Tech Level Comparison Chart

All of the Imperiums have recognized the importance of technology and, in relationship to this, have developed a comprehensive system of classifying technology.

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Please refer to the following AAB library articles for related information:

• Technology
  • Technological Research
    • Ancients Foundation
    • Biotechnology
    • Imperial Research Station
    • Technology Incubator
  • Technological Systemics
    • Technology Level
    • Tech Level Comparison Chart
    • Three Prime Technologies
    • Universal Technological Profile

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History & Background (Dossier)

Technology is the distinguishing feature of advanced civilizations. It underlies what being a sophont is.

Technology Comparison Chart

The Scout Service is responsible for categorizing the technological ability of a society. They rate this ability by the assigning of Tech Levels.

Description (Specifications)

Technology Comparison Tables: These Tech Level ratings are described in the three tables below. The TL's cover three different systems:

• TTL: Traveller Technology Level = For Classic Traveller and most successors.
• G3TL: GURPS 3rd Edition Technology Level.
• G4TL: GURPS 4th Edition Technology Level.

GURPS Traveller Notes

With the GURPS 3rd Edition book Steampunk, the concept of divergent technology was added.

TL(Historical+Divergent)

Example: TL(5+1) is a TL6, with historical Earth-like TL5, but somewhat different TL6 (same effects, different form). Characters not used to divergent technology suffer a -2 penalty. The closet real world example is Edison's 1896 Kinetophone (called a Speaking Mutoscope in SteamTech pg 52) at TL(5+1) when contrasted to Lauste's 1907 sound on film method at TL6. (The first uses mechanical means so common to TL5 to sync picture and sound while the second uses electrical means that would be common in TL6.)

Superscience

GURPS 4th Edition expanded on this with the addition of the superscience (^) category and the concepts: borderline, split, and familiar technologies. It also eliminated the end date that TLs originally had allowing for a G4TL8 computer to be connected to a G4TL7 power grid that has a handful of still operational G4TL6 power plants.

Superscience involves technologies that violate our current understanding of physical laws (relativity, conservation of energy, etc.). For this reason any TL assigned to them is arbitrary. So FTL travel can be TL6^, TL(6+4)^, TL10^ or something else entirely depending on the setting. This is why broadcast power has two totally different TLs in G4: TL6^ (Infinite Worlds, Gernsback) and TL10^ (Ultra-Tech). For example, Azoth-7 is a G4TL(4+2) reality that has G4TL4^ interstellar space travel which is normally an 11 on the GURPS 4e TL scale. Similarly many D&D worlds are G4TL(3+3)^ - effectively TL6 that thanks to magic diverged at TL3; in the Spelljammer setting the "^" denotes manned interplanetary space flight which is normally an 9 on the GURPS 4e TL scale.

Since Jump drive is a form of FTL technology it gets a "^" and gives no indication on what the over G4TL is, so while Jump drive tends to appear at G4TL9 that doesn't prevent an otherwize TL7 culture from developing Jump drive. For example, Homeline, a G4TL8-9^ reality of GURPS Infinite Worlds has access to pocket and parallel universes which is Traveler TL 25. Then there is Engstrom, a G4TL6^ reality that has created permanent access to eight other parallel universes (which are collectively known as the Nine Worlds).

Determining G4TLs

It should be noted not all GURPS 4e (or Powered by GURPS) books use the TL scale correctly so they are not always a good benchmark for where a technology is on the scale. For example, GURPS Prime Directive (a classic Star Trek setting ie TOS) highballed the TLs for G3 and continued using that scale for the G4 edition totally messing up the TLs as a result.

Using the GURPS 3e books themselves TOS was all over the TL9-11 range for Weapons & Armor, a firm TL9 for Transportation (the transporter is a TL14 oddball), Antimatter was in the 10-12 range and Medicine was TL8. In GURPS 4e TOS is a mixture of TL6^ and (6+3)^ with some Power TL(6+4)^ thrown in

EU Star Wars is G4TL8^ and nearly all pre 1940s science fiction is G4TL6^ with the occasional higher TL appearing.

Using science fiction novels as TL inspiration has its own pitfalls. Even "hard" science fiction stories may be hampered by assumption of the time that turned out to be wrong. For example, Weinbaum's 1930s "Planetary series" is G4TL(6+3)^ as it was based on then current theories of the solar system which have since been shown to be wrong (hence the "^").

Further Notes:

• Rows of Technologies that are a mixture of "real" science and superscience will have the lowest G4TL for the nonsuperscience items combined with "^".
• When technologies don't exactly match the stated GURPS TLs and the two GURPS TL are effectively identical a GTLx note will be provided.

Quality of Life Technology

Quality of life Tech Comparison

TTL	G3TL	G4TL	Energy	Computers/Robotics	Communications	Medical	Environment
0	1-3	0	Muscles	Fingers and sticks	Runners	Mystics/Herbology	Natural (Caves, Huts)
1	1-4	1-3	Water (GTL 2)	Abacus / Geometry (GTL 2), Trigonometry (GTL 2)	Long Distance Signaling	Diagnosis	Settlements, Towns (Irrigation) - GTL 1
2	4	4	Wind (GTL 2), Clockwork	Algebra - GTL4 3	Printing press	Internal Anatomy	Cities (Canals, Roads) - GTL 1-2
3	5	5	Coal / Steam	Calculus	Telegraph, Audio Recording	Surgery	Cement Structures
4	5	5	Electricity (DC GTL5; AC GTL6)	Mechanical Calculators	Telephone (GTL6)	Vaccination, Antiseptics, Anesthetics	Cities in Rugged/Desert Terrain, Crude Terraform
5	6	6	Petrochemicals, Internal combustion	Electric Calculators	Radio, Radar	Mass Vaccination, X-Ray	Sealed/Conditioned Cities
6	6-7	6-7	Nuclear Fission	Electronic Computers (Large Model/1 bis)	Television / Advanced Audio Recording	Virus, Crude Prosthetics	Skyscrapers, Weather Predict, Underground Cities
7	7	7	Solar energy, early Fuel Cells	Desktop Computers, Expert systems, Model/2	Early Satellite, Video recording	Organ Transplant, Slow Drugs	Cities in Jungle Terrain
8	7-8	7-8	Geothermal (GTL 6)	Massive Parallel / Low Data, Model/2bis	Fibre optics (GTL 7)	Artificial Organs, Metabolics	Orbital Settlements, Early Weather Control
9	8-9	8-9	Early Fusion, Improved Batteries	Non-Volatile / High Data, Vocal I/O, Model/3	Video Telephone (GTL 7), Flat Screen (GTL 7)	Limb Regeneration, Cryogenics, Fast Drugs	Arcologies, Orbital Cities
10	9	8-10	Fusion Plants 2KL Minimum	Early Synaptics, voice transcription (GTL 8), Model/4	Holovision, Text Transcription	Antiviral Vaccines (GTL 6), Cancer Cure, Growth Quickining	Under-Sea/Under Ice Cities
11	9	8-10	Fusion Plants 1KL Minimum	Synaptic Learning Processors, Hand Computers, Model/5	Personal Global Communications	Nerve Refusion, Artificial Eyes	Gravitic Structure Support (GTL ^)
12	10	8-10	Fusion Plants 250L Minimum, Advanced Fuel Cells	Low Autonomous Robots, Model/6	Real-time Multilingual Translators	Broad Spectrum Anti-toxins, Enhanced Prosthetics	Major Terraforming, Advanced Weather Control
13	10	8-10	Fusion output 3Kw per L, Miniature Super-Batteries	Holocrystal Storage, High Autonomous Robots, Model/7	Holovideo Recorders	Cloning of Replacement Parts, Reanimation	Non-mobile Gravitic Cities
14	11	8-10	Fusion Plants 100L Minimum	Computer/Brain Implants, Model/8	Early Meson Communicators	Genetic Engineering, Memory Erasure	Mobile Gravitic Cities
15	12	8-10	Fusion output 6Kw per L	Pseudo-Reality Computers, Pseudo Robots, Model/9	Meson Communicators, Pseudo Reality Communications	Anagathics, Advanced Pseudobio Prosthetics	Complex Terraforming Possible
16	13	10	Fusion output 7Kw per L, 80L Minimum	Low Artificial Intelligence, Robots in all Facets	Personal Meson Communicators, Personal Holovideo	Brain Transplants, Crude Memory Transfer	Global Terraforming, Hostile Worlds
17	10-13	10^	Early Antimatter Plants	High Artificial Intelligence, Self-Aware Robots	Pocket Meson Communications	Selective Memory Erasure, Intelligent Anitbodies	Total Terraforming to 800Km worlds
18	10-13	10^	Antimatter 1Mw/L, 750L Fuel Pod Minimum	Robots become Society's Basic Workforce		Partial Memory Transfer	Total Terraforming to 4000Km worlds
19	10-13	-	Antimatter 2.5Mw/L, 200L Fuel Pod Minimum			Non-Cryogenic Suspension, Advanced Bioengineering	Total Terraforming
20	10-13	10^	Antimatter 15Mw/L, 40L Fuel Pod Minimum		Matter Transport Eliminates Global Communication Barriers (G4TL^)	Total Memory Transfer	Mobile Worlds (Sublight)
21	13-14	^	Antimatter 50Mw/L, 5L Fuel Pod Minimum		Matter Transport Eliminates Intra-System Barriers	Early Total Rejuvenation	Mobile Worlds (Jump Space) & Rosettes
23	14	11	"Classic" Dyson Spheres (with many Capsules)
25	14	12^	Ability to create Ringworlds, access pocket universe (G4TL6^)
27	14	12^	Rigid Dyson Spheres
35	15-16	12^	Create Pocket Universe

• TL-35 appears in early Traveller products. T5 caps the system at TL-33.

Transportation Technology

Transportation Tech Comparison

TTL	G3TL	G4TL	Land	Water	Air	Space
0	1-3	0	Foot - Animals	Raft / Canoe	-	-
1	1-3	1-3	Wheel - Carts/Chariots (GTL 1)	Rowed Galleys, Crude Sailing Vessels	-	-
2	4	4	Advanced Wheel - Moveable Axle, Replaceable Rims	Early Multi-Mast Sailing (GTL 2), Oceangoing sailing ships (GTL 3), Crude Navigation (GTL 2), Stagecoachs	-	-
3	5	5	Extensive Road (GTL 2) - High-Speed Coach	Multi-Mast Sailing (GTL 4), Navigation (GTL 4)	Manned Hot Air Balloons	-
4	5	5	Trains	Ironclads, Steamships	Dirigibles (GTL 6), Early Gliders	-
5	6	6	Ground Cars, Tracked Vehicles	Personal Self-Propelled Boats, Steel hulls, Early Submersibles	Airplanes, Seaplanes	Early Rockets (unmanned)
6	6	6	Amphibian Vehicles, ATVs, AFVs	Submersibles, Scuba, Amphibian Vehicles	Early Jet, Helicopters	Early Manned Rockets (GTL 7), Unmanned Rockets
7	7	7	Hovercraft, High-Speed Trains	Hydrofoils, Hovercraft	Supersonic Jet, Hang Gliders	Deep Space Probes (Unmanned), Maneuver-1/2 (non-gravitic)
8	8	8	Triphibian Vehicles	Triphibian Vehicles, Early Artificial Gills	Triphibian Vehicles, Hypersonic Jet	Space Shuttles, Space Stations, Maneuver-3-5 (non-grav)
9	9	9^	Early Grav Vehicles, Ultra High-Speed Trains	Early Grav Vehicles, Artificial Gills	Early Grav Vehicles, Rocket Assist Suborbital	Jump-1 possible (GT4 ^), Sublight Stellar
10	9	9^	Grav Vehicles		UH Grav Modules	Gravitic Maneuver , Jump-1 certain (GT4 ^)
11	9	9-10^	Personal G-Tubes, HV Grav Modules			Jump-2 (GT4 ^), Thruster Technology
12	10	^	Personal Grav Belts (GT4 ^), LT Grav Modules (GT4 ^)			Jump-3 (GT4 ^)
13	10	^	Grav Vehicles Merge with Orbital Spacecraft (GT4 ^), Jump-4 (GT4 ^)
14	11	^	Jump-5 (GT4 ^)
15	12	^	Jump-6 (GT4 ^)
16	13	^	Raw Material Only Short Range Matter Transport (GT4 ^)
17	13	^	Inanimate Only Short Range Matter Transport (GT4 ^)
18	-	^	Self-Aware Starships, living being portal based Matter Transport (GT4 ^)
21	-	^	Multi Parsec Range Starship-Sized Matter Transport Portals (GT4 ^)

Military Technology

Military Tech Comparison

-	-	-	Personal		Heavy
TL	G3TL	G4TL	Weapons	Armour	Weapons	Armour
0	1-3	0	Club, Spear	Fur	-	-
1	0-3	0-3	Early Weapons (Bow, Sword)	Jack Armour	Catapult	Wood, Bronze (GTL1), Iron (GTL2), Crude Steel (GL3)
2	4	4	Early Guns		Small Cannons
3	5	5	Rifled Weapons		Cannons
4	5	6	Cartridge	Mesh Armour	Howitzers, Gatling gun	Soft Steel
5	6	6	Explosive Grenade, Shotgun	Filter Mask	Mortars
6	6	7	Automatic (SMG)		Nuclear Weapons, Missiles (GTL7)	Hard Steel
7	7	7	Grenade Launchers	Cloth Armour, Flack Jacket	Beam Lasers	Composite Laminate
8	8	8	RAM Grenade Launchers, Early Laser Carbine		Particle Accelerators, Target Desginated Missiles
9	9	9	Laser Weapons	Ablative Armour		Light Weight Composite Laminate
10	9	10	Advanced Combat Rifle	Reflec, Combat Environment Suit	Plasma Guns, Repulsors	Crystaliron
11	9	10		Combat Armour	Meson Guns
12	10	11	PGMP-12, Gauss Rifle		Fusion Guns	Superdense Armour, Nuclear Dampers
13	10	11	PGMP-13, X-Ray Lasers	Battle Dress	X-Ray Lasers
14	11	12	FGMP-14			Bonded Superdense
15	12	12	FGMP-15			Early Black Globes
16	13	10^	FGMP-16, Plasma Rifle, Neural Gun	Neural Shield	Tractor Beam (G4TL ^)	Black Globes
17	13	10^	Fusion Rifle, Plama Pistol		Disintegrators (G4TL ^), Antimatter Warheads	Coherent Superdense
18	-	10^	Disintegrator Rifle (G4TL ^), Fusion Pistol	Personal Damper (G4TL ^)	Long Range Disintegrator/Tractor Beam (G4TL ^)
19	-	10^	Disintegrator Pistol (G4TL ^)			Proton Screen, Plastic Metal Armour
20	-	^			Relativity Beam	White Globes, Proton Beam
21	-	^	Relativity Rifle	Personal White Globe	Jump Projector	Jump Damper

Non-Canon Technologies

News Media and Information Dissemination Technology

References & Contributors / Sources

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This list of sources was used by the Traveller Wiki Editorial Team and individual contributors to compose this article. Copyrighted material is used under license from Far Future Enterprises or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.

• GURPS 3rd Edition Lite - External Link: http://www.sjgames.com/gurps/lite/3e/gurpslite.pdf
• GURPS 3rd Edition TL - External Link: http://web.archive.org/web/20070214002238/http://www.omnology.com/gurps-levels.html
• GURPS 4th Edition TL - External Link: http://gurps.wikia.com/wiki/Tech_Level
• Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master of Sophontology Maksim-Smelchak of the Ministry of Science