Thanks to the efforts of the magicians, the nations have quite a bit of very high technology. Even so, they do not use it as efficiently as they might with further knowledge of its capabilities. For example, they have large numbers of beam weapons and electro-dynamic drive systems, but they use them much as they would a jet engine or machine gun. They have not explored the full range of possibilities for the technologies. Imagine using your computer only for doing math problems, or using your butter knife to cut steak- that’s a bit like what they’re doing, but not because they’re stupid- they just don’t know enough about what they have.
Really, their entire concept for technology derives mostly from bad sci-fi pulps and comics, the sort that was saved over the years by the magicians. This is where archeology comes in handy- they can establish how the early colonists really used the tech, and how it can be best employed. Sadly, this research is very difficult, and it will be some years before it is determined how to do so.
The magicians are not much help in this situation, as they view technology as magic. So while they can operate it, repair it and build it anew, they don’t truly understand why things work as they do, or how they can be made to work in truly fantastic ways, rather than in fantastical ones.
The two key technologies that the magicians have supplied are fusion and energy direction. The ways in which these technologies have been utilized resembles what you'd read in any standard/bad science fiction piece. I don't think that this is a coincidence- though I don't have the information here to back it up, I believe that the engineers and scientists who co-ordinated with the magicians had read quite a bit of [average] sci-fi. So, when they discussed what sorts of things that they wanted, they automatically thought about what they had read. Even consultation with archaelogists would likely not have helped- they weren't truly sure of what the original colonists did with that technology, as it was so beyond their experience. Many of the devices made absolutely no sense to their minds, and I doubt a modern scientist would be able to do better in analyzing them.
The majority of the technologies described directly affect flight, but have applications in many other areas. They are just used in different fashions.
(I must digress briefly, and speak about the ancient technologies. When Earth began its exploration into space, it did not start out immediately by terraforming planets- this technology would take many, many years to perfect. Instead, it started by constructing large space stations from materials harvested from asteroids and moons. On one of these stations, a major breakthrough took place. Someone figured out Faster than Light travel, and shortly thereafter, rapid terraforming was perfected. Cheaper lift systems followed (or perhaps preceded it, that's a bit fuzzy), allowing for easy departures from gravity wells.)
With the improvements in drive technologies, it became feasible to terraform worlds, and colonize them, rather than construct more large space stations. The old gravity well problem had been overcome, and the many benefits of living on an earth-like world outweighed the costs as a result. I cannot find any data on how planets were made earth-like in terms of gravitation, orbit and spin; perhaps they were chosen for these properties.
Note that the preceeding was from a very recent historical analysis conducted by members of the GR research community. As it was not part of the other historical analysis, I have left it in this section.
I suspect, however, that the technological developments were not all that profitable for Earth at first, and that the exploitation of space's natural resources was probably not high on their list of reasons to go there. What probably happened, based on the records that still exist, is that when the various colonies got on their feet, the trade between them and Earth was what really drove economic expansion. Earth benefitted from having larger markets, and technological developments that resulted led to far higher standards of living. There's also the aspect of population dispersal, but that only became a major item later on in the period of colonization. This is all conjecture on my behalf, however.
Fusion
The fusion unit is vital for the reconstruction of the colony. Each nation has a number of fusion plants supplying it with cheap and plentiful power. Fusion is achieved in a special nanotech lattice that helps to hold the reactants in the proper location, and to convert as much of the energy released into useful forms as possible. If you were to look inside a non-active reactor, you would see the lattice, but it would resemble something like a large block of concrete unless you had an exceptionally powerful microscope.
The lattice itself is difficult to construct, and only three nations [including the Colonial Republic] have successfully made their own. The others are all dependent on the magicians to supply them with replacement lattices [the lattices have a life-span of only three to four years]. Given the tools available to them, the Colonial Republic has around an eighty percent wastage rate when making lattices. While we would readily identify them as using nanotech in their construction, the nations of the Colony do not readily understand nanotechnology, and must build the lattices in precisely the same fashion as laid out to them by the magicians. They do not totally understand the underlying principles of the device, just how to make them.
With space access, the other power technology being employed is the Solar Power Satellite. Massive stations dedicated entirely to solar panels and power beaming, they supplement the fusion systems, and offer much lower-cost power, but are much more easily disrupted by attack [which is always a concern with the space pirates hanging around]. SPS are considered more reliable than Fusion for most large-scale applications, and the space stations tend to primarily use SPS, with secondary fusion reactors used for emergency, weaponry and mission-critical operations.
Energy Direction
All energy direction technology derives from a series of small toy airplanes used by the magicians to teach the nations. The toy airplanes were radio controlled, and used a small electro-aerodynamic drive. They were also equipped with a small anti-grav unit to prevent crashes and a beam weapon that they could duel with [though very low powered- it could not damage the other airplane, only cause it to stop responding to controls and execute a controlled crash].
All of these units used the technology of energy direction. The magicians, working in concert with a group of talented engineers, managed to create direction devices that could be manufactured using the tools available to the colonists. They constructed several distinct devices that suited different needs:
1.The Electro-Aerodynamic drive.
Air molecules are accelerated in a magnetic field, and through this, thrust is created. All modern aircraft use EAD technology for drive units. Some experimental rocket-planes accelerate further the rocket exhaust using EAD units, but this has proved problematic, as the EAD devices aren't strong enough to take the heat of the plume. The devices also face limitations owing to the primitive nature of the intake trunking designs that the various nations have produced. Larger devices tend to have a considerable fall-off in efficiency, and as such, there are limits as to how large aircraft can be, and how fast those large aircraft can go.
In future, it is hoped that they can discard the intake/exhaust concept entirely, and rely on an EAD covering the exterior of the craft, but this is many years off. For space access, accelerated rocket designs allow for easy and efficient travel, but are very expensive and difficult to construct.
2.The Beam Weapon
Beam weapons use directed energy to strike a distant target. The energy is not merely a disordered blast, it is in fact a very carefully designed strike. The magicians were unwilling to supply the colonists with a killing weapon, so the beam weapons are disabling in nature. The "stopper" concept was born- the objective is to shoot a target or person so that he or it stops, and ceases to be a threat. Systems can be disabled, and people can be knocked out, but they cannot be killed or destroyed.
The colonists were very unhappy with this, but the magicians would not yield, and threatened to give them nothing more, so they did not press on this issue. As such, many firearms are stored, and small caches of pirate weapons are carefully maintained.
A good question for now is: why a beam? The simple truth is that the colonists are incapable of creating a device that allows for a more dispersed energy blast of similar power. Instead, they must content themselves with pencil-thin beams emitted from very simple collectors. The collectors themselves are encased within barrel-like shapes, but they could easily use some other method of organisation. It's just that the colonists are better able to make strong gun barrels than they are at finding alternate shielding mechanisms.
3.The Anti-grav unit
Close to the earth, the anti-grav unit will activate. Using a field-linkage, electromagnetic fields can effect gravitational fields using this unit. Many an out-of-control airplane has been saved by the anti-grav unit activating at the last moment. It uses a considerable amount of power, and as such has its own supply of power, though it can draw from the main system where necessary. Some newer craft can use the anti-grav unit on the ground to aid in moving the aircraft. This is known as "grav lifting", and some fighters are so lightened by the process that their operator can push them unaided.
Attempts to use the anti-grav unit at greater distances from the ground have so far failed. It has been considered for other uses, but owing to the power expenditure it has so far seen limited applications.
4.The Mega-Battery
Electricity is directed into a simplified lattice structure, and can be stored there for long periods of time. The more sophisticated mega-batteries allow for massive charges, and all aircraft utilize mega-batteries for power sources, rather than fusion units. Rather than build one big cell, many smaller cells are utilized, though larger craft can use heavier and more efficient lattices.
The mega battery is designed to safely discharge- though it is full to the brim with energy, it will not explode or shock even if mishandled. Well, that's not entirely true- it could knock someone out, but the effects would be temporary and not fatal. Most of the energy would be used in re-aligning the lattice structure, and not flow outwards.
Certain simpler lattices are one time use devices- they break down as they operate. Some large-caliber Electro-Thermo-Chemical weapons use these to provide the necessary power.
5.The Acceleration Canceler
The accel canceler was derived from the anti-grav unit. It is used in flight to minimize the effects of "G forces". Again using unified fields, it reduces stresses on both the pilot and airframe. This is one of the least-understood technologies supplied by the magicians, and the canceler fields must be arrayed in a precise manner, or they will not function properly.
Accel cancelers cannot dissipate loads larger than ten times the mass of the craft they are wired into. This is not regarded as a hard limit, as there are some theories that these devices were used on interplanetary craft and had limits far above ten times.
6.The Energy Shield
Just as energy can be directed, it can be re-directed. The energy shield works to re-direct both physical and directed energy strikes. The power of the shield is limited by the output of the field generator, and the amount of energy supplied by the batteries. Also, shield generators have different facings, so a number of shield generators must be set up to provide a full sphere of protection.
When a smaller force is applied to a shield, the shield does not react. It is only when larger forces are applied that the shield activates, providing a safe zone for the craft and its occupants. Aircraft carriers use modified shields that allow their own aircraft to pass through for landings.
7.The Tractor Beam
A staple of sci-fi stories, the magicians spent years perfecting this device. The tractor beam is a specialized directed energy device, and can be used to pull something towards the beam emitter. The ability to do so is limited by the size of the emitter array and the power source.
8. The Stardrive
The star drive combines several other technologies to produce a fantastically powerful drive unit that has since opened up the solar system for exploration. This is significant enough a development that space travel and exploration has been given its own section under the Colonial Republic national description, or at least the CR's portion of said travel and exploration.
Armor:
Armor represents an interesting combination of several technologies. By using an energetic lattice, designed to redirect energy pulses, armor can reduce the demands on a shield projector. With sufficient armor, a very small and simplified shield generator can be utilized, lessening power demands and increasing availability. As such, armor remains a viable tool for defense.
While most aircraft have minimal armor, ground vehicles use it as a primary defensive option. Armor is often sloped, as historical texts showed that this offered some additional protection against projectile weapons.
Tanks
While combat tanks intended to battle other combat tanks had armor centered mostly upfront, infantry support tanks tended to have a more overall armor approach [in case of infantry attack]. Combat tanks tend to be more expensive, as they have equipment to make them more accurate on the move, and have complex armor compositions. Infantry support tanks are simpler, and less powerful. They can be manuf
The Southern Federation uses heavily specialized tanks to support its troops. Each tank does a specific function, and does it exceptionally well. The Colonial Republic has more generalist tanks, but still divides the main purposes into combat tanks [for use against other tanks] and infantry support tanks. Infantry support tanks take on many shapes and roles, whereas combat tanks tend to be specialized. While IST designs tend to be dispersed amongst the various infantry units, combat tanks are concentrated in great tank units, with heavy mechanized support in the form of self-propelled artillery and personnel carriers.