The Collapse: When the Earth Shook Us Off
It all began with the Collapse. That was many generations ago, and the stories about it sound almost like ghost stories today. It wasn't an ordinary war. It was a fatal synchronization of catastrophic natural events: Raging floods, all-consuming firestorms, and earthquakes that shook the continents. It was a devastating time that wiped out almost all evidence of what life actually looked like before.
Today, we only see the skeletons of that time. Look at the ruins on the surface – the abandoned, buried, and forgotten cities. A perfect example is the map of the Buried City. Before the sand swallowed everything, this place was known as Morano. Just recently, heavy winds have uncovered parts of the city again. If you creep through the ruins, you can still see the old signs – they are the gravestones of a civilization whose names we have almost forgotten.
The Exodus: The Escape of the Valerus
But while the world burned, there was hope – at least for those who could afford it. Technology was highly advanced back then, and space travel was just becoming a real option. A company called Acera seems to have pulled the strings here.
The historical event of the Exodus took place. A handful of wealthy survivors, whom we now call the Valerus, managed to escape the destruction. They boarded technological marvels that have long since been lost to oblivion and launched themselves into space.
"While we struggle for every bullet down here, we know they are out there. Survivors in space."
When you stand at the Spaceport today, you look upon the colossal launch towers. They are visible for miles – gigantic monuments of technological progress that we can hardly imagine today. From here, the Exodus shuttles roared into the sky, laden with hope and despair.
Perhaps future paths will lead us to space stations or even the moon. That would really be something. Even our current infrastructure is a legacy of the Exodus. The network of tunnels, pipes, and extraction points that we Raiders use dates back to this time. Originally, they were built to transport tons of material for the construction of the Exodus sites. This vast system of freight elevators and rapid transit routes was later repurposed and is today what we know as our civilian metro line.
The Age of Sunrise: A Brief Respite
After the elite were gone and the majority of the population was wiped out, deep darkness prevailed. But generations later, the Age of Sunrise arrived. The elders still tell stories of it today. It was an era of optimism. The planet's ecology began to regenerate, old technologies were rediscovered, and humans built an organized society once again.
During this time, the hydroponic domes were built, which you can find today on the map at the Alcantara Dam in the murky swamp. They were a bold experiment to make humanity less dependent on gathered roots, mushrooms, and berries. It was an attempt to live again instead of just surviving. But the peace was deceptive.
The First Wave: When Radars Show 'ARCs'
Then came the First Wave. An event that burned itself into the memory of those who survived it. The ARC robots began to rain from the sky in massive swarms, destroying all stability of the Age of Sunrise. Have you ever wondered why we call them 'ARC'? It’s because of the radar systems of the people on the surface. When the machines arrive from orbit, they leave a characteristic arc-shaped display on the monitors – an ARC. These first machines were still very rudimentary. The Raiders of that time quickly found their weaknesses and built a network of outposts and defenses that you still see as ruins on the maps today.
The nightmare of that time were the Leapers – six-legged mechanical walkers, imposing and surprisingly adaptable. After the last Leaper was defeated in the Rust Belt, they were never seen there again. But the rumors persist: in the remote, desolate regions of Speranza, they are said to still roam. The rusted shells we find today are monuments to the Battle of Victory Ridge, where organized Raiders defeated the ARC from rocky heights and ended the First Wave.
The Second Wave and the Toledo Underground
But humanity celebrated too soon. The ARCs are capable of learning. We know from old data codices that they constantly refine their designs and tactics. This brings us to today: the Second Wave. This time, the machines are highly advanced, efficient, and merciless. They have finally forced us underground. Our world is now Toledo, a gigantic underground city that is actually a patchwork of isolated neighborhoods. These communities are far apart and separated by tons of debris.
Speranza is the oldest of these neighborhoods. It was founded at the beginning of the Second Wave as an independent settlement, built deep into old underground structures and buildings that had been swallowed by massive sinkholes long ago. Here in Toledo, people look out for themselves. They sometimes work together, but mostly, mistrust prevails.
This is where we Raiders come in. We are the only source of rare goods for the inhabitants of Toledo. But because resources are so scarce, we Raiders have become territorial and hostile. This is the true face of the struggle out there: everyone is on their own, trying to bring the best loot home to their community – even if it means taking it from another Raider by force.
The Harvest and the Arms Race
Why are they here? We observe them during Harvest events. The ARC probes the ground and harvests natural resources with destructive efficiency. A gigantic Queen ARC guards these collection points before the raw materials are sent back into orbit. Some believe they are alien invaders. Others are certain: it is Acera, exploiting us from above.
But we are not defenseless. Almost everything we use is the result of reverse engineering. Our inventors in Toledo have learned to repurpose ARC technology. Our energy shields, our gadgets, and grenades – it’s all stolen technology from the machines. This is the world you step out into today, Raider. An eternal arms race between man and machine, between neighborhood and neighborhood. Watch your back. Up there, there are no friends, only loot and scrap metal.