Terra Firma

Terra Firma, a renamed dystopian Earth in the year 2410; Population: Roughly 22 Billion. Much of the planet has become a wasteland, and so populations have aggregated in enormous conurbations known as 'mega-cities'. Extensive automation (including intelligent robots) has rendered the vast swathes of the population unemployed, though not everything is as grim as it may sound. There are still plenty of positions available for furthering the war-effort, and despite overpopulation and general lack of resources on Firma itself, the planet receives hundreds of millions of tonnes of foodstuffs from UTC colonies, to be distributed to the working population first, before being rationed out to the rest of the worlds inhabitants.

Mega City One is the main focus of the plot: However, there are five other major population centres in Northern America: the first is Texas City, including several of the southern former United States and based on Wild West manners. South of the city is Mex-City. Far north is Uranium City. Canada, now called Canadia, remains a state with scattered communities. Mega-City Two once existed on the West Coast, but was destroyed in 2130 during the world war known as Judgement Day. Nuclear deserts and destruction elsewhere in the world are also extensive: much of the North Atlantic is severely polluted, and is now known as the "Black Atlantic". An underwater settlement known as Atlantis exists in the Atlantic, half-way along a tunnel from Mega-City One to Brit-Cit (England).

Nuclear desert also stretches across western Europe. The British Isles are Brit-Cit, Cal-Hab (Scotland), and Murphyville in Ireland (a country-sized theme park depicting a stereotypical view of traditional Irish life). The continent has Euro-City (eastern France and part of Germany), Ciudad España (eastern Spain), the Ruhr and Berlin Conurbs in Germany, Vatican City, and a scattering of other city-states. Russia's East-Meg One was destroyed at the climax of the Apocalypse War in 2134. Further east is East-Meg Two, which has other territories under the "Sov Block" banner. Mongolia, lacking a Mega-City has called itself the Mongolian Free State and criminals have flocked there for a safe haven; East-Meg Two performed vicious clearances there in 2152.

Compared to North America and Europe, South America is shown to be in much better condition. Large fertile farmlands still exists and feed many cities worldwide, as do jungles and a variety of wild life. The main population centres are the highly corrupt cities of Ciudad Barranquilla in Argentina and Pan-Andes Conurb in the Andes on the Bolivian and Peruvian borders. Formerly two other cities existed, South-Am City and Brasilia, both of which were annihilated on Judgement Day.

In Asia, separated from East-Meg Two by an extensive nuclear desert, are Sino-City One (destroyed during Judgement Day) and Sino-City Two in eastern China, with Hong Tong built in the remains of Hong Kong and partitioned between Sino-Cit and Brit-Cit control. Hondo City lies on the remains of the islands of Japan. Nu-Delhi (previously Indo-Cit and Delhi-City) is in southern India. Surrounding Sino-City 2 is the Radlands of Ji, a nuclear desert containing outlaw gangs and martial arts schools. In the Pacific, cities survive in southeastern Australia or "Oz" (the Sydney-Melbourne Conurbation), the Solomon Islands (Solomon City), Tonga (Friendly City), and the New Pacific City; All of Indonesia's islands are now linked by a network of mutant coral called "The Web", described as a lawless hotbed of crime, although a city called Djakarta did exist there at one point but was lost on Judgement Day.

The Middle East is without many major cities, being either nuclear wasteland or natural deserts, and only the mega-city of Luxor, Egypt has survived; the Mediterranean coast is heavily damaged by mutagens. In Africa much of the south is nuclear desert and a 'Great African Dustbowl' has formed in the northwest; but a large number of nation states have survived, whereof Simba City (Gabon), New Jerusalem (Ethiopia), Zambian Metropolitan, and Dar es Salaam are the largest cities. Nuclear fallout and pollution appear to have missed Antarctica and the Arctic, allowing one mega-city (Antarctic City) to be constructed there.

The high levels of pollution have created instances of mutation in humans and animals. The mega-cities largely operate on a system of genetic apartheid, making expulsion from the cities the worst punishment possible.

Terra Firma's moon has been colonised, with a series of large domes forming Luna City; In addition, many deep space colonies have been established.

The paranormal is both common and often openly visible and so is accepted by both civilians and the UTC, however is often thought to be as "the result and influence of Precursor technology." Ghosts, demons, ancient gods and two different creatures both claiming to be Satan have appeared in Mega-City One. Magic is debated, but may even be real in some form and is practised by some criminal organisations and cults.