Brilliant Pebbles

In 1985, the U.S. military launched the Brilliant Pebbles defense platform. It was part of the Star Wars space-based weapons initiative. It consisted of an unknown large number of satellites orbiting Earth. Each satellite was essentially a space cannon, able to shoot large projectiles at targets on the planet. Although officially discontinued in 1993, Brilliant Pebbles remained secretly operational.

In the year 199X, Earth was threatened by a large wave of asteroids and comets. The commanders decided to use the Brilliant Pebbles defense platform to defend the planet. The military converted the satellites into unmanned space drones. The drones were controllable from command centers on the ground.

The waves of space rocks were relentless…almost endless. They required military-space action over most of the planet’s outer reaches. Each soldier was granted control over a small set of drones. If one drone was obliterated, the soldier could commandeer another. After destroying enough rocks, the soldier could earn another ship. Promotions were based on the soldier’s score, which measured threats neutralized.