IW What Ifs...?

[Lurker]

Here are a few I plan to use in my campaign. Not really fleshed out yet.

1. Breaking mirrors, black cats, spilling salt, horseshoes, crossing your fingers, all of this works.

2. World War I extends longer than in the Homeline, and Hitler & Co. start their plans before the first war ends. Key scientists were killed or never born preventing the atomic bomb. The year is now 1983 and the war continues with no end in site.

3. Early in the Solar System's formation, another sun sped by, taking in much of the systems comet and asteroid material. Earth forms with much less water, and much less metal. Kind of a non-magical Darksun

4. A worlds where psychic ability is overwhelming. Everyone reads everyone elses minds, all the time. This includes the PC's. Within a few days, the whole world knows all the PC's information on Parachronics.

[Brent]

I'm aware of Pastwatch, but haven't read it. I guess I didn't really know just what happened in it.

[sir_pudding]

Originally Posted by patton

Would this have impacts on slave-rebellion in the US or maybe even the abolitionist movement?

Historically Jefferson was concerned that the Haiti revolt would lead to widspread slave rebellion.
However the main effect it would have is a long-term French Hegenomy in N. America and possibly a thriving Napoleonic Empire. Recent evidence indicates that the French troops that were decimated in Haiti were actually heading to reenforce New Orleans and open the Louisianna territory for French coloniziation. The U.S only intended to purchase New Orleans. The reason why the French offered the entire territory for sale historically was because the force meant to hold it was decimated and the war in Europe was heating up. So no Haiti Revolt=No Louisianna Purchase=French Midwest=?

[tantric]

how about a what-if technomancer where trinity awakens psychic powers worldwide instead of magical. i did a brief write up on this a long time ago, called "omega earth". it actually works better than technomancer, in that it is more stable and consistent. we need an official alternate earths page, with a form for submissions, etc. would be cool

[maximara]

Originally Posted by Lurker

Here are a few I plan to use in my campaign. Not really fleshed out yet.

2. World War I extends longer than in the Homeline, and Hitler & Co. start their plans before the first war ends. Key scientists were killed or never born preventing the atomic bomb. The year is now 1983 and the war continues with no end in site.

Sounds like something based on HG Wells' Shape of Things to Come from 1936. The main problem as I see it is Hitler didn't really have a policial agenda until after the war and that was largely forged out of Germany losing the war. As long as the war continues Hitler is kept occupied and can't do much of anything.

A related problem is the one Wells ignored in his novel - with modern technology you simply cannot sustain a direct active war for the kind of time frame he was talking about (40 years). Practical matters of political presure and the cost in men and material would shut the war down long before it got to the stage Wells projected. Now a long term political war fought via external contlics can go on for that period as demonstrated by the Cold War but even there are were limits on how long any one engagement could go on for.

[CraigR]

Originally Posted by tantric

we need an official alternate earths page, with a form for submissions, etc. would be cool

Maybe one should be started on the GURPS Wiki?

[patton]

Originally Posted by CraigR

Maybe one should be started on the GURPS Wiki?

Some one already has: http://www.gurpswiki.net/default.asp...ateEarths.html

[patton]

Originally Posted by Lurker

1. Breaking mirrors, black cats, spilling salt, horseshoes, crossing your fingers, all of this works.

Have you ever read EYE IN THE SKY by Philip K. Dick? Sort of an "alternate reality" travel novel -- as opposed to alternate history. One of the first alternates is a version of our world where such folk magic as well as other occult systems actually work. Neat book...

[Polaris]

To add to what Pomphis has already said, I had some professors who knew Heisenberg, Deitrich and the rest, and from I gathered the Nazis were nowhere near to having an A-Bomb. Indeed Hitler was apparently more intersted in perfecting a nuclear reactor than he was in making an Atomic bomb for a variety of reasons most of which were actually sane! [Cost and resources to name two.]

In addition to that, the Germans erroneously felt that graphite was an adequequate controller for the process opting for heavy water because they erroneously neglected to factor in the Boron impurities in graphite which effectively eat slow neutrons (making a chain reaction impossible).

Finally, in addition to that, if you actually look at Heisenberg's design, it has no feedback mechanism to halt the reaction once it starts. Even if Heisenberg had managed (somehow) to obtain pure enough U235 to attempt a test, the results would have likely been.......unfortunate.

In short, had the FDR not pushed for the Manhatten project as vigorously as he did, it is highly unlikely (based on what I know of the History of Physics of the time anyway) that anyone would have done so much prior to 1949 or even 1950 as a best guess.

-Polaris

[flyingwombat]

Originally Posted by sir_pudding

What if the 1803 slave revolt in Haiti never ocurred or was easily quashed? The French troops bound for New Orleans would have made it. Napoleon would have colonized Louisianna rather than sell it to the U.S., leading to a very different 1812.

This very thing was mentioned on a History Channel program on the Louisanna Purchase. Napoleon needed the income from the sugar plantations that's why the expedition was sent to Haiti first.

My friend is into Napoleonic gaming and by extension knows something of the period. But he couldn't go along with the idea of Nappy's troops threatening the USA.