[Infinite Worlds] Why is Infinity Unlimited using TL8-9 equipment?

[Phex]

I read Infinite Worlds at the moment and its great, but there is something which bothers me:

• Infinity Unlimited has access to worlds with TL > TL9
• Ininify Unlimited uses TL8-9 equipment

Is there an answer for this strange behavior?

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by Phex

I read Infinite Worlds at the moment and its great, but there is something which bothers me:

• Infinity Unlimited has access to worlds with TL > TL9
• Ininify Unlimited uses TL8-9 equipment

Is there an answer for this strange behavior?

On the whole they prefer to use gear they understand as opposed to gear they don't understand, particularly since they do not engage in commerce with more advanced parallels for fear of what might happen.

[John Smith]

TL 8-9 equipment is what they can mass-produce. Besides, the laws of nature work differently in certain worlds: Gernsback, Rustic, etc... Infinity IS stealing some tech, from Shikaku-Mon for example. Remember that to use a given technology reliably, you have to understand the science behind it pretty well.

[Phex]

I see your point, but shouldnt it be possible to collect information about how the new science works from higher TL worlds (scientific publications, manuals from machines, science books etc.) to massively speed up the TL progress in Homeline? I mean - most of the daily life technology should be explained somewhere with easy access. This, of course, only if one assumes that most of the technology will work similarly when transfered.

[fwcain]

Such textbooks explain the laws of physics as they work within that timeline. No guarantees those same exact laws of nature apply back home. ;-)

[Lamech]

From what I understand they don't really have easy access. Higher TL worlds might potentially find them, and being a high TL world immediatly reverse engineer the principals behind a conveyor, or at least the physical components to build one. From there they learn the principals, and finally build one of the conveyors that can jump quantums on its own. And remember they are a higher TL so anything infinity can build the high TL world can at least copy.

Also IIRC essentially all science in homeline has become parachronics or reverse engineering stolen tech. So yes, yes infinity does use tech to speed its progress.

I suppose the better question is why would a group like the Cabal use lower TL gear since they are probably unworried about someone reverse engineering there psionics. (Actually what TL gear does the Cabal normally use?)

[Flyndaran]

Originally Posted by Lamech

...

I suppose the better question is why would a group like the Cabal use lower TL gear since they are probably unworried about someone reverse engineering there psionics. (Actually what TL gear does the Cabal normally use?)

Astral space and many other planes limit TL to 4 or so.

[Miles]

It's not simply a matter of spotting TL10+ wordlines and swiping a few laser guns or futuristic iPads. First and perhaps most importantly, you need some way to power the things. That means you either need to steal a year's supply of power cells, or steal the secrets for manufacturing them, and then reverse engineer that (not an easy task at all).

Operating on Ultra-Tech worlds is very, very hard for outtimers. You almost certainly need some form of ID (and the world where you don't are often even more hazardous). Infinity doesn't even have the tools to try and make fake identification, so that means buying off the local black market without attracting suspicion. Anything you do that stands out can easily wind up on the local equivalent of YouTube. Concealing the energy flashes associated with conveyors is another challenge.

You can't take anything with an AI offworld, because that's as good as breaking the Secret.

Still, the Infinity Patrol probably does have a fair amount of ultra-tech swimming around among its members. It's just all on a case by case basis. One patrolmen has a standard issue sidearm, but grabbed a sweet pair of experimental hyperspectral binoculars on Shikaku-Mon. Another gets by with the standard night vision binocs, but snagged a fusion-powered laser rifle on Lenin-3 that's guaranteed to run forever (said Patrolman was killed by death cultists on Gotha-7 after the fusion core ran dry in the middle of a firefight). The Patrol even has a couple of ultra-tech things that are standard issue, like the nanocleanser on page 26 that's explicitly noted as being TL10.

[wellspring]

Originally Posted by Lamech

From what I understand they don't really have easy access. Higher TL worlds might potentially find them, and being a high TL world immediatly reverse engineer the principals behind a conveyor, or at least the physical components to build one. From there they learn the principals, and finally build one of the conveyors that can jump quantums on its own. And remember they are a higher TL so anything infinity can build the high TL world can at least copy.

The higher TL worlds:

Centrum, Caliph and Shikaku-Mon are the high-TL worlds that immediately come to mind. They all have similar problems when it comes to infiltrating them. First, identity and currency are all mediated by computer. People suddenly showing up without any prior record in the computer are going to trigger some very unpleasant questions. Second, their physics are all good enough to potentially detect parachronic travel. So you might endanger the Secret just by showing up in a conveyor. Finally, the future shock is a problem for fitting in culturally. You can't use your historical knowledge to prepare, and you can't just pose as "travelers from afar".

And what about those other threats that we don't even know about yet? What if TL10 computers are disrupted by active parachronics? Hard to sneak in when you black out all the computers running in a city block, especially when that wasn't a problem you knew to worry about. These risks are incommensurable. You don't know what all the risks are in advance because the only way to learn about them is to run them. Caliph, a full three TLs ahead, is the obvious problem here.

Lower-TL worlds like Centrum aren't so far ahead that that risk is so great, but make up for it with a greater emphasis on surveillance and paranoia. Centrum knows about Infinity and actively tracks infiltration attempts. Shikaku-Mon is just plain paranoid. Caliph, of course, is at war. Two other worlds are worth mentioning (both mentioned in passing in Worlds of Horror). Transhuman, at TL10, is going to be hard to establish yourself in for BOTH TL and paranoia reasons. Steel is a nightmare-- a hyper-paranoid hell parallel with advanced tech. Merlin isn't high-TL in the strictest sense of the word, but many of the same considerations apply.

In a high-TL world, covering up a breach of secrecy once you've made it is much harder, too. And the stakes are higher-- a high-TL society can reverse engineer your puny TL8 conveyor and build a prototype frighteningly fast. Maybe even with improvements. Even then Infinity is probing, cautiously, to get whatever they can.

Finally, Infinity is TL8/9 as a design decision. In IW they explain good reasons why you want to control access to high-TL worlds, and suggest mechanical and practical barriers to ensure that players don't load up on ultra-tech and then run roughshod over your campaign.

[Fred Brackin]

Originally Posted by wellspring

Lower-TL worlds like Centrum aren't so far ahead that that risk is so great, but make up for it with a greater emphasis on surveillance and paranoia. Centrum knows about Infinity and actively tracks infiltration attempts. .

Centrum isn't even accessible by conventional parachronic tech from Homeline, Simple backdoors like portals can be assumed to be closely monitored though.

Technically you did forget one TL9 world: Reich-5. :)