History PlayingWith / AliensNeverInventedTheWheel

** The aliens don't have DeliciousFruitPies. First Contact is salvaged by empty calories!

* '''Exaggerated''': The superintelligent Centaurians have somehow become a Kardashev Type IV civilization without ever discovering language.

* '''Averted''': TechnologyLevels are in full effect; every alien race's tech is across the board either better or worse than ours.

* '''Deconstructed''': While the Centaurians may have been missing some human inventions, over the centuries they'd achieved a utopian technological stasis, and the planet was at peace. This simple new introduction proves to be the straw to break the camel's back, and throws the whole world into war.

* '''Played For Drama''': The introduction of a paradigm-shifting technology overnight has unintended consequences, which serve to show exactly why First Contact is so heavily regulated.

* '''Deconstructed''': While the Centaurians may have been missing some human inventions, over the centuries they'd achieved a utopian technological stasis, and the planet was at peace. This simple new introduction proves to be the straw to break the camel's back, and throws the whole world into war.
* '''Reconstructed''': The introduction is revolutionary, as any new technology is, but it's shown to be no worse than any native breakthrough. While the human high command discipline the contact crew for breaking the rules, and the alien ruling elite are predicting the downfall of their civilization, the Centaurian on the street loves the wheel and is grateful to humanity for its introduction, seeing the elite as closed-minded traditionalists devoted to the GoodOldWays.

** If they have never discovered fire, their planet's atmosphere contains no oxygen.

* '''Lampshaded''': "How have you advanced this far without wheels?"

* '''Defied''':

** The Centaurians want to be considered superior to all other races, so they spy on all other intelligent life that they are within reach of, and do their research to ensure that they have every invention in the universe including simple and unnecessary ones.
* '''Discussed''': "CaptainsLog: Am descending to the planet's surface to initiate First Contact. Who knows what our races will have to teach each other? They may even lack some of the things we take most for granted. I've got 500 credits on the wheel, Science Officer Smug has fire, and Ensign Mickey is [[BoldlyComing hoping they haven't established the link between sex and pregnancy.]]"

* '''Implied''': The Museum of Centaurian Inventions showcases the Centaurians' many technological wonders (including AntiGravity and intergalactic teleporters) but does not mention the wheel even once.

* '''Exaggerated''': The superintelligent Centaurians have somehow come this far without discovering language.
* '''Downplayed''': The Centaurians are more advanced than us but never discovered electricity; something else drives their machines.

* '''Subverted''': A Centaurian archaeologist reveals that the Centaurians once had wheels, but they've advanced so far since then that nowadays the average citizen knows as much about them as we do about flint-knapping.
* '''Double Subverted''': He was lying, so that we [[CallAHumanAMeatbag "jumped-monkeys"]] wouldn't think we were superior to the Centaurian race in any way.

** The aliens don't have DeliciousFruitPies. First contact is salvaged by empty calories!

* '''Exaggerated''':
** The superintelligent Centaurians have somehow come this far without discovering language.

* '''Exaggerated''': The superintelligent Centaurians have somehow come this far without discovering language.

** [[InsufficientlyAdvancedAlien The only high tech the Centaurians have is space travel; apart from that, they're entirely inferior to humanity.]]

* '''Exaggerated''':
** The superintelligent Centaurians have somehow come this far without discovering language.
** InsufficientlyAdvancedAlien: the ''only'' high tech the Centaurians have is space travel; apart from that they're entirely inferior to humanity.

* '''Inverted''':

* '''Double Subverted''': He was lying, so we [[CallAHumanAMeatbag "jumped-monkeys"]] wouldn't think we were better than them in any way.

* '''Averted''': TechnologyLevels are in full effect; the aliens' tech is across the board either better or worse than ours.

* '''Lampshaded''': "How have you advanced this far without wheels?
* '''Invoked''': Both civilisations were created and guided by aeons-old {{Precursors}} to settle a bet as to what's better - the wheel, or the leehw.

* '''Defied''': "Why do you insist on trying to find the technologies we don't share? Face it, we're just ''[[SpaceElves better]]'' than you."

%%* '''Implied''': ???

* '''Subverted''': An archaeologist reveals that the Centaurians once had wheels, but they've advanced so far since then that nowadays the average citizen knows as much about them as we do about flint-knapping.
* '''Double Subverted''': He was just showing off so we jumped-monkeys wouldn't think we were better than them in any way.

** They're a WitchSpecies, and ''all'' mechanical technology is redundant.

* '''Reconstructed''': The introduction is revolutionary, as any new technology is, but it's shown to be no worse than any native breakthrough. While the human high command discipline the contact crew for breaking the rules, and the alien ruling elite are predicting the downfall of their civilization, the Centaurian on the street loves the wheel and is grateful to humanity for its introduction, seeing the elite as closed-minded traditionalists devoted to the GoodOldWays.
* '''Played For Laughs''': Finding out they've never heard of a "wheel", Ensign Mickey sees an opportunity for profit, and introduces them to... roulette.
* '''Played For Drama''': The introduction of a paradigm-shifting technology overnight has unintended consequences, which serve to show exactly why First Contact is so heavily regulated.

Can you believe that the Centaurian's version of Tv-Tropes doesn't have [[AliensNeverInventedTheWheel links to return to the main page?!]]
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* '''Zig Zagged''': TechnologyLevels are thrown out of the window - the alien civilisation has some technology that vastly outstrips our own, some that is about our level, and some that even cavemen would sneer at.

* '''Enforced''': The portrayal of futuristic civilisations using hover-tech for MundaneUtility where wheels would be more efficient is a pet peeve of the author, so she works a [[VoodooShark parodic explanation]] into her alien culture.
* '''Lampshaded''': "How have you advanced this far wihout wheels?

* '''Exploited''': A ProudMerchantRace specialises in making FirstContact, identifying that world's unique techs, jumping on the Galactic Patent Rights and selling them to worlds that don't have them.

* '''Deconstructed''': The introduction is revolutionary, as any new technology is, but it's shown to be no worse than any native breakthrough. While the human high command discipline the contact crew for breaking the rules, and the alien ruling elite are predicting the downfall of their civilisation, the Centaurian on the street loves the wheel and is grateful to humanity for its introduction, seeing the elite as closed-minded traditionalists devoted to the GoodOldWays.
* '''Reconstructed''': While the Centaurians may have been missing some human inventions, over the centuries they'd achieved a utopian technological stasis, and the planet was at peace. This simple new introduction proves to be the straw to break the camel's back, and throws the whole world into war.

* '''Played For Drama''': The introduction of a paradigm-shifting technology overnight has unintended consequences, which serve to show exactly why First Contact so heavily regulated.

* '''Straight''': The Centaurians have achieved interstellar travel but have never seen a wheel before.

* '''Inverted''': They think its a joke that we never discovered AntiGravity, when the necessary tools are perfectly available to us.

* '''Parodied''': Following a WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove discussion, the Centaurians question every concept the humans mention, until they cotton on that the aliens are screwing with them.

* '''PlayedForLaughs''': Finding out they've never heard of a "wheel", Ensign Mickey sees an opportunity for profit, and introduces them to... roulette.
* '''PlayedForDrama''': The introduction of a paradigm-shifting technology overnight has unintended consequences, which serve to show exactly why First Contact so heavily regulated.

Back to AliensNeverInventedTheWheel

** Even though they have AnitGravity, the Centaurians tend to prefer wheeled ground vehicles for whatever reason.

* '''Straight''': The Centaurians have achieved interstellar travel but have never seen a wheel before.

* '''Downplayed''': The Centaurians are more advanced than us but never discovered electricity.

* '''Exaggerated''': The superintelligent Centaurians have somehow come this far without discovering language.

* '''Justified''': They discovered the technology for AntiGravity while still in the stone age. Wheels were never necessary.

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%% Optional items, added after Conversed, at your discretion:
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* '''Lampshaded''': ???
* '''Invoked''': ???
* '''Exploited''': ???
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* '''Discussed''': ???
* '''Conversed''': ???

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