Mars: различия между версиями

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[[Image:Mars_Biodomes.jpg|thumb|250px|A view of pre-Violet Dawn biodome complexes in Olympia.]]
'''Mars''' is the fourth planet from Sol, and one of humanity's earliest colonies. Often called “The Red Planet,” it has a surface area the size of Earth's entire landmass. It once had a stable population of several billion people, which was reduced drastically after the man-made disaster known as "Violet Dawn".


[[Image:Mars(2456).jpg|thumb|250px|Mars was developed very early on during the race to space. This left many cultural tensions in the society that exist to this day.]]
Despite its proximity to Earth, during the early years of interstellar colonization Mars was only home to small scientific expeditions and outposts that eked out a meagre existence until the 2200s, when terraforming technology was finally able to slowly reintroduce water and atmosphere to the planet. Currently the atmosphere is breathable but incredibly thin, which makes strenuous efforts outside the arcologies very dangerous. Many regions also suffer from airborne phoron contamination, adding further danger to already hazardous activities outside arcologies.
[[Image:Mars_Biodomes.jpg|thumb|250px|A view of new biodome complexes in Freemont.]]
'''Star System:''' [[Sol]]


'''Capitals:''' Olympia (planetside); Nova Concordia Station (orbital)
Until recently an Alliance fleet remained in orbit of Mars at all times, ensuring that the planet remains disarmed and free of armed disputes. Following the so-called “Violet Dawn” explosion in 2462, Mars now finds itself worse-off than ever before; in the wake of an ecological catastrophe and plagued by unrest and violence.
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== History ==
<center><i>“The Solarian government has taken everything from us. Our autonomy, our identity, and now our planet. What are we supposed to do? Lay over and die? Step outside and let the phoron claim us? I don’t know. Leave me alone, I don’t want to continue this interview anymore,”</i> – Anonymous Martian resident interviewed by the Xanu News Service, 18 June 2464.</center>
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=== Early Colonization (2100s - 2190s) ===
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Despite Mars being a barren planet, a mixture of desperate living conditions on Earth and a bold commitment to exploration and colonization caused it to experience small scale colonization in the 2100's. After the terraforming efforts of 2200 began and with the discovery of massive fossil fuel deposits (therefore confirming Mars once held life), optimistic nations and corporations attempted to set up a foothold on it, causing tens of thousands of colonists to arrive during the first waves. After it became clear that Mars would remain hostile for quite some time, was passed over for more suitable, distant worlds for a long period, leaving the original settlers to etch out a meager life. The byproduct of this is that many issues, national and cultural, that plagued humanity at those times were brought over to the red planet, causing tensions between its inhabitants and new settlers. Despite the one world government of the Alliance, individual nations on Earth would finance and support colonies on Mars, pitting them against one another. Wars and skirmishes between the colonies, although rare, were not unheard of. The ones that survived have long since grown into large, independent arcologies, which are for the most part friendly competitors under the watchful eye of Sol Alliance.
 
The fossil fuels found on Mars were quickly put to use. Power plants, large factory complexes were constructed outside the arcologies, and the planet was becoming industrialized, which later on played into the terraforming process of the planet. Most of construction was done by crew-operated behemothian industrial machines, which are still used to this day in limited capacities for work outside the domes. Primarily cyborgs and programmed robots worked in these buildings outside the safety of the arcologies, until later on when the planet's atmosphere stabilized in 2400.
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=== History of Terraforming (2190s - 2260)===
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The terraforming process started during the late part of the 22nd century, with massive terraformers designed to turn Mars’ natural minerals into gasses and legions of cyborgs put into action. The idea was to replicate the Global Warming process humans have inadvertently done on Earth, but in a more controlled environment with goals of increasing both air pressure and temperature. The process was incredibly slow and expensive, and dogged by a major catastrophe in 2298 that nearly ended the entire process and caused untold amounts of human suffering and economic damage.


'''Terrestrial Population (est.)''': 4,592,943,380
Although controversial for both its cost and dangers, the terraforming project of Mars is considered a success. The air, until recently, was still slightly toxic, but it effectively raised Mars' near zero pressure to slightly tolerable, along with the average temperature. Furthermore, the vast amounts of polarized iron dust now flowing around the planet’s lower orbit created a makeshift electromagnetic shield, reducing harmful radiation by a large degree until it was disrupted by the massive ecological disruption of Violet Dawn. Limited efforts are being made to restore it, but these have mostly been unsuccessful. This difference meant that by 2400 a space suit was no longer needed to traverse its surface. Instead, pressure suits or thick clothing, along with eye, mouth and ear protection are enough to stop the worst effects of a low pressure environment. Single-cellular life  prospered as well, due to an atmosphere now rich with organic particles, but does no longer due to the wide-spread poisoning of the Martian atmosphere from the fires ignited in the Violet Dawn disaster. Due to this, Mars’ famous red colour has been replaced with patches of black, deep, burned orange, and violet in some places.


'''Spacer Population (est.)''': 1,372,248
During the period of terraforming, Mars received an immense number of [[Synthetics|cyborgs]] to serve as its workforce. In the late part of the 22nd century, humanity had achieved the ability to produce heavy cyborgs. Being able to function and work freely in the harsh environment, Martian terraforming firms pressed for more and more cyborg workers, but volunteers for this process were few and far between due to the risks around the procedure. Eventually, to meet demand, cyborgification was implemented as capital punishment for crimes, less and less severe as time passed. In total, between 2204, when the implementation of cyborgs started, and 2260, when it stopped, over 35 million cyborgs have been sent to Mars to serve as a workforce. The terraforming project started to backfire soon after.


Mars (Sol IV) is the fourth planet out from [[Sol]]. It has surface area the size of Earth's entire landmass. Once called the Red Planet, it has since lost its red hue, replacing it with a mix of red and green, sometimes brown. Ships approaching Mars can see many lights in orbit around it, as it receives relatively large volumes of space traffic. Looking from the surface, dusty night skies of Mars are covered by near endless number of moving lights, both from satellites, stations and passing space ships, even debris.
The extent of the crimes Martians caused, as well other problems the synthetics caused, resulted in an overall negative view of AIs and cyborgification among the populace. Sometime after, Mars Senate constructed a large monumental graveyard for victims of forced cyborgification sometimes referred to CyTomb. Cyborgification, along with the use banned in several larger arcologies such as Crest Olympia, Greater London, Elysium and Red Gaia.
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=== The Martian World War (2278 - 2284) ===
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Considering Mars' strong ties with Earth governments and its dependence on Sol Fleets, Mars never had unified interests or tools to openly fight against the Sol Government during the [[Timeline of Humanity| First Interstellar War]]. Despite this, many Martians felt sympathetic to the Coalition of Colonies, as they felt they shared the resentment towards a growing, authoritarian oppression within the Alliance.


Mars is split into a number of large and small city-states, as well as territories belonging to minor parties such as corporations and nomadic populations. Although independant on paper, Sol Alliance keeps a close eye on their activities to prevent any wars or territory disputes.
In the early stages of the war in 2278, the Alliance quickly pressed the small Martian self-defense force into service, merging the tiny Martian fleet into the Alliance navy. Anti-Solarian factions on Mars calling themselves the Red Coalition began rallying popular and political support based on many “injustices,”committed by the Alliance against the Martian people, an alliance which had also shown casual disregard for Mars. Financially backed by the Coalition of Colonies (CoC), on 18th of January, 2279, many Martian cities seceded from Sol Alliance and launched a coordinated, surprise attack on the rest of Mars.
The average Martian citizen doesn't leave the mega arcologies and pressurized cities more than a few times in their lives, but still, low pressure survival and suit usage is a mandatory part of education. Due to the costs of maintaining a pressurized, healthy environment, most of the population lives in cramped spaces and tiny apartments. The cities themselves are more often than not, a maze of overbuild interconnected buildings, roadways and tunnels so complex that most inhabitants can’t even grasp and can hardly be navigated without help of computer or a GPS. With low police coverage and ease of evasion, many criminal organizations have sprung up and remained for centuries. Because of this, Mars boasts one of the largest and most enigmatic criminal underworlds in Sol space, often having strong ties with the city-states they occupy.


== History ==
The loyalist arcologies became known as the Sol Coalition, or more popularly, the Blues.
Despite the Red Planet’s inhospitality, desperate living conditions on Earth and its close proximity to it has caused it to be one of the first planets colonized. As both nations and corporations attempted to set up a foothold on it first, it received massive number of colonists during the first waves, after which it was passed over for more suitable, distant worlds for a long period. The byproduct of this is that many issues, national and cultural, that plagued humanity at those times, were brought over to the Red Planet, causing tensions between its inhabitants. The colonies were more often than not supported by nations of earth as legal colonies and were putting constant pressure on each other. Wars between the colonies, although rare, were not unheard of. The ones that survived have long since grown into large, independant city-states, which are for the most part friendly competitors under the watchful eye of Sol Alliance.
 
With the mighty fleets of the Alliance out fighting in the frontier, the Blue Coalition saw very little aid from the Alliance, material or otherwise. Red Rangers, special forces under the Red Coalition, seized lightly defended orbital Alliance military stations, including nuclear-equipped missile platforms. The Red Coalition threatened to use these weapons on any planet or fleet that attempted to intervene, effectively isolating Mars and throwing it into a Cold War with Earth.


However, the tensions combined with the planet’s wildly different features, have over centuries produced cultures and traditions unseen on other planets, which were much less involved in Earth politics. Some of many culture groups on Mars still keep to old traditions that have all but disappeared on Earth. Denizens of Mars or at least those who are in position to care about such things, speak of their roots and traditions with pride.  
As military conventions prohibited direct bombing of population centers, the Red conquest consisted of prolonged sieges while unrest, terrorist attacks, and counter-offensives began to sap their ability to wage war. In the face of growing losses, the leadership of the Red Coalition gained the dubious honor of being the fourth nation in human history to use nuclear weapons in warfare. In 2284, the Red Coalition arcology of Terra Nova, facing capitulation in the face of advancing Blue forces, successfully appealed to an orbital missile platform to launch a nuclear missile on a nearby Blue arcology of New Dresden in an attempt to turn the tide of war.


Mars has suffered two catastrophes while colonized: the abrupt failure of its terraforming infrastructure and widespread damage as a result of the rhe First Interstellar War. The combination of both has set Mars back in development by at least a century, creating buried cities and colonies all across its surface. These are often targeted by both scavengers and archeologists, today. Regardless, the determination of its inhabitants and the trade volume the planet receives has made it recover within two centuries following them.
This action immediately fractured the entire Red Coalition, with most of its members distancing themselves from the action and its perpetrators. Within days the majority of arcologies in the Red Coalition abandoned the alliance, and within weeks the remainder had surrendered.


===Martian World War===
The Treaty of Olympus was signed on 5th of April, 2284 featuring unconditional surrender of remaining Red Coalition states. The Alliance, negotiating on behalf of the loyalist Blues, used the treaty to place harsh restrictions on Mars. The entire planet was disarmed and all factions on it surface were banned from fielding a standing army, navy, or engaging in armed conflicts with one another. In addition, the planet was put under "indefinite" martial law, with an Alliance Admiral permanently stationed in orbit of the planet to enforce indirect martial law, overriding any local laws or ordinances.
Considering Mars' strong ties with Earth governments and its dependence on Sol Fleets, Mars never had unified interests or tools to openly fight against opressive Sol Government during the First Intersteller War. At the start of the war, Sol Alliance quickly integrated what little fleet Mars had into its own, raising much protest. However, many Martian nations took the weakened state of Sol Alliance as an opportunity to establish world dominance. Financially backed by the The Coalition of Colonies (CoC), on 18th of January, 2279, many Martian nations seceded from Sol Alliance and launched attacks on those that refused. Soon after, they formed the Coalition of Martian Nations (Red Coalition) while the alliance of nations loyal to Sol Alliance were dubbed Sol Coalition (Blue Coalition). Despite the overwhelming military superiority of the Sol Alliance, their fleets retreated from Mars, when the Red Coalition threatened to empty their nuclear and ballistic arsenal directly at Earth if they were to interfere, starting a Cold War between the two. As such, it is not considered a theater of the Interstellar War. Financially backed by the CoC The Red Coalition was initially successful in conquering much of the Blue territory, but their advanced slowed as the other side started to recive backing from Sol Alliance.
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=== The Catastrophe of 2298 ===
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The first of two major catastrophes in Martian history was the abrupt failure of its terraforming infrastructure in the winter of 2298. The entire infrastructure was linked to a single network, which suffered a serious melt-down as a result of human error. The network either shut down areas of terraforming or spit out wild algorithms that put the entire project into a tailspin. The network was restored after several days, but the result was catastrophic swings in the climate. For the next 10 years Mars experienced climactic storms that severely damaged or even destroyed arcologies and utterly wiped out smaller settlements. The atmosphere was flooded with excessive C02 that smothered people in the open without internals. Billions of credits of property damage was recorded, and millions were killed as a direct result of the disaster. It was estimated to have put back terraforming efforts by a century.


As military conventions prohibted direct bombing of population centers, their conquest consisted of prolonged sieges while unrest, terrorist attacks and occasional assaults fractured the internal unity of the colony. Usage of low yield nuclear weapons was allowed on the battlefields and were almost openly used to destroy enemy forces in the open field. The war lasted for years, until 2284, when Red Coalition State of Terra Nova, facing defeat from its primary opponent Republic of Lowell, launched a nuclear attack on ironically dubbed New Dresden in an attempt to turn the tide of war. This fructured the unity of Red Coalition, as many of them, facing the threat of nuclear anihiliation, suceded from it. As nuclear apocalypse averted, the remaining Red Coalition forces either surrended or were overwhelmed in the matter of months. The Threaty of Olympus was signed on 5th of April, 2284 featuring unconditional surrender of Red Coalition states. The most important points in the threaty where restrictions on Mars' fleet, formation of what resembles modern borders, greater autonomy to Martian colonies as wall as the the Mars Senate. Many of the Red Coalition nations ceased to exist, either through being fractured or absorbed into others. All WMDs were implemented with targeting restrictions, disallowing fire on colonized planetary bodies.
Despite the damages, an investigation by SolGov saw only three technicians arrested, with all three later acquitted despite anger and protest from the Martian population.
In modern times, the ruins of arcologies lost to the catastrophe remain popular spots for scavengers, explorers, and tourists. The polar canyon regions of Mars started to serve as scrapyard for obsolete and abandoned machinery. Starting in the early 2370s, megacorporations began to dispose of their obsolete lineups by storing them in gargantuan “lots” for later retrieval when the manpower needed to sustain them returned. This would never be the case, and for years to come other megacorporations would do the same in haphazardly tossing their waste electronics into the canyon regions as time went along. In 2405, legal action was taken to prevent the excessive usage of this disposal, and it quickly halted. What was left were what would be referred to as the [[Synthetic_Origins#.22Metal_Dunes.22|Metal Dunes of Mars]], endless electronic scrapheaps as far as the eye could see.
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=== The Violet Dawn Explosion (2462) ===
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On the seventh of November, 2462, an unprecedented disaster came to Mars in the form of the Violet Dawn explosion. Initially an attempt by the Sol Alliance to produce synthetic phoron in response to an ongoing phoron shortage crisis, the Violet Dawn program would be remembered for much more.  Safety standards were neglected in Violet Dawn facilities, located on Mars’ south pole and as a result, the synthetic phoron grew out of control before igniting. The resulting conflagration completely destroyed the southern pole of Mars, demolished a multitude of arcologies in the southern hemisphere of Mars, and spread toxic - and highly flammable - phoron particles throughout the Martian atmosphere creating massive firestorms the size of entire cities combined. The official death toll of the Violet Dawn catastrophe is unknown - and will likely never truly be known - but is estimated to be in the billions. Billions more were displaced from their arcologies, creating the largest refugee crisis in recent history and straining the already-overburdened government of Mars to its breaking point. The Mars of the post-Violet Dawn Orion Spur now bears little resemblance to what came before, and how the crisis evolves remains to be seen.


=Environment=
Prime Minister Frost, before his death, issued orders and directives to be released when Operation “Violet Dawn” began and despite his death prior to the event, much of the upper brass of the Navy was still loyal to his cause. They ordered his instructions be carried out, threatening those who disobeyed with desertion and treason. Even so, some captains disregarded these orders to let the burning planet’s billions of desperate sapients, some friends and family to the crew, burn in phoron fire. These brave men and women plunged into the Red Planet’s atmosphere and filled their cargo holds with as many people as they could cram in, dumping weapons and munitions out to make room. A few rogue ships even dove into the phoron-dense areas of the planet that could’ve still potentially held survivors. Tragically, most who attempted this found their engines rendered inoperable in the exotic atmosphere and crashed before clearing the danger zone.  
Cold, arid and extremely inhospitable, with average temperature of -10°C (14°F), moving between a minimum of -80°C  (-112°F) and a maximum of 60°C (140°F). A Martian day is only slightly longer than a standard day at 25 standard hours, but the Martian year is 687 standard days long. It has a 37% gravity of Earth’s, which is too low for appropriate development of humans. Average atmospheric pressure is around 0.5 of Earth’s, but with less oxygen and larger composition of carbon dioxide and various toxic organic gasses. It has its own ‘Water’ cycle, composed of both water and carbon dioxide, with the former usually falling as snow during summer, and the latter forming snow in the winter. Rain followed by formation of lakes is not unseen, but these often don’t last more than a day, forming flats of frozen quicksand in their wake.


Outside of few terraformed areas, complex life is rare, with only bioengineered pine trees and grasses growing in there. Usually located inside craters, these areas have higher air pressure and can function as a open air cities, but interior still have to be properly pressurized. However, single cell organisms have become plentiful since the planet was partially terraformed. They were most likely introduced as unwilling passengers onboard ships various worlds with similar conditions.  
After the Violent Dawn had effectively run its course, Frost’s staff ordered those who had defied orders quietly imprisoned and stripped of rank. After the junta took over and ousted the Frost loyalists, many of these “rogue” captains and crew managed to regain their positions. But, many more of them became disillusioned about Sol and fled the Alliance for nations such as Biesel or the Coalition.  


==Terraforming==
A brutal information campaign was waged against the Navy defying Frost to maintain his loyalists' control over the Alliance. Outside of eyewitnesses testimony, any hard evidence was destroyed. Though Biesel may have known some captains betrayed Frost, choosing not to report these facts when revealing the whistleblower would vilify their main rival. The administration after Frost have uncomfortably ignored the consequences of Frost’s actions, instead opting to focus on stabilizing the territory the Alliance retains. As a result, those outside the Sol System at the time of Violet Dawn may never be fully convinced of the truth.
Terraforming process started during the late part of the 22nd century, as massive terraformers designed to turn Mars’ natural minerals into gasses and legions of cyborgs were put into action. The idea was to replicate the Global Warming process humans have inadvertently done on Earth, but in a more controlled environment  with goals of increasing both air pressure and temperature. However, it  worked better than expected. Within seventy years, the polar dry ice reserves started to melt rapidly. The sudden raise in air density and greenhouse gasses caused a spike in the temperature to over 100°C (212°F). Afterwards, massive storms ravaged the planet for decades. Thankfully, the dust increased the planet’s albedo enough to allow the temperatures to stabilize within hundred years. The cost to human life was large, as was the damage to both the economy and cities themselves.
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===The Solarian Army’s Reunification Campaign (2462 - present)===
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At the start of May 2464, Solarian forces under the command of Governor-General Tereza Varzieva launched an effort to, “stabilize the planet and restore order to regions outside of the Violet Dawn hazard zone”, thus effectively bringing Mars back under Solarian control. The offensive against the various warring factions of criminal gangs, bandits, supply raiders, secessionist forces, and various other paramilitary or criminal forces, was successful and the sections of Mars outside of the government’s control mostly surrendered or were seized by force within two months, with major Solarian Army operations concluding at the end of June. Arcologies within the Moderate Hazard Zone still face extremely difficult circumstances ranging from environmental hazards, supply shortages, starvation, unrest, and violence. There has been little talk on the future of these arcologies from the Solarian Army in the wake of the campaign, but for now there is a line between civilization and lawlessness on Mars. Yet control and relative stability has brought Einstein Engines and other Solarian companies into the planet’s economy in an attempt to bring relief and assistance to the planet of Mars and its inhabitants. This economic upturn has sparked hope that Mars, against all odds, could have a future once again.
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== Government and Politics ==


Although a catastrophe, the terraforming project of Mars was not a complete failure. The air is still toxic, but it effectively raised Mars' near zero pressure to slightly tolerable 0.5 range, along with the average temperature. Furthermore, the vast amounts of polarized iron dust now flowing around the planet’s lower orbit has created for a makeshift electromagnetic shield, reducing harmful radiation by a large degree. Efforts are being made to maintain it through crushing and polarizing of asteroids, despite the ever increasing volume of orbital traffic. This difference meant that a space suit was no longer needed to traverse its surface, instead, pressure suits or thick clothing, along with eye, mouth and ear protection were enough to stop the worst effects of low pressure environment.  Single-cellular life has prospered as well, due to a atmosphere now rich with organic particles. Due to this, Mars has lost its famous red colour and is entering the first phase of the Kessler syndrome, making approaches to the planet with insufficient shielding prohibited.
[[Image:ASSN-PGM_V2.png|thumb|The flag of the Alliance of Sovereign Solarian Nations' Provisional Government of Mars, the sole remnant of Mars' pre-Violet Dawn administration.]]


The Martian government was, like its economy, devastated in the aftermath of the Violet Dawn catastrophe. The antiquated, bloated, and corrupt Martian government - with its highly-decentralized nature - was unable to handle the unparalleled crisis posed by the Violet Dawn disaster and quickly collapsed under its own weight, leaving much of the planet without a government beyond surviving local arcologies in the days immediately after the disaster. As the aftermath of Violet Dawn - columns of terrified refugees, imploding economies, and contaminated water - became apparent more and more of these local governments, already stretched thin by widespread civil unrest before the Violet Dawn explosion, began to collapse - thrusting more and more of Mars into a state of anarchy.


=Population=
With a collapsed civil government and widespread damage due to the Violet Dawn explosion, much of Mars existed in a governmentless anarchy where the strongest group ruled over a petty statelet. The one region of the planet with a semblance of traditional authority esd the Alliance of Sovereign Solarian Nations’ Provisional Government of Mars (ASSN-PGM), a military-led transitional authority that controls the largest remaining non-contaminated drinking water source on Mars: the northern ice cap. The ASSN-PGM was led by the recently-promoted Governor-General Tereza Varzieva from her headquarters in the newly-unified Kunlun and represents the only government officially recognized by the greater Solarian Alliance. The military government also controlled some of the only functional shuttleports on Mars, with southern ports often having air too contaminated by phoron for typical air and spacecraft to fly. The ASSN-PGM has absolute control over Unified Kunlun, the northern ice cap, Mysteron, Marvinia, Chicago, and Draka - making it the largest single government on the Martian surface by far. While the ASSN-PGM was referred to as “yet another," example of Solarian repression by some Coalition of Colonies member states, its region is - in part due to one advantage it has over other warlords: orbital naval support - became the most stable on Mars.
Due to the planet's low gravity, the first colonists were handpicked among those who had the strongest bone density and later, cheap stable gene mods were introduced as part of the general medicine to increase the survival rate. As a consequence of population mixing and the gene mods being inherited, multiple generations have made the average Martian have increased bone density and height. As technology developed, artificial gravity generators were introduced under the cities to rectify the health issue. However, those born and living outside them usually do not have such a luxury, resulting in them being stuck on world permanently. Regardless of where they live or their financial status, fitness culture is deeply ingrained in the psyche of a native Martians.
Despite spending all of their time in pressurized, sealed environments under relatively horrible habitation conditions, average martian is in not poor by other Sol Alliance’s standards, however, the sheer cost of acquiring needed resources, clean air and drinkable water raises living costs significantly. Thankfully, most governments on Mars invest greatly into care, so most extremely poor inhabitants get their needs met. The largest focus is on Healthcare, because an outbreak would be extremely devastating in such conditions, as well as their effect on the human body. It’s worthy of note that conditions vary wildly from state to state, city to city, and sometimes even building to building.


==Megacities==
As such it should come as no surprise that the ASSN-PGM launched an offensive in 2464 to retake and reclaim what regions were still inhabitable but dwelled out of its control. The expedition was successful and the ASSN-PGM now controls the majority of the planet’s surface, though that control is often tenuous and sometimes debatable due to the resources required to maintain Solarian Army control and the difficulty of shipping materials via aircraft or shuttle as a result of phoronic contamination. As a result of this the Governor-General has not yet called for elections due to “continuing instability in many regions,” of Mars. Some outside observers believe this is nothing more than an attempt by the Governor-General to retain her power and to prevent a Martian government — which will almost certainly be opposed to the current junta — from forming.
The vast majority resides in hundreds of megacities, sprawling overbuilt megalopolises sometimes with multiple layers of buildings, up to one and a half kilometer tall. They are are sometimes referred to as ‘Hives’ or ‘Fēngcháo’, a term coined up in 20th century science fiction. The largest among them contain up to half a billion people. Largest buildings in them are usually massive [[Arcology|arcologies]], that can provide jobs, shops, services and living space by themselves for numbers up to several million people. Most of the inhabitants in them reside in tiny room-sized apartments that often do not even contain all the needed installations such as toilets and showers, or cooking appliances just to conserve space and lower maintenance costs. As a rule, higher you go in martian buildings, the larger and more expensive apartments become. The arcologies are usually complete with a large biodome on the top. They often contain a small city by itself, with skyscrapers, parks and public buildings. Only the very rich can afford to live there. They often contain their own gravity generators and power plants. Due to their self-reliant nature, some of them possess governments of their own and function as lawful cities.


==Ruins and small colonies==
== Culture and Demographics ==
Mars has a relatively long history of colonization, as well as destructive events. This has resulted in many colonies, facilities and cities covering the wastes of the planet. One such city is Divitiae. Once an prospective independant mining colony, it failed to establish itself during the earily Mars gold rush. A rapid growth period was followed by a slow death of the settlement. Raging storms and lack of funds for redevelopment turned it into a Mars equivilent of Detroit. While people still live there (mostly in poverty), it's often targeted by scavengers, taking and destroying whatever of value the storms uncover.
<center><i>“In terms of population on Mars itself I don’t think we’ll ever see a return to pre-Violet Dawn levels. Martians, particularly rural Martians, have fled in the millions since it happened and show no sign of returning soon,”</i> - Solarian sociologist Doctor Richard B. Kemp (2418 - ) in an unaired interview with the Alliance News Network.</center>


Some other, smaller colonies suffered a similar fate, becoming the poorest settlements on Mars.
Mars was home to the Sol cultural underground prior to the Violet Dawn catastrophe. The tensions with the greater [[Sol Alliance]] combined with the planet’s wildly different features and cultural mindsets have, over centuries, produced cultures and traditions unique to Mars. Of course, with the damage wrought by the recent catastrophe, high culture has fallen to the wayside in favor of the day-to-day struggle of survival that defines much of life on Mars now.


==Ethnic makeup==
One artistic movement that has endured is ''ktipita'', translated simply as “plainness”. Fiction, music and film of this genre aims to simply encapsulate “life as it is”, being extremely grounded and dealing with very simple stories and concepts that an average Martian can relate themselves to. The simplistic nature of these tales allows them to often be recited orally from books, instead of requiring advanced technologies such as holographic televisions.
While the planet has a diverse population, the cities themselves often do not, sometimes corresponding with the population makeup of their parent nations on Earth. For example, former chinese colony of Tiānkōng tǎ (Sky Tower), now a megacity and city-state, has disproportionately large amount of ethnic-chinese inhabitants, population density and poverty. This is a consequence of various earth events. As the Pacific Ocean started to eat at China’s mainland, almost billion people ended up displaced over time. As such, many went to join their kinsman in space. American and European colonies have greater ethnic diversity, while other nation specific colonies have far less.


One of the notable groups that live outside the megacities are Djor Abdussalam, a group of nomadic islamic descendants mostly of european origin, that subscribe to their own sect of islam. They claimed large areas of land deserts and poles as their own, declaring it the Djor Province. Although Martian City-states have outright denied those claims, the nomad people have established their own settlements on it and traverse it uncaringly. Ascetic values and intelligent thinking have allowed them prosper, through trade, research and salvaging. They boast their own bio-domed settlements that are usually done in highly impractical, antique, yet beautiful settlements of neo-african and middle eastern style.  This expansive lifestyle that the cream of their society enjoys is supported by research foundations and several notable banks they own. The entire society, from poorest to richest, respects and adheres to traditional behavior, as much as survival would allow.
While Martians may have previously been divided into urban and rural demographics the catastrophic aftermath of Violet Dawn has rent these past divisions asunder. With millions - perhaps billions - dead in the disaster and its immediate aftermath, billions displaced, and millions having fled the planet Martian demographics have permanently - and irreversibly - changed. For the sake of convenience, the two primary Martian ethnic groups prior to Violet Dawn are listed below. Around 4% of the population is non-human, a significant reduction caused by the Third Tajara Deportation Act and the Violet Dawn catastrophe (Mars’ non-human population previously stood at 12%). There is a significant minority of synthetics on the planet; a hold-over from Mars' early years of harsh criminal justice allowing corporations to cyborgify criminals responsible for major crimes.


Aliens are not unseen of on Mars, but very small numbers of them maintain a permanent residence there. They are most often tourists, part of ambassadorial delegations or short-term corporate workers. Any further alien settlement is unlikely due to stricter laws being imposed as part of the Sol Alliance’s new immigration policies.
[[Image:Mars_destruction.png|thumb|250px|A map of Mars immediately following the Violet Dawn explosion. Note that this map displays the wrong capital, as a result of incorrect information received during the Solarian communications blackout.]]


==Synthetics==
=== The Urban Martians ===
During the peroid of terraforming, Mars received an immense number of [[IPC|Cyborgs]] to serve as its workforce. In the late part of the 22nd century, Humanity has achived the ability to produce heavy cyborgs. Being able to function and work freely in the harsh environment, Martian terraforming firms pressed for more and more cyborg workers, but volunteers for this process were few and far between. It was untested, dangerous, and the success rate for brain transplantation into cyborg cylinders was far from one hundred percent. The demand pressed Sol Government to produce more and more cyborgs. Eventually, to meet demand, cyborgification was implemented as capital punishment for crimes, less and less severe as time passed. In total, between 2204, when the implementation of cyborgs started, and 2060, when it stopped, over 35 million cyborgs have been sent to Mars as serve as workforce. Ironically, the Terraforming project started to backfire soon after.


The extent of the crimes Martians caused, as well other problems the synthetics caused,resulted in an overall negative view of AIs and cyborgification among the populace. Sometime after, Mars Senate constructed a large monumental graveyard for victims of forced cyborgification sometimes refered to CyTomb. Cyborgs and cyborgification are banned in several larger City-States.
The vast majority of the Martian population is urban, living in arcologies, sometimes referred to as “hives”. A miracle of engineering for early colonization times, they are designed to support as many residents as possible, while conserving space and construction costs. The lower part of a truncated pyramid-shaped structure is dedicated to apartments with the occasional amenity such as a hospital or grocery store, while the upper one is dedicated to various malls and offices. Finally, the top part, covered by a transparent dome, usually hosts entertainment and hydroponics facilities, as well as a gravity generator. This section of the arcology is heavily maintained by the arcology's habitants, with many of them coming to do volunteer work here due to the section's importance to the arcology as a whole. Many of these arcologies were destroyed or abandoned during the Violet Dawn catastrophe, with some now serving as little more than mass graves for their previous residents, the arcologies now twisted and warped by the heat of phoron fires.


=Economy=
All surviving arcologies on Mars are concentrated around liquid water. Due to the unique mineral content of Martian soil, unfiltered Martian water is incredibly acidic and unsafe to drink. Very few fish can survive in the Martian lakes and seas, and none of them safe to eat or fish. Phoron contamination has worsened the issue following the Violet Dawn explosion, and water has quickly become the most important resource on Mars - to the point where small-scale “wars” are fought between surviving arcologies over it. The largest source of surviving drinking water is the northern ice cap, controlled by what remains of Mars’ Solarian government.
Two centuries later, however, obvious problems with arcology designs have come to light. Stacking thousands of tiny apartments into a relatively small space has led to the structures being nigh impossible to navigate without a GPS or decades of experience, which especially cripples the local law enforcement. The cramped flats often do not possess basic necessities, let alone amenities, such as kitchens or bathrooms, with later attempts to expand upon them only making the complexes into ugly, over-engineered structures that require almost constant maintenance. Because only the outer part can be built upon, the verge, or “surface,” apartments tend to be the most expensive to live in.
The refugee crisis caused by the Violet Dawn catastrophe has only worsened the conditions in many arcologies. Overcrowding, already a typical issue, has skyrocketed out of control to levels only before seen on planets such as Konyang and New Hai Phong. Services are stretched to the very brink in many of Mars’ surviving cities as well, and crime has become an even greater problem, with criminal gangs acting as the de facto authority in many neglected sectors of Martian arcologies . It remains to be seen how much the arcologies of Mars can bend before they break.


Mars' economy is developed and mixed, with it's largest industries being orbital construction, mining and a small but rapidly growing hydroponics industry. Mars also enjoys being the center of Sol trade, with over 90% of Sol's trade at some point passing through the planet or one of its stations, due in no small part to the Bluespace Gate near the planet.  
=== Rural Martians ===
<center><i>“Martians have no ‘culture,’ aside from a desire to cause trouble and rabble-rouse. Now thanks to their synthetic phoron escapades we have to fix their problems yet again. I’d rather we send them all to the mines of Eridani,”</i> - Unknown Solarian Navy admiral in a conversation recorded via wire on 22 October, 2463.</center>
Rural Martians, as a demographic, have disappeared in the aftermath of Violet Dawn. For all the pride they held in their sense of self-sufficiency and hardiness, they have been unable to overcome the scorching, toxic aftermath of Violet Dawn. Their hydroponics bays now sit poisoned by phoron, their mines have no markets to export to, and their hamlets have been torn apart by desperate raiders seeking to make off with what supplies they need to survive. Many rural dwellers of Mars have resorted to armed banditry to survive, but most have bitten down on their pride and moved into arcologies - often contributing to already extreme issues of overcrowding.
The same traits that made many rural dwells of Mars excellent survivalists - such as their adaptation to the harsh environment of the Martian plains - have made them excellent raiders and bandits in the post-Violet Dawn Martian environment. The reputation of rural Martians as bandits is so widespread that some rural refugees taking shelter in arcologies find themselves brought under suspicion purely by association.


Low gravity and favorable air drag allow for cheap and efficient landings by spaceships, allowing traffic to far surpass what just the space elevators would allow. Low gravity allows constructions of space elevators at larger longitudes Mars as compared to Earth, this, combined with amount of space trade the planet receives, has shifted center of planets economy into planetary orbit, as opposed to equator and major cities as is case with the latter. The port megacities are as such, by far the wealthiest. The richest and most developed is Lowell City, named after Percival Lawrence Lowell. Contrary to popular belief, it is not the planetary capital, just its on-planet economic center.
[[Image:MarsLabelled.png|thumb|250px|Despite the harsh and arid environment, many urban areas have developed. This map represents Mars before the Violet Dawn catastrophe.]]


Recent change in Sol Senate composition, as well as a sudden need for increased military production have started a stream of government investments. Industrial and extraction complexes that have been shut down for several decades, some for even a century, are being rapidly restored and modernized to lower Mars’ unemployment, reliance on trade and boost production rapidly. This pending industrial boom and a raise in land value have caused protest among salvage companies and people that used to occupy and rely on those ruins for survival. These events were followed by a large drop of investments into the salvaging sector, one of the branches of the planet’s internal economy.
== Economics ==
<center><i>“What is built on sand will eventually return to dust.”</i> – Unknown.</center>


Mars' economy was previously developed and mixed, with its largest industries being orbital construction, mining, refining, energy and a small but rapidly growing hydroponics industry. Mars also enjoyed being a center of trade, prior to the catastrophe on its southern pole. In the post-Violet Dawn environment of Mars, the economic state of the planet has shrunk dramatically and is, on many parts of the planet, completely collapsed. Many areas have entirely abandoned traditional Solarian Credits for a barter system and the provisional government, despite its efforts, has made little progress in restoring a once-vibrant economy.


= Military =
With over half of the planet rendered uninhabitable by the aftermath of Violet Dawn and many of its richest cities - such as Olympia - turned into smoldering ruins heavily contaminated by phoron, much of the Martian economy now lies in literal ruins. Even cities not immediately destroyed by the Violet Dawn explosion have been damaged by it, with trace elements of phoron in the air often sparking flash fires around electronics, previously relied upon water sources contaminated by the same phoron that now causes numerous flash fires around Mars’ remaining arcologies, and the contaminated air chokes the engines of shuttles that once enjoyed easy flights through the low gravity of the planet. The wealthiest - and largest - of the remaining arcologies is now Kunlun, the center of the planet’s official government.
Although Mars boasts massive shipyards both on and off planet, due to treaties signed in the past it has no segnificant fleet of its own. However, it is by no means defenseless without the support of Sol fleets. Due to the planet's low air density, planetary gun installations have been deemed a practical solution for the lack of navy. While giant laser weapons are most often used for this role, they are not the most impressive. This title is held by Mars’ massive State-of-the-Art Velites-class Railguns that can fire small, precise rounds at a fraction of the speed of light. After a failed terrorist attack, when a certain group attempted to blackmail the Sol Government with a threat of firing at the planet’s capital, all railguns and laser cannons have been implemented with extra failsafes to stop them from firing at the surface of Mars, its moons and any other planets, under any condition. All in all, these installations combined with advanced sensors in space form an allegedly impenetrable net of automated fire around the planet that any would-be invader would need to deal with first. Mars also contains various military stations in orbit and its moons.


The defense grid is further supplemented with the planet aerospace forces, which primarily consists of both planetary and space flight capable craft. Outside of combat, for which they are actually rarely used, they serve as traffic control and escort for ships around the gravity well and orbit. Despite the volatile era of Mars’ planetary wars being long over, each city-state fields their own fleet of these craft, with healthy competition as to who will field the most advanced ones. They can often be differentiated by different color patterns and flags on their hulls and, although they might not mean anything to incoming ships, keeping to them is a matter of military tradition. Being a pilot in the fleet is considered a very prestigious position, so is either gained through favor from political bodies or tediously long and rigorous selection process.
While Mars may have, before Violet Dawn, been known for its energy and orbital construction sectors, the most valuable resource on the planet is now something most residents of the Orion Spur take for granted: water. With the secession of Konyang, one of the Solarian Alliance’s primary providers of fresh water, and the destruction of its southern ice cap along with contamination of open-air water sources by airborne phoron, the water situation on Mars has become quite dire. [[Einstein Engines]] has stepped into this market as of 2464 and intends to terraform some areas of Mars to be less contaminated and more readily able to provide clean water and food to those who remain on the planet.


Martian city-states can’t keep their own ground forces as a measure of preventing wars between them, but they provide a good amount of manpower, as well as training and support installations for Sol Alliance’s own ground forces. The most notable of those are notorious training camps at the poles and Military Academy of Chester William Nimitz located in the city of New Washington. While the former is used to train soldiers for extremely inhospitable environments, the latter is considered one of the most prestigious military and naval academies in known space, producing only the most educated and qualified officers.
== Major Martian Remnants==
<center><i>“I’m gonna die, aren’t I? I’m so cold, and I’m never gonna see home again,”</i> — Rebecca Martins (2440-2462), former resident of Olympus and victim of phoron poisoning, in a hospital in Red Gaia on 09 December, 2462.</center>
'''Crest Olympia''' was, until the establishment of the ASSN-PGM government zone, the seat of government on Mars following the immediate aftermath of the Violet Dawn explosion. However the arcology’s status as the most important city on Mars was not to last for long as the capital was shortly transferred to the newly-unified Kunlun. Now, stripped of Sol Alliance patrols and facing a mounting refugee crisis, Crest Olympia struggles to remain a functional arcology in the Martian anarchy. One bright spot in the darkness is the arcology’s good relations with the remaining government forces on Mars, which often send cargo shuttles laden with direly needed humanitarian supplies to its still functional ports.


'''Red Gaia''' was, prior to the Violet Dawn catastrophe, an arcology that proudly rejected the Sol Alliance in its official rhetoric. Its government, having witnessed the seeming abandonment of Martians by Sol following the catastrophe, threw open its doors for any and all refugees that could prove their loyalty to Mars above their loyalty to the Alliance. This stance, coupled with the arcology’s almost fanatical dedication to broadcasting it, was disastrous for it. With an extremely overtaxed government, huge overcrowding, and absolutely no outside assistance arriving from other arcologies, Red Gaia, despite its dedication to Martian nationalism, effectively collapsed under its own weight. The arcology surrendered to Solarian Army forces in May, 2464, and was nearly destroyed by rioting following the surrender. The arcology remains heavily patrolled by the Solarian Army, and few believe it will ever reach its former glory.


= Politics =
'''Unified Kunlun''', previously known as Kunlun and Free Kunlun, is the technical capital of Mars and the planetside headquarters of the ASSN-PGM. Both arcologies were torn apart by civil unrest as a result of the Third Tajara Ban and placed under martial law in the days leading up to the Violet Dawn explosion. In a twisted way, this allowed the arcologies to weather the effects of the catastrophe better than perhaps any other arcology on Mars. Unified Kunlun, thanks to its location in the far north of Mars, has no overcrowding or refugee issues and is one of the few locations where shuttles travel freely between space and the Martian surface. If not for the large numbers of Solarian troops in the arcologies, or the fact that most tajara have disappeared to repatriation centers, life would seem almost normal here.


Mars has almost as complex, antiquated and corrupt political system as Earth does. Many different types of governments either based on practicality or tradition are in practice, even some tiny monarchies and theocracies. Some megacities have ruling bodies consisting of representatives from various city sectors or arcologies. However, Mars has its own planetary representing body composed of representatives scaled according to population of the territorial bodies, with each having their own method of election. The Mars Senate has large power concerning decisions that affect the planet as a whole, but little to no power over internal politics of the various self-proclaimed countries. It is located in city of Olympia, within the Galle Crater Terraformed Zone, but a majority of senior administration facilities and personnel reside in orbit on New Concordia station. The station was once the center of Sol Alliance's Government, but, due to the major shift in political power towards Earth, the administration has been moved.
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  • REGION - JEWEL WORLDS
    This location is centered in the Jewel Worlds region.
    Centered in the heart of the Sol Alliance and largely safe from any common galactic dangers, the Jewel Worlds are the pride of Humanity to some, and a massive bane to others. Here is where the first colonization from Humanity arose, and where the Interstellar War was powered, producing an extremely polarized mindset against it amongst the Colonial territories. Nearly sixty billion Humans can be found here with an undetermined amount of aliens. Among the Jewel Worlds are the entirety of the Sol star system, Epsilon Eridani, New Hai Phong, and Silversun. The Jewel Worlds possess two bluespace gates, one from Sol to Konyang - which is in the process of being dismantled - and another from Epsilon Eridani to Qerrbalak.

    Earth, Venus, Luna, Mars, Jupiter, Pluto, New Hai Phong, Silversun, and the planets of the Eridani Federation are considered Jewel Worlds.

    A view of pre-Violet Dawn biodome complexes in Olympia.

    Mars is the fourth planet from Sol, and one of humanity's earliest colonies. Often called “The Red Planet,” it has a surface area the size of Earth's entire landmass. It once had a stable population of several billion people, which was reduced drastically after the man-made disaster known as "Violet Dawn".

    Despite its proximity to Earth, during the early years of interstellar colonization Mars was only home to small scientific expeditions and outposts that eked out a meagre existence until the 2200s, when terraforming technology was finally able to slowly reintroduce water and atmosphere to the planet. Currently the atmosphere is breathable but incredibly thin, which makes strenuous efforts outside the arcologies very dangerous. Many regions also suffer from airborne phoron contamination, adding further danger to already hazardous activities outside arcologies.

    Until recently an Alliance fleet remained in orbit of Mars at all times, ensuring that the planet remains disarmed and free of armed disputes. Following the so-called “Violet Dawn” explosion in 2462, Mars now finds itself worse-off than ever before; in the wake of an ecological catastrophe and plagued by unrest and violence.

    Содержание

    History

    “The Solarian government has taken everything from us. Our autonomy, our identity, and now our planet. What are we supposed to do? Lay over and die? Step outside and let the phoron claim us? I don’t know. Leave me alone, I don’t want to continue this interview anymore,” – Anonymous Martian resident interviewed by the Xanu News Service, 18 June 2464.

    Early Colonization (2100s - 2190s)

    Despite Mars being a barren planet, a mixture of desperate living conditions on Earth and a bold commitment to exploration and colonization caused it to experience small scale colonization in the 2100's. After the terraforming efforts of 2200 began and with the discovery of massive fossil fuel deposits (therefore confirming Mars once held life), optimistic nations and corporations attempted to set up a foothold on it, causing tens of thousands of colonists to arrive during the first waves. After it became clear that Mars would remain hostile for quite some time, was passed over for more suitable, distant worlds for a long period, leaving the original settlers to etch out a meager life. The byproduct of this is that many issues, national and cultural, that plagued humanity at those times were brought over to the red planet, causing tensions between its inhabitants and new settlers. Despite the one world government of the Alliance, individual nations on Earth would finance and support colonies on Mars, pitting them against one another. Wars and skirmishes between the colonies, although rare, were not unheard of. The ones that survived have long since grown into large, independent arcologies, which are for the most part friendly competitors under the watchful eye of Sol Alliance.

    The fossil fuels found on Mars were quickly put to use. Power plants, large factory complexes were constructed outside the arcologies, and the planet was becoming industrialized, which later on played into the terraforming process of the planet. Most of construction was done by crew-operated behemothian industrial machines, which are still used to this day in limited capacities for work outside the domes. Primarily cyborgs and programmed robots worked in these buildings outside the safety of the arcologies, until later on when the planet's atmosphere stabilized in 2400.

    History of Terraforming (2190s - 2260)

    The terraforming process started during the late part of the 22nd century, with massive terraformers designed to turn Mars’ natural minerals into gasses and legions of cyborgs put into action. The idea was to replicate the Global Warming process humans have inadvertently done on Earth, but in a more controlled environment with goals of increasing both air pressure and temperature. The process was incredibly slow and expensive, and dogged by a major catastrophe in 2298 that nearly ended the entire process and caused untold amounts of human suffering and economic damage.

    Although controversial for both its cost and dangers, the terraforming project of Mars is considered a success. The air, until recently, was still slightly toxic, but it effectively raised Mars' near zero pressure to slightly tolerable, along with the average temperature. Furthermore, the vast amounts of polarized iron dust now flowing around the planet’s lower orbit created a makeshift electromagnetic shield, reducing harmful radiation by a large degree until it was disrupted by the massive ecological disruption of Violet Dawn. Limited efforts are being made to restore it, but these have mostly been unsuccessful. This difference meant that by 2400 a space suit was no longer needed to traverse its surface. Instead, pressure suits or thick clothing, along with eye, mouth and ear protection are enough to stop the worst effects of a low pressure environment. Single-cellular life prospered as well, due to an atmosphere now rich with organic particles, but does no longer due to the wide-spread poisoning of the Martian atmosphere from the fires ignited in the Violet Dawn disaster. Due to this, Mars’ famous red colour has been replaced with patches of black, deep, burned orange, and violet in some places.

    During the period of terraforming, Mars received an immense number of cyborgs to serve as its workforce. In the late part of the 22nd century, humanity had achieved the ability to produce heavy cyborgs. Being able to function and work freely in the harsh environment, Martian terraforming firms pressed for more and more cyborg workers, but volunteers for this process were few and far between due to the risks around the procedure. Eventually, to meet demand, cyborgification was implemented as capital punishment for crimes, less and less severe as time passed. In total, between 2204, when the implementation of cyborgs started, and 2260, when it stopped, over 35 million cyborgs have been sent to Mars to serve as a workforce. The terraforming project started to backfire soon after.

    The extent of the crimes Martians caused, as well other problems the synthetics caused, resulted in an overall negative view of AIs and cyborgification among the populace. Sometime after, Mars Senate constructed a large monumental graveyard for victims of forced cyborgification sometimes referred to CyTomb. Cyborgification, along with the use banned in several larger arcologies such as Crest Olympia, Greater London, Elysium and Red Gaia.

    The Martian World War (2278 - 2284)

    Considering Mars' strong ties with Earth governments and its dependence on Sol Fleets, Mars never had unified interests or tools to openly fight against the Sol Government during the First Interstellar War. Despite this, many Martians felt sympathetic to the Coalition of Colonies, as they felt they shared the resentment towards a growing, authoritarian oppression within the Alliance.

    In the early stages of the war in 2278, the Alliance quickly pressed the small Martian self-defense force into service, merging the tiny Martian fleet into the Alliance navy. Anti-Solarian factions on Mars calling themselves the Red Coalition began rallying popular and political support based on many “injustices,”committed by the Alliance against the Martian people, an alliance which had also shown casual disregard for Mars. Financially backed by the Coalition of Colonies (CoC), on 18th of January, 2279, many Martian cities seceded from Sol Alliance and launched a coordinated, surprise attack on the rest of Mars.

    The loyalist arcologies became known as the Sol Coalition, or more popularly, the Blues.

    With the mighty fleets of the Alliance out fighting in the frontier, the Blue Coalition saw very little aid from the Alliance, material or otherwise. Red Rangers, special forces under the Red Coalition, seized lightly defended orbital Alliance military stations, including nuclear-equipped missile platforms. The Red Coalition threatened to use these weapons on any planet or fleet that attempted to intervene, effectively isolating Mars and throwing it into a Cold War with Earth.

    As military conventions prohibited direct bombing of population centers, the Red conquest consisted of prolonged sieges while unrest, terrorist attacks, and counter-offensives began to sap their ability to wage war. In the face of growing losses, the leadership of the Red Coalition gained the dubious honor of being the fourth nation in human history to use nuclear weapons in warfare. In 2284, the Red Coalition arcology of Terra Nova, facing capitulation in the face of advancing Blue forces, successfully appealed to an orbital missile platform to launch a nuclear missile on a nearby Blue arcology of New Dresden in an attempt to turn the tide of war.

    This action immediately fractured the entire Red Coalition, with most of its members distancing themselves from the action and its perpetrators. Within days the majority of arcologies in the Red Coalition abandoned the alliance, and within weeks the remainder had surrendered.

    The Treaty of Olympus was signed on 5th of April, 2284 featuring unconditional surrender of remaining Red Coalition states. The Alliance, negotiating on behalf of the loyalist Blues, used the treaty to place harsh restrictions on Mars. The entire planet was disarmed and all factions on it surface were banned from fielding a standing army, navy, or engaging in armed conflicts with one another. In addition, the planet was put under "indefinite" martial law, with an Alliance Admiral permanently stationed in orbit of the planet to enforce indirect martial law, overriding any local laws or ordinances.

    The Catastrophe of 2298

    The first of two major catastrophes in Martian history was the abrupt failure of its terraforming infrastructure in the winter of 2298. The entire infrastructure was linked to a single network, which suffered a serious melt-down as a result of human error. The network either shut down areas of terraforming or spit out wild algorithms that put the entire project into a tailspin. The network was restored after several days, but the result was catastrophic swings in the climate. For the next 10 years Mars experienced climactic storms that severely damaged or even destroyed arcologies and utterly wiped out smaller settlements. The atmosphere was flooded with excessive C02 that smothered people in the open without internals. Billions of credits of property damage was recorded, and millions were killed as a direct result of the disaster. It was estimated to have put back terraforming efforts by a century.

    Despite the damages, an investigation by SolGov saw only three technicians arrested, with all three later acquitted despite anger and protest from the Martian population. In modern times, the ruins of arcologies lost to the catastrophe remain popular spots for scavengers, explorers, and tourists. The polar canyon regions of Mars started to serve as scrapyard for obsolete and abandoned machinery. Starting in the early 2370s, megacorporations began to dispose of their obsolete lineups by storing them in gargantuan “lots” for later retrieval when the manpower needed to sustain them returned. This would never be the case, and for years to come other megacorporations would do the same in haphazardly tossing their waste electronics into the canyon regions as time went along. In 2405, legal action was taken to prevent the excessive usage of this disposal, and it quickly halted. What was left were what would be referred to as the Metal Dunes of Mars, endless electronic scrapheaps as far as the eye could see.

    The Violet Dawn Explosion (2462)

    On the seventh of November, 2462, an unprecedented disaster came to Mars in the form of the Violet Dawn explosion. Initially an attempt by the Sol Alliance to produce synthetic phoron in response to an ongoing phoron shortage crisis, the Violet Dawn program would be remembered for much more. Safety standards were neglected in Violet Dawn facilities, located on Mars’ south pole and as a result, the synthetic phoron grew out of control before igniting. The resulting conflagration completely destroyed the southern pole of Mars, demolished a multitude of arcologies in the southern hemisphere of Mars, and spread toxic - and highly flammable - phoron particles throughout the Martian atmosphere creating massive firestorms the size of entire cities combined. The official death toll of the Violet Dawn catastrophe is unknown - and will likely never truly be known - but is estimated to be in the billions. Billions more were displaced from their arcologies, creating the largest refugee crisis in recent history and straining the already-overburdened government of Mars to its breaking point. The Mars of the post-Violet Dawn Orion Spur now bears little resemblance to what came before, and how the crisis evolves remains to be seen.

    Prime Minister Frost, before his death, issued orders and directives to be released when Operation “Violet Dawn” began and despite his death prior to the event, much of the upper brass of the Navy was still loyal to his cause. They ordered his instructions be carried out, threatening those who disobeyed with desertion and treason. Even so, some captains disregarded these orders to let the burning planet’s billions of desperate sapients, some friends and family to the crew, burn in phoron fire. These brave men and women plunged into the Red Planet’s atmosphere and filled their cargo holds with as many people as they could cram in, dumping weapons and munitions out to make room. A few rogue ships even dove into the phoron-dense areas of the planet that could’ve still potentially held survivors. Tragically, most who attempted this found their engines rendered inoperable in the exotic atmosphere and crashed before clearing the danger zone.

    After the Violent Dawn had effectively run its course, Frost’s staff ordered those who had defied orders quietly imprisoned and stripped of rank. After the junta took over and ousted the Frost loyalists, many of these “rogue” captains and crew managed to regain their positions. But, many more of them became disillusioned about Sol and fled the Alliance for nations such as Biesel or the Coalition.

    A brutal information campaign was waged against the Navy defying Frost to maintain his loyalists' control over the Alliance. Outside of eyewitnesses testimony, any hard evidence was destroyed. Though Biesel may have known some captains betrayed Frost, choosing not to report these facts when revealing the whistleblower would vilify their main rival. The administration after Frost have uncomfortably ignored the consequences of Frost’s actions, instead opting to focus on stabilizing the territory the Alliance retains. As a result, those outside the Sol System at the time of Violet Dawn may never be fully convinced of the truth.

    The Solarian Army’s Reunification Campaign (2462 - present)

    At the start of May 2464, Solarian forces under the command of Governor-General Tereza Varzieva launched an effort to, “stabilize the planet and restore order to regions outside of the Violet Dawn hazard zone”, thus effectively bringing Mars back under Solarian control. The offensive against the various warring factions of criminal gangs, bandits, supply raiders, secessionist forces, and various other paramilitary or criminal forces, was successful and the sections of Mars outside of the government’s control mostly surrendered or were seized by force within two months, with major Solarian Army operations concluding at the end of June. Arcologies within the Moderate Hazard Zone still face extremely difficult circumstances ranging from environmental hazards, supply shortages, starvation, unrest, and violence. There has been little talk on the future of these arcologies from the Solarian Army in the wake of the campaign, but for now there is a line between civilization and lawlessness on Mars. Yet control and relative stability has brought Einstein Engines and other Solarian companies into the planet’s economy in an attempt to bring relief and assistance to the planet of Mars and its inhabitants. This economic upturn has sparked hope that Mars, against all odds, could have a future once again.

    Government and Politics

    The flag of the Alliance of Sovereign Solarian Nations' Provisional Government of Mars, the sole remnant of Mars' pre-Violet Dawn administration.

    The Martian government was, like its economy, devastated in the aftermath of the Violet Dawn catastrophe. The antiquated, bloated, and corrupt Martian government - with its highly-decentralized nature - was unable to handle the unparalleled crisis posed by the Violet Dawn disaster and quickly collapsed under its own weight, leaving much of the planet without a government beyond surviving local arcologies in the days immediately after the disaster. As the aftermath of Violet Dawn - columns of terrified refugees, imploding economies, and contaminated water - became apparent more and more of these local governments, already stretched thin by widespread civil unrest before the Violet Dawn explosion, began to collapse - thrusting more and more of Mars into a state of anarchy.

    With a collapsed civil government and widespread damage due to the Violet Dawn explosion, much of Mars existed in a governmentless anarchy where the strongest group ruled over a petty statelet. The one region of the planet with a semblance of traditional authority esd the Alliance of Sovereign Solarian Nations’ Provisional Government of Mars (ASSN-PGM), a military-led transitional authority that controls the largest remaining non-contaminated drinking water source on Mars: the northern ice cap. The ASSN-PGM was led by the recently-promoted Governor-General Tereza Varzieva from her headquarters in the newly-unified Kunlun and represents the only government officially recognized by the greater Solarian Alliance. The military government also controlled some of the only functional shuttleports on Mars, with southern ports often having air too contaminated by phoron for typical air and spacecraft to fly. The ASSN-PGM has absolute control over Unified Kunlun, the northern ice cap, Mysteron, Marvinia, Chicago, and Draka - making it the largest single government on the Martian surface by far. While the ASSN-PGM was referred to as “yet another," example of Solarian repression by some Coalition of Colonies member states, its region is - in part due to one advantage it has over other warlords: orbital naval support - became the most stable on Mars.

    As such it should come as no surprise that the ASSN-PGM launched an offensive in 2464 to retake and reclaim what regions were still inhabitable but dwelled out of its control. The expedition was successful and the ASSN-PGM now controls the majority of the planet’s surface, though that control is often tenuous and sometimes debatable due to the resources required to maintain Solarian Army control and the difficulty of shipping materials via aircraft or shuttle as a result of phoronic contamination. As a result of this the Governor-General has not yet called for elections due to “continuing instability in many regions,” of Mars. Some outside observers believe this is nothing more than an attempt by the Governor-General to retain her power and to prevent a Martian government — which will almost certainly be opposed to the current junta — from forming.

    Culture and Demographics

    “In terms of population on Mars itself I don’t think we’ll ever see a return to pre-Violet Dawn levels. Martians, particularly rural Martians, have fled in the millions since it happened and show no sign of returning soon,” - Solarian sociologist Doctor Richard B. Kemp (2418 - ) in an unaired interview with the Alliance News Network.

    Mars was home to the Sol cultural underground prior to the Violet Dawn catastrophe. The tensions with the greater Sol Alliance combined with the planet’s wildly different features and cultural mindsets have, over centuries, produced cultures and traditions unique to Mars. Of course, with the damage wrought by the recent catastrophe, high culture has fallen to the wayside in favor of the day-to-day struggle of survival that defines much of life on Mars now.

    One artistic movement that has endured is ktipita, translated simply as “plainness”. Fiction, music and film of this genre aims to simply encapsulate “life as it is”, being extremely grounded and dealing with very simple stories and concepts that an average Martian can relate themselves to. The simplistic nature of these tales allows them to often be recited orally from books, instead of requiring advanced technologies such as holographic televisions.

    While Martians may have previously been divided into urban and rural demographics the catastrophic aftermath of Violet Dawn has rent these past divisions asunder. With millions - perhaps billions - dead in the disaster and its immediate aftermath, billions displaced, and millions having fled the planet Martian demographics have permanently - and irreversibly - changed. For the sake of convenience, the two primary Martian ethnic groups prior to Violet Dawn are listed below. Around 4% of the population is non-human, a significant reduction caused by the Third Tajara Deportation Act and the Violet Dawn catastrophe (Mars’ non-human population previously stood at 12%). There is a significant minority of synthetics on the planet; a hold-over from Mars' early years of harsh criminal justice allowing corporations to cyborgify criminals responsible for major crimes.

    A map of Mars immediately following the Violet Dawn explosion. Note that this map displays the wrong capital, as a result of incorrect information received during the Solarian communications blackout.

    The Urban Martians

    The vast majority of the Martian population is urban, living in arcologies, sometimes referred to as “hives”. A miracle of engineering for early colonization times, they are designed to support as many residents as possible, while conserving space and construction costs. The lower part of a truncated pyramid-shaped structure is dedicated to apartments with the occasional amenity such as a hospital or grocery store, while the upper one is dedicated to various malls and offices. Finally, the top part, covered by a transparent dome, usually hosts entertainment and hydroponics facilities, as well as a gravity generator. This section of the arcology is heavily maintained by the arcology's habitants, with many of them coming to do volunteer work here due to the section's importance to the arcology as a whole. Many of these arcologies were destroyed or abandoned during the Violet Dawn catastrophe, with some now serving as little more than mass graves for their previous residents, the arcologies now twisted and warped by the heat of phoron fires.

    All surviving arcologies on Mars are concentrated around liquid water. Due to the unique mineral content of Martian soil, unfiltered Martian water is incredibly acidic and unsafe to drink. Very few fish can survive in the Martian lakes and seas, and none of them safe to eat or fish. Phoron contamination has worsened the issue following the Violet Dawn explosion, and water has quickly become the most important resource on Mars - to the point where small-scale “wars” are fought between surviving arcologies over it. The largest source of surviving drinking water is the northern ice cap, controlled by what remains of Mars’ Solarian government. Two centuries later, however, obvious problems with arcology designs have come to light. Stacking thousands of tiny apartments into a relatively small space has led to the structures being nigh impossible to navigate without a GPS or decades of experience, which especially cripples the local law enforcement. The cramped flats often do not possess basic necessities, let alone amenities, such as kitchens or bathrooms, with later attempts to expand upon them only making the complexes into ugly, over-engineered structures that require almost constant maintenance. Because only the outer part can be built upon, the verge, or “surface,” apartments tend to be the most expensive to live in. The refugee crisis caused by the Violet Dawn catastrophe has only worsened the conditions in many arcologies. Overcrowding, already a typical issue, has skyrocketed out of control to levels only before seen on planets such as Konyang and New Hai Phong. Services are stretched to the very brink in many of Mars’ surviving cities as well, and crime has become an even greater problem, with criminal gangs acting as the de facto authority in many neglected sectors of Martian arcologies . It remains to be seen how much the arcologies of Mars can bend before they break.

    Rural Martians

    “Martians have no ‘culture,’ aside from a desire to cause trouble and rabble-rouse. Now thanks to their synthetic phoron escapades we have to fix their problems yet again. I’d rather we send them all to the mines of Eridani,” - Unknown Solarian Navy admiral in a conversation recorded via wire on 22 October, 2463.

    Rural Martians, as a demographic, have disappeared in the aftermath of Violet Dawn. For all the pride they held in their sense of self-sufficiency and hardiness, they have been unable to overcome the scorching, toxic aftermath of Violet Dawn. Their hydroponics bays now sit poisoned by phoron, their mines have no markets to export to, and their hamlets have been torn apart by desperate raiders seeking to make off with what supplies they need to survive. Many rural dwellers of Mars have resorted to armed banditry to survive, but most have bitten down on their pride and moved into arcologies - often contributing to already extreme issues of overcrowding. The same traits that made many rural dwells of Mars excellent survivalists - such as their adaptation to the harsh environment of the Martian plains - have made them excellent raiders and bandits in the post-Violet Dawn Martian environment. The reputation of rural Martians as bandits is so widespread that some rural refugees taking shelter in arcologies find themselves brought under suspicion purely by association.

    Despite the harsh and arid environment, many urban areas have developed. This map represents Mars before the Violet Dawn catastrophe.

    Economics

    “What is built on sand will eventually return to dust.” – Unknown.

    Mars' economy was previously developed and mixed, with its largest industries being orbital construction, mining, refining, energy and a small but rapidly growing hydroponics industry. Mars also enjoyed being a center of trade, prior to the catastrophe on its southern pole. In the post-Violet Dawn environment of Mars, the economic state of the planet has shrunk dramatically and is, on many parts of the planet, completely collapsed. Many areas have entirely abandoned traditional Solarian Credits for a barter system and the provisional government, despite its efforts, has made little progress in restoring a once-vibrant economy.

    With over half of the planet rendered uninhabitable by the aftermath of Violet Dawn and many of its richest cities - such as Olympia - turned into smoldering ruins heavily contaminated by phoron, much of the Martian economy now lies in literal ruins. Even cities not immediately destroyed by the Violet Dawn explosion have been damaged by it, with trace elements of phoron in the air often sparking flash fires around electronics, previously relied upon water sources contaminated by the same phoron that now causes numerous flash fires around Mars’ remaining arcologies, and the contaminated air chokes the engines of shuttles that once enjoyed easy flights through the low gravity of the planet. The wealthiest - and largest - of the remaining arcologies is now Kunlun, the center of the planet’s official government.

    While Mars may have, before Violet Dawn, been known for its energy and orbital construction sectors, the most valuable resource on the planet is now something most residents of the Orion Spur take for granted: water. With the secession of Konyang, one of the Solarian Alliance’s primary providers of fresh water, and the destruction of its southern ice cap along with contamination of open-air water sources by airborne phoron, the water situation on Mars has become quite dire. Einstein Engines has stepped into this market as of 2464 and intends to terraform some areas of Mars to be less contaminated and more readily able to provide clean water and food to those who remain on the planet.

    Major Martian Remnants

    “I’m gonna die, aren’t I? I’m so cold, and I’m never gonna see home again,” — Rebecca Martins (2440-2462), former resident of Olympus and victim of phoron poisoning, in a hospital in Red Gaia on 09 December, 2462.

    Crest Olympia was, until the establishment of the ASSN-PGM government zone, the seat of government on Mars following the immediate aftermath of the Violet Dawn explosion. However the arcology’s status as the most important city on Mars was not to last for long as the capital was shortly transferred to the newly-unified Kunlun. Now, stripped of Sol Alliance patrols and facing a mounting refugee crisis, Crest Olympia struggles to remain a functional arcology in the Martian anarchy. One bright spot in the darkness is the arcology’s good relations with the remaining government forces on Mars, which often send cargo shuttles laden with direly needed humanitarian supplies to its still functional ports.

    Red Gaia was, prior to the Violet Dawn catastrophe, an arcology that proudly rejected the Sol Alliance in its official rhetoric. Its government, having witnessed the seeming abandonment of Martians by Sol following the catastrophe, threw open its doors for any and all refugees that could prove their loyalty to Mars above their loyalty to the Alliance. This stance, coupled with the arcology’s almost fanatical dedication to broadcasting it, was disastrous for it. With an extremely overtaxed government, huge overcrowding, and absolutely no outside assistance arriving from other arcologies, Red Gaia, despite its dedication to Martian nationalism, effectively collapsed under its own weight. The arcology surrendered to Solarian Army forces in May, 2464, and was nearly destroyed by rioting following the surrender. The arcology remains heavily patrolled by the Solarian Army, and few believe it will ever reach its former glory.

    Unified Kunlun, previously known as Kunlun and Free Kunlun, is the technical capital of Mars and the planetside headquarters of the ASSN-PGM. Both arcologies were torn apart by civil unrest as a result of the Third Tajara Ban and placed under martial law in the days leading up to the Violet Dawn explosion. In a twisted way, this allowed the arcologies to weather the effects of the catastrophe better than perhaps any other arcology on Mars. Unified Kunlun, thanks to its location in the far north of Mars, has no overcrowding or refugee issues and is one of the few locations where shuttles travel freely between space and the Martian surface. If not for the large numbers of Solarian troops in the arcologies, or the fact that most tajara have disappeared to repatriation centers, life would seem almost normal here.

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