GURPS divergent technology ideas

[Crzyraccoon]

So I'm running a TL8 platformer inspired horror campaign (and yes, you read that correctly) and its going to have three nations, each are TL8 but two of them are divergented in technology. The TL8 nation is much like ours where they reached a new digital age, the second is a TL7+1 where they went off to the discover of cosmic technology that allows them fast transports, powerful batteries, power supply and gravity technology, but the third am thinking going off at TL6+2 but not sure what am getting at. I want them all to be TL8 but all different as part of making them all unique.

I'd did some research and only found Steampunk at TL5+1, dieselpunk at TL6+1 and Magic tech at TL4+4.

If you made any divergent at your own then do tell.

[Randyman]

There's this: http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=125391

Here's another: http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=29514

And a more generic discussion of the whole *punk aspect here: http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=95071

Hope this helps.

[whswhs]

Big markers of TL7:

reliance on atomic energy to do amazing stuff
huge central computers and no networks
solid state electronics, largely based on germanium
vaccines and antibiotics as key to medicine
jets for transport, and speculation about rocketry

So you might look at Project Orion and von Braun's proposal for a Mars mission. There are early speculations about connecting human beings to computers, but the computers are purely external, and huge, and there's no cyberspace. Regular use of computers is going to involve arcane codes; there won't be much distinction between "programmer" and "user." There's a high level of optimism about the power of computers to predict complex systems such as weather and markets.

[Fred Brackin]

Originally Posted by whswhs

. Regular use of computers is going to involve arcane codes; .

Also highly specific physical Skills like key punch machine operator. That might make up the bulk of Computer Use TL7 or it might actually be a separate Skill.

Back in the mid 70s vocational schools listed key punch operator as its' own field of training.

[whswhs]

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

Also highly specific physical Skills like key punch machine operator. That might make up the bulk of Computer Use TL7 or it might actually be a separate Skill.

I'd probably call it either its own professional skill or a specialization of Typing. But it might default to Computer Use the way Typing defaults to various skills; my recollection is that a computer operator had some need to prepare and input commands from time to time. On the other hand, you don't need to know anything about how a computer works to punch cards.

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by whswhs

I'd probably call it either its own professional skill or a specialization of Typing.

A familiarity of Typing, I think. Edit: making it sound like a separate career may well have been trying to make it more attractive: typists weren't high-status.

When I used key-punch equipment as a student (1981-3, the university mainframe was old-fashioned by the standards of the time, but had an Algol 68 compiler), I could already type pretty well, and learning the punch was just a matter of which way up to put the cards in.

The job was made much easier for the punch operator by the use of proper coding forms, which pressed the programmer to write clearly. Programming students who could type well would often do their own punching, and they would all do that when just a few cards needed changing.

But it might default to Computer Use the way Typing defaults to various skills

It should, I think.

my recollection is that a computer operator had some need to prepare and input commands from time to time.

Yes, although they would have a stash of small decks for things they often needed to do. I've never been a TL7 computer operator, but my impression was that the job wasn't terribly hard, but the skill of a good operator was in doing things consistently correctly, and being very alert to equipment malfunctions.

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by Crzyraccoon

going off at TL6+2 but not sure what am getting at.

A TL6+2 would feature marvellous mechanical gear-trains in lots of things. Piston engines with supersonic propellers, vacuum-tube analogue electronics, and high-quality optical equipment that still needed human operators. OK, I think I can make "sense" of this.

Let's rough out a major warship: a hybrid battleship-carrier, powered by steam turbines. The guns would be superguns with multiple charges, with ranges of 50+miles; the aircraft would be fast light spotters for the gunfire, not capable of carrying heavy bombs, plus fighters to keep enemy spotters out of line of sight. The smaller escorts would be high-speed submarines, who would submerge in battle to avoid gunfire, and to fight enemy submarines.

[RogerBW]

Those escorts might be Surcouf-style undersea cruisers, intended for surface combat, with guns that could take on cruiser-class targets (8"-10") as close-in protection for the big ship against light enemy combatants. Fix the diving speed and stability problems, obviously.

[Crzyraccoon]

Originally Posted by Randyman

There's this: http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=125391

Here's another: http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=29514

And a more generic discussion of the whole *punk aspect here: http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=95071

Hope this helps.

Originally Posted by whswhs

Big markers of TL7:

reliance on atomic energy to do amazing stuff
huge central computers and no networks
solid state electronics, largely based on germanium
vaccines and antibiotics as key to medicine
jets for transport, and speculation about rocketry

So you might look at Project Orion and von Braun's proposal for a Mars mission. There are early speculations about connecting human beings to computers, but the computers are purely external, and huge, and there's no cyberspace. Regular use of computers is going to involve arcane codes; there won't be much distinction between "programmer" and "user." There's a high level of optimism about the power of computers to predict complex systems such as weather and markets.

Originally Posted by johndallman

A TL6+2 would feature marvellous mechanical gear-trains in lots of things. Piston engines with supersonic propellers, vacuum-tube analogue electronics, and high-quality optical equipment that still needed human operators. OK, I think I can make "sense" of this.

Let's rough out a major warship: a hybrid battleship-carrier, powered by steam turbines. The guns would be superguns with multiple charges, with ranges of 50+miles; the aircraft would be fast light spotters for the gunfire, not capable of carrying heavy bombs, plus fighters to keep enemy spotters out of line of sight. The smaller escorts would be high-speed submarines, who would submerge in battle to avoid gunfire, and to fight enemy submarines.

Those are helpful, I actually have the thought of atomicpunk or atompunk, I would suggest it to be TL7+1, maybe i'll change the TL8 nation to a TL7+1 atompunk.

As for the other, i'm inspired by the game Jak and Daxter (which I really to beat but that Jak 2 is nintendo hard) with its eco technology, I would imaged them as TL6+3, I would think that there would be some splits but they all seem to run at TL9 effectiveness, there is a lack of standard of living and medical science but I think that just the government opression, not lack of technological knowledge, especally that there are health crates that heal instantly.

[ericthered]

Originally Posted by johndallman

A TL6+2 would feature marvellous mechanical gear-trains in lots of things. Piston engines with supersonic propellers, vacuum-tube analogue electronics, and high-quality optical equipment that still needed human operators. OK, I think I can make "sense" of this.

Let's rough out a major warship: a hybrid battleship-carrier, powered by steam turbines. The guns would be superguns with multiple charges, with ranges of 50+miles; the aircraft would be fast light spotters for the gunfire, not capable of carrying heavy bombs, plus fighters to keep enemy spotters out of line of sight. The smaller escorts would be high-speed submarines, who would submerge in battle to avoid gunfire, and to fight enemy submarines.

Originally Posted by RogerBW

Those escorts might be Surcouf-style undersea cruisers, intended for surface combat, with guns that could take on cruiser-class targets (8"-10") as close-in protection for the big ship against light enemy combatants. Fix the diving speed and stability problems, obviously.

I like the image around the TL6+2.

For calculations these people probably have a number of specialized but fairly intuitive mechanical devices -- not as fast as electronics, but still really nice and convenient.

A few of my thoughts on the TL6+2 they should have better versions of the tech that advanced fastest during their time. Which means materials tech, power source tech, and so forth.