Icar is a game set in the far future, a future molded in the same way in which the present has been formed. A sociological model of rise and decline was used along with the detriments of expansion and its effects on technology to give a more believable Universe.

Most of the principles given in this game, from tech to society have mirrors in the current world. The game uses a society evolved not from a concept but from a series of occurrences through time.

Everything in ICAR evolves, from the actual game to your character. The personality the character you start with is unlikely to be the same character you finish with. The experiences you (and the character) have will alter the view your character has on the world it lives in. This is the same as the Universe, a combination of random and calculated events change the Universe and changes its future too.

In 1972 the cold war did not end. Neither did the space race. The entire world was sent into a frenzy for technology and by 1982, the first fully operation Space Station (NASA) was in orbit. The iron curtain became ever thicker and more powers became involved, the Arab Emirates becoming their own separate power. The Emirates gained the nuclear bomb and soon after threatened Armageddon. ESA became the main space faring authority on earth, as NASA and CCP became militarily obsessed. In April 2002, ESA finished the first self sufficient Space Station, the Ariane 1001. The 1001 was loaded with the cream of scientific society from across the globe and was a bright light in the darkness of suspicion.

However, in 2005, the Emirates came under the power of Difmer Atorl, a blatant psychopath and with the backing of his somewhat paranoid people, he opened war on the rest of the globe. Moon bases and mars colonies were destroyed immediately but the 1001 was left to survive. The nuclear blast killed very few people on Earth, but the nuclear winter wiped out 99% of the human population. The rest starved.

After many years of expansion, the 1001 grew to bursting point, stripping moon and Mars colonies of all of the resources left by colonists. Science boomed. Hygroponic technology expanded rapidly as the technology was required for the continuation of the human race.

And then a new technology was formed. A home was required, the post Apocalyptic earth lay in ruins, the surface burnt and dry. The mystery of the Universe was broken open by a set of experiments, one which included the first unmanned journey by Jumping through the light barrier to Alpha Centauri. One day, it returned.

Soon after people started to build ships of all sort, scavenging on Mars and the moon became commonplace and people were fired with a spirit to explore that had never been seen before. Huge ships were constructed and jumped slowly out into space, randomly mapping stars as they went until a planet they could live on came into view. The majority of the settlements were in the centre of the galaxy as traveling between them for aid and trade was quicker. This soon became the centre of the human race and the earth was all but forgotten.

In 3008, it was seen that a governing body was needed to ensure that the human race worked together. It was a small operation which helped the flow of technology and resources such as food and minerals. The human race expanded very quickly, in all directions. Piracy started to become a problem, so the Imperium (now quite powerful) set up The Stella Fleet (5020), its strong arm to police space, to aid exploration and to help trade with the smaller less self sufficient colonies.

Technology declined at a frightening pace as the great minds of the galaxy are spread out over a vast distance and some colonies with little technical support. To combat this, the Imperium set up a new division Star Sci (8000) to bring together (much like a university) all the great minds of the human race. Star Sci took the profits of the very affluent Imperium to fund its projects and the technology level was greatly boosted.

A genetic virus called the Hypomutogen was found, which by its very nature was incurable. The virus is a byproduct of the genetic changes due to human evolution. Mutogen was quickly quelled with fears that it could spread with the increasing trade and inter system travel.

In 19439, at the age of 41, Aran Colmay, a civic leader and much respected person speaks out against the growing corruption in the Imperium. His followers, fanatic in their belief, grow quickly. Numerous terrorist attacks followed and demonstration against the violence. Many colonies follow suit and soon colonies appear which follow the �Aran religion�. Much hostilities arise between Aran people and Imperial people until Aran colonies declare war on the Imperium. Half of the Stella Fleet rebel and the remainder are renamed Star Fleet. From 49106 to 59033, a huge war rages across the entire galaxy, killing 85% of the human population through direct death and the economic collapse of systems. The Imperium win due to marginally greater numbers.

The universe rebuilds in a new air of freedom and wealth, all the people left have had to fight for their survival and the knowledge gain previously of exploration and the setting up of successful colonies is used. Star Sci come out of the war relatively intact. Technology takes turn after turn as new and exciting ways of exploiting old theories are found.

(91001) However, carelessness in the way in which research is done leads to a robot being created to wipe out all signs of Mutogen on a planet. The robot, artificially intelligent, had a program which was rushed and pieced together inexpertly. Soon the robot replicates itself and turns against its programmers, directly obeying its orders to destroy all life. Soon the Droids destroyed the now strong but trustworthy galaxy and the human race was beaten back to one small sector. Sayshell. The home of the Star Fleet. But the human race fought back (91893), reprogramming the Droids and turning Droid against Droid. Soon the human populace inhabit 2 sectors, Sayshell and Dorian (92027).

Dorian was originally controlled by a set of Warlords who were appointed by their technical or economic success. However the corrupt Warlords fought and avoided the attention of the Imperium who was still rebuilding the trust of the people. But the Imperium was far more shrewd than people thought and soon knighted the Warlords as Lords of the Imperium. Now as part of the Imperium, they had to obey the rules the Imperium set down. They had no choice, another Lord could take their place.

Historically, Sayshell is the least affluent and stable of the sectors as it is controlled by Star Fleet. The area is used for military training and there lies many manufacturing depots and restricted systems. However now it is the home of humans and people see it as the place to live. Technology is high in all areas and people of all classes, rich or poor, can make their mark. Dorian is seen to be the more relaxed of places, technology is rapidly increasing in all places and trade is booming like never before as people are working new routes to run and goods to sell.

In general, there is a real hate for the Droids and any robot that is seen but no one sees it as a real threat, it is just something there at the back of everyone�s mind. The corporations do not run the galaxy and the now strong Imperium control both sectors with equal severity. A new Star Industry has been set up, the Star Enforcers who police space and the colonies. With the arrival of the SE, Star Fleet have been able to turn their attention to fighting the droids and crime has taken a real hammering. No longer are there separate police forces on different systems but one unified systems that cane communicate across all the worlds. Crime still exists but petty crime is dealt with and organized crime is intelligently made so not to arouse any suspicion.

Society is much the same from place, there may be different celebrations but the effect of moving from one colony or system to another is the same as moving from Northern England to the South. Although people may be used to living in more chilly conditions in the North, their ideals and thoughts are pretty much the same. Moving from sector to sector is negligible as a sector border is only really a line is space. What is the difference between Berkshire and Bedfordshire, after all?

There is a general widespread fear of anything even remotely robotic and although the technology does exist for artificially intelligent people does exist, they would not be accepted in society, even as servants. Reaction to Cyborgs is a fear mixed with a little hatred, most people look on them as part of the Droids, unless of course, they work for the SE or an Imperium agency (Fire department, for example). People with Cybernetics are looked on in an even worse light as they are robots without anyone knowing, a sort of subversion.

People hold jobs in a similar way we do except they work in cycles. Every planet has a time system made up of groups 10 standard hours called a cycle. You spend two cycles awake and the other 10 sleeping. The remaining hours are called the �spare� and are spent doing whatever you wish. A day comprises of a certain number of �cycles� and a number of spare hours. People tend to stick with this. People do into live in exact patterns such as day and night and all services and businesses tend to be open constantly, depending on how the people wish to work. Days, moths and years are ordered exactly the same as our own to allow two ICAR groups to run the same timeline. For example if a planet has a cycle of 32 hours and 40 minutes, that would be spent 20 awake, 10 asleep and perhaps the spare doing whatever the person wishes. However if the planet has a 40 hour cycle, you may work through the day and then go to be at 20 o�clock and then get up at 30 o�clock and go to work until 10 o�clock the next day, then sleep to 20 o�clock. There is no pattern concerned with the time of day, just whether you are sleeping or not.

ICAR is a huge game which can take several months to get a grip on the Universe. However, once you have this grip, an endless world is prepared for exploration