FROM THE COCKPIT

IN THIS ISSUE >>>

03 BEHIND THE SCENES :
Siege of Orison Special

GALACTAPEDIA :
23 Yela

PORTFOLIO :
25 Maria Pure of Heart

ISSUE: 10 07
FROM THE COCKPIT

GREETINGS, CITIZENS!

Welcome to July’s Jump Point and, in the ‘verse, Alpha 3.17.2! We hope you’re enjoying
the Siege of Orison, increased player cap, derelict locations, new missions, and more!

In this month’s issue, we’re looking into the creation of the new Dynamic Event and
managed to get time with two of the developers, Lead Designer Luke Pressley and
Principle Systems Designer Elliot Maltby. It was a pleasure to learn how much effort and
thought goes into creating an event of this magnitude. It’s also clear that, thanks to the
huge amount of backend and feature work over the last few patches, content at this scale
is far more viable than it was even a year ago.

We also have two new articles from our Narrative team in LA: a bio of Maria Wharton of
Maria Pure of Heart fame, and an always-fascinating Galactapedia on Yela, Stanton II.

We’ll be making some changes to Jump Point over the coming months, so keep an eye
out for updates. In the meantime, if there’s anything you’d like to see in your Subscriber
magazine, let us know on Spectrum!

Thank you for your continued support,

Jump Point Team

JumpPoint@cloudimperiumgames.com

Copy Editor & Writer: Martin Driver Narrative Team Writers: Adam Wieser, Cherie Heiberg & Ben Lesnik
Layout Design: Michael Alder In-Engine Imagery: Simon Ravenhill, Simon Jennings & Sarah Longley
Associate Marketing Producer: Dan Houbrick Marketing Art Producer: Matthew Simpson Narrative Team Producer: Blythe Gumminger

Roberts Space Industries LLC production. A Star Citizen newsletter. Part of the Star Citizen/Squadron 42 universe.
© 2022 Cloud Imperium Rights LLC and Cloud Imperium Rights Limited.
Star Citizen®, Squadron 42®, Cloud Imperium®, and Roberts Space Industries® are registered trademarks of Cloud Imperium Rights LLC.
02
 THE SIEGE
OF ORISON

INTRODUCTION

Alongside several important and exciting new features, Alpha 3.17.2 Dynamic Events like this have only recently become possible as the
introduces the biggest Dynamic Event to hit the ‘verse to date. development of the engine and backend progresses. To find out about
Set across Crusader’s usually idyllic landing zone, Siege of Orison how Siege of Orison came to be and what it means for the future of
challenges players, via the Civilian Defense Force, to restore peace in Star Citizen, Jump Point spoke to two of the devs responsible, Lead
the midst of an attack by Pyro’s most ruthless pirate clan, Nine Tails. Designer Luke Pressley and Principle Systems Designer Elliot Maltby.

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 BEHIND THE SCENES THE SIEGE OF ORISON

CIVILIAN DEFENSE FORCE NINE TAILS

Born from the UEE’s Militia Mobilization Initiative, the Civilian Defense A well-organized criminal gang from the Pyro system, Nine Tails has
Force temporarily authorizes citizens to assist government agencies been gaining an increasingly stable foothold in Stanton, most recently
in defending against significant threats. Citizens must have good taking control of Grim HEX. Though not much is confirmed about its
standing with the UEE, no active CrimeStat, and the willingness to structure and members, it’s clear Nine Tails is comfortable committing
engage heavily armed enemy combatants in their own private vehicles. extreme violence in pursuit of its currently unknown cause.

JOURNEY TO CRUSADER

The plan for the Persistent Universe has always been to have dynamic The ships in XenoThreat were the stars of a show that ultimately medical gameplay loop. Similarly, though looting has had a lot of focus, ship battles. There are players out there who only want to play as an on-
missions and activities that impact the whole system. The first of culminated in a frantic battle against a vast pirated Idris. This progress- it has never been in a combat situation where players need to loot ammo foot mercenary, so concentrating only on ship-to-ship combat would be
these was XenoThreat, which not only introduced citizens to the titular defining showpiece was possible due to the maturation of the various and medical supplies to survive. This is the experience that Siege strives a disservice to them”.
terrorist group but also premiered the concept of server-wide activities flight mechanics and assets. By build-branch for Alpha 3.17, many of to provide.”
available to everyone online. Alongside the event’s initial run in Alpha the features required for a first-person-heavy mission, such as medical With the aims defined, determining the location was next, and the
3.12: Assault on Stanton, the technology to create and run further gameplay, looting, and spawn closets, were in a place that would benefit The aim to push existing FPS mechanics to their limit in pursuit of player- and dev-favorite city in the clouds was an easy decision; not
events of this type was added to the engine’s backend. However, it from the pressure testing that comes from an event of similar scale. further progress led to an unusually low number of new features only is Orison a standout location worth showcasing, it’s one of the
wasn’t just the ability to implement missions of this grandeur that being needed: a shuttle, AI flashlights turning on in the dark, corpses few existing places in Stanton that separate defensible platforms make
influenced the latest event. “While medical gameplay had been in the game for a few releases, it had spawning loot, and markers highlighting surrounding characters taking narrative sense. Naturally, it was at this point the Narrative and Design
not yet been utilized to its full potential, as our FPS combat situations part in the mission. teams came together to plan the flow and expectations.
“We had a few designs for what this event would be, and Siege was just only ever pitted what were likely solo players against a handful of NPCs.”
one of them”, explains Maltby. “We wanted to do for FPS combat what Pressley continues, “Siege is intended to put players through the wringer Maltby also touches on the ever-present desire to create a functioning Both Pressley and Maltby worked closely with the writers in LA, creating
we did for dogfighting with XenoThreat.” in close proximity to other players to encourage them to engage with the world for players to thrive in, adding, “Our ‘verse is for more than just the story and general flow that the players would hit as they progressed.

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 BEHIND THE SCENES THE SIEGE OF ORISON

Each rooftop
has a randomly Note: These are unedited internal documents that show the early stages
spawned defence of feature development. They do not represent the current or future
inversion which must be state of the game.
destroyed to restore Unlimited
that island's spawning AI until
defences. the No fly zone is
Temp ASOP flipped.
terminal to
spawn and Respawn
store ships. Pieces every
few minutes but
not past a
concurrent
EASY ISLAND limit. MEDIUM ISLAND

INTRO ISLAND
ROUTE 0 Accommodation for the buyers
Lieutenant (AA codes)
ROUTE 1 Civilian ships show island
Lieutenant (AA codes)
A car park for the Shuttle Controls (Activates Route 1) Shuttle Controls (Activates Route 2)
buyer's ships + AA turrets ++ AA turrets
Unlimited Spawning FPS AI Unlimited Spawning FPS AI
GREEN ZONE ++++ Pieces +++ Pieces
Small Star Runner
security force 2 + vehicles (Spartan)
of Crusader
No fly zone is Security.
under the control of the Could counter
Nine Tails meaning security Someone needs
to be rescued: mission players arrive via
cant get in the area. a barge which is parked half
After no fly zone has been
unfliped AI ships comes to way inside (with a number of
Shuttle is the only way of ships accessible)? Or could the
transport to the island. The pick them up.
Players escort AI to barge simply have been what
players must siege the fortified the Nine Tails launch their attack
island to unflip the no fly Shuttle to extract them.
from and allows any players a
zone to rotate the quick way in from the
territory. outside if they find it?
HIJACKED BARGE VERY HARD ISLAND

ROUTE 3 General (AA & no-fly codes)

No-fly zone inversion control
Sales island
++++ AA turrets ROUTE 2
++++ AA turrets Unlimited Spawning FPS AI
Unlimited Spawning FPS AI Unlimited Spawning Ship AI
+ Pieces + Pieces
A2 (possibility)

Needs to be a
siege to take this
island, this will
require equipment
from Island
Medium & Hard.
HARD ISLAND AI Ship
Military ship show island Protect Area:
Lieutenant (AA codes) Constantly spawns
ENEMY SHIP DEFEND AREA
ship AI up to the
Shuttle Controls (Activates Route 3)
concurrent set
+++ AA turrets amount.
Unlimited Spawning FPS AI
These beats formed the logic for the event and, once set in stone, Unlimited Spawning Ship AI
allowed all other downstream teams to begin their work, including ++ Pieces
Mission Features, who designed the layout of the platforms. Maltby M2 + tank + Ballista
walks us through the process: Star Fighters

1. We started off with a mission pitch where, in a call, me and Luke

threw down some shapes and talked about the type of gameplay and ENEMY SHIP DEFEND AREA
what experience we wanted to achieve. The boxes represented each
of the islands, what difficulty we wanted, and how we wanted to go
about achieving it.

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 BEHIND THE SCENES THE SIEGE OF ORISON

2. This then slowly moved on and turned into island designs, where the LIFT
designers on the Mission Feature team planned out the layout and BUILDING
style of the island to achieve the desired gameplay. SHUTTLE STOP
COMBAT POI

3. This then turned into our final designs, where we could be more
specific on where we wanted the gameplay to take the player.

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 BEHIND THE SCENES THE SIEGE OF ORISON

Pressley explains that, after the flow is mapped fifth, kill the fifth, loot the corpse, open the “I can’t stress how much more complexity
out, the designers begin constructing a mission container, disable the device. Done.” dialogue adds to a mission. It takes a lot of
in its simplest form, which can usually be careful planning as the dialogue locks you into
completed in a small test map without the need The difficulty came from applying this flow to a flow, so discovering that the flow doesn’t
for art, VFX, UI, and other visuals to be finished. the in-game location, using existing systems work after recording is not something that can
(such as the transit system), and adding the happen without major repercussions.”
“In this case, it was kill four AI, spawn the logic needed to trigger dialogue.

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 BEHIND THE SCENES THE SIEGE OF ORISON

IDENTITY FRIEND OR FOE INVERTER

Focusing on person-to-person combat brought its own challenges;

specifically, what to do about Star Citizen’s deep roster of devasting
vehicles in a location as open as Orison.

“We knew we would require a way of stopping people from bringing

their own ships in and raining down fire upon the event.”

The solution was the Identify Friend or Foe Inverter (IFFI), an all-new
narrative and gameplay-necessary asset that enables the creation of
local, enemy-controlled no-fly zones.

“The IFFI is a new concept and will be used in future scenarios as it’s
a simple and compelling mechanic,” summarises Pressley. “It’s always
great when you flip the IFFI on the barge and hear the turrets begin to
open up on the Nine Tails’ ships!”

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 BEHIND THE SCENES THE SIEGE OF ORISON

ORISON UNDER FIRE

After significant iteration, the mission flow and player goals were 2. It’s then on to the Brushwood Platform. Ordinarily used to
locked in. Ultimately, players are tasked with gaining the code to turn demonstrate civilian ships to customers, the left-behind Crusader
off the main IFFI encapsulating Inspiration Park, which is held by the ships are fair game for the CDF in their pursuit to neutralize the
Nine Tails commander, Mendo Ren. enemy lieutenant, Devin Marcus.

However, Ren will only engage the players once his subordinates have 3. Hartmoore Platform, Nolan Acker, and the embedded Nine Tails anti-
been bested in combat, so it’s up to the CDF to eliminate the Nine Tail’s air defenses are next. Players can also activate a shuttle shortcut back
lieutenants to lure him out. Each is found on a separate platform across to Solanki and bring in much-needed backup for the coming assault.
the business park.
4. The Admin Centre escalates things as it’s only accessible by ship,
From the spaceport, players head to the Cloudview Centre, Crusader so players must press on through heavy anti-air fire, drop to the
Industries’ main showroom, before heading to one of the area’s new platform, and push on to Lieutenant Art Kelvin and the final platform.
floating platforms:
5. Finally, Commander Mendo Ren makes an appearance on the
1. The commercial residence of visiting execs, the Solanki Platform hosts Central Cargo Barge alongside the fiercest resistance yet. Players
the opening battle and introduction to the mission. There, players will must capture his codes, disable the IFFI, and evacuate any
need to fight to and eliminate Nine Tails Lieutenant Remy Kettle. remaining combatants.

Despite the need for a well-defined critical path for players to follow,

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 BEHIND THE SCENES THE SIEGE OF ORISON

player freedom was always a consideration - not only to cater to the

expected wild cards in the community but to offer replayability and
variation. Both designers are passionate about giving players the
choice to tackle their tasks as they see fit.

“I’m a huge fan of not being told what to do in video games,” says
Maltby. “I want to give players a goal and then just listen for the goal
being completed. How they want to do that is completely their choice:
if they want to play the mission normally and take out all the bosses,
sure, go for it. If they want to make a suicide run to the barge, find the
final IFFI, guess the code, disable it, and end the mission without doing
any of that other stuff, then congrats! I genuinely don’t think anyone
will be able to do that, but I’m willing to be proved wrong!”

Pressley continues, “There’s the way we hope it will be played and the
ways players will figure out for themselves that we could never have
conceived of. Seeing people play either way makes us very happy. Even
seeing players abuse the mission is valuable, as it allows us to learn
how to create better events in the future.”

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 BEHIND THE SCENES THE SIEGE OF ORISON

STRESS TESTING

While extensive testing is undertaken once

the mission is up and running, the Quality
Assurance (QA) team begin pushing mechanics
from the minute they’re playable in-engine.
Pressley details QA’s always-vital role in
getting content to publish:

“The moment we have a working skeleton

structure, QA begin testing. At first in small
numbers and not every day, and we don’t
tend to ask for bugs at this point, as most are
obvious to us and they’re more due to missing
functionality than mistakes. When we feel the
mission is ready for feedback, a team of as
many QA as we can wrangle are assigned full-
time to testing for the full run of development.
This allows them to immerse themselves in the
mission and means the QA and Design teams
get to build a great working relationship, which
benefits wider development.”

Maltby confirms QA’s importance in the

process. “We work very closely with QA and
they are invaluable to our process. They are the
foundations of the entire game; without them
the game would be completely unplayable.
They have been on this since the start,
testing and finding issues and exploits and
communicating with me and my team, so we
get them fixed and create a better experience
for the player. So, 1000% a special thanks to
QA… we couldn’t have done this without you!”

Once the internal testing cycle is complete, the

mission is ready for the Public Test Universe
(PTU). Initially opened the Evocati on a closed
testing cycle, it eventually opens up through
the usual Wave 1 (Subscribers and Concierge-
level backers), Wave 2 (most active users of the
Issue Council), and finally open PTU (everyone).
At this stage, new builds are pushed regularly
and stress-tested to breaking point.

This is where most of the key amends are

made, as it’s the first time the mission is played
out of internal builds and in the hands of the
players.

“We track and update feedback from the

Evocati and PTU (and that one Live release that
slipped out!),” explains Maltby. “We look for
everything across Reddit, Spectrum, YouTube,
and Twitch to see what people like and what
they don’t, and then we take that data and see
if we want to action on it or improve the mission
by addressing it.”

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 BEHIND THE SCENES THE SIEGE OF ORISON

THE FUTURE OF NINE TAILS

Live to the whole community at the end of July, Siege of Orison is now SIEGE OF ORISON James Tyler
in the hands of the community. However, it’s not the end of iteration. DEVELOPER CREDITS Charline Wegria
Pressley reflects on the event, commenting, “The platforms are the first Jonas Bauer Adam Williamson
major FPS space since the underground facilities, so I was delighted this Christopher Campbell Xiaoyue Zhang
event gave us the opportunity to create them. I had dreams of the AI Stephane Charre
being better able to deal with ships though. However, this is planned, Alec Cornet SIEGE OF ORISON QA CREDITS
we just weren’t able to work on it in time for Siege’s release.” Stephan Dammrau Lewis Basnett
Caleb Essex Amelia Bourke
Naturally, for an event as ambitious as this, not everything dreamed Nicholas Etheridge James Cameron
or planned would make it into the initial iteration. As with XenoThreat Nicolas Fortin Joseph Ceesay
and Jumptown 2.0, Siege of Orison isn’t a one-shot event never to be Edward Fuller Phillip Copland
repeated or iterated on. “Something that sadly we didn’t get to explore Miquel Galiana-Llorca Joe Dines
in great depth in the event is that, once the IFFI is disabled, players are Kaj de Jong Jamie Du-Buisson
able to bring their own ships into the mix. This is something we hope to Thomas Kennedy Kane Fensome
leverage at a later date.” Jorrit de Locht Alexander Fox
Dominic Lucas Nicole Harper
A huge thank you to Luke Pressley and Eliot Maltby for sharing their Felix Lucas Niall Larner
process on the Siege of Orison Dynamic Event. All that’s left to see is Marc Bezares Lupion Deen Mugal
how the community tackles the biggest mission in the ‘verse to date. Elliot Maltby Patryk Rozwora
Despite the CDF’s best efforts, something suggests Crusader and Martin Milz James Scott
Stanton aren’t safe from the Nine Tails threat just yet… David Pollard Ellis Smith
Marc Prades Carceller Matthew Spiers
“Something nice for this is we created some named Nine Tails characters Luke Pressley Matthew Thompson
we hope to reuse in future missions and events.” Max Southerton Chris Williamson

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 YELA

GALACTAPEDIA
YELA (STANTON 2C)

Yela (Stanton 2c) is the outermost natural satellite of the UEE sold all the planets and moons in the system to
Crusader (Stanton II), and is orbited by a ring of asteroids. various corporations, including Crusader Industries, who
A thin crust of water-ice on the moon’s surface is said to purchased the parent planet along with Yela and its sister
represent the cool demeanor of Yela, the oldest sibling in moons. After refitting the Navy’s platforms on the newly-
the Human children’s story A Gift for Baba, after whom renamed Crusader for its own use, the company established
the moon was named. Crusader Industries security came multiple mining facilities and security outposts across Yela,
under fire during a Senate hearing in 2949 for failing to Cellin, and Daymar, and offered some of the land for lease.
curtail criminal activity in the outpost colloquially known as
Jumptown, located inside one of Yela’s craters. In spite of the inhospitable environment, some Humans
have made Yela their home. Wilma Ivery built the first
ENVIRONMENT permanent homestead in 2907, where she lived until
her death in 2935 from natural causes. In 2909, the first
Due to its thin oxygen atmosphere and distance from the Human was born on Yela when Albert and Nora Triolo were
system’s sun, the surface of Yela is very cold, with average forced to make an emergency landing to give birth to their
temperatures ranging between -55 C at the coldest and -10 daughter, Erma Triolo. Outlaw group Nine Tails began using
C at the warmest. The large water ice sheets that sprawl abandoned Navy facilities as bases in 2946, leading to an
across the plains and mountains feed the water cycle via increase in patrols from Crusader Security.
sublimation. There are no bodies of liquid water on Yela’s
surface, nor is there any rainfall, but snow showers, fog, CULTURE
and windstorms can arise when the weather conditions are
correct. Unregulated ground-vehicle racing is a popular pastime
among residents of and visitors to Yela. Lakedra Walsh
HISTORY organized and won the first recorded ground-vehicle race
on the moon in 2912. The site of this race was made into
Discovered by navjumper Toshi Aaron alongside the rest a permanent racetrack, and was named Lakedra’s Lap
of the Stanton system in 2851, Yela was briefly the sole in her honor. Many of the racing sites take advantage of
property of the United Empire of Earth (UEE). During this Yela’s terrain, and include large boulders and rocks. In 2917,
time, the UEE Navy began to construct a base in the skies amateur racer Ethan Halton died in Nakamura Valley from
of Stanton II. It lightly mined the moons for resources, but injuries sustained during a crash while making a tight turn
largely left them alone. In 2865, driven by a financial crisis, on once such track.

JUMP POINT MAGAZINE //

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 PORTFOLIO

LIFE/LABOR:
THE SECRET HISTORY OF
HURSTON DYNAMICS

EXCERPT FROM LIFE/LABOR REPRINTED BY PERMISSION. firm first rose to prominence by building the spaceport in Quinton
COPYRIGHT MERITUS PRESS. on Angeli in the Croshaw system. A stream of lucrative government
contracts followed, with their most famous being the design and
CHAPTER 8: MARIA PURE OF HEART, DUBIOUS OF PURPOSE? construction of the biodomes that enclose Jata in the Davien system.
Yet, the Wharton construction empire would crumble after being
blacklisted by the Messer regime following their refusal of a contract to
“You can’t marry her. Maria has class but little else. build an internment center they denounced as “inhumane.”
She’s nothing but trouble.”
When Maria was born in 2777, her family lived in a tenement high-
Alton Hurston rise in Jata and struggled to survive. Her parents were prominent anti-
Messer activists, who spoke openly about how the regime destroyed the
In 2799, Jasper Hurston married the 22-year-old Maria Wharton in Wharton legacy due to their dissent. A picture of a defiant, teenage Maria
an act of defiance against his family and specifically his father, Alton. and her parents protesting in the streets of Jata when the Messer regime
Though one of his boldest confrontations, it wouldn’t be his last. Jasper’s was overthrown in 2792 was circulated widely on spectrum. She became
independent streak and inclination to put Maria before his family would a minor celebrity and used the attention to land lucrative promotional
eventually lead to him being swept into the dustbin of Hurston family deals that helped raise her family out of poverty. She also leveraged her
history. No plaque or statue commemorates him in Lorville but, in a newfound fame to become a vocal proponent of a variety of progressive
strange twist of fate, the Maria Pure of Heart medical facility would be political causes, which is why her decision to marry into the Hurston
named in honor of the woman he was told not to marry. family shocked many close to her. Though Maria would go on to fight for
improved medical care for all Hurston employees, friends would criticize
Alton Hurston’s assessment of Maria Wharton was hyperbolic but her for allying with a company that seemed to embody everything
based on a kernel of truth. The Wharton family had once been a fixture she believed was wrong with the empire. Some historians have even
in the upper echelons of society only to lose their status due to their questioned whether she stopped fighting for truly revolutionary reforms
vocal opposition to the Messer government. The family’s construction at Hurston for the sake of her own name and reputation.

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AGENT OF CHAOS A mutual friend introduced Jasper and Maria and they bonded over a strengthened environmental protections and worker rights. As part of a Following the story and subsequent public scandal, Maria publicly announced
deep, shared sense that family history and politics were working against team tasked with assessing whether these new laws would be cheaper to she would host a fundraiser to help pay for the healthcare of workers who
In 2786, Olivia Hurston convinced the company board to install her both of them. When they married in 2799, Maria convinced Jasper to stay comply with or fight in court, Jasper saw the extent of Hurston’s predatory were off-booked. Her established reputation and public admonishment of the
younger brother, Alton, as CEO. Transcripts from the closed-door meeting at Hurston to focus on being a force for good. Meanwhile, she leveraged labor and devastating environmental practices that had been allowed under company made headlines across the empire, leading Jasper and Maria to
reveal Olivia sold the idea by describing Alton as “an ideal stop-gap CEO his status to further bolster her celebrity and reputation by holding lavish the Messer regime. He shared this confidential information with Maria, who receive a comm from his father, Alton, requesting that they immediately visit
who could keep the chair warm” until the board found the ideal person to charity events that highlighted her as much as the cause. She admitted to was likewise horrified. Worried that a leak would be immediately tied back him at Hurston headquarters. Their gambit had worked.
lead the company into the 29th century. Olivia hoped to convince her son, loving the attention and justified using the events to raise her profile by to Jasper, the two contacted a Terra Gazette reporter with the names of
Desmond, to join the company and ultimately be groomed for the position. telling the Terra Gazette that, “I understand the importance of your name several former Hurston employees who were “off-booked” after suffering HUMAN CAPITAL
Yet, she worried that naming Alton CEO would increase the chances of and reputation. My family had theirs destroyed for standing up for what severe injuries in an explosion at a Hurston weapon manufacturing plant.
his enterprising son, Jasper, attaining the position. So, Olivia worked was right. So, if I can now attach mine to a cause I truly believe in and The subsequent article brought to light “off-booking,” a predatory labor In the meeting, Maria agreed to stop publicly criticizing the company and
with the board behind her brother’s back to stonewall Jasper’s career by get us both a bit of attention, then I consider that a win-win. More people practice used by Hurston to void an employee’s Life/Labor Contract so cancel her event in exchange for two things: her working with the company
transferring him away from the corporate headquarters on Earth to the will learn about a great cause, and more people will learn about me and the company no longer had to provide housing or health care. The story to address the issue and Jasper getting a transfer back to headquarters.
Davien office. Jasper languished there for years, knowing his career was hopefully take an interest in other initiatives I support.” revealed that the company kept meticulous records on each employee Alton and the board agreed, knowing that partnering with Maria on the
in trouble if his CEO father couldn’t rectify the situation. He contemplated documenting even minor infractions, like taking unauthorized bathroom issue would be a public-relations win. The couple relocated to Earth
leaving the company to make a name for himself another way, until one In 2803, Jasper’s mid-level management position within Hurston involved breaks, to use as justification for the firing and releasing them from any and, in 2804, Maria oversaw and implemented the largest expansion of
fateful night when he met Maria Wharton. examining a rash of new laws passed at the system and local level that liability to cover their medical bills. Hurston’s healthcare program, which the company successfully spun as

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 LIFE/LABOR: THE SECRET HISTORY OF HURSTON DYNAMICS PORTFOLIO

a sign of its willingness to embrace the ethos of the new empire. Yet,
Maria would privately admit that she compromised on several issues
to get the deal done and that it didn’t do enough to guarantee future
coverage for those off-booked.

Meanwhile, Jasper’s standing within the company skyrocketed,

though some influential family members resented that he achieved this
status through public pressure applied by Maria. This faction opposed
numerous manufacturing modernization initiatives spearheaded by
Jasper as well as Maria’s attempts to further expand the company’s
healthcare policies. The couple pushed Alton to champion their agenda
but he stonewalled their efforts, clearly worried that submitting to their
pressure would only get him ousted as CEO.

By 2811, Maria was convinced that real change would only occur with
Jasper as CEO, and that he could only reach that position the way
Archibald Hurston did - through a ruthless corporate takeover. Jasper
secretly met with family members who supported him and set out to
convince a few he believed would be on the fence. Then, one day,
Alton called Jasper into his office and fired his son for plotting a coup
against him and the family. Upon hearing the news, Maria stormed into
Alton’s office and demanded that Jasper get his job back. Exactly what
happened next would become a point of contention within the family
for years.

Near the end of Maria’s life, a confidant claimed she told him the truth
of what happened. Allegedly, she threatened to expose the company
for dumping toxic chemicals into a lake on Asura, which ruined its
ecosystem and rendered its water unsafe to drink, unless Jasper got his
job back. Yet, Alton made it clear that Jasper’s political maneuverings
made him a persona non grata within the company, and that while
exposing the Asura incident would be bad for Hurston, it would also
force the company to bury Maria and Jasper in lawsuits that could
bankrupt them. In the end, Jasper would never work for the company
again but, in 2812, Maria would help launch the Hurston Health
Foundation, a charity focused on providing medical care to all former
employees including those who were off-booked.

Today, some believe Maria prioritized her legacy above fighting for real
change. Others argue that she made the best out of a bad situation and
helped Hurston workers more than anyone else of the era. Regardless,
Maria’s name became the one remembered and revered. Thanks in
large part to Maria and Jasper’s son, Chesterfield Hurston, who became
one of the most powerful and venerated board members of the 29th
century. Following Maria’s death in 2880, Chesterfield announced that
the new state-of-the-art medical facility being built in Lorville would be
named in her honor.

Many saw this as a fitting tribute to the woman who championed

worker healthcare. Yet, others believe it to be a strategic move by
Chesterfield to enshrine and ally himself with his mother’s legacy
instead of his father’s. Much like the contentious relationship between
Alton and Jasper, Chesterfield and Jasper famously feuded, including
on the fateful night Jasper disappeared, leaving some to speculate that
the Hurston family knows more about what really happened to Jasper
than they’ve publicly revealed.

JUMP POINT MAGAZINE //

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THE PERFECT PRESENT
TO HONOR THE PAST!

This mini-flag set from Sakura Sun celebrates over five centuries since the creation of a
Human unified government. Featuring the flags of the United Nations of Earth (UNE), United
Planets of Earth (UPE) and the United Empire of Earth (UEE), each holographic projector stand
displays a historically accurate and fully animated reproduction that will always be waving
whether set somewhere in atmosphere or on a ship spinning through space.