2 Timeline

2015 — Start of Riots

• Protests erupt following Freddie Gray’s death in police custody.

• Outrage over systemic racism and police brutality spreads.

• Rioters target municipal buildings and warehouses along the Inner Harbor.

2016 — Continued Unrest

• Activists push for police accountability, leading to clashes in Fells Point.

• Knight Errant sets up a temporary precinct to test rapid-response policing tech, including early drones and facial recognition software.

2018 — Gentrification Backlash

• Riots break out as luxury developments near Harbor East and Canton displace longtime residents.

• Saeder-Krupp Construction is implicated in a controversial Port Covington project, sparking sabotage attempts by local gangs.

2019 — Port Covington Redevelopment Approved

• Baltimore city council approves tax incentives and funding packages for Port Covington redevelopment.

• Corporate projects, including Under Armour Stadium, gain official backing.

• Rumors suggest Saeder-Krupp lobbyists influenced zoning laws and construction contracts.

2020 — George Floyd Protests

• Baltimore joins nationwide protests; riots flare around City Hall and Inner Harbor.

• ARES Arms deploys experimental crowd-control drones; some go rogue and damage National Aquarium exhibits.

2024 — Under Armour Stadium Opens

• Stadium opens at Port Covington as a venue for corporate-sponsored games, concerts, and events.

• It also serves as a testing ground for private security tech and crowd-control drones.

2024 — Destruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge

• A freighter barge collides with the bridge, collapsing a central section and cutting off northern access.

2030 — Transformation of Johns Hopkins University

• Johns Hopkins University relocates to the Caribbean League.

• Former Baltimore campus becomes Hopkins Advanced Cybernetics Institute (HACI), backed by Yamatetsu.

• HACI develops experimental combat cyberware and metahuman augmentation programs.

2035 — Metahuman Rights Legislation

• Laws severely limit metahuman mobility and employment.

• Orks and Elves are pushed into East Baltimore, forming informal gang networks resisting ARES Arms and Knight Errant.

2045 — Major Riot and Establishment of BCZ

• Riot over police militarization and social inequalities leads to the creation of the Baltimore Containment Zone (BCZ).

• 25-kilometer walls are erected.

2046 — ARES Arms Strategic Shift

• ARES Arms withdraws Knight Errant forces, replacing them with droid enforcers powered by Aegis AI.

• Local politicians are removed or co-opted; corporate proxies take over governance.

• Tensions rise in West Baltimore and the Inner Harbor.

2050 — Rise of the Underground

• Magic users and disenfranchised citizens form resistance networks in abandoned I-95 tunnels and Druid Hill Park.

• The underground becomes a hub for illicit trade, shadow magic, and anti-corporate activism.

2051 — Conflict Intensifies

• Skirmishes between ARES Arms droid forces and underground groups escalate.

• Port Covington, including Under Armour Stadium, becomes a contested zone.

• Droid patrols clash with runners using underground service tunnels for raids.

• Metahuman casualties rise, and the BCZ’s fragile stability teeters on collapse.