Charted Space
At the edge of Charted Space, archeologists and opportunists probe the remnants of a fallen interstellar empire, one that perplexingly included humans.
In the distant future, the vast majority of humanity lives within three interstellar nations.
The oldest is the Union of Free Ports, having avoided being consumed when most of the human race was enslaved by rampant artificial intelligences known as Liches. The Union is often seen as a ‘wild west’ where laws and safety vary wildly from world to world. A new kind of offshoot has taken and is propelling the fragile nation towards openly militant fascism. At their best, the people of the Free Ports have an air of rugged adventurism, at their worst they are greedy, violent, and self-absorbed.
The oldest is the Union of Free Ports, having avoided being consumed when most of the human race was enslaved by rampant artificial intelligences known as Liches. The Union is often seen as a ‘wild west’ where laws and safety vary wildly from world to world. A new kind of offshoot has taken and is propelling the fragile nation towards openly militant fascism. At their best, the people of the Free Ports have an air of rugged adventurism, at their worst they are greedy, violent, and self-absorbed.
After the Liches destroyed themselves, The Solano Authority emerged as the winner among the warlords trying to claim the rubble of the fallen AI empire. The Authority has seized Earth and most of the former AI domains. Worshiping productivity as the highest of virtues, Authority citizens embrace a hyper-competitiveness that can be grimly cruel to those that fall behind. Some turn to artificial personality overlays to enslave themselves as idealized workers, “waking up” only after months of servitude to claim a fat paycheck.
Finally, the Chrysaor Commonwealth was born of a cluster of rich star systems that successfully revolted against the Authority. Their rebellion was only made possible when partisans discovered a pair of ancient derelict starships now known as Omens. Optimistic and often altruistic, the Commonwealth has engaged in a campaign of exploration and colonization that has seen it grow to encompass the largest territory of the three major nations. But a growing underclass of ambitionless ‘lotus eaters’ willing to settle for only the basic amenities the Commonwealth provides all of its citizens is a growing concern.
Humanity has found new ways to cleave itself into hostile viewpoints. Populations of Demihumans – genetic offshoots created to colonize harsh environments or fight as super soldiers – struggle to live among Root Humans. Fear, pride, and envy all feed the new forms of racism that have replaced the older prejudices of ethnicity and orientation. It seems there is always someone to hate.
One threat to that balance has been the discoveries made in the ruins of the fallen T’ien Lung Celestial Dynasty, a fallen alien empire and the builders of the Omens. The architecture and art found in these ruins show it was made up of several races …Including humans. Artifacts from dig sites reveal this dead culture was the source of many concepts and imagery in ancient Chinese mythology – the vison of serpentine dragons and the “Celestial Bureaucracy” controlling the weather. They took some human servants with them when they left, incorporating them into an interstellar culture without the humans left on Earth being any the wiser… Until we reached the stars on our own and found their civilization reduced to ruins, suffering an abrupt collapse that likely took place within the last 400 years. The corpse of the Celestial Dynasty is still smoldering, with unexplained after-effects and unexploded ordinance strewn across the interstellar landscape.
Entering the often-deadly ruins has dwindled in importance with the major nations withdrawing from the costly search. Now only
Crows, specialist archeologist/tomb robbers, sift through the rubble, dreaming of finding another Omen. Most return with far more modest treasures. Chief among these is unblemished Xenoglass, a crystalline material that can be cut into jewel-like supercomputers of unsurpassed speed and compactness. Ley-stones, ancient maps to new Dynasty sites, offer tantalizing clues to the fate of the T’ien-Lung. Dragon pearls are among the most precious of finds, as swallowing a pearl can grant you miraculous powers beyond the most advanced human technology.
Crows, specialist archeologist/tomb robbers, sift through the rubble, dreaming of finding another Omen. Most return with far more modest treasures. Chief among these is unblemished Xenoglass, a crystalline material that can be cut into jewel-like supercomputers of unsurpassed speed and compactness. Ley-stones, ancient maps to new Dynasty sites, offer tantalizing clues to the fate of the T’ien-Lung. Dragon pearls are among the most precious of finds, as swallowing a pearl can grant you miraculous powers beyond the most advanced human technology.
Those who dare and survive become extremely sought-after specialists – virtually superheroes – able to walk through walls, call down death from the skies, empower even the smallest space shuttle to fight like a battleship, and other miraculous abilities.
Charted Space is waiting for you.
“Slip in. Pocket some glass. Don’t get killed.”
“Slip in. Pocket some glass. Don’t get killed.”