Arx Imbrium
14-09-2004, 15:23
((So this is basically a description and information page... I'm not sure where else to put this, perhaps it can evolve into an RP of sorts too. Please check out the training thread too if you wish to be a part of things... http://forums2.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?p=7023592 ))
The Citadel of Dreams. The largest 'city' in Arx Imbrium, if you can call it that. Most of the population lives within the thick rock walls and deep beneath the surface of the earth. Heat is tapped through geothermal vents and water is either in the form of subterranean wells (Certain water traders are nomadic and travel wells on the fringes as they refill during certain seasons), or in a certain anomaly only found in Arx Imbrium: Water crystals. Pure, clean water trapped within a crystal about the size of a man's hand. They are used as currency and many are also stored as emergency supplies, as the about eight ounces of water within can be consumed immediately after breaking the crystal. We tend to keep them in crystal form rather than pour them into tanks as we find them, because the crystals themselves are easily more portable and the race of humans in Arx Imbrium have developed a resistance to dehydration and can live on minimal water supply.
The 'leaders' of the Citadel, and Arx Imbrium itself are Jake and Mia Silveira. A married couple, with an eight year old daughter named Talia. They work as hard as the rest of the citizens, digging tunnels, performing maintenance on ships and equipment, as well as doling out water crystals from the treasury. It is mostly a communistic state, as Jake and Mia don't exert any sort of power other than being seen as a rallying cry in times of need as well as a sort of law when deciding disputes.
At the age of six, children are assigned to a ship and train for two years aboard the vessel, learning the ways of the sands and how to care for their equipment. From there they decide their branch of service and their particular occupation. Those undecided follow the path their parents took and thus glean more knowledge from their elders in the family. No children in the country are exempt, even the nomadic water traders perform their own hard two-year training with their families aboard their vessels as they always have. Occupations range from gunners to weapon loaders to miners and medics. All personnel are armed and are allowed to carry anything they own openly. All citizens are assigned a weapon upon completing training (At age eight) and are given one that suits their occupation as well as access to the ammunition dumps. Full armory access is restricted to authorized personnel and full-time soldiers or guards unless a state of emergency is called.
As an 'Armed Republic', with weapon laws being nearly nonexistent, disputes are generally settled the old fashioned way. Duels are allowed by law, and any high profile offenders are simply shot and tossed to the sands to be consumed by them. Dust to dust. Despite the lax laws, nearly all citizens are responsible with their weapons and adhere to what are nearly tribal traditions. Rigid and proud in our ways.
The technology level of Arx Imbrium is surprisingly high. Advanced purification and synthesis systems are used in conjunction with certain methods of hydroponic farming to create enough food for the populace. Weapons technology ranges from laser sharpened blades for close combat, base slugthrowers from handguns to assault rifles, to magnetically accelerated railguns. The current mainstay rifle uses a combination of propellant and magnetics that is a hybrid of sorts. The largest weapons, being single-shot rail cannons and plasma launchers are bulky, cumbersome, and are only used as fixed emplacements on larger ships and defenses.
Most things are jury-rigged and hand made, weapons coming from craftsmen instead of factories, systems often running completely half-assed with vigilant technicians coaxing more out of them before finally gathering the proper parts to do the job. Regardless, it takes a long time for something to break down due to the care put into building it in the first place.
Vehicles consist mostly of large sand crawlers, dedicated battleships using both sand induction engines and massive metal treads to propel themselves across the sand. The largest of these is the Leviathan, the flagship of the Arx Imbrium fleet and crewed by the hardest veterans of the country by Lieutenant Fio Darksands. The smaller ships utilize high-powered sand induction engines and often wind power as well for the smallest to race across the sands. Several submersibles have also been developed, though they are used rarely. Aircraft are minimal, consisting of single-man vtol interceptors and transports that can carry sixteen fully-geared soldiers at the most. The interceptors themselves are frightfully maneuverable, but carry little fuel and remain as short range defense or scouts for larger cruisers.
The biggest defenses the country has are its terrain and climate. The sands of Arx Imbrium present an Arrakis-like landscape, rock outcroppings dotting the 'seas' miles apart from each other. By day the temperatures exeed 130 degrees Fahrenheit and at night they drop below freezing. To top it off, violent dust storms plague the open wastes, the only shelter being dug-in camps, large sandships, or the cities themselves as they can lift medium-sized vehicles and tear flesh and armor alike with their fury.
Despite the high technology and distinct resilience of the troops, our main disadvantage is we are completely landlocked. Our vehicles are specialized to use our terrain to its fullest and would cease to function on anything other than the pure sand that we live on. We have nothing for use in water, no navies, and very little in the way of aircraft. No spacecraft, no satellites... it is merely home and yet it is everything. Our currency is all but worthless to other nations, since it is more utility in nature than a precious metal or a printed bill. All we can offer in a conflict outside of our borders are our well trained infantry, which may serve as among the best in the world.
The Citadel of Dreams. The largest 'city' in Arx Imbrium, if you can call it that. Most of the population lives within the thick rock walls and deep beneath the surface of the earth. Heat is tapped through geothermal vents and water is either in the form of subterranean wells (Certain water traders are nomadic and travel wells on the fringes as they refill during certain seasons), or in a certain anomaly only found in Arx Imbrium: Water crystals. Pure, clean water trapped within a crystal about the size of a man's hand. They are used as currency and many are also stored as emergency supplies, as the about eight ounces of water within can be consumed immediately after breaking the crystal. We tend to keep them in crystal form rather than pour them into tanks as we find them, because the crystals themselves are easily more portable and the race of humans in Arx Imbrium have developed a resistance to dehydration and can live on minimal water supply.
The 'leaders' of the Citadel, and Arx Imbrium itself are Jake and Mia Silveira. A married couple, with an eight year old daughter named Talia. They work as hard as the rest of the citizens, digging tunnels, performing maintenance on ships and equipment, as well as doling out water crystals from the treasury. It is mostly a communistic state, as Jake and Mia don't exert any sort of power other than being seen as a rallying cry in times of need as well as a sort of law when deciding disputes.
At the age of six, children are assigned to a ship and train for two years aboard the vessel, learning the ways of the sands and how to care for their equipment. From there they decide their branch of service and their particular occupation. Those undecided follow the path their parents took and thus glean more knowledge from their elders in the family. No children in the country are exempt, even the nomadic water traders perform their own hard two-year training with their families aboard their vessels as they always have. Occupations range from gunners to weapon loaders to miners and medics. All personnel are armed and are allowed to carry anything they own openly. All citizens are assigned a weapon upon completing training (At age eight) and are given one that suits their occupation as well as access to the ammunition dumps. Full armory access is restricted to authorized personnel and full-time soldiers or guards unless a state of emergency is called.
As an 'Armed Republic', with weapon laws being nearly nonexistent, disputes are generally settled the old fashioned way. Duels are allowed by law, and any high profile offenders are simply shot and tossed to the sands to be consumed by them. Dust to dust. Despite the lax laws, nearly all citizens are responsible with their weapons and adhere to what are nearly tribal traditions. Rigid and proud in our ways.
The technology level of Arx Imbrium is surprisingly high. Advanced purification and synthesis systems are used in conjunction with certain methods of hydroponic farming to create enough food for the populace. Weapons technology ranges from laser sharpened blades for close combat, base slugthrowers from handguns to assault rifles, to magnetically accelerated railguns. The current mainstay rifle uses a combination of propellant and magnetics that is a hybrid of sorts. The largest weapons, being single-shot rail cannons and plasma launchers are bulky, cumbersome, and are only used as fixed emplacements on larger ships and defenses.
Most things are jury-rigged and hand made, weapons coming from craftsmen instead of factories, systems often running completely half-assed with vigilant technicians coaxing more out of them before finally gathering the proper parts to do the job. Regardless, it takes a long time for something to break down due to the care put into building it in the first place.
Vehicles consist mostly of large sand crawlers, dedicated battleships using both sand induction engines and massive metal treads to propel themselves across the sand. The largest of these is the Leviathan, the flagship of the Arx Imbrium fleet and crewed by the hardest veterans of the country by Lieutenant Fio Darksands. The smaller ships utilize high-powered sand induction engines and often wind power as well for the smallest to race across the sands. Several submersibles have also been developed, though they are used rarely. Aircraft are minimal, consisting of single-man vtol interceptors and transports that can carry sixteen fully-geared soldiers at the most. The interceptors themselves are frightfully maneuverable, but carry little fuel and remain as short range defense or scouts for larger cruisers.
The biggest defenses the country has are its terrain and climate. The sands of Arx Imbrium present an Arrakis-like landscape, rock outcroppings dotting the 'seas' miles apart from each other. By day the temperatures exeed 130 degrees Fahrenheit and at night they drop below freezing. To top it off, violent dust storms plague the open wastes, the only shelter being dug-in camps, large sandships, or the cities themselves as they can lift medium-sized vehicles and tear flesh and armor alike with their fury.
Despite the high technology and distinct resilience of the troops, our main disadvantage is we are completely landlocked. Our vehicles are specialized to use our terrain to its fullest and would cease to function on anything other than the pure sand that we live on. We have nothing for use in water, no navies, and very little in the way of aircraft. No spacecraft, no satellites... it is merely home and yet it is everything. Our currency is all but worthless to other nations, since it is more utility in nature than a precious metal or a printed bill. All we can offer in a conflict outside of our borders are our well trained infantry, which may serve as among the best in the world.