We're picking up speed and working on the starting town (the Pit) putting together the very first level. The new engine makes a huge difference and so far everything is going very smoothly, but obviously we're still in the early stages.
The writing for the starting town is almost done, the quests will require 14 portraits and Mazin is already working on the first two, so we can dedicate the next update to the Pit, introduce some characters and tell you what to expect design wise. Our new concept artist is still working on the locations.
[...]
The Habitat - The Brotherhood of Liberty:
The Brotherhood was formed to liberate the people from the iron shackles of the Ship Authority. Though their first sally -which the fossils of the old world denigrate with the term "mutiny"- failed to completely achieve this aim, the Brotherhood was successful in establishing themselves as a power to be reckoned with. More importantly, their ideals of liberty and freedom are now discussed everywhere.
The Brotherhood's initially pure goal, to free the enslaved wherever they may be, has unfortunately been sullied by the practical concerns of democracy. If the Brotherhood had had access to the older histories they would have realized that democracies beget their own factions, factions which cannot be put down with violence for now they are within. The Executive Council was also forced to consider issues like the right to vote, and whether it should be granted freely to all, or earned through service to the state. The first generation earned their rights rebelling against the tyrants, whereas the youth of today have forgotten even the names of those heroes. Easily swayed by rhetoric and bribed with cheap comforts, these layabouts could hardly be less concerned with such abstractions as liberty and universal suffrage.
To bring freedom to the Ship entire must involve war, and no war may be won without sacrifice, nor may battles be managed by committee. The unwillingness to back high ideals with bloodshed is, as far as the Council is concerned, the reason for the recent losses against the Protectors. Yet any attempt to limit majority rule must be interpreted as a retreat from the ideals upon which the Brotherhood's very identity is based. If every decision, even those which mean death to some of the Brotherhood's own citizens, must first be approved by a majority, how is it possible even to start?
The Brotherhood's mindset is that of a group under siege that must remain vigilant and stand ready to repel the invaders. Their government building is not a tall and proud spire (that can be brought down) but a bunker-like structure. Turtle vs Eagle.
Unlike the Protectors who carry the torch of the centuries old Mission, holding it sacrosanct, the Brotherhood's ideology is far less stable. What started as an anarchist uprising driven by the desire to free the people (whether they wanted or not) was slowly transformed into a different form of tyranny - that of the majority. Hard won freedom had to give way to security and the great struggle against the Protectors. Some might even argue that the Protectors and the Brotherhood are two sides of the same coin and question the wisdom of the mutineers who replaced one authoritative state with another.
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The Habitat - The Church of the Elect (the Garden of Eden district)
As inevitably happens in dark and challenging times, some citizens turn to God for reassurance, the promise of an end to pain and hunger. Or failing an end, at least a purpose.
The Church of the Elect rejected both the Protectors of the Mission and the Brotherhood of Liberty as worldly fools distracted by politics and their own egos. Teaching their adherents that they were chosen by God, the Church frames the journey of the Ship as a centuries-long test of faith. We all face a series of difficult trials, yes, but with a very definite end.
When the Ship arrives at her destination, Judgement Day awaits every citizen. The righteous will be welcomed into the Promised Land of Alpha Centauri-4, while the unrepentant will be returned to the Hell from which we fled -Earth- to suffer for all eternity.
Led by the Chaplain-General, the Church of the Elect is a militant organization. While Christ was undoubtedly a man of peace, what he preached on Earth does not strictly apply in the void of space. Extraordinary challenges require exceptional measures, for even Jesus can't do much for an unarmed man.
The Church represents militant Christianity as no other kind would have lasted long against the Protectors whose God is the Mission or the Brotherhood that sees God as yet another master. As far as the Church is concerned, both the Protectors and the Brotherhood as living proof that men who don't follow the teaching of Jesus Christ to the letter are bound to get lost. It's obvious that the Ship won't arrive to the Promised Land until everyone follows the same guiding light, thus it's the Church's holy duty to save the Mission and land the Ship.
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As always, your feedback and comments are welcome. I updated the 'concept art' thread to keep all art in one place.
http://www.irontowerstudio.com/forum/index.php/topic,7244.0.html
