Post-apocalyptic TL 5/8

[sir_pudding]

Originally Posted by Agent

If 'air rifle' is steampunk schizo-tech someone should tell the many hunters out there killing deer, buffalo, boar, etcetera with them right now...

Yes, and there can be air-rifles, but I don't want them to be especially significant or iconic. This is supposed to be a Western. I want my lawmen armed with revolvers and lever action rifles if at all possible.

Originally Posted by Libertine

What about flame throwers? Zippo lighters are tl 5 & a stray aerosol can and a few jury rigs to keep things in place and you have a weapon for lower income scavengers, also, what about spring loaded one shots when black powder isn't available? And vehicles. With modern appliances laying around, the possibilities for chariot vehicles can be particularly lucrative.

Horse drawn chariots with barbed wire siding and gouts of flame at the flanks, scavenged rifle rows jury rigged to fire at once in the front and front armor with viewing slits. Heavy metal studded armor for horses.

Again, Western Horror not Road Warrior.

Originally Posted by sjard

The problem I always run into when trying to think of what there would still be for a setting like this is that I can't seem to keep technology from quickly returning to at least early WWII technology in relatively short order.

Not enough people for widespread late TL6 (there is a larger more northern state that is approaching late TL6). Remember it took over a hundred million to harvest raw materials, refine them, transport them and assemble them into the mass produced consumer goods of 1939 America, Germany or even the USSR. I haven't figured out exactly the population of the Gold Coast Confederacy, but it's not large. Cities and towns with more than 250/sq mile or so vanished and reproduction taboos and the ongoing blight have kept populations low. Call it about 3 million people at the most.

The population issue will slow down large scale advancement, but don't underestimate how much can be done with a small shop when you already know something is possible.

Yeah, and I don't have a problem there using the normal rules for Higher-Tech equipment. Imported or Artisan TL 6 gear is double cost, TL8 relics are 8x cost.