The World of Halcyon
Factions
Halcyon's universe is full of highly influential groups. From mega corporations to comet-worshipping monks, there's nothing the galaxy hasn't seen. Each faction has their own motivations and goals that sometimes align with your pilot and sometimes get in your way. Their presence helps define Halcyon and create the chaos you'll experience in your game.
Bishop Collective
Money is power. Power is influence. Influence is control. And control makes you untouchable. Bishop Collective is a mega corporation with a near monopoly on space travel and weapons manufacturing. It keeps its teeth sunk in everything it can; with a special vigor ever since Nazari spilled their secrets and got many of their Overboard members killed.
The Underearth Union
The alliance of 170+ mining and production planets that make up the galaxy’s frontier. They stand for freedom and unity, often at the expense of morals and individuals. General Bracken is the current head of their war council but they are now working with the young Republic to achieve alliance or even unification; leaving their more bloody ways in the past in favor of peace at last.
The Republic of Sworn Planets
The current governing body of the Core is led by Arbiter Albert Nazari. Nazari has high hopes for restoration of democracy and galactic cooperation but foes abound. The RSP intends to unify all citizens under an idea of freedom that doesn't sacrifice morality or lives. Though many doubt him, the idea of a peaceful galaxy is appealing to most after a decade of war and death.
CHIMERA Combat Pilot Training Center
An independent institution founded 2 years into the Coalition war, when combat frames were becoming increasingly available to civilian consumers. As the war went on, the available information on combat frames, weapons, and other equipment was consolidated into the Universal Pilot’s Handbook for students of CHIMERA.
The New Earth Coalition
The NEC is living proof that all actions have consequences. They used the first combat mechs to stage a violent coup on the previous government, putting Hieronymus Kell on the throne until Albert Nazari removed him. Now, the NEC attempts to keep its influence through remaining sects across the galaxy still warring in Kell's name. Their prime, though, is long since over.
The Hegemony
The Hegemony Council governed resource allocation and settled territory disputes through management of planetary governors. Their gentle hand encouraged an era of peace during the Understanding that seems almost like a myth now. The Council was violently removed by the New Earth Coalition in a slaughter on Persephone that has consequences even now.
The Core
The Core is the central solar system in Halcyon’s galaxy. It contains the most influential and highly advanced planets in the universe, serving as a sort of “capital” for intersystem citizens. They’re among some of the first planets to be colonized and terraformed during the Understanding and are home to the reigning central government.
Persephone
The capital planet of the Core, terraformed to hold both sprawling cities and stunning purple-hued natural landscapes. Its beauty still captivates hundreds of years after its founding and acts as the seat of government for the Republic of Sworn Planets just as it did for the NEC and Hegemony before it.
Midnight
Midnight is a tiny planet quite literally in Persephone’s shadow for most of the year. It was designated as the original landing point for humanity, but quickly abandoned in favor of bigger and prettier planets nearby. Its official name was the generically-assigned MID-52, but its residents named it Midnight to establish their identity and have been promoting their true name for years.
Irene
A brilliant blue world of intense flame wreathed in rings of crystalline rock that are shepherded by green moons. Millions of farmers work beneath lunar plantation guilds to export food for the entire core and beyond. Irene is the breadbasket of the core but requires a constant inflow of water and equipment to maintain maximum production.
Themis
Themis is a city planet that differs from the others because all its development is underground. The atmosphere is highly acidic and is constantly hit with meteors dangerous to any surface dwellers. Both of those are solvable, but it was cheaper to go underground. There are hundreds of enormous cities that are illuminated by artificial suns. Despite this, those who live in the walls of the subway tunnels have only darkness and neon lights.
Demeter
Called Persephone’s sister planet because they inhabit the same orbit, Demeter is the galaxy’s first supercity. 89% of the surface is entirely covered by metal structures from housing units to offices and skyscrapers. Demeter is a planet of high influence, producing most of the Core’s fashion and items of luxury.
SIDIAN
Between the core and the frontier lies the Labyrinth; a dangerous belt of debris. There's a safe route through the Labyrinth, but it requires landing spacecraft on Sidian, and—due to its massive gravity—then taking the trench-rail to rapidly reach the other side of the planet. Sidian is a black and frigid world held in place by the arms of the Labyrinth rather than by a sun. Its starports and various housing compounds were built with a desperately practical and squat style to endure the brutal gravitational forces.
Thess
The first planet Bishop Collective ever purchased, home to a number of immense production complexes and millions of employees. Its distinctive blue-gray hue comes from sapphire crystals in the soil, which Bishop uses extensively in electronics manufacturing. It was also the planet raided by Albert Nazari's forces to bring an end to the war and scare the Overboard into hiding.
Kite
Kite is the furthest planet in the Core, making it the chilliest by far. Due to the somewhat inhabitable conditions of the surface, Kite’s cities were built in the skies. Massive spacecrafts carry cities above the cloudy ground making for a beautiful view of the planet. Each of them are brilliant white, from the buildings to the streets and the engines that make it all run, earning the ship-cities the name “Snowflakes.”
Short Stories
Indulge in powerful short stories set in Halcyon's world written by its creator
New Arms
Look, kid, war always means a few things: bodies on the ground, somethin’ scary in the sky, and however they’re throwing the rocks this time, you got three ingredients that really make the big mess: blood, screaming, and bombs. The thing is that sound doesn’t travel all that far, and blood’s easy to lose on a dark street. As for the bombs, if you get enough of a bird’s eye, all you see are little flashes of yellow and white. And if you got enough of a bird’s eye to see that, you can look up and find trillions more little flashes of yellow and white, stretching out into the black forever. Humans have been chasing that view forever. It’s addictive, buddy, you got it? People want that. They talk about peace and togetherness and understanding, but it always comes back to those little flashes. Always. That’s what you gotta understand, kid, that’s the real deal, that’s the truth of this business. That’s why I got this fancy arm. Ya see this? Top grade bioceramics, buddy, nothin’ like it. Car door slammed on my thumb last week, didn’t leave a scratch. Moves natural as the day I was born. See that? You don’t get that just anywhere. Comes from one xeno species on one Fringe planet the company bought two years ago, and you think they got the money from throwin’ rocks in the mud? C’mon. They make the rocks, buddy, and we sell ‘em here, and that’s how you get yourself an arm like this. You get yourself out of the mud, high enough so you can’t hear the blasts, and you give these people everything they need. Nothin’ wrong with the old arm, understand, I just wanted it. Just wanted something new. You following me? Good. Check this out, I’ll show you what I mean. This is one of our package deals, big-ticket stuff right here. Gilded ceramic armor, beefed-up synapse linkage, platinum tooling on the Accipiter. Real leather pilot’s seat that gets custom-fit when you buy it. Runs you thirty million off the rack, and we sold five yesterday to some rich kids. Said they wanted a taste of the Frontier action for themselves. Told ‘em they should train with something simple first; they didn’t care. They don’t get it like I do, kid. All the fancy hardware in the galaxy won’t stop someone who really wants you dead. You ever seen those psychos in the Banner? Real killers. They’ll tear you in half, buddy, they’ve got chainswords they set on fire. They jumped Kell with construction equipment, they don’t mess around. Bet you your first commission we’ll get one o’ those kids back in here trying to sue, though. Doesn’t matter to me, the cash went through and we’ve got that sweet, sweet company law firm backing us up. Bet you I can sell ‘em on the Heavy version, huh? Little more mass might save ‘im from gettin’ pasted like his buddy, right? Stupid kids. They don’t get it like we do, they don’t get that they’re all on the same side. You can’t tell when you’re in the mud with tungsten slugs ripping your buddies apart, but while they’re down there makin’ sparks, we’re getting warm by the fire. All these academic bastards whine about connecting with old humanity, but I tell you what, kid, that’s timeless right there. C’mon, I’ll get your uniform. You brought your genetic sample, right?
2%
“GOOOOOOD MORNING good people of the Galactic Core, it’s a beautiful spring evening here on Persephone and wow, do we have a spectacle for you today. I’m Mya Moreno, your favorite voice in sports entertainment, and I’m here live at the first ever broadcast match of Fleetball, the only sport that allows athletes to use mechanized combat frames. Now I hear you asking ‘Mya, isn’t that dangerous?’ I had the same questions, but top engineers at Knight Manufacturing have assured us that the shock absorbers, impact plating, and gyroscopic stabilizers in these frames are top-of-the-line. If you’re watching because you have a friend or relative on the field today, you can breathe easy. I’ve been watching them warm up and the speed is unbelievable, but so is the precision. These athletes are the best of the best, folks, and every bit of that skill is translated to their frames thanks to Knight’s new psychosomatic link technology. Swap over to our post-game interview with Dr. Linden Koji if you’d like to hear more about that, but for now, we’ve got just one more commercial break before the match starts! Get your popcorn and drinks, you won’t want to miss this.” “Alright, cut. Okay, hold on. What is going on? There was blood on the ceiling on the way in here. You told me this was a tennis interview!" “Ms. Moreno, your heart rate is spiking. I recommend –” “Don’t care. Are there actually kids in combat frames down there? What’s wrong with you people? Those are weapons! Why haven’t I heard about this until now?" “I assure you, Ms. Moreno, our Athletech frames are very safe. As you said yourself, their safety systems are top-of-the-line, and our psychosomatic linkage has a 98% success rating.” “Ninety-eight percent, huh? What about – okay, I need to breathe. Ninety-eight is pretty good. What I’d like to know, I guess, is whether that two percent failure rate might result in the six-foot streak of blood on the ceiling outside this room. And while we’re at it, I’d like to know where exactly I am. I’ve been to every stadium in the upper levels and this isn’t one of them." “I’m happy to answer any questions you might have. One of our athletes experienced a brief glitch in their synaptic translation net. Their frame performed what we call a “flinch,” and translated a movement of the right arm with more intensity than the pilot intended. Unfortunately, one of our technicians was breaking safe-distance protocols at the time and was injured. Does that satisfy your query?” “Alright, that’s – alright. So your ‘very safe’ frame glitched and hit somebody hard enough to… do that. Are they okay?” “I’m happy to answer any questions you might have. The technician is being treated in our internal medical center and expected to make a full recovery.” “Okay. Okay. What’s their name? Does their family know?” “Unfortunately, I can’t tell you that, Ms. Moreno. Additionally, I will remind you that everything you’ve said and heard outside of our broadcast copy is covered under section 3.1 of our nondisclosure agreement, which you signed prior to entering this facility.” “Yeah, I see why. You didn’t answer my other question. Where am I, and why isn’t my tablet working?” “I’m happy to answer any questions you might have. We are in Fianchetto Arena, a new top-level athletics facility being unveiled along with the sport of fleetball, sponsored by Knight Manufacturing.” “Sure. And my tablet?” “We use dynamic data blockers to ensure our matches broadcast at the highest fidelity. Personal devices may be affected. Additionally, I will remind you that our nondisclosure agreement was included in your 1-day contract agreement, which you signed prior to entering this facility.” “Alright. I have a degree in media technology. That’s not how that works and you know it. Screw the contract, I’m leaving and calling my lawyer.” “Ms. Moreno, please sit down. I hope you’ll change your mind if you direct your attention to my tablet.” “What? Okay, that’s a car fire. What’s the – that’s my car. Oh.” “I’ll remind you of section 4.7 of your contract, in which Knight Manufacturing guarantees full coverage of any personal injury or property damage occurring while you’re on the premises, contingent on the terms of the contract being upheld.” “…Okay. I’m not stupid. Or maybe I am for not reading that contract through. What do you want?” “I’m only here as your broadcast assistant, Ms. Moreno. We have thirty seconds left in the ad break. If you’ll sit down, I have the copy ready for you.” “This won’t work forever. There’s a break in the chain somewhere.” “Ten seconds to air, Ms. Moreno. Please sit down.” “You’re sick. Does Knight cover your sleeping pills?” “They do. Live in three.” “Welcome back, good people of the Galactic Core. I’m Mya Moreno, your favorite voice in sports entertainment, and I could not be more thrilled to show you the product of months of quiet research from Knight Manufacturing. I’ve been in the business for twelve years and let me tell you, folks, I’ve never seen anything like this. It’s fast, it’s dynamic, it’s hard-hitting, it’s everything you love about sports wrapped up in a big metal package. I’ll be updating you on the rules as we go, but for now, here come the athletes!