I just started a new campaign and a rumor that the players caught was that there is a dark and sinister evil rising in the east. It’s got all the spell casters in a tizzy.

Now, there is already a sect of anti-magic paladins and clerics, and they are a bane to spell casters, but this thing even tops that. (Yes, I’m a dick to spell casters, but this is exactly what my players like. They want to face adversity and discrimination.)

I had been thinking about a rise in technology (i.e. gun powder, steam engines) that would make spell casters feel obsolete. But I’m not sure if that’s enough of a threat.

EDIT: I wanted to make this “evil” not actually be evil, but a perceived threat to casters.