Re: [HoE] The Timeline. (What did we do for 100 years?)

[Allan Seyberth <darious@darious.com>]

I think that - gamewise - the difficulty was in trying to balance enough of
a time separatation to allow for enough technology to allow for the
technology of cyborgs, Sykers, and the Faraway gate; against the need to
not provide such a different setting that it is totaly incomprehensible to
folks.

Deadlands itself takes a bit of time to get into the setting because it has
so many different elements to it.  One aspect that helps is that Deadlands
is all based on Western themes that all us Yanks (at least) are very
familiar with.  Hundreds of movies have been made in this genre, of which
several dozen are well known.

To make a DL movie would require maybe a couple of minutes of explaining to
the audience just what is going on.  1863 the Reckoning happened, etc. 

Hell on Earth is based on the lesser known genre of Post-Apocalypse.  A
genre that may have half a dozen titles that are recognized by everyone.
Road Warrior series being half of 'em.  Then you take the differences of a
PA setting, and apply it over the Deadlands storyline.  

As for in game reasons . . . 
Well, the easiest thing to do would be to just set the day of the Reckoning
back 100 years, and explain away the spotty sections of High Tech (Faraway
gate, Cyborgs, etc) as the results of the heightened technology curve from
Ghost Rock and the ongoing wars.

Another way to look at it is that the strongest technological advances come
from a cycle of war-peace-war-peace.  The peace side is needed to
reallocate resources from a wartime production and waste, to a peacetime
production and to allow the military advances to trickle out to the private
sector.

Without the peacetime factor of being able to rebuild and restucture both
infrastructure and industry, a resource exhaustion sets in.  Instead of
having tanks and development, you have to choose where your money goes.
You can get by on debt spending for awhile, but at some point the loans
become due.  
Bottom line -  a protracted war stagnates development.

That could be one reason.

Another is the fact that at some point technology can not really improve
anymore.  Take a look at the differences between cars of the 1950s and 60s
and today.  They are still fundamentally the same thing. Steering wheel,
tires, engine, etc.  The details are different.  Power windows, radio,
steering, etc, but the basics are the same, but the core is the same.
The same thing with personal firearms.  Take a look at the post-Civil War
(historical) firearms and those of today.  Better ammo, machining, safety,
etc, but the details are the same - pin, chamber, handle, trigger. . . 

That might do it for ya.

What I myself have done is dug up a copy of Gamma World's random artifact
tables - and use them for random high tech household items.  None of them
work, but it's a touch of high tech.

The focus of the game isn't on technology - but rather the lack of it.
It's been 13 years.  The batteries have run out, the broadcast power
stations are offline and the portable nuclear power plants have all melt
down or run out of fuel.

At 05:35 AM 2/2/00 -0600, you wrote:
>
>Heya
>Been wondering this for a while and if its been covered, I'm sorry to
>bring it up.
>    Hell on earth is great fun and I love the setting but .... there is
>nothing in the game to show why it is set in the remarkably familiar
>year of 2094.
-------------------
Allan Seyberth
darious@darious.com

Why did the chicken cross the road?

Col. Oliver North:
I do not recall any such events. I had no knowledge of these occurences.