Mekton - Aftermath of a Light Rain

Introduction

The year is 2050 the world hasn't gone the way of the cyberpunk nor has gone the way of utopian peace. Instead it just plodded along much the way it is going now. There are still police actions, and peace keeping missions but there aren't any World War IIIs. There is still crime but the cities don't belong to gangs and violence. You probably knew someone who died due to crime but probably not more than one and you don't think that's how you'll die..

Military Landscape

The military has been combined under a single corp. The United States Combined Armed Forces embody the US military capabilities on land, sea, air, and in space. Public opinion seems to be slightly against the military right now. It has been a while since a the USCAF has returned a resounding victory. At the same time moral and social values are shifting more leftward. However, while China looms waiting to gobble up it's neighbors, including the all important Japan, no one in the Government in seriously considering any real cut backs in the military budget.

The U.N.s power has increased but it is still purely a confederacy. China has risen to the vacuum left by the crumbling Soviet Union. The current cold war isn't as bad as the last one but its effect can still be felt by the people and the governments. Paranoia is whispered through the halls of the pentagon, weapons of mass destruction lie in wait for orders to launch. Illegal orbital lasers coldly circle the earth playing out a secret game of seek and destroy with other orbital lasers all the while waiting for their fire orders.

Currently there are major battles with US involvement are going on between Isreal and Egypt and between China and India. The PCs are back for a short period (to have their armors repaired and overhauled) from the Egypt conflict where they are part of a U.N. force supporting Israeli against Chinese supported Egypt.

The U.N. almost has two parts though few people realize how large the split is. The Security Council has become a game of chess using "U.N. forces" to squelch or influence wars where a majority doesn't like the way the battle is going. In a certain respects it is used as a rubber stamp for sending forces where they wouldn't otherwise be able to go. And through all this puppet like action the U.N. still maintains a viable and complete disaster relief function. Disaster relief acts almost independent of the Security Council. The Security Council and Disaster Relief are for all practical purposes two organizations with the same name.

Technology

Technology has obviously progressed but not at the staggering rate it has in the past. There are colonies on the Moon, and Mars, as well as several permanent space habitats and two permanent underwater habitats. Due increased efficiency in rockets, fuels, and life support it's practical to mine the asteroids, and there's an observatory on Pluto. Heavy Weapons are more often energy based than projectile based. FTL is still just a myth in a sci-fi writers fantasy. (Although there are rumors of an Israeli research project that might be at the brink of a key discovery in the FTL field (others say this is just a cover up for weapons research (and still others say FTL research is weapons research))).

A majority of the worlds computing power is made up of pocket computers/comm devices. Every child has one. 84% of the world is wired in one way or another either through the cell/sat communications of pocket computers or more stable land lines. Most information is accessible through the net if you know where to look and how to sidestep some rather sophisticated security measures.

Of late, more research has gone into the paranormal but as of yet there still hasn't been any direct evidence to support the reports of psychic activities. In general no one (except Berkeley researchers) believe a word of it. Documentation has been sketchy and unreliable at best. Probably just some lonely person looking for attention. Oprah! (The necromantic version (her personality was reconstructed in an limited AI (It didn't take much)) have telepaths and telekenetics on the show regularly.

Commerce

Most transaction are carried out by cred chips/cards or debit cards backed by the World Bank. Credchips, credcards, and debit cards look almost identical except for some standard color coding (blue for credcards, green for credchips, and silver for debit cards). Credcards as the name implies are lines of credit offered by every bank in existence and insured by the World Bank. Debit cards work like credcards but instead of being linked to an loan they are secured by a bank account. Any money withdrawn on the card comes directly out of the account. Credchips are cards that aren't secured by loan, or linked to a account but instead are worth however much is on them to anyone who possesses them.

Each card is capable of directly transferring money to another card. In order to use either a credcard or debit card the owner must authorize the transfer by thumbprint and password. Cash is still used but only for very small purchases and children (obviously the black market is alive and well).

The Situation

The PCs are a members of the USUAF. To be specific they are a member of a squad of light mechanized infantry. In the past 50 years various hard suit designs have come to the forefront of military technology. Generally these suits are in the range or powered armor (PCs normal ordinance) equipped with X-ray lasers. The hardsuits aren't yet as efficient as Tanks or Jets yet, but they greatly increase the efficiency of a single infantry.

As mentioned earlier the PCs are stationed a Ft. MacDill while their armor is repaired and overhauled. They have just recently returned from Egypt after a year abroad. A member of the PCs squad just got promoted and the PCs squad have gone out to (Either Hops or Mons Venus) for a night of celebratory inebriation (Good steaks or lap dances are secondary.) And this is where the game begins.

What the Characters don't know but the players do is that about 15 minutes from the beginning of the game aliens will invade Earth and they will be successful. However, without effort the PCs may not be around to see it.