Society & Civilization

Human populations have dwindled. Every major city was destroyed centuries ago, and the only safe places to support life were underground. Four subsurface Arks were built around the world to save 25,000 people each, however the fate of three are currently unknown and the fourth is the primary setting of the game. The Ark in North America’s Grand Canyon expanded and brought humanity back from the brink, becoming the only functioning city in the world.   There are scatterings of survivors in several remote locations but they aren’t much of a society. Many are raiders who are ruthless and cruel, taking what they want by force. There is a large raider settlement in Las Vegas and several more undiscovered settlements around the world.  

Earth

The last advanced human city on Earth is Bastion, located inside the Grand Canyon. Home to roughly one million citizens, it is highly sophisticated and technologically advanced. Built within the base of the canyon, it is surrounded by mile high walls as well as guard towers and sentry turrets for hundreds of miles. Bastion is a metropolis that needs protection from numerous dangers inside and out. It is self-sustaining, able to withstand solar storms and many threats. It is a mostly peaceful city but there is a nefarious underground network and the government is oppressive and corrupt, acting more as a fascist regime. Various gangs, corporations, and other factions are all vying for power.  

New Terra

Bastion and the Lunar colonies are controlled by the Sol Council, a unified government entity. It is the political seat of power and the capitol that is also in command of the Terran Defense Corps, their united military force. AEGIS is headquartered on the Veritas Orbital Platform orbiting Luna and is home to humanity’s greatest weapons, the Lightkeepers and their Guardian Frames. The moon of Luna is dotted with human colonies who have thrived off mining and refining valuable materials and fuels. They have grown to over 40,000 residents and cooperate directly with Bastion.  

AEGIS & Veritas

The Veritas Orbital Station is a lunar space station that houses thousands of AEGIS soldiers, scientists, and personnel, a fleet of starships, and most importantly The Lighthouse, home of the Lightkeepers. These are humanity's greatest weapons and is the primary location of Guardian Frames: advanced military exoskeletons. These machines use a variety of powerful weapons and special abilities to defend against any threat.   Marsis home to 30,000 humans spread across several colonies, however a large portion of the planet is hostile towards Earth and Luna for abandoning and taking advantage of them over the last several hundred years. An accident and political misunderstanding sparked war between the red planet and New Terra.  

Travel

Human energy sources have evolved, from hydrogen engines to fusion cores. Space flight has been revolutionized by Jump Drives which can propel small spacecraft easily across vast distances. Large craft move slower due to mass acceleration and deceleration, but can still travel exponentially faster than before. This has allowed for transportation between planets that wasn’t previously possible.  

Mars

There is an AEGIS controlled outpost on Mars called Ares Station. It is the Forward Operating Base in the Martian War, used primarily as a conflict deterrent. The citizens of Mars and the instigators of war are not necessarily one in the same, and the landscape is one of unique complexity.