NationStates Jolt Archive

I've become rather interested lately in working on something, who knows what it'll turn into, based on WWI, but using elements of steampunk and possibly also the supernatural. I'm just trying to think of different potential alternate technologies that the different powers might be working on, as well as, possibly, a few occultic 'side projects'.

What about sentient pastries that form a hive-like colonies. You have the pie drones that launch themselves at threats, the cake workers that do most of the physical labor and the Tiramisu queen that sends instructions to the rest. *nod*

What about sentient pastries that form a hive-like colonies. You have the pie drones that launch themselves at threats, the cake workers that do most of the physical labor and the Tiramisu queen that sends instructions to the rest. *nod*

I am curious about your care taker. Does he/her know you are using the internet?

One of my housemates is massively into the idea of steampunk, and I think I've kind of caught it off him to a point. I do really like a lot of it, as it is essentially modern day tech but given a Victorian twist. He's even gone as far as to work out how a steampunk spaceship might work, which is slightly above my head.

Advanced Steam Technology is something you may wish to look into.

I've become rather interested lately in working on something, who knows what it'll turn into, based on WWI, but using elements of steampunk and possibly also the supernatural. I'm just trying to think of different potential alternate technologies that the different powers might be working on, as well as, possibly, a few occultic 'side projects'.

Hm. I'm curious about what has not been done yet... But my (very very humble) tip would be not to mix too much of it. I've seen that sometimes and...I thought it was all crap. But I'm sure what you're talking about could turn out real good.

My roommie's steampunk RPG has steampowered machineguns.

I am curious about your care taker. Does he/her know you are using the internet?

Nope. :D

What about sentient pastries that form a hive-like colonies. You have the pie drones that launch themselves at threats, the cake workers that do most of the physical labor and the Tiramisu queen that sends instructions to the rest. *nod*

Everyone knows that the pastries just decided to retire to France. That's why the instigated the collapse of the German currency after WWI to get the French to cross the border and buy out the pastry shops then go home. There's no story there.

One of my housemates is massively into the idea of steampunk, and I think I've kind of caught it off him to a point. I do really like a lot of it, as it is essentially modern day tech but given a Victorian twist. He's even gone as far as to work out how a steampunk spaceship might work, which is slightly above my head.

Advanced Steam Technology is something you may wish to look into.

My roommie's steampunk RPG has steampowered machineguns.

Have you guys seen the anime series, Last Exile? Both concepts are featured extensively.

steam powered cyborgs like china mieville's remade are always nice... i think steam powered machine guns are taking the steam in steampunk a little too literally however... war dirigibles bristling with gatling guns and shiny brass work are always nice however.

Nope. :D

What did we say about binding our caretakers with duct tape and putting them in the closet?

hm?

You set her free right now, young man.

Byzantines. It just ain't proper steampunk WWI without the scheming, Greek-speaking Byzantines.

And Martians.

My roommie's steampunk RPG has steampowered machineguns.

Not so farfetched as it seems... That idea has figured in a Mythbusters episode.
Result: Possible/plausible! The machine was not as powerful as a real gun, but as prove of concept, convincing!

What's steampunk? Some sort of alternate history series?

What's steampunk? Some sort of alternate history series?Steampunk is alternate history based on Victorian age SciFi. It's basically modern versions of Jules Verne's and H. G. Well's works, only we know they didn't happen.

Whatever you do, I'm very interested, I'm currently myself writing a lot about a sort of Lovecraftian lightly steam-punk alternate history, replacing the WWI.

But it's in French...

There's a piece of British technology from the early days of WWII that you might find interesting: Sometimes called "Nellie" (http://www.ww2f.com/weapons-wwii/12305-nellie-white-rabbit-no-6-a.html), and designed in anticipation of that conflict's land action following the same basic pattern as fighting on the Western Front had done in WWI, it was a 'mechanical mole' that was intended to plough through enemy defences and leave a trench behind itself so that infantry could follow it without being exposed to machine-gun fire. A few prototypes were built, but it never actually saw action...

He's even gone as far as to work out how a steampunk spaceship might work, which is slightly above my head.

Like in that joke about Chinese space flight?

"All is well, boiler-men on duty" :D

What's steampunk? Some sort of alternate history series?

Steampunk is a Spec. Fic. sub-genre combining alt. history and cyberpunk sensibilities.

Steampunlk is a subgenre of fantasy and speculative fiction which came into prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s. The term denotes works set in an era or world where steam power is still widely used—usually the 19th century, and often set in Victorian era England—but with prominent elements of either science fiction or fantasy, such as fictional technological inventions like those found in the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne, or real technological developments like the computer occurring at an earlier date. Other examples of steampunk contain alternate history-style presentations of "the path not taken" of such technology as dirigibles or analog computers; these frequently are presented in an idealized light, or a presumption of functionality.

Steampunk is often associated with cyberpunk and shares a similar fanbase and theme of rebellion, but developed as a separate movement (though both have considerable influence on each other). Apart from time period and level of technological development, the main difference between cyberpunk and steampunk is that steampunk settings usually tend to be less obviously dystopian than cyberpunk, or lack dystopian elements entirely.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steampunk


William Gibson and Bruce Sterling's The Difference Engine is the primal example - the story revolves around a Victorian era in ehich the Babbage Engine was perfected, and the information age was issued in a century earlier. If you haven't read it, imagine Blade Runner crossed with Dickens, and you'll get a rougfh idea.

might need a few people with thoose fancy streampowered or clockwork replacement arms

might need a few people with thoose fancy streampowered or clockwork replacement arms

Speaking of which, here's another good film. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steamboy)

Awesome! Er, things got a bit wonky for a few days on my end ...

Looks like some good ideas, and yes, I'm definitely going to have to get to reading some of the seminal works of the genre. I've been thinking about it a bit more lately, and I'm, well, going to leave out supernatural elements, I think. And I sort of had a different idea for a primary hook.

Like many, I'm sure, I've found the ending of the War of the Worlds to be a bit of a copout. What if, instead of being totally invulnerable and then suddenly dead, things had turned out differently? ie, that humans were capable of resisting the Martian onslaught but had to face the long-term partition of the planet?

I was thinking of 1908. It means that Teddy Roosevelt gets to be the US President, and it also means that it's not entirely ridiculous to see perhaps the craziest, most awesome scientific teamup ever- Nikolai Tesla and Albert Einstein. The aliens of course, hail from Mars (deep under the planet with the last of the water or the warm, mayhap- I'd rather keep the fun factor of their actually being Martians if possible at all), a planet which is steadily losing even its most limited capacity to support any life. Their society is ancient compared to human civilization, and their technology far superior to ours, but on the downside, they will be vastly, vastly outnumbered and are, to be honest, a little inexperienced with warfare. It's a gambit of desperation more than anything.

I may bump up the human technology level just a little bit (either by adapting steampunk elements or just giving them a ten-year leap on IRL 1910 tech), so they can have primitive tanks and military aircraft. Although they're of only modest value- the most useful human technology is heavy artillery (a direct hit from a big gun can, yes, destroy a tripod) and large warships (because the aliens are very, very unused to large bodies of water and despite the vast tech disparity, the sheer size and gunnery power of a dreadnought is not to be dismissed).

Disease will still be a factor- the aliens will have serious problems with earthborne diseases, and actually, so will the humans with Martian illnesses. Casualties from these illnesses will be rather heavy on both sides.

So far, it's just at the preliminary stage, but that's sort of where my mind is going.