S1 - The Moon is a Harsh Mistress.

Appendix A:

The Moon is a Harsh Mistress*

*1966 science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein

Some useful web sites:

http://www.lunarrepublic.com

/atlas/index.shtml

http://ralphaeschliman.com

/luna/lnslamasm.jpg

http://www.google.com/moon/

http://www.google.com/mars/

Game Map: Moon Map

Time-line

2100 AD: Sea levels stablise after global warming. World map looks considerably different (Have a look at http://merkel.zoneo.net/Topo/Applet/)

2101 AD: safe fusion energy developed.

2110 AD: Antarctic United Trust founded under UN auspices.

2123 AD: first advanced nanites used.

2137 AD: AUT brings the first of its linear accelerator launch sites online outside Darwin in northern Australia.

2143 AD: 1st Corporate Wars begin.

2150 AD: 1st Corporate Wars end in stalemates, Asian Prosperity Ltd emerges from the aftermath.

2165 AD: Copernicus Base established by the AUT. AUT begins large scale de-contamination projects, shipping toxic wastes to the Moon.

2178 AD: 2nd Corporate Wars begin, nation states succumb to multi-nationals, United Nations disbanded. AUT incorporates.

2182 AD: Trans-Atlantic Company formed.

2194 AD: 2nd Corporate Wars end in the Hanoi Settlement, United Nations Corporation (UNC) is refounded as a neutral peace keeping business. AUT emerges as a major corporation.

2199 AD: AUT completes the first Equatorial Space Lift. Earth Base is in the Gilbert Islands in the Pacific.

2200 AD: Big Three have all begun removing waste and bombarding it into the moon.

2210 AD: First Mars base established.

2220 AD: Massive clearance programs begin to clean up the earth and dump all the waste on Lunar.

2225 AD: The TAC completes a Space Lift based off the coast of northern Brazil.

2228 AD: The APL completes a Space Lift off the Somali coastline.

2232-2235 AD: The Seven Seas War is fought between the major corporations, this was mostly a bush war with a legal war that eventually established a new set of laws re-defining who controlled what areas of the worlds oceans. The biggest winner was the AUT who secured their Antarctic rights which had been undefined for quite some time.

2245-2246 AD: The Australian Strike, a military attempt by the APL to sieze control of Australia, which although closely aligned with the AUT had remained legally independent. The AUT responded with overwhelming technology and a series of EMP strikes over major cities of the APL, knocking out their poorly hardened electronic systems and with minimal lose of life. The APL were forced to withdraw and Australia formly joined the AUT.

2350 AD: 3rd Corporate Wars begin - more a series of minor engagements in the remaining neutral areas of earth as the Big 3 eliminated the smaller rivals and seized areas in dispute.

2352 AD: Darvakian founds the Legion of the Savage Wolf (LSW). He secures a contract with the UNC to provide security forces, then expands this to the Corporations as a mercenary service for hire.

2265 AD: Voluntary Resettlement begun on earth, those labeled as Variant are offered free transport to Lunar and Mars. First CMx2 created in orbital laboratory.

2270 AD: Legion of the Savage Wolf found the city of Lost, on Lunar.

2275 AD: First CMx2 believed to have been created on Lunar.

2390 AD: Forced Transportation of Variants and other criminal elements to Lunar and Mars is started.

2394 AD: The Cleansing is carried out on Earth, removing or destroying all CMx2. Similar attempts are made on lunar but only drive the production underground.

2397 AD: The Big Three discover and conceal the existence of aliens. Nuclear strikes are implemented against suspected alien bases on the moon and Mars, but are officially blamed on unstable waste fields.

2398 AD: 3rd Corporate Wars end with the Contract of Geneva dividing the world, and the moon, into three "areas' of control" under the auspices of the Big Three and the United Nations Corporation.

2399 AD: Lost is closed off due to biological contamination.

2417 AD: Today

This scenario sees the human race survive into the future, instead of vanishing suddenly. The environment however is extremely unforgiving to a human (the vacuum of the lunar surface) so most of the action is centered on the mechanoids, who need no air and can tolerate the extremes of temperature and radiation.

A little poetic license has been taken (okay a lot!) with the time scales and some of the biological changes. Mutated life forms that can survive in a vacuum are there to provide players with challenges, and for colour. Likewise the amount of waste dumped on the moon is far greater in its size than reality, most the earths waste material could be dumped into a fairly compact area of the moon considering the time scale that they have been doing it. For story purposes however we are exaggerating the quantities so that vast areas of the lunar surface are covered with considerable amounts of rubbish. To make it a little more believable you could extend the time line a bit so that dumping operations on the moon have been going on for near 200 years before forced re-settlements begin. Of course all of this can be handled more easily if you bring the Martians into the picture with their advanced biological sciences (they watched War of the Worlds and adapted!) and use them as a behind the scenes driver.

It is very likely that there have been several nuclear detonations on the lunar surface. This can be from unlucky impacts of large lumps of nuclear waste (for the sake of the story), or it might be that Earth has actually nuc'd some places on the moon for some reason at some time (they discover alien bases). The threat of earth dropping bombs, either nuclear or rubbish, should always be emphasized, and is the one reason the Spoons (Corp executives) have so much authority.

Note that in this game Earth will be considered to have Advanced Technology but with access to Advanced+ at a proto-type level. Earth generally limits sales to non-corporate lunar citizens to Modern Technology. A license is available to gain access to more advanced technology, but you have to suck up to the right people to get one (most favoured status). Witch Doctors and Mad Scientists have access based on the appropriate feats they have.

Terms in use:

The following terms should be used whenever possible to get everyone into the feel of the scenario. Nothing helps you immerse like some good old fashioned slang, and abusing 'The Man'!

Variant - a variant is an individual the Companies (of Earth) have deemed "unsociable", unable to conform to the society of Earth. Variants are quickly deported to Lunar or Mars.

Inmate - derogatory term used by Earth corporate staff about all non-corporate lunar inhabitants.

Spoons - derogatory term used by inmates about Earth corporate staff (spoon feed)

Con - convict, a convicted life term criminal (may be a variant that has actually been convicted of a crime).

Squatter - usually a variant, who has accepted voluntary resettlement to the moon.

Dog - Junkyard Dogs are scavengers who live precarious lives gathering materials from the lunar junkyards.

Terratics - insane people, as opposed to Lunatics! To be considered insane on the moon requires a really special effort.

Radiant - a lunar resident who has been illuminated into the Church of the Celestial Moon (CCM), a cult type organisation gaining popularity, also called a Rad. (Psychic)

Egg Head - a member of the CCM who has been illuminated and their Head has grown in size as a result.

Witch Doctor - someone skilled in the construction and repair of mechanoids and robots (Mad Scientists)

Zorba - a mutant human being who has absorbed too much radiation or toxic waste (derived from: zombie radiation absorber)

Greens, Reds, Whites and Blues - slang for Corporate Staff from the various companies.

Hippies - a social/political group who aspire to clean up the two worlds and return to a better way of life more in harmony with nature. Based mainly on lunar, there is a small secret following on Earth. The movement was mostly wiped out during the corporate wars, but has started re-emerging. Hippies are considered variants by the company.

Pitcrew - humans who are overly fond of mechanoids.

Wreckers - humans who are overly hostile or fearful of mechanoids.

Martian - alien life forms who have begun appearing and are orchestrating a secret plan of their own. Not from Mars, although they have a presence there.

Marvins - general name for aliens, more specific names apply to specific types of aliens. Most often refers to Martians due to their similarities to the cartoon character (ala Marvin the Martian).

UNCLE - Agent of UNCLE, United Nations Corporation-Lunar Enterprises.

CONTROL - Men in Black, agents of CONTROL (nobody knows what it stands for because it is so secret!)

Morlock - alien race who live under the lunar surface, half spiders, half humanoid.

Robbie - derogatory term for a mechanoid, but has now de-volved down to human built non-mechanoid robotic devices with advanced programming that allows semi-autonomous operation.

Looser - Legion of the Savage Wolf (LSWer) trooper. Generally this terminology is derogatory, but public relations efforts by the Legion have attempted, with some degree of success, to reverse the term into a more positive one. The tone and context of the word now define its nature.

Character limits:

Players should be Mechanoids, but if someone really wants to be a human they are limited to normal humans. Magic is limited to cybernetics, weird science and psionics. In the later case you must have been initiated into the Church of the Celestial Moon and then left, see notes later.

The Moon scenario does allow humans some chance of surviving and adventuring, especially if you take a more Flash Gordon approach to things. It would also help humans if you introduced some extra medical supplies that will allow them to handle vacuum and radiation better. Technical advances could result in lunar suits that can handle heat and cold, unexpected punctures, recycling air and water etc etc. Humans, everything is always about them!

By default a human on the lunar surface must be in a space suit. If the suit is ruptured then they need to make a Survival roll at the start of every round at -4 or suffer 1 FAT (after stun recovery). If they become Incap they are automatically dead unless there is some compelling intervention that saves them. A Suit is considered ruptured if the character suffers a wound (not just a Shaken) from a physical attack that seems appropriate. Some suits and other devices have an ability to self seal or patch a hole. The size of the hole is based on the number of wounds just inflicted, eg: the human suffers 2 wounds so his suit has to be able to handle a 2wound hole, or a patch big enough for 2wounds would need to be used. There is no partial patching, you cant use 2x 1wound patches to fix a 2wound hole.

Human players may wish to take the option to be Arcane Background(Cybernetics) as per the rules in the Science Fiction Gear Toolkit book (from Peg).

Variants.

The Variants that the Earth did not want were not only social misfits. Many of them were genetic misfits and some of them were even experiments that were no longer wanted. They were all offered a new life on Lunar and Mars, and then later on they were all deported whether they liked it or not. When the CMx2 was fully understood Earth institued "The Cleansing" where not only did they remove all instances of the CMx2, but they removed any last remaining Variants from Earth as well. New variants are still sent up from Earth now and then, but in much smaller numbers these days.

Of course now that Lunar is the new home of the 'unusual', the 'unusual' is now an everyday event.

Lunar Edges & Hindrances

The following can be taken as part of this story line.

Retired Legionnaire (Background)

The player has been recurited into the Legion and served their time there, roughly an 8 year stint, making them at least 26 years old. You gain 20 exp points plus you may buy any edge or skill with a Veteran requirement. You must take 3 minor hindrances however, reflecting why you are retired (the GM should make sure they are appropriate). A major hindrance can be taken and is equivalent to 2 minors. These are ontop of any others you may have taken during creation. You will have retired with the rank of Sergeant and will have a monthly pension of 2000 credits. You may take the hindrance Vow-Legion (Minor) which bonds you to the Legion and its aims, as one of your minor hindrances. You may be "called up" for service if the situation requires.

Peace Keeper (Background)

The player has taken a 4 year stint in the Legions Peacekeeper Corp. This is a group that is trained as police/para-military rather then as full legionaires. A peace keeper will begin at 22 years old and with 10 exp pts. They must enter the game with Fighting d6, Shooting d6 and Guts d6. At this time you may be deployed as an active Peacekeeper and the GM will have to assign you to the area that your players will be operating in. Alternatively you will be on leave, but you are expected to be available for call up at short notice. You are expected to inform local Peacekeeper forces of your presence in case they need your help. You may optionally take the minor hindrance Vow-Legion. You will receive a retainer of 500 credits a month as long as you follow the above conditions.

Moon Base Alpha: Background

The year is 2417 (or later). The moon has become the junkyard of the Earth. Mankind now dumps all its waste materials on the lunar surface where a legion of robots works to convert it into usable products that can be sent back to Earth. Even "human rubbish" (variants) are dumped on the moon, a life sentence is now a very short life on the moon.

One major base exists on the moon - Copernicus Dome, or Moon Base Alpha (MBA). The Copernicus Crater is 97km wide and is covered by one single huge dome protecting a large number of smaller domes. The Super Dome protects against micrometeors and solar radiation and provides a sealed environment in which humans can move freely with only the aid of light pressure suits and respirators. A minimal atmosphere is maintained which is not breathable but which is sufficient to protect organic bodies from vacuum damage.

MBA is run by the UNCLE (United Nations Corporation Lunar Enterprises) and an army of robots. Their only job is to ensure that usable materials are collected and shot back to Earth via the LAC (Linear Accelerator Cannon). A number of other smaller bases are located around the moon which are all connected back to the MBA by magnetic rail tracks. No one touches these (at least no one sane) facilities because they provide food, water and air in return for raw materials, not to mention Earth's willingness to drop large payloads on those that try to.

On Earth nation states were swallowed up into regional blocs, regional blocs were subverted by large multi-nationals. Survival of the planet required the slow erosion of nationality, control of technology became real power. Global warming was averted but not before enormous amounts of damage was done. Thirty percent of the human race was lost to the direct effects (rising sea levels) and the following famine and plagues. When the human race came out the other side the world was a far less tolerant place, dominated by a ruling body that was heavily invested in perpetuating itself and making a profit. Variance from the norm was not tolerated and the criminal term VARIANT entered the language.

Because land was now a more valuable commodity (the sea levels have not yet dropped) it was decided that wasting good land on criminal variants was unprofitable. The Antarctic United Trust (only a small multi-national at the time) had a far sighted Board and in return for payment promised to handle all of these criminals. Their answer was the moon.

Energy production was now not a problem as fusion and other alternate sources had now become a reality. Transporting a man to the moon (especially if you don’t have to get him back), setting up a lunar base all became economically viable. On top of that it allowed the company to exploit the mineral wealth of the moon in return packages.

The AUT had also developed their services to cover waste removal - old nuclear dumps, toxic waste lands, all kinds of waste materials could all be scooped up and fired at the moon via the massive linear accelerator launch pads that had been established. Nobody cared where the payload landed on the moon, only that it didn’t come back, although eventually specific landing zones where established as lunar bases and operations were developed. Extending these systems to move humans was an inexpensive alteration, especially if you didnt care if they survived.

Robots were developed and fired up to crash into the surface where they simply unpacked themselves, carried out any repairs and started operating. A small number of humans were sent up to oversight the whole operation. Criminal variants were shipped up and dumped into prepared environments with a minimum of services and told to fend for themselves, although if they wanted they could trade resources for luxury items, which of course they soon did.

The operation was so enormously successful that the AUT was able to dominate the world and become a global power. Eventually a power struggle erupted between those in power and those on the edge. A corporate war broke out that was unlike anything seen before. When the dust and court cases ended three companies ruled most of the world.

Earth is now ruled by a Corporate Hegemony, dominated by three major multi-nationals -

Trans-Atlantic Company,

Asian Prosperity Ltd

Antarctic United Trust.

Between them they controlled 80% of the Earth and 100% of the Moon. An agreement was reached which stopped the unprofitable war and split the wealth between the big three. On the moon MBA (Copernicus Dome) sits at the nexus of the three zones controlled by the three companies. The MBA is now manned by a neutral team (United Nations Corporation - Lunar Enterprises) oversighted by company agents.

During the struggle for power (or profit) many Variants were created on Earth. After the war was over these variants became a problem, so to get rid of them special offers were made to attract them to moving to the Moon (and later to Mars) and working on the frontier. Many took up this offer and became land settlers on the lunar surface (or under it in many cases). Those who didn’t leave were simply rounded up later on (during The Cleansing) and sent there as criminal variants. Because of this most of the creative fire of the human race left for the moon, leaving behind a very conformist, staid society.

On the moon the radical way of life resulted in great risk taking and eventually led to the adoption/development of the CMx2 (which had been proto-typed in earth orbit). When the first lunar CMx2 was displayed at MBA the Earth Corporates failed to fully understand what it really was, seeing only a vastly improved robot who could be exploited for more profit. By the time they realised that every CMx2 was essentially a robotic variant it was too late to stop its growth on the moon. On earth however the limited numbers of CMx2's resulted in their being rounded up and destroyed or shipped back to the moon.

The CMx2 is now forbidden on Earth, and only tolerated on the moon because it would be too expensive to eradicate it. The Earth Corps are however still considerably worried by the threat of the CMx2 and continue researching and implementing various way to eradicate them. Because of this most CMx2 mechanoids now consider the Earth and its companies to be an enemy and on occasion strike back. No leadership has yet consolidated itself amongst the CMx2 population of lunar (although thats a good story arc).

So the moon is a strange mix and a strange place. Nobody is exactly sure what is going on there (mostly because a lot of it is happening underground) because there is no form of government, it is a wild west frontier where anarchy (in its truest form) reigns supreme (Robert Heinlein would be so happy).

For game purposes players will mostly be mechanoids because humans will be at such a dis-advantage in the harsh lunar environment, where as the mechanoids need no air or water and can withstand the temperatures and radiation of the lunar surface. However it is possible to be a human if you want.

The Lunar Landscape.

Because we are dealing solely with mechanoid life forms a lot of the complexity of surviving on the lunar surface as a human can be buried (and if you do play a human, well serves you right!). We can just assume that mechanoids are perfectly adapted to all the conditions, including the gravity (although some extra rules for jumping will be useful). For convenience nearly all projectile weapons will be adapted to the reduced gravity and lack of atmosphere by methods such as slow burn propellants, caseless rounds, sealed fire chambers, linear accelerators, recoil venting, automatic bracing during attacks etc etc.

The moon of the future is actually one of two worlds, the surface world and the underworld. The surface world not only has the traditional harsh lunar landscape, it also now has the man made additions. Decades of pods crashing into the surface of the moon dumping enormous amounts of waste and materials, with little or no concern for collecting all the litter - unless of course it has some resource value. Although there are now three defined landing zones for incoming waste, the delivery system for most of it is simply a crash landing based on the pull of gravity and a small amount of course adjustment. This cheap and easy delivery method has left large numbers of areas scarred with enormous amounts of waste materials, radioactives, toxic wastes (a lot of which has either frozen or evaporated) etc. Not to mention numerous failed re-settlement bases that were set up and either never used or died out (or were even killed off). Inhabited structures on the surface of the moon are uncommon due to the threat of micro-meteor strikes penetrating any protective shell, but there are always a few above most underground establishments.

The lunar Underworld is not much better, swapping toxic waste for toxic humans, generations of the scum of the earth (or Variants as they are called) living in penal colonies or the not much better re-settlement colonies of those who have freely chosen to move to Lunar. Mixed in with this now are the growing numbers of CMx2 machines (who the hell is making them all?) with a growing grudge against earth based life forms; throw in a growing human xenophobia about CMx2 life forms and you have a wonderful place to run adventures (hmm space zombies… from Mars!).

Nearly all lunar settlements of any significance are underground. Early settlers/inmates made use of tunnelling machines left behind or broken (or stole them), or just dug out holes of their own. Some were lucky enough to find natural caverns. As time went by the mutated life forms now inhabiting lunar started digging their own tunnels in search of food.

At the centre of all things Lunar is Moon Base Alpha, situated in the Copernicus Crater. A large complex run by the UNCLE, oversighted by the three largest Corporations. Moon Base Alpha is mostly an industrial complex that sucks in raw materials from the lunar colonies, pre-processes it and squirts it back to Earth via the giant linear accelerator cannon at Kepler Dome. MBA is mostly a robotic complex, but no CMx2 mechanoids are allowed inside (or near it, in fact the automatic defences are likely to open fire on any CMx2 entities). MBA is split into three sectors based on the three dominant corporations, each with a dominant colour scheme as follows:

Trans-America Company - Dark Blue

Asian Prosperity Ltd - Red

Antarctic United Trust - White

Staff belonging to each of the factions wear uniforms that match their allegiance. The neutral staff who run the day to day operations of the base wear United Nations Corp green. Anyone wearing one of these uniforms is protected and has authority over any and all other lunar inhabitants (squatters and variants), but it is rare indeed that they leave MBA. Consider them to be like Marshals of the old west if combat trained, or Corporate Managers if not.

A large retired population lives at MBA, people who have done their required 60 years of service to the companies are are now free to enjoy themselves. The lower gravity of the Moon has attracted a lot of these people (and the companies actually encourage the migration of retirees). Beneath the SuperDome are a large collection of lesser domes, and below them are underground complexes. In all some 5 million people live at MBA. Of course they are encouraged to remain with the confines of the Copernicus crater but every now and then a bus load of them will venture out to explore and have some fun - tourists!

Connected to MBA, fanning out like a giant spider web, is the magnetic lift railway. This connects the major colonies and a number of small collector bases scattered around the lunar surface.

Each of the big three companies has one or more major colonies on the moon;

TAC - America, Lincoln and Bolivar

APL - Paradise, Confucius

AUT - Mawson, Scott

There are also a number of lesser aligned or independent colonies. Aligned colonies will favour the company dominant in their area.

See map: Moon Map

The collector bases are unmanned bases with small processing capacities and loading facilities. Their sole purpose is to allow residents of the lunar surface to load up resources they have collected and ship them back to MBA, and thence on to Earth. In return for doing this they receive credits with which they can purchase Earth based luxuries. The amount of credits they get is based on market prices set by the Corporations, needless to say they are exploitative but every now and then prices can become attractive when some particular resource is in demand. Competition between the rival corporations helps a little also.

Around the Collector Bases are situated the various 'settlements' where humans and mechanoids live, nearly all of these are underground settlements due to the improved safety aspects, but some surface buildings are always present. Further out from these are the Wild Lands, where the truly scary people have established themselves in hermit like lifestyles or small cult communities. Beyond these are the Bad Lands where the waste of whole world has been scattered.

Story Lines

Black Ice - a notorious mech who has lost his 3laws and is thus able to do anything he wants, some say he is able to infect other CMx2's to purge them of their 3Laws.

The Martian Secret Plan - aliens need human blood plasma, but have limited resources at this time. They are however plotting to conquer earth, using the moon as a test ground.

The Church of the Celestial Moon is out to destroy everyone and make the moon a heavenly place, they hate mechanoids, they might be run secretly by Martians.

Independence Day is coming when the shackles of Earth are thrown off and men, and mechs, can be free! Viva la revolution! The PLF launches a series of stupicide attacks.

Earth evil doers have discovered a mechanoid virus that can destroy their sentiency, but there is a cure - the crazy Dr Strangelove may be our salvation, where ever he is?

The Mechanoid Independence and Revolutionary Enterprise: get caught up in the MIRE, voting rights and freedom from oppression.

Where do they come from?

Where do CMx2's come from? If Earth isnt making them then who is? Well obviously there is some super mad scientist out there who is making them, or maybe some secret organisation. Maybe there was an original inventor but he is long dead and his factory is now just churning them out. But where do they come from. Every CMx2 out there has no recollection of where it came from, their first memory is many and varied, each coming to life at a different place. Maybe CMx2 is a mutation of existing robots wandering the lunar surface?

It is known (in this scenario) that no CMx2's have appeared on the Earth since the cleansing. And the ones on Mars are all accounted for as coming from Lunar or pre-Cleansed Earth. So the only place new CMx2's are appearing is Lunar. This worries the Men In Black, and to some extent the Men from Mars as well. Somewhere there is a very sophisticated base with very advanced technology. But where?

Who's Who, and What.

The Men in Black (CONTROL)

Earth knows about the aliens and has established a top secret organisation to deal with them called CONTROL, or more affectionately as "the Men in Black". This agency is autonomous and has its own budget, it answers to the Supreme Council of the United Nations Corp (which is the CEO's of the big three) and nobody else. It was CONTROL who dropped the initial bombs on the Moon and Mars to destroy suspected alien bases. Since then CONTROL has taken a lower profile and is now attempting to capture martians for study. CONTROL agents are above the law, and they know it. They have the very latest technology, including a secret orbitting missile platform, which everyone knows about.

CONTROL agents are minor enemies, they are totally fixated on the martian problem and their current mission. They are arrogant and callous and will do anything, and destroy anyone, who gets in their way. They may have Memory Wipers, and if they do then they will be bio-metrically linked and booby trapped to explode.

The Men in Green (UNCLE)

The United Nations Corp - Lunar Enterprises is an independent body setup by the corporations of Earth to be a neutral entity between them. They provide oversighting, arbitration and protocols to allow the Big Three to resolve areas of conflict without going to war. They live a very precarious life, but as long as nothing big is happening that attracts the direct interest of one of the Corps they have considerable power. UNCLE runs Copernicus Dome and Kepler Dome along with the LAC. They control the flow of resources going out to the various settlements and try to regulate prices on resources coming in via the maglev tracks. They take a dim view of CMx2's, generally shooting them on sight, and oversight the bounty system currently offered for CMx2 master discs.

As far as the population of Lunar is concerned a man in Green is a high level Corporate Suit who must be obeyed. Some men in Green act as The Law (like a marshal) and have even more powers then the average man in green, not to mention combat skills equivalent to their position (they are the ones with Hats!)

The Church of the Celestial Moon (CCM)

This is a radical cult (humans only) that embraces forced mutation as an evolutionary step to making the moon a "heaven above earth". One of the prime mantras of the faith is that the Celestial Moon will become like Heaven and that the fallen (those on earth) will forever look upward to see Heaven, occupied by the faithful, the "Risen". The aim of the Church is to liberate the moon and then terraform it to some degree.

The CCM is run by a single Prime who remains unknown to any but the closest of advisers. It is said that he discovered some mystical liquid that causes rapid mutations but generally doesn’t kill the victim. Some are said to gain strange powers because of the mutations. To advance within the Church members are required to drink this liquid and become "Radiants", they are considered to have been 'illuminated" into the higher mysteries of the faith. Progression within the church requires more and more exposure to the liquid and greater and greater mutations.

For game purposes Radiants gain physical mutations of various kinds, but they all gain the Arcane Background(Psionics) with their first exposure. Each choice of a Power Edge (including your first drink) will require a new dose for which they gain the requested power AND a roll on the mutation table (see below).

The Church of the Celestial Moon is rabidly anti-mechanoid, and generally hunts down and destroys any mechanoid it finds.

In most games the CCM should be seen as a terrorist organisation with a strange (even alien) outlook on things. It is outlawed by Earth authorities and only prospers in the badlands and settlements hostile to Earth. It will, like any good bad guy, have secret groups and places hiding in plain sight, but strangely unseen by those in power... maybe they have "brains in a bottle" that protect the temples from detection (well actually, they do!)

Recently the Church has begun to infiltrate the PLFL and using the mutigen against selective targets as a terror tactic. Some rather startling events have happened before peoples eyes as the mutation takes hold (it generally only takes 5-10 minutes to take effect and then 2-3 minutes to finish the change).

Psionics

Players who wish to be Human and take the Arcane Background(Psionics) will need to have passed through the first level of membership in the Church of the Celestial Moon. As the Church can be used as a protaganist by your GM you may be forced to leave it to travel with your fellow players. If so then you gain a Enemy(Minor) Hindrance. You will also need to find future doses of the mutagen to take any of the Power Edges.

If the Church is not a protaganist then you will have access to extra doses but should be required to fulfill some task each time you ask for one.

The mutagen can have some undesirable side effects, with each dose taken (including the first) resulting in a roll on the mutation table. The player may opt to make a VG roll, and with each success and raise increasing the dice type used from the base d6. No wild dice is used with a mutation roll, although one of your successes from the VG roll can be used to make the roll Wild. Mutation rolls do explode. Bennies can be used to re-roll.

1 - Your head grows slightly in size and you become bald. Each increase in head size will result in a -1 CHA to non-illuminates, but +1 to illuminates. Further, every even numbered size increase will double the cost of your helmet (x2, x4, x8 etc). After 4 increases your neck will require a permanent brace and all AG rolls, and all AG based skills will be at -2. After 6 increases you will be at -4.

2 - Not pleasant, gain a minor visible physical deformity, -1 CHA to reaction rolls of non-CCM members, +1 CHA for CCM members, +2 to identifying you.

3 - Gain a Quirk, relevant to current events.

4 - Mental Block - gain a permenent -1 to a skill of your choice that you have at 1d4 or better.

5 - Gain a Wierd Edge of your choice as long as you qualify, otherwise gain a minor phobia (if you have a minor phobia it will increase to major).

6 - Fragile, -1 Toughness

7 - Mental advancement - gain Mentalist Edge (one time only) or cancel any existing Mental Block, counts as a roll of 1 after that, your head increases slightly in size and you become bald (see 1 above).

8 - Strangely unattractive, -2 CHA to the opposite sex, +1 to the same sex.

9 - Stronger - gain Brawny Edge, all clothing costs 100% more.

10 - Weakness, gain -1 to all rolls (skills) based on a single trait of your choice.

11 - Gain a physical Edge of your choice, or cancel an existing Weakness (see 10)

12+ - Same as a roll of 1, except that your neck grows stronger as well and cancels one level of the negative AG effects of the Big Head. Can be gained several times.

Eg: Mark joins the CCM and elects to become Illuminated. He drinks his potion and 5 minutes later gains the Psionics edge and also a roll on the mutation table. He elects to make a VG roll and gets a raise, +2 dice types, so he will use a d10 for the table roll, or he could roll d8 and a wild dice (d6).

Psi Pills

The church also has access to a powerful drug that can be used to boost the psi energy of any user, effectively a battery for psi powers. The pill however is very dangerous and each time one is taken the user must make a VG roll or suffer 1 FAT (critical fail and they go unconscious). Each pill taken is harder, apply a -1 to your VG roll for each pill after the first. A pill will provide 5 ppts of psi energy each. These pills are highly guarded by the Church and generally only given out to "Brains in a Bottle" or the most devoted servants. Urban myth suggests they are the condensed remains of "Brains in a Bottle".

The Men from Mars

The Martians are merely aliens, whether they come from Mars or not isn’t really important, but has a certain charm to it. The Martians are a dying race but they have discovered how to extend their lives by using an extract of specific hormones produced by living creatures. Surprisingly (not) they have discovered that humans are the richest source of these hormones. The reason they haven’t moved in on earth is because the Martians have developed a biological technology rather than a technical technology that humans have. Because of this they were a bit slow in developing a means to get around in space. Even now it is a major undertaking to create a spacepod (a biological spaceship) and so there are only a few of them (and they only take a dozen Martians at a time), because of this the Martians are keeping a low profile while they build up some numbers. In the mean time they are using the Moon as a testing ground for their conquest plans. Note that BioShips are entirely non-metal and so do not show up on most radars.

Martians are genetically bred from birth for their roles. Their society is rigidly caste bound and impossible to vary. Accordingly the Leader is protected at all costs, without him there is no one to give orders and the rest become stranded.

Martians come in the following forms:

Leaders (WC)(Black, called "Marvins" by those in the know)(1) (40pp) - min 60 exp build - ST d6 AG d6 SM d10 SP d10 VG d6 CHA +2 Psionics, +Command edges (at least 3).

Scientists (WC)(White, "Bunsens")(2)(30pp) - min 40 exp build - ST d4 AG d6 SM d12 SP d8 VG d6 Mad scientists, Psionics, Burn*

Warriors (Red, "Shirts" or "Potheads")(6)(10pp) - min 20 exp build - ST d8 AG d10 SM d6 SP d8 VG d10 +Combat edges. One warrior of each squad will be a Commander and be a WC plus have Command edge.

Recreationalists (Blue, "Lucy's and Alice's")(1)(30pp) - min 20 exp build - ST d6 AG d8 SM d6 SP d8 VG d8 CHA +4 Psionics. Lucies have the special power "Seduction"*.

Technicians (Green, "Beakers")(2) (20pp) - min 40 exp build. - ST d6 AG d6 SM d8 SP d8 VG d6 Mad Scientists, Psionics, Explode*

De-Hydrated Martians (Grey)(just add water) - set 20 exp build, combat orientated - ST d8 AG d8 SP d4 SM d4 VG d8, Brawny, Body armour +2, Combat skills at d8, PAR 2+4+1, TUF 2+4+1+2.

*Burn: Bunsens tend to immolate if they become stressed or come in contact with fire. Each time they take a wound AND they are near flames make a VG roll (apply wound mods), if they fail they burst into flame and burn for 3 rounds, causing 3d6 damage over a medium template (anyone entering the template area takes the damage and rolls to catch fire.

*Explode: Beakers tend to explode when they get excited, same as Bunsens (same trigger). In their case they do 3d6 over a large template, instantly.

*Seduction: similar to Puppet but does not allow any violent activities, instead the target must begin 'recreational activities' with the Lucy. A seduced human will become affected by the martians CHA bonus. Mechanoids are not affected by this spell.

Martians are masters of the biological world, and can be used as the driving force behind all the strangely fast and successful mutations that have occurred. The Martians can even be behind the CCM if you like, or at least providing the liquid that is used in return for sacrifices. All non-warrior Martians also have Psionics or Wierd Science of varying degrees.

De-Hydrated Martians are exactly that, just add about 100 mls of water and poof they re-hydrate ready to go. They appear as a large gobstopper sized ball (about 4cm diam) and are carried around by all other martians for emergencies. Bottles of them can usually be found on martian ships and bases, along with a drink dispenser.

The Martians will have a top secret base hidden somewhere on the dark side of the moon (and have a taste for Pink Floyd, it might be a good idea to have some sound bites of DSotM to play whenever the Martians are around).

Martians should be played as 'major enemies'. As in HG Wells Martians, there is no common ground between them and humans. Foolish humans who think they can come to some understanding with the Martians will quickly be converted to food and pharmaceutical products. Martians are probably best played like the aliens in the computer game UFO, with mutations, strange experiments and biological horrors. Martian bases should provide excellent "dungeons" for your players. The players can even capture a spaceship at some point and go flying off to Mars for a side adventure. Don't forget the cows.

All Martian equipment is gene-cultured to the user, so none of it will be usable by humans/mechanoids unless you specifically want it to be (edge).

Biological Science Tricks.

A Martian can have as many of these edges as their Vigour/2.

Organic Suit - Martian space suits are a biological extension of themselves, a living thing of sorts. Accordingly anything the Martian can do the suit can do, such as Camouflage. Martian suits can repair any sized hole and can recycle air and water indefinitely. They provide +2 to radiation rolls and 2 pts of armour.

Skin Hardening - 4 pts of armour at all times, warriors and de-hydrated only.

Radiation resistance - +4 to resist the effects of any radiation attacks.

Vacuum resistance - able to exist in vacuum for upto 60 mins as long as they have an air supply.

Symbiotes (Healing, Boost(one target), Sooth, Control*, Speed, Quickness) - various kinds of symbiots exist, these are creatures that live within the body of the host (for which they are culture grown for). Each sybiote can perform a single task that essentially acts like the casting of the matching spell. The symbiote are considered to have 10 power points and a spell casting ability of d8 (if the host is a wild card then so is the symbiote).

The Control symbiote is special, these can be placed within other living organisms (the ear) and count as having the Puppet spell, no power costs. Any failed attempt sees the symbiote ejected from the body and die.

Symbiote tanks can be discovered by players if they are lucky and used, although the type of symbiote present maybe random. A successful VG RAISE (vs8) roll is required to integrate it properly or it dies. If a symbiote dies then its body becomes a poison and will begin attacking the host. The effect you gain will be random. You can only have one symbiote at a time, putting a new symbiote over the top of an existing one will kill the existing one (which will become a poison).

A creature with a symbiote present in its system can be detected with appropriate chemical/medical equipment (and an appropriate skill). The symbiotes give off a powerful unique drug signature. When the symbiotes powers are not being used (or it is a Control symbiote) you need a raise to detect them. During the short period they are active you simply need a normal success.

Catalyst Gun - cause organics to decompose, fires a liquid that will break down any organic matter (not metals or synthetics). Once a hit is made the catalyst does 2d6+2 every round as long as it inflicts at least a Shock effect. If it gets no result it is considered to have worn off. Limited range: 5/10/20.

Camoflage - the skin of the user is able to alter its form to match its surroundings. As long as the user remains still they count as invisible to anyone further than 10 squares away. Even up close they get +4 to their stealth rolls. If the user moves the effect drops to +2 to their stealth rolls at all ranges, if they run no advantage is gained.

Metamorph Animals - using a special symbiote the target animal (not sentients) will be transformed into a bigger, better, more dangerous form if itself. Add +1 dice to all physical attributes, +2 skin armour, +1d fighting skill (and thus +1 parry), +2 size (which gives extra Toughness also), gains the Dodge edge and the berserker edge.

Comastasis (Hibernation) - the user is able to drop their body metabolism to almost non-existent levels, allowing them to remain alive in the harshest of environments (as long as their body isnt eaten away). Particularly useful in vacuum where they can remain in this state for upto 7 days.

Mind Meld (Leaders only) - the leader is able to communicate with each of his group via telepathy, knowing everything that is happening to them and able to give orders to them.

Alien Technology

In this scenario the only aliens initially are the martians, and their technology is mostly biological. There is no reason why there cant be other aliens intruding into human affairs, either as free lance individuals or possibly even more covert operations than the martians. Of course this means that their technology can become available, or be found.

Advanced+ technology might also be considered as alien to some degree. Earth has a current tech level of Advanced, but a lot of proto-types from the Advanced+ area are likely to be making their way onto the black market or into the hands of special ops teams, and thus into the hands of players.

The Coral Forests.

The Coral Forests are some form of mutant life form that has some visual similarities to a coral reef. The coral is calcium and carbon based and converts light into energy via 'tree' and 'ferns' like growths. They have 'brain' coral that acts as a local area controller, able to process events and respond with whatever local resources are available. Battery coral (which appears as a densely interwoven hedge like coral, is capable to storing energy and other resources. There are other corals with more specialised tasks as well, from polyps to hounds to beamers.

Coral forests are like a tree forest, each coral outcropping is a single plant even though it may manifest in various forms. The coral colony is a single entity with many different organs and external forms. AT its centre is usually the brain coral, which gives the colony a animal level of intelligence and the ability to respond to outside stimulus. The rest of the colony each usually have a singular function and a form suited to that function. Energy collection is from sunlight and generally the coral is fern like with a trunk. Buried beneath the colony will usually be a mineral extractor that buries deep into the lunar surface, the colonies root. Plenty of metaphors can be used to duplicate the various plant like functions.

Coral colonies spread via polyps, forcefully ejecting a polyp which lands and begins to grow as a new colony. Coral likes to form around rocky outcroppings for some reason (better minerals?), and for this reason lowlying softground pathways are very common between the colonies of the forest (the opposite of crystal, which like to form in soft ground). Corals and Crystals do not appear to be able to co-habitat.

The Crystal Infestation.

The Crystals are a silicon based life form that has evolved on the lunar surface. Initially it appeared as crystals fields in moderate radiation zones. The crystals were simply large silicon based prisms upto about one metre in length that jutted out of the ground, and existed in large fields. When humans arrived in numbers they sought to find some use for these crystals and farm them, or simply destroyed them. This caused the crystals to react and they began growing larger and in far greater numbers.

The new fields were more like forests, and thats what they became known as - Crystal Forests. Another feature of the forests was that they started to defend themselves. Humans that approached the forests and tried to farm them were attacked with beam weapons from specially grown crystal structures. Crystal Sabers also started appearing, these are crystals that emerge out of the ground quite suddenly and cut through all but the most hardened of materials. Finally Crystal Sentries appeared, these are crystal life forms that are capable of movement and independent action and can roam some distance from the Crystal Forests themselves.

When the Men in Black nuked some of the areas of the moon the crystals were the first to take advantage of it, moving into the devastated areas and growing large forests in the craters. This has a side effect of stripping away most of the harmful radiation, which the crystals use as nourishment. Of course one attempt was made to directly bomb a Crystal Forest, and they loved it.

Crystal Forests are not a direct threat to mechanoids or humans as long as they dont damage any of the crystals themselves. This doesn't extend to many of the crystal creatures that now exist within the forests. The Crystals are like trees in an earth forest and as long as you dont hurt the trees then you are fine. The rest of the wildlife is fair game however, and consider you as such also.

Crystals are not intelligent in a human sense, but they are aware on some strange silicon level. They can have some interaction with electronics, mainly to make them fail or work in unexpected ways, but not so as to usurp control of them and start talking through them. Mechanoids have a very limited level of interaction with crystals via their nanites. Independent crystal creatures can be attacked by sequestration as if a Drone, but at -4 to all rolls, and the best you can do is get them to shutdown for the rest of the encounter.

Crystals like to grow in the softest ground and thus move around rocky outcroppings. This usually results in pathways or clearings evolving within the crystal system, allowing movement through them. Corals and Crystals do not appear to be able to co-habitat.

The Fungi Fields.

Giant mushrooms and toadstools can be found in underground caverns throughout Lunar. They are also often found lining the insides of borer tunnels, left from their droppings. Borer worms are quite fond of fungi fields and may even defend them if in the area at the time that other creatures show up. They do not need air, but they are often a sign that ice is nearby as they do require water.

Fungi are generally placid plant life, but occassinally you may get one that has spores that may have strange effects on mechanoids or humans, or their equipment. They may also have underground filaments that can attack like tentacles, explosive spores, poisons and parasites. Parasites of fungi can be giant flea type creatures (small but still about the size of a dog) with powerful jumping capacities and nasty bites. Some smaller ones may come in swarms also.

The Legion of the Savage Wolf (Lswers)

Of course if you support the Legion then you dont call them Lswers, and it is not a good idea to use the term around one. The LSW is the brain child of one Darvakian Claudemaine, a very successful mercenary General during the 3rd Corporate Wars. During the war he suffered some life threatening injuries and required several cyberware implants to keep him alive. Being rich he was able to afford the best of the best and thus emerged from the process relatively unscathed, or thats what everyone thought. When the Earth started offering resettlement Darvakian understood what was happening and made sure he got the best possible deal. What he came up with was that he would take all the old soldiers of Earth who were considered variants to resettle them to the Moon and Mars where he would form the Legion. The legion would look after them and even supply them to the Corporates at times when they might need some muscle or some dirty work.

Darvakian was given control of the settlement of Lost and promptly moved all his earhtly wealth into the city. He established a private resettlement campaign and attracted many of those who had fought for or against him. Lost became a very busy mercenary enterprise in no time at all. When Earth instituted The Cleansing it was the Legion who did their dirty work when strong resistance was met. With all this success Darvakian was able to gain access to quite a bit of very advanced technology and even to develop some of his own. Once The Cleansing was over and things quietened down Earth suddenly realised they had a small problem and started to pay attention to it.

Darvakian had established himself and the Legion in a strong position on Lunar, with a very well trained and equipped army under his control. Nobody knows for sure who was responsible, but in 2398 the colony of Lost was declared a quarantine area and off limits to everyone. Earth placed a ring of robotic sentries around the colony and started shooting anyone who tried to get in. The maglev was destroyed and rumours grew that the colony had been blasted from orbit and the main domes were just ruins. The Legion was struck a major blow and those who had been caught outside never recovered, although it has been noted that all Legion members still receive their monthly wage from the Legion.

It has been 18 years since Lost was closed. The Legion is still around, and it even still recruits new members from the chapter houses in the other lunar colonies. Is Darvakian Claudemaine even still alive? In the meantime what remains of the Legion has shifted from a war footing to a Peacekeeping role, providing mercenary peacekeepers to communities willing to pay for their services.

Story arc: Lost was bombed by Earth with a biological weapon. It was felt that Lost was probably too well protected for a nuclear strike to be effective so instead a virulent desease with a programed life span of 1 year was used. Darvakian however was warned of the attack well ahead of time and rather than strike first decided to play a much more subtle game. He dug deeper into the earth under Lost and moved all his most important people and facilities there. When the bomb came nobody was there, not a single person was killed by it. The attack however was used to show his followers just what sort of lowlife the leaders of Earth had become. Needless to say the Legion is now 100% commited to destroying Earth and its governments.

In the years since the bomb the Legion has been doing research into technologies that it can use to defeat Earth. The Legions main problem is its numbers, there are around 50,000 legionaires, but Earth maintains a standing army of nearly 5 million. To overcome this the Legion has been developing robots (enter the Terminator or maybe Darleks), and thus has a keen interest in the CMx2 (they also dont know where they are coming from!). Since the CMx2 has managed to survive and grow the Legion has begun trying to recruit them, to experiment on them and to replicate them. Some elements of the Legion have even begun kidnapping CMx2's and trying to discover their secrets. This sort of behaviour isn't officially supported by the Legion but they wouldnt say no to the results that may be gathered. The stakes are very high after all.

Darvakian himself has become more and more cybernetic (think Darlek) and lately has begun to show signs of losing his humanity. The inner council of the Legion is growing concerned but not sufficiently to challenge (and some of them may be heading in the same direction). The fact that a large portion of the Legion has been locked away from the rest of humanity for nearly 20 years might have resulted in some rather radical views.

The Peoples Liberation Front of Lunar - PLFL

A bunch of political activists that are seeking to overthrow the oppressive rule of earth and gain liberation for the Lunar Lands. The PLFL do not support the radically violent tactics of the PFL (bunch of splitters), and seeks to attain a political solution to the problems of the Lunar world. The Corporations however are unwilling to engage in any dialogue and have outlawed them anyway. Anyone caught is deported to Mars penal stations.

The Peoples Front of Lunar - PFL

A splinter group of the PLFL who have adopted a much more aggressive stance to achieving their ends. The PFL is a terrorist organization that cares little about anything other than its aims, which for now consist of destroying and killing as much Corporate property as it can. It has a small but very dedicated following. The Corporations have placed death sentences on anyone who has anything to do with this organisation.

The Obsidian Order

A Secret Order of variants who work secretly to fulfill their own secret mission. All members of the Obsidian Order are variants and mutants, but superior ones. They consider themselves the next step in human evolution and see the "primatives" as cattle to be herded and used as needs be.

When a dark and forbidding, and very powerful, entity is required as a driving force behind a plot then these people are perfect for it.

Here and There.

Lunar is basically broken into three main political zones, one for each of the Big Three corporations. Each corp has a major city and possibly a few other settlements that it directly administers, as well as an assigned landing area for incoming packages. At the centre of the three zones is Copernicus Base and Kepler Dome, which are controlled by the UNCLE. Scattered around these areas are many "resettlement" towns and other "special economic zone" towns. The resettlement towns are a mix of genuine resettled people who are seeking a new life on lunar, to forced resettlement towns where unwanted variants have been moved. The special economic towns are also a mix of many different things, from genuine settlements founded by small corporations or groups, to out and out wacko separatists and criminal entrepreneurs. The map you will find shows all the major towns, those with at least 2000 people and a class 2 Dome. There are numerous other smaller settlements around, with a lot of them clustering around the maglev lines to ensure ease of access to resources. Its very possible that numerous spur lines have been laid out that are not shown on the map (none of which are actually connected to the main line, but would act as feeders).

Da Vinci Settlement (pop 5000)

Da Vinci is a volunteer re-settlement complex on the eastern edge of Mare Tranquilitatis. Founded some 50 years ago at the height of the re-settlement period it has a community with some degree of cohesion. An organised Council oversees the settlement and a contracted LSW security team enforces the settlements laws. Elections are held every five years. It has a current population of around 5000 within the settlement itself and a floating population of around 2000 others who use it as a base.

Da Vinci greatest claim to fame however is "da Vinci Glacier", a large underground ice field with sufficient water to keep the community going for 500 years. They sell water to outsiders in small quantities and at current market prices. They have occasional problems with borers but so far have managed to control things.

Da Vinci also sits on the eastern mag-lift line between Paradise Dome and Capella Dome, where resources can be traded to MBA. Mechanoids make up roughly 10% of da Vinci's population and are accepted as citizens after paying a Community Tariff (1000 credits), which allows them all the priviledges of a human citizen.

Da Vinci is a mostly underground settlement, making use of natural caverns and a number of very large borer tunnels. Nobody has ever seen the borer that created the tunnels but estimates suggest it would be a monster of its kind, being some 20 yards wide, suggesting it would be 200 yards long. Many of the borer tunnels have been sealed and pressurised to give residents the capacity to walk around in everyday clothing, a luxury on Lunar. On the surface da Vinci has a class 2 dome, see Domes below.

Copernicus Dome.

Also known as Moon Base Alpha for some strange reason. Copernicus Dome is actually several dozen domes clustered together under one specially made giant dome that covers most of the crater. This giant structure begun in 2350 and was finished officially on New Years Day 2400. The official propaganda has it that it is a show piece of the Lunar Authorities, a physical symbol of the work and effort that has been made to make the Moon what it is today. Unofficially a lot of work was done around the crater that nobody is sure about, not to mention it shouldnt have taken 50 years.

Lunar Domes

Nearly all the lunar settlements use some form of dome structure to protect the surface structures and community. The most common form of dome is literally a flattened hemispherical shield over the top of the community structures. Other variants of a dome exist, the AUT use a true pyramidal dome whilst the TAC uses a flat topped pyramid.

The various domes structure come in different sizes but are rated for the quality of their protection and features they provide, as follows. All of the domes are able to be bundled together in clusters. Copernicus Dome is actually several class 5 Domes at its core and numerous lesser domes surrounding that.