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I actually used this as a jumping-off point for the setting for my Mutants & Masterminds campaign world:
319) The slave known as Gabriel decides not to let some rain deter him from his mission on the night of August 30 1800 and leads a slave revolt in Richmond, Virginia that successfully captures Governor Monroe. Mayor James McClurg--a moderate--is forced to negotiate for Monroe's release.
McClurg proposes a compromise--accepted by the slaves and forced down the throats of the plantation owners--that sees Virginia abolish slavery over the following decade. The state of Virginia compensates plantation owners who wish to leave the state.
As a result, West Virginia never secedes, Stonewall Jackson and Robert Lee become Union generals, and the Union wins the civil war in two years.
With such an emphatic victory, Lincoln can afford to be a little more strict with the secessionist states. Realising he must remove the need for slavery, Lincoln convenes a think-tank comprised of some of the world's best minds, including Thomas Edison, J.P. Morgan, Alexander Graham Bell, J.D. Rockerfeller and Nikola Tesla.
The southern states are promised access to the output of the think-tank so long as they abolish any reliance on slavery--which most of them do.
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(The rest of the timeline becomes somewhat more outlandish, involving Tesla being ostracised by the think-tank, setting up a lunar colony, and then ending the second world war thanks to a teleforce weapon mounted on the moon. For what it's worth, the first person to gain superpowers in my timeline is a young boy affected by the adamsite gas used by Douglas MacArthur's troops to rout the Bonus Army in 1932, and the first costumed individuals (these ones without powers) appear in 1935 as a result of the political powderkeg that was Roosevelt's Second New Deal.)
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320.
THE GERMAN KRIEGSPIEL
It is stated in our late English telegrams that Prince Arthur had delivered a very successful lecture, in the military town of Dover, on the Kriespiel, or German war-game. The following description of this intricate military game is from the Pall Mall Gazette: It is somewhat remarkable that this game, or rather method of instruction, which has been in use in Germany for many years, has not only never been introduced, but has been until recently almost unknown in England. It was first invented by a Prussian gentleman who was interested in the study of campaigns, and who found that the best method of acquiring knowledge of the movement of troops was to imitate them on the map by means of moveable blocks. He then endeavored to work out problems of evolutions, laying down rules for the guidance of sham armies. His son, a Prussian officer, seized upon the idea and enlarged upon it, until the game became an imitation of war fought by small blocks, made according to scale to represent battalions, companies, regiments of cavalry, squadrons, batteries, pontoon trains and even skirmishers and patrols. The game soon became popular among Prussian officers, and was used in the war schools as one of the principal me as of instruction in strategy and tactics. General Eyrye, hearing of its merits from General Von Blumenthal, sent for the necessary apparatus from Germany, and brought it before the notice of the War Office. Here, however, an instructor in the mimic war was required, and Major Boerdans, the military attaché of the German Embassy, kindly volunteered to explain it. On December 22, at the United Service Institution, before a large audience comprising many distinguished military and naval officers, he again exhibited the game, and rules, which are somewhat complicated, but pointed out in a masterly manor the uses to which it might be turned. He showed how necessary is instruction in tactics, and how few officers ever hive opportunities of their simplest rules beyond the evolutions of the drill book. At the same time he pointed - out how much might be acquired by learning to move troops over carefully executed maps. The war-game aims at affording this instruction.
The apparatus' necessary are maps prepared on a scale of 6in. or 8in. to a mile, carefully contoured and distinctly colored, together with boxes of metal blocks to represent the opposing armies, also every arm of the service, and made of sizes on a scale proportioned to that of the map. This may be considered to be the materiel of the game.
The personnel consist of at least six officers -vis., a general of each army, an officer to command the advanced troops on either side, and above all an umpire and his aide-de-camp. These officers must not only be well acquainted with the rules of the game, but must-be able to read maps, and must understand thoroughly the principles of commanding and maneuvering troops. The umpire, above all, should be an officer well instructed in every branch of the service and of a decided character.The method of playing is as follows: The map to represent the theatre of war, possibly 15 or 20 miles square, firmly stretched on blocks, is placed on a table. It is first carefully studied by the players, who may also avail themselves of private maps for reference, Short general directions are given by the umpire, stating the purpose of the campaign, together with private orders giving broad directions for each of the opposed generals. The troops represented by the red and blue blocks, numbering perhaps 10,000 men on either side, are handed over to the players, who place them separately on the board in the positions indicated by the umpire as the localities from which the armies are to commence the campaign. The first practice, therefore, is the arrangement of the outposts and of the bivouac. Neither player sees his opponent's army, excepting as far as he can ascertain its disposition by pushing forward patrols and advanced guards. The umpire alone sees the whole disposition of the forces. The time of year is settled upon, as on it various conditions of the tactics, such as the length of the day, the state of the roads, &c. depend.
Each player move in turn, the adversary leaving the room until the move or moves are completed, and the portion of the map occupied by the troops out of sight of his patrols is covered up. The moves represent the space over which artillery, cavalry, aid infantry can march at the various paces of each arm in a give time - i.e. two minutes. The orders issued to the officer or officers of detached portions of the armies - say, the advanced guard, must be given precisely by the general, who can only convey his order by aid-de-camps moving over the map at a fixed rate of speed. As the armies approach each other, and the troops come under fire, a new phase of the game develops itself - The losses have to be estimated, and these are calculated by carefully prepared tables, the various circumstances, such as troops being covered by entrenchments, or a wrong estimate distance at which fire is opened being taken into consideration. The element of chance, or rather of conditions which are not governed by rules, is imitated by employing dice, The chances for or against the particular regiment, squadron, or battery, being taken from the tables, and then settled by lot. Thus the action gradually develops itself as each portion of the army comes on the battle field, and it is decided, as in real battle, by the success or defeat of various detachments. The more the game is made to represent real service, the more instructive and interesting it becomes. It must be played under the rules of strict discipline, and the decision of the umpire must be regarded as unimpeachable.
The Kreigspiel is not only used in the war schools, but it is the amusement of Genesis Von Moltke, Von Blumenthal and Prince Frederick Charles, and other officers whom the last great European wars have brought prominently forward. As Major Roerdans pointed out, it is not suited for young officers, but in the hands of instructed soldiers becomes a means of acquiring knowledge which no other method affords. The very questions which arise-during the game lead up to discussions on the most difficult of military problems, and direct the attention of officers to the details of their profession. General Napier, who took the chair at the meeting, stated that our War Office was preparing the necessary apparatus suited for the tactical formation of English troops, and hoped soon to introduce the game generally into our army, commencing with the Staff College at Sandhurst. Should it prove as useful in England as it has been in Germany, our officers will owe a debt of gratitude to Major Boerdans for no carefully explaining its rules and illustrating its practical working by means of so instructive a lecture as that which he delivered at the United Service Hotel.
-Queanbeyan Age 23 May 1872
The Germans do not share the millitary tactical war game Kriegspiel with rival nations and enters WW1 with a superior battle tactical training advantage.
In a similar vein:
When that first druid appeared on Gary Gygax's table, he gets killed before he lets off his first fireball; fantasy role-playing never gets invented.
:(
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...not to mention slowing greatly the wargame genre, leading to a certain Messrs. Gygax and Arneson not having enough experience in them to consider a redesign.
I was thinking along the lines of: Adolf Hitler knocks off the wargame rules and invents the first Roleplay Game. At the first Game Convention he freaks out after losing to a bunch of gamers from Poland.
"You only had horses! You cannot will against my tanks!"
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Assuming DA's post is #321:
322. The Norse travel from Greenland to North America. They spread several new diseases and interbreed with natives, augmenting the gene pool and preparing the native population for some of the plagues of later travellers.
323. The Mesoamericans discover metalworking 1,000 years earlier. (Consequently, when outsiders arrive they discover a culture of warring states. After determining that there are other continents, ships are sent east by various kingdoms. Due to inexperience with ship-building, only one survives, but it lands on the coast of southern Africa. (323a. The survivors of the voyage anchored their ship (mastless) and ventured ashore. Eventually they met the Khoi, who allowed them to travel with them. Upon mutual language-learning, the survivors explained that they needed to get another ship to return home. They died before they were able, but left behind a few children. When Europeans met the Khoi, the tribe of the survivors stole a ship and attempted to travel west . . . (Totally ignoring winds and currents and contradictory history here.)))
324. Gaseous life forms develop in Jupiter. Nothing interesting happens until Earth probes do not plummet and get crushed and instead fall on top of these life forms and are suspended long enough for data to be transmitted, resulting in increased interest in interplanetary manned space travel.
325. A tribe of inhabitants of modern-day Siberia domesticate mammoths and use them to follow a really lost dog across Beringia way early. They then follow the dog's only surviving child way south until they reach the Andes, then set up a complex civilisation way ahead of both Europe and Asia. (325b. They develop genetics, but are unable to control genetic disorders. So they build ships and begin a process of refertilisation by taking specimens from other cultures. (A paradisical empire develops that encompasses all the tropical region of the Americas. Regions from which seed had been taken soon develop similarly advanced technology and begin making war on each other and the American empire. The American empire responds with deadly force, wiping the rest of the planet clean with nuclear weapons. Civilisation slowly decays until the nation is wiped out by a nuclear missile. (325bb. Later, Kirk beams down and tells a humanist morality tale to Spock.)))
326. The CIA decides to stop meddling.
327. MacArthur takes over the US.
328. That guy whose name the Greeks outlawed decides not to be a jerk.
329. Richard Nixon decides not to pander to the environmental movement.
330. The asteroid that came within 7500 miles of Earth on June 27th 2011, due to slightly different conditions on its "birth," instead impacts the Earth's atmosphere. The populace gets worried, and about half briefly unites to tell governments to put in place a better warning system. The other half says there's nothing to worry about. When presidential candidates are asked about it, they say that if elected they will pay attention to these threats. However, by 2012 no one remembers. Hundreds of years later, when Albany is hit by an asteroid, people look back and wonder why a program wasn't put in place. Ten percent of the populace says it's no worse than tornadoes and hurricanes in terms of death.
331. Hillary Clinton decides not to take Obama's somewhat demeaning offer.
332. Obama selects Bill Richardson instead of Joe Biden as his running mate. Millions are saved from blindness.
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323. The Mesoamericans discover metalworking 1,000 years earlier. (Consequently, when outsiders arrive they discover a culture of warring states. After determining that there are other continents, ships are sent east by various kingdoms. Due to inexperience with ship-building, only one survives, but it lands on the coast of southern Africa. (323a. The survivors of the voyage anchored their ship (mastless) and ventured ashore. Eventually they met the Khoi, who allowed them to travel with them. Upon mutual language-learning, the survivors explained that they needed to get another ship to return home. They died before they were able, but left behind a few children. When Europeans met the Khoi, the tribe of the survivors stole a ship and attempted to travel west . . . (Totally ignoring winds and currents and contradictory history here.)))
Oddly enough, the Aztecs' main enemy, the nation of Tzintzuntzan, already had metal tools.
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Oddly enough, the Aztecs' main enemy, the nation of Tzintzuntzan, already had metal tools.323. The Mesoamericans discover metalworking 1,000 years earlier. (323b. Consequently, when outsiders arrive they discover a culture of warring states. After determining that there are other continents, ships are sent east by various kingdoms. Due to inexperience with ship-building, only one survives, but it lands on the coast of southern Africa. (323bb. The survivors of the voyage anchored their ship (mastless) and ventured ashore. Eventually they met the Khoi, who allowed them to travel with them. Upon mutual language-learning, the survivors explained that they needed to get another ship to return home. They died before they were able, but left behind a few children. When Europeans met the Khoi, the tribe of the survivors stole a ship and attempted to travel west . . . (Totally ignoring winds and currents and contradictory history here.)))
I meant 1,000 years earlier than in this timeline (where metal was rarely used). But thanks for the link!
334. The new school's chancellor of New York does not die of a sudden heart attack. He institutes changes that result in the school year in New York City lasting year round- three months straight with a two week break for recreation most of the year, with a three week break at the end of the year. Regents scores improve to the point that New York eventually drops the Regents-based exam format and individual high schools create a closer relationship with individual colleges, both local and upstate.
335. Thomas D'Arcy McGee is more alert than usual one night in 1868, and the assassin who went to kill him fails and ends up arrested. McGee continues to serve in the Canadian House of Commons for many years.
336. The concert that brings together RunDMC and Aerosmith to perform Walk This Way is far more successful than anyone ever thought, and sales of the single break records all over world. Seeing it as a sign, Maurice Starr merges what would have been New Kids on the Block and New Edition into several considerably larger interracial groups that fuse R&B and rock. Race relations between whites and blacks improve considerably, and interracial dating becomes commonplace in the late 80s as opposed to the late 90s.
337. The Matrix is filmed as it was originally conceived, with a heavy reliance on knives, swords, throwing stars, and other melee based weaponry. As a result, the woman who originally came up with the concept has an easier time suing the Wachowski brothers. Movie sequels are never made although the video games based on the series are wildly successful, and martial arts enjoy an even greater renaissance.
336. The concert that brings together RunDMC and Aerosmith to perform Walk This Way is far more successful than anyone ever thought, and sales of the single break records all over world. Seeing it as a sign, Maurice Starr merges what would have been New Kids on the Block and New Edition into several considerably larger interracial groups that fuse R&B and rock. Race relations between whites and blacks improve considerably, and interracial dating becomes commonplace in the late 80s as opposed to the late 90s.
How does NKOTB qualify as rock?!?
How does NKOTB qualify as rock?!?336. The concert that brings together RunDMC and Aerosmith to perform Walk This Way is far more successful than anyone ever thought, and sales of the single break records all over world. Seeing it as a sign, Maurice Starr merges what would have been New Kids on the Block and New Edition into several considerably larger interracial groups that fuse R&B and pop. Race relations between whites and blacks improve considerably, and interracial dating becomes commonplace in the late 80s as opposed to the late 90s.
*sigh* Okay, okay, fixed.
337. Spike Lee decides that instead of closing Do the Right Thing with Public Enemy's "Fight the Power," Living Colour's "Cult of Personality" would do.
This leads to a real resurgence in "black rock" and where classic rock radio used to play The Steve Miller Band, now they play Funkadelic.
338. Yasovarman I decides to establish a capital in a more defensible position and the city of Angkor is never built. The Khmer continue to flourish and with fewer resources taken in building the new capital they launch more successful military actions against their neighbours.
339. Dwight David Eisenhower doesn't injure his knee and ends up playing professional football and George Marshall leads the D-Day invasion of Normandy.
One of these days, I'm gonna have to read all this. Interesting.
bump
340. Isaac Newton, after a receiving a hard blow during a spontaneous fight, continues his work in science and is much more cooperative with his contemporaries (Robert Boyle, Robert Hooke, Edmond Halley and Christopher Wren) resulting in combined efforts further advancing British scientific prowess.
341. Decision makers reach an agreement on the placement of the capital that results in the creation of a unified state of Dakota, rather than the split into North and South.
342. Charles Babbage is able to complete a working version of the analytical engine and the device kicks off a revolution; the (mechanical) computer age in Britain.
342. Charles Babbage is able to complete a working version of the analytical engine and the device kicks off a revolution; the (mechanical) computer age in Britain.
William Gibson and/or Bruce Sterling, is that you?!?
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343.Dumnorix, accepted Ceasers Request to take ship for Rome to Britain. Instead of being slaughtered for the Ideal of Freedom he followed Ceaser to war and worked subtly behind the scenes to hurt his Brittish conquests, while working with Indutiomarus to foment rebellion back in Gaul. In AD54 upon returning to Gaul, Ceaser now had a strong united force waiting for him and rebels within his own ranks. He never makes it back to Rome and as such Rome breaks into smaller countries and is taken over by united Celts.
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341. Decision makers reach an agreement on the placement of the capital that results in the creation of a unified state of Dakota, rather than the split into North and South.
Personally I would have gone with a Mile wide perfectly flat rail line between both locations and made the parliament mobile.
345. Slaves to ratings and wanting instant money back on their investment, FOX ends up being even more cancel-happy than in mainstream reality, and cancels the low-rating Seinfeld at the end of its first season.
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348. The German Empire uses non-aligned merchant ships and early u-boats in the years leading up to the First World War to supply dissident groups in the British and French Empires with weapons, training and other resources. When the war comes the Germans incite these various groups to rise in rebellion, possibly disrupting the British and French enough for the Germans to make major gains.
349) Jing Ke successfully assassinates King Ying Zheng of Qin before he can unify China for the first time and become Qin Shi Huangdi. As a result the idea of China as one entity never develops and Chinese writing is never standardized leaving a patchwork of kingdoms and languages across what is now China.
350) Upon being informed by her editors that the book she has in mind is too similar to a Neil Gaiman work, J.K. Rowling moves in different directions with her characters. She keeps Harry Potter the same, but places Hermione in Ravenclaw and Ron in Hufflepuff, which forces her to detail their respective organizations further. As a result of this increased focus, the book series is trimmed down to a rather long pair of trilogies.
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351. A German unit during the First World War takes a wrong turn in Belgium in 1918 and runs into a Canadian unit. The Canadians notice the Germans approach and set an ambush. All of the Germans are killed. When the Canadians are inspecting the bodies afterward and recording the dead one of the dead Germans is identified as one Adolf Hitler, originally of Austria.
352. Adolf Hitler emigrates to Liverpool to live with his Brother Alois in 1912..as WW1 approaches he moves onto the States where he becomes involved in Republican politics.
During the 1930's Congressman Hitler becomes a major advocate of isolationism.
354. Julius Caesar employs bodyguards when in Rome. As a result the assassination plot against him fails. Caesar continues as dictator and launches an offensive against the Parthians.
355. In 1887 the British Government changes the succession rules to the throne so the oldest child, irrespective of gender will inherit the throne. As a consequence Queen Victoria's daughter becomes Victoria the Second but dies a couple years after her mother and her eldest child, Wilhelm the Second of Germany becomes the monarch of the British Empire and passes the rule of the German Empire to his brother, Prince Henry, and works hard to forge an alliance between Britain and Germany at the beginning of the 20th century.
356. French Admiral Francois Darlan takes the case for turning the French over to the Royal Navy before France falls to the French government early in the German invasion. The French government approves the plan and the French fleet joins the Royal Navy. The attack on Mers el Kebir never happens and the French navy plays a notable role in the Atlantic and Mediterranean and assists in the evacuation of other French and allied forces from occupied Europe.
357. Several crucial battles in the French and Indian Wars go badly for the British. As a result the French and Spanish empires dominate the continent of North America.
358. In 1935, the French government, worried about Germany's industrial power and rearmament efforts, creates an accord with the Dutch, Belgian, Monacan, and Luxembourger governments to build the Maginot line at full strength all along its length from the North Sea to the Mediterranean. The fortresses are completed and with no gaps or weak spots in the line the Germans are repulsed and the allies use the opportunity to strike at the Germans industrial base and any artillery the Germans try to set up to break the line.
359. A whole bunch of different choices that would ultimately lead to this North America.
359. A whole bunch of different choices that would ultimately lead to this North America.
*Drools*
Do I join the California Military or the New England Military?
360. In the 1950s, around the time of the Suez Canal crisis, France joins the UK (with the Queen as head of state) after some delicate negotiations. The United Kingdom of Great Britain, France and Northern Ireland becomes the new economic heart of Europe and creates a very different Europe from the one we know today.
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361. Paper or plastic?
362. The bomb thrown at Archduke Ferdinand on June 28, 1914, is batted away (as happened historically) and detonates harmlessly, injuring no one. No need to go to the hospital and vary from the planned route, then...
363-418. Every presidential election in the US since 1788 (56 of 'em, wow -- a second John Adams term, anyone? Maybe Tilden wins by a landslide in 1876 and there's no deal made to put Hayes in, thereby ending Reconstruction in a slightly different way, with a Democrat in the White House instead of a Republican thanks to a deal).
419. Garfield survives his 1881 assassination attempt.
420. McKinley survives his.
421. JFK, likewise.
422. Reagan doesn't.
423. An intransigent Nixon insists on battling through impeachment, ad loses. He doesn't survive it by one vote, like Andrew Johnson did in 1868.
424. Andrew Johnson is removed in 1868. The fallout leads to Grant not winning the election that fall.
425. I stop goin on about elections and assassinations.
426. The bra is not invented by a man whose surname is Titsling.
427. Dustin Hoffman says "no" to the script for "Ishtar." And/ or "Rain Man." Amazing how absolutely different those two films were in the context os four years of one actor's career, eh?
428. Molly Ringwald doesn't act like an idiot, and we get her and not that sow Mare Winningham in "St. Elmo's Fire." Who argues with John Hughes at his zenith? Jeez.
429. Justin Bieber learns to sing.
430. Justin Bieber learns to read.
431. Someone decides "Nah, this 'Survivor' reality-show concept is crap.'"
432. M*A*S*H is slated to run in a different time slot than immediately following "All In The Family."
433. The Spartans don't arrive in time at Thermopylae.
434. I grow up hating the taste of paint chips.
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A single executive in FOX sees the potential in a small sci fi TV show that the others in charge do not. He convinces them to give the show a stable Tuesday night time-slot. While it does OK it is never a big ratings bonanza he was hoping for. Only with the DVD sales from the first two seasons does FOX finally get a return from its investment. The shows creative producer is all but devastated from the final 3rd season and an episode entitled Mal's brain. We get more episodes of Firefly...but we never hear from Whedon again.
345. Slaves to ratings and wanting instant money back on their investment, FOX ends up being even more cancel-happy than in mainstream reality, and cancels the low-rating Seinfeld at the end of its first season.Wasn't this an NBC sitcom? Or am I being obtuse?
Whoops. Mistake on my part. Switch that to NBC.
A single executive in FOX sees the potential in a small sci fi TV show that the others in charge do not. He convinces them to give the show a stable Tuesday night time-slot. While it does OK it is never a big ratings bonanza he was hoping for. Only with the DVD sales from the first two seasons does FOX finally get a return from its investment. The shows creative producer is all but devastated from the final 3rd season and an episode entitled Mal's brain. We get more episodes of Firefly...but we never hear from Whedon again.
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435) Burt Reynolds does not get injured playing football and does not pursue an acting career sparing the world the indignity of Stroker Ace, Canonball II, and Cop and a Half.
436) On a faithful day in the late 60's a young Bill Gates tries to play with his first computer teletype. A power failure denies him and he goes on to a career in law. This leads to Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak to win an important contract to produce the primary operating system for IBM-based computer systems. It also leads to the bankruptcy of Microsoft (founded by Paul Allen) and Apple computer goes on to become the primary computer software/hardware producer. They dominate the world with a system that is user friendly and does not require endless service packs to prevent unnecessary system crashes!
437) Kevin and Brian Blume sell their shares of stock to Gary Gygax instead of Lorraine Williams. The gaming community is spared the marketing disasters of the Buck Rogers and Dragon Dice games. Gary is able to consolidate his finances and TSR emerges as the dominate fantasy game producer, eventually buying an upstart company called Wizards of the Coast and their emerging card game called Magic the Gathering. Gary never sees the need to create a new edition of jis flagship game and everyone continues to enjoy AD&D and its extensive and ever-growing library of support material and adventure modules. This essentially ends the "edition wars" before it could start. Later, TSR acquires Hasbro and Milton Bradley, along with all of their subsidiaries, becoming the largest producer of games in the world. Its tag line becomes, "Games, by gamers, for gamers."