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Scifi and Fantasy Forum: Sci-Fi and Fantasy General Discussions: Alternate reality research?
Alternate reality research?
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Posted By:  gedren_y Jan 24, 2002 - 07:04 am |       | When creating a timeline for an alternate reality how deep do you get into your research?
The present alternate reality I am working on has Ancient Egypt surviving well into what we would call the 23rd century C.E. Technology is still only at Greco-Roman level, Islam has become the official religion of The Roman Empire, Constantine never converted to Christianity, and my main characters are from our future and are working for The Quantum Sphere Corporation. Could you imagine the research I would have to do to create a couple of milleniums worth of Egyptian Pharaoh names? It's staggering. For the preface I also want to show this alternate reality when Egypt has finally been burried by the sands of time and Islamic Egyptologists find the tombs of my main characters and have some very interesting discoveries.
Have any of you ever taken it upon yourselves to create a reality to that kind of extent?
my only question is taht if the egyptions where the first civilized nation on the world, with technology far superior to any other at the time, why would their technology remain the same for more then 27 centuries. doesn't make any sense. if anything, they would have far superior technology than anyone else, for they started in the 3000 BC and if they had continued uninterupted who knows what they could have invented. as far as finding pharaoh names that should not be your main task, as you can simply find a book with references to ancient egyptians names and have your pick.
you should be more concerned about explaining why the civilization is still alive, and not conquered by anyone. you would also have to take into consideration why islam isthe only religion, with no other contestant. you don't have to make christianity a challenger to the islam faith, but there is always more than one religion, for not everyone believes, no matter how widespread a religion is. you could create your own religion.
I dunno...doesn't that sound a bit like Star Gate?? I mean if nothing else you can use it for an example, what might have happened if the ancient egyptians kept thriving...
A fork in reality that far back would create a completely different world as you have today. Unless you use the "destiny" angle, meaning that some people were destined to be born or certain events are destined to happen. You can pretty much make up anything you want. Make sure you can back up your theory.
I admire anyone who takes on socialogical science fiction. You are right- the thought of the research you need to do is staggering. But, you can also assume that the Egypt of the day is as different as a contemporary American to his Plymoth Rock conterpart.
As far as the technology factor, it doesn't really matter that, at the time, Egypt had a very advanced society. Following that logic, the Mayans should now be world leaders, as they had advanced mathematics and a complex economy for the time. Also, following that logic, Egypt would now be the world leader in technology... far from it.
As for the point that, had they had been uninterrupted, they would have been more advanced, history points to the opposite. Countries that become world leaders tend to be in thier prime, either after being challenged (like Japan) or going through an aggressive imperialistic period (like England). A country that remains unchallenged over a long period of time collapses on itself. The classic example is the Roman Empire. World dominators, no infrastructure, collapse.
A society that dominates by religion, as in the Egyptians worshipping thier king as a god, could very well make very slow progress into the future, or even backslide to the bronze age if a zealot gains control.
http://history.searchking.com : a priori- history search can help in your research.
| Posted By: gedren_y Jan 27, 2002 - 09:59 am | | Thanks everybody, your imput is well recieved.
I am starting the reality drift at 343 B.C.E. Instead of being defeated by the Persians the current Pharaoh quells the Persian conflict. As a result Alexander The Great in 332 B.C.E. doesn't get Egypt when he conquers Persia. He instead creates a profitable trade with Egypt. No Ptolemeic Dynasty, instead there is a revival of the old religion when Amenhotep V becomes Pharaoh. Amenhotep recaptures Nubia and sends emmissaries to foriegn lands to give Egypt a political influence in the neighboring lands. For the next 2610 years Egypt has strong Pharaohs and a stable ecconomy. There is little reason for change. Meanwhile, The Roman Empire has declared itself the Holy Romano-Islamic Empire. Christianity moves north and takes root in northern Normandy and the Brittish Islands. Judeism is forced to north-eastern Europe.
This is when, in our reality, the Quantum Sphere Corporation begins to send agents to prepare the way for possible trans-dimensional vacationing. Four agents are sent to this Alternate Egypt and quickly become influencial leaders in Egyptian society. Something goes wrong though in the home reality and the Quantum Vortex is distroyed. Being trapped, the agents make do with what little technology they brought with them and completely insinuate themselves into Egyptian society.
Several millenia after the fall of this Egyptian kingdom and the eventual split of the Holy Romano-Islamic Empire, their industrial revolution finally gets into full swing and technology is remnicent of our 1930's technology. That is when the tombs of the four agents are discovered. Inside is a symbol that appears in no other tomb. The archeologists find that it is an ingenius combination lock that triggers the opening of secret vaults where in lies all the technology the agents brought with them. From these findings a surge of technological innovations come forth.
At least thats the plan.
Wow gedren!!!! That sounds like it will be very interesting, and I take back my comment 
Be sure to post some of it!
| Posted By: gedren_y Feb 17, 2002 - 10:37 am | | I have a working title, 'Through the Infinity Gate'.
| Posted By: gedren_y Apr 01, 2002 - 10:05 am | | I have the Prologue and Chapter 1 of 'Through The Infinity Gate' done and am working on Chapter 2. I'll post some later.
Yes I can buy that Egyptian history has proceeded unbroken to the 23rd century. But how do the people earn a living? That's the crucial question I think when you are creating a new world reality. I'm working on this same area, mine is 2150 or there abouts, far enough into the future but not so far where I'd have to create new archetecture for homes and public buildings, new ways of travel etc. I can keep trains planes and just inject hovercraft or upgrade what we have now just a little, have homes with adjustable walls and furniture concealed inside partitions that w/a remote control can move about in case you want to use the room for other purposes. I'm working very hard on fashions and fads, especially clothing, they are gadget crazed and of course they can have computers the size of a walnut. But what do they do to earn money to buy these gadgets and clothing, homes and hovercrafts, what's their economy and gov. like those are the difficult things I wish I could discuss with someone. If the new world has an unbroken Egyptian tradition, you just keep the pharoh concept and the different gods. You can have high technology, but it would belong to secret schools and you'd need extraordinary connections to get into these space tech. groups.
I think you have a wonderful idea here with many possibilities. But you really have to know the history, don't you, to extrapolate from it. Thats the part bothering me, perhaps because I'm too close to it. Any ideas? Romannesoph
Suppose you were writing an alternate reality story. What is the first thing that would interest you about the new reality?
| Posted By: Kale Mar 29, 2004 - 03:52 pm | | I have thrown around the theory of several Alternate Universe's
The Soviet Union Wins
The Ottoman Empire survives WW1
(If some of you don't know the ottoman empire was created around 1453 from the Collasping Byzantine Empire. It got invovled in WW1, which was a mistake because at the time it was considered the old man of Europe. It at severe internal problems)
My plan is to make it survive
The roman Empire doesn't fall to the Barbarian Hordes
THe nazis develop the Nuclear Bomb and Win
| Posted By: Kale Mar 29, 2004 - 04:09 pm | | Oh,,, also In my Short Stories I do have something that invovles Egypt.
THe Egyptian Empire is bascially a more powerful Futuristic Version of Ancient Egypt
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