Plotline

Help settlement by repairing Water Pump.

 * Explore buildings (read the messages on the walls)
 * Talk to Bobby about his dog Rex
 * Find cave entrance
 * Rescue Jackie and Rabid Rex from the cave
 * Repair water pump with a new engine
 * Ghost Town option
 * Fall in the creek
 * Defeat the brats
 * Defeat Red Ryder

Save settlement from destruction by varmints.

 * Offer to "help" at sales booth
 * Defeat Harry the Bunny Master
 * Explore Root Cellar
 * Explore Cave System
 * Gather up Fruit to sell
 * Provides cash to buy an engine for water pump.
 * Explore area between fields
 * Boosts Perception skills to level 2

help Brakeman by 'delivering message'

 * Caboose: Accept the Brakeman�s mission
 * Take the VISA Card to Head Crusher in Quartz
 * Central Car: Visit the Hobo Oracle for 'clues' about game
 * Casino Car: Gamble
 * raise Gamble skill to a 2, 3, or maybe 4
 * Trading Car: Buy engine for Highpoint water pump
 * Find buried treasure (???)
 * Visit tent near locomotive and center tent for loot. (Sledge Hammer in center tent).

"save" settlement from Outlaws 'taking control'.

 * Scott�s Bar
 * Deliver Brakeman�s VISA Card to Head Crusher
 * Perform on stage
 * Talk to Ellen the Barmaid
 * Get key to Stagecoach Inn room #18
 * Stagecoach Inn
 * Search rooms
 * Meet with Laurie in room #18
 * Learn about secret entrance to Courthouse
 * Courthouse
 * Rescue Dan Citrine
 * Rescue Dan�s dad (worth $1000)
 * Rescue Mayor Pedros
 * Hideout
 * Rescue Ace
 * Rescue Felicia
 * Disarm Bomb
 * Defeat Ugly
 * Repair jeep and go to Needles

Scott's Bar

 * Deliver Brakeman�s VISA Card to Head Crusher
 * Head Crusher gives the password for Nomad tents (paragraph 57)
 * Kill outlaws for loot... solve "riddles" - get message (password) for Ellen.
 * See women in "Ladies Rest Room" for message.
 * Talk to Ellen the Barmaid
 * Get key to Stagecoach Inn room #18
 * Perform on stage
 * Stagecoach Inn
 * Explore rooms, lobby, kitchen area... also "secret tunnel" to Court House.
 * Learn about "secret" entrance to (Court House) from a "young bum" here.
 * Meet with Laurie in room #18
 * Courthouse
 * Explore rooms; find 'message' (password for Hideout !)
 * "Vault Doors" __MAY__ boost Safe-Crack skill.
 * Rescue Dan Citrine (jewelry has 'safe' combination).
 * See Dan�s dad (worth $1000) for loot !
 * Rescue Mayor Pedros
 * Hideout
 * Skylight on roof to boost Perception to level 3's.
 * Explore rooms for loot (including __Chemicals__ !).
 * Find 'wall safe' by table in room near Ugly John's room.
 * Combination or O)pen (__with__ Safe Crack skill) __BOTH__ work !
 * Defeat Ugly John
 * Disarm Bomb
 * Rescue Ace (from basement cells).
 * Ace will repair jeep and (drives) 'goes' to Needles.

Project Darwin
Type: Top secret biological research

Director: Irwin John Finster

Project Darwin (original base name unknown), estabilished before the nuclear war, was a classified genetic and biological research center located in a remote mountainous location in Nevada. The base was designed to be entirely self-sufficent, with a radioactive field prohibiting access to and from the facility and the adjoining town, with only a winding mountain route remaining as a clear connection to the outside world. The town served as a housing area for the massive research facility, with all necessities on-site, including a hospital, convenience store, bar, emergency chemical lab etc. While the research base provided enough living space for the base's personnel, the men simply chose to live in the town.

The first (and only) director of Project Darwin was Irwin John Finster. A man with interests in mathematics, baseball, psychology and cybernetics, he led a dedicated team of scientists with the mission of creating life that would adapt to a post-nuclear war. The covert nature of the research would prevent the research team from gaining a Nobel prize in genetics, which was won by Andrea Mills from Sleeper One. This led to an escalating rivalry between the two research centers, which went even further as Irwin John Finster attempted to enhance his performance with aid from Base Cochise AI, turning into a cyborg. With that, he lost his humanity.

After the war broke out, Darwin became isolated. The town was self-sufficent and over time grew extremely xenophobic and withdrawn, but at the same time a haven for wasteland outcasts and those who couldn'tfit elsewhere. One of them was dr Jekyll, who opened a body shop in the city limits. The base's police also became increasingly wary of any outsiders, sometimes shooting them on sight.

Darwin changed it's mission slightly - now, it aimed to produce life capable of surviving in the harsh wasteland, useful life. As Irwin John Finster became a cyborg through the influence of Cochise's AI, he created a cybernetic interface called the Mindlink, to oversee the research and control the labs directly. Other research team members were disturbed at the results of his research and eventually, Finster begun releasing some of the creatures into the town to terrorize the populace, locked up most of the staff in the lower levels of Project Darwin and infected lower ranking security and maintenance staff members with a disease to prevent them from reveling the truth.

Finster was cooperating with the Base Cochise AI, to fulfill it's goal of creating the perfect form of life that would inherit the Earth. The vision was madness to the common human - Earth would be transformed into a red planet, populated by mutants unlike anything any man could dream before. The labs of Darwin and the biodomes served as cultivators for the plague that would consume the Earth as we knew it.

Before the plan could come to fruition, however, Finster was assassinated by a group of Rangers, who also shutdown the project definitely, to prevent the plague from being released.

Darwin Village

 * Black Market
 * Cure poisoned NPCs
 * (which ones???)
 * Foreshadowing of Base Cochise mission
 * Puzzling sterile and empty living quarters
 * Shutdown the project
 * Defeat Finster
 * Invade Finster's Dream World and learn Darwin's back-story
 * What is Darwin's back-story (???) paragraphs???
 * There are no paragraph references in the mind maze. All of the back story is in the strings:
 * Project Darwin researches and produces mutants to make the shattered world safe again for all life.
 * The researchers, led by Irwin John Finster, have created life that has adapted to the world.
 * Darwin produces only useful life in its labs.
 * Darwin was built by concerned Scientists after the nuclear war. It is the salvation of the world.
 * Project Darwin has always had research and Education as its highest priorities.
 * Only the covert nature of the work at Darwin prevented the staff from winning a Nobel Prize for genetics.
 * Our pride has been the students we have trained. All found Darwin an experience that changed them.
 * Find Secpass B ("Use the pass well. Without it you will never get the things you need from Sleeper One. And without the weapons you will never destroy the places that spawned me or the robots that scour all life from the face of your world!")
 * Contains a 'general store'... also a "Black Market" for better armor, conventional automatic weapons, and more powerful explosives & rockets.
 * Talk to bartender for info about "secret projects" underway here.
 * Find __TWO__ seriously ill men in back room there, situation suggests they've been poisoned and can be 'saved' / 'cured'.
 * Make / mix Anti-toxin in near-by Lab - on work bench.
 * Further exploration reveals a "secret location" (Project Darwin) at the southern border. This requires another "key" to open doors there for further access

'scavengers' fom Savage Village, who had been 'mining here', were killed by "mutated creatures" seeking refuge here from the desert.

 * Defeat original & random creatures.
 * Mine silver for cash (__extra__ 'digging' adds a couple new adversaries).
 * Acquire Pick-Ax, Shovel & Gas Masks if needed or desired.
 * Find loot at the various "human remains".
 * Where ceiling collapses (blocking passage) use explosives to reopen (__MAY__ boost Demolition skill).
 * Defeat random encounters
 * Mine gold for extra cash
 * Acquire gas masks

'leader' will __tell__ you location of Cochise __IF__ you rescue his 'lost' son __OR__ bring a 'suitable' gift !

 * Meet the junk master
 * Learn about Base Cochise (sorta)
 * Return Redhawk
 * Give Grazer Bat Fetish
 * Find password (hint) from 'note' found atop a sand-dune in Needles.
 * Go there with Redhawk __OR__ take the Grazer Bat Fetish for Junk Master !
 * Meet the junk master
 * Learn about Base Cochise - (tells you it's in North-west, & death machines are dangerous !)
 * Give Grazer Bat Fetish from Citadel.

help the settlement by returning 'stolen item' to rightful owner !
Type: City

Size: Medium

Needles, before the war, was a medium size town with an adjacent major military base within city limits. The city was near an ICBM missile silo and the corresponding missile storage base. The city became a high prioirt ytarget for the Russian-Chinese invasion and came under heavy attack from the invading forces(the silo crew managed to launch, though, and destroyed the launch room with explosives afterwards). While the invasion was repelled, most of the US forces were destroyed in the process, Needles was wrecked, the military bases heavily damaged and the nuclear fallout was coming. Needles military contingent was mostly evacuated, and military supplies left behind, including a military howitzer. The flood that occurred when the Hoover Dam was hit contributed to this.

Years passed and slowly prosperity came back to Needles. A powerful police force was estabilished to control crime in Needles, operating out of the abandoned military base. Mostly ex-military personnel, they rebuilt most of the base and estabilished their attack cop squadrons.

The local leather jerk gang is kept in check by the attack cops, however, occassionally, they cause trouble for the local citizens or outsiders, but are quickly pacified. Currently, the locals are a bit xenophobic. It is big enough to defend itself against roving bandits, but a few religious cults have managed to find their way here.

The main part of Needles is the downtown area. Heavily shelled by artillery fire, it nevertheless survived. Rebuilt after the war, it is now the center of activity in the town, although gaping holes still remind of the town's troubled past and gutted car wrecks litter the streets.

The western part of the city is home to the desert-famous Hobo-Dogs (made out of real hobos! Yum!) fast food outlet, the office of Bill Dugan, Temple of Blood's representative, a large restaurant on an elevated platform (most often half-empty, except during the venings) with the Crowley's Occult Shop located just below it, along with a long abandoned movie collectibles shop and an abandoned art gallery where bums now tend to sleep. Another important element of the western part of Needles is a local outpost of the Temple of Blood, with a Bloodstaff identification device and a fully functional howitzer which can be used to shell Needles once again. The eastern part of Needles houses Leroy's Place, which was once a classy clothes shop, turned into a bar and weapons store. Another is the classy Acapulco club (members only), Rosie's Motel (with a sexy three legged prostitute), a local Jerk loitering spot and their meeting place, obscured by rubble.

Downtown is also the place where religious fanatics of both the Temple of Blood and the Servants of Mushroom Cloud seek converts.

To the north lies a small distance away the old military base. Now controlled by the police, it was partially rebuilt and now houses the town's library, doctor and the police headquarters. The headquarters act as barracks for attack cops, who attack anyone who breaches the perimeter of the station and one is stationed at all times to protect the robot clerk. The amount of gang activity in the city generates a lot of paperwork and the clerk is usually occupied. The building also has the office of Spam Shade, the local detective, an expert in homicides, who was part of the Temple of Blood investigation.

Another important facility of the police station is the morgue, where the deceased are kept in low temperature storage. Among the dead was Bill Dugan of the Temple of Blood, who died of radiation poisoning, C. Christensen who died of Anthrax and T. Gonif, a victim of cirrhosis. The morgue is adjacent to the communications center, which was mostly destroyed in the fighting. Currently, only the pigeon mail survives.

The last notable element of the station is the armory, protected by an automated high caliber turret.

Another element of the military base in an old ammo bunker. The forbidding darkness of the military storage facility as well as the existence of volatile explosives deter people from visiting it. Here, the priest of the Servants of the Mushroom Cloud the bishop of the cult sent out to investigate the Bloodstaff murders ended up, killed with it. To the south of the downtown area lies the still used railroad line, with a locomotive regularly doing it's rounds. Further south are the famous sand shifting dunes of Needles and a church of the Servants of the Mushroom Cloud, a Temple of Blood rival. In the west lies the old ICBM silo, occupied by the pit ghoul and used as the town's waste dump. Also, several sacrificial murders took place in the old silo.

TRIVIA:


 * Needles was the city Las Vegas thugs tracked Mort to.
 * Rescue Mort
 * Talk to hobo visionary
 * Acapulco Club
 * Crowley's Magic Shop (???)
 * Use the howitzer to blow up the city
 * Find the bloodstaff
 * Explore the bunker
 * Explore the old missile silo and kill the monster in it
 * Police station (???)
 * Ride the monorail (???)
 * Ammo Dump (for Ruby Ring & __fake__ Bloodstaff); then visit Police Detective for info about Needles.
 * Visit Bishop at Servants of Mushroom Cloud __Church__ for info about side-quest in Needles.
 * Explore "downtown" (east & west) find Jerks 'gathering place' in hidden alley... get password for Private Club from 2 'bums'.
 * Shifting sand (sand dunes) can boost Climb & Acrobat skills to level 3's.
 * Explore Town Waste Pit (armor & weapons).
 * Recruits (NPC's) City Slicker (at Police Station) and Woman (has good equipment, beside Club)... later Hobo in Temple of Blood.
 * Explore Temple... across 'Chess Board' to reach underground area (island) to complete local quest.
 * Return Bloodstaff to Bishop at __Church__ for 'reward' (includes an Engine for __further__ Jeep repairs).

assist the good gang that's defending against invading robots. Destroy bad gang seeking to gain control. Ultimately destroy the base that's the source of the 'invading robots.

 * Pick sides in Mob Feud between Fat Freddie and Faran Brygo
 * Casinos
 * Gamble
 * Temple of the Mushroom Cloud
 * Do something (???)
 * Sewers
 * Find and repair the android to learn about Sleeper Base
 * Library in south-east corner; "beggar" in building nearby for 'info' __IF__ asked correct questions.
 * Rescue 'prisoner' (NPC) from Vegas Jail (north-east sector).
 * Explore Golf Course & Spades Casino in western sector of Vegas.
 * Explore Fat Freddy's Casino / Hideout - north of Spades.
 * Find Brygo's place in Vegas (Scorpitron isn't too far away !)
 * Find 'abandoned building' (a 'blockhouse' for Freddy's gang) near Brygo's (for loot).
 * Explore Servants of Mushroom Cloud __TEMPLE__ (eastern sector) for loot in storage rooms.
 * Doctor there (NPC) as a recruit, but weak combat skills !
 * Get info / instructions to find way to the __Sewers__ !!!

Find way through Sewers to the Lab ! Killing robots and gathering 'parts' along the way.

 * In the Lab... use parts to re-assemble Max.
 * Completing (local quest) Max 'puts' Sleeper Base & Cochise on the main / desert map !
 * Follow final instructions given by Max ==!!!==

Rebuild the base before moving on to Project Darwin
SLEEPER ONE

Type: Top secret government military research base

Status: Abandoned, damaged

The Sleeper One military base is located in northern Nevada, built into a lonely mountain overlooking one of the few surviving rivers in the United States after the war, concealed from prying eyes. As such, someone must know the exact location of Sleeper Base to enter it. The base was commanded by colonel John Smith before he was transferred to Sleeper Two (Base Cochise) as commanding officer). Before the base was abandoned, the base was used for research and development of exotic technologies, such as energy weapons, cloning (chief researcher: captain Andrea Mills, a Nobel prize winner) and experimental biological armors. After the war broke out, the personnel abandoned the base, ransacking most of it's supplies and weapons. The base's personnel had a long-running rivalry with dr Irwin John Finster of Project Darwin.

Important personnel, apart from Andrea Mills, included Harrison Edsel, a talented computer engineer paranoidally obsessed with the self-aware Cochise computer he created, major Peregrine Cite, the security chief, captain Philip Thomas, the base's chief medical officer, dr Franklin Bearns, a psychologist and lt. Russet Heller.

Most of the base facilities are located underground, to minimize the possibility of the base being located by satellites. The underground is built primarily from stainless steel with massive steel doors operated by security passes. During the evacuation, most of the doors were left open and secpasses left behind to open those that weren't. (Security clearances: Secpass 1 < Secpass 3 < Secpass A < Secpass 7 < Secpass B)

The first level (minimum clearance required: 1), accessed by a flight of stairs from the surface entry facility housed the administration offices for the entire base, which were left completely ruined by the evacuating personnel, as well as a supply magazine (sealed by a steel bulkhead), armory (the outer locker room requiring Secpass 1 to enter and the weapons lockers Secpass 3), a library (destroyed by time and insects that entered it via the ventilation system) and the elevator system (devastated by time, with only emergency ladders allowing movement between levels). The level was destroyed further by animals that nested within it, but it didn't manage to infest the rest of the facility due to a Warbot sentry robot stationed in the elevator hall.

The second underground level (clearance: 3) contained the bulk of the base's facilities. The sickbays and study rooms were located here for free use of the base's personnel as well as a morgue (which wasn't emptied during the evacuation, leaving rotting carcasses inside, as well as the body of Debra Vaulgren, a victim of the evacuation behind). Next to the sickbays and the morgue that flanked the main access corridor, the base's command center was located, along with a large map of the surrounding area with stars denoting military research bases in the vicinity (Sleeper One, Sleeper Two/Base Cochise and Project Darwin), Beyond them were the facility's Nuclear Medicine facility, stocking various medicine and anti-radiation equipment in safety lockers as well as the Chief Medical officer's office (belonging to Philip Thomas, a 1987 graduate of Harvard's medical school with a level A clearance, who also worked on Project Darwin before moving to Sleeper due to dr Finster).

Opposite the medical officer's office was the corridor leading to the armory and clone chemical machine. The Armory housed the results of Sleeper One's research - the most powerful man-made personal energy weapon, the Meson Cannon, capable of burning through heaviest armor plating, and Pseudo-Chitin Armors, monstrous suits made from an alloy mimicking the resistant bug shells. The lightweight armors were designed to provide the best possible protection, second only to that of a powered armor. The weapons and armor were protected by a thick crystalline wall, capable of diffusing most energy directed against it. The armory required level B clearance, and was not ransacked by evacuating personnel.

The clone fluid synthetising machine was located behind a level A security door (accessible to the chief Medical Officer). The machine had a tendency to malfunction and the chemical levels had to be set manually each time and often with a manual override device, such as a jug.

Other facilities on this level included the power conditioner (security clearance 7), directing power from the geothermal plant of the facility into the base's power grid. Opposite the power conditioner room was the auxiliary storage (also security clearance 7), stocking jugs, military assault rifles and other necessities) as well as the corridor leading to the clone pods, a marvel of biological research that also created the pseudo-Chitin armors. The pods were capable of taking samples of genetic material and with the use of special cloning chemicals, create and through growth acceleration, release a fully developed clone in 48 hours. The technology was created by captain Andrea Mills and her team, and while just the lead researcher won the Nobel prize, her attitude made it clear that it was the whole team than won the award (something the Project Darwin lead Irwin John Finster envied, as due to the covert nature of Darwin, their discoveries couldn't be made public).

The third level of the facility was where the base commander's office was located as well as the central computer databank and access terminals, a geothermal plant, a helicopter simulator and the base's secure vault. The level had a "spikes-on-a-wheel" layout, with facilities laid out around a central area. To gain entry, level 3 clearance was required.

Counter clockwise, the first two facilities were storage and laboratory areas, ransacked and emptied during the evacuation. Next to them was another lab, leading into the room with the central computer databank access terminal, which also stored the personnel data files. In the opposite end of the level, the base's geothermal power plant was located, along with a power grid shutdown switch. Opposite the plant, the helicopter simulator for the new AH-6503 attack helicopters was located. The simulator was equipped with delicate sensors that automatically assessed the trainee's agility and response, removing the need for costly, ineffective medical examinations to qualify one as a pilot. The simulator was entirely capable of teaching the necessary helicopter piloting skills to any qualified recruit. All these facilities required level 7 clearance.

The base commander's office, accessible with a level A security card, was furnished with a steel desk and all the necessary items required for a commanding officer. The office connected into a secure hallway leading to the base's storage vault. The vault itself was used to store confidential and vital information and equipment, and was protected by automated Turbo Meson Cannons. The door of the safe were considered to be the mos secure in the world. � Clone yourself � Acquire ordnance before assaulting the Guardian Citadel � Learn about the existence of Sleeper Two (Base Cochise) � Loot the Plasma Coupler from the secure safe � Learn Helicopter Pilot � Access personnel files (backstory) � Paragraphs (???) � Gain access to the auxiliary storage � Destination from Max - acquire 'technology' (equipment) to complete 'mission' & "save the World"! � Exploring base to acquire necessary equipment reveals (encounters with) huge animals & aggressive robots (a hint of things to come ?) __WITHOUT__ indicating the sources. � Messages (personnel files) reveal existance of TWO other bases with differing 'projects' underway. A map on the wall reveals these to be Project Darwin and Base Cochise (Paragraph 90). � Keys (SecPasses) found here allow access to all areas __EXCEPT__ "main vault"== !

Storm the Guardian Citadel
GUARDIANS OF THE OLD ORDER

Type: Paramilitary techno-religious order

Leader: Cardinal Scott

Size: Small

The Guardians of the Old Order are a fanatical sect entirely devoted to preserving and hoarding technology. They are extremely xenophobic, to the point of shooting dead anyone they perceive as infidel unworthy of wielding technology (eg. any non-Guardian). Unlike organizations that exist to find, maintain and use technology, the Guardians instead stock and almost worship it. They are obsessed with pre-War times to the point of carving excerpts from advertisements and junk mail into the walls of the Citadel.

They are equipped with energy weapons, advanced melee weapons such as the chainsaw or proton ax and wear black powered armor suits.

The Guardians also hold the Quasar, Nova, Pulsar and Blackstar keys from Base Cochise that are essential to triggering the base's self-destruct system, indicating that they are in some way connected to the base. The ranks are divided basing on role an experience. The rank-and-file members are just Brothers or Sisters. Higher ranking Guardians are referred to as Adepts, then Masters and finally, the highest rank is Cardinal. High ranking scholars are called Monks, while the overseers of the jail are Jailers and Wardens.

Their base of operations is a massive Citadel built into the side of a mountain in a valley in Nevada. The outer walls of the Citadel are made from obsidian and arch over the field in front of them like frozen waves. Watchtowers on their tops are patrolled by Guardians with energy weapons. Red flags mark the point beyond which Guardians stop warning and start shooting. Inside, most walls are carved from native rock, while the outer fortifications are antique and reinforced with layered stone. The entrance to the Citadel leads through massive 25 ft bronze doors inscribed with Guardian sayings. While they seem impenetrable, great force (such as explosives) can bring them down. The doors are located in a cul-de-sac killing zone tailored to protect the defenders and allow them to waste any attackers.

Beyond the doors, the great hallway, whose vaulted ceiling is lost in darkness, stands carved from native rock, inscribed with sayings in gold leaf. This part of the Citadel also houses the Guardian's museum, which showcases several items from before the war, inclusing a Grazer Bat fetish and the glorious Premacorin mural "The Cycle of Man".

The Guardian Mess Hall is located in the vicinity of the Museum, with brother James being the chef. The Mess hall's wall separating it from the kitchen is painted with sentences such as "We're #2 but we try harder" or "All beef and beef byproducts. Is your dog worth it?".

The other side of the hallway houses the Armory of the Guardians (which stockpiles the lower technology weapons and is booby trapped with a high yield explosive) and brother Austin's office, whose secretary is sister Wrath.

Beyond the entrance and the frontal part of the hallway lies the Outer Sanctum, carved from polished obsidian, purple in hue with pre-Holocaust items decorating it's walls. The Grand Hallway is flanked by two corridors with massive sandstone pillars, where most Guardian facilities are located. The left corridor leads to the sleeping quarters of the Guardians, lined with beds. All have white sheets and either blue or red woolen blankets. The southern chamber's door was blown off and a trap with tungsten spikes laid in the place of the bed nearest to the door (reasons unknown). Opposite the southern chamber are the closets where basic equipment of the Guardians is kept.

The northern chamber is similar to the northern, except for the trap, and opposite it is the Guardian library, overseen by Monk Johan. The library is stocked with books predating the bomb, including, but not limited to fiction and demolitions, alarm disarm, bomb disarm, electronics, toaster repair, clone tech, energy weapon and cyborg tech manuals. Most of the books are organized by subjects and some crumble to the touch.

The corridor to the right houses the meditation rooms (where some Guardians even play poker), Cardinal Scott's office with sister Faith as secretary and a small Guardian chapel painted with grotesque portraits and a chapel altar with a bronze triptych on the front that depicts the rise, fall and resurrection of Man. The center plate covers a small vault that is designed to store relics. The chapel also has narrow shooting ports carved into its walls that allow Guardians to cover the grand hallway with weapon fire should any non-Guardian trespass.

From this corridor the jail can be entered, where the Guardians keep their prisoners (Redhawk for instance).

The Grand hallway itself ends with gray marble stairs that lead from the Outer Sanctum to the Inner Sanctum above, flanked by bronze railing worked with a serpentine pattern. The Inner Sanctum can be sealed with a massive steel portcullis that is operated manually with a crank from behind the stairs.

The Inner Sanctum was carved out of the gray, volcanic rock of the mountain. It is quite small, compared to the outer sanctum, and holds most of the Guardian's most cherished items. The central hall of the inner sanctum, where the marble stairs end, surrounded by the bronze railing, contains the Guardian's central vault. The vault is protected by a pair of gold doors that are very solid and traced with patterns of electronic circuitry. The doors are operated via an alphanumeric keyboard (keyword: ROSEBUD). The interior of the wall is finished smoothly and with much devotion, as it contains the most powerful and important element of the Guardian arsenal - the Power Armor.

Two hallways lead from the main hall of the Inner Sanctum. The western leads to a smaller chamber and the treasury of the Guardians, protected by a squad of them led by Cardinal Chano (second-in-command of the Guardians). The treasury is protected by a massive reinforced wooden door. Beyond it, the polished, smooth walls are decorated with many fine works of art that can be recognized from books about the past. The tables inside are littered with all sorts of antiques and pieces of junk clutter this table, including an old sled with the word "ROSEBUD" on it and the Secpass-B, an access card with the highest clearance, commonly used in US military bases of the late 20th/early 21st century. The treasury also has a closet which contains the Guardian robes.

The other hallway leads to a chamber roughly carved from the gray volcanic rock that houses the second most important relic of the Guardians - an AH-6503 attack chopper. The chamber is very high, ending with massive doors on steel hinges that open to allow exit to the helicopter. The helipad itself is shielded by a steel wire fence, extending all the way to the ceiling. Also in the vicinity is a small repair bench perfect for reparing broken toasters.

SPECULATION: amounts of their preserved technology for necessary supplies and tools. The red flags mark how close can the traders come before they will be shot at. The exchange occurs when the traders leave their stuff, backtrack, Guardians take the supplies and leave the technology in return. more technology to preserve. Due to their aggressiveness, noone lived long enough to tell anybody about their escapades. The Citadel was a military base once, but was expanded and modified by the Guardians ever since the great war. personnel that abandoned their bases in the aftermath of the nuclear war and Chinese invasion.
 * The Guardians get their food and water from the outside, trading small
 * Guardians are extremely xenophobic, but venture to the outside to gather
 * The entire facility is powered by a geothermal power plant (volcanic rock).
 * The Guardians are descendant from US military personnel and base Cochise

OTHER STUFF:

M3 Regan All Terrain Hover Tank.

Commonly abbreviated RATT, the hover tanks were used by US military as main battle tanks and capable of passing any terrain due to their hover engines. Two were kept in the Needles ammuniton bunker and both were ordered to leave to fight the invaders outside Needles. One managed to leave the bunker, while the other was destroyed by an explosion (possibly Chinese sabotage).

AH-6503 Attack Helicopter.

Considered the ultimate weapon, the AH-6503 attack helicopter was the new addition to the US Army conventional arsenal. It's weapons allow it to level two villages without having to return to base for refueling and rearming. The craft has two engines powering the rotor. The pilot's seat is locked forward when not used in order to prevent any unauthroized or unqualified personnel from using it. The helicopter is also outfitted with an automated defense system that retaliates against any threats to the vehicle to the full extent of the AH-6503's firepower.


 * Defeat the Guardians of the Old Order
 * (anyone remember why???)
 * Find four override keys
 * (may indicate that the Guardians once were the staff of Base Cochise)
 * Pulsar
 * Quazar
 * See the Premacorin Mural (HUH???) What was that?
 * Rescue Readhawk (for the Savage Village)
 * Learn about prewar technology
 * Ride AH 6503 Assault Helicopter to Base Cochise
 * Find Secpass B

Base Cochise

 * Build vax
 * Destroy base
 * There were a few steps here