They're the cock of the walk when they return from the hunt, the strongest, the fastest, the meanest of the lot. Any one o' that lot is worth no less than 10 of us day walkers.
Matthias Schmidt, remarking on Grounders
Lore Thread
Matthias Schmidt, remarking on Grounders
Lore Thread
The world as we know it no longer exists, following "The Great Collapse" of 2277, most of the American public has long since resided in "0 Hour Towers", great constructs established as refuges for the possibility of the catastrophe mankind suffers today. The Earth's surface has been drowned in "The Great Fog", a miasma of pollution, chemical weapons still dispersing decades later and radiation from sources both unknown and ruptures in the Ozone layer. The overwhelming mass of humanity was exterminated in what culminated in WW3 between the RSRR (Reformed Soviet Republic of Russia), the ADC (American Defense Coalition) and EPP (European Protection Pact).
The year is now 2300. Contact with the world outside such towers is dangerous at best and suicide at worst without the communications systems of the towers and even then, trade between towers isn't always possible for certain goods. As such, 0 Hour Towers have come to establish "The Grounder Division". Grounders are often comprised of tower security, pre-war survivors and volunteers banded together to scavenge the forgotten world below the Great Fog. The Grounder program breeds the best and brightest humanity still has left to offer, with training often lasting upwards of 2 years before they ever step outside the tower's confines willingly.
The System
The training regime for Grounders, known informally across most towers as "The System", is the means by which Grounders are groomed to survive in high stress and threat environments typical of the surface. Sleep deprivation and some degree of starvation are normal for the program, with candidates forced into mock battles with each other often for several hours a day known as "Crush courses" in everything from utilizing less-lethal firearm munitions to hand to hand combat both barehanded and with weapons. Training also details studying pre-war electronics and architecture (to bypass potential security still functioning), survival skills (particularly first aid and surviving in the wild) considering much of the old world is likely overrun with mutated wild-life both flora and fauna. Beyond the basic training, candidates are organized into distinct categories:
Hackers: Much of America's energy supply was self-maintaining nuclear reactors operated by AI known as "Atlas Engines" before the world's end. As such, it's not unheard of for pre-war buildings to still have power in some areas even decades later without maintenance. Hackers are the go-to electronics and technical experts of any Grounder team, capable of bypassing security systems and interacting with pre-war tech. While all Grounder members are familiar with such gadgets, Hackers are also trained to be the go-to for more intricate systems and spotting unique gear of interest for 0 Hour Tower needs.
Rangers: The eyes and ears of any Grounder element. Rangers often operate in 3-4 man groups of the Grounder element. They are tasked with establishing a cartographic layout around the tower, helping both their own element and later groups to find buildings or objects of interest for retrieval or study. Considered to be the infiltration and observation experts of the group, Rangers are often sent out well ahead and in many cases with no more than 1 man beside them to ease their concealment.
Rackers: The Grounder team's muscle, Rackers (So named for the loud tell-tale 'racking' which indicates their weapons are live) are undeniably the pinnacle of human firepower. Suited in exoskeletons armed with arm-mounted high-caliber belt-fed machineguns and shoulder-mounted support weapons, a pair of well equipped rackers are capable of laying down a field of fire equivalent to an entire convoy of 21st century military vehicles in a pinch. Such exoskeletons are incredibly rare nowadays and are difficult to keep maintained. As such Rackers are often the element's second in command or some of their most trusted troopers.
Stitcher: More commonly referred to as medic or 'doc', the Stitcher is the team's medical expert, familiar both with human as well as animal anatomy for the study of mutated wild-life in the interest of both potential domestication or bio-mimicry (adapting animal traits and/or organs for human use). Stitchers are as such often one of the team's most well protected members genuinely moving near the element leader himself
Grounder: Your typical rifleman, jack of trades, master of none typically. Grounders unsurprisingly make up the bulk of Grounder elements, well trained in a variety of fields of expertise but most importantly combat and survival skills considering the extreme lethality of the Earth's surface nowadays.
Commander: Not necessarily a designated role under the system but rather the individual chosen to lead a Grounder element, highly proficient in multiple forms of communication, first aid and well versed in old-world small unit tactics and strategies. Commanders are more or less chosen by the candidate's peers to lead them in training. Typically 2-3 commanders exist in any Grounder element with 1 taking overall leadership and the rest acting to lead smaller teams in the field.
