rose Lalonde
Rose is an acclaimed fantasy novelist with a penchant for - and a collection of - the delightfully macabre, and the daughter of one of Europe's more flamboyant and inebriated socialites. Nevertheless, the two have learned to take care of each other through all kinds of frustration as Roxy seeks new "fancy event" opportunities, and Rose seeks an environment to pen the first human-written Great Alternian Novel.

David "Dave" Strider
An albino orphan trained in some "devilish" eastern art with his elder brother Dirk. Together they journeyed across the Old World under the guise of traveling ventriloquists, and performing assassinations for those willing to pay more than pocket change. At least until the elder Strider was killed in an attempt gone awry. He absconded and stowed away on a freighter to New Alternia to escape the wrath of his target, and hopes to start anew with the skills he already has.

Although he already has a sizable clientele with the competing imperial possessions, he also has a performance friend in John Egbert, who remains oblivious to Dave's true trade. Still, perhaps the two could learn from each other.

[pasturPasturevich]

The kids sound nice, but the plan with having weird shamanistic tribal types was to have a Zulu War in the cards, or at least some kind of rebellion.

[Ra Zarudo]

Ah. Perhaps the Subjugglators were the last great force of the Empire - one that very nearly held the colonials back with their unpredictable yet brutal tactics. We could have Gamzee end up being the "test subject" of either some mad scientist or some high-minded evangelist that thinks "civilizing" one of them would be his greatest challenge yet.

Inspiration partially provided from The Loaded Key, where Gamzee's dad is apparently a bishop.

[pasturPasturevich]

The point of making the comparisons to the Zulus was that having Gamzee among an equivalent group would set up an event in the time-line that could be explored by a willing writer from his viewpoint. Furthermore, I intend this to be a bit more on the Historical Fiction side, rather than the Gothic Novel side

[LadydeLuxembourg]

Yeehah!
New art!
Grand Marshal Ampora, in all his finery:

[pasturPasturevich]

I had wanted to wait with this until the timeline was actually finished first, but I wouldn't want this thread to die completely, so here is the timeline until 1883

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New additions to our material:
Timeline
In the interests of having a generally more structured scenario, I’ve decided to start building a proper timeline, seen below.


Original post (1876)
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Invasions by Great Powers (and Spain) 1876-1882
Britain (1876-79)
Germany (1876-7
Austria (1877-81)
Russia (1877-82)
France (1876-79)
Spain (1878-79)
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1876
Aristocrats flee occupied territories
Armies raised by Alternian Empire to combat invasions
Alternian armies defeated in series of battles by Germany and Britain
Germans soldiers begin sacking of towns and villages
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1877
Invading powers seize large areas on western continent
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1878
Papal Bull released concerning the Sufferer’s Cult
Spain and Austria begin sending missionaries formally
Germany ousts Alternians from its present territories, begins building a fleet base. Native soldiery established, made subordinate to German formations
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1879
Other nations encourage missionary activities
Russia gains fealty from some groups of Trolls in occupied areas, uses them to great effect in fighting
British send embassy to AE to discuss peace, of which all save one are killed
Alternian forces expelled from present British territory, organized fighting ceases
French territory mostly secured, many local uprisings continue
Spanish territories also taken
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1880
Britain begins trying to integrate local aristocracy
Many countries begin to hire privateers for colonial patrols
British Parliament Passes the Alternian Territories Act, establishing native army regiments and police forces, as well as infrastructure projects, and declaring a capital of the British territories
The British begin to settle in Alternia
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1881
Austrians force AE out of their territories, Kaiser Franz Joseph assumes local titles. Austrians form local regiments
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1882
Russians establish control over their lands; establish the “Great Alternian Host”, Left mostly to local command
AE DRIVEN OUT OF WESTERN CONTINENT, PEACE MADE IN CONFERENCE AT VIENNA
Territorial borders established and capitals made or declared, along with limited trade agreements between invading powers and AE
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And the rest of the characters that I have imagined will be used:

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Remaining characters:
Aradia: Traveling assistant of Jade
Kanaya: Working with Spanish Jesuit missionaries
Terezi: Agent on the part of the Alternian Empire
Vriska: Self-serving privateer
Nepata: Still living in a cave


John: Travelling showman (?)
Grandpa / Jake: Archeologist, studying the mysterious cultures of uncivilized lands, and hunting their big game as a pastime.
Jade: Traveling with Grandpa
Dave and Bro / Dirk: Upper class t/wits
Rose: An American novelist on sabbatical

Here's hoping this thread actually gets posts from more than we three AUsqetaires

[monochromE]

Sadly, i have no ideas to add upon this already grand idea. Perhaps if i can spare the time someday, ill draw a bit for ya baised off this. Its pretty good! ^ _^

.

[pasturPasturevich]

Any art of decent quality is most certainly appreciated!

[pasturPasturevich]

Indeed, any art at all, at this point :/

[pasturPasturevich]

Working now on more of the time-line.
Sorry work hasn't been done for some time, I have been busy with school work.

[OkamiMasuta]

This appeals to me. It's Homestuck Historical Science-Fiction with a pinch of Steampunk. What else could someone ask for?

[pasturPasturevich]

Perhaps more content?
In any case, in the coming days, I hope to have the rest of the timeline.
At which point, with all of my main ideas as to the dispositions of characters,
their locations, what's going on, etc., I would hope people might want to
contribute some work, seeing as I have personally, vy little writing ability.

[Mew]

Aaaa I'm a total sucker for Victorian and Regency AUs. For some reason I really dig Jane, I really would love to draw her or see her done. And Eridan just fits perfectly?? Yeah.