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   The Combine is a vast and powerful multi-dimensional empire, spanning multiple parallel universes. Little is known about the Combine's origins and overall goals, but it can be assumed that their ultimate ambition is to conquer and assimilate the entire Multiverse.

   Details of the Combine's leadership and administrative structure remain largely unknown. On Earth, alien beings called Advisors are responsible for liaising between the larger Combine and the occupying Earth-based detachment, acting through Dr. Wallace Breen, a human collaborator and puppet ruler who serves as the appointed 'Administrator' and humanity's ambassador to the Combine.

   From what is currently known, the Combine assimilate intelligent species from the worlds they conquer and then manipulate these species through bioengineering and invasive surgery, twisting them to fit the Combine's pursuit of cruel perfection. The results of the Combine's re-engineering processes are "synths" — synthetic organisms augmented with Combine technology that serve a variety of functions within the empire, from weapons of war to mindless worker drones.

   On Earth, the Combine notably uses their technology to create armies of cybernetically-enhanced transhuman soldiers forcibly conscripted from the enslaved human population, comprising the bulk of the Earth-based Combine Overwatch - a highly mobile and adaptive military force of co-opted humans turned against their own kind. Overwatch Soldiers have been surgically and psychologically altered to be obedient, deadly, and more resilient than normal human beings. They are also highly trained, and can adapt well beyond the confines of Earth, potentially in other universes if needed.

   Mighty as they are, the Combine are not without weaknesses. Despite their enormous size, or perhaps because of it, they are "slow to wake" and mobilizing their vast power requires great effort and time. Their limited teleportation technology, whilst still impressive in its own right, is a field in which even the Resistance is more advanced, as they are unable to translocate in local space the way that the Rebels can with their superior methodology.

   The Resistance was formed in the aftermath of the Seven Hour War in response to the Combine's brutal and totalitarian regime. The movement is led by former members of the Black Mesa Research Facility with the goal of gaining freedom from the clutches of the Combine. It is currently unknown if there are other Resistance movements in other urban centers, as the games mainly explore the movement in City 17 and it's surrounding area.

   The logo of the Resistance is a yellow/orange lambda inside a circle.

   The main bulk of the Resistance is occupied by militia forces and refugees from urban centers. While there is no official military to speak of, fighters do wear similar uniforms in combat. The fully equipped Resistance fighter wears a wool hat, green or blue clothing, an armband featuring the lambda logo, and a Civil Protection vest with padding on their legs and arms offering modest protection. Medics wear similar gear but use white clothes and replace the lambda logo with a red cross to signify their role. These militia have varying levels of training and are loosely organized, with more experienced fighters likely occupying senior roles. This equipment is available in limited capacity, with some outposts having fighters that solely wear regular clothing.

   A key member of the Resistance are the Vortigaunts, a sentient species brought into Earth by the Resonance Cascade. Formerly hostile to humans as slaves of the Nihilanth, these highly intelligent beings now fight alongside humanity against the Combine. The Vortigaunts' unique powers make them formidable combatants when fighting against the Combine or Xen wildlife as well as handy technicians, while their shared consciousness makes them invaluable messengers. Their most unique contribution is the introduction of antlion husbandry, which are utilized by members of the Vortigaunt Camp. Vortigaunts have integrated well into the Resistance and occupy varying roles within the movement from cooks, cleaners, technicians, and even researchers.

   The Seven Hour War was a brief but decisive confrontation between the Combine and the governments of Earth, ultimately leading to a large human death toll and the surrender of the planet in less than seven hours, and a Combine occupation soon after.

   City 17 is a grand city in Eastern Europe that has existed since before the Seven Hour War. Later taken over by the Combine, it became their main headquarters on Earth, dominated by the imposing Citadel and surrounded by the desolate Wasteland.

   City 17 visually resembles a post-Soviet harbor city featuring mostly Eastern European architecture. It features architecture styles dating from pre-World War II neoclassicism, post-war classical designs, Soviet modernism, and post-Soviet contemporary designs.

   Upon the Combine's arrival on Earth, many buildings were augmented using their own style of architecture with the intent of restricting citizen movement throughout the city.

   In addition, large television screens were installed in several public areas to address citizens regarding the Combine. At the heart of the city is the Citadel, a giant skyscraper which serves as the hub of the Combine.

   The Citadel is a gigantic Combine megastructure located in the heart of City 17, which serves as the main base of operations and primary headquarters of the Overwatch, from which they govern the Earth. Easily the most striking symbol of the Combine's rule, the Citadel looms ominously above the city as a constant reminder of their presence, and serves as the personal residence of Earth's appointed Administrator, Dr. Wallace Breen.

   The Citadel resembles an enormous metallic skyscraper thousands of feet tall. A true monolith, it is a fortress that rises both high into the sky and extends a great distance underground as well. It is a triangular structure when viewed from above, and is crowned by a Dark Fusion Reactor, with its associated portal acting as the primary means of communication with off-world Combine forces. The Citadel's massive interior level is capable of housing a massive army of Overwatch Soldiers, with the building itself being heavily mechanized, and entire sections of it can move to allow for mass deployment of airborne Combine units such as City Scanners, Hunter-Choppers and Combine Gunships.

   The Citadel is completely surrounded by enormous Smart Barriers which protect the structure from would-be attackers attempting to breach the walls. Attached to the exterior walls of the Citadel, within a huge chasm surrounded by broken sewer pipes and destroyed vehicles, are large pieces of machinery that dig the ground, possibly expanding the underground area to allow for further construction.

   Anti-Citizen is a term used by the Combine to designate a person as a threat to their control. The Combine uses the term 'anticitizen' because the behavior of Anticitizens is the opposite of that of citizens (or at least, the Combine's definition of a citizen as a person under their rule who does not resist them). Each Anticitizen is given a number representing how dangerous they are to the Combine and ranked in descending order.

   Dr. Wallace Breen was Black Mesa's, then later, after negotiating the surrender of Earth and ending the Seven Hour War, Earth’s Administrator. From his headquarters in the Citadel of City 17, he is humanity's representative in the Combine empire. Although being a high position of the Combine on Earth, he holds no real power and takes orders from the Advisors. He spreads pre-recorded Combine propaganda to the population through the Breencasts in order to keep them compliant.

   A Breencast is a regular broadcast made by Dr. Wallace Breen, delivered to the populace of City 17 (and possibly other Combine controlled towns and cities) via private televisions and, more commonly, large video monitors mounted on walls in public places such as town squares and railway stations. The term Breencast is an obvious portmanteau of the words "Breen" (his last name) and "broadcast."

   Breencast quotes:

   "Welcome. Welcome to City 17. You have chosen, or been chosen, to relocate to one of our finest remaining urban centers. I thought so much of City 17 that I elected to establish my Administration here, in the Citadel so thoughtfully provided by Our Benefactors. I have been proud to call City 17 my home. And so, whether you are here to stay, or passing through on your way to parts unknown, welcome to City 17. It's safer here." (This one seems to be pre-recorded, as it plays everytime a civilian transport arrives.)

   "Let me read a letter I recently received. 'Dear Dr. Breen. Why has the Combine seen fit to suppress our reproductive cycle? Sincerely, A Concerned Citizen.' Thank you for writing, Concerned. Of course, your question touches on one of the most basic biological impulses, with all its associated hopes and fears for the future of the species. I also detect some unspoken questions. Do our benefactors really know what's best for us? What gives them the right to make this kind of decision for mankind? Will they ever deactivate the suppression field and let us breed again? Allow me to address the anxieties underlying your concerns, rather than try to answer every possible question you might have left unvoiced. First, let us consider the fact that for the first time ever, as a species, immortality is in our reach. This simple fact has far-reaching implications. It requires radical rethinking and revision of our genetic imperatives. It also requires planning and forethought that run in direct opposition to our neural pre-sets. I find it helpful at times like these to remind myself that our true enemy is Instinct. Instinct was our mother when we were an infant species. Instinct coddled us and kept us safe in those hardscrabble years when we hardened our sticks and cooked our first meals above a meager fire and startled at the shadows that leapt upon the cavern's walls. But inseparable from Instinct is its dark twin, Superstition. Instinct is inextricably bound to unreasoning impulses, and today we clearly see its true nature. Instinct has just become aware of its irrelevance, and like a cornered beast, it will not go down without a bloody fight. Instinct would inflict a fatal injury on our species. Instinct creates its own oppressors, and bids us rise up against them. Instinct tells us that the unknown is a threat, rather than an opportunity. Instinct slyly and covertly compels us away from change and progress. Instinct, therefore, must be expunged. It must be fought tooth and nail, beginning with the basest of human urges: The urge to reproduce. We should thank our benefactors for giving us respite from this overpowering force. They have thrown a switch and exorcised our demons in a single stroke. They have given us the strength we never could have summoned to overcome this compulsion. They have given us purpose. They have turned our eyes toward the stars. Let me assure you that the suppressing field will be shut off on the day that we have mastered ourselves...the day we can prove we no longer need it. And that day of transformation, I have it on good authority, is close at hand."

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