When

Year 15. Approximately 150 years in our future.

Where

North America, although country distictions shifted before becoming essentially meaningless.

The Basics

Scientific advancement, particularly genetics, has skyrocketed. There are many new breeds of species as a result of hybridization and transgenics. Genetic code is a toy.

Government is more or less just a farse. In early years, governments contracted out civilian “handling” to a private security firm, the Corps SeCorp. Over time, the Corps’ authority has grown.

The World

Some people live in Compounds. Compounds are created and run by scientific corporations. Each is centered around a particular type of scientific industry (some specialize in genetic research, some specialize in pharmaceuticals, etc). Compounds are entirely self-sufficient. Within the walls of the Compounds, the researchers and their families have homes, schools, doctors, stores, and anything else they may need. Compounds are sealed from the outside world. Travel between them occurs by sealed bullet trains.

Everything outside the Compounds is Pleebland. The Earth itself has long been laid to waste, but small Pleeb cities still survive. They are poverty stricken and filled with crime and violence. Sometimes people from the Compounds will sneak into Pleeb cities for illicit sex, drugs, and other pleasures.

The People

Some people are fine with how things are. Researchers within the Compounds believe they are improving society, providing much needed services to the world. Corps members are generally high on power, but many do still have that underlying belief that they are genuinely protecting the world.

Not everyone is so happy with the way things are. Some are peaceful about it. A group calling themselves God’s Gardeners reject the advances of science and attempt to isolate themselves with a simpler way of living. They grow all their own non-genetically altered food; they make all their clothes from non-synthetic fibers. They believe that God has chosen them to restore the Eden that Earth used to be. They absolutely do not believe in violence. They leave judgement to God.

Other groups are not so easy going. A faction of former Gardeners decided that path was not enough and took to more aggressive measures. This group has operatives throughout the Compounds and the Pleeblands, gathering information and laying the groundwork to bring down the corruption in the world. Some see ways to use the technology for better, others simply want to end it all and start fresh.

But something may be coming…

God’s Gardeners have a prophecy of a flood, one similar to Noah’s, sent to cleanse the Earth. The one coming will not be a flood of water though. Something else will sweep the planet clean and only the worthy will survive. That’s just the nonsense of a religious cult though… isn’t it?