Technomancer Update

[Daivbear]

Hi. So, i am putting together a GURPS Technomancer game. And in doing so, rereading the original book, it is amazing to me that it was published only 10 years ago. So, what has changed?
Computers. The internet. Cell phones.
Fuel prices. The rise of alternate sources of fuel, both in the sense of getting more of the same kind, and exploring new kinds of fuel (would magically enhancing crop yields, plus advances in Alchemy, promote bio diesel as a source of energy for industrial enchantment?)
Power stones. Batteries have changed in the last ten years. Is it reasonable to assume power stones would follow a similar path?
Recycling has advanced considerably.

What else has changed in the last ten years?

[Mysterious Dark Lord v3.2]

Originally Posted by Daivbear

Fuel prices. The rise of alternate sources of fuel, both in the sense of getting more of the same kind, and exploring new kinds of fuel (would magically enhancing crop yields, plus advances in Alchemy, promote bio diesel as a source of energy for industrial enchantment?)

Actually, the oil economy is totally different in Merlin-1. They have mana engines. Oil and gas are minor, trivial things.

Recycling has advanced considerably.

Again, a magical world would have advanced along a different path.

What else has changed in the last ten years?

Homeland Security. Preemptive war.
Things that might not happen in Merlin-1. A major terrorist strike would alert literally hundreds of seers and wizards with precognition magic (a major industry). Thus the social climate that led to the formation of Homeland Security and waging preemptive wars would never occur.

[ravenfish]

Dude- preemptive wars are at least thousands of years old.

Electronics, though, have come a long way in ten years. Mananet, anyone?

[walkir]

Originally Posted by Mysterious Dark Lord v3.2

A major terrorist strike would alert literally hundreds of seers and wizards with precognition magic (a major industry). Thus the social climate that led to the formation of Homeland Security and waging preemptive wars would never occur.

Well, Homeland Security would just be precrime.

[sn0wball]

Originally Posted by Mysterious Dark Lord v3.2

. A major terrorist strike would alert literally hundreds of seers and wizards with precognition magic (a major industry). Thus the social climate that led to the formation of Homeland Security and waging preemptive wars would never occur.

From an ingame view this sounds possible. On the other, from the meta-gamign angle, the world of Technomancer mimicks most world-wide events of our Timeline, although with a twist. Therefore something like the WTC attack and its aftermath - Afghanistan war, Iraq war, Security scare, is certainly possible. For example, the terrroists might have developed some kind of countermagic which allows them to bypass conventional precognition. I guess somehting like that will scare the inhabitants of Merlin.

[Fred Brackin]

Originally Posted by Daivbear

Fuel prices. The rise of alternate sources of fuel, both in the sense of getting more of the same kind, and exploring new kinds of fuel (would magically enhancing crop yields, plus advances in Alchemy, promote bio diesel as a source of energy for industrial enchantment?)
Power stones. Batteries have changed in the last ten years. Is it reasonable to assume power stones would follow a similar path?
Recycling has advanced considerably.

What else has changed in the last ten years?

For alternate fuel you make Essential Fuel. The economics of that are much better than simple Create Fuel and it's long burning properties would revolutionize aircraft use both civilian and military.

Biodesel as a source for industrial enchantment though is a non-starter. It'd be badly outclassed by NEMA. You can't Draw Power directly from fuel anyway. It has to be burning in some machine.

Powerstones don't work so well as a source for technomagical devices. The recharge rate is much too slow. Some better would be desirable of course but it has problems. The rates for Draw Power from normal energy to magical are very high energy i.e. normally measured in MW.

Getting rid of things entirely (Purify or Destroy Air/Water/Earth/Metal/Plastic) and Creating new could easily be more attractive than recycling.

A 9/11 analogue? Easily possible. Divination produces vague plot device warnings. I wouldn't depend on them at all.

As for a mechanism I would have a terrorist group steal (or make) a Teleport Object wand and go on a bombing spree (probably with soem magical/alchemical nasty). This could strangle Merlin's Teleport transportation sector the way 9/11 did for our airlines as Teleport Shields and annoying and peculiar security screening processes ("Why can't I Teleport with my Elixer of Protection v. Tooth Decay?") go up everywhere.

Other things: the "Undead problem" might have been partially controlled in advanced nations the same sort of way HIV has in our world. Mass produced Alchemical vaccines against Vampirism perhaps.

Except possibly online. "Zombie computer networks" might have a wholly different meaning on Merlin. "Simple" spam and viruses were controlled with magical security programs at the time of the original book.

China might be a rising magical power, possibly using ancient Eastern alchemical and herbology secrets. There's a long tradition of that sort of thing.

There might be some analogue to the Global Warming hysteria. It won't simple Global warming itself. Magic could deal with that.

FEMA (the Federal Environmental and Magical Agency) could have bungled some weather control and drowned New Orleans, perhaps literally.

[William]

Originally Posted by sn0wball

From an ingame view this sounds possible. On the other, from the meta-gamign angle, the world of Technomancer mimicks most world-wide events of our Timeline, although with a twist. Therefore something like the WTC attack and its aftermath - Afghanistan war, Iraq war, Security scare, is certainly possible. For example, the terrroists might have developed some kind of countermagic which allows them to bypass conventional precognition. I guess somehting like that will scare the inhabitants of Merlin.

As long as there is profit, economical or political, to be had from violence and crime, someone will seek it and there will be research into the tools of that line of work. Military counterintelligence and criminal organizations would both be interested in advanced versions of Scryfool or divination-cheating spells, to the extent that these -- and divination spells that pierce such counterintel spells -- are one of the big "arms races" for military, intelligence, and police/criminal operations.

[cptbutton]

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

There might be some analogue to the Global Warming hysteria. It won't simple Global warming itself. Magic could deal with that.

Global Mana Aspecting maybe?

The heavy use of magic causes the ambient mana to develop aspects on a local or regional basis. Thamatologists agree that this is caused by worldwide magic use despite this local nature, and that what aspect will develop where is very difficult to predict.

Since the mana level and aspect of real estate is an important part of property values, this cause instability in real estate prices which cascades into a full blown financial crisis...

[tylrlsaa]

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

A 9/11 analogue? Easily possible. Divination produces vague plot device warnings. I wouldn't depend on them at all.

My recollection of the setting is that Divination spells are done often, and for multiple purposes. IIRC, the crossover of such multiple castings make any forecast other than a general one is done at a -10.

Not at home, don't have books to confirm.

So, in general, I'd agree with Mr. Brackin that a 9/11 situation would be possible. I'd even go so far as to say that they'd parallel. I could see people on the net belligerantly posting about the failing of the CIA's Divination section, with a net rumor of a report of a divination that points to the 9/11 attack months before it happened.

[tylrlsaa]

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

FEMA (the Federal Environmental and Magical Agency) could have bungled some weather control and drowned New Orleans, perhaps literally.

This would make a great adventure if you make it an Evil Plot done on purpose.