[quote=@So Boerd]
What years correspond to which military tech levels?
[/quote]

(I will be holding people accountable to this -- so hopefully, people just play it straight. Suffice it to say, I am familiar with people trying to stretch the boundaries of given definitions and categories.)

Obsolete - Pre WWII technology - aircraft non-existent or, at best, piston-engined but not particularly effective in the current environment; the typical aircraft might well be the likes of an early Messerschmidt 109 and radar is not a thing. Infantry tech is the bolt action rifle. Formations are not very nimble. Definitely no aircraft carriers; nothing that'd be remotely effective in modern combat anyway and ships like destroyers lack sufficient anti-submarine capability as well as anti-aircraft capability, as they are older classes in need of refit. Mechanization is probably limited to unarmored supply and transport vehicles, armored cars, halftracks and light tanks.

Examples:[indent]
- M3 Stuart Tanks
- Short Magazine, Lee Enfield
- Lewis machinegun
- Browning M1917 Machinegun
- Messerschmidt 109
- Junkers 89 "Stuka"
- Benson-Class Destroyer[/indent]

Limited Modernization - WWII tech. No jet aircraft, radar is a thing, but it's obviously not mounted on aircraft for the most part and coordination of air support for ground forces is in its infancy. Medium tanks like the Sherman and T-34 are seeing their use here, there's a proliferation of automatic weapons and an attempt to make infantry able to handle anti-tank work if they must -- this is also when industrial mass production comes into play. Naval equipment undergoes a change -- it is unlikely a smaller country can afford aircraft carriers, but torpedo boats, frigates and more advanced destroyers designed to hunt submarines are available...as are a more advanced class of submarine. Submarines also add a new dimension to warfare for those countries able to acquire some.

Examples:[indent]
- Douglas A-1 Skyraider
- B-29 Superfortress
- Browning M1919A4 machinegun
- M4 Sherman (late model)
- M3 Halftrack
- M1 Carbine
- M18 Hellcat Tank Destroyer
- Fletcher-Class Destroyer
- Gato-class submarine
[/indent]

Rapid Modernization - is the category that straddles Limited Modernization and Leading Edge; most of the forces employ the above examples of weapons systems, but some elite formations have the best gear. Maybe it's just being brought online or maybe it's been bought in a deal or supplied by an allied nation, but there are limited numbers of it. On the other hand, those elite formations tend to be a head of state's fire brigade, and perhaps their insurance policy in domestic political problems or in disputes with belligerent neighbors.

Examples:[indent]See above and below.[/indent]

Leading Edge - This is the newest equipment of the era, as technology is further integrated into the field. Radar, fire control, communication, mobility all become of paramount concern as science finds new ways to deliver death and destruction to enemies while reducing ones own casualties. Sometimes, they are successful. A leading edge tech military has access to all this weaponry, but is also probably undergoing doctrinal change, assuming the generals are willing to play along, in order to most effectively use this weaponry. After all, in WWII, France had more tanks, but the Germans organized it so that the infantry could keep up with the tanks, rather than that the tanks be chained to the infantry. Employment, therefore, is as vital as deployment. Edit: Missiles are getting tried out here too. They're going to be the big thing.

Examples: [indent]- AK-47 (the early versions; milled receivers and so forth. More expensive to produce.)
- B-52 Stratofortress (early)
- Centurion Main Battle Tank
- M59 APC
- H-34 Choctaw
- F-86 Sabre
- Des Moines-class cruiser
[/indent]