I Invite Everyone

Draculus-del-Viafat

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One simple apocalypse idea that would provide a resource everyone is constantly fighting over, would be if pollution caused there to be a shortage of clean water... actually, this would warp a steampunk setting heavily, if clean water is hard to come by, and everyone's using steam power. Could actually twist the water shortage issue so that instead of being about having enough to drink, it's about having water that won't slowly destroy the machines it's used in. The dirtier the water used, the more maintenance is required to keep the machines functioning.

Actually, thinking on it, a new steam power technology that makes clean water more valuable than oil could be what triggers the wars, and pollution issues aren't even required. Just need demand to out-strip supply by a large enough amount. Sadly, I have no idea what sort of technology could possibly make water that valuable, unless it somehow made water boil into steam without the need for a separate fuel/heat source.
Perhaps that is the solution we've been looking for. Thank you! I'll think of how to get it all right.
 

Maple-Leaf

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That could be a lot of fun, really. I'm starting to create the MC and the gang concept, which will take some time, but eventually throw as at the right path of a storyline, and then we'll decide where to put this particular event, 'cause it shouldn't be something big or too important, right? More like one of the lots of the events that happen to the MC and the gang? Anyway, the idea sounds interesting to me)
Yeah, not anything too important just one event in the overarching plot is what I meant. Basicall, filler, before the actual story continues. It’s no goldmine and if it contrasts to much with the decided setting then you can do whatever you want with it, just a random thought I had lol.
 

Arkus86

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One simple apocalypse idea that would provide a resource everyone is constantly fighting over, would be if pollution caused there to be a shortage of clean water... actually, this would warp a steampunk setting heavily, if clean water is hard to come by, and everyone's using steam power. Could actually twist the water shortage issue so that instead of being about having enough to drink, it's about having water that won't slowly destroy the machines it's used in. The dirtier the water used, the more maintenance is required to keep the machines functioning.

Actually, thinking on it, a new steam power technology that makes clean water more valuable than oil could be what triggers the wars, and pollution issues aren't even required. Just need demand to out-strip supply by a large enough amount. Sadly, I have no idea what sort of technology could possibly make water that valuable, unless it somehow made water boil into steam without the need for a separate fuel/heat source.
By using the steam output from the machines for a distillation, they could get maybe not exactly pure, but certainly cleaner water, depending what is the pollution in it. This would not solve the issue, but could alleviate it to an extent.
Also, while this might be feasible with larger and/or static machinery used in factories or on ships of sufficient size for examle, I imagine it could be problematic on smaller mobile devices like car engines, robots or even personal equipment like weapons, tools, power packs etc. if those use steam power as well.
 

Draculus-del-Viafat

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Also, while this might be feasible with larger and/or static machinery used in factories or on ships of sufficient size for examle, I imagine it could be problematic on smaller mobile devices like car engines, robots or even personal equipment like weapons, tools, power packs etc. if those use steam power as well.
Maybe water will be more expensive that fuel, and ordinary people could use fuel for their vehicles?
 

Arkus86

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Maybe water will be more expensive that fuel, and ordinary people could use fuel for their vehicles?
That could work, though fuel availability needs to be considered. Fossil fuels in particular are being exhausted and the less of them is left, the harder it will be to extract them, and more expensive. Also the infrastructure to process and transport it - with transport being more dangerous prices rise again, and if the processing capacity is low, it would not help either.
Still, even if fuel is more expensive per unit, it might be more cheaper overall if the fuel efficiency is good enough.
Either way, if both water and fuel is expensive, likely only middle/upper-middle class at best could afford cars and such, leaving enough room for the use of animal-powered vehicles and machinery.
Although I would be cautious about making water too expensive, due to balancing living expenses with its other uses, and generally making it inferior to fuels.

On a side note, I feel we're starting to stray a bit into dieselpunk territory. Not that it's a bad thing, and the genres are similar enough I suppose.
 

Kldran

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It might be kinda funny (in a terrible sort of way) if the use of clean water in machines was considered important enough that poor people would put clean water in their machines, and drink the polluted water that came out. It would also be rather ridiculous and require the overall toxicity of the dirty water be low. I'm not too sure what would actually make sense as a machine the poor would sacrifice their clean water for though. Unless there was a form of clean water ration and they were selling theirs to the machine owner/user for extra income... the more I think about it, the more I think this idea is too awkward to make work.
 

Arkus86

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Maybe water will be more expensive that fuel, and ordinary people could use fuel for their vehicles?
That could work, though fuel availability needs to be considered. Fossil fuels in particular are being exhausted and the less of them is left, the harder it will be to extract them, and more expensive. Also the infrastructure to process and transport it - with transport being more dangerous prices rise again, and if the processing capacity is low, it would not help either.
Still, even if fuel is more expensive per unit, it might be more cheaper overall if the fuel efficiency is good enough.
Either way, if both water and fuel is expensive, likely only middle/upper-middle class at best could afford cars and such, leaving enough room for the use of animal-powered vehicles and machinery.
Although I would be cautious about making water too expensive, due to balancing living expenses with its other uses, and generally making it inferior to fuels.
Maybe making cars and other devices powered by electricity would be better, eliminating the need formuch of the above shenanigans
 

Kldran

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One thing to think about is what level of infrastructure is present in cities, as this would have a big impact on what ordinary people have access to. A fascinating thing related to steam is the steam system in New York:

Thinking about electricity vs other power sources reminded me of this.
 

Draculus-del-Viafat

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That could work, though fuel availability needs to be considered. Fossil fuels in particular are being exhausted and the less of them is left, the harder it will be to extract them, and more expensive. Also the infrastructure to process and transport it - with transport being more dangerous prices rise again, and if the processing capacity is low, it would not help either.
Still, even if fuel is more expensive per unit, it might be more cheaper overall if the fuel efficiency is good enough.
Either way, if both water and fuel is expensive, likely only middle/upper-middle class at best could afford cars and such, leaving enough room for the use of animal-powered vehicles and machinery.
Although I would be cautious about making water too expensive, due to balancing living expenses with its other uses, and generally making it inferior to fuels.

On a side note, I feel we're starting to stray a bit into dieselpunk territory. Not that it's a bad thing, and the genres are similar enough I suppose.
Should I say that this is the first time I actually understood that steampunk uses steam power for vehicles? We can't make water too expensive in a steampunk world, can we? I mean, if water is not available to many people, they can't make steam engines, obviously. And if we get back to the matters of clean and polluted water, polluted water will acually serve for engines, while clean water is difficult to produce, which is the reason of its high price, right?

Thinking about electricity vs other power sources reminded me of this.
Uhhh... Maybe water will give us electricity?.. I think we'll have plenty of it, used for different purposes...
 

Arkus86

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Should I say that this is the first time I actually understood that steampunk uses steam power for vehicles?
Oops, we all have our weaker moments I guess :blob_joy: (my brain actually shorted out while I was writing the second comment and had to rewrite it like four times until it made sense, I blame the heat :sweating_profusely:)
And if we get back to the matters of clean and polluted water, polluted water will acually serve for engines, while clean water is difficult to produce, which is the reason of its high price, right?
I'm on board with this idea, together with the aforementioned features of polluted water possibly making machinery deteriorate faster (and thus being unsuitable for more delicate devices?), and the poor opting to drink polluted water to save money and maybe selling the clean water if they manae to get some.
 

Draculus-del-Viafat

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I'm on board with this idea, together with the aforementioned features of polluted water possibly making machinery deteriorate faster (and thus being unsuitable for more delicate devices?), and the poor opting to drink polluted water to save money and maybe selling the clean water if they manae to get some.
And with all that, polluted water can be also used for producing electricity in huge dams?
 

Nahrenne

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All this drinking polluted water and using clean water for machines...it feels incredibly unsustainable.
'-'
Would human society have degraded so much to not remember the dangers of drinking polluted water?

X
 

Draculus-del-Viafat

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All this drinking polluted water and using clean water for machines...it feels incredibly unsustainable.
'-'
Would human society have degraded so much to not remember the dangers of drinking polluted water?

X
Drinking polluted water is a necessity because they can't afford clean water, and for machines people also use polluted water, because they can't use clean - it's too expensive.
 

Arkus86

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And with all that, polluted water can be also used for producing electricity in huge dams?
I see no issue with that.
All this drinking polluted water and using clean water for machines...it feels incredibly unsustainable.
'-'
Would human society have degraded so much to not remember the dangers of drinking polluted water?
I think it depends on the degree and nature of the pollution, and how desperate people get. It probably shouldnot be too common, but an option for those desperate enough. It also should not be a death sentence in such case, but still come with some risks, particularly with prolonged consumption.

EDIT: Hell, people will drink seawater if you leave them stranded in the ocean long enough, even if they know it can kill them.
 
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Nahrenne

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Drinking polluted water is a necessity because they can't afford clean water, and for machines people also use polluted water, because they can't use clean - it's too expensive.
I mean, I would have thought that the machine parts scavenged from the Old World would be more expensive, since metal can degrade and rust over time if not treated properly.
'-'
I mean, with all of this steam-powered tech, where are they getting the metal from?

X
 

Arkus86

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I mean, I would have thought that the machine parts scavenged from the Old World would be more expensive, since metal can degrade and rust over time if not treated properly.
'-'
I mean, with all of this steam-powered tech, where are they getting the metal from?

X
Good question. Three options come to mind right now:
1. Scavenged parts as you say, possibly the more expensive option
2. Melted down scrap metal, because let's face it, various metals and alloys are everywhere around us and probably would not be too hard to find in most ruins. Could be the middle ground in quality and price?
3. Newly mined and smelted metal, depending on the quality of ore and smelting, which could differ between regions, could be low to medium quality. Issue could be finding deposits (or old mines not yet exhausted), and guarding them against this "wild, ferocious, and dangerous" world.
 
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Draculus-del-Viafat

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Good question. Three options come to mind right now:
1. Scavenged parts as you say, possibly the more expensive option
2. Melted down scrap metal, because let's face it, various metals and alloys are everywhere around us and probably would not be too hard to find in most ruins. Could be the middle ground in quality and price?
3. Newly mined and smelted metal, depending on the quality of ore and smelting, which could differ between regions, could be low to medium quality. Issue could be finding deposits (or old mines not yet exhausted), and guarding them against this "wild, ferocious, and dangerous" world.
I'd say authoritarian governments would control the biggest new mines, which would lead to people robbing them and each other... Also people can get metal from old ruins, just like it was said, because after wars and everything they can still find abandined cities full of ruined buldings with iron constructions sticking out on every corner. Maybe that iron won't be quality, but it's still a material.
 

Draculus-del-Viafat

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Well, at least I've already set for myself that the first part of the story will be called The Gang and will tell us how the protagonist meets the gang, stays there, meets a guy, and a little about how our steampunk world operates. The end of it will probably be also the beginning of the second part where the MC begins her search.
 

AkalE

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ngl this is a bigbrain way of getting others to worldbuild for you. :blob_hmm_two:
 

Draculus-del-Viafat

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ngl this is a bigbrain way of getting others to worldbuild for you. :blob_hmm_two:
I thought it wouldn't be so obvious :blob_whistle_two:


But, honestly, the thread wasn't supposed to attract worldbuilders as so, and I'm infinitely grateful to those who joined me at building the steampunk world of the future, but it was supposed to make people share characters, locations, or stories that they would like to read about. I've always wanted to write something that would make as many people as possible very happy with seeing a hero or a plot thet they've always dreamed to see in a book of some kind. I'm somehow sure there are many talented people who create characters, places, or storylines, but don't know where to apply them, and I've always wanted to help them with this, writing a book with their ideas included.
 
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