Terra Acerba

Terra Acerba is the name for Earth in Darkness in the Emerald City. I wanted to give it some kind of snappy new name so I could have a history page for the world outside of Emerald City.

A Brief History of Time

For the vast majority of the planets life, it has lived a virtual mirror existence to the Earth we know. The people are not quite the same, but the major events are recognizable, if not identical.

Some Important Differences

After World War II the timelines began to diverge more and more. The Rosenbergs were discovered when radioactive material they had stolen accidentally poisoned the water supply, killing hundreds and causing life-long pain to thousands. Gary Powers chose to stay in the Soviet Union and revealed scores of government secrets to the Soviets.

Glastnost never came to be, and Mikhail Gorbachev was ousted in a violent coup and replaced by incoming and current Premier, Vladimir Putin. With the worlds biggest thug in charge of the largest country in the world, the Iron Curtain still stands, and Soviet-US relations continue to be very tense.

Age of the Vigilante

The worlds economies continue to limp along, but there are not enough good jobs to go around. The increase in poverty lead to an increase in crime, and with police forces stretched to their limit, vigilance committees like those from the 1800s began to spring into action to pick up the slack. They had little effect, however, that is until everything changed in 1979.

Rise of the Fist

The Fist was worlds first costumed vigilante. He appeared in New York during 1981 and began combatting the rise in violent crime that had been trending since the early 1970's. He almost singlehandedly reversed the trend and made New York City one of the safest large cities anywhere in the world for a time.

In the summer of 1979 the various street gangs in NYC began to show an alarming amount of organization. Gang rivalry all but disappeared and these street criminals started working together to commit various crimes and fight law enforcement. During this period rumors started to circulate about a masked individual with a glowing fist combating the gangs and rescuing police. The official stance on these rumors was denial. Still rumors of " the fist" as he was dubbed by the local news persisted. Then in february of 1980 the first publicized photo of "the fist" was published. The official stance went from denial to "no comment". Many spoke out against the fist in the media, calling for a halt to his vigilantism. Although some called for his arrest most called him a hero.

In November of 1980 The Fist made his first public appearance and statements. Word got to the press that he would be at city hall. When they arrived he announced that he would continue to fight crime but that he would do it legally by applying to be a licensed vigilante. Unfortunately things did not go to well for the fist that day. He was masked and refused to give his true identity, stating that it would endanger others if he did. His license was denied and he was asked to turn himself in. The Fist fled city hall avoiding any physical conflict with the police.

He was killed on live TV in 1983 by Vercingetorix.

The Detroit Gambit

In the Spring of 2011 it was clear that Detroit was in dire straits. The mounting debt meant that bankruptcy might be the only cure for the financial ills of one of the largest cities in the US. Then, in what seemed like an instant, Detroit was saved.

Enter OCP

Omni Consumer Products offered to stave off bankruptcy and assume all of Detroits debt. They would also provide all of the local services, such as police and fire. In exchange they received substantial maintenance fees from taxes and all of the contents of the Detroit museum, with the promise that it would stay on display in Detroit.

Surprisingly, the ambitious project is on target to be profitable in only a few years. Their test division has been at the forefront, and continues to develop a super-secret 'Robocop' project. Detroit is still a violent city, but the crime rate seems to be decreasing, albeit slowly, and their urban renewal projects have steadily increased employment.