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Description
A redo of this:goliath-maps.deviantart.com/ar…

The year is 698. The Roman Empire, dominates the planet. Its empire has a foothold on every continent save for Terra Antarctica, and now contains over 1 billion people. The empire is at peace, though the last civil war was only 40 years ago, and in it 50 million perished.

In 62 A.D., a student of Hero of Alexandria creates a working steam engine. Over the next few decades, these engines (admittedly more crude and prone to break down than our early steam engines) improve and become somewhat common amongst military boats and transports. By 100 A.D., small carts equipped with steam engines are used. In 111 A.D., a stray pirate steamboat lands in Newfoundland, and small scale trade begins to pour over into the Inucias (North and South Inucia are the Roman names for the Americas, taken from the Innu natives). It wouldn't be until about 230 A.D., however, until widespread Roman colonization occurred.

The Inucias are more mestizo than in our world; slower colonization from Rome, combined with lack of religious zealotry from the romans, added to the fact that smallpox and other dieseases are some and still kill Eurasians in large numbers. The Romans broke apart the kingdoms of Tollotaca (Mexico), and Antesia (the Andes) and turned them into client states. In those areas, most people are still pure-blooded native, fluent only in native languages, and worship the old gods (and much to the disgust of some elites in Rome, human sacrifice continues amongst the priestly caste of those areas).

By 300 A.D., the Empire was nearing 33% literacy, as learning (but not necissarily true science) picked up. Imperial projects such as the schooling system, and empire-wide railroads began to take shape in the 4th century. Roman religion remained a huge mish-mash, but increasingly came to be a sort-of regulated organized government bureaucracy that taught that the gods of all cultures were different forms of the same ones, and that the Emperor was the physical embodiament of Jupiter/Zeus/Ahura Mazda/ Younameit. Other religious teachings that were either atheistic or monotheistic (and thus incapatable with the state temples), such as Christianity, Judaism, and Mithraism had to be brutally stamped out. By the time the empire expanded into Parthia and India (350s and 440s), similiar movements had to be altered to fit the state religion.

The only nation capable of remotely keeping up with Rome was Sinae. As the steam engine and railroads went east, Sinae also discovered paper, the compass, and gunpowder (significantly earlier than OTL). Seeing Rome's vast colonial empire, Sinae founded its own. Its richest colonies were in Xuduo Lian Tudi (the Land of Many Faces; New Zealand; reffered to by the Romans as Zuduoliantudi) and Huang Jin Shan (Gold Mountain, California). It also expanded into the Phillippines, Korea, Tibet, Australia, and Alaska, though these were much less settled. In the dynastic revolution of 601 A.D., however, all of Sinae's colonies revolted. Rome, which controlled most of Australia (coincedently also called Australia here), seized Sinae's Australian territories. With Roman support, Bod (Tibet) revolted, and Rome conquered the Sinean Western coast of North Inucia and cut it into multiple client kingdoms. Zuduoliantudi, was actually farely successful as an independent Kingdom with a large population base, and able to form its own colonial empire in other pacific islands. Since the Sineans were the first people to inhabit Zudioliantudi, the giant birds are still around, and are exported to Rome.

After 601 A.D., the new Weng Dynasty (still retaining control of the *Phillippines), came to be Rome's arch-nemesis. It, and Rome, have both developed something along the lines of a true scientific process, with legitimate research. This has propelled forward, faster and faster, and now, finally, the industrial revolution is entering manufactoring as factories start to pop up in Rome and Sinae. Sinae's only true ally, Khurtighana, is an amalgation of Iranic and Magyar peoples that now have a central government from which they can be a total pain in Rome's rear.

Technologically, the world is pretty-lopsided. Transportation is efficient, for the military and the rich, and cars along the lines of OTL early 20th century have come about. Something vaguely resembling a less advanced tank is used in both Rome and Sinae. The agricultural revolution of the OTL 19th century has yet to happen, and plagues and starvations are still common. Plenty of people are worried, and are what we might called Malthusians. The photograph, is still a novalty that is being played around with at one university, and this world has yet to see a radio. Yet the telegraph is at last coming to the masses for occasional use. The cotton gin has been here for a while. There have yet to be serious movements to end slavery, but although its common, at least slaves have rights and all comprised of all races. Frequent slave revolts have started becoming less frequent in the past century as slaves have gotten rights.

Lietuvia and Bactria were both pains to Rome for a while, but now both want to be left alone. The Lietuvians actually managed to create a semi-stable in Eastern North Inucia, but it was pushed further and further west, until it mingled almost completely with the natives. Today, a state that speak Lithuanian (but is almost entirely made up of Natives) exists in OTL Colorado and has become a client state. Taurica (OTL Crimea) was a Roman client for most of its history, but quietly broke away in the last Civil war, and is now a fairly wealthy tax haven. In the north, the barbarian Turkic tribes of Tan-Tan are finally laying railroad tracks across their vast expanse of grassland. In South-East Asia, the Hindu Empire of Funan (made up of Pre-Khmer Austro-Asiatic peoples) is the world's third most powerful nation (surprisingly), and allied to neither Rome nor Sinae. It makes sure to keep the other states of South-East Asia neutral.

But the world was truly changed when, on March 12th 698 A.D., Sinae announced it had launched a man-made sattelite into space (although Rome immediately claimed it was a hoax) ........

Description
A redo of this:goliath-maps.deviantart.com/ar…

The year is 698. The Roman Empire, dominates the planet. Its empire has a foothold on every continent save for Terra Antarctica, and now contains over 1 billion people. The empire is at peace, though the last civil war was only 40 years ago, and in it 50 million perished.

In 62 A.D., a student of Hero of Alexandria creates a working steam engine. Over the next few decades, these engines (admittedly more crude and prone to break down than our early steam engines) improve and become somewhat common amongst military boats and transports. By 100 A.D., small carts equipped with steam engines are used. In 111 A.D., a stray pirate steamboat lands in Newfoundland, and small scale trade begins to pour over into the Inucias (North and South Inucia are the Roman names for the Americas, taken from the Innu natives). It wouldn't be until about 230 A.D., however, until widespread Roman colonization occurred.

The Inucias are more mestizo than in our world; slower colonization from Rome, combined with lack of religious zealotry from the romans, added to the fact that smallpox and other dieseases are some and still kill Eurasians in large numbers. The Romans broke apart the kingdoms of Tollotaca (Mexico), and Antesia (the Andes) and turned them into client states. In those areas, most people are still pure-blooded native, fluent only in native languages, and worship the old gods (and much to the disgust of some elites in Rome, human sacrifice continues amongst the priestly caste of those areas).

By 300 A.D., the Empire was nearing 33% literacy, as learning (but not necissarily true science) picked up. Imperial projects such as the schooling system, and empire-wide railroads began to take shape in the 4th century. Roman religion remained a huge mish-mash, but increasingly came to be a sort-of regulated organized government bureaucracy that taught that the gods of all cultures were different forms of the same ones, and that the Emperor was the physical embodiament of Jupiter/Zeus/Ahura Mazda/ Younameit. Other religious teachings that were either atheistic or monotheistic (and thus incapatable with the state temples), such as Christianity, Judaism, and Mithraism had to be brutally stamped out. By the time the empire expanded into Parthia and India (350s and 440s), similiar movements had to be altered to fit the state religion.

The only nation capable of remotely keeping up with Rome was Sinae. As the steam engine and railroads went east, Sinae also discovered paper, the compass, and gunpowder (significantly earlier than OTL). Seeing Rome's vast colonial empire, Sinae founded its own. Its richest colonies were in Xuduo Lian Tudi (the Land of Many Faces; New Zealand; reffered to by the Romans as Zuduoliantudi) and Huang Jin Shan (Gold Mountain, California). It also expanded into the Phillippines, Korea, Tibet, Australia, and Alaska, though these were much less settled. In the dynastic revolution of 601 A.D., however, all of Sinae's colonies revolted. Rome, which controlled most of Australia (coincedently also called Australia here), seized Sinae's Australian territories. With Roman support, Bod (Tibet) revolted, and Rome conquered the Sinean Western coast of North Inucia and cut it into multiple client kingdoms. Zuduoliantudi, was actually farely successful as an independent Kingdom with a large population base, and able to form its own colonial empire in other pacific islands. Since the Sineans were the first people to inhabit Zudioliantudi, the giant birds are still around, and are exported to Rome.

After 601 A.D., the new Weng Dynasty (still retaining control of the *Phillippines), came to be Rome's arch-nemesis. It, and Rome, have both developed something along the lines of a true scientific process, with legitimate research. This has propelled forward, faster and faster, and now, finally, the industrial revolution is entering manufactoring as factories start to pop up in Rome and Sinae. Sinae's only true ally, Khurtighana, is an amalgation of Iranic and Magyar peoples that now have a central government from which they can be a total pain in Rome's rear.

Technologically, the world is pretty-lopsided. Transportation is efficient, for the military and the rich, and cars along the lines of OTL early 20th century have come about. Something vaguely resembling a less advanced tank is used in both Rome and Sinae. The agricultural revolution of the OTL 19th century has yet to happen, and plagues and starvations are still common. Plenty of people are worried, and are what we might called Malthusians. The photograph, is still a novalty that is being played around with at one university, and this world has yet to see a radio. Yet the telegraph is at last coming to the masses for occasional use. The cotton gin has been here for a while. There have yet to be serious movements to end slavery, but although its common, at least slaves have rights and all comprised of all races. Frequent slave revolts have started becoming less frequent in the past century as slaves have gotten rights.

Lietuvia and Bactria were both pains to Rome for a while, but now both want to be left alone. The Lietuvians actually managed to create a semi-stable in Eastern North Inucia, but it was pushed further and further west, until it mingled almost completely with the natives. Today, a state that speak Lithuanian (but is almost entirely made up of Natives) exists in OTL Colorado and has become a client state. Taurica (OTL Crimea) was a Roman client for most of its history, but quietly broke away in the last Civil war, and is now a fairly wealthy tax haven. In the north, the barbarian Turkic tribes of Tan-Tan are finally laying railroad tracks across their vast expanse of grassland. In South-East Asia, the Hindu Empire of Funan (made up of Pre-Khmer Austro-Asiatic peoples) is the world's third most powerful nation (surprisingly), and allied to neither Rome nor Sinae. It makes sure to keep the other states of South-East Asia neutral.

But the world was truly changed when, on March 12th 698 A.D., Sinae announced it had launched a man-made sattelite into space (although Rome immediately claimed it was a hoax) ........