by Benjamin Philip, Kristen McFadyen, Jamey Patten

Over three hundred years have passed since the Cataclysm, when the old governments fell as war ignited the earth and shrouded the skies. New civilizations have arisen from the ashes of the old, and seek to reclaim the glories of bygone ages while avoiding the terrible temptations of black science that destroyed the earth once. Here in New Providence, the industrial capital of the Eastern Union, mankind is ready to reach back to the stars once again. The Second Dawn, the first spaceship in centuries, will launch tonight carrying a satellite that will make global communications possible once again. But it also carries hope- hope that mankind will be able to pierce the Shroud that dims the moon, and regain contact with the lost colonists and sciences scattered across the solar system. A project as visionary as the Second Dawn has attracted doubters and enemies: those who decry its waste and hubris, and those who fear dark science in its construction or beyond the Shroud. Despite political unease, the President of the Union has come to New Providence to celebrate the launch of the Second Dawn and oversee the glorious festivities surrounding the occasion. Before morning comes, mankind will see a new age begin... one way or another.

The setting will be a massive cruise-ship-like launch platform sailing south from Naragansett Bay. Players will take on the roles of dignitaries, politicians, crew members, scientists, socialites, and visitors from across the post-apocalyptic world: everyone who has come to observe, celebrate, or prevent the launch of the Second Dawn.