The Talent Paradox is actually a Talent from another timeline. In his timeline, the key features are the military supremacy of the Axis powers, an occupied Europe and North America by the Japanese and Germans, and the overwhelming use of Talents on the German side.
Occupation by the Axis Powers[]
- Germany occupies much of the East Coast (except the parts of Florida south of the panhandle), Midwest (including Chicago), and eastern parts of Canada. New York, in particular, is a German stronghold and was the staging ground for a massive invasion campaign by the Germans.
- Japan currently occupies Hawaii, parts of Mexico, and Southern California. The main US Pacific Naval Base is in Panama.
- Germany occupies much of Europe, with the exception of Italy, the West part of Spain, Portugal, and small blocks of resistance in the British Isles.
- Germany and Japan are now opposing Russia, who is losing ground.
- The US occupation forces from Germany ("Der Reichsbesetzungsarmee", often shortened to RBA) consist of Waffen-SS (including the Talent group SS-Uberkommandogruppen), Luftwaffe (with their infamous "Düsenpack" jetpack soldiers), and the Kriegsmarine. All three groups have their own military structure and hierarchy, and they do not coordinate and share information well.
- The RBA is led by none other than Der Flieger himself. Der Flieger has proven to be a shrewd and capable officer, although he has become increasingly frustrated at the RBA's lack of efficiency in quelling the resistance. He understands that invading the US was the easy part, and that settling into the US will be a constant battle that the RBA cannot win. Still, his nationalism and loyalty to the Reich, coupled with a sense of personal superiority as a Talent, prevents him from voicing his complaints to his superiors.
Key Historical Differences[]
- Winston Churchill died at a young age. Neville Chamberlain has not died of terminal bowel cancer and is still part of the puppet government of Britain.
- The current US capital is Houston, Texas. There is a puppet government being run by the Germans in Washington, D.C.
- Roosevelt died in the initial attack on the United States. The US is being run by his Vice President (now President) John Nance Garner, AKA Cactus Jack.
Key Technology Differences[]
- The Germans achieved (with the help of Goldberg Science!) early jet propulsion. The Me-262 jet aircraft was the first successful jet airplane mass produced by the Germans, but the current model is the faster, lighter, and more maneuverable Me-262A. A brilliant Talent on the German side developed a successful jetpack prototype as well, which is currently being mass produced.
- The Germans have perfected a U-boat class that they call Der Grossenunterseeboot (Great U-Boat), called G-boats for short. They are the size of aircraft carriers and are capable of transporting a large invasion force with limited submarine capabilities.
- There is little work being done on nuclear weapons, by the Germans (who have no need of them, with their technological superiority and Talent pool), other Axis powers, or the Allies (who no longer have the economic or scholastic means to fund a Manhattan Project).
- The Windtalker project (Navajo code speakers) is actively being used by both the remaining US military and the resistance.
- The Enigma machine used by the Germans has not been cracked yet.
Talents in Paradox's World[]
- German Talents alone outnumber the Allied talent pool by a 10 to 1 ratio.
- Japanese Talents are treated with suspicion and are segregated to their own unit. They are fiercely loyal to the Yamato ideal, but are often sent on suicide missions (of which they tend to survive miraculously, due to their Talent powers).
- Latent US Talents, when identified by the Germans, are often carted to concentration camps in New York and Michigan, where they are commonly executed.
- The British were never able to set up their own Talent program, and thus capitulated when attacked by the stronger German Talent crews and conventional military. There are British Talents, but most of them have fled to other countries, with few staying behind to fight a clandestine war against the Third Reich occupation.