Superpowered Worlds

[Metaphysician]

Re: Superpowered Worlds

 

OTOH, there would be a comparatively strong incentive to develop better materials for carrying devices. Doesn't do you any good to be strong enough to carry around half a ton of grain casually, if the best sack or urn you can make can only carry 200 pounds before breaking.

 

Any given superpower would probably thus shift, rather than stop, technological advancement. The superstrong race would thus have less development of strength substitutes like draft animals, but more development of strength enhancements and exploitations, like stronger sacks and tougher levers.

[TheRavenIs]

Re: Superpowered Worlds

 

I also see if the super-strong beings did develope new fabrics, materials. I see that technology would still develope in simular ways as now.

 

1. Once you have the materials, you can build better tools.

2. Once you have better tools, you can build better homes, roads, etc.

3. Once you have better homes you need more food, well the fabrics and tools make that easier as well.

[nexus]

Re: Superpowered Worlds

 

To use a rough analogy' date=' think of a wheelbarrow or a hand cart, both very common technologies. If our hypothetical ultra-strong people are in fact stronger than the potential draft animals, they might well decide that domesticating these weak creatures to haul stuff isn't worth the bother. We don't generally use dogs to pull things (yes, yes, dog sleds in the arctic, probably other exceptions, I said "generally"), it might well be the same for the mega-mights. Why domesticate and feed something that needs the upkeep of five people but can only do half the work of one?[/quote']

 

Agreed entirely Draft animals worth their upkeep because they do more work or are more effcicent than human labor. If they weren't there wouldn't a reasonable need for such technology to be developed. What would likely be pushed more is the need to develop materials and engineeering techniques that can handle the force the theoretical super strong race can exert either deliberately or accidentally. Industrialization would still have a place, but might take longer to develop since some of the basic mechanical principles might be delayed since many labor/effort saving devices aren't needed quite as much (levers and pulleys to move heavy objects for example while not entirely eliminated would see reduced use).

 

Does this super strong race also have the other abilities associated with comic book bricks like extreme resistance to injury? That could hand to hand combat remained the primary means of fighting since it could take some time before technoogical weapons able to be easily transported and operated by able to actually injure or kill an opposing warrior were developed.

[Metaphysician]

Re: Superpowered Worlds

 

Well, if they are only class 1, it wouldn't be *that* high of resistance, but yeah, musclepowered weapons would dominate. Gunpowder, when discovered, would probably remain in the domain of toys, and perhaps artillery, never personal weapons.

 

Crossbows, OTOH, would proliferate. They'd probably have much more development of them as weapons then we do. Which might mean the first military use of gunpowder would be to fill an explosive arrowhead.

[David Johnston]

Re: Superpowered Worlds

 

Does this super strong race also have the other abilities associated with comic book bricks like extreme resistance to injury?

 

They have fairly high levels of nonresistant (only) PD and ED. Think Thor and Wonder Woman. So there's still a market for pointy things and body armour

[SSgt Baloo]

Re: Superpowered Worlds

 

...I can see where technology might develp much more slowly on a world like this. Which doesn't really matter from a story perspective' date=' as you can start the clock whenever you want; [b']if technology developed half as fast as on Earth[/b], you just say they've been around twice as long.

 

Emphasis added.

Half-fast technology? You're too subtle for this crowd. Repped!

 

Unless the supernatives are immune from cold, see as well at night as in the day, and eat their food cold and raw, fire might be a startingpoint for their technological trek. There's a lot to be said for creating light in darkness, driving away the cold, and heating/cooking food.

 

Here's an idea. In a society of Beast Boys' date=' would there be the problem of "going native"? If a Beast Boy starts spending a lot of its time as a dog, say, after a while does it start to identify more with dogs than with fellow Beast Boys? Perhaps it would eventually defect from Beast Boy society and go join a dog pack.[/quote']

 

As has been noted by others, the beasts might be displaced by beast boys. Still, if its considered rude to consume sentient life, I suspect that at least a few "lower orders" would be preserved just so the menu can have variety without resorting to cannibalism. Or maybe they're vegetarians?

 

I'm wondering about dating customs on Triplicate Girl's world. Does every sexual encounter end in a six-person orgy? I am so totally going around Beast Boy world and heading straight to Triplicate Girl world.

 

I call shotgun!

 

Beast-boy is vegetarian' date=' so having a planet of them doesn't automatically require cannibalism.[/quote']

 

Tol'ja!

 

But for me' date=' I'd skip all of that and book a one-way trip to Tamaran. I want to hang out with Starfire's folks. Something in the water makes all the chicks hawt, and they evolved from cats! WIN![/quote']

 

On second thought... Dibs on shotgun!

 

Why domesticate and feed something that needs the upkeep of five people but can only do half the work of one?

 

Because if you dip it in batter and deep fry it it tastes really good?

[Vestnik]

Re: Superpowered Worlds

 

Come to think of it, the civilization on Triplicate Girl's planet would whup ass from the logistical, environmental, and resource-use standpoints. If you have a population of 1 million, it can triplicate itself into 3 million for purposes of work and warfare and genarlly getting things done (or mass sexual bacchanalia), but only require the resources and living space necessary to maintain the original 1 million.

[Half Baked]

Re: Superpowered Worlds

 

One of the more persuasive theories about the development of civilization is that food production is a fundamental driver. The theory goes that as large game became more scarce in some parts of the world around 10,000 BCE humans were forced to supplement their hunter/gathering existence by producing their own food. That is, by domesticating grains (wheat, barley, etc) and large animals (Cattle, sheep, goats, horses and pigs). Those groups that learnt those skills became more sedentary and could produce a food surplus that permitted the development of specialisation and urban centres.

 

Human communities with greater food production could then compete better against those without. With specialised warriors, better technology from specialised craftspeople and a much greater population they had the tools and resources to displace other communities through violence or outbreeding. Rival communities had to either adopt food production and its associated technologies or face destruction. Only geographic obstacles such as physical barriers (oceans, desert, mountains) or climate/soil unsuitable for food production would protect hunter/gatherer communities.

 

This theory could be used to explain a super-strong race being more advanced than our own. Going back to first premise that food production came about due the scarcity of large game to hunt. There are two theories as to why that occurred. The first is due to climatic change and the end of the Ice Age and the other is that they were hunted to extinction by newly arrived humans. The second is probably the more credible given that most large animal species had survived numerous ice ages and it cannot be complete coincidence that many became extinct in places shortly after mankind arrived. If we accept this theory and add super-strong humans. This super-strength would be of great benefit in hunting and they would more quickly reach a point where they had hunted most large protein sources to extinction and would be looking for alternatives. To survive they would discover food production earlier. That leads to earlier specilisation and perhaps a more advance civilization.

 

The super-strength could lead to even more specialisation as fewer are needed to produce food and other essentials.

 

It is an interesting argument as long as you accept the underlying assumptions. If you think the Wooly Mammoth died out due to the end of the ice age rather than being hunted to extinction by man then it is much less persuasive.

[Radar]

Re: Superpowered Worlds

 

Just to cite a canonical comic book example from memory, I believe the Kree introduced space flight technology to the Skrulls, indicating that they'd not reached that level of tech or perhaps weren't capable of developing it themselves. The Skrulls have a lot of odd traits, though. Besides shape-shifting, they are easily hypnotized and have problems discerning between photographs and drawings (which leads me to posit they have some other sensory stuff going on as suggested before when it comes to detecting others). Just some thing to throw in the mix, since I love these kind of specualtive threads.