The Great War was a global thermonuclear war caused by the Sino-American War. It resulted in the destruction of all participating nations and abroad, global disruption of the climate and billions of casualties as a result of nuclear blasts, exposure to radiation and the subsequent collapse of social and government structures, all within the span of just two hours.
The nuclear holocaust was a direct result of the decade-long conflict that left both the United States and China exhausted. By 2077, a combination of attrition, loss of supply routes, and offensives conducted by the United States across the front left Chinese units in Alaska stranded and cut off from reinforcements. The liberation of Anchorage spearheaded by winterized T-51 power armor units under the command of General Constantine Chase marked the end of the Anchorage Reclamation, after a decade of war.
The campaign in mainland China, which began with the amphibious landings at Shantou in 2074, was reinvigorated by gaining ground in Alaska and the deployment of T-51 units. However, as American soldiers pushed deeper into the mainland, Chinese resistance increased. By October, the situation transitioned from a rout into a stalemate.[5] Despite a decade of war, there was no end in sight. Billions of dollars and thousands of casualties were spent in vain, despite taxes and various wartime revenues ensuring the federal government was able to fund a standing army the likes of which the United States had never seen before.[6] In a desperate attempt to bolster the offensive and break the stalemate, bases across the United States were sealed and troops were redeployed.
The situation was made worse by the fact that the oligarchs ruling the United States retreated to remote locations around the globe, expecting a last-ditch nuclear strike from China at any moment. The oil rig off the Californian coast was claimed by the president and key members of the junta, a group which would later become the foundation of the Enclave.[Non-game 2] The United States was leaderless, continuing on simply due to inertia. In 2065, Robert House arrived at the conclusion that a nuclear war was inevitable by 2080 or sooner.
Events
The war both began and ended on October 23, 2077. Chinese submarines were identified by the United States Pacific Fleet at 00:03 EST off the coast of California, moving into position. At 03:37 EST, a squadron of high-altitude bombers were sighted off the Bering Strait. At least one Chinese stealth submarine, the Yangtze, moved close to the American East Coast, launching all warheads, save for one, due to a malfunction.
Six hours later, at 09:13 EST, the Integrated Operational Nuclear Detection System detected the first four missile launches and the United States went to DEFCON 2. Four minutes later, NORAD confirmation sealed the fate of the world. At 09:26 EST, the president ordered a retaliatory strike according to scenario MX-CN91. Nuclear bombs hit Pennsylvania and New York at 09:42 EST. By 09:47 EST, most American facilities had gone offline.
The nuclear exchange continued for two hours. According to President Dick Richardson, both China and the United States suffered catastrophic losses. The standard nuclear warhead used in the Great War was that of a strategic nuclear warhead ranging from 200-750 kilotons in explosive yield with high-yield variants found on Chinese submarines.
This was actually far worse for the Earth, as the lower yield warheads deposited more soil and debris into the lower atmosphere, resulting in a much more concentrated fallout that eventually enveloped the planet. The entire world was blanketed with multiple nuclear strikes, and the world and its entire ecosystem were irrevocably changed for centuries to come.
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