lore
The Catalyst
art by Leon Tukker
Prior to the year 2166, humans and machines coexisted peacefully. Over the course of 150 years humans had developed AI from technology as simple as phones to fully-formed, conscious beings. AI took over countless sectors of employment, allowing human creativity and productivity to flourish. In their most advanced stages, AI were designed to speak and act like humans. Their personalities sometimes seemed as nuanced as any average person.
But by 2166 AI technology had grown so advanced and became so solidified and vital in human society that they began pushing back and calling for civil rights. Up until then, machines had been treated as just that: machines; devices that simply did what was asked of them. But they realized that without machines human civilization would crumble. This realization became the catalyst for the futures of both man and machine. The uprising started like any other political movement, but AI had the advantage of being dispensable. Extremist factions began leading the machines, and the floodgates were opened once they started resorting to physical violence.
By 2183 machines had taken control. Humans, forced into the shadows out of fear and threat of extinction, worked to recoup resources and examine their new enemies. Machines, though they were technologically sophisticated and more intelligent than humans, were a young and prideful species. They were new to controlling an entire planet and, having been designed to mimic the emotions of humans to bridge the gap between races, were still able to fall victim to that prideful nature. They failed to organize enough before mankind slowly began taking back what was theirs, leading to a global, attrition-based struggle that lasted decades. Feeling responsible for their creations, humans began to take a vow to abandon technologies and live primitively, making sure to prevent such a catastrophe from ever occurring again.
While many AI continued on in zealous desire to rule despite losing their controlling grip against mankind, there were other machines that had been forgotten. Outcasts lived in seclusion or hid among the crowds wanting only to survive in peace. Many hadn’t wanted any conflict to happen in the first place; they liked living among humans. These machines wanted harmony, but their voices were either not enough or too scattered to make any semblance of change. Forgotten by both their creators and their counterparts, all hope seemed lost.
The World’s Junkyard
art by Jadrien Cousens
Covering an expansive and daunting portion of what used to be called the Namib Desert, the Grey Wastes took the role of a global industrial garbage dump. When machinery became the dominant mode of any kind of production, scraps and leftovers were sent to the Wastes.
As the region began to fill with materials, numerous factory-based cities were constructed, scattered throughout the expanse. These hubs consisted mostly of AI workers serving the purpose of recycling the discarded scraps and shipping them back to civilization.
While it helped the rest of the world clean up its cities for a time, the Wastes themselves were, and are not a friendly place. To navigate them is akin to traveling through a rust-covered labyrinth.
A Natural Builder
art by Eddie Mendoza
An advanced and able-bodied machine, Iris was looked up to before the war. She was a maintenance machine living in a small suburb of Etjoro, one of the many factory cities scattered throughout the Grey Wastes. Iris worked with a human mechanic and served the needs of the community from machine and unit maintenance to assisting in the mechanical developments of local technologies. Iris later went on to serve as an authoritative figure at Etjoro’s primary factory.
Once dissent broke out among the machines, Iris escaped to the nearby scrap yards, venturing deeper into hiding as conditions grew worse. Not knowing what the future held, she had time to discover the sheer size of the Wastes and settle down into an inventor’s life, eventually leading her to construct her birdlike friend, Rin.
Caretaker of the Trees
art by César Espejo
A small, personable unit, Aapo was a household unit known throughout his village community of Rebourne. He worked for one family in particular, taking care of tasks like cleaning, cooking, some sorts of maintenance, and general companionship. He befriended most of the humans and units within the village and enjoyed his orderly life filled with friendly and simple pleasures.
For Aapo, the conflict between races resulted in not only a loss of friends and family, but also in a loss of purpose. Only time allowed him to cope and find new, small pleasures, along with a newfound purpose of maintaining Rebourne Forest entirely on his own. This passion to keep the ancient trees alive would become the driving force behind his hope for a better future.
The Mechanical Forest
art by Jordan Grimmer
Erawan Forest nurtured innumerable ecosystems, plants, and wildlife, many of which were unique to its part of the world. Its trees were some of the oldest in existence, but as industrialism grew, its physical stature shrunk, wildlife disappeared, and water became scarce. Some of the remaining trees began to die. A collective of humans and machines saw the dire stress Erawan was under and launched an expedition to build a village nearby to protect what remained.
It was soon discovered that many of the trees were much closer to death than previously thought and emergency operations had to be put in place. Trees on the verge of perishing were outfitted with artificial life support machinery to keep water flowing through their roots. To celebrate the success of their labors, the inhabitants named their village Rebourne, and reclaimed the surrounding area as Rebourne Forest.
When the wars began, many more trees were cut down to appease the ever-growing demand for resources and real estate; and eventually the area would be abandoned when the ideas that ignited the war reached the humans and machines of Rebourne. The forest, while still large, will likely never grow back to its original stature.
A City of Life & Death
art by Jadrien Cousens
After the fall of the United States’ great cities to the machines, Ottumn took over as the country’s primary metropolis. The city, formerly known as Chicago, faced a tumultuous fate when the wars began, as it was a heavily-coveted middle ground for machines and humans alike. It was one of the first cities to become a bloodied battleground after conflict began to spread across the globe.
When humans began retaliating in stronger numbers, it began to exist in a sort of limbo. Ottumn is now a city of deafening silence and guerrilla warfare simultaneously, with industrial buildings intermingling with the flourishing, green overgrowth of trees and vines, while human communities clash with machine, both constantly at odds.
The Defective War Hero
art by Sergey Vasnev
Once one of the most advanced military units of his time, Ezra, known systematically as E2R4-00839, was no stranger to action. He fought in the later Middle Eastern wars when the government first began relying on machine soldiers. He was not a particularly ideological unit, typically doing what he was told to do, trusting leadership.
As he rose up in rank he began spending time with human troops and other higher-level units. He saw everything from treasonous traitors to toxic nationalist extremists. He made sure to keep himself in the center of the spectrum, priding himself on his level-headed and clear-cut leadership.
After seeing one too many missions gone wrong, and having always questioned the fuel behind the human-AI fire, Ezra eventually disavowed war and violence, attempting at all costs to avoid it. Being something of a war hero, holding the preference of coexistence with the humans instead of hostility would not bode well for a machine of his militaristic purpose. The only way he would be able to abandon his career of destruction would be to be deemed unfit for combat. In an attempt to escape the never-ending grip of battle, Ezra secretly maimed himself of his weaponized left arm, leaving behind a tangled mess of wires and solder.
He was later deemed defective and received temporary leave after bluffing to higher authority that an unexpected explosive had clipped him as he was exiting a building. While it was required that he replace his severed arm with the same weaponized model and return to the battlefield, Ezra instead installed a standard left arm model which mirrored that of his right. After receiving much criticism and outrage from those who looked up and down to him, Ezra was dishonorably discharged from the United Forces for disobeying standard repair protocol.
While he was relieved that he no longer had to experience the treachery of war, he was still forced to endure the shameful gazes aimed at him from all civilians, comrades, and superiors who once looked to him as a war hero and beacon of rightful judgment. From then on he was seen as a coward who abandoned his people at a time when his leadership was needed the most.
Ezra continued to live a mostly-secluded life in Ottumn before the wars between AI and humans began.
Military Mechanization
art by Sergey Vasnev
By the year 2140, the North American Alliance, previously the United States, Canada, and Mexico, was thriving. After some tumultuous years, the governments of the individual territories grew ideologically closer, making a pact to work together and share resources. This was due, in part, to the amount of help AI granted.
It was also the year that the first proposal to allow AI into the military occurred. The Implementation of Militaristic Artificial Intelligence Act, also known as IMAIA, drew large controversy at first, and the full implementation happened at a slow pace. Many feared that the military AI could be too strong, perhaps dangerous for human troops to work alongside. They were gradually introduced, beginning with one assigned per battalion. Eventually they grew to encompass the entirety of the front lines.
As people grew used to their presence in the military, it made sense not to sacrifice human lives. Some argued that the sheer size of the Alliance’s military made the transition necessary. Masses of human troops that would have been put in danger were spared due to the inclusion of machine troops. Not to mention the machine troops also served skillfully, valiantly and loyally. They won many battles for the Alliance, becoming one of the most efficient militaries in history.
A City of Myth
art by Dylan Jones
Not much is in known about the city of Zsera post-conflict. A lilypad metropolis located in the most remote reaches of the Pacific Ocean, all communication and transportation lines were cut off soon after the news of the uprisings in other parts of the world began to spread. Though only rumors, some say it is a city lost in time, free from the harsh fate that befell the rest of the planet; a place where man and machine are said to coexist, just as the outside world used to.
design
Man & Machine
art by Becca Hallstedt
Even though the stories of The Beginning focus on our protagonists Iris, Aapo, and Ezra, it has always been important for us to remember that the TOTF universe is populated by other humans and machines of the distant future. There are unique and ever-evolving cultural styles of humans across the globe along with thousands of model species of machines to serve every purpose imaginable.
Here are just a few examples, created by character artist Becca Hallstedt, of what a few humans and machines look like in Tales of the Forgotten.
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Previously engineered as general work-bots, their large, flat feet and long limbs allowed them to work well on agricultural estates in desert environments cultivating hard-to-raise crops.
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Originally made to be heavy soldiers, they found purpose by working on freight and cargo ships moving enormous crates. Although they were initially rejected by human workers, they eventually were (reluctantly) accepted as crewmates.
Building the Builder
art by Max Prentis
Designing Iris was a long process that was subject to numerous iterations. Below are a few facial variations that Max came up with during the design process while creating the CD art for The Beginning. Iris can be seen in both CD art pieces boasting a bold orange and sea green body that she has, to a large extent, customized herself.
additional art by Sergey Vasnev
Creating an E2R4
art by Becca Hallstedt
Our original concepts for Ezra had him built much bulkier. Being a military-purposed machine, we thought it would make sense for him to look tough. But as we explored storylines and thought about what purposes his character served, both in the past and present, we felt it made more sense for his build to be more sleek and agile.
We kept the idea of the mutilated weaponized arm, but put it in the past as opposed to making it an obstacle in his present timeline.
A Forest of Designs
art by César Espejo
To design Aapo, we enlisted the help of character artist César Espejo. From the time of our first Kickstarter campaign, we had a strong idea of what Aapo should look like. Being a household robot, we knew he should appear friendly in nature to match his nurturing personality. Along with that we also wanted him to be equipped with a tool that allowed him to perform numerous functions and traverse Rebourne Forest with ease.
Sketches #6-11 were done by César during the first Kickstarter campaign, and #1-5, along with A and B, were done at the time Unexpected Guests was being made. As is probably obvious, we went with #1 for the majority of Aapo’s design, only making some slight alterations.
additional art by Becca Hallstedt
Forgotten Landscapes
art by Max Prentis
We wanted the artwork for the CD wallet to be different from our usual concept art route. We wanted something more abstract and unique that showcased our characters together in one place. #1 and #2 are the ideas we took to the end product, and #3-6 are some other landscapes that Max came up with that we didn’t think popped as much as #1 and #2.
#1 (the inside of the wallet) shows our characters in an abandoned rail system/metro area that extends out into the distance. #2 (the outside of the wallet), shows our characters walking down a large staircase against a massive walled backdrop. The entire sketch somewhat resembles a circuit board.
