Pre-TN Start Question About RL

[Maltay (OP)]

I am starting a pre-TN game with multiple factions.  I am having trouble deciding what is a reasonable number of RL per faction.  Some factions are more advanced than other factions.  This is to the point that I expect some factions to fall behind, fail, and cause a ruckus for the more advanced factions.

Basically, what do forum goers think is a reasonable number of RL for a pre-TN faction?  Assume different categories of pre-TN faction.  For example, technology leaders like the U.S., EU, and Japan, up and coming factions like China, India, and Brazil, and those that will probably fall behind, fail, and cause a ruckus like Iran, Saudi Arabia, or most of sub-Saharan Africa.

Though, admittedly, it would be neat if some of the factions I expect to fall behind somehow manage to survive and thrive.  This might happen based on how old technology is shared among factions sharing a planetary body.  So, for example, even if Iran would normally take a decade or more to research TN technology, they might actually get TN technology after half a decade because of technology advances by a faction like the U.S.  This assumes TN technology is one of those technologies that get shared.

[sublight]

1-2 labs per 100 million is my rule of thumb for a high-tech conventional society. (25-50% of the TN-starting default, 100-200% of the conventional default). Low tech societies and factions that depend on tech-transfer to gain research typically have about half the lab:population ratio of research focused factions. I never give one of my factions less than 1 lab per 200 million or 1/3 the ratio of the tech leaders without exceptional circumstances.

Edit: I also always go ahead and give everyone the cornerstone TN technology at the very least. I find things really aren't that interesting until factions start to diversify their research goals anyway.

[Maltay (OP)]

1-2 labs per 100 million is my rule of thumb for a high-tech conventional society. (25-50% of the TN-starting default, 100-200% of the conventional default). Low tech societies and factions that depend on tech-transfer to gain research typically have about half the lab:population ratio of research focused factions. I never give one of my factions less than 1 lab per 200 million or 1/3 the ratio of the tech leaders without exceptional circumstances.

Edit: I also always go ahead and give everyone the cornerstone TN technology at the very least. I find things really aren't that interesting until factions start to diversify their research goals anyway.

Thank you sublight, much appreciated.