Mars: различия между версиями

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[[Image:Mars_Biodomes.jpg|thumb|250px|A view of new biodome complexes in Olympia.]]


[[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.]]
==Overview==
[[Image:Mars_Biodomes.jpg|thumb|250px|A view of new biodome complexes in Freemont.]]
'''Star System:''' [[Sol]]


'''Capitals:''' Olympia (planetside); Nova Concordia Station (orbital)
Mars (Sol IV) is the fourth planet out from [[Sol]]. Often called the Red Planet, it has surface area the size of Earth's entire landmass. It has a stable population of 4.5 billion people. Less than 7% of the population is non-human. There is a significant minority of synthetics on the planet; a hold-over from Mars' early years of harsh criminal justice allowing corporations to borgify criminals responsible for major crimes.


'''Terrestrial Population (est.)''': 4,592,943,380
Despite its proximity to Earth, [[Timeline of Humanity|during the early years of interstellar colonization]] Mars was only home to small scientific expeditions and outposts that etched out a meager existence until the 2200's, 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 domed cities very dangerous.


'''Spacer Population (est.)''': 1,372,248
Mars is divided between hundreds of competing city-states, corporate interests, and nomadic groups. Nearly all of these groups have disputes with one another over water rights.


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.
Mars is technically independent, but remains a member of the Sol Alliance and sends representatives to the Alliance Senate, putting it in a political limbo. An Alliance fleet remains in orbit of Mars at all times, ensuring that the planet remains disarmed and free of armed disputes.


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.
== Demographics ==
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.
 
=== The Urban Martians ===
 
The average Martian citizen doesn't leave their respective city or arcology than a few times in their lives, but still, low pressure survival and suit usage is a mandatory part of education. Most of the population lives in cramped spaces and tiny apartments. The cities themselves are usually a maze of interconnected buildings, roadways and tunnels. While natives can navigate these with ease, those unfamiliar with their surroundings find it difficult to travel even a few blocks without a GPS. With low police coverage and lax laws on gambling and crime, 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. Corruption is a fact of life for most urban Martians.
 
Despite this, they enjoy many modern amenities. The major cities all enjoy equipped gravity generators, allowing the healthy development of the population in a gravity equal to Earth.
 
The urban population accounts for 90% of the Martian population.
 
==== The Arcologies ====
 
Of the urban Martians, the vast majority reside in arcologies: sprawling overbuilt megalopolises 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.
 
=== Rural Martians ===
 
Despite the inhospitable terrain, the deserts around the cities are not uninhabited. Boomtowns and villages wax and wane across the surface. Most rural Martians have rejected the daily grind of urban life, preferring to life off the land.
 
Most rural Martians live in small, sealed biomes. Many of these small towns, usually numbering no more than 20 - 2,000 people, are sponsored by a major corporation and get by on hydroponic farming or mining. Martian tubers, such as potatoes, remain a popular dish in the core worlds as the Martian soil - when removed of toxic elements - gives them a unique flavor.
 
Rural Martians tend to have a deep connection to the planet and its soil. The appreciation for the harsh environment has bred a population of rugged survivalists. This is compounded by their lack of access to gravity generators; many rural Martians try to raise money to send pregnant, young, or growing family members to the cities. Those that stay behind adopt a vigorous culture of physical fitness as they try to stave off the developmental issues associated with low gravity.
 
==== Nomads ====
 
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 freely. 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. Despite building such beautiful settlements, Djor rarely stay in them as a result of their restless nature. As a result, homes tend to swap families over a dozen times in a single year. 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.
 
[[Image:MarsLabelledpmg.png|thumb|250px|Despite the harsh and arid environment, many urban areas have developed.]]
 
== Terraformed Environment ==
 
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 outside locations with installed gravity generators.
 
=== Green Mars ===
 
Early on during the terraforming projects of 2200 onward, Alliance scientists bio-engineered specialized plants to survive the thin atmosphere and toxic soil. Species of grass found on Earth above elevations of 8,000 feet were altered to be even more drought resistant and a thinner atmosphere. Similar projects were done on variety of trees and shrubs before being introduced to Mars. The result is that the 'wet' areas of Mars host stubborn plant life that struggles to etch out its existence. Despite being incredibly invasive and fast spreading, the inherent nature of how hostile the Martian terrain and weather is means the explosive growth of these martian plants are kept in check.
 
No native animal life exists on Mars, and efforts to breed domesticated animals to survive the thin Martian atmosphere have consistently failed or proved infeasible.
 
=== Blue Mars ===
 
Almost all of the major cities on Mars are concentrated around liquid water. Because of 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. Rain on the Red Planet is also, more often than not, undrinkable. Huge desalination and treatment plants work around the clock to provide fresh water to the cities, and control of these facilities - and the water they pump - remains an incredibly divisive issue for most Martian city-states.
 
Due to terraforming, Mas its own natural rain 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 and form flat beds of quicksand behind.


[[Image:MarsLabelledpmg.png|thumb|250px|Despite the harsh and arid enviroment, many urban areas have developed.]]
== History ==
== History ==
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.


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.
=== Early Colonization ===


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.
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, 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 between the colonies, although rare, were not unheard of. The ones that survived have long since grown into large, independent city-states, which are for the most part friendly competitors under the watchful eye of Sol Alliance.


===Martian World War===
However, the tensions combined with the planet’s wildly different features and cultural mindsets have, over centuries, produced cultures and traditions unique to Mars. Even today, some of many culture groups on Mars still keep to old traditions that have all but disappeared on Earth. Many Martians take pride in this, believing that Mars holds a unique connection to humanity in its pure state.
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.


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.
=== The Catastrophe of 2298 ===


=Environment=
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 domed cities 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.
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.  
Despite the damages, an investigation by SolGov saw only three technicians arrested, and all three were later acquitted despite anger and protest from the Martian population.


==Terraforming==
In modern times, the ruins of cities lost to the catastrophe remain popular spots for scavengers, explorers, and tourists.
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.  


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.
===The Martian World War===


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, imperialist oppression within the Alliance.


=Population=
'''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. Factions on Mars, which began calling themselves the '''Red Coalition''', began rallying popular and political support. They had many reasons to desire independence from the Alliance, which had shown casual disregard for Mars. Financially backed by the The Coalition of Colonies (CoC), on '''18th of January, 2279''', many Martian nations seceded from Sol Alliance and launched a coordinated, surprise attack on the rest of 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==
The loyalist city-states became known as the '''Sol Coalition''', or more popularly, the Blues.
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.
 
With the mighty fleets of the Alliance out fighting in the frontier, the Blue Coalition saw very little material aid from the Alliance. 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 second nation in human history to use nuclear weapons in warfare. In '''2284''', the Red Coalition city-state 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 city 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 reeling from the action. Within days the majority of city-states 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.
 
==History of Terraforming==
 
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. 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 is still 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 has created for a makeshift electromagnetic shield, reducing harmful radiation by a large degree. Efforts are being made to maintain it by crushing and polarizing asteroids in orbit, despite the ever increasing volume of orbital traffic. These 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 low pressure environment. Single-cellular life has prospered as well, due to a atmosphere now rich with organic particles. Due to this, Mars is slowly losing its famous red color.
 
===Ruins and small colonies===


==Ruins and small colonies==
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.
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.


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==Ethnic makeup==
==Ethnic makeup==
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.
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.
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.


==Synthetics==
==Synthetics==
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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 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.


=Economy=
== Economy==
 
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.
 
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.
 
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.


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 40% 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.


= Military =
Low gravity and favorable air drag allow for cheap and efficient landings by shuttles, allowing shuttle traffic to far surpass what just the planet's 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. The port megacities are as such, by far the wealthiest. The richest and most developed is Olympia, which is often thought of as the center of Mars.  
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.


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.
== The Martian Senates ==


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 Martian Senate


= Politics =
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 in orbit.


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.
The 464 member senate is meant to meet four times a year but rarely meets quorum (232) more than once. The Martian senate is split between the Red Front (192 seats) and GAIA (200) with the remainder 70 seats representing over a dozen different parties.
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  • A view of new biodome complexes in Olympia.

    Overview

    Mars (Sol IV) is the fourth planet out from Sol. Often called the Red Planet, it has surface area the size of Earth's entire landmass. It has a stable population of 4.5 billion people. Less than 7% of the population is non-human. There is a significant minority of synthetics on the planet; a hold-over from Mars' early years of harsh criminal justice allowing corporations to borgify criminals responsible for major crimes.

    Despite its proximity to Earth, during the early years of interstellar colonization Mars was only home to small scientific expeditions and outposts that etched out a meager existence until the 2200's, 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 domed cities very dangerous.

    Mars is divided between hundreds of competing city-states, corporate interests, and nomadic groups. Nearly all of these groups have disputes with one another over water rights.

    Mars is technically independent, but remains a member of the Sol Alliance and sends representatives to the Alliance Senate, putting it in a political limbo. An Alliance fleet remains in orbit of Mars at all times, ensuring that the planet remains disarmed and free of armed disputes.

    Demographics

    The Urban Martians

    The average Martian citizen doesn't leave their respective city or arcology than a few times in their lives, but still, low pressure survival and suit usage is a mandatory part of education. Most of the population lives in cramped spaces and tiny apartments. The cities themselves are usually a maze of interconnected buildings, roadways and tunnels. While natives can navigate these with ease, those unfamiliar with their surroundings find it difficult to travel even a few blocks without a GPS. With low police coverage and lax laws on gambling and crime, 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. Corruption is a fact of life for most urban Martians.

    Despite this, they enjoy many modern amenities. The major cities all enjoy equipped gravity generators, allowing the healthy development of the population in a gravity equal to Earth.

    The urban population accounts for 90% of the Martian population.

    The Arcologies

    Of the urban Martians, the vast majority reside in arcologies: sprawling overbuilt megalopolises 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 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.

    Rural Martians

    Despite the inhospitable terrain, the deserts around the cities are not uninhabited. Boomtowns and villages wax and wane across the surface. Most rural Martians have rejected the daily grind of urban life, preferring to life off the land.

    Most rural Martians live in small, sealed biomes. Many of these small towns, usually numbering no more than 20 - 2,000 people, are sponsored by a major corporation and get by on hydroponic farming or mining. Martian tubers, such as potatoes, remain a popular dish in the core worlds as the Martian soil - when removed of toxic elements - gives them a unique flavor.

    Rural Martians tend to have a deep connection to the planet and its soil. The appreciation for the harsh environment has bred a population of rugged survivalists. This is compounded by their lack of access to gravity generators; many rural Martians try to raise money to send pregnant, young, or growing family members to the cities. Those that stay behind adopt a vigorous culture of physical fitness as they try to stave off the developmental issues associated with low gravity.

    Nomads

    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 freely. 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. Despite building such beautiful settlements, Djor rarely stay in them as a result of their restless nature. As a result, homes tend to swap families over a dozen times in a single year. 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.

    Despite the harsh and arid environment, many urban areas have developed.

    Terraformed Environment

    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 outside locations with installed gravity generators.

    Green Mars

    Early on during the terraforming projects of 2200 onward, Alliance scientists bio-engineered specialized plants to survive the thin atmosphere and toxic soil. Species of grass found on Earth above elevations of 8,000 feet were altered to be even more drought resistant and a thinner atmosphere. Similar projects were done on variety of trees and shrubs before being introduced to Mars. The result is that the 'wet' areas of Mars host stubborn plant life that struggles to etch out its existence. Despite being incredibly invasive and fast spreading, the inherent nature of how hostile the Martian terrain and weather is means the explosive growth of these martian plants are kept in check.

    No native animal life exists on Mars, and efforts to breed domesticated animals to survive the thin Martian atmosphere have consistently failed or proved infeasible.

    Blue Mars

    Almost all of the major cities on Mars are concentrated around liquid water. Because of 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. Rain on the Red Planet is also, more often than not, undrinkable. Huge desalination and treatment plants work around the clock to provide fresh water to the cities, and control of these facilities - and the water they pump - remains an incredibly divisive issue for most Martian city-states.

    Due to terraforming, Mas its own natural rain 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 and form flat beds of quicksand behind.

    History

    Early Colonization

    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, 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 between the colonies, although rare, were not unheard of. The ones that survived have long since grown into large, independent city-states, which are for the most part friendly competitors under the watchful eye of Sol Alliance.

    However, the tensions combined with the planet’s wildly different features and cultural mindsets have, over centuries, produced cultures and traditions unique to Mars. Even today, some of many culture groups on Mars still keep to old traditions that have all but disappeared on Earth. Many Martians take pride in this, believing that Mars holds a unique connection to humanity in its pure state.

    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 domed cities 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, and all three were later acquitted despite anger and protest from the Martian population.

    In modern times, the ruins of cities lost to the catastrophe remain popular spots for scavengers, explorers, and tourists.

    The Martian World War

    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, imperialist 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. Factions on Mars, which began calling themselves the Red Coalition, began rallying popular and political support. They had many reasons to desire independence from the Alliance, which had shown casual disregard for Mars. Financially backed by the The Coalition of Colonies (CoC), on 18th of January, 2279, many Martian nations seceded from Sol Alliance and launched a coordinated, surprise attack on the rest of Mars.

    The loyalist city-states 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 material aid from the Alliance. 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 second nation in human history to use nuclear weapons in warfare. In 2284, the Red Coalition city-state 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 city 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 reeling from the action. Within days the majority of city-states 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.

    History of Terraforming

    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. 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 is still 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 has created for a makeshift electromagnetic shield, reducing harmful radiation by a large degree. Efforts are being made to maintain it by crushing and polarizing asteroids in orbit, despite the ever increasing volume of orbital traffic. These 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 low pressure environment. Single-cellular life has prospered as well, due to a atmosphere now rich with organic particles. Due to this, Mars is slowly losing its famous red color.

    Ruins and small colonies

    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.

    Some other, smaller colonies suffered a similar fate, becoming the poorest settlements on Mars.

    Ethnic makeup

    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.

    Synthetics

    During the peroid of terraforming, Mars received an immense number of 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.

    Economy

    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 40% 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.

    Low gravity and favorable air drag allow for cheap and efficient landings by shuttles, allowing shuttle traffic to far surpass what just the planet's 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. The port megacities are as such, by far the wealthiest. The richest and most developed is Olympia, which is often thought of as the center of Mars.


    The Martian Senates

    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 Martian Senate

    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 in orbit.

    The 464 member senate is meant to meet four times a year but rarely meets quorum (232) more than once. The Martian senate is split between the Red Front (192 seats) and GAIA (200) with the remainder 70 seats representing over a dozen different parties.