Tech philosophy

What fits into this setting?

Novaris is not hard sci-fi, bit it isn’t going to hand-wave any technology. Every piece of tech needs an in-universe reason to exist, the way it came into existence, and the way it works needs to be consistent with everything else in the universe.

For example, lasers are a technology we already use on Earth, but they aren’t space weapons and probably won't be simply because they don’t deal damage like you’d want, but in Novaris they do. As the aliens in Novaris learn how to make these more lethal they may find civilian uses for it, and the other way around. Someone may find out that holograms are more crisp when you add a gas element just invented in a lab, and as it turns out if turn this gas into a plasma inside a laser turrets barrel the laser comes out coated in plasma that creates a longer burning effect on impact, not just the initial scarring.

I’m also stealing a thing from Stars Without Numbers in that I’d like to develop a Tech Level system, even if it’s only for internal use. Whatever tech exists in V 1.0 of this book will be Tech Level 0 and each Era’s advancements will add to this. Not all factions will level up their Tech Level at the same time, but the latest tech will be put into the new Tech Level.