Re: FT-Technology in the FT world

I too have wondered about this. One of my pet hates is science fiction
set
many hundreds or thousands (think GW) of years into the future, in which
they still insist on using machine guns. That's not really relevant
anyway
but basically, my point is that from 2183 (FB1) to 2194 is eleven years
of
war against the Kra'Vak. Surely in that time, some technological
developments will be made? Surely the ships of 2194 will be different
from
those in 2183? In what ways?

I think that Bif has some very interesting ideas on how contact between
the
different races may have effected the technology used by those races,
does
anyone have any specific ideas?

Matthew Smith

> I was thinking recently of how advanced technology is in the FT
universe,
> and in what areas of physics/science/tech the races would be advanced
in,
or
> on the verge of making a breakthrough etc. This comes from the fact
the SV
> may roughly be balanced (although some people don`t think so) in FT
game
> terms, they seem to me to be severly laking in technological terms
(and
> therefore should be even more unbalanced in game terms) if they are
suposed
> to be very advanced, ancient, technologically mature race. I could see
a
way
> in which the SV have gained a technology level that suits themselfs,
but
it
> would require some xenophobia and/or complacency/arrogance to not
develope
> their tech furthere under the presure of war with other races. It
could be
> the SV aren`t bothered about losses, because they are only construct
that
> are fighting. Or that the tech and/or weapons that are fighting and
made
> contact with other races is only primative stuff to not allow the
other
> races a good look at what the SV are capable of. Or it could be the
tech
of
> the ships the aleins have been allowed to see was downgraded on
purpose to
> make the other races think the SV are a less of a threat, so to
concentrate
> on each other instead of on the SV (which sounds plausable). If a ship
or
> force attacked a world populated by SV, we might see a overwhelming
> technology brought to bear against the attackers. As to what
technology or
> area of physics/science the SV have knowledge of, I would say they are
too
> advanced and their technology too alien for any valid comparisons to
be
> made.
>  The KV I see as a race with a more xenophobic view of other races
tech,
> that has so far kept them from adopting others tech for themselves so
far
> (take the lack of placed marker weapons like missiles for example),
but
> under the pressure of fighting the PH and HS (homo sapiens) this would
> probably change in the near future (say 10-15 years). The SV have a
better
> understanding of gravitics than PH/HS, but less than the SV (everybody
would
> be less than the SV <G>). This I could see as being shown as the
future KV
> missiles being better than the present HS missiles, and the KV
fighters
> being better than at present (at least fast fighters being the
standard).
> The aparent lack of fighter preformance for KV fighters could be
explained
> as the KV only recently picking up fighter tech/doctorene from another
> oponent (after all, they were fighting the PH before HS, so it may
have
come
> from them). I would also see the KV developing the grav tech they
currently
> have, making their ships more maneuverable, and the K-guns they have
having
> more punch/dammage, or a lighter weight for the same punch.
>  The PH have a different outlook to other races, and I would see their
tech
> developing along the lines of making their exsisting tech better,
rather
> than making a breakthrough based on recovered pieces of other peoples
tech.
> The exceptions to this would be adopting human sheild tech (same
effects
> against beams as their own vapor shroud, but less limiting to ones own
> weapons), and developing a better way of tuning their energy weapons
from
> recovered SV tech (able to tune pulsars in battle?). I would expect
the PH
> plasma bolt launchers to improve, with lessons/tech learnt from the
human
> plasma torps, and from the SV power generation ablities, which would
alow
> them to have greater control over the launchers (imagine a PBL as a
direct
> fire weapon against only one target, but no way for PDS to stop). They
> wouldn`t gain much from the KV, as their hulls can stand upto KV
weapons
> very well already, so I would expect them to ignore the KV tech
posibilities
> and concentrate on a tech they could understand and gain from more
quickly,
> ie the SV.
>  The HS I see gaining from the KV grav tech, making their ships
quicker/more
> maneuverable, and their fighters/missiles quicker/tougher/more deadly
> (greater dammage). The only tech advantage the PH have over them would
be
> the close range damage potential of their pulsars in c mode, and I
could
see
> the humans trying to make a weapon with the same potential (I didn`t
say
> suceeding). The plasma bolt launchers would be very simular in science
to
> human plasma torps (if not in exicution), and I would expect HS to
improve
> their plasma torps with leasons leart from the PH weapons. As for SV
tech,
> this I would see as too alien for anybody (except PH) to understand,
but I
> would expect other races to develope systems that would be able to
mimic
the
> effects of their weapons/systems, if not in the same way, or with the
same
> flexablilty (one of the SV`s streights in my oppinion).
>  If anybody thinks this would lead to the different races
ships/weapons
> being very simular (except the SV of course, they would just be
harder),
you
> would be correct when talking about the present weapon systems. But
these
> tech insperations gained from the aliens would also open up new tech,
which
> would give the opertunaties for new weapons. For example, if
understanding
> of gravitics gave a greater understanding of hyperspace (which I
dought
any
> of the 3 young races understand very well), it could lead to
hyperspace
> missiles that jump out of hyper at roughly the point where you thing
the
> enemy is going to be, bypassing PDS (just one that immediatly springs
to
> mind). This given above outlines the way I could see technology and
science
> going in the next 10-15 years of the FT universe, after all, wars are
very
> good at forcing technology to advance in a short time (look at world
war
2,
> from props to jets and missiles in 5 years (yes, I know the
developement
of
> the jet engine was longer that that)).
>
> Just a idea for discussion, that may make people come out with some
> interesting comments.
>
> BIF
>  "yorkshire born,yorkshire bred,