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Old 01-27-2018, 11:59 PM   #121
David Johnston2
 
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Default Re: New Sci Fi Setting Seeds

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Originally Posted by warellis View Post
Morana sounds almost like a hive world from Warhammer 40,000 with the massive arcology that is incredibly densely packed and all. Along with it being a manufacturing center.
No, Morana has sufficient farmland to support the population...at least with a vegetarian diet although it imports meat as a luxury good. And while Morana has lower class neighbourhoods with rather more crime. it doesn't have any areas where the cops have completely lost control. The gangs fight with fists, clubs and blades because the city has a monitoring system that alerts them if it detects gunshots or energy discharges. It's an opportunity for PCs with martial arts skills to shine.
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Old 01-29-2018, 09:57 PM   #122
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The gradual development of the scientific method changed the way that most of humanity thought and came to understand the world. Suppose that a future development -- perhaps developed as a surprise spinoff of computer neural network development -- provides a similar leap forward in salience and utility in thought?

People would not think faster, but rather better. They would less frequently make decisions that turn out to be foolish. Though hard to simulate, it might function as giving people who use this new mental technology access to something like Common Sense, perhaps paired with a bonus on self-control rolls when the consequences of failure are serious.
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Old 01-29-2018, 11:06 PM   #123
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The gradual development of the scientific method changed the way that most of humanity thought and came to understand the world. Suppose that a future development -- perhaps developed as a surprise spinoff of computer neural network development -- provides a similar leap forward in salience and utility in thought?

People would not think faster, but rather better. They would less frequently make decisions that turn out to be foolish. Though hard to simulate, it might function as giving people who use this new mental technology access to something like Common Sense, perhaps paired with a bonus on self-control rolls when the consequences of failure are serious.
I can't see that having any real use in games.
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Old 01-30-2018, 07:32 AM   #124
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I think that it might justify a 'scientific' explanation for the development of the 'softer' Psionic Powers (ESP and Telepathy). Other than that, I do not see it as being much more different than what philosophers have been attempting to do for the last 2500 years. It might justify a higher average IQ (perhaps the beneficiaries gain +2 IQ), but higher intelligence does not really seem to do much against the real world.
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Old 01-30-2018, 11:19 AM   #125
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I can't see that having any real use in games.
Might not have a use in games, but it’s the kind of thing that catapults a society beyond its peers lacking the ability.

I suspect the society where everyone is more sensible and responsible looks like a mystery from the outside. It’s like in ST:TNG when they say they’ve outgrown some human failing. Everything just works better. They’re not a culture of financial wizards, but there’s a lot of “millionaire next door” types because they save and don’t play the lottery. They’re not particularly conformist, but the impulse and petty crime rates are low. These people aren’t Klingons, but they follow through on assault, hold the line on defense, and are more likely to avoid fantasies of general officers. They’re no more or less inventive, but less VC money is wasted and more of their inventors follow through.
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Old 01-30-2018, 12:23 PM   #126
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{The Farfarers}

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I think that it might justify a 'scientific' explanation for the development of the 'softer' Psionic Powers (ESP and Telepathy). Other than that, I do not see it as being much more different than what philosophers have been attempting to do for the last 2500 years. It might justify a higher average IQ (perhaps the beneficiaries gain +2 IQ), but higher intelligence does not really seem to do much against the real world.
Myself, I like what LeGuin does in the Hainish novels, simply says we learned Psi from others.
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Old 01-30-2018, 12:31 PM   #127
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{The Farfarers}

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The gradual development of the scientific method changed the way that most of humanity thought and came to understand the world. Suppose that a future development -- perhaps developed as a surprise spinoff of computer neural network development -- provides a similar leap forward in salience and utility in thought?

People would not think faster, but rather better. They would less frequently make decisions that turn out to be foolish. Though hard to simulate, it might function as giving people who use this new mental technology access to something like Common Sense, perhaps paired with a bonus on self-control rolls when the consequences of failure are serious.
This remains me, partially because I'm rereading her stuff, of LeGuin's Cetian Mathematics. The Cetians were humans whose ancestors had been seeded on a different world that Earth. Their number system was simply better than anyone else's. Just like the Arabic numerals are better than Roman numerals, and easier to learn and use, Cetian Mathematics are simply better. Because more people can learn mathematics and learn them more fully, society is changed. I think other skills were also learned form alien cultures too.
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Old 01-30-2018, 06:40 PM   #128
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I can't see that having any real use in games.
Mutual bigotry between the enthusiasts of the new method and the skeptics? Sure it's an old plot but, it is worth noticing.
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Old 02-03-2018, 01:06 PM   #129
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This has the Title {The Lanterns}

This is a near future setting I've posted it elsewhere, but I'll post it here for anyone who likes this thread.

About the middle of the 21st century two major biotech projects come to fruition at about the same time. First, a joint project between the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland, to develop a new type of vaccine. Normal flu vaccines attack the "teeth" of a protrusion on the virus. These "teeth" are the most genetically active part of the flu genome. This new vaccine attacked the "shaft" of the protrusion, the most genetically stable aspect of the flu. This vaccine would give long term universal protection against the flu. The process of attacking viruses were they're vulnerable through genetic engineering was the new thing. It's also why this vaccine was widely rejected outside of the nations it was designed in. Scotland, far more autonomous than in todays UK, was the only substantial exception.

The other major project was a set of superflus and vaccines developed in central Asia to wipe out the infidels once and for all. The small group of fanatics dismissed the "American Candy" as many people called the new vaccine, as a mere hoax and perhaps poisoned. After all, most of the world press denounced the genetically engineered vaccine as a fraud, so why bother with it.

The Superflu project was not that well run and ten stains of superflu got into the ventilation system and out into a city's streets. Within a few days people were dying, in a few months most of the world's nations had lost 95% of their population. Sadly, most of the vaccines developed by the superflu developers weren't that good. The designers were wiped out, the last survivor set the compound on fire to prevent anyone from finding details of the superflu genomes which might save lives.

Unknown to the superflu designers, a subset of their group was designing and enhanced supermumps virus. They sought to simply sterilize the infidels, thus giving them time to convert and be saved, but still leaving their group to take over the world. This super-mumps virus got out and soon was called Shrivel by the survivors.

The "American Candy" was fully effective against all the superflus. Of the nations were the new vaccine was widely used, only those populations that promoted antiVaxer beliefs were hit by the superflus. In practice, this meant only the USA, were antiVaxers were important in the right-wing, had serious disease outbreaks.

The massive loss of life caused a world economic meltdown that no one avoided. The collapse of trade seriously slowed down the spread of Shrivel. Thus preventing the near total sterilization of humanity.

More next post...
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Old 02-03-2018, 01:21 PM   #130
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{The Lanterns}


It's now thirty years after the outbreak. Shrivel has spread slowly around the world and caused panic and isolationism and prevented both economic recovery in most of the world, and population recovery in large areas.

Society is TL8 in the cities and fallen back to lower tech levels in the countryside in most of the world. The West was on the edge of TL9 when the plagues hit, and the Pentalpha Nations are now early TL9. The Pentalpha Nations are America, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and The United Republic of Ireland and Scotland (URIS). If Wales joins, they'll become the United Celtic Republic (UCR).

The Pentalpha Nations are trying to both wipe out Shrivel and restore trade. However, although the Pentalpha Nations have a vaccine for Shrivel, they don't have any cheap and practical way of undoing the effects of Shrivel on its victims. With lots of expensive surgery and TL9 biotech some people can be helped, but it's way too expensive and labor intensive to be a practical cure for the millions of victims. Fertile adults are few compared to normal population and children are too few. Large numbers of people who were infected with Shrivel young simply never went through puberty. Restoring fertility, and otherwise undoing the effects of Shrivel is a massive medical problem.

Paradoxically the plagues have promoted a great fear of medicine and doctors. Thus any medical aid is highly controversial among those receiving it!

Most of the Earth looks post-apocalyptic after thirty years of hard depression and a massive depopulation. The exceptions are mainly the Pentalpha Nations and those cities that attracted the survivors of large rural areas and desolate cities. Example: London, Paris, Rome, Jerusalem, and Mumbai, all gained replacement populations and are near their pre-outbreak populations. This does mean many areas are deserted and empty.

More later.
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