DIES THE FIRE & the sequel THE PROTECTOR'S WAR by S.M. Sterling

Alternate history Sci. Fi. : Suddenly one day all technology ceases to work including some chemical reactions making firearms / gun powder incapable of driving projectile. ( Godlike space aliens having their sadistic fun with us, maybe: Not an important part of the story but the pretext to set up the starting conditions of the story. )

What makes these two books special is that many of the survivors are history buffs, living history, WMA practitioners, jousters whose skills and knowledge of ancient weapons gives them an enormous advantage as their hobby fighting skills become real practical skills.

It's almost as if these novels were written with our interests and fantasies in mind: What would we do if tomorrow our ancient weapons skills made the different between death or survival.

Not only fighting skills but all primitive technology skills from farming to hunting / tracking, forging and arms and armour, and all basic craft skills are also valuable survival skills.

Don't want to give away any plot lines but the writing was very good, at least for me. :D

The first book begins when suddenly nothing works anymore and society collapses completely: The main characters have to cope with this and end up in various groups pooling their skills. The second book continues the story 9 years later as small communities have recreated various versions of Medieval culture, including nasty " Barons ", Highland type clans and even " Lord of the Rings " inspired Rangers. Too much good stuff and bad people to get into detail.

Oh, the weapons handling reads very " authentic " by the way as well as cavalry tactics etc ........

Just finished the second book and a third one, sequel, seems inevitable. ;) :lol:

That sounds a bit like Dune, where personal shields rendered firearms ineffective and bladed weapons were brought back into service as the only reliable method of close combat. Good books.

The plot sounds alot like that of, "Ariel: A Book of the Change" by Stephen Boyett, where all technology ceases and magic returns to the world. A very good book.

Ken

I guess the bummer is that those of us who use gas forges would be out of luck, too.


But at least if all that happened, my town fired department wouldn't be coming over to yell at me for running a coal forge.

:-) I guess there is an up-side after all!

Yeppers, in Ariel, the people who adapted the best were the SCA folks :D I think someone like yourself would become rather important rather quickly :D people were raiding museums for swords, the hero of the story had a katana he had picked up. A very good story.

Ken

I hope their swords are harmonically balanced.

Oh, just saw that the first book " Dies the Fire " is now in paperback. Got my copy awhile back in hardcover, couldn't wait for the paperback for the second book either.

Are Novels also available through the " myArmoury " bookstore ? ;) ;)

I have read the first book but not the second one yet. Too much school work. It was quite good, granted I would prefer that it go to something more like "Mad Max" so that my shotgun would still work :D (yes I know that's cheating :p ). Seriously though, it definitely got me thinking about solutions to more realistic situations that I may have to deal with in the near future (ex: hurricanes, drought, power outage, etc.) It also made me realize the value of all of the different skills and abilities that my friends and family have.

Alex

Shucks, I wish I'd thought of doing that. I didn't make a huge purchase (just got two DVD's), but I still would have liked it to help myArmoury.com. Now that I think about it, that proccess might have been explained when it was first setup, and I just forgot. Sorry.

-Grey

It's an appealing idea, but it wouldn't turn out that way. If society collapsed, it wouldn't be medieval hobbyists, martial arts and reenactors who came out on top... it would be the same kind of people who always come out on top when the rules break down. Criminals, cold-hearted killers, people who have no qualms taking whatever they want from others. How long does it really take to learn how to kill with a sword or other primitive weapon? And just because someone hits people with sticks on the weekends doesn't give them the mindset needed to actually take a life. All my Liechtenauer longsword training and/or prowess with the longbow will do no good when a gang of murderers closes in with bats and chains.