As GURPS Steampunk 1: Settings and Style explores in detail, steampunk riffs liberally on Victorian backdrops, costumes, and manners for its look and feel. Yet as stylish as that window dressing is, what steampunk is about is extraordinary technology rooted in late 18th- through early 20th-century "what ifs." That is where GURPS Steampunk 2: Steam and Shellfire picks up the story. This catalog is packed with historical gear, speculative tech, and outright mad science for Steam Age heroes and villains to use and invent. It covers steam power, telegraphy, tools, and plausible armor and weapons . . . but also powered armor, guns that never were (including ray guns), calculating machines, mechanical men, and more. This assemblage of the astounding is essential for anyone telling tales of Difference Engines, clockwork carbines, and potions worthy of Dr. Jekyll. Written by Phil Masters
