New Reality Seeds

[AlexanderHowl]

Tarantian-3

When Homeline discovered Tarantian-3 twenty years ago, they thought that they had found another uninhabited parallel because of the lack of anthropogenic pollutants in the atmosphere (though with an unusually early date based off the astronomical data). They sent a team to make sure that it was safe for colonization and exploitation since the local year was around 48,000 BC. It was when they lost contact with the first in team a day later that they started realizing that something was wrong.

In Tarantian-3, the Earth is a biological preserve for the six major subspecies of Homo (and a dozen minor subspecies of Homo) that extirpated the vast majority of their populations from the Earth around 500 years ago for orbital habitats when they achieved a TL (0+10) biological civilization (leaving a global caretaker population of only 100 million sapients). Of the major subspecies, the Neanderthal came from Europe, the Denisovans came from Asia, the Idaltu rule Africa while three subspecies unknown to Homeline came from Australia, North American, and South America (respectively Australis, N. Americanus, and S. Americanus). Biologists from the N. Americanus subspecies noticed an illegal camp in the North America continent when they looked at images from their orbital satellites and sent a security team to apprehend the criminals.

The security team was shocked when they found members of an unknown subspecies of Homo at the camp. They immediately disabled them and sent them (and their artifacts) to one of the few biological research facility on the eastern coast of North America. When a second larger team arrived from Homeline a week later to see what had happened to the first team, they were likewise disabled and sent them (and their artifacts) to the biological research facility.

While the prisoners from Homeline were treated with surprising kindness, it took six months before they were able to launch an escape from the research facility. When they returned to Homeline, Infinity discovered that they were allowed to escape because there was message (in English) for Infinity from the Alliance of the Sol System. It thanked Infinity for the technological samples and offered to open diplomatic relations with Homeline. Infinity kept the message secret from the UN, sent the agents who were involved to Coventry, and buried the information about Tarantian-3. Since then, Infinity has noticed astronomical anomalies in hundred of timelines, though only the highest ranked officials in Infinity know enough about Tarantian-3 to be worried that the anomalies might represent paratronic capable spacecraft from Tarantian-3 exploring the timelines.

[malloyd]

Originally Posted by Ransom

It seems more in keeping with the intent of this worldline to have the curse ignore genetics and simply cause the only fertile couples to be those considered "interracial" by their society, and those descended from such couples recently enough to be considered "biracial".

I dunno, the intent seems to be to promote interracial families as a good thing. If you can spin this as genetic somehow it's at least possible for some people in the setting to believe that - maybe this is a natural process of some sort. If it's operating on social labels alone, it becomes really clear it involves supernatural intervention of an Evil sort (it's inflicting a curse on innocent people!) which pretty much clinches the case that interracial breeding is Evil, or at least preferred by the forces of Hell.

[PTTG]

Here's one for you. This worldline diverged thanks to a chain of critical mistakes in the US nuclear program before 1942. The exact details of the mistakes aren't important, but suffice it to say that the researchers dangerously underestimated the energy levels involved in nuclear power, and the promptness of the reaction. Chicago Pile-1 was dramatically different and was assembled in a different way, with the fuel inserted into different arrangement abruptly, rather than being assembled piecemeal.

The result was intense radiation in the immediate area of the pile and a great deal more heat than was expected. Before a response could be brought to bear, a radioactive fire had already started not far from downtown Chicago.

Even given this worst-case scenario, the US was not materially harmed, but the nuclear program was effectively shut down for the remainder of the war. And that's going to have some serious effects in the coming years...

[mr beer]

Originally Posted by PTTG

Even given this worst-case scenario, the US was not materially harmed, but the nuclear program was effectively shut down for the remainder of the war.

Interesting. Did the US have to storm the Home Islands? Did the USSR attack Japan and seize territory?

Post-war, who was first to develop nukes?

[malloyd]

Originally Posted by mr beer

Interesting. Did the US have to storm the Home Islands? Did the USSR attack Japan and seize territory?

Likely not. Despite the American version of the story that avoiding this was what made nuclear bombing necessary, the Japanese had in fact been trying to interest the US in surrender negotiations (via contacts through the Holy See, Switzerland, Portugal and Russia) for months. In January they were insisting on retaining the Home Islands, but by May even that demand had been dropped and they asked only that the Emperor not be tried as a war criminal and allowed to remain as a religious figurehead as a bulwark against Communism. The US refused to consider anything but "unconditional surrender", but you'll note that once they got it the Emperor wasn't deposed, nor for that matter were any of the Home Islands taken away or surrendered to the Communists.

Post-war, who was first to develop nukes?

If the failures were sufficiently discouraging, potentially nobody, but realistically if it happens in the next decade or so it'll be the Americans or the British. The Soviet program really needed intelligence leaked from there to pull it off as early as they did. If nuclear research isn't totally killed then by 1960 or so it becomes a plausible goal for anybody with a major power's scientific and engineering infrastructure, but still an *expensive* one - so who thinks they need it? Probably still the US, UK or the Soviets, but who knows, maybe Japan rearming for a rematch?

[Phil Masters]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

Tarantian-3

When Homeline discovered Tarantian-3 twenty years ago, they thought that they had found another uninhabited parallel because of the lack of anthropogenic pollutants in the atmosphere (though with an unusually early date based off the astronomical data). They sent a team to make sure that it was safe for colonization and exploitation since the local year was around 48,000 BC.

Surely that data would be consistent with a more or less close parallel at that date? You’re not going to get significant anthropogenic pollutants from a population of a few hundred thousand or million stone age hominids. In which case, you don’t talk colonisation yet; you check out the expected human population centres, and prepare to tag it as a hands-off low-risk timeline with licensed visits by anthropologists.

Infinity kept the message secret from the UN, sent the agents who were involved to Coventry, and buried the information about Tarantian-3.

Ah, an “Infinity being arrogant idiots” plot. Several developments are possible here, but many of them will require further action and may come to the attention of non-Infinity groups. So there’s an excellent chance that the gratuitous secrecy and gross maltreatment of innocent, loyal agents will cone out. At which point, you’re in the middle of a totally avoidable class 1 scandal.

[AlexanderHowl]

Well, North America and South America were technically uninhabited in 48,000 BC (even the proponents for early colonization usually think that it did not happen before 45,000 BC), so it would be suitable for colonization and exploitation. An anthropogenic emissions test is a simple and straightforward way to check for any technology and especially advanced technology (as even Bronze Age civilizations develop detectable levels of emissions, and you get more emissions from more advanced civilizations). If they had detected TL5 emissions, for example, they would have been more careful. The problem is that they ran into a biological civilization that left the Earth, so they had no idea what they were running into.

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by Phil Masters

Ah, an “Infinity being arrogant idiots” plot. Several developments are possible here, but many of them will require further action and may come to the attention of non-Infinity groups. So there’s an excellent chance that the gratuitous secrecy and gross maltreatment of innocent, loyal agents will cone out. At which point, you’re in the middle of a totally avoidable class 1 scandal.

It doesn't make sense of course. There are much more frightening things that Infinity has encountered and not reacted that way.

[Astromancer]

Try this idea, a group of interlopers from a parallel outside of the normal Quantum system think they've traveled back in time to the 1930s. They've really landed a Q6 parallel in January of the local year 1937. They go to FDR and explain the events of the future (or what they think of as the future to him) and they offer him large amounts of TL10 aid. They come from a world were democracy was rubbed out and oligarchic plutocratic tyranny was the normal order of the day. They want to remake the world as a better freer New Deal USA.

Centrum sees them as escapees from a final war (not so far off) and feels they are doing something good. Besides they hope to steal advanced tech as it becomes public. The Cabal, not particularly into tech, still sees a shot at profit and advantage. Many Swagmen see a chance to scam good tech. Homeline sees a possible mess they might get hurt by.

Within this parallel, many southern congressmen dislike these Futuremen who talk of the need to get beyond racism for the good of the country. Even those willing to believe these people are telling the truth are too committed to the "Southern Way of Life," to easily accept change. Many others in America also fear the coming transformations.

Much of the rest of the world also dislikes the FUTURMEN! Britain and France resent that the USA is picked as the champion of democracy, and that colonialism is seem as a disease. The USSR is bitter that they weren't picked as the only true future! Germany, Italy, Spain, and Japan, all seethe with rage that they are openly dismissed as moral failures.

The transformations of American society and industry as they skip tech levels and embrace biotech and cyber-tech both terrify and enthrall the world. It's 1939 and FDR has announced the lunch of the world's first orbital satellite. It will be used to help predict the weather and search for minerals and other resources.

Does Homeline allow this parallel to become a wild card of terrifying proportions, or do they try to aid America's foes to bring her down? No good choices here.

[AlexanderHowl]

Roosevelt-5

Roosevelt-5 is a Q5 time line where President Roosevelt allowed significantly more Jews to immigrate to the USA before WW II in order to the facilitate capital flows into the USA. With a more open USA, ninety percent of the Jews in Western and Southern Europe (as well as significant numbers of Jews in the rst of Europe) immigrated to the USA before 1939 as they witnessed in horror the treatment of Jews in Germany. With a total immigration of 4.5 million Jews in six years and tens of billions of capital flows from Europe to the USA, the additional funds allowed the USA to pull out of the Great Depression by 1936.

German Jews took advantage of the openness of the USA by illegally smuggling billions of dollars of assets out of Germany. By the time that the Nazis attempted to nationalize Jewish assets in 1938, the vast majority of German Jews had already escaped with their wealth without the Nazis being aware of the deception. Without the wealth from the German Jews, the Nazis government went bankrupt towards the end of 1938 and the German military turned against the Nazis in 1939.

Without the hindrance of the Nazis Party, the German Junta waged a frighteningly effective conquest of Europe. While the German Junta did ally with Italy, it did not ally with Japan, as it felt that the Japanese had nothing to give to the German Junta. The German Junta avoided war with the USA and ended up conquering France, Britain, and Russia by 1945. In is now 1955 and the technocratic German junta dominates Europe, North Asia, North Africa, Central Asia, and Southwest Asia (the USA helped the European colonies outside those regions gain their independence before the German Junta could consolidate power after Japan surrendered in 1943). The Cold War is between Germany and the USA, with the two major powers racing towards space.