Re: [HoE] Junkman Cometh and Mad Science

[AJSolis@aol.com]

   I recently got the aforementioned book, and just thought I would share 
some of my comments cosmology wise.  Cosmologically, not only did the book 
mess up the hucksters (but we have already had this conversation, so let's 
not go there), but the mad scientists as well.  
   Okay, everyone knows that mad scientists are people who get inspired by 
the manitou.  No problem so far.  In the main Hell on Earth rulesbook, the 
manitou were showing them future technology, and stopped showing them when 
all the preparation for doomsday came.  Admittedly, a slight problem there.  
If the manitous were showing the mad scientists future tech, then how come 
there doesn't seem to be a limit to what a mad scientist could create?  Mind 
control helmets, freeze guns, time machines, the mad scientists could create 
technology that every indication says didn't exist (or at least wasn't known) 
before the bombs fell, although admittedly it is possible the manitou weren't 
limited to the hell on earth time when it came to reverse engineering.  
   And then there is the great Junkman Cometh retconn.  In which there is a 
division between mad and "normal" science, and no mad scientist understood 
anything about the least mad science invention once the manitou stopped 
playing.  Previously, it looked like the only reason mad science technology 
was so prone to unreliability was that mad scientists truly didn't understand 
the technology, never mind that I find that slightly insulting to humanity.  
If the likes of Newton, Einstein, Tesla, or Edison were inspired by manitou, 
they wouldn't have any chance of truly understanding the technology they were 
working with?  Somehow I don't think so. But now Pinnacle seems to be saying 
that no mad scientist, no matter how intelligent or knowledgeable, couldn't 
invent a paper clip without a manitou whispering in their head, or at least 
that is what the division between mad and pure science says to me.  
Furthermore, junkman cometh pretty blatantly implied that nobody could 
understand even previously invented mad tech when the manitou stopped playing 
muse.  And that I don't understand at all.  Hellstrome couldn't even remember 
how to put together a flame thrower because his muse went away?  Doesn't that 
seem wrong somehow to anybody else?  The manitou gave the mad scientists the 
knowledge, which the mad scientist gets to play with afterward.  I don't see 
why the manitou would be in the least bit important after giving the mad 
scientist the knowledge, or vision, or dream, or however it works.  
   I admit, it is possible that I just don't understand the cosmology and 
theory of how mad science works, in which case could someone explain it to 
me?