Campaign Setting - The year is 2064. In the early 2020's, mankind suddenly put a premium on the colonization of the solar system. As a result, several dozen defense contractors rapidly changed their product lines and began manufacturing powered suits for exploration purposes. On Earth, things rapidly changed. Microwave power facilities replaced fission plants, then tokamaks replaced those. The microwave satellites were converted into microwave communications relays with the new asteroid mining facilites, the moon science facility, and the corporately-founded Mars colonies that were popping up like zits across the planet's face. Hazardous production processes were modified for zero-g, saving the corps quite a bit of money, and eliminating a great deal of planetary pollution as well. The rapid exit of people from the planet dropped real estate prices back to something approaching normal, and leaving wide swaths of cities unpopulated. Advanced recycling techniques allowed the homes and buildings to be dismantled and used in other projects. Special interest groups spent countless man-hours reforesting places that had once been subdivisions, or transforming empty lots into garden plots. The need for untrained manual labor on the new colonies provided the unwillfully unemployed with both job opportunities and the promise of a homestead on Mars. Those unwilling to work soon found that both the massive employment opportunities opening up on Earth and the growing stigma against those who would hinder what was being viewed as mankind's destiny drove them to work. The year was now 2040. The exosuit and interplanetary technology had advanced to levels where it became feasible to send expeditionary forces to various inhospitable locations. Soon after this, a base was set to orbit the planet Venus, which sent spaceplanes bearing large magnetic scoops for runs into the toxic atmosphere to collect chemicals which might cost a fortune to manufacture otherwise. The technology advances and colonization efforts had brought the quality of life on Earth, and for mankind in general, to the best levels ever. But there are always those who think their own way is the best path. In 2046, the inhabitants of the Portoa colony of Mars suddenly realized that the terms of the colonization contracts they had signed were different than what the corporation had claimed they were. The corporation in question, WatsoCorp, had included a taxation clause, as well as a clause allowing for any corporation employee to commandeer property of the inhabitants. In addition, the contracts permitted citizens to be involuntarily drafted into a standing protection force, under threat of death. Despite the earthbound governments' objections, they had been continually weakened by legislation forced through various congresses, and could do nothing. The few dictatorial states left on the planet either could not amass enough funds for a retaliatory expedition, or did not care. In response to WatsoCorp's activities, other corporations formed standing armies. Tensions rose, as there were no governments on Mars or the asteroids aside from informal colony leaders with little to no power. Skirmishes between corporation guards became common as resources came into conflict, and it appeared that it would boil down to a war between corporations for supremacy of space. Earth, far too reliant on the corporations' products and energy, could do nothing but wait for the outcome. In 2049, a group of terrorists who had been biding their time for the perfect opportunity to emerge, boarded a colonization flight, hijacked it, and landed in a remote part of Mars. The message they broadcast before destroying the transmitter decried the money-driven corporations, and declared an open rebellion for peace, love, and anarchy, to be brought about by a bloody coup. They called themselves the NeoHippies. Most Earthers ignored the message - the Earth's defense systems were still intact from the cold wars of the 2010 era, and there seemed to be little actual resistance on Earth itself. Supporters for the NeoHippies made their way slowly off the planet. As for the rest of the inhabited places, people fled to the NeoHippie banner in droves, sometimes destroying the colony they originally inhabited, sometimes not. The corporations found themselves embroiled in both a civil war and a rebellion. Their solution to this was to increase the size of their armies, and to begin modifying the exosuits expressly for combat. The exosuit technology began to vary widely from corporation to corporation as secrecy became paramount. The danger came from not only from other corporations, but from the NeoHippies as well. Several eminent scientists had defected, and the colonies the NeoHippies had captured we being devoted exclusively to manufacture of exosuits. It was also not uncommon to have both spies from other corporations and spies from the NeoHippies in on any given project. Not all corporations were evil. Several refused to fight either the NeoHippies or the other corporations. Several things could happen to one of these corporations - they could be destroyed, go bankrupt, or they were forced to arm themselves. It is now 2064, fifteen years after the NeoHippies began rebelling. It has been a war of attrition all across the board, with no clear winner in any battle, and certainly no end in sight to the fighting. You are employees of the fairly medium-sized corporation known as AndressenTofu Corporation, or ATC, as you often refer to it. ATC has stayed very middle-of- the-road in its policies, but it is ahead of the field in exosuit technology, thanks in part to one brilliant Dr. Yoitawa, head of exosuit R&D. Some of you have been with the company for a long time, some were hired specifically for this mission. The mission in question is an expedition to Europa, to discover whether certain compounds, which take extremely low temperatures to form, are found in abundance there. More on the NeoHippies: The NeoHippies defy all demographics. Unlike the original movement, this is not merely a revolution of the youth, nor of of white young rich Earthers, nor of poor Mars people. When the NeoHippy revolution occurred, they took everyone, regardless of race, planet, age or sex. NeoHippies are dedicated to "Peace and Love through Violent Warfare". They view the first Hippy movement as a warning, and this movement as the first blow against an "unhip" species. In fact, the beginning of the NeoHippy Manifesto reads as follows: "When, in the course of human events, it is deemed that the level of grooviness among the stars has fallen to a dangerously low level, it becomes necessary to weed out those who would be unhip, and who would bring The Man down upon us." As each founding NeoHippy wrote a part of the Manifesto, much of the rest is sheer gibberish. The more coherent sections refer to a "Great War on the Uncool, daddy-o", and a "culling of the Squares". It is unknown what the final goal of the NeoHippies is. Religion in Space: In 2036, the scandals rocking the Catholic Church finally took their toll. The then pope resigned, leaving the way clear for the Council of Archdioces to elect one Sean O'Malley as the next pope. Sean did not assume a papal name, which struck several people as odd, but he seemed to be on the level, and promised to put the Church back on track and back into the hearts of the people. He sounded reasonable enough. The entire Catholic community was in for a severe shock. In the month following his rise to Papal leadership, Pope Sean proceeded to sanction: abortion, homosexuality, married priests, nanotechnology, fetal research, cybertechnology, and dozens of other previously prohibited or borderline issues. Needless to say, after the shock wore off, the Archdioces were up in arms. After another month of deliberating, they excommunicated Pope Sean and declared his sanctions null and void. But the damage had been done. With his excellent oratory skills and forward-thinking policy, Pope Sean had won over quite a few of the fallen out Catholics, and attracted many new members - enough to start the Catholic Reform Church. A bitter tension settled over the religious communities for the period of a year, until Pope Sean decided it was time for him, and his church, to take the leap into space. Migrating to a colony on Mars egotistically named Red Vatican, Pope Sean changed the name of the church to the Space Catholic Reform Church, and urged his followers to join him. Most of them did so. At this point in time, most of the Earth is unchanged, religiously. Small clusters of Space Catholics exist, mostly in first-World countries. It is also largest religion on Mars, though not on the Asteroids. Actual Catholicism, along with most of the rest of Christianity, has made the jump into space rather poorly. Restrictive policies have prevented them from becoming popular. The Eastern religions are mostly unchanged, and are prevalent in portions of Mars settled by the Southeast Asian countries. Muslim is widely prevalent around the Olympus Mons area (Red Orleans, Red New York), despite confusion as to which direction Mecca is actually in. Voudoun has become very prevalent in the asteroid mining colonies, especially in ones with Jamaican immigrants. Discordianism survives, however improbable that may seem. Dozens of other religions have sprung up in the colonies. Some of the more notable ones are Church of Our Lady the Harlot, a Satanic sect without all the traditional nastiness involved, The Church of the Flying Fucking Flaming 'N', which is popular among rebellious teens, MetaGnostiMysticism, and the Purple Chicken Sect.