This is the first test campaign for C# Aurora. It is not going to proceed very fast as I am still developing and I am likely to be fixing a lot of bugs. However, I have reached the point where I think running a new campaign will be more useful than using an old campaign. This post covers the fiction background. I'll post the setup later but in essence this will be a conventional start with five player races. Precursors are on but nothing else. NPRs will be added later.
In the mid-21st century World War III erupted with apocalyptic fury. What had begun as a limited conflict between India and China drew in both Russia and the United States and quickly escalated to a strategic nuclear exchange. The war continued despite massive damage to the economies and infrastructure of the combatants, and sparked proxy conflicts in Africa and South America. The UK was drawn into the conflict on the side of the United States and India and suffered massive damage. South-east Asia, Indonesia and Australia were all devastated by Chinese assaults and the Indo-American response. Only in Western Europe and Japan was the direct damage limited, although the whole world suffered the catastrophic effects of nuclear winter and the constant threat from radiation.
Eventually, the war ended due to the complete breakdown of the nations involved. Production collapsed, harvests failed and armies could no longer be supplied. The world entered a new dark age. What remained of the Western European and Japanese governments were forced to suspend elections, declare martial law and enforce rationing. Anyone not prepared to work for the good of the whole was effectively abandoned. The global population collapsed. For decades, life was a battle for survival in a hostile environment. Even those governments that remained partially intact in the early years began to splinter and humanity regressed to an almost tribal structure. Different groups fought for scarce resources, sometimes massacring their opponents and occasionally absorbing them. Authority passed from government officials or local warlords to their descendants, creating authority based on family ties.
Over time, this authority structure become formalised in what were known as Houses, named after the family that led each group. The conflicts between the Houses slowly decreased as the worst effects of World War III receded from the surface of the Earth. Dead areas were recolonised and inter-House relations were more often conducted in council chambers rather than on the battlefield. Alliances were made, often sealed through marriage, and the Houses began to merge.
By the dawn of the 24th century five Great Houses dominated the Earth, each relatively equal in population, industry and technology. The previous decades had been spent in acquiring wealth, resources and territory from either unclaimed areas or from weaker houses. While the Great Houses had yet to engage each other in direct conflict, the last of the available territory had been absorbed and future expansion could only come at the expense of another Great House.
All the House leaders were aware that another global conflict had the potential to lead to the same devastation as World War III and plunge a new generation into darkness. However, there were many in the senior echelons of each House that believed their House could prevail against the others. With tension building, the leaders formed a council, known as the Terran League, in which they could address areas of common concern. Some leaders began this enterprise in an attempt to avoid a new war. Others saw it as an opportunity to gain intelligence or advantage. None expected the event that would set the future course of the Terran League.
Each of the five Great Houses had its ancestry in either Western Europe or Japan, primarily because the houses arising in those areas gained an early advantage over houses in other regions of world due to the surviving pre-war infrastructure. The structure, military and industrial strategy, diplomatic approach and general philosophy of each Great House has developed its experiences in the preceding two centuries and from the historical cultures in the area from which it originated. In the traumatic period when the houses first began the evolution that led to their modern-day incarnations, their leaders reached back into the past to give their houses an identity around which to build loyalty and common purpose. Those identities grew and reinforced themselves over time, leading to the strong cultures that differentiate the Great Houses today. However, while those cultures may resemble their historical equivalent in outward appearance, in some cases two centuries of history have produced significant divergences from their origins.
Following the fragmentation of Italy in the post-war decades, the house structures began to emerge, usually based on strong family loyalties. Those houses promoted the glories of the past in an effort to hold people together in the present. House leaders reminded their people that Rome faced many challenges and fought many adversaries as it grew from a small city-state to a vast empire. That past could be repeated. To reinforce that message, many small houses adopted Latin nomenclature and even Roman military organisation. Eventually, House Aurelius dominated the others, outfighting or outmanoeuvring its rivals. Like the ancient Empire on which it is modelled, House Aurelius is intent on expansion. The methods by which that expansion has taken place have included espionage and the manipulation of other houses into fighting each other as much as by direct conquest. House Aurelius is prepared to fight where necessary, but would prefer to expand without the expenditure of blood and treasure whenever possible.
One of the early leaders of House Reichmann had a fascination with 1930s and 1940s Germany, in particular how the National Socialist Workers Party used the dire situation in Germany to their own advantage in order to establish control. Once control that was established, the party permeated every aspect of life, even for children. The process was known as Gleichschaltung. Given the catastrophic situation in post-WW3 Germany, this provided Ernst Reichmann with a blueprint to follow. Although House Reichmann has maintained the organizational and military elements of that original plan, the indoctrination has faded away over the last two centuries, leaving a legacy of strong loyalty and dedication to the House being placed above personal ambition. House Reichmann did not adopt the racial policies of its adopted culture and while it has fought wars during its rise to its current status, it was no more aggressive in this regard than other Great Houses. In fact, House Reichmann is known primarily for its focus on efficient industrial expansion to address the needs of the entire population, rather than just the elite.
The groups that eventually combined into House Ragnar originated in the former Scandinavian countries, which faced some of the harshest conditions on Earth during the nuclear winter. That struggle demanded great physical effort and mental toughness, characteristics which are highly valued in the culture of House Ragnar even to this day. Survival often depended on taking resources by force from weaker groups. The combination of reliance on strength, physical courage, raiding to survive and the obvious historical parallels led to the adoption of a Viking culture by House Ragnar. Exploration, adventure and colonization of new lands are all viewed as desirable goals for the people of House Ragnar. The highest accolades though go to those who prove themselves in battle. House Ragnar takes a direct and aggressive approach to any form of conflict, with negotiation and compromise equated with weakness.
Although Japan remained neutral during World War III, the radiation clouds from China and the Russian Far East wrought havoc on the population. As the central government lost control, powerful warlords spring up, styling themselves after medieval Daimyo. The warlords fought each other for resources and territory, destroying groups of survivors in the cross-fire. Unlike many other military forces in the years following WW3, the Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force managed to maintain discipline and retain a degree of central control, despite the fragmentation of the central government. Led by Admiral Reizo Fuchida, the JMSDF began a campaign against the warlords. Limited by the available fuel and ordnance, they used their military expertise to train the groups of civilian survivors into an army. The campaign was long and bloody but after many years of hardship, Japan was united once again. By this time, Fuchida was universally regarded as the man who saved Japan. Despite his own reluctance, he was named Emperor through acclamation. His descendants become the new imperial family, joining the other Great Houses in dominating the entire world. Because of the experiences during the Reunification, House Fuchida has developed a culture that could best be described as ruthless pragmatism. Once a logical course of action is decided, all necessary actions to achieve that goal are taken without sentiment. Due to its history, House Fuchida has great reverence for its military forces, especially the Imperial Navy.
Charles Varenne was a philanthropic French billionaire who used his wealth to acquire and store great quantities of food and munitions in anticipation of global calamity. He was a ‘Doomsday Prepper’ on a grand scale, with a personal security force that would have been considered a small army if the authorities had realised its size and capabilities. Once society broke down and the nuclear winter took hold, his men ventured out from his vast bunker complex and began to assist local villages with food, medical supplies and protection. Armed groups that attempted to prey on the weak were dispatched rapidly and enthusiastically, while groups that also tried to help their neighbours were welcomed into the Varenne ‘family’. Over decades, the benevolent founding principles of House Varenne evolved into a culture and organization that closely resembled the knightly orders of medieval Europe and the Crusades. The people of House Varenne see themselves as honourable warriors protecting those less vulnerable than themselves. They welcome like-minded allies, but will fight with staunchness and devotion against any house with evil intent.
As the 24th century began, the potential for conflict between the Great Houses was increasing. The council of the Terran League had meet several times with without finding a resolution to the growing tensions over land and resources. In each case, Gabriel Varenne and Johanna Reichmann both favoured a trade treaty that would create a fair distribution of resources, albeit for different reasons, Thor Ragnar believed his was the strongest house with the greatest warriors and would prevail in any conflict, Gaius Magnus Aurelius tried to turn each house against the others to diminish all houses except his own, while Sakura Fuchida saw no point in expressing an opinion until she could be certain of the intent of the other houses.
The balance changed on January 1st 2401 when Gabriel Varenne announced that Varenne scientists had theorised the existence of a parallel dimension known as the Aether. New minerals, known as Trans-Newtonian elements, were believed to bridge the dimensional barrier. Once research into Trans-Newtonian theory was complete, the scientists firmly believed that use of these elements could open up the entire solar system for colonization and exploitation. Varenne pointed out to the other leaders that he could have held back this knowledge until his own house had gained an advantage. Instead, his priority was avoiding conflict on Earth and benefitting the whole of mankind. Privately, he also admitted to himself that creating such an advantage was likely to turn every other house against his own. Every house immediately began its own research and the race into space began.
