- "The humans of Sera built a glorious civilization. But humans were not destined to create. They inevitably did what they do best: destroy. But this was nothing compared to a new threat from below. An enemy that will force humanity to take their last inevitable steps toward extinction."
- —Queen Myrrah on the history of the human race[3]
Human Beings, Man, Serans, or "ground walkers/Hominids" as called by the Locust Horde, are the main race of sentient life on Sera's surface. The humans of Sera are a rich people of culture and have multiple races and ethnic groups.
Background
Humans are highly diverse in culture and ethnic groups - the Pesanga people lived side by side with the Tyrus people on Jacinto Plateau, and the South Islanders - and are one of the most diverse group of people on Sera. With natives to Caucasian immigrants,[4] some of whom take part in the tribal traditions too, Seran history was rich in culture and their people are hardened from years of fighting, but have taken part in Golden ages of culture, science, the arts,[5] as well as the "Gold Rush" when Imulsion was made a usable energy source.
Culture
Serans during the second era of peace.
- "Despite her mother's warning, and the calls of her friends, Romily left the safe company of her friends and walked into the perils of the forest. She thought they would admire her interdependence, and respect her brave willingness to break ranks with the others. But she did not walk alone. The six-legged demon that had waited patiently beneath her house since birth followed her, unseen, and joined the rest of his kind who rose from the depths to embrace her."
- —Ancient Tyran fairy tale, on the popular and improving theme of monsters lying in wait for disobedient children[6]
Religion and race are very diverse. A majority of Caucasian immigrants in the South Islands adopted their native customs to the Tyran beliefs, which based legends off demons kidnapping children. But the majority of the people of Sera follow the Octus Canon and the COG principal of Order, Diligence, Purity, Labor, Honor, Loyalty, Faith, and Humility. The most popular sport in the Human culture is Thrashball. In the Post E-Day Sera, some Humans practiced writing letters to their lost loved ones.[7][8] The South Islanders believed that one's body was sacred until the soul leaves it. The body was then viewed as a husk.[9] But the soul can leave the body before the person physically dies.[9]
Political Ideology
Many Serans believed in the ideas of the Socialist COG and their eight principals. Nations like Tyrus and Sarfuth practice socialism and the equality of the machine concept that the COG stood for. Tyran beliefs revolve around the army.[8] In the Post E-Day world, the Coalition was viewed as fascist in the eyes of the Stranded.[10] While the Stranded clans pride themselves on their independence and viewed by the COG as traitors to the human race.[8]
Anatomy and Physiology
A human child holding a Thrashball.
Humans are mammals, and closely related to other dominant apes on the planet Sera, meaning that they are warm-blooded and give birth to live offspring, and nourish their offspring with milk. They have five fingers, one being an opposable thumb. Their eyes have more pinpointed pupils, and additionally have a poor sense of hearing and smell. They are omnivorous, meaning that they will eat both meats and plants, as well as consume high calcium foods, such as the milk of other animals, in great quantities. They have a large calcium deposit, as well as a more developed bone structure for protecting organs. Muscle-wise, they are leaner and possess less muscle matter than Drones. If in extreme distress, humans can tap into hidden reserves of energy, known as an adrenaline rush thus giving them drastically increased strength. This response is known as the "Fight or Flight" reflex. Humans are more intelligent than most of the Locust Horde and creatures of the Hollow, but lack the physical bulk and power of their Locust rivals. Humans are also far more technologically advanced, with more powerful weapons and vehicles, while most Locust vehicles are actually Hollow creatures that have been tamed or enslaved.
Women leaving the farms.
Behavior and Reproduction
Humans since the Silver Era engaged in brutal wars fighting over resources. The Kashkur Empire defended the Anvegad Pass from foreign invaders trying to capture their silver mines.[11] Seran people would continue fighting over the limited resources.[12] Most of this ended after the Age of Armageddon, but conflicts still existed.[13] With the discovery of the Lightmass Process, Imulsion was given a use. Humans soon entered into another global conflict, the Pendulum Wars.
Humans reproduced via their sexual organs, unlike their Locust counterpart who allegedly reproduce by rape.[8] After E-Day and the Chairmanship of Richard Prescott, the Birthing Creche program was started to help boost the human population due to the loss of billions of lives. Some of the women and girls in the "farms" were raped in order to make sure they were impregnated,[14] while others were treated fairly and as prized animals. The women in the crèche along with other pregnant women received more food, such as Ration Bars, than non-pregnant women.[8]
Races and Ethnic Groups
The diversity of the Tyran people.
Tyran
The Tyrans were a race with great diversity. When the Kashkur Empire dominated the Eastern Central Massif, the Tyran people only lived in villages. The Tyrans were the founders of the COG and its capital Ephyra. A militaristic and socialist society, the Tyrans were proud of their army and believed that it was more important than the navy and air-corps.[8] The Octus Canon and Austere Canon was the core-beliefs of their society. However, during the aftermath of E-Day, some members of the Tyran society began to question the COG core beliefs and willingness to sacrifice freedom for security.
Tai Kaliso, a South Islander.
South Islander
South Islanders were natives and immigrants of the South Islands. Many lived in villages in the jungles, while some others lived in cities like Soteroa. Tribal traditions varied from island to island, with some ethnic tensions between immigrants and the original tribes.
Bernadette Mataki, a Northerner.
Northerner
Northerners were caucasian immigrants to the South Islands. Some spoke with a 'Northern' Tyran accent.
Bai Tak, a Pesanga hill farmer and COG commando.
Pesanga
Pesanga people were hill people living in Pesang, neighboring the Shaoshi people. The men and women of Pesang were formidable fighters and their men were recruited for COG military service.
Vasgari
The Vasgari were the inhabitants of the nation of Vasgar.
Samantha Byrne, a half Kashkuri and Tyran.
Kashkuri
The Kashkuri inhabited Kashkur. They built the Kashkur Empire, and were notorious silver miners and later Imulsion miners.[11]
Ostrini
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Gorasni
The Gorasni were a strong people who were part of the Union of Independent Republics, known for their brutal ways on the battlefield.
Shaoshi
The Shaoshi people were continually at war with the Pesanga people over water rights and cattle.[11]
Tennad
The Tennad were UIR sailors used in suicide attacks.
History
- "Humans. We just love killing each other. Even when we're up in our own ass in grubs."
- —Marcus Fenix during the Stranded Insurgency
Silver Era
The Kashkur Empire is born and built Anvil Gate to protect valuable silver mines. Ephyra is the only village.[11]
Age of Armageddon
The Age of Armageddon was a millennia long conflict that almost destroyed Sera. Its end led to the Era of Silence.
Era of Silence
Era of Silence was a period of peace in Sera's history. Humanity's abandonment of war caused a period of advancement in the culture, science, arts and technology of Sera. This era ended with a global energy crisis and the Lightmass process.
Lightmass process
With the discovery of Imulsion by an oil exploration drill and the invention of the Lightmass process by Dr. Helen Cooper, the mining of the cheap, and almost limitless energy source was underway.
The Gold Rush
The mining of Imulsion led to the collapse of the global economy and the Pendulum Wars.
Pendulum Wars
The Pendulum Wars began as nations began to fight over the global supply of Imulsion, and over the next 79 years, Sera's humans would band together into two factions; the Coalition of Ordered Governments and the Union of Independent Republics.
Emergence Day and Facing Extinction
On Emergence Day, the Humans of Sera realized that they were not the only sentient species on Sera, as the day the Locust Horde revealed its existence to humanity, it in turn changed the course of human history by attacking every major city and wiping out a majority of the human population. Hundreds of thousands of humans perished in the first day of fighting alone, but the losses would only become more severe as the conflict wore on. By the end of the first year of the Locust War, the human death toll had soared into the billions.
Humanity managed to slow the Locust with a series of massive Hammer of Dawn strikes outside of Jacinto Plateau which destroyed all of the cities and resources that the Locust had captured, but the strikes failed to wipe out the Locust. While the COG did what it could to defend its citizens, keep them fed, and encourage re-population attrition continued to claim the lives of soldiers, civilians, and Stranded alike. By 14 A.E., Colonel Victor Hoffman estimated that the remaining global human population equaled the population of a medium-sized pre-war city.
The Lightmass Offensive
Following the Locust victory at Ephyra and the COG relocation to Jacinto City, Coalition leaders devised a plan that would theoretically end the war and destroy the Locust stronghold, The Hollow, in a massive preemptive strike with the Lightmass Bomb, the first weapon of its kind. Despite Locust attacks to thwart such plans, led by the ruthless General RAAM, the bomb was eventually delivered into the Hollow, scoring a major victory, destroying a majority of the Hollow, but failing to destroy the Locust Horde.
The Lightmass bombing worked as a double-edged sword; it did weaken the military power of the Locust Horde by inflicting huge losses, but it opened cracks in Jacinto Plateau that made it easier for the Locust to attack COG cities. The Bomb had also awakened the Riftworm. This led to the sinking and besieging of the remaining human cities.
Jacinto's Sacrifice and Coalition's End
As the Locust were advancing further into Jacinto City and as Gears were advancing ever further into the Hollow and Nexus, the COG discovered a plan by Adam Fenix that could end the war; the flooding of the Hollow, but this could only be achieved by the destruction of the only remaining safe haven humanity had left, the Jacinto Plateau. It was also discovered that the Lambent were in a civil war with the Locust, which had been what led to their genocidal war on humanity. The plan would eventually succeed with the destruction of a Lambent Brumak in a Locust sinkhole and the flooding of the Hollow and the destruction of massive numbers of Locust and Lambent. What was left of the Locust mostly degenerated into the Savage Locust while the rest became the Queen's Guard. However, the Lambent were not wiped out and continued to spread and evolve, becoming a major threat to the planet.
Following the COG relocation to Vectes, the confirmation of Locust survival, and the Lambent Pandemic, the strained and battered Coalition finally collapsed. Humanity would now have to survive as Stranded, leading to small Seran settlements in feudal and tribal systems.
Extinction of the Locust and Lambent
The remnants of the COG battled the Lambent as well as the Savage Locust and the Queen's Guard, the Locust still loyal to the Locust Queen, Queen Myrrah. After learning of the survival of Adam Fenix on the island of Azura (a secret COG stronghold for the elite and best scientists) and the possibility of a weapon there that could destroy the Lambent and the Locust, the remnants of the COG and the Gorasni united to bring an end to the threat once and for all. Along the way to the island, a new horror was discovered: Lambent Humans who had been mutated by massive exposure to Imulsion.
During the Second Battle of Azura, Delta-One reached Adam Fenix, who revealed that Imulsion was a parasitic organism that was threatening the whole planet unless it was stopped. Adam led the squad to his Imulsion Countermeasure Weapon. While Delta battled Myrrah and her Tempest, Fenix went to work on activating his weapon. Finally, the Tempest (and apparently Myrrah) was killed and the weapon was activated. The weapon killed Fenix as he was infected by Imulsion himself as part of his research into its lifecycle, but it destroyed the Lambent and the Locust, sparing all humans who weren't massively infected by Imulsion. All Imulsion was destroyed as well. Myrrah survived the death of her Tempest, but was killed by Marcus Fenix for everything she did. With Imulsion, the Locust, and the Lambent destroyed, humanity was left to rebuild without being under constant threat of attack or mutation.
Reconstruction
In the aftermath of the Locust War, humanity's surviving population totaled in the hundreds of thousands.[15] Over the next 25 years they began to rebuild, constructing a number of walled city-states, such as New Ephyra and Settlement 5, that were governed by a reestablished Coalition of Ordered Governments. Those who chose to remain outside or leave the COG's control became known as Outsiders and formed their own, independent communities in the wilderness.
During this time, genetic technology has been advanced to the point, which parents can have their child based on their preferred features with the help of gene therapy.
See also
References
- ↑ Gears of War 3
- ↑ Gears of War 4
- ↑ Gears of War 2 opening
- ↑ http://archive.is/20130111111545/karentraviss.typepad.com/blog/2008/11/a-reader-writes.html
- ↑ Gears of War 2 Instruction Booklet
- ↑ Gears of War: Aspho Fields chapter 4 intro
- ↑ Gears of War 2 Collectible
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 Gears of War: Aspho Fields
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Gears of War: Hollow Issue 7
- ↑ Gears of War
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 Gears of War: Anvil Gate
- ↑ Gears of War: Unsaid
- ↑ Gears of War: Destroyed Beauty
- ↑ Gears of War: Barren
- ↑ Game Informer: 105 Questions And Answers About Gears Of War 4