History Main / MagicPoweredPseudoScience

* Due to the way the backstory in ''TabletopGame/MageTheAscension'' is set up, ''all'' of the technology in the ''TabletopGame/OldWorldOfDarkness'' works like this, as "Reality Paradigms" [[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve basically run on the collective subconscious Consensus about how reality works]]. Also, before people began believing otherwise, the world really was flat and outer space didn't exist.

** Of course it's technically also true in this setting that magic is also ClarkesThirdLaw superscience. Mage is... [[MindScrew complicated]].

* Due to the way the backstory in ''TabletopGame/MageTheAscension'' is set up, ''all'' of the technology in the ''TabletopGame/OldWorldOfDarkness'' works like this, as "Reality Paradigms" [[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve basically run on the collective subconscious Consensus about how reality works]].

* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' settings that bothers to include any ''{{Magitek}}'' tend to play with this, one way or another.

** In ''TabletopGame/{{Ravenloft}}'', the {{Mad Scientist}}s believe the {{golem}}s that they craft are a product of science, but it's actually the Dark Powers that grant animation to these obsessives' creations. Likewise, while Victor Mordenheim is convinced he single-handedly created Adam, it's alleged that the gods of his native world are the ones who'd imbued the creature with true animation to spank Mordenheim for his hubris.

** The major difference between the Technocracy (the primary antagonstic faction) and the Sons of Ether (a {{Steampunk}}/{{Dieselpunk}}-themed player faction) is that the former try to lie to themselves about this not being the case, insisting that what they use is "merely [[ClarkesThirdLaw hyper-technology]]", whilst the latter accept that "science" and "magic" are really the same thing through different lenses. In fact, the Etherites originally began as a specific branch of the Technocracy, but left it after decisions amongst the higher-ups struck their particular branch of "science" from the Technocracy's Paradigm -- essentially, they complained that the Technocracy was "killing off all the cool science". The branch in particular was the luminiferous ether.
** The same follows the newest branch, the Virtual Adepts, whose magic is RewritingReality through magic coding. Originally known as the Difference Engineers, they left the Technocracy after they killed off one of their own (Alan Turing) and joined the Traditions. On the other hand, their style of "hacking reality" is the most like the Technocracy (in terms of structure according to some sources) though they are still RewritingReality in a way that defies the Technocracy's conventional science.

* The ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' RPG rules that the [[AllThereInTheManual 'superscience' found in the show (such as the Buffybot, the Trio's invisibility ray, Adam, Ted and so on) works like this and that people like Warren are essentially unwitting magical savants.]]

* Everything in the ''Franchise/DragonAge'' universe draws power from two magical sources: the Fade and Lyrium. Since Dwarves are cut off from the fade, Dwarven technology tends to be built entirely on Lyrium. Ancient Arlathan technology may have been powered by both.

* This is the premise of the occult tradition called Chaos Magick. The idea behind it is that mysticism works only because [[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve the individual practitioner believes in it]], and thus anything, from a traditional encounter with a demon to masturbate, given the correct amount of focus and a clear goal it's supposed to accomplish, can achieve a supernaturally-influenced outcome.

* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': It is suggested in the show's RPG that Warren's inventions (androids, mind control devices, etc.) only work because of the Hellmouth's power. Same for things like the chemical formula that turned the swim team into sea monsters, the bluebeard robot Ted, and the dead footballer revived by his brother as a Frankenstein.

* WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers has the Joy Can, which presents whoever goes in it with their greatest fantasy. There is a debate between Dr. Venture and Dr. Orpheus about whether it is magic or science, but ultimately Venture reveals that while he built it scientifically, it's PoweredByAForsakenChild, pretty much pushing it into this category.
* Downplayed by WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb, wherein the title duo have canonically supernatural luck, such that they can build improbable, but not quite impossible per their universe's rules, technology.

** In the ''Literature/{{Dragonlance}}'' setting, the [[OurGnomesAreWeirder tinker gnomes]] are racially cursed to be both [[ScienceRelatedMemeticDisorder insanely fixated on doing "science" experiments]] but [[BunglingInventor incapable of doing science sensibly]]. As such, any gadgets or gizmos they produce that work often do so because they are inadvertently incorporating magical items. The race lives in strict denial of this truth, as [[MagicVersusScience they are firm advocates of the idea that science is superior to sorcery]], despite their complete inability to prove it. In 3rd edition when the race gained [[SquareRaceRoundClass the ability to take magic-using classes anyway]], it was explained that gnomish mages are either trying to find a way to "prove" magic is a form of technology, seeking to find a way to reverse-engineer magic so that their technology can emulate it, or in strict denial of the fact that their "successful technology" is actually magical items and spells.

* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': It is suggested in the show's RPG that Warren's inventions (androids, mind control devices, etc.) only work because of the Hellmouth's power. Same for things like the chemical formula that turned the swim team into sea monsters, the bluebeard robot Ted, and the dead footballer revived by his brother as a Frankenstein's monster.

* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': It is suggested in the show's RPG that Warren's inventions (androids, mind control devices, etc.) only work because of the Hellmouth's power.

* ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'': Tedd invented a {{Magitek}} glove to allow him to create magical watches that contain spells, making them basically small and compact {{Magic Wand}}s. He is later informed that the glove is mostly ornamental--while the glove allows him to store data and create wands with more precision than would normally be possible, he's doing the vast majority of the heavy lifting himself, and the glove won't work for anyone else. He's very disappointed, since he was proud of his invention.
-->'''Tedd:''' I should have known something was wrong when it worked on the first try.

** The major difference between the Technocracy (the primary antagonstic faction) and the Sons of Ether (a {{Steampunk}}/{{Dieselpunk}}-themed player faction) is that the former try to lie to themselves about this not being the case, insisting that what they use is "merely [[ClarkesThirdLaw hyper-technology]]", whilst the latter accept that "science" and "magic" are really the same thing through different lenses. In fact, the Etherites originally began as a specific branch of the Technocracy, but left it after decisions amongst the higher-ups struck their particular branch of "science" from the Technocracy's Paradigm -- essentially, they complained that the Technocracy was "killing off all the cool science". The branch in particular was the luminous ether.

** Many of the Orks' machines actually run on ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve, which only works [[AchievementsInIgnorance because they think they're functioning technologically, not psychically]]. When no Orcs are present, the machines stop working. Admittedly, this trait is ''heavily'' DependingOnTheWriter; some portray it in this fashion, others go for more of an "ork technology works fine on its own, but the psy-field corrects for any minor faults in the design" interpretation.

* In ''Literature/WildCards'', Jetman and several other Aces can invent wondrous machines that only work for them, because they're just an expression of their superhuman abilities. It's mentioned in one book that when researchers cracked open the choice device of a "tech Ace," they found only schematics and apple cores.
* Creator/AaronAllston's ''Literature/GalateaIn2D'' has artists that are able to magically pull items out of their paintings into the real world, but they find that they're no more able to reverse-engineer a science fictional raygun than they are a fantastical magic wand. One artist mentions that trying to go a step removed doesn't work either - painting a super-genius to invent a real-world cure for cancer would result in him producing magical elixiers that were merely dressed up in the trappings of science.

* Cranston in the ''Literature/{{Temps}}'' shared universe. Responsible for cloning the Marcias; an experiment that was later found to be completely impossible from the word go:

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