[gurps] RE: [Worldbuilding] Intriguing concept

[Rupert Boleyn]

On 5 Jul 2006 at 2:05, hal at buffnet.net wrote:

> Ages 16+ through 23: child bearing years along with child rearing years.
> Assuming a mandated 9 month pregnancy, 3 months "down time" after
> pregnancy, plus an addition 3 months of time trying to "catch with
> child", an average of 15 months per child over a period of 75 months for
> 5 children.  This is a touch over 6 years time. So call it 7 years to
> account for variances and so forth.

That many children over that short a time (most pre-modern cultures 
average two+ years between children) is likely to kill or chronically 
injure quite a significant percentage of the mothers, unless they have 
good healing technology or magic. I suppose they'd end up doing all 
those less physical tasks that are too high status for men, but it 
still seems like a bad idea to me. Also, unless they eat very well (as 
in, like 20th the century West) 16 is probably a bit young to be 
starting breeding - it's likely to result in harder first pregnancies 
and women who are smaller than they would otherwise be.

I'd train them as soldiers from 16-18 or so, use 'em in the army to 
about 23, and then put them in the reserve while they have their quota 
of children. By 30 or so they'll have met their child-bearing 
obligations, and can become officers or go into some sort of civilian 
management role.

The other reason to do things this way is that young people tend to 
make better frontline soliders because they haven't learnt that they 
can die yet. Women who have gone through multiple pregnancies, and who 
friends have also done so are going to be all too aware of their 
mortaility.

-- 
Rupert Boleyn <rboleyn at ihug.co.nz>