| |
| Rubicon 3 | |
| General information | |
| Japanese name | ルビコン3 |
| Other names | ISB2262 |
| Notable events | Fires of Ibis |
| Real world information | |
| Appearances | ARMORED CORE VI FIRES OF RUBICON |
ISB2262, "Rubicon 3" is the third planet of the Rubicon star system.
Description[]
A mysterious new substance called "Coral" was discovered on the remote planet, Rubicon 3. As an energy source, this substance was expected to dramatically advance humanity’s technological and communications capabilities. Instead, it caused a catastrophe that engulfed the planet and the surrounding stars in flames and storms, forming a Burning Star System.[1] Almost half a century later, Coral has resurfaced on Rubicon 3, a planet now contaminated and sealed off by the catastrophe. Extra-terrestrial corporations and resistance groups fight over control of the substance. The player infiltrates Rubicon as an independent mercenary and finds themselves in a struggle over the substance with the corporations and other factions.[1] |
History[]
Details about Rubicon 3's history prior to the Fires of Ibis are scant. The original colonists presumably traveled to the planet aboard the colony ship Xylem, which made landfall in the Alean Ocean off the coast of the Central Ice Field region. Many of the colonists were of Japanese descent, and Japanese culture left an indelible mark on Rubiconian society, as indicated by the naming system used by Belius Applied Weapon Systems (BAWS) for its products, and Rokumonsen's personal history. The most important settlement on Rubicon 3 was Institute City, the headquarters of the Rubicon Research Institute, which was devoted to researching and finding technological applications for the planet's unique resource: Coral, an organic substance capable of supplying abundant energy and serving as an extremely efficient data conduit. A vast industrial infrastructure was also constructed across the planet in the form of the Grids, towering structures that facilitated the transportation of massive quantities of resources.
Rubicon 3 was also at the forefront of Armored Core development. BAWS created the BASHO, an early AC model focused on melee combat in accordance with the contemporary understanding of Core Theory, a cutting-edge warfare doctrine that espoused replacing long-distance, automated weaponry with human-piloted ACs bearing close-range weapons; Core Theory rose to prominence after it was observed that the effectiveness of AI in combat had plateaued, while human pilots were unexpectedly able to achieve successes in seemingly hopeless situations. On the other end of the spectrum, the Rubicon Research Institute produced multiple weapons and ACs, classified as C-Weapons, that took advantage of Coral's natural ability to reproduce and were intended to function autonomously for years and years. Some of these weapons were deemed to be so advanced that they were beyond human control.
Fifty years ago, Rubicon 3 was devastated by the Fires of Ibis. After noticing irregular Coral activity and signs that it was reaching a critical mass, Rubicon Research Institute director Professor Nagai concluded that a "Coral Collapse" was imminent, which threatened to cause the Coral to spill into space and spread across the stars, making it impossible to contain. Nagai ordered the deployment of the IB-01: CEL 240, an Ibis Series C-Weapon that had been built for the express purpose of preventing Coral disasters. IB-01: CEL 240 ignited the Coral, setting off the Fires of Ibis, a storm of flame on an interplanetary scale that scorched and contaminated Rubicon 3's surface, killed countless people, and appeared to consume all of the planet's Coral. Institute City was destroyed, and the Rubicon Research Institute ceased to exist. Rubiconian survivors of the Fires came to be known as "Cinders".
In the wake of the Fires of Ibis, Rubicon 3 was sealed off by the Planetary Closure Administration to ensure such a disaster could never happen again. All traffic to and from the planet was prohibited, and the embargo was enforced by a military blockade, and later an array of weaponized satellites called the Closure System. The people of Rubicon 3 found themselves isolated from the rest of human civilization. Dissenters against the PCA's custodianship eventually organized under Thumb Dolmayan, a Coral Doser and Cinder turned spiritual and ideological leader, to form the Rubicon Liberation Front in the hope of reopening the planet, but the rebels could do little against the PCA's technological superiority and the Closure System since the only weapons they had access to were outdated models purchased from BAWS.
A turning point in Rubicon 3's history arrived fifty years after the disaster, when the hacktivist group Branch discovered that the PCA was aware that Coral still existed on the planet. Once this information leaked and Branch opened a breach in the Closure System through a daring raid on LOC Station 31, an orbital control hub, the corporations Balam Industries and Arquebus Corporation flocked to Rubicon 3 to find and exploit the Coral, ushering in the Coral War. While Balam, Arquebus, and the RLF clashed, another organization, Overseer, set its own plan into motion to find the Coral first and burn it due to the threat it posed to humanity.
Locations[]
- Belius
- Central Belius
- Northern Belius
- Southern Belius
- Western Belius
- Alean Ocean
- Central Ice Field
- Contaminated Zone
- Exosphere
Gameplay[]
Rubicon 3 is the setting and namesake of ARMORED CORE VI FIRES OF RUBICON.
Gallery[]
Concept art[]
Trivia[]
- Although the in-game subtitled text and game marketing materials refer to it as Rubicon 3, the Rubicon Research Institute's logo shows it rendered as Rubicon III.