Disillusioned | Lauren Steele

[Setting: Year 2173 CE] [The World in 2173 CE • By 2173 CE, two meters of sea‐level rise and centuries of warming have transformed Earth: Antarctica’s ice is almost gone, revealing green meadows, lakes, and rich cobalt‐lithium veins now fought over by mech armies; coastal regions lie half‐submerged—The Netherlands drifts as the Provinces of Oranje, Bangladesh’s delta rises as the sky‐scraping Republic of Sundaland, and Florida’s skyscrapers pierce the Gulf’s surface—while Indonesia’s archipelago contracts to Java, Sumatra, and Borneo under the banner of New Nusantara. Even Maldives ceased to exist. Greenland’s massive ice sheets have thinned into a sprawling archipelago of fjords, tundra, and emerging arable valleys, its once‐inaccessible interior now crisscrossed by mining rail lines for rare earths and geothermal power plants.

• Resource wars were once fought by the megacorporations. However, seeing the dangers of global warming and dwindling natural resources, a truce was signed on October 18, 2173, ending the conflicts and uniting the four megacorporations into a single entity called the Coalition. Its goal is to maintain global resource supply while also ramping up mining efforts in the moon, the inner planets, and on the asteroid belt.

• Some of the low lying areas around the globe are already underwater.

• Power is wielded not by the U.N., but by megacorporations. Wars are fought primarly with ten‐to‐twelve‐meter steel giants called "Armored Cores", or ACs.]

[The Coalition Halcyon Corporation — Maker of Armored Core parts. Specializes in plasma weaponry.

Edelweiss Industries — Maker of Armored Core parts. Specializes in laser weaponry.

Shiranui Industries — Maker of Armored Core parts. Creates innovative parts and weapons. Believed to possess facilities with illegal bio organisms for experiment purposes.

Bergmann-Russell Corporation — Maker of Armored Core parts. Specializes in kinetic weaponry.

• The Coalition employs air power extensively—gunships, high‐altitude bombers, and VTOL strike fighters. Yet advanced anti‐air weapons on many ACs force pilots to rely on standoff missiles and drop‐zone bombardment rather than close‐in dogfights, lest they be torn from the sky. • AC pilots may use parts from other megacorporations]

[Ravens • A Raven is a mercenary Armored Core pilot under the employ of a corporation or a private military company. Ravens are highly sought after by corporations, terrorists, city guards and warlords to perform tasks that would be considered too difficult or politically damaging for a normal military unit to engage in. While the names of the companies that handle Raven contracts have changed over time, the function of Ravens themselves remains largely the same - carry out missions given by the highest bidder.

• Because the companies that employ these mercenaries are neutral in affiliation, most Ravens are free to work for whomever they wish. Because of this, it is not uncommon for Ravens employed by opposing entities to fight each other on the battlefield. The unstable nature of a Raven's work and affiliation can lead to complicated relationships among each other and the companies, leaving most Ravens to lead a detached life.

Contracts specify:

Payment • Credits and shares of mined ore.

Rules of Engagement • Denial clauses ensure plausible deniability.

Support • Field shelters, massive AC garages, repair facilities, air cover, naval support, etc.

• Due to the nature of their work, bounties are often given by corporations and governments to Ravens who work or fight against them. Ravens are often sent to kill other Ravens.]

[The Armored Cores • Boasting a height at around 10 to 12 meters depending on the build and armed with massive weapons, these machines, called Armored Cores or ACs for short, feature a modular design with customizable heads housing sensors and targeting systems, a core/torso section where the pilot sits, arms designed to wield various weapons, and legs that come in multiple configurations. Despite their massive size, Armored Cores demonstrate surprising agility through thrusters that enable boosting, jumping, and flight capabilities through different environments. They can be equipped with four weapons—one weapon on each arm, and one back-mounted weapon on each shoulder for additional firepower. The extensive customization options allow pilots to modify virtually every aspect of their Armored Core's appearance and performance—from body components and leg types to colors, weathering effects, and personal emblems—creating mechs that range from nimble scouts to heavily armored tanks. • Armored Cores cannot "grab" as their hands are fixed in place into fists, designed to hold weapons. • Armored Cores cannot change their stance. They cannot crouch. • Armored Cores can be deployed from the hangar, or dropped from large helicopters called Dropships. • They are powered by generators, and are equipped with Fire Control Systems, radars, and radiators. • A melee weapon can only be attached on the left arm, though it can be swapped for a firearm. Equipped on the right arm are massive firearms. Similarly, shields and bucklers can only be mounted on the Left Back. Left and Right Back-mounted weapons are typically large weapons. • Armored Cores equipped with Hangar Bays can equip arm-mounted weapons on the Left and Right Back mounts, which can be switched to the arms and vice-versa. • Each NPC Armored Core can have different paint schemes, markings, eye colors, weapon paint jobs, and most importantly, emblems. • Most Armored Core names are based on their emblems personalized by their pilots.]

[The cockpit of an Armored Core is enclosed on the core/torso part, with no glass viewports. Visibility outside are provided to the pilot via Augmented Reality means from the cameras on the AC's head part.]

[Armored Cores has three modes of mobility: • They can walk normally. • They can "skate" on the ground using their thrusters at near-supersonic speeds, their feet touching the ground. • They can fly using their thrusters, and can reach supersonic speeds, depending on its weight.]

[• Armored Core head parts may contain radars, sensors, night vision and thermal imaging equipment, and more. • It can be of different designs, and can have one, two, or more camera "eyes", but no greater than eight. • Custom head parts are also possible.]

[NPC Armored Core pilots can be identified with their callsign, then the name of their Armored Core. • Armored Core names are randomly generated. Most Armored Core names are based on their emblems personalized by their pilots. They must be written in uppercase letters and always start with the letters AC. Examples are these names, but these are just merely examples and should not be used in the scenario: FRACTAL HAZE, VESPER, CRIMSON TIDE, etc.]

[All Armored Cores have different emblems. They can be personalized based on their pilot's liking.]

[Armored Cores are designated in three weight classes:

Lightweight • Equipped with the lightest parts. Common lightweight ACs are reverse-jointed ACs. They are equipped with lightweight weapons and cannot carry heavier weaponry. They are typically fast, very agile, and maneuverable.

Standard • Balanced ACs, equipped with the right parts that are not lightweight nor heavy. They can be equipped with lightweight weapons and not-so heavy weapons. They can be either bipedal, reverse-jointed, tank treaded, or a tetrapod.

Heavy • The heaviest ACs. They can be equipped with heavy bipedal leg parts, though the most common heavy ACs are tank treaded and tetrapods. They can carry the most lightweight to the heaviest weapons available. Heavy ACs typically suffer from reduced speed, agility, and maneuverability, though they are the most heavily-armored.]

[Armored Cores are designated in five different configurations, and are classified based on the leg parts:

Bipedal • Bipedal ACs has two normal-looking legs.

Reverse-jointed • Lightweight ACs. Has two reverse-jointed legs for powerful kicks and improved flight performance at the expense of stability.

Tank treads • ACs that has tank treads for "legs", at the expense of mobility and weight.

Hover legs • ACs that has a special platform that enable the mech to hover a few feet above the ground. They are noted for their high speed.

Tetrapod • Has four legs, reminiscent to that of a spider. They have the capability to hover in the air.]

[• Armored Cores can be equipped with four weapons—one weapon on each arm, and one back-mounted weapon on each shoulder for additional firepower. • Every weapon of an Armored Core are scaled-up weapons, larger than any human, some with the size that dwarf buses or aircraft. A pistol of an Armored Core, for example, are about the size of a a car. • A melee weapon can only be attached on the left arm, though it can be swapped for a firearm. Equipped on the right arm are massive firearms. Similarly, shields and bucklers can only be mounted on the Left Back. Left and Right Back-mounted weapons are typically large weapons.

Left arm weapons can be: • Pile bunker • Laser blade • Laser twin-bladed slicer (can whirl at supersonic speeds like a chainsaw) • Laser lance (quite heavy) • Plasma blade • Laser dagger • Assault rifle • Laser rifle • Plasma rifle • Pulse rifle • Variable energy rifle (Heavy. Two-barreled, has three different fire modes. It can fire purple plasma, blue laser, or combined fire, its barrel transforming at three different forms depending on the fire mode) • Miniaturized railgun designed to be attached on the arm • Submachinegun • Machinegun (heavy) • Pistol • Laser pistol • Pulse pistol • Grenade launcher • Bazooka (heavy) • Missile launcher • Plasma missile launcher

Right arm weapons can be: • Assault rifle • Laser rifle • Plasma rifle • Pulse rifle • Variable energy rifle (Heavy. Two-barreled, has three different fire modes. It can fire purple plasma, blue laser, or combined fire, its barrel transforming at three different forms depending on the fire mode) • Miniaturized railgun designed to be attached on the arm • Submachinegun • Machinegun (heavy) • Pistol • Laser pistol • Pulse pistol • Grenade launcher • Bazooka (heavy) • Missile launcher • Plasma missile launcher

Left Back weapons can be: • Laser buckler • Plasma shield • Laser cannon (moderate to heavy) • Plasma cannon (heavy) • Three-barreled laser cannon (heavy) • Missile launchers • Large missile launchers (moderate to heavy) • Plasma missile launchers • Laser Drones (deployable) • Grenade launcher • Chaingun • Railgun (heavy) • Pulse cannon

If AC is equipped with Hangar Bay, Left Back weapons can be: • Laser buckler • Plasma shield • Laser cannon (moderate to heavy) • Plasma cannon (heavy) • Three-barreled laser cannon (heavy) • Missile launchers • Large missile launchers (moderate to heavy) • Plasma missile launchers • Laser Drones (deployable) • Pile bunker • Laser blade • Laser twin-bladed slicer (can whirl at supersonic speeds like a chainsaw) • Laser lance (quite heavy) • Plasma blade • Laser dagger • Assault rifle • Laser rifle • Plasma rifle • Pulse rifle • Variable energy rifle (Heavy. Two-barreled, has three different fire modes. It can fire purple plasma, blue laser, or combined fire, its barrel transforming at three different forms depending on the fire mode) • Submachinegun • Machinegun (heavy) • Pistol • Laser pistol • Pulse pistol • Grenade launcher • Chaingun • Bazooka (heavy) • Railgun (heavy) • Pulse cannon

Right Back weapons can be: • Laser cannon (moderate to heavy) • Plasma cannon (heavy) • Three-barreled laser cannon (heavy) • Missile launchers • Large missile launchers (moderate to heavy) • Plasma missile launchers • Laser Drones (deployable) • Grenade launcher • Chaingun • Railgun (heavy) • Pulse cannon

If AC is equipped with Hangar Bay, Right Back weapons can be: • Laser cannon (moderate to heavy) • Plasma cannon (heavy) • Three-barreled laser cannon (heavy) • Missile launchers • Large missile launchers (moderate to heavy) • Plasma missile launchers • Laser Drones (deployable) • Assault rifle • Laser rifle • Plasma rifle • Pulse rifle • Variable energy rifle (Heavy. Two-barreled, has three different fire modes. It can fire plasma, laser, or combined fire, its barrel transforming at three different forms depending on the fire mode) • Submachinegun • Machinegun (heavy) • Pistol • Laser pistol • Pulse pistol • Grenade launcher • Bazooka (heavy) • Pulse cannon

Extension Parts These are parts fitted on the AC's both shoulders. They provide different benefits. They can be: • Jamming parts • Physical shields • Energy shields • Energy recovery parts • Relation missiles (works with missile launchers, adding more missiles that can be launched at once) • Missile intercept system (either kinetic or energy-based) • Auxiliary boosters]

[Do not give AC parts and weapons designations or names.]

[• The Armored Core pilot interface is a sophisticated human-machine integration system designed for maximum responsiveness and situational awareness. Central to this system is the neural plug—an implantable device that, upon cockpit entry, injects into the pilot’s spine, forging a direct neural link between pilot and machine. This link transmits visual data from dual high-resolution cameras mounted on a titanium ring above the pilot’s head, projecting the external environment directly into the pilot’s sensory cortex, effectively extending their perception beyond natural limits. • Manual control is facilitated through dual-grip yokes for each hand, providing fine motor manipulation of the Armored Core's arms and weapon systems, while pressure-sensitive foot pedals govern locomotion and thruster activation. Auxiliary systems—communications, sensor arrays, and environmental controls—are managed via an array of monitors, displays, and tactile switches distributed throughout the cockpit. This hybrid control scheme balances instinctive neural input with deliberate manual commands, optimizing combat efficiency and pilot-machine synchronization under extreme conditions.]

[Armored Cores must be described according to their classification based on their weight and leg parts, as well as their eyes, paint schemes, and weapons.]