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Download a diagram of playable locations on Mars
Download a diagram of playable locations on Deimos
Mars was settled during the “gold rush” period of asteroid mining in the 2050s. The first settlements were run as company towns by mining corporations such as Harvest Ventures. Mining and processing facilities also existed on Phobos and Deimos at this time. Early habitats on Mars were formed by digging large ditches and then covering them over to form tunnels. The colony grew very rapidly, and it was soon discovered that the Tharsis region of Mars is riddled with lava tubes and natural caverns. These have been converted and connected to form a three-dimensional labyrinth of tunnel habitats.
The largest such settlement is Amundsen Base, now sometimes casually referred to as a Amundsen City, which is located near the equator east of Pavonis Mons. Both the shield volcanos of the Tharsis region and the yawning chasms of Valles Marineris and Noctis Labyrinthus are readily visible from spaceships approaching or departing from Amundsen.
The colony was heavily populated by furry recoms. During the Apocalypse War, the recoms on Mars overthrew their human masters and established a new government headed by the charismatic but ruthless Marshall Redwolf. The cult of personality surrounding Redwolf allowed him to become “Maximum Leader” and seize dictatorial power, which he used to suppress dissent and oppositiion.
After ruling for 30 years, Redwolf was ousted and Mars went through a series of weak governments. Eventually some form of stability was restored along with a democratic government (at least on paper). Currently Martian politics is dominated by large corporations, with Omicron Corporation being the most influential. Of the major established colonies, Mars has the weakest reputation for rule-of-law and respecting civil liberties.
Martian society has low tolerance for mutants and hermaphrodites, and even hybrid species are sometimes frowned upon. However, belters are well tolerated due to Mars's long-standing connections with the asteroid mining industry.