Magpies

Inspirations

Armored Core 3

Armoured Core: Last Raven

Armored Core 4

Armored Core For Answer

Armoured Core 6: Fire fo Rubicon

Gundam UC

Gundam 00

Project Landsword

Japanese History

The late Roman Republic

Gun Griffon

Gun Griffon Blaze

Timeline

Late 21st Century: Earth's astronomer witnesses a space battle between alien vessels in near-earth space. In the aftermath, both ships are destroyed by ancient weapons hidden deep in the Earth. Debris causes large-scale destruction across the earth. In the aftermath, nations begin to struggle over the alien wreckage and ancient sites. Technologies drawn from these sources, called 'extra-technology' begin to accelerate human technological development.

Before Contact 25: Large scale war breaks out between the major powers over control over extra-technology and sites.

Before Contact 15: First recorded use of humanoid robotic weapons by Japanese SDF in the Battle of the Hokkaido Extra-technology site. The technology spreads rapidly.

Before Contact 10: The first "Red Zone" declared, areas so damaged by the war that no attempt at reclaimation is possible. These areas increasingly become home to outlaws, bandits and anti-Federation forces.

Before Contact 5: All involved powers decimated by warfare and environmental degradation brought on by climate change and space debris

The Intergnum: Decades of small scale warfare, fallout and environmental collapse wracks earth, leaving much unknown and disused.

After Contact 1: With no power able to continue the war, the Earth's surviving major states, led by Japan, the African Union, Germany and Thailand form the Earth Federation, with the goal of both repairing the Earth's environment and defending from potential attack from space.

After Contact 12-25: Massive ecological damage, climate change and massive super storms cause increasing damage to the surface. Most humans retreat into vast underground or sea born colonies known as Layered, regulated by powerful AIs.

After Contact 17: The completion of the First Layered in the mountains near Tokyo Japan

After Contact 20: First Space colony completed a mere 8 years after its construction

After Colony 21: Work begins on the Halo Solar energy system and Torus Station

After Contact 24: Lunar Colony construction begins

After Contact 25 to After Contact 70: First Golden Age of the Federation sees free expansion into space. Humans on earth generally retreat into Layered colonies. Hundreds of orbital colonies are constructed, and large amounts of the planet's working population is lifted into space to make their homes in the stations or the Halo. Numerous Extra-technology derived humanoid systems are made use of in industry and combat. Large scale interest in human augmentation to meet continued needs to explore both space and extra-technology ruins.

On the surface, counter Federation Forces, and those unwilling to join the society of Layered create their own societies hostile to the Federation.

After Contact 32: First permanent settlement constructed on Mars

After Contact 33: The all female Seraphim Culture begins in the Halo, and begins to become highly successful due to its widespread use of cloning and artificial wombs

After Contact 35: Construction of the Reagan Space Defense Satellite System

After Contact 40: First permanent settlement around Jupiter

After Contact 42: First permanent settlement around Saturn: Large scale HE3 mining around the gas giants commences.

After Contact 50s: The Golden 50s see continued expansion of humanity's economic and social life under the mostly benevolent rule of the Federation and the AIs. With a few exceptions this is the first decade completely without war. However class, racial and regional conflicts continue to simmer under the surface. Low level violence between different factions in the Federation and against remnant non-Federation areas see the first deployment of independent mercenary contractors known as Magpies.

After Contact 62: Human settlements now expand all the way to the Oort Cloud.

After Contact 71: Profession Richard Burkley propounds the "berserker probe" theory of first contact, suggesting both the alien craft that entered the system and the extra-technology sites discovered on earth are remains of an ancient and now long vanished war, and further contact is unlikely. The theory causes widescale political problems in the Federation government and is largely seen as the end of the first golden age of the Federation.

After Contact 75 to After Contact 120: Small scale wars with anti-Federation Forces expand across the world. Much of humanity's economic power shifts to the Halo and the high orbit stations. The Seraphim come to dominate the Halo as their willingness to use mass cloning and ability with mind state remixing allows them to rapidly build additional population. Environmental recovery efforts begin outsider layered, but huge areas of contamination remain.

After Contact 125-135: The First Magpie War. Largescale rebellion against the Federation starts across Europe and Russia. Magpies are deployed in large numbers on both sides. The revolt seeks to drive the inhabitants of the layered cities back out of the Layered.

The revolt is eventually crushed after the disappearance of its leader, the mysterious Vladimir.

After Contact 130: The allied Seraphim and units of the Federation defense Force units take control of the Saturnian HE3 mining operation system and charge its leaders with alignment with the rebellion on earth.

After Contact 140 to 194: Second golden age of the Federation. Art, literature and prosperity surge as war damage is made good and development of the outer colonies continues. Magpies used extensively in the shadow games between factions and against Bandits, Red Zone forces and small rebels and those groups surviving on the surface.

After Contact 150: First appearance of Rogue Machines on the surface, apparently being created the partly decommissioned Layered Control AI in Nakuru Kenya.

After Contact 179: The Houston Disaster: massive glitch in the Houston Layered causes security systems to go rogue and attack the population.

After Contact 180s: Increasingly strange errors and glitches begin to occur throughout the AI control systems of the Layered.

After Contact 194-199 Second Magpie wars: The technical errors that have plagued the Layers and Space Colonies for the last 15 years are traced back to the efforts of the Loran Faction of the Federation government and several allied Controller AIs to take full domination of the Layered computer architecture and enforce a system of technocratic control over the whole Federation. The revelations of this duplicity lead to a war between the rest of the Federation government and the Loran Faction. The intervention of the Seraphim and Federation army eventually decides the war against the Loran faction.

After Contact 200 to 300: Third Federation Golden Age. With the Loran Faction and their controller AIs defeated, and environmental reconstruction efforts much advanced, settlement beyond Layered begins. Earth is largely restored to a pre-industrial state, and efforts to restore the old cities and wonders of earth becomes a major part of life. Small conflicts with Counter Federation Forces, often surface remnants, and between corporations and Federation government factions occur continually.

The Seraphim and the Halo Ring increasingly come to dominate Federation affairs as their control of the orbital ring and its solar power systems is the key source of prosperity in the earth sphere, however the reclamation of the surface gradually begins to shift economic and military muscle to various regional blocks and space cluster habitats and away from the Federation Government.

After Contact 301 The Moorland Affair. Federation Minister of Justice Moorland, as well as top members of the Magpie Guild are found to be cooperating with rebel groups within several of the Red Zones with the view to taking over the Federation government. The resulting warfare sees large-scale fighting across much of earth as red zone forces attack more civilized zones in a coordinated way. The Magpie Guild, riven with infighting is unable to respond.

After Contact 302 (March): Rebel forces attack the Federation Capital at the Dakar layered, and are only just repulsed by Federation Interior Guard.

After Contact 302 (May): Rebel forces capture a Federation Defense Force orbital defense command node and attempt to turn the Reagan Grid against the orbital ring. The Black Feather Faction destroy the base with a strike from their own Bold Artemis strike system and demand immediate action from the Federation to restore order.

After Contact 302 (June): The Defense and Order Act is promulgated, allowing Federation Cantons of the Federation to raise their own armies for local defense and public order. Local forces raised by this method begin to turn the tide against the Rebels

After Contact 302 (November) The Seraphim Black Feather faction and its allies unveil the Inorganic Angels, massive strategic armours capable of delivering devastating firepower to ground and space targets. Some accuse them of using extratechnological processes forbidden to those outside the Federation Army, but few can argue with the results. Remaining rebel fortresses are annihilated from orbit.

After Contact 305: In the wake of Moorland Affair, the Federation Central Government at Dakar is increasingly weakened and reliant on the Seraphim factions that rule Halo for solar energy, political and military support. Outside the centres of Federation power, the Defense and Order Act has seen local bodies, corporations, local, national and subnational governments and even powerful magnets legally raise their own armies. The use of violence to settle disputes is common. The Magpies, once the swords of the factions of the federation government are now little more than ronin mercenaries, cast adrift to find what employment they can.

You are one such ronin warror, the last of the Magpies

Factions

The Federation

The overall government of the Federation, ruled from the great capital at Dakar, the Federation maintains a government that stretches from the Sun to the Oort cloud. The Federation is primarily concerned with the avoidance of large scale wars between its Cantons, the creation of common trade and economic relations, the issue of regional currencies and most important the preparation of defenses against a potential attack by hostile extra-terrestrial beings. The last end has historically consumed the majority of the Federation's time and effort, and even after almost two hundred years the spectre of attack from outside still looms large and consumes the majority of the Federation's budget.

Federation politics are notoriously labyrinthine and factional, especially due to the appointed nature of most high Federation officials, which leads to intrigue being the primary means of gaining power. This byzantine system is increasingly a little irrelevant however, as the powerful Seraphim factions of the Halo, especially the Black Feathers, can use their economic, military and political power to make and break Federations leaders as they will. Some Cantons grumble at this imposition of Seraphim power, but others see it as a more stable system than the previous, often violent, court politics of the Federation's first century.

Federation Defense Force

The centre of the Federation is the Federation Defense Force, an enormous and heavily funded system of troops, fortresses and research and development institutions meant to repel invasion by space aliens like the ones that attacked at the end of the before contact era.

After more than three hundred years without further contact however, the FDF has become a moribund institution of social generals and corrupt defense contractors. Its troops still operate a network of fortresses and weapon systems across the system, and its weapons are renowned as the most powerful and advanced, but its units lack combat experience and are often filled with unhappy technical conscripts who would rather use their skills in other parts of the government or private sector. Its officers are by now largely hereditary and its personnel system is notoriously corrupt.

Only the Interior Guard, notoriously corrupt and underfunded still has any combat inexperience and remains quite feared, especially as it can access some of the advanced weapons deployed for the defense force proper. Seraphim Factions and powerful Cantons will sometimes make alliances with the FDF to obtain such technological terrors, but the FDF’s officers increasingly see this as an affront to their pride and neglect the practice.

Federation Currency

The Federation has 7 different currencies which are issued to Cantons of different states of economic development and float freely against one another. Who may be in which currency is a common political battle among Cantons.

Federation Cantons

The Federation is divided into self-governing Cantons, which may maintain their own systems, laws, and apparatus of state within the Federation legal code. Canton governments were once quite vestigial, but have become increasingly important as the The Defense and Order Act has allowed them to legally raise large armies without accusations of rebellion. A canton may be a geographical region on earth or a single colony cylinder in orbit.

The South China Alliance

The current most powerful Canton, the SCA is governed from the newly reclaimed city of Shanghai, and remains earth’s fastest growing economic zone. It’s armies were a vital part of efforts against the Moorland plot, and are one of the most feared forces on earth.

=The Siberian Freehold

One of Earth’s largest Cantons, Siberia is a beneficiary of the warming of the earth that even environmental reclamation efforts have not been able to reverse, and was one of the few areas of earth where organised Federation surface activity persisted in the Layered era. It is a major rival of the SCA.

The Sardinia Free State

The Island of Sardinia is where the game is set. A relatively young Canton that only recently gained independence from the Alpine area, its president, Ginevra Amato has done much to transform the Island's economic prospects, and has recruited a powerful mercenary force to defend the island.

The Laizo Autonomous Zone

The troubled Laizo Autonomous Zone contains many historical wonders such as the ancient city of Rome and the old seat of the Catholic Church. To the disgust of many, Laizo maintains a rigid state cult that worships the much hated Cult of the Whispering Void, which dominates its government.

The Magpie Guild

The old directing agency of Magpie Operations, the Magpie's guild was all but destroyed due to the treason of its leaders during the Moorland Incident.

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The Seraphim

Genetically Engineered all female clones, the Seraphim gained major prominance due to their role in the construction of the Halo ring station. Huge numbers of Seraphim clones were created, reversing much of humanity's overall population decline and powering them to the status of a superpower with control over the distribution of solar power and other technologies. They have also pioneered much Aleph networking and machine interfaces that are at the heart of much modern data networking.

The Black Feathers Faction

The most powerful Seraphim Faction, the Black Feathers dominate Segments 3 through 21 of the Orbital Ring's 108 segments, and are at the centre of a network of Federation ground and orbital Cantons, and a network of tamed corporations and Federation political and business leaders who are relient on their support. The Black Feathers are a mostly pragmatic faction, and do not care much for the esoteric investigations of Miracle Technology that some Seraphim use, but are known to make careful investigation of newly discovered Miracle-Tech sites.

The White Beam faction

The chief rivals to the Black Feather Faction, the White Beam has always thought itself second best, and chaffed under this position. Despite this, they have carved out a place for themselves as controllers of much of the Solar Power Grid, and trade routes across the orbit. They are currently scheming against the Black Feathers with various elements of the Dakar government to try to resort their influence in the Federation capital.

The Blue and Purple Faction

The third large Seraphim faction. The Blue and Purple Faction control the Indonesian and South American space elevator, and are deeply bitter than the Black Feathers control the African one.

Counter Federation Forces

Rebel groups against the Federation range from left wing liberation forces to hereidtory reactionary militia, but a huge majority of them are groups from Non-Federation settlements in the Red Zones, Bandit Kings and Pirate Princes, whose local elites have no wish to assimilate into the Federation despite the economic benefits.

The Corporations

An array of corporations, often with huge networks of clientism and corruption dominate the Federation economy.

the Data Recovery Administration

Corporation paid by the Federation to recover things from Red Zones, lost Layered cities and space colonies that have become lost in the many years of the Federation and the Before Contact. They often hire Magpies and have a powerful military force of their own. Somewhat mysterious and sinister.

Mystery Cults

While the old religions survive, esoteric cults are on the rise.

Technology

Armoured Frame

Created by Japanese scientists after the discovery of the Extra-Technology sites, Armoured Frame are high mobility humanoid weapon systems based around a Extra-technology core, Frames stand on average around 5 to 10 meters tall. Their humanoid shape allows for neurological control over the Extra-Technology systems within by a human pilot, and the projection of active protection fields, and "virtual plate." A modern Armour is equipped with a quick boost system as well, allowing a skilled and enhanced pilot to make very rapid movements and dodges.

Withing the close environment of the underground shelters and space colonies, Armoured Frames reigned supreme, growing larger and more capable as the megastructures grow within the earth.

Despite their power, the Armoured Frames is no longer the lord of the battlefield that it once was. It's dominance of the battlefield now threatened by the swarms of cheap Cavalry Gears and drones deployed by Earth based forces, and by high tech weapons the Halo like the Seraphim's Niăo and Tori, and automated HMAW (High Mobility Autonomous Weapon) such as the Valkyrie and Fury series, or Federation Defense Force units like the Syreen. Armoured Frames are still used extensively even by Seraphim special forces units however, and are the signature weapons of Magpies.

M-Generator

The M-Generators are Extra-Tech power generation systems which lie at the heart of machines like Armoured Frames. They generate a high output but are used less in modernity as powerful Solar Quench systems become available, due to the pollution that they produce during venting.

Muscle Simulators

Cavalry Gears

A cheaper legged weapon, Cavalry Gears are used to augment more conventional tank forces. They stand 4 to 20 meters tall and usually bird or spider legged with a lot of ability to adjust their stance to maintain concealment.

Particle ECM

While long range weapons are making an increasing combat in warfare as humanity emerges from its isolated environmental fortresses, particle ECM still prevents a return from the level of heavily push button, networked warfare conducted primarily with long range precision guided munitions that marked the Before Contact period. Most units will have their own particle ECM

Federation Defense Force Technologies

The Federation Defense Force is still the most advanced military force in the earth sphere, if not the best.

Pulse Armour

Federation Defense Force Units commonly include pulse armour, an all around defensive force field like an Armoured Frame's virtual plate, but much more effective.

Assault Armour

Pulse armour may also be used offensively, emitting violent energies that tear apart nearby units. Queens have an extensive version of this.

Swarmers

The FDF recently developed massive swarms of missiles which hit in sequence, allegidly to counter potential alien ECM, though many note the deployment of heavy swarm missile systems conicided with the Seraphim deployment of next gen laser anti-missile systems on many of their units.

Hell Beam

Kojima powered energy beams. Incredibly devastating but rarely used due to the massive damage to the local enviroment Kojima radiation causes.

Vector Beams

Even more advanced than a standard hell beam, a Vector beam can track its target like a missile. Requires a Kojima reactor for power

The Reagan Grid

A massive network of combat satellites that has been built across the 400 years of the after contact era. The Reagan Grid is the primary sword of the FDF in the Earth system.

Planetary Fortresses

Huge Federation Fortresses dot the planet, mostly built deep into the rock, and ready to defend FDF forces

Defense Cannons

Many massive energy cannons dot the planet, capable of attacking ships in orbits and defend the planet in the event of another alien attack.

Syreen

Standard FDF combat form, the Syreen is a highly autonomous quasi-humanoid space combat unit capable of interface and ground operations.

Cacus

An attempt to create an armoured frame type unit without the high cost, the Cacus are used by Federation Forces, especially the interior guard for high ranking officers. They are not as modular or adaptable as an Armoured Frame, but are incredibly tough.

Queen

Giant humanoid fighting systems built around a Kojima Reactor. It is incredibly dangerous to activate a Queens as it’s Kojima Generator will irradiate the area around it, however they are enormously high performance and defend themselves with specialist shield generators known as primal armor. They are to only be used in combat against alien forces. Each has the name of a female hero, such as Artoria, Hipolyta, or Tomoe Gozen.

Interior Guard Cataphract

A fast, multi-tracked special operations machine, the Cataphract is used extensively by Interior Guard elite units, and may prove more than a match for a badly piloted Armoured Frame.

Interior Guard Super Gunship

These massive gunships are used extensively by the Interior Guard for Patrol and anti-partisan work. They carry a vast arsenal of guns and missiles, and sometimes cargo pods full of drones and MTs

Federation Defense Force HMAW

As Federation Defense Force personel quality reduces, the gap is increasingly filled by High Manueverability Autonomous Weapons. These devices, easily equivilent to an Armoured Frame or a Bird, are deployed in great numbers by the Interior Guard in rebel suppression operations.

Balteus Series: A flight capable missile HMAW often used as the test bed for new technologies

Gladius Series: A flight capable close assault HMAW equipped with heavy energy weapons

Pilum Series: A flight capable mid range attack unit and drone hive. A nuclear delivery version exists.

Federation Defense Force Armoured Frames

The Federation Defense Force has its own line of armoured frames usually used by ace units and high end officers, as well as sold to mercenaries who serve the FDF's interests well. The primary series is the Caesar.

Seraphim technologies

WITCH packs

Seraphim units are often modular, and extended with a variety of add on packs called WITCH packs, including external boosters, attack drones, armour segments and the like. Usually designed for a specific mission, though generalist “Service” packs exist.

bits, butterflies options

Small auto-attack munitions controlled by an Aleph link the Seraphim deploy various kinds of these munitions, but most are powerful beam emitters.

combat cortex

Seraphim units deploy a tactical AIs that allow them to auto-evade and manage ECM, sensors and the like as a “virtual copilot.”

Aleph Link

A product of Extra-technology, the Aleph Link is a Seraphim process that appears to give them some kind of psychic powers. These are able to interact with other Seraphim minds, and machines at a distance, and serve as the basis of Seraphim battle networks.

Flash Shield

The Seraphim do not have primal or assault armour or other defensive shields that the FDF have, but instead use short term “flash” shields that instantly parry damage a limited number of times.

Tori and Niăo

The main Seraphim combat machines, the Tori and Niao, and other “Bird” class units are extremely fast humanoid combat craft similar to a combat frame but descended from the lineage of a Muscle Simulator. They are built around a powerful energy filler and have superior performance to most forms of Armoured Frame, at the cost of much lesser endurance, adaptability and operational lifespan. The current Seraphim units, the Tori and Niăo series are both refined high power, multirole machines, and are built in large numbers by the Seraphim factions.

Seraphim HMAW

The make extensive use of Seraphim high mobility automated weapons, primarily the heavy missile carrying Valkyrie and the close combat focused Fury.

Inorganic Angels

The final weapon of the black feathers and other factions, these massive space going armours can smash fortresses from orbit.

Seraphim Armoured Frames

Seraphim armoured frames are constructed for all Seraphim Factions by Seraphim Armour Assault Systems, (SAAS) one of the earth systems leading weapons manufacturers. SAAS has two main suit lines, both of which are sold on the open market, sometimes with even with the Seraphim technology integrated into them depending on the client.

Knightress Series: A conventional design, the Knightress Series is a rugged, heavily armoured weapon platform with a much greater degree of combat durability than Tori, Niao or equivalent units. Used extensively by Seraphim special mission units for operations in rugged areas of Earth and as equipment for mercenaries.

Snake Series: A small special operations suit, the Snake series are dwarfed by more conventional designs. They are used for quick commando raids, parachute operations and fighting inside older and more cramped megastructures.

Characters

Gremori

• During the First Magpie War, Vladmir had created elite anti-Seraph of genetically modified pilot clones based off the greatest frame rider of the age code named the Goetia to oppose the angels of space. This pink and purple hair young woman is not one of them, she and her machine definitely were not dug out of forgotten hidden arms depot for purposes unknown.
• Aelph abilities designed to break Aelph Links (maybe spooky alien tech)
• Never saw combat, was the PR model that stood beside Vladmir
• Bored teenager covering existential crisis of why she is here and why she was left behind without any memories of what happened.

Leona

• An old soldier who has seen far too much war and the darker side of the Federation, she briefly retired to her questionably-gotten riches after the Moorland Affair, but ultimately, drinking expensive wine in her mansion surrounded by maid and deeply unhappy, she had to face the truth: she just really liked killing people.
• Hopeless wine aunt
• Still very rich, in it for the love of the game
• Her Armoured Frame is on the larger end, enough to carry a considerable set of missiles and explosives

Antonin Mazeri

• Young man, seeking adventure.

Astrid Valodin

• Seraphim soldier, former of the Black Feathers, departed after becoming involved with a mystery cult known as the Valkyrie Wave, which sought to get the attention of alien observers through prowess in battle and warfare. The cult was purged from the Black Feathers due to its conservative members balking at religious zealotry and pursuit and use of extra-tech, and Astrid's aggressive combat style.
• fiery, unhinged, laughs a lo