SOLAR HEGEMONY
It is the year 1946. The greatest conflict in human history, Second World War, has barely ended. Most of the world is picking up the pieces, yet a new conflict, possibly even greater than WW2, is already brewing. The looting of the German scientific establishment had revealed the existence of Trans-Newtonian minerals and their near-magical properties. Luckily, the atomic bombing of Berlin had prevented the Näzis from utilizing these miraculous discoveries to their advantage. Seeing the utter destruction that the American A-Bombs had done to Berlin and Hamburg, the Japanese had surrendered in short order. But now politicians, soldiers and scientists in Moscow and Washington DC were putting their heads together to figure out how to best exploit this new knowledge. The fragile wartime alliance between the two new superpowers was about to fall apart. But could this new Trans-Newtonian science provide a way for the fading Great Powers of yesterday to make a comeback? And could they accelerate the rise of the emerging powers? The battle for the Solar hegemony is about to start!
Conventional start, 1946. Both USA and USSR start with 1 billion population, 6100 wealth, 16 research facilities, 4 GFCC, 1600 conventional industry, and one level of military academy and naval headquarters. As you might have guessed from the brief description, this takes place in an alternate timeline of Earth hence the numbers don't exactly match with reality at the end of WW2. This story uses version 2.5 and will be fighter-centric to begin with. I am using SM mode to give both factions TN-theory in 1946 as otherwise the first few years are just wasted. Similarly, engine generations are locked behind story events. Otherwise, research is normal with LRA on. Difficulty 150%, Terraforming and Survey both half speed. Construction cycle 86,401 seconds.
In March, the US scientists figure out a comprehensive TN-theory thanks to having looted far more material from the Germans than the Soviet had - the Soviet scientists expected their work to last until December. In May, the Soviets opened their first Deep Space Tracking Station, a collection of extremely accurate optical telescopes that could observe near-Earth space but the Americans were not far behind, opening theirs in June. By September, several maintenance facilities had been constructed at Baikonur, the site for the nascent Soviet space program. And finally in December the Soviets cracked the mysteries of TN-theory.
1947Soviets began the year by figuring out how to make completely sealed tractors, ploughers and diggers so that their crews and machinery would work on freezing desert planets like Mars just as well as on airless rocks like Luna. The Americans discovered the secret of High-Density Duranium armour. In May, the Soviets constructed additional facilities at Baikonur, these were to house the bureaucrats making sure that the CCCP utilized all its resources and roubles to maximum efficiency. Meanwhile, across the oceans, the United States was going through a second industrial revolution, with both manufacturing and resource extraction being upgraded to TN-standards. In August, American science introduced Geological Survey Sensors that could scan a planetoid from low orbit for the presence of any of the eleven TN-minerals.
1948Americans also solved the mystery of space-worthy construction equipment in January as well as how to refuel spacecraft while they were underway - at least on paper, since there were no spacecraft yet. They also started work on active sensors of sorts, able to make precise measurements of objects in space. In April, Soviet scientists managed to create a working Radioisotope Thermal Generator, which would create sufficient power for any spacecraft. And in July, the descendants of Siberians created a pressurized suit that allowed fine-motor control, in effect allowing soldiers to function almost normally in extreme temperatures.
Thanks for reading! Next update will probably happen next year.
Recent Posts
