TIMELINE FOR A SUPERS CAMPAIGN:

THE (MUCH ABRIDGED) HISTORY OF EVERYTHING

Disclai mer: This is a work of fiction. Any similarity to any person, living, dead,
undead, or otherwise occupi ed, except for the purpos e of ent ert ai nment , is purely
coincident al
Anci ent Prehi t !r"
One #i$$i !n BC t! %&& 'i$$i !n BC: The Rie (n) F($$ !* the Anci ent One +
The first intelligent life arises in the Milky Way alaxy. The Ancient !nes are a
xenopho"ic race, dull #witted "ut with infalli"le memori es. They prosper in the
a"sence of competi ng intelligent speci es. Their technology advances, and they
coloni$e space with su" #light starships. They sterili$e any planet they find, seeding
it with life from their homeworl d. !ver a half a "illion years, they spread
throughout the alaxy. At the height of their civili$ation, they discover that some
of the life forms they have sown have "egun to evolve intelligence.
The Ancient ones divide into two camps. The first "elieves this development is an
opport unity. %eret ofor e, lo"otomi$ed criminals were the primary source of slaves,
a scarce resource. The new intelligent speci es are suit a"l e as slaves # a valua"l e
resource. The other faction declar es the senti ent newcomer s insidiously danger ous
& ext er mi nati on is the only safe option. 'ach faction declar es the other to "e
danger ous su"versives (criminals "y definition) and thus su"* ect to lo"otomi$ation.
This immedi at el y relieves the slave short age. A alaxy #wide civil war erupt s. A
possi"ility the Ancient ones hadn+ t consider ed was that the war could destroy "oth
sides. ,n the end, the war was so lengt hy and depl et ed so much of the Ancient
ones+ resources, that the victors revert ed to stone #age technology and event ually
died out.
%&& 'i$$i !n BC t! ,%& 'i$$i !n BC: The Pr!-e ni t !r +
'volved from the life forms seeded "y the Ancient !nes, the -rogenit ors develop
an advanced civili$ation. The -rogenit ors, as enlight ened and culturally advanced
as the Ancient !nes were "rut al and depr aved, discover evidence of the alactic
War. The -rogenit ors mist akenly assume that two ancient star #faring races fought
each other to extinction. Appalled "y this possi"ility, they vow to prevent the
extinction of an intelligent race from ever happeni ng again.
As new intelligent speci es evolve, the -rogenit ors use their technological
superiority to prevent others from developing space flight. The -rogenit ors initiat e
a "enevol ent dictat orshi p over the .lesser. speci es, taking responsi "ility for their
well #"eing and .education, . as well as keeping them out of cont act with one
anot her. According to their theories of social dynami cs, these steps should prevent
-age /
any race from "ecomi ng sufficiently advanced to threat en the survival of others.
The possi"ility that anyone might resent such interfer ence does not occur to them.
,%& 'i$$i !n BC t! .&& 'i$$i !n BC: The E/tincti !n !* the Din! (0r +
The error of the -rogenit ors+ plan appear s when they try to .pacify. the intelligent
0aurian inha"it ant s of 0ol ,,, ('arth). The 0aurians had developed space flight,
est a"lishing colonies on 0ol ,1 and 1. When the -rogenit ors att empt to persuade
the 0aurians to a"andon space travel for the ."enefits. of peaceful servitude, the
0aurians clandes ti nely "egin constructi ng weapons with which to defend
thems el ves.
!ne such weapon is an anti #mat t er "om". Developed "y the 0ol 1 colony, the
weapon proves far more powerful than expect ed. When used against the
-rogenit ors+ spacecr aft or"iting 0ol 1, the resulting explosion dest roys the planet
and its unfort unat e inha"it ant s, creating the Asteroid 2elt. Most of the Martian (0ol
,1) at mospher e is "lown away "y the shockwave. Meteors from the exploded
planet shower the 'arth, causing a drastic climactic shift, swiftly ending the Age of
3eptiles on 'arth.
Many -rogenit ors go insane or "ecome suicidal. The disast er their entire culture
devot es itself to preventi ng has happened # and they caus ed it4 The entire culture
goes into hiding and ends the policy of interventi on. The -rogenit ors divert their
efforts to remot el y monitoring other intelligent life forms. They record every
possi"le det ail of a"out the o"served culture and daily exist ence. This insures that,
should it "ecome extinct, an intelligent speci es+ culture and history is preserved
for post erity. Due to the 0olar incident, the -rogenit ors lose faith in their a"ility to
wisely interfer e with other races. They withdraw from all interaction with aliens.
The tachyonic shockwave produced "y the "om" that dest royed 0ol 1 also
convert s much of the iron in the solar syst em to hyper #ferrite. %yper #ferrite is a
form of iron with part of its su"at omi c struct ur e partially ext ended into
hyperspace. This is undet ect a"l e without highly advanced scientific e5uipment .
%yper #ferrite is an essenti al met al for the construction of hyperdrives and is
normally only produced "y the explosion of a super nova. All four of the remai ning
inner planet s in the 0olar syst em have an iron core. The 0olar syst em is now the
richest source of hyper #ferrite in the alaxy, except for the alactic core.
0ome 0aurians escape the disast er in su" #light starships, hoping to coloni$e
dist ant star syst ems. 6nawar e that the -rogenit ors have a"andoned con5ues t , the
0aurians "elieve that their planet is now a colony of the 7hat ed ones, . vowing to
someday return and regai n the %omeworld.
8earing discovery, the 0aurians avoid cont act with other speci es and do not
est a"lish colonies on planet ary surfaces. ,nstead, they mine the !ort "elts
surroundi ng the various star syst ems for the resources they need, and construct
"ases in deep interst ellar space. There they gat her resources, plan, and wait.
-age 9
.&& 'i$$i !n BC t! %& 'i$$i !n BC: The Rie !* E'1ire +
With the disappear ance of the -rogenit ors, many worlds "egin to develop space
travel. 'vent ually, many encount er other sapi ent speci es, forming alliances or
making enemi es as circumst ances dictat e.
The remai ning text is concerned mainly with the 'arth of the campai gn world.
When a paragr aph discuss es event s which take place elsewher e, it will "e "oxed,
like this one.
%& 'i$$i !n BC t! . 'i$$i !n BC: The A-e !* M(''($ +
The extinction of the dinosaur s empti es many ecological niches. Mammal s 5uickly
evolve from shrew #like creat ur es into a myriad of si$es and shapes, "ecomi ng the
dominant large life #form on the planet .
. 'i$$i !n BC t! ,&2 & & & BC: The Rie !* H0'(ni t "+
!f the sever al hominid speci es native to 'arth, %omo 0apiens "ecomes the
predomi nant intelligent life form. !ther hominids die off or are assi milat ed through
inter"r eedi ng.
Circ( ,&2 & & & BC t! .&2 & & & BC: The A-e !* M(-i c+
The su"space distortions caused "y high levels of hyper #ferrite in the 0olar syst em
caus e a high rat e of paranor mal mut ation in the human population.
The most common paranor mal a"ility is a form of atomi c #scal e telekinesi s.
Direct ed "y the su"consci ous mind and aided "y the vast computi ng capacity of
the unused portions of the "rain, this a"ility edits the su"* ect + s geneti c code atom
"y atom, transfor mi ng him physically and ment ally. !ccasionally, this
transfor mat i on is har mful or even fat al, "ut usually not. While the transfor mat i on
itself is a per manent geneti c change, the only a"ility that a mut ant parent is
cert ain to pass on to its offspring is the pot enti al for paranor mal mut ation.
This transfor mat i on is direct ed entitrely "y the mut ant:s su"conscious mind,
resulting in an unpredict a"ly wide variety of strange a"ilities and altered forms.
0ome of these mut ati ons trigger appar ent ly magical a"ilities. 8or exampl e, a
person who su"consci ously desired to control the weat her might find himself a"le
to do so. Another with an a"nor mal fascination with fire might find himself a"le to
creat e or extinguish fire, although he might also "ecome especi ally vulnera"l e to
extinguishing att acks. 0ome of thes e .met ahuma ns . are feared as monst er s or
demons. !thers are worshipped as divine "eings.
;ear the end of this period, the great civili$ations of Atlantis (in what is now the
mid #Atlantic ocean) and the 3ama 'mpire (on the ,ndian su"conti nent ) arise. !ver
hundr eds of years, each of thes e ancient nations develops magic #"ased
technology superior to the mundane technology of the late 9<t h cent ury. These
include aviation, space flight, and weapons of mass destruction superior to the
atom "om".
-age =
When thes e aggr essive super power s clash, they unleash every kind of weapon
they can devise. The last and most destructive is a virus that ent ers the "rain via
the respirat ory tract and sinuses. There, it revers es the telekinetic process that
grant s super powers, undoing the genetic modification. The mer e threat of such a
weapon should force the opposing side into capitulation. !f course, neither side
expect ed the .met avirus. to act ually "e used.
6nfortunat el y, a sampl e of active virus escaped from one of the experi ment al
la"orat ori es (it doesn:t mat t er which, now). The met avirus proves uncont rolla"l e.
2y the time Atlantis and the 3ama 'mpire finally pool their efforts to com"at the
uncont rolled viruses, it is too late: the viruse has mut at ed and resist s all
treat me nt . 'vent ually the viruse infect s all humans. 0ome peopl e escape the
viruses "y fleeing to pocket univers es such as Asgard, !lympus, or .the land of
8ey.. 0uch pocket dimensions are safe so long as the it remai ns isolat ed from the
out er world. !thers use magical means to escape to the stars, hoping to find an
unt aint ed world where they can "egin anew.
The civili$ations that depend upon magical technology collapse. The Atlant ean
archipel ago had "een sinking, only prevent ed from doing so "y powerful spells. As
wi$ards capa"l e of sust ai ning such magic lose their a"ilities, the islands su"side
into the ocean. A few wi$ard who are particularly resist ant to the virus manage to
save a few Atlant eans "y per manent l y adapti ng them to life under wat er.
Without the magic that sust ai ned its military might, the 3ama 'mpire collapses.
The fierce neigh"oring cultures repeat edl y invade and loot the fallen empire.
Most of the "uilding mat eri als used during the Age of Magic were nat ur al o"*ect s
alter ed "y magic. As the magic fades, they revert to their nat ur al stat e. The only
evidence of the Age of Magic is legends. The 1edic Texts, a collection of "ooks
transcri"ed into 0anskrit, are rumor ed to "e a writt en record of the conflict that
ended this age. -ossi"ly, they cont ai n clues to the vast powers at the command of
the com"at ant s. !ccasionally, fragment s of copies are found, "ut if the originals or
an intact copy exist s, they are well hidden.
.&2 & & & BC t! ,2 &&& BC: The Be-i nni n- !* M0n)(ne Techn!$ ! -" +
%umani ty, after regres si ng to stone #age levels, "egins anew. The discovery of
mundane farming techni5ues makes permanent settl ement s again possi"le. ;ew
civili$ations arise.
Circ( %2 && & BC:
An insane -rogenit or capt ur es sampl es of sever al promising 'arth speci es,
including humans. %e transport s them to a near"y planet ary syst em, where he
experi ment s with modifying human genes to creat e new senti ent life forms. What
he intended to do next remai ns unknown & other -rogenit ors discover and halt his
activities. The newly #creat ed senti ent speci es are left to develop on their own.
-age >
,2 &&& BC t! .33& AD: A M0n)(ne E/it e nc e +
The met avirus virtually eliminat es paranor mal a"ilities in humans. 3ecorded
history is not very different from our own univers e+ s. %owever, ther e are a few
exceptions. . .
Circ( ,2 && & BC:
,n ancient 'gypt, the met avirus mut at es. ,nstead of suppres si ng the victim+ s
met a #a"ility, it copies the transfor mat i on process, modifying su"se5uent victims+
genomes with the same met a #a"ilities as the original 'gyptian met ahuma n (a
vampire). The .vampire retrovirus. activat es the same telekinetic a"ility that
creat es met ahuma ns , "ut grant s the similar powers (and vulnera"ilities) to the
victims. 8ortunat el y, this new form of the met avirus can:t live outside a human
host, and is fairly suscepti "l e to the human immune syst em.
Circ( .2 && & BC:
The vampire met avirus mut at es, creati ng a new form of .undead, . the houl.
Circ( 4& BC:
Two aelic Alchemi st s discover what they "elieve to "e an elixir of strengt h. ,n
actuality, the elixir tempor arily reverses the effect s of the met avirus es, allowing
their latent paranor mal a"ilities to manifest for a few hours at a time. ,t only works
for the alchemi st s, who use their powers to harass the invading 3omans.
Circ( %&& AD:
0hortly after the collapse of the 3oman 'mpire, Arthur -endr agon unit es the
2ritish ?ingdoms, aided "y the wi$ard Merlin. Merlin may possi"ly "e a time
traveller, and has "een credit ed with many fairly accurat e predictions of the
future.
L(te .4&& :
1lad Dracul, -rince of Walachi a, falls in com"at against the !ttoman Turks. After
the "attl e, his "ody disappear s. Tales of the 1ampire Dracula appear soon
afterwar d.
E(r$" .5&& :
Werewolf att acks are report ed in @entral and 'ast ern 'urope. The vampire
met avirus has mut at ed again, possi"ly due to interaction with anot her pot enti al
met ahuma n+ s met a"olism, creating a new form of monst er.
E(r$" .6&& (E(rth c($ en)(r) :
The %umanoi d creations of the Mad -rogenit or suddenly reali$e they have no
explanati on for their origin. They have not evolved from any life #form on their
home planet , and can discover no evidence of how they got there in the first place.
They initiat e an intensive space exploration program and "egin to search near"y
star syst ems for clues to their origins. ,t isn+ t long "efore they discover other
space #faring races, not all of whom are friendly. !ver the next 9<< years, the
-age A
,nterst ell ar @ommuni t y of 0peci es (,@0) "ecomes the second most powerful of the
interst ellar political units in the Bocal Arm of the alaxy, after the @ygnan 'mpire.
L(te .6&& :
The court of 8rench ?ing Bouis C1, welcomes @ount 0aint #ermai n, reput edly a
no"le from a small 'ast ern kingdom. @laiming to "e an alchemi st , 0aint #ermai n
fre5uently present s his friends with gifts of large gems. !f myst erious origin, wild
rumors circulat e a"out 0aint #ermai n. %e disappear s shortly "efore the 8rench
3evolution in /DEF, "ut is report edly seen at least =< years later "y an
ac5uai nt ance. The man claims that although 0aint #ermai n ought to "e in his
seventi es "y this time, he only appear s to "e in his mid #forties and is as healt hy
and strong as ever. 0ightings of a man fitting the description of 0aint #ermai n
persist into the early /F<<s.
Dr. 1iktor 1on 8rankenst ei n experi ment s with creating artificial life at his schloss in
Austria. Mary 0helly fictionali$es his efforts in the novel: .8rankens t ei n, the Modern
-romet heus..
Mi) .3&& :
The ,ndependent Dominion (,D) secedes from the the ,nterst ell ar @ommuni ty of
0peci es (,@0), em"roiling it in civil war. 8ounded upon the "elief that the strong
should rule the weak, the ,D receives covert support from the @ygnan 'mpire. At
the war+ s end, the ,D has carved out a territory e5ual to one #fifth of the ,@0+ s
volume. 2oth sides, depl et ed "y 9< years of war, agree to an armistice.
.33&:
Dr. Gohn Watson solves his first case as a consulting det ective. 8earing that his
position in the medical communi t y might "e threat ened "y such an
unconventi onal sideline, he invent s the fictional char act er of 0herlock %olmes.
Demand for this consulting det ective prompt s Dr. Watson to hire a fading
0hakespe ari an actor (3eginald ?inkaid) to portray %olmes in the flesh. The
fictionali$ed account s of their advent ur es are pu"lished in The 0trand weekly
maga$i ne "y Aurther @onan Doyle.
.3778 .7&&:
'xperi menti ng with wireless power trans mi ssi on, scientist ;icole Tesla
unknowingly triggers massive pulses of su"space energy from the hyper #ferrite
core of the 'arth, moment arily turning the planet into a powerful su"space
"eacon.
The 0un+ s close proxi mity amplifies the signals immens el y. The surroundi ng
empires att empt to acknowl edge receipt of the signals, "ut gain no respons e.
-u$$led that such an appar ently powerful race ignores su"space signals "eamed
at them, some races want to send a diplomatic mission to the .2eacon. syst em.
!thers pack their "ags and leave "efore the .2eacon. syst em natives decide to
-age H
get hostile.
The diplomacy faction faces a pro"lem: the 0olar syst em lies within a neutr al $one
/A light years in radius, surrounded "y five powerful star #faring races known as the
.8ive 'mpires. . All claim the neutr al $one, "ut have "een unwilling to risk war for
it. The 8ive 'mpires immedi at ely "egin negoti ati ng with each other to permit
exploring within the neutr al $one. Meanwhile, many empires mount clandes ti ne
missions to discover the origin of the "eacon from 0ol.
The 8ive 'mpires consist of the following groups:
The @ygnan 'mpire, a race of met ahuma ns descended from refugees from ancient
'arth. ?nowledge of the 'arth has vanished over the cent uri es, "ut their mast ery
of mystical technology has given them an edge over most of their neigh"ors.
@ygnans are almost indistinguisha"l e from humans, except that hair, skin and eye
color can vary throughout the spect rum. The 0kyhome @lan tends to exhi"it "lue
or tur5uoise hair, lemon yellow irises, and pale tan skin. The ;ightwing @lan tends
to exhi"it gray or white hair, *et "lack skin, and "lood red irises. The @ygnan
'mpire also includes sever al near# human and non# human su"* ect races.
The Amakung @ommer ci al @ooper ative ,s popul at ed mainly "y a trader race, the
Amakung. The Amaking are short, warm# "looded monot r emes (imagine %oward
the Duck with fur inst ead of feat her s). The Amakung 7duck "illI is not a rigid
mandi "l e, "ut a flexi"le mout h, rather like ext ended, prehensile lips. !ther non#
human races occupy the Amakung @ommer ci al @ooper ative, "ut the entire
political syst em is held toget her "y the economi c interdepende nc e fost er ed "y the
Amakung.
The ?omanii ,mperium is popul at ed "y large, humanoi d felines. The ?omanii are
warlike, agressive, and adher e to a rigid warrior:s code of ethics somewhat similar
to that of the medei val samur ai. Although the ?omanii posses s space flight and
advanced weaponry, their desire for glory in "attl e prevent s them from adhering
to a "at tl e plan for long. ,ndividually, however, the ?omanii are possi"ly the most
danger ous senti ent creat ur es in this arm of the galaxy. The only non# ?omanii
senti ent s within the ?omanii ,mperium are su"* ect races, "eings who serve as
slaves (and someti mes food) for their ?omanii Mast ers.
The ?eltan %egemony is populat ed "y the ?eltans. ?eltans are small, dog# like
humanoi ds. Although ?eltans are small, their home planet is a high# gravity
environment with a thin at mospher e. A >J foot tall keltan is as strong as a six# foot
human, and posses s es remarka"l e stami na. ?eltans are social, territorial
creat ur es, tend to live in family groups, and, unlike the ?omanii, nat ur ally adopt
cooper ative strat egi es against an advers ary.
The ,nterst ellar @onfeder ati on of 0peci es consist s of a"out /A speci es, each of
which resem"l es a humanoi d version of a common 'arth animal. Their 5uest to
-age D
discover their origins is tempor arily on hold while they deal with the conse5uences
of the recently# ended civil war. The ,@0 speci es, along with the @ygnans, possess
the most 7humanI psychological profiles of the alien races. 0urprisingly, the
genetic 7fingerprintI of an ,@0 person is closer to 'arth human than that of a
@ygnan.
The intens e "urst s of su"space energy have one last, very import ant effect: they
sever ely weaken the met avirus es. The virus, indistinguisha"l e from the common
cold, is no longer /<<K effective at suppr es si ng the met a #genes, however, genetic
drift has also altered the human met a #genes. ,t now takes a high level of ment al,
psychic, or physical trauma to trigger a paranor mal transfor mat i on.
.7&3:
Gun. : A myst erious celesti al o"*ect streaks down and explodes over Tunguska
0i"eria, knocking down trees in a fifty #mile radius. Det ect ed worldwide, the
resulting shockwaves and seismic tremors are misint erpr et ed as volcanic activity.
A scientific investigation team will not "e dispat ched until the mid #/F=<s.
The celesti al o"*ect is actually a @ygnan pro"e disguised as a comet ar y fragment .
!n its way into the solar syst em, it o"serves all the planet s, passively scanning
radio and su"space "ands for signs of a technologically advanced race. When the
pro"e is cert ai n that no such race inha"it s the syst em, it trans mi t s this information
to the @ygnans. ,t then $eroes in on the planet that clearly har"ors life,
trans mi t ti ng and updati ng det ails all the way in to a collision. This gives the
appear ance of a perfectly nat ur al, al"eit small, comet ary strike, while utt erly
destroying any evidence of the pro"e.
'xamining the report s, the @ygnans are "affled to discover that the 'arth is
populat ed "y "illions of @ygnan# like "eings. ,n fact, the planet:s popul ation is not
only more than any other known inha"it ed planet , "ut 'arth:s popul ation is more
than half that of any of the 8ive 'mpires.
When @ygnan scientist s det er mi ne that the aver age technology level of the 'arth
is *ust past the stone age, they decide to place the 'arth under 7prot ective
cust odyI on the grounds that these 7lost @ygnansI are defens el es s against the
surroundi ng non# @ygnan empires. The fact that 'arthlings are e5ually
7defens el es sI against the @ygnans is a large factor in the @ygnan decision.The
remai ning four of the 8ive 'mpires each take a different position regardi ng the
@ygnan claim on the neut r al $one.
The Amakung @ommer ci al @ooper ative is indifferent so long as they are allowed
free access to the $one for trading purpos es.
The ?omanii ,mperium decides to challenge the @ygnans, and declare war.
The ?eltan %egemony is inclined to respect the @ygnan territorial claim, "ut want s
exploration rights.
-age E
The ,nterst ellar @onfeder ati on of 0peci es has serious internal disput es to settl e,
and is willing to let the others have their way so long as no military vent ur es
"lunder into ,@0 space.
.7.5:
World War !ne "egins. Two met ahuma ns "ecome widely known during this
conflict. The first, .Der 8leder maus. (The 2at) is a erman soldier with large,
"at #like wings. %e can fly and posses s es uncanny night vision. Der 8leder maus
destroys sever al Allied ammuni tion dumps early in the war, "ut is capt ur ed and
shot in late /F/D. The second, an otherwise normal 8rench soldier with the power
of invisi"ility, perfor ms valua"l e reconnai ss ance work for the Allies until he is lost
and presumed killed in action.
.7.3:
;ovem"er //: The Armistice ending WW , is signed. 6nder its terms, ermany is
held responsi "l e for the entire war. Allied troops occupy the west "ank of the
3hine.
.7,& 8.7,7:
-rohi"ition takes effect in the 60. The 1olstead Act renders illegal the
manufact ur e, import ati on, and export ati on of alcoholic "ever age in the 60 and its
territories. @riminal gangs, formerly fragment ed and ineffect ual, organi$e and
cooper at e to meet the demand for alcohol. ,mporting known "rands from a"road
"rings the highest profits.
A scientific paper pu"lished in 7The BancetI specul at es on the causes of human
mut ation. Metahumans are classified in three different cat egori es. The first,
7-aranor mal sI, includes all met ahuma ns with ac5uired a"ilities that normal
humans do not posses s, "ut not to any useful degr ee. -aranor mal s are the most
numer ous type of met ahuma n, and often succeed in concealing their
different nes s.
The second classification is 70uperhuma nI. A superhuma n posses s es a"ilities
"eyond the 7normalI human range, such as great stami na (the most common
super huma n a"ility) or flight.
The last classification is 7Mutant I. A mut ant posses s es distinctive a"nor mal
physical traits that may or may not "e "eneficial (green hair, for inst ance). A
mut ant may also posses s paranor mal or superhuma n a"ilities. Many mut ant s,
owing to the 8reudi an origin of their transfor mat i on, posses s physical traits of
animal s with significant (though often su"consci ous) meani ng to the mut ant .
War repar ations exhaust the erman treasury. To pay its employees, the Wiemar
3epu"lic prints more money. 3unaway inflation strikes ermany.
'dale, Der"yshire, 'ngland is terrori$ed "y evidence of a werewolf. The incident s
-age F
precipit at e a wave of anti# mut ant paranoi a.
The 6nited 0tat es "egins screeni ng all immigrant s for mut ant charact eri stics at
port s# of#entry. Most 'uropean nations follow suit. The percent age of mut ant s
within any popul ation is largely unaffect ed.
;ew Gersey: Dr. oddard fires the first li5uid #fueled rocket.
@harles A. Bind"ergh flies non #stop "etween ;L@ and -aris # the first solo non #stop
crossing of any ocean.
!ct. 9>, /F9F: The great stock market crash & 0tock values plummet . The reat
Depressi on "egins.
-et er ?urten, the infamous .1ampire of Dusselldorf,. a serial killer and child
molest er, terrori$es the city. -olice efforts to capt ur e him disrupt Dussel dorf+ s
criminal element . The gangs organi$e to capt ur e and try ?urten "efore a 7criminal
courtI
/
. They then deliver the "ody to Dusseldorf -olice %ead5uar t er s, decapi t at ed
and with a wooden stake driven through its heart.
.74& 8.75&:
0cores die and =<< are stricken "y a poisonous fog in 2elgium.
Adolf %itler is elect ed @hancellor of ermany.
-rohi"ition is repeal ed.
The dirigi"le %inden"er g narrowly avoids exploding at Bakehurst , ;ew Gersey,
when an incendi ary device is discover ed and hurled over"oar d seconds "efore it
explodes. The 6.0. and ermany secretly agree to withhold det ails of this event
from the press. The 6.0. suspect s ermany att empt ed to frame the 6.0. for
7"lowing upI the %inden"er g, and that the plot somehow failed. The ermans
don:t really know what happened either.
ermany annexes Austria.
ermany occupi es the section of @$echoslovaki a known as the 0udet enl and
without opposition from the @$echs.
Alien spaces hi ps of unknown origin land at rover+ s Mill, ;ew Gersey. An informal
team of Metahumans, the .Gersey Devils,. halts the invasion att empt . The 60
government , in an att empt to prevent mass hyst eri a, enlists the aid of radio
personality and playwright !rson Welles to assist in the .white #out..
9
%is
(previously non# exist ent ) radio drama .The War of the Worlds . is "lamed for the
hyst eri a of that !cto"er =<t h. !rson Welles apologi$es on national radio, "ut is
never asked to offer any other amends for the havoc his play suppos edl y caused.
1
In fact, this actually happened, though the real Peter Kurten wasnt actually a Vampire. The German Language moie
!"#, starring Peter Lorre tells the tale.
$
% &white'out& is a disinformation campaign designed to ma(e an e)traordinary eent seem ordinary. Ideally, the e)planations offered
should discredit any alternatie accounts.
-age /<
The alien spaces hi ps were, in fact, the first @ygnan att empt at su"*ugati ng the
'arth. The humans were *udged to "e a naive, simple peopl e who would easily
"elieve that advanced visitors from the sky were 7godsI. The @ygnans were
suppos ed to land, display their superiority to the 7simpl eI natives, then graciously
accept the 'arthlings: worshipful surrender.
,nst ead, an alert farmer called the police when thes e stranger s set fire to his "arn,
and act ually shot one full of rock salt "efore they could su"due him. The @ygnans
were compl et ely unawar e that the 'arth already posses s ed "eings with powers far
"eyond mort al men until the Gersey Devils arrived and "eat the heck out of them.
The aliens were transport ed to a secur e facility somewher e in @olorado for
interrogati on. The wreckage of their spacecr aft was transport ed to -att erson 8ield
for analysis, and the farmer, the police, and the Gersey Devils were sworn to
secrecy.
The erman ter m .6"er mann, . denoting a superior human, is Americani$ed to
.super man, . and is used to refer to 0uperhuma ns .
Dr. -aul 0chimmel horn, a met ahuma n genius and philant hropist, founds the
;ational Association for Mutant 'mancipati on (;AM') to count er anti #met ahuma n
pre*udice.
ermany invades -oland. The 0econd World War "egins.
ermany con5uer s 8rance only two weeks after erman soldiers ent er 8rench
territory.
.75. 8.75%:
The 60 set s up its first ever peaceti me draft. Mutant s are exempt from the draft,
on the grounds that their appear ance would disrupt normal military routine.
The Gapanes e att ack -earl %ar"or, and the 60 declar es war on Gapan.
'ven "efore the war "egan, the Axis used superhuma n spies and sa"ot eur s in the
60. While rich in met ahuma ns , the 60 delayed enlisting their aid until after -earl
%ar"or. Most 60 superhuma ns are used to count er Axis agent s. 'ffective in this
role, few are assigned to com"at units.
Mutant s, on the other hand, are widely utili$ed, mostly as meni al la"or. The
popular, though incorrect percepti on of mut ant s is that they lack the neces s ar y
courage for com"at assignment s. Many mut ant s, desiring to aid their country in
any capacity, volunt eer for service in the mut ant s+ auxiliary of their preferred
service "ranch. This frees normal humans for com"at duty.
-age //