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By 373 NJ, the first groups reached the polar facility. which they aptly dubbed Sanctuary. They found an entire empty city, ready for habitation. Hydroponics, manufacturing facilities, samples and blueprints for advanced technology, orbital vehicles, and even a wrecked prime knight paladin walker made it a veritable technological oasis. The next decade saw the establishment of a small civilization in Sanctuary that was focused on efficiency and the effective use of limited resources. All told, some 50,000 people came to call Sanctuary home. From their polar fortress, the people of Sanctuary watched as the world around them dissolved into chaos. The rest of New Jerusalem was breaking down into numerous small nations and power blocs during this period, which would later be known as the Isolation Crisis. Manufacturing hubs to fuel their conflicts were constructed, but the fall of the Church reduced their capabilities to little more than mid-20th century earth. The primary issue was a lack of computers and electronics. Air travel was almost completely lost as well. Simple propeller-driven aircraft were usable, but air filters constantly wore out due to the silicon particles in plant life. When burned, this released a choking smoke cloud that clogged engines. Re-exploration of space was also impossible. [Read More]

The fall of the Jerusalemite Church would be labeled ‘The Collapse’ by subsequent generations. Once a unified planet, New Jerusalem fractured without the centralized guidance of the Church. This led not only to a massive loss of technology, but also the creation of nations where none existed before. Many of the initial divisions formed due to geography, but the tone of the ensuing conflicts was largely religious for many decades. These nations would come to be referred to as the ‘Post-Collapse States’. During this time, personnel for Sanctuary would covertly travel across the Post-Collapse States. These missions served many purposes including fact-finding, making local connections, recruitment, and acquisition of resources. Sanctuary agents quickly developed a subtle code through careful phrasing that allowed them and their allies to communicate right under the nose of authorities. When pressed for their identities, it became common for them to reply they were simple shepherds, as many would masquerade as traders or farmers. These field agents observed and documented a number of new nations, which are listed below.

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The decades that followed the arrival at Sanctuary were a blur of activity. The facility was slowly turned into a settlement, then eventually to a full-fledged city-state. New generations were born and came of age, not just in Sanctuary but across the whole planet. New nations and societies formed in the vacuum left after the destruction of the Church.

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On 2 Shvat 454 (Christmas Eve 5871, a day chosen for its symbolism), a strike force of combat vehicles from the Collective of a New Canaan was dispatched towards a small hamlet. Their intent was to destroy the town and slaughter its inhabitants in retaliation for a dubious ‘crime’. Unknown to the strike force, Sanctuary command deemed this assault the first victim of their interventions. When the convoy was spotted by the locals on Christmas morning, panic ensued. There was no question in their minds what the assault force’s intent was, and the town had no means to stop the impending massacre. Just before the lead vehicle could move into range of the town and fire its first shot, it exploded in a ball of fire. Caught off guard, the convoy began to shoot in all directions, unsure of what direction they were taking fire from. Within a few seconds, two more vehicles went up in flames before they realized the fire was coming from above them. Looking up into the sky the attackers were horrified. Sanctuary combat walkers landed in and amongst the strike force, trashing vehicles left and right. The survivors tried to flee in terror, only to walk into the waiting guns of infantry and heavier assets positioned for just such an eventuality. There were no survivors, no townsfolk were injured, and the only Sanctuary ‘casualty’ was a corporal with a sprained ankle. The Sanctuary forces pulled out almost as fast as they arrived and quickly disappeared, leaving the bewildered townsfolk to clean up. [Read More]

Word traveled fast of this “Miracle,” and those in leadership positions blew it off as nothing more than an overblown story. A whole assault force wiped out by “angels from heaven?” It had to be a joke. The destruction of the force was attributed to “bandits and highwaymen.” Two weeks later it happened again. And then it happened again, and again. Authorities initially tried to hide these attacks, but rumors spread of the “angels’’ and their wrath. Soon, all attempts to hide the existence of these attacks were abandoned. Efforts to identify the attackers were met with failure, with only a few eyewitness reports whose testimony was ultimately deemed unbelievable. Massive bipedal and multipedal combat walkers dropping from the sky? Advanced laser weapons? Cannons that could melt tanks and their crews? All of this with no trace of their arrival or departure, aside from the carnage left in their wake.

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Nothing stays secret forever. Despite attempts at secrecy, the Shepherds’ activities became more and more well known. Eventually credible survivors from encounters appeared, evidence of travel and sightings of aircraft occurred, and it became obvious that some military force was operating beyond the authority of any nation on the planet. Some despaired at this new threat while others resented the attackers, and still others saw a potential advantage.

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The Shepherds’ society is organized into three orders, which are then divided into smaller sub-orders. Each order specializes in a group of related tasks. The first of the three main orders is the Order of Saint Joseph, which oversees the day-to-day operations of Sanctuary. Under their purview are things like construction, food production and distribution, administration, and cleaning services. The Order of Saint Marcellin covers anything that requires significant training and education such as medicine, education, academics, research, record keeping, and engineering. The final order is the Order of Saint Adrian, which covers security and military forces. Each of these three orders is lead by a Grand Marshal, and the three Grand Marshals collectively form the ruling body of the Shepherds.

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The Shepherd’s primary combat arm is the Order of Saint Michael (OSM). The fundamental building block of the OSM is the regiment. Above a regiment is the division, which is less of a combat unit more of an administrative element that oversees operation within a certain region of New Jerusalem. Each division contains a core of support assets like artillery and air support, as well as at least one regiment. The regiments themselves are composed of four “line battalions’’, which are the combat arm, and two support battalions. A full-size regiment has nearly 4,000 personnel.  Regiments are numbered based on the order in which they were activated, and each one is also named after a biblical angel.

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All angels (the Shepherd’s term for their combat walkers) have a support system called a virtue, which as with everything else involving them is a reference to an order of angels. Virtues are not true independent artificial intelligences, although they are closer than the ONNs of Terra Nova and even some Utopian NAIs. Though pilots input commands to an angel via a series of joysticks, pedals, buttons, switches, and even verbal commands, it is the virtues that take these inputs and convert them into motion of the machine. Virtues are fully interactive, capable of replying to queries and even carrying on a conversation. It’s not abnormal for them to develop personalities, and as long as they perform their tasks to spec those personalities are allowed to stay. An angel pilot is generally assigned a virtue upon graduation, and that virtue follows them through their career. Many pilots consider their virtue as something more than a pet but less than a person. Pilots will often give them names such as Athena, Tenor, and Echo. Black Talon operatives have noted that it seems virtues are far more interactive than expected given their function. Reports of pilots carrying on conversations about things unrelated to combat in an angel have been reported, and even cases of pilots and virtues disagreeing on topics. Ultimately, though, the virtue is subordinate to the pilot. It will always comply with the pilot’s commands, although  if reports are to be believed it will sometimes offer a sarcastic remark about them. [Read More]