We are very close from unlocking 2 more Corsair mercenaries which adds two new miniatures to our lineup.
link
We are approaching the last 48 hours of the campaign. It will come down to the wire but I do believe we will unlock the Stretch Goal for 2 more Corsair mercenaries.
PLEDGE MANAGER
We will be utilizing some sort of pledge manager. This will allow backers to be able to choose which miniatures and fireteams they are getting as part of their pledge. Backers will also be able to add additional funds. Although they can add them to the pledge manager, if you can, you'll want to add what you can to your current pledge now. That helps the campaign get closer to the next stretch goal, although it is also perfectly acceptable to wait until the PM comes out.
GAME RULES
Questions have been asked a couple times about the game rules so I wanted to clarify. There was an initial concern over the pledge levels only listing "Beta Rules". All backers will get access to the final rules. The only reason the beta rules are listed because as part of fulfillment for 'this' campaign, the beta rules are part of it. All backers will always have access to the rules.
The idea is that the rules themselves should be free and available for download when they are complete. That is the plan as I believe rules should be free. Make great miniatures but provide free, accessible rules with them as well. They won't be available for the public until they are done, only backers get early access to them. There may be a book version for those that like to have a physical copy in their hand but we won't be printing it until we're sure it is in a final state.
FACTION BACKGROUNDS
ANAZI DYNASTY (AD)
The Anazi Dynasty are not the most technologically advanced or have the largest military but they are the indisputable leaders when it comes to medical knowledge, genetic manipulation, and bioware. They are most known for their genetic experimentation as the leaders in gene-splicing, but that came at a great cost.
For decades their tampering with gene-splicing with themselves have left dormant genes which passed to their offspring, births started to happen where there were non-controlled mutations. At first, some of them was considered cute; A boy with cat ears, a girl with a tail, another child covered with fur, and there was a child who developed reptilian skin. Along with those traits came other benefits, but there was no mistaking they didn't look human anymore.
This caused them to be treated poorly, given the other history of their nation which resulted in them developing xenophobia of the other nations. Although they were called mutants and freaks, it didn't stop other rich families of other nations seeking them out to ‘enhance' themselves. Forced to obtain the scraps and choices of planets has required them to live in very harsh environments.
Very few outsiders have gone to the core, most encounters have been through the borderlands or neutral territories. Over decades rumors grew, some people have said they aren't human or largely grotesque, rumored to be monsters. Anazi Dynasty, of course, have done nothing to change the perception of others, they are perfectly fine with others thinking them monsters. In fact, they embraced much of that psychological profile within their military. That is why many of them have horns, modified armor, to make them seem less human. Even if there was a human underneath without any mutations, their enemies would never know.
The core citizens and initial countries that make up the Anazi Dynasty are descendants that can be traced back to Terra and Africa.
UNITED REPUBLIC (UR)
The United Republic is the oldest, largest and most powerful nations in terms of military, territory, and technology. Although the Shingen Empire would disagree about UR being the leader in technology.
After Terra Fall they were in the best position to bring order to the chaos that ensued. They blazed a path to creating order and maintaining discipline, although this was usually through the means of a strong military. The assumed control of New Terra and secured their seat as the controlling body of what would soon be the failing United Nations.
Their society was built on the back of capitalism and a free market, often the wealthiest were who made the laws and rules. This end result was a strong matriarch in control of most things. Since public image held an important factor, the United Republic became the embodiment of what it meant to be human. That meant there are no mutants, aliens, or cyberoids in their ranks, at least that one can tell from visual appearance. Only those citizens that were part of the productive society were considered able to vote, everyone else was considered second class citizens.
They utilize a natural genetic breeding program, which pairs good "households" with each other. This ensures that the best genes are produced so that the wealthiest, strong, beautiful are the ones who continue to maintain their power.
The core citizens and initial countries that make up the United Republic are descendants that can be traced back to Terra, USA, Canada, Mexico, Russia and the former Eastern Bloc.
EUROPA CONFEDERATION (EC)
Next, to the United Republic, the Europa Confederation is the second largest and oldest nation. Before the Civil War that led to Europa Confederation being formed and the splinter nation Shingen Empire, they were a force to be reckoned with. They were able to stop the further advance of the UR from taking over all the good colonies and planets.
In the early days, they established themselves when fear of the psions started to emerge. Instead of fearing those with psionic abilities or trying to utilize them as weapons, they instead embraced the evolving humans. Other nations created restrictions and apartheid but they welcomed anyone with psionic gifts. They even elevated them to places of leadership and power. Most psions were part of the Inquisition of the Church since psionic abilities were gifts meant to be used for the betterment of humankind. This also served to help expand the influence the Church held. Legends date back to the early days of psions that the royal family themselves had psionic abilities and that was the main reason they welcomed them. It would make sense if that was true since every royal member since after Terra Fall have been psions.
The core citizens and initial countries that make up the Europa Confederation are descendants that can be traced back to Terra, most European nations including United Kingdom, France, Spain and some of the middle-eastern area of China.
SHINGEN EMPIRE (SE)
The Shingen Empire was born from war so it makes sense that their ideology is centered around warfare and bushido. There was a disagreement in what the next evolution step for humanity should be. Europa wanted to embrace psionic abilities while Shingen believed that human bodies were frail and weak. He believed the next step was for humans to shed their broken bodies and embrace cyberization, not just part cyborg or cybernetic enhancement but full blown cyberoid.
Their technological level is on par with the United Republic, if not better. Since the UR technology has safety measures put in place to protect human life, they were able to throw those cautions and safety's away. There are not many situations or conditions that can prove to be devastating to a cyberoid.
The process to undergo cyberization doesn't come without costs. Currently there is a psychological strain as well as pain that the person endures. As such they are bred in cybernetic embryo's, taught in schools until they become a mature age. In which they do an aptitude test to determine if they are ready for cyberization. Although the main core of their society have undergone full cyberization, there some that are still human. There are also some cyberoids that can be made in the image of a human, these mostly interact with other humans since most of their nation are a machine. Having a human-like interface makes people feel more comfortable around them.
The core citizens and initial countries that make up the Shingen Empire are descendants that can be traced back to Terra, Japan, Korea and parts of China.
FEDERATED COMMONWEALTH (FC)
The Federated Commonwealth are one of the smaller nations, only having six planets that comprise their core planets, with a few systems on the outlines around them. They originally were part of different mining corporations who rebelled against the United Republic control. They were being overworked while being forced to defend themselves from raiders and pirates. They just weren't considered worth sending security forces to defend, at least that was the perception of the workers.
The six planets worked together, deciding to become a Federation forming under a Commonwealth and declared their independence. Although only a few planets, the mining rights they maintain help keeps them in a position of power. Since the majority of the planets are buried deep within systems with chaotic asteroids, which makes great mining, but proves highly unsafe conditions for those not familiar with them.
Their society is very much a melting pot in terms of appearance. They have normal looking humans, those with cybernetic enhancements, a few psions, mutants and even alien species amongst their planets. One could even find a few independent cyberoids as well. Appearance and even money were never important, the only thing that mattered was hard work. If you could work and you did work hard, you got rewarded.
The core citizens and initial countries that make up the Federated Commonwealth are descendants that can be traced back to Terra, Australia and various islands along the Pacific Rim.