Generally, it's how you interpret TL.
I would say to no to the first. There might be specialty shops selling
imported higher tech and maybe even able to maintain it, but distress would
be limited and prices would be amplified by the cost of transport.
Efficiently that's an Aubani export, not anything produced domestically.
Oriflamme is TL9 though.
The infrastructure to produce and maintain subcomponents doesn't exist. The
know how isn't a given, either.
One problem with TL is on real life, that restriction tends to go both
directions, not just forward.. We've let old infrastructure perish and in
many cases, the know how, as well. At TL8, the capability to build TL4 or 5
Battleship armor as well as TL 6 to 7 rockets like the Saturn V is
effectively lost. US nuclear capability is in the same boat. The industry
to build them has lapsed and would need to be built before testing could
even begin again. 10 or 20 years and hundreds of billions probably.
In game terms the FFS design is one thing. The infrastructure to produce it
is another. My house rule has the system components listed costs being for
mass produced items. After design, if a player wants to go to mass
production, the factory and tooling must be built. I did some off the cuff
house rules for costs with some tables, etc but haven't extensively tested
them.
Generally talking millions of Credits investment and the tooling degrades
before it must be redone again. The factory similarly needs to be
maintained and either robots purchased or labor paid.
For the second, do you have RCEG? Most of the Coalition's equipment by
quantity is Oriflamme TL 9, since they pull most of the weight by virtue of
human population. Striker II shows most of the vehicles are going to be TL
9, too.
Elite including RCMC will be mostly TL 12 with higher here and there.
Widgets are imported from Hivers to build TL 13 CLC lasers, etc and bunch
of relic Imperial gear and even vehicles, as well. I'm sort of skeptical
Trepida would work effectively, but we can credit/blame the Vilani perhaps.
The setting and trade tables are built around the idea of heterogeneous TL
worlds supplying widgets and/or complete products at their own level in
exchange for that desirable by others. It's probably realistic enough to a
small degree, but most hi pop worlds especially should tend towards not
wanting or needing much from the rest, which puts the believability of most
either existing at all, or having any reason to want go there, in question.
- Sent from my SM-N900T
On May 9, 2014 12:43 PM, "Scott Nolan [Traveller_TNE]" <
> wrote:
>
>
> I'm trying to wrap my head around Tech Levels, specifically Tech Levels in
> the Reformation Coalition.
>
> Take, for example, Aubaine (Tech 12) and Oriflamme (Tech 8).
>
> First, consider that I'm on Oriflamme and want to contact a business. I
> presume that my communications device will probably be Tech Level 8, or
> possibly less. Now assume that I want to purchase a higher-tech
> communications device for communication between me and my crew. Can I do so
> on Oriflamme? Can I order it from Aubaine by the RC version of Amazon.com?
> If not, why not? And if so, why isn't every world in the RC rapidly rising
> towards Tech Level 12?
>
> Second, consider that I am a member of an RCES Recovery Team (i.e., I'm a
> Star Viking about to go on a Smash and Grab raid). Is my gear always going
> to be Tech Level 12? Will any of it be?I
>
> I'm thinking of limiting what can be bought on the open market to the
> worse of Tech Level 10 or the world's Tech Level, reasoning that in the
> early years, the RC is focusing the manufacture of Tech Level 11 and 12
> gear to the military and RCES.
>
> Scott
>
>
I would say to no to the first. There might be specialty shops selling
imported higher tech and maybe even able to maintain it, but distress would
be limited and prices would be amplified by the cost of transport.
Efficiently that's an Aubani export, not anything produced domestically.
Oriflamme is TL9 though.
The infrastructure to produce and maintain subcomponents doesn't exist. The
know how isn't a given, either.
One problem with TL is on real life, that restriction tends to go both
directions, not just forward.. We've let old infrastructure perish and in
many cases, the know how, as well. At TL8, the capability to build TL4 or 5
Battleship armor as well as TL 6 to 7 rockets like the Saturn V is
effectively lost. US nuclear capability is in the same boat. The industry
to build them has lapsed and would need to be built before testing could
even begin again. 10 or 20 years and hundreds of billions probably.
In game terms the FFS design is one thing. The infrastructure to produce it
is another. My house rule has the system components listed costs being for
mass produced items. After design, if a player wants to go to mass
production, the factory and tooling must be built. I did some off the cuff
house rules for costs with some tables, etc but haven't extensively tested
them.
Generally talking millions of Credits investment and the tooling degrades
before it must be redone again. The factory similarly needs to be
maintained and either robots purchased or labor paid.
For the second, do you have RCEG? Most of the Coalition's equipment by
quantity is Oriflamme TL 9, since they pull most of the weight by virtue of
human population. Striker II shows most of the vehicles are going to be TL
9, too.
Elite including RCMC will be mostly TL 12 with higher here and there.
Widgets are imported from Hivers to build TL 13 CLC lasers, etc and bunch
of relic Imperial gear and even vehicles, as well. I'm sort of skeptical
Trepida would work effectively, but we can credit/blame the Vilani perhaps.
The setting and trade tables are built around the idea of heterogeneous TL
worlds supplying widgets and/or complete products at their own level in
exchange for that desirable by others. It's probably realistic enough to a
small degree, but most hi pop worlds especially should tend towards not
wanting or needing much from the rest, which puts the believability of most
either existing at all, or having any reason to want go there, in question.
- Sent from my SM-N900T
On May 9, 2014 12:43 PM, "Scott Nolan [Traveller_TNE]" <
> wrote:
>
>
> I'm trying to wrap my head around Tech Levels, specifically Tech Levels in
> the Reformation Coalition.
>
> Take, for example, Aubaine (Tech 12) and Oriflamme (Tech 8).
>
> First, consider that I'm on Oriflamme and want to contact a business. I
> presume that my communications device will probably be Tech Level 8, or
> possibly less. Now assume that I want to purchase a higher-tech
> communications device for communication between me and my crew. Can I do so
> on Oriflamme? Can I order it from Aubaine by the RC version of Amazon.com?
> If not, why not? And if so, why isn't every world in the RC rapidly rising
> towards Tech Level 12?
>
> Second, consider that I am a member of an RCES Recovery Team (i.e., I'm a
> Star Viking about to go on a Smash and Grab raid). Is my gear always going
> to be Tech Level 12? Will any of it be?I
>
> I'm thinking of limiting what can be bought on the open market to the
> worse of Tech Level 10 or the world's Tech Level, reasoning that in the
> early years, the RC is focusing the manufacture of Tech Level 11 and 12
> gear to the military and RCES.
>
> Scott
>
>