The Artemis Project Kickstarter edition

Description

Europa, Saturn's moon. Deep scans revealed that beneath a kilometers-thick crust of ice, a massive liquid sea existed, with indisputable evidence of organic life. The irradiated surface of Europa was far too cold and its atmosphere too thin for human habitation, so the first step towards making the planet livable would be to create an atmosphere, shield it from radiation, and raise its temperature. Advance parties built atmosphere generators and established an energy field surrounding the planet to trap in gases. This accomplished both tasks at the same time by enhancing the breathable air but also trapping the warmer atmosphere inside and raising the moon's temperature to a tolerable (but still hostile) level. The low-orbit ring known as the Threshold is the source of (and also the the gate through) the energy shield. The raising of the temperature took many decades of steady effort. Too lengthy a process for fragile governments to oversee or fund, the project was co-managed by a conglomerate of corporations with experience in exoplanetary development. Bioforming is the first step; making a planet or moon fundamentally livable. Stabilizing is the next step; making the livable satellite capable of continued existence without constant aid from offplanet. As the atmosphere warmed, it began to have effects on the moon's surface. The ice crust buckled and shifted in places, creating a rougher terrain from the mostly featureless moon. Weather began to occur, including snowfall and electrical storms. In some places, "breaches" of the crust occurred where rock spires or plateaus pushed up through the ice. Many of these breaches brought proof of plant and animal life to the surface with them. Finally the moon surface reached survivable status. The cold remains deadly and the air is thin, but it can be endured with technological assistance. Drilling parties were the first to land, establishing conduits from the surface to the ocean beneath. Competing factions of Stabilizers sent their dropships to the surface, establishing the Doorstep (a main shared spaceport) and negotiating locations and resource-sharing. Deep beneath the crust, the oceans beneath were confirmed to indeed be teeming with alien sea life. Shellfish, plants, corals, arthropods, even strange fish and larger sea creatures populated a wide-ranging interconnected web of hidden seas. Volcanism is rampant, warming the mineral-rich waters and creating excellent conditions for energy-harvesting. The largest cavern close to the surface is known as The Pocket. This is where the initial teams of Stabilizers built their first outposts, with the intent to establish long-term communities capable of surviving indefinitely. Aqua-farming is well established; food and other sundries are efficiently gathered. The Pocket has many deposits of minerals and crystals that can be mined and processed to create strong and versatile construction materials locally. Colonists arrive at the Doorstep at regular intervals when the Threshold is opened. The arrivals are of four general types: Pioneers (who are tasked with exploring the changing surface of the moon and the labyrinth of seas beneath), Engineers (who develop and operate the machinery and structures needed to run the colonies), Marines (who defend the colonies from hostile sea life, unwanted intruders, and other colonies), and Stewards (overseers responsible for strategy and negotiation). Colony development mostly occurs beneath the ice; this is where all of the moon’s resources are concentrated, so this is where the effort is best spent. To keep close to the surface, most colony structures are built clinging onto the underside of the ice crust. Surface structures will be built only once an undersea outpost is well established and beginning to thrive. In addition to construction and resource-gathering, colonies spend a lot of effort on exploring this new environment. The volcanic action and mineral-heavy waters make long-range scanning unreliable, so physical exploration is required to plumb the depths. As the Pocket is explored and expanded, the established colonies have been making some unusual discoveries beneath the ice. Deep in the trenches, artifacts of non-human origin are starting to be found. The dark seas hide many secrets. Squads of mercenaries occasionally appear on the surface and beneath the sea, penetrating the Threshold somehow to carry out an unknown mission on the moon. These aspects are worrisome but can’t distract the colonies from their main goals. It is still early in the Artemis project. A foothold on life here has been gained, but it will take tenacious effort from the competing colonies to reach the point where Europa is truly viable as a home. This is where The Artemis Project game begins.