Vehicles and Vessels

I'm only covering these in the most basic sense. I haven't fully developed all the vehicles and vessels of Crandox yet.

• Hovercars: hovering vehicles that are basic and for citizens. 
• Hoverliners: long slim aerodynamic ships that cruise the air on two magnetic thruster engines.
• ATRs (All Terrain Rovers): These two-legged tanks can cover an entire span of 50km in under 90minutes. Used mostly to carry armed forces to and from the battle field and serve as tanks during battles. They are equipped with two powerful assault energy guns and two small rocket launchers.
• ATMCCs (All Terrain Mobile Command Centers): Though many in number, only two are ever present at any one battlefront. This is where orders are given and where tactical planning is done from.
• YlenTech Flitters "Darts": Darts are the militia slang for the fighters that are based in mountains. These fast ships are designed to maneuver around jagged canyons and through high pressure winds where normal ground troops would suffer. They are used mostly in any situation involving superior air tactics where dirt pounders would take days to fight.
• Shuttles: A cross between hovercars and Darts, these fast moving craft are often used for insertion missions, extractions, transportation, medical and private use.

Weapons and Technology (just a listing)

• BE7M: an ordinary soldiers laser rifle used in ground skirmishes. The BE7M comes equipped with a  scope (it can range from 0x to 2x), an ammo counter above the magazine housing. It is a basic warfare weapon, everyone--including commandos, infantry, snipers, air force, marines--are taught how to handle one. The BE7M is the latest from Libertia and Rulnudor Research and Development.
• Shield generators: they come in all sizes, ranging from hand sized to suitcase size to single story house size. The small hand-sized ones are personal shield generators and protect only the bearer. The suitcase-sized ones are used in small groups of infiltrators/saboteurs; one person carries it with the group to protect from being attacked. The single story house-sized ones are for the battlefield. 
• Particle cannon: For size, think from your shoulder to your fingertips. That's how long this weapon is. it is black with blue energy pulsing inside the main chamber near the butt of the cannon (think bicep-tricep area). The handle is located atop the main chamber with the strap running around your neck to reattach to the sides of the main chamber. On the strap is twenty green spheres the size of marbles (this is the ammo for the main particle cannon). On the butt of the cannon is a shaft that has a two button firing system. Button one does the main fire (buildup of particle energy; releasing the button sends the buildup out to slam into and send flying backwards). Button Two sends out rapid pulse versions, spraying the area in front of the nozzle with particle energy. 
• Mini-particle cannons: Slightly more than half the size of a particle cannon. Only difference besides the size is that it is able to blend into its laser rifle cousins and comes with a scope.
• Disrupting Atomic Rifle (DAR)-2000: Affecting matter at the molecular level, this rifle fires a high-powered burst that rips apart living material with ease and speed. It is mainly used by snipers and assassins for hire (There are black market versions with more advanced settings, but are rarely seen without the presence of a gangster or outlaws). Its primary attack is a single, fast moving shot with a slow rate of fire. The secondary attack is activated through the scope. The longer one holds down the trigger, the further the scope zooms in. Inside the scope is a Charge Indicator; this lets one know when the weapon is powered to its disintegration level with is lethal to a target. 
• Plasma Splitters: The handgun of Crandox, this is a sturdy weapon for one hand. More commonly called pistols, they come equipped with a 2x scope and fires a single shot of plasma or a rapid burst of five plasma shots.
• Fragmentation grenades: These grenades are used throughout the battlefield. They are built with scrap metal condensed down into sharp bits and ends, placed together, and set off to explode. Most casualties (aside from energy damage) on a battlefield are caused by frag grenades.
• Ion grenades: When detonated, fires an electrical shock that will temporarily shut down drones and cyborgs and robots and computers within a ten meter radius.

• Tamara's BE7M: It is like the normal BE7M used by the soldiers, but with a few modifications. With a small twitch of her eyelids, she enables the scope to zoom into the 2x range, bringing anything closer to her. Another twitch zooms in to 5x, then 10x (maximum range). At 10x a flat disc on the wall is maxed to the size of her fist. Blinking, she resets the zoom at 0x. The ammo counter is in the bottom ring of the scope. While she can zoom with her right eye, her left eye switches vision modes to infrared, night, thermal, and x-ray, thus allowing her to hunt and track her targets, taking them out before they know she's there. She’s had the BE7M equipped with a silencing mode that is enabled by shifting her body into different positions. For instance, if she were to lay prone and gazing out the scope, it would take on the "sniper" mode. Modes include Sniper, Rifle, Silencer, Ranged, and Rest. That doesn’t mean there aren’t problems. Far from it. There have been numerous problems since she first got it. The trigger under the barrel on the regular version constantly gets stuck or jams. The barrel would overheat after ten shots. The ammo counter link would forget to update the total tally of shots still left in the ammo packs. It took her the better part of a year to fix the bugs and upgrade the BE7M to meet her qualifications. Now, she keeps it in tiptop condition, performing maintenance routines on a daily basis, and deconstructing and reconstructing her weapon to clean out the dust and dirt that gets caught in there during engagements or even just resting. It is her pride and joy, her finest piece of work. She will never let it go without a fight. And may the bastard who tries to force the weapon from her die painfully.

Crandox Terrain and weather

Crandox is made up of mostly land with pots of jungles and dense forests resting along the equator. Snow-capped peaks rest along the north and south poles. There are three oceans and several lakes and rivers. A few deserts, with one being marked on the maps as "uninhabitable".

Since Libertia and Rulnudor territories are at war, they do ave to learn and adapt to fight in all the elements of weather, snow, sleet, hail, wind, rain...you get the idea.

In desert campaigns, it is wise to prepare for heat storms with prefabricated shelters with cooling units rather than heating units.

Likewise, in rainy campaigns, it is better to have rust proof or weapons/armor resistant to mudslides and rain. The less your enemies know your there, the better off you'll be.

In dense jungle/forest fights, it is better to have thermal masking armor than to have something that will scream out to your enemy that you are there. Just because you can't see your enemy, doesn't mean they can't see you. For that matter, it is important to have cameo gear or stealth generators. Just don't leave any trace that you were there, or you will soon find yourself being the hunted.

One of the few times air can be a problem is in sky battles around the deserts or the mountains or the oceans. Wind Gales reach up to 380 kilometers per hour along the shores and mountain peaks. in the desert, it is half that gale force, 140 km/hr.

Up in the mountains, be cautious of snow drifts as your vehicles may malfunction during a battle. It is not uncommon for both sides to retreat during hail or sleet. After about 60 seconds, sleet and hail can wear down shields and batter the hull into an asteroid-like pile of junk. Sleet sheers off the hull and engines after 180 seconds or a minute-twenty.

The Shadows of Calassa update

Character Listing/Stats (Dramatis Personae)

Commander JACK WELLS, leader of the Death Squad from the Rulnudor Territory (Southern Hemisphere of Crandox)

    Commander Wells is a fine example of a commando leader. He is headstrong, compulsive, loyal to the Emperor Qarn Hostiiz (as well as his friend). He carries a standardized WR-34 laser pistol and wears a uniform 70 years out of date. though respected, he has a tendency to get drunk when depressed.

Lieutenant JESSICA GREEN, Death Squad from the Rulnudor (Southern Hemisphere of Crandox)
    Lieutenant Jessica is a runaway young woman from the vice city Calassa. Born to privileged parents (dad a senator, mother a former actress), she resented her life and family, choosing to leave home at a very early age. She was found by Wells several days later when he was on a recruiting mission. She has been int he Death Squad for 12 years.

Commander RHYS JONES, leader of the Liberty Rangers from the Libertia Territory (Nothern Hemisphere of Crandox)
    Commander Rhys is an honest commissioned officer, loyal to Libertia and her allies. He is willing to not only follow orders, but plans his lieutenants may have thought about. Tough, resilient, and resourceful, Rhys has a tendency to like to gamble on the side. His preferred weapon of choice is a LBR-56.
Lieutenant TAMARA LAMNAR, Liberty Rangers from the Libertia Territory (Nothern Hemisphere of Crandox)
    Lieutenant Tamara is a prime example of a military career woman. She was born in the military and (as she is fond of saying to new recruits) will die in the military. She is the daughter to famed general Vhoz Lamnar. She carries around a modified BE7M, a standard issue military laser rifle.
Lieutenant JORI, Liberty Rangers from the Libertia Territory (Nothern Hemisphere of Crandox)
    Lieutenant Jori is a mind-damaged woman whose background is unknown. Her eyes contain several hairline black spots (a sing of immense torture and abuse [though, what exactly happened is unknown and she has no memory of the event]). She is the Ranger's demolitions expert. Before she was accepted into the Ranger's Guild, the only known whereabouts and incidents that lead one to speculate about her past, she was found by Commander Jones during his first field experience with the Rangers on a raid to an abandoned and destroyed facility where 181 children were all killed, save Jori. It is unclear what exactly lead to the events of the deaths and why the facility was abandoned and how Jori was involved.

Reporter KYLE DALY, Calassa News in the vice city of Calassa (Middle Hemisphere of Crandox)
    Kyle Daly is a holojournalist living in the city of Calassa. he grew up in the wretched city when it was in its Golden Years as the perfect vacation spot on Crandox. He holds information about how the 100 years of war started and prefers to maintain a skeptic view of politicians.
Senator JON GREEN, Calassa governor (Middle Hemisphere of Crandox)
    Senator Green is the father of Death Squad Lt. Jessica. He is corrupt and powerful, often taking bribes from the criminal underworld.
Prince KHARISS, Darkstar leader
    Prince Khariss rules the Darkstar Agency, known for its illicit activities such as gambling, drug-running, smuggling, vices, assassins, bounty hunters, underground network of spies, and production of illegal weapons. He is compulsive, headstrong, arrogant, and a murderer.

The Shadows of Calassa entry 1

For my first blog, I'll just start by setting the background of the story and the world it's on.

The planet Crandox is currently at war with itself (as in all good sci-fi stories). The two major factions the southern territories (Rulnudor) and the northern territories (Libertia). Libertia and Rulnudor have been at war for 500 years and neither side can remember the cause.

Into this scene arrives our commando groups, Death Squad from Rulnudor and Liberty Rangers from Libertia. Both teams have one objective, to break into Darkstar, a criminal organization rumored to be powerful weapons, and steal their weapons.

Both teams, meeting at a rendezvous, agree to ally themselves to accomplish their goal. As they enter Calassa--a city famous for it's aphrodisiac and gambling pleasures, as well as criminal activity--and break into the heart of crime to "appropriate" the weapons.

Sensing something is wrong, both team leaders investigate Darkstar and discover the truth, that these powerful weapons, if used by the wrong people, will tear Crandox apart. Together, they must find a way to destroy these weapons, even if it means wiping out Calassa.