Technology level 2
Technology level 2 is the third of the Technology level classifications. The defining characteristics of a society having reached TL–2 include long-distance exploration, the ability to travel to almost every point on the world. The skills of celestial navigation may allow identification of current location, and the skills of building vehicles or having domesticated animals capable of long distance travel may enable global exploration.
The second type of defining characteristics is the development of nations. This may arise from the ability to organized a large, geographically distributed population for longer than the lifetime of a single individual. This requires a written legal system, and ability to enforce these laws over a period of time.
In terms of classification TL–2 is the Technological Period of Ur-Tech, the initial planetary bound cycle of development. It also occurs within the Technological Epoch know as the Tool Making Epoch.
Theoretical Technologies[edit]
- Physical Science
- Systematic experimentation
- Telescopes - Enhancing the naked eye astronomy with more detailed analysis of the sky and objects on the world.
- Navigation - The ability to determine location in the world.
- Chemistry - Understanding how chemical reactions occur and the ability to repeat them. This led to the development of new mixtures like Gunpowder, fertilizers, and the distillation of medicines.
- Material Science / Manufacturing
- Hard steel - Chemistry and the understanding of metallurgy
- Cast Iron - The construction of large forges for melting and processing metals at an industrial scale.
- Biological Science
- Microorganisms - The other side of telescopes, microscopes enable learning about microorganisms and the cellular structure of creatures.
- Cultural Science
- Nations
- Cities - The availability of food and transportation of the same allows for the congregation of a high density of people and still have them being fed.
- Literacy - The development of the printing press to produce reading material drives the need to learn to read the new material.
Quality of Life Technologies[edit]
- Energy
- Energy Storage - The ability to use springs and torsion devices to store energy for periods of time. Clockwork mechanisms release the energy in a controlled manner.
- Information
- Advanced Mathematics - Understanding of calculus.
- Communications
- Movable type printing press - Driving widespread literacy.
- Medicine / Life sciences
- Internal anatomy - Knowledge of what each organ of the body does and how injury affects the overall creature. Applies to both the NIL and to native creatures.
- Environment
- Advanced agriculture - Use of crop rotation and fertilizers to generate ever-increasing yields.
Transportation Technologies[edit]
- Land Transportation
- Advanced wheels - Use of metal rims to improve the durability of the wheels and ability to traverse the terrain.
- Water
- Ocean-going ships - large sailing ships capable of handling most of the environmental threats of an ocean.
- Air
- Kites - For ground-based creatures, the first attempts to understand aerodynamics and how to lift a person into the sky.
Military Technologies[edit]
Warfare has developed into an art or serious lifetime profession, with scholars and useful treatises on tactics and strategy. Combat usually involves poor to average-trained men on foot and elites riding on some form of an animal to provide greater mobility, height advantage, or armor-carrying capacity. Typically, the latter forces are restricted to wealthy or high-status individuals due to the expense of equipment and support staff. Until large gunpowder weapons become available, stone fortifications can withstand these forces until the besieged run out of food or water, fall afoul of disease from overcrowding, or succumb to treachery from within. Naval combat involves large wooden sailing vessels carrying crude gunpowder artillery. Ships are fired upon until they are so full of holes that they sink or until the enemy crew complement is reduced enough to make boarding practical. [1]
- Weapons Technology
- Gunpowder weapons - handguns, rifles, and cannon cast of bronze or iron using low-powered explosives to hurl shells made of stone, lead, or iron.
See Also[edit]
Technology levels[edit]
- Technological Systemics
- Foundational Period
- Interstellar Period
- Galactic Period / Accelerating Tech Level
References & Contributors[edit]
- Marc Miller. Worlds and Adventures (Game Designers Workshop, 1977), 7-8, 14-15,17.
- Marc Miller. Scouts (Game Designers Workshop, 1983), 26.
- Marc Miller. Merchant Prince (Game Designers Workshop, 1985), 34,37.
- Herb Petro. "Tech Level Expansion." Imperium Staple 07 (1986): 3.
- Loren Wiseman. "Twisting Tech Levels: A Traveller Variant." Challenge 31 (1987): 27.
- Marc Miller. Referee's Companion (Game Designers Workshop, 1988), 26-34.
- Joe Fugate, J. Andrew Keith, Gary L. Thomas. World Builder's Handbook (Digest Group Publications, 1989), 58,83-86.
- Frank Chadwick, Dave Nilsen. Fire, Fusion, & Steel (Game Designers Workshop, 1994), 6-8,37.
- Greg Porter. Emperor's Arsenal (Imperium Games, 1997), .
- David Burden. Pocket Empires (Imperium Games, 1997), 51-52,108.
- Leighton Piper. "Low Tech." Signal-GK 13 (1997): 30-31.
- Jon F. Zeigler. First In (Steve Jackson Games, 1999), 94-95, 108-117.
- K. David Ladage, "Alternate Technological Paths", JTAS Online (2001)
- K. David Ladage, "Alternate Technologies II: Relativity", JTAS Online (2001)
- Martin Dougherty, Hunter Gordon. The Traveller's Handbook (QuikLink Interactive, 2002), 378.
- Ken Pick, "An Analysis of Tech Levels", Freelance Traveller 012 (2010): 10-12
- Marc Miller. T5 Core Rules (Far Future Enterprises, 2013), 502-507.
- Marc Miller, Robert Eaglestone, Don McKinney. Starships (Far Future Enterprises, 2019), 223-237.
- Marc Miller, Robert Eaglestone, Don McKinney. Worlds and Adventures (Far Future Enterprises, 2019), 19.
- Geir Lanesskog. World Builder's Handbook (Mongoose Publishing, 2023), .
- ↑ Greg Porter. Emperor's Arsenal (Imperium Games, 1997), 18.