Charting the Reach: The Lore of Wildgate

Every universe has a beginning, and not always a neat one!

In the early days of "Project Nebula" (our codename for Wildgate), we weren’t trying to write a space bible. Well, not immediately, anyway. There was something a lot more pressing for our team to answer: Why would anyone choose to go into a dangerous place like the Reach?

The Reach isn’t just some cool backdrop for exploding ships (though it is absolutely that, too). It’s the cornerstone upon which Wildgate’s entire world was created—from the prospectors that explore it to the ancient civilizations whose artifacts they now hunt. 

In this edition of CHARTING THE REACH, we sat down with our game director, Dustin Browder, to learn a bit more about the lore of Wildgate, including a brief history of the Reach as well as some recent events that have caused this particular sector of the galaxy to become such a hot spot for adventure. 

THE TYPHON REACH

The Typhon Reach (or simply "the Reach" to veteran prospectors) is the setting of every match you play and story you create in Wildgate. And it's exuded Main Character Energy right from the start.

Whether you’re watching an ascending rocket break Earth’s upper atmosphere or a team of astronauts on an EVA take their first step into a vaccum-filled void, the idea of space can send chills of awe and wonder down your spine. We always knew we wanted the Reach (and Wildgate itself) to be similarly beautiful and inspiring, as well as a little deadly.

 

“We wanted it to feel dangerous and unknowable. This is the sea before we knew the boundaries. This is the sea when there were still dragons at the edge of the map.” - Dustin

For our prospectors, knowledge of the Reach stretches back hundreds of years. When the first space-faring civilizations discovered it, a smattering of small mining and science bases were established on its edge. Various expeditions set out from these settlements with the aim of charting the Reach, with most completely vanishing without a trace.

After a time, and whether by their skill or sheer luck, a few stragglers started to return from their voyages. Sitting at bars, these suriving crews drank and told tales of ancient monuments, abandoned spaceships, technology beyond understanding, and valuable exotic resources in huge quantities. It's from these early stories that the legend of the Reach began to grow...

THE 100-YEAR WAR

In the world of Wildgate, the Accord is one the largest governing bodies, ruling over a quarter of the known galaxy. An alliance of many different species and civilizations—including former rivals —the Accord brought together a melting-pot of cultures in the shared pursuits of support, protection, and exploration. This unusual family held together and expanded peacefully for many years…until they encountered the First-Born.

 

 

An ancient race, the First-Born proudly believed themselves to be the oldest empire in the universe, persevering through nearly 50 million years of rises, falls, in-fighting, and starting again from nothing. In spite of their storied past, vast periods of First-Born history have been lost to time due to their lack of interest in either anthropology or record-keeping.

In their most recent cycle of ascendancy and expansion, the First-Born confronted the Accord, and decided to conquer them. Arrogant, aloof, and cruel, their aggression marked the start of over a century of brutal and total war. This multi-system-spanning conflict has only recently concluded, and is very fresh in the minds of all our prospectors.

While the First-Born had huge technological advantages over the Accord, and initially forced them into a defensive war of survival, they were not infallible...and they had certain tells. Following many years of critical study of First-Born society, history, and actions in battle, a collection of Accord xeno-anthropologists began to notice patterns in both their tactics and thinking.

For example: When faced with a challenge, the First-Born would continuously commit forces to a campaign until resistance was completely wiped out. It didn't matter if they had technically won the engagement, a clear and decisive victory was imperative to First-Born leadership, regardless of the cost. This led the Accord to adapt their tactics to exploit such rigidity. Sent on what was often a one-way-trip, new Vanguard units (of which Ion was a member) engaged in long-term guerrilla warfare with the First-Born. Drawing massive enemy deployments away from key battles through sustained hit-and-run action, the Vanguard kept the Accord in the war long enough to eventually triumph.

 

“It wasn’t the railguns that beat the First-Born, it was that the First-Born were too predictable in how they behaved. And that’s ultimately what allowed the Accord to survive this incredible danger—their willingness to learn and to understand their enemy.” - Dustin

Even during the war, both sides still ventured into the Reach in search of rumoured relics they felt could turn the tide. And based on ongoing discoveries from these expeditions, Accord historians soon realized that, contrary to their aeons-long belief, the First-Born were not, in fact, the first.

ONCE MORE UNTO THE REACH...

During past Reach exploration, evidence of unusual buildings, technology, and devices from another distinct, mysterious, and highly-advanced precursor to the First-Born had already started to surface. Now, thanks to the analysis of the Accord's scientists, it's theorized that these "Primes" (a name given them by said scientists) had already vanished from the galaxy millions of years before any other species had even discovered space flight.

As a result, when the Accord eventually emerged triumphant following a final, daring attack on the First-Born homeworld, their battered and bruised citizens looked once more to the Reach—and to the remnants of the Primes—for answers. The war had nearly taken everything from them, leaving entire planets stripped of resources (or in smouldering ruins) and large amounts of displaced people desperate to rebuild and start their lives anew. Could the Reach and its secrets help the Accord and new Free Colonies recover from the damage the First-Born had wrought? 

As the dust of war settles, a new chapter in this enigmatic part of universe begins—and waves of prospectors set course for its horizon. Some seek glory, some adventure, while others search for things they've lost...or hope for a brighter future.

Whatever the motivation, all roads lead to one destination...

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