Never before has The Engine felt the threat of humanity in the way it does currently. For centuries it has remained hidden, working its plans and moulding the world to become the one it perceives to be the best. Since the rise of Alchemancy and the Node’s discovery,
The Engine has had to defend itself and has called its Servants to its side.
The Servants of The Engine, lead by Nouveau, are determined to foil the plans of the Dickensians and keep the great power of The Engine safe from misuse - or at least what it sees as misuse. This is not to suggest there is not some division in the Servants Faction. The strict control The Engine wishes to impose on those that work for it rankles with some of its defenders. Gretel and Nightingale in particular rail against The List - which is slowly driving Launcelot insane - and they see Nouveau as cold and without concern for those he leads.
They know, however, that should Bill Psyches and Nancy gain control of the Node the results will be terrifying, so they are willing to work under Nouveau’s command for the moment until the threat is passed.
The Servants of The Engine as a Faction consist of quite powerful and rather expensive Characters. Each has a special focus and they operate best when in support of one another.
The Gentlefolk who make up the fighting force of the Servants are much more costly than the Urkin and, being Mechanical (and therefore expensive!), are much less expendable. Each of them is much more capable than an Urkin though and, when used wisely, can turn a skirmish in the Servants favour.
A Servants Company is often outnumbered so careful use of the valuable Characters must be paramount. Every loss will count and management of your resources will be important lest you become swamped in a sea of rampaging Urkin. Time your strike right, however, and your opponent will have a hard time managing the power of the Servants of The Engine.
Who are the Gentlefolk? Are they just mindless automatons animated by Alchemancy, or has the mysterious power of the Engine caused them to become self-aware and capable of independent thought?
If the pervasive power of the Engine has animated these mechanical servants, then the real question is what influence it holds over their newly-found consciousness. Though the Gentlefolk have broken the shackles of servitude and now seem independent, are they truly in control of their own thoughts or mere cogs in the Engine's greater plan?
Even if the power of the Engine compelled the Gentlefolk's minds to awaken, one can hardly blame them for taking their newfound independence with both hands after years of hard labour and mistreatment. But do they have control over their own actions, or have they merely traded one master for another more insidious one: the Engine?
