The Phoenix Canyons are a desert territories of Enchantia, made up of vast stretches of labyrinthine canyons. The canyon tops form a colossal plain of dry soil and rock, covered in a web of cracks. The real environment of the canyon lies within these crevices, where cities, mines, rivers, and water sources are found, and where cool air currents flow—starkly contrasting with the killer sun on the canyon tops, which also reflects off the sand. These upper areas are also slightly carcinogenic due to fumes from factories and mines. In the desert and the mines, monsters and insectoid beasts roam, making it dangerous to travel alone outside the cities. The real issue is that, due to the internal structure of the canyons, if you can’t fly, moving around is nearly impossible. Because of all this, the territory of the Phoenix Canyons is known by other factions as “The Infernal Desert” or the “Land of Death,” and they tend to avoid the region entirely.
The inhabitants of the Phoenix Canyons consist of Griffins, Hippogriffs, Manticores, anthropomorphic Sphinxes, and various similar griffin/chimera creatures. Their theme is Western, and their society is hyper-industrialized Western-Steampunk. Their cities are built on the canyon walls and inside the canyons; travel between cities is done by zeppelins and suspended steam railways, and the inhabitants fly because they have wings. The cities are full of factories, foundries, and mines. Energy is generated from steam, with chimneys reaching the canyon tops and releasing large amounts of toxic fumes. As part of the Western theme, they can use firearms. They are divided into two factions, “The Government” and “The Rebels”; there is also a small minor faction, “The Bandits” (because there’s no Far West without bandits). These factions are in conflict with each other in a civil war.
The society of the Canyons is very territorial, closed off, and does not like outsiders. The cities are structured for those who can fly (there are not even public elevators or stairs; for those who cannot fly, the entrances to houses are not on the ground floor but terraces on the upper levels. The only elevators are private or industrial ones for factories and mines). Therefore, external visitors who cannot fly cannot move freely because… they simply can’t, they don’t fly. What about Canyon inhabitants with deformities, those without wings, the elderly, or those who can’t fly even though they have wings? The government is controlled by wealthy industrialists, who are classist: those who cannot fly are weak and treated like trash by industry leaders, considered expendable and exploited in factories shoveling coal until death (except for the rich elderly who have their own personal flying carriages. Yes, they are a pretty hypocritical society). Moreover, their government does NOT share their technology with other factions, considering them “primitive” and “inferior.”
They do not get along at all with the fairies. The inhabitants of the Canyon are predators, with a diet based on meat and fish. Since the Canyon’s fauna is made up of giant insects, it goes without saying that the inhabitants are fond of insects. Furthermore, the government is hyper-industrialized; they don’t care about environmental damage and constantly generate large amounts of pollution. They and the fairies are opposites: the fairies are mega-environmentalists and reject technology. In the past, they have often opposed the Phoenix Canyon, criticizing their society as “harmful to the environment.” In response, the Phoenix Canyon government treats them like pests, even hunting them with firearms, until a wealthy industrialist in the government had the sick idea of turning them into food. Since then, the Phoenix Canyon government has hired “hunters” who leave the canyons to capture live fairies, which are then cooked and served as “exotic meat” to the Canyon’s aristocratic classes. In short, the government of the Phoenix Canyons and the fairies are natural enemies, at war with each other.
The Rebels are the internal faction of the Canyon and the main rivals of the Government. The latter portray them to the population as mere “outlaws.” Rebels and the Government are often involved in armed conflicts. The rebels want to free the Canyon from the Government’s oppression, grant more rights to the lower-class population, and open up more to cooperation with other factions. The rebels have their bases in caves and abandoned mines and obtain resources by stealing them from the Government.
The Bandits… are bandits… nothing more to say.
I had been holding this faction in reserve for months, waiting for the new theme in Planet Coaster 2. The lore of the “Government vs Rebels” was already written, but I needed the setting to place them in. The choice was between the Western theme, a hypothetical “Ancient Egypt,” and even a “Feudal Japan.” With the update introducing the Western theme, well… it’s clear which of the themes finally won.
Speaking of the characters in the screenshots: for the Government, we have a generic sheriff and the bartender of a saloon to whom I gave a manticore tail. More important, however, are the two military units.
The Watcher Bot is a skin for the park’s security cameras, introduced along with the “security” mechanic during an update (though I don’t recall which one). Inside that bird-like robot is a real functioning camera. Watcher Bots are patrol drones: some can be attached to walls via a mechanical arm that still allows them to move freely in any direction, although their range is limited to a fixed area. There is also the mobile Watcher Bot, a flying drone that patrols the streets. It is very useful but easy to shoot down and must frequently stop to recharge its batteries at dedicated energy stations.
The Iron Wing Guard are the Government’s main army, serving both as the primary military force and as police in the large cities. They are inspired by various basic soldiers from evil regimes in sci-fi works, such as Stormtroopers, the Combine from Half-Life, and the enemies from Killzone (whose names I don’t know because I’ve never played Killzone, but I recognize the black uniforms with red eyes thanks to various posters and covers, and they look really cool). Their uniforms consist of armor with mechanical plates and padded leather designed to resist enemy bullets. They wear helmets with electronic visors to better spot enemies; the helmet’s eyes are large, glowing red lights. Their masks are connected to respirators on their backs to avoid breathing toxic fumes and enemy poison gas. Their standard weapon is an assault rifle with a bayonet and laser sight, seen in the screenshots above, which is the standard weapon for almost all units on both factions. Recruitment occurs through intense propaganda campaigns targeting the youth. Once recruited, the young are evaluated to determine their suitability for the Iron Wing Guard. Those approved undergo a drastic indoctrination before training, akin to brainwashing, to become even more fanatically loyal to the Government.
Other Government units that I haven’t included due to lack of time and motivation but are canonical and I plan to add in the future are: the Guild of Sheriffs. These are the recruits rejected during evaluations to become Iron Wing Guards. They have lightly protective uniforms, basic training, and “weak” weapons and equipment. They act as minor police and are assigned to patrol smaller, less important towns or guard isolated locations. They are also tasked with carrying out the more menial jobs, including issuing basic fines to citizens.
The Royal Guard consists of super soldiers genetically and mechanically modified and subjected to brainwashing. They are similar to the Space Marines, although their role is closer to that of the Adeptus Custodes. They are recruited from orphaned children in the Phoenix Canyons; in fact, the orphanages managed by the Government function more as factories and laboratories for creating super soldiers (similar to the orphanages for the Little Sisters in Bioshock). They protect the upper floors of industries and Government buildings and guard key and important Government locations. The capital is full of Royal Guard soldiers.
I’d also like to create some steampunk Dreadnoughts. I tried to build one, but it didn’t turn out the way I wanted — though its head became the first Watcher Bot. Maybe, in the future, I’ll finally manage to create that unit properly.
The Rebels, on the other hand, use the Government’s weapons and vehicles, since they steal them from them — but they don’t wear their uniforms and use different guerrilla tactics (after all, they’re militiamen with no real training). They use traps, explosives, and set ambushes in tunnels and underground passages. I created various designs and characters: the elegant owl with a bowler hat who uses a mounted machine gun; the snow tiger–crow hybrid with a gangster-like style; the woodpecker–jaguar hybrid I used as a sniper; then there’s the sphinx mage with a snake for a tail… And finally, a design I’ve never seen used in any fursona: a marine griffon, half seagull and half Shark Sona. I gave this gunslinger a braid behind her head to simulate a hairstyle (or rather, a “featherstyle”) that evokes Native American aesthetics.