With humanity fighting its way back from near extinction and rebuilding the very foundations of civilization, you’ll occasionally find yourself in situations where life and death are just a hair’s breadth apart. The supplies you’re carrying with you may well affect the outcome. Weapons and medicines are key to the survival of any adventurer who wants to make a living (emphasis on living) on some of the galaxy’s more dangerous stations. Today we’d like to introduce you to two of Tau Station’s corporations that provide those supplies, and show you some of our concept art for their products.
Hephaestus Weapons Tech – “Keeping your kill count up since 20PC!”
Like many of the most successful corporations, the true origins of Hephaestus Weapons Tech (HWT) lie shrouded in a fog of unconfirmed rumors. One of the most common legends about the beginnings of this mighty empire of high tech guns and ordnance dates to the years just prior to the Catastrophe. A brother and sister team of scavengers, the story goes, lucked across the site of a massive battle – a battle with no winners, but two losing sides and scores of casualties. With a morally questionable but undeniably genius retail strategy in mind, they gathered the weapons and identification details from the corpses and swiftly set off to visit the families of the fallen. Using marketing slogans aimed at inciting feelings of vengeance, they convinced loved ones on both sides of the conflict that the best way to honor their departed would be to purchase the weapons and ambush their enemies when they came to gather their dead. The plan worked like a charm, and by the time anyone caught on they’d become rich enough to start manufacturing and selling their own battle tech.
While Hephaestus Reclamation Executives can still be seen foraging through battle sites, the company now makes the bulk of its profit via the manufacturing of weaponry of varying quality and technology. Today the titan of weapons manufacturing is known for its friendly advertising slogans advocating the death and/or dismemberment of your enemies, and an approach to business ethics that is casual at best.
*Pre-Catastrophe
Moemedi Medical Supplies – “When you don’t have time to bleed.”
In a galaxy full of danger, Moemedi Medical Supplies (MMS) provides valuable lifesaving products and services. Headquartered on Spirit of Botswana, Moemedi has access to some of the only 3D printing tech left over from Before. This no-nonsense provider of medical solutions has been known as the best option for patching yourself up after a firefight for decades now. The company got its start as squads of battlefield medics who tended to the wounded and saved soldiers regardless of side or affiliation. While they didn’t require payment for their services, they did accept credits and other valuables when they were offered in thanks. Many combatants happily gave away their plundered loot in exchange for keeping a limb or organ intact, and Moemedi’s business began to expand.
Moemedi continues to prosper today, making and selling meds, stims, and 3D printed organs that provide their customers with a second (third, fourth, or even twelfth) chance at life. Thanks to government contracts they operate many sick bays and cloning centers throughout the galaxy, and many medics start their careers with the company.
Whatever their backstories and motivations, the companies you’ll come across in Tau Station provide supplies and services critical to the survival of many. Some operate from a place of good intentions, while others veer off the ethical road and careen straight into the canyons of corruption – but we promise that they’ll always supply you with the right tools for the job.