Look to the West Volume VII: The Eye Against the Prism

[Thande]

Interesting how many cliches from OTL economic journalism make it into LTTW-verse...

Which exactly do you mean? As it's not my area, I'm probably more prone to falling back on OTL-isms here.

Sounds like something between Etch-a-Sketch and a graphing calculator.

This was inspired by a video I saw where people were playing a Pictionary-type game on the Wii U, where you have X seconds to draw as many pictures as possible and get the others to guess what the prompt word was correctly. One player had a picture guessed with only one second to spare before the timer ran out (at which point the current prompt is shown to everyone) and one of the others commented on this with "You have one second to draw..." (time runs out and prompt comes up) "...Frankenstein."

The unintentional comedic timing stuck with me.

 

[Michael Canaris]

Which exactly do you mean? As it's not my area, I'm probably more prone to falling back on OTL-isms here.

The one along the lines that the world catches pneumonia when America has a cold/flu. Then again, I suppose we got that cliche from the Great Depression which also followed memories of a major post-war pandemic, so perhaps this is simply a case of things rhyming.

 

[xsampa]

So French India works towards independence, And Chinese Japan?

 

[John Spangler]

It seems that France is going to become the dominant power in mainland Europe, and in a kinda cold war with Russia. Though I'm not sure how long it will stay cold. I'm starting to understand why they call them 'the Black Twenties'.

 

[Umbric Man]

So zeppelins dropping poison gas supported Russian ninjas gunning down Dutch rebels in a Flanders-based Greater Netherlands during their world’s Great Depression.

God I love this timeline.

 

[Tanystropheus42]

One thing I like about TTL is that even though it is by now very far removed from the POD, the ghosts of OTL can still just about be recognised. A major economic collapse two decades after the end of the WW1 equivalent continues the trend. The difference however seems to be that TTL packs in two periods of conflict (in the 20's and the 50's) before the invention of nukes makes a further war too destructive to contemplate.

One thing I've been wondering about for a while however is where this volume will end. If I remember correctly, most spend the first half building up to a conflict or period of turbulence that then takes up the rest of the volume. But how will volume vii end - with the Russia vs everyone else conflict being heavily foreshadowed in recent updates (with the combine sweeping in at the end to take advantage of the chaos, hence black 20's), or with the sunrise war? Personally, I suspect it'll be the black 20's.

Either way, global economic implosion is just the thing to kick the world on the path towards another devastating war (just look at OTL), or at least a period of extended instability. Should be an interesting read over the next few months.

 

[Analytical Engine]

I see ambulance chasing lawyers exist ITTL as well.

 

[LostInNewDelhi]

The Wittelsbachs really did one good deed during the Jacobin Wars and have been an absolute stain on Europe since then, huh?

Death to the Belgian royals, may they find rest upon the ends of their own pikes.

 

[Thande]

One thing I like about TTL is that even though it is by now very far removed from the POD, the ghosts of OTL can still just about be recognised. A major economic collapse two decades after the end of the WW1 equivalent continues the trend. The difference however seems to be that TTL packs in two periods of conflict (in the 20's and the 50's) before the invention of nukes makes a further war too destructive to contemplate.

One thing I've been wondering about for a while however is where this volume will end. If I remember correctly, most spend the first half building up to a conflict or period of turbulence that then takes up the rest of the volume. But how will volume vii end - with the Russia vs everyone else conflict being heavily foreshadowed in recent updates (with the combine sweeping in at the end to take advantage of the chaos, hence black 20's), or with the sunrise war? Personally, I suspect it'll be the black 20's.

Either way, global economic implosion is just the thing to kick the world on the path towards another devastating war (just look at OTL), or at least a period of extended instability. Should be an interesting read over the next few months.

I've debated whether to make this one another 25-parter and make that the new norm or do a 50-parter, I still haven't made up my mind yet.

The Wittelsbachs really did one good deed during the Jacobin Wars and have been an absolute stain on Europe since then, huh?

Death to the Belgian royals, may they find rest upon the ends of their own pikes.

Clearly it's being in Belgium long term that does it, I mean Leopold I was fine but look at what happened to his son.

 

[Bene Tleilax]

How do you come up with so many names?

 

[Finn]

Thande, you probably ought to know that on Amazon LTTW Volume IV is listed as being from the wrong Tom Anderson.

This appears to be the case in both the US and UK pages for it.

 

[HistLover]

One thing I like about TTL is that even though it is by now very far removed from the POD, the ghosts of OTL can still just about be recognised. A major economic collapse two decades after the end of the WW1 equivalent continues the trend. The difference however seems to be that TTL packs in two periods of conflict (in the 20's and the 50's) before the invention of nukes makes a further war too destructive to contemplate.

One thing I've been wondering about for a while however is where this volume will end. If I remember correctly, most spend the first half building up to a conflict or period of turbulence that then takes up the rest of the volume. But how will volume vii end - with the Russia vs everyone else conflict being heavily foreshadowed in recent updates (with the combine sweeping in at the end to take advantage of the chaos, hence black 20's), or with the sunrise war? Personally, I suspect it'll be the black 20's.

Either way, global economic implosion is just the thing to kick the world on the path towards another devastating war (just look at OTL), or at least a period of extended instability. Should be an interesting read over the next few months.

Don’t forget the subtle mention to flu epidemics curtesy of troop movements
The 50s end much like otl 40s with nukes being developed and used but unlike otl the 1990s see limited nuke usage so it’s seems timeline-l contemplated that war still wasn’t destructive enough to avoid
As to the volumes length it seems we’re getting incrementally closer to the Black Twenties but maybe that’ll be the books climax much the Great American War and Populist Wars were for the previous volumes with the remaining chapters forming a sort of denouncement
In this volumes case that means examining the aftermath of the Combines gains and world events leading up to the Sunrise War
In effect Volume VI ended with Pandoric War over while Volume VIII begins with the first shots of the Sunrise War

 

[Indicus]

The cover for LTTW Volume IV reminds me of For Want of a Nail‘s cover. Was that intentional, or were you playing up the similarities (monarchical US under the British monarchy versus Hispanic republic similar to the US)?

 

[1SaBy]

France needed military allies—or, failing that, a ‘Bouclier’ or shield to put between Petrograd and Paris

Heh. A Decades of Darkness reference?

Russian special forces, including elite Yapontsi ‘nindzhya’ troops, gunned down the Belgian rebels as both Belgian and Russian aerodromes bombed the barricades with death-luft from above.

Why exactly were the Russian forces there in the first place? Did they only arrive after the trouble started at the request of the Wittelsbachs?

At this time, China took on many of the overseas Corean assets that no longer answered to its more cobrist government, expanding Chinese reach in India and southern Yapon.

Does this actually mean that China now controls all of (formerly?) Corean southern Yapon?

 

[Thande]

Thande, you probably ought to know that on Amazon LTTW Volume IV is listed as being from the wrong Tom Anderson.

This appears to be the case in both the US and UK pages for it.

Thank you, I will get that sorted.

edit: sent in the correction, should be fixed within five days according to the message (hopefully sooner as it comes out in four!)

 

[Thande]

The cover for LTTW Volume IV reminds me of For Want of a Nail‘s cover. Was that intentional, or were you playing up the similarities (monarchical US under the British monarchy versus Hispanic republic similar to the US)?

I don't think so, but @Lord Roem came up with the idea so you'd have to ask him.

Heh. A Decades of Darkness reference?

Well, yes.

Don't tell anyone, but Jared hinted that maybe at some point in the future not now he might release DoD on Sea Lion Press, which I have mixed feelings about; I'd love to read it there, but then everyone will realise I ripped off his format for LTTW.

Why exactly were the Russian forces there in the first place? Did they only arrive after the trouble started at the request of the Wittelsbachs?



Does this actually mean that China now controls all of (formerly?) Corean southern Yapon?

Yes and more or less.

 

[Dathi THorfinnsson]

Passeridic-managing Leclerc,

I don't remember this phrase, but I'm guessing it's 'micromanagement' from Matthew 10:29, God seeing the fall of each sparrow?

Electrum standard. Those of us who remembered what electrum was found that an obvious phrase. Of course, how many of us that is....
I find it difficult to believe a bimetallic standard can survive for as long as you have it do. The relative prices of gold and silver unavoidably vary, and trying to force them to a constant ratio is doomed to failure. Just like Britain was forced out of the ERM when the currency snake failed. And even the currency snake had to allow some variation in relative values.

 

[xsampa]

So zeppelins dropping poison gas supported Russian ninjas gunning down Dutch rebels in a Flanders-based Greater Netherlands during their world’s Great Depression.

God I love this timeline.

Also Chinese Japan and French willingly privatizing their colonies

 

[1SaBy]

everyone will realise I ripped off his format for LTTW

Come on, it was only a partial rip-off. You don't have direct in-universe witness accounts and Jared didn't have his academic texts being sent across timelines.

 

[HIM Dogson]

I have to say, obviously the Russian Empire is evil but I'll be sorry to see them go. I mean, Imperial Russian ninjas are just too badass to ignore.