The Culture explores 40K II: Now With 100% more Fanfiction

[Gavinfoxx]

Anyway, lets consider if some group did something similar to that plan, on our world. As a hypothetical to set a frame of reference. Let's say that a thorough scan of our world was done, and then suddenly there appears a moderate-to-small sized mixed military force somewhere. This group has access to the best of anything that anyone has ever come up with on the planet.


The rarest, most expensive space age materials, used wherever appropriate? Check. Equipment from any number of nations that is basically still being researched or is classified, or was locked up as considered too expensive to use for wider use? Check. Medical technology that is behind closed doors in some research area of corporation or other, working with other items from another corporation, in a cohesive whole? Check. Extremely high end, equivalent to 'built in a lab to further state of the art' engines for anything they need to power? Check. The best small shop, artisan built or custom-built weaponry, but on a larger scale? Check. Highly tweaked, custom fabricated and hand-loaded ammunition, with the cleanest burning powders? Check. Access to any unknown plants that are still in some forest somewhere, that has any property that anyone anywhere knows, or any drugs to do anything (even things companies are sitting on and haven't brought to market, or are tied up in patent issues or other lawsuits)? Check. Satellite and air support as necessary? Check.

And then give everyone in the military, arbitrarily, skills equivalent to PhD's and decades of experience in making, repairing, fabricating, modifying all of the above. They'd be able to take on all comers!



Now consider this in the scale of the Imperium... and note that the Imperium doesn't fight wars in ways that we would consider 'modern' due primarily to the fact that they are unable to give logistical support that we would consider relevant for fighting wars, American-style, to most of their soldiers. Now consider if some group did manage to have that support, and no entrenched preconceptions about how wars should be fought that tend to come from those limitations... for crying out loud, they would have access to Fellblades, power armor for non-Astartes troops (though you wouldnt want to use it for everyone, cause it isn't stealthy), absurdly advanced batteries and power generators and reactors and such that you generally don't see in modern Imperial deployment, railguns and coilguns, plasma weapons that don't overheat... laser weapons beyond the capability of standard Imperium, a huge variety of gravitic tech and lifters and jetbikes... robots and drones of various sorts... an absurd amount of energy shields on any scale you care to name (personal, vehicle, walker, etc.)... a plethora of automatically guided missiles, smart targeting, laser and IR tagging, and other smart weapons... there is a ton of stuff all over the place described as archeotech or rare in the Imperium, but that is still described as being there!