Summary Recap of the 4th Corporate War (2021–2025)

1. The Spark and the Shadow War The conflict began not with world-ending intent, but with a business dispute. In 2021, the ocean-based shipping giant IHAG went bankrupt. Two rival megacorporations, CINO and OTEC, entered a bidding war to seize its assets. When negotiations failed, the conflict moved into the “Shadow War” phase, involving corporate sabotage, assassinations, and data theft. Unable to gain a decisive edge, OTEC hired Militech and CINO hired Arasaka to provide security and military muscle.

2. Global Escalation (The Hot War) By 2022, the war had outgrown its original employers. The rivalry between Militech and Arasaka transformed into a global military crusade for dominance. Major cities became battlefields as private armies deployed tanks, aircraft, and orbital weaponry. The war paralyzed global trade and led to widespread urban destruction.

3. The Destruction of the Net The legendary netrunner Rache Bartmoss was killed during the conflict, but he triggered a “dead man’s switch” that released the DataKrash virus. This catastrophic event unleashed autonomous killer AIs (R.A.B.I.D.S.) throughout the global Net, destroying over 75% of its data and making the old web a lethal digital wasteland. This effectively ended the era of global high-speed communication.

4. The Highrider Revolt In 2022, orbital workers known as Highriders took advantage of the chaos on Earth to declare independence. They used mass drivers to launch “ortillery” (massive lunar rocks) at Earth, striking major corporate installations and spaceports to force the megacorporations out of orbit. This “Seven-Hour War” permanently shifted the balance of power in space.

5. The Night City Holocaust On August 20, 2023, a Militech-backed strike team—including legendary figures like Morgan Blackhand and Johnny Silverhand—infiltrated the Arasaka Towers in Night City. Their goal was to destroy Arasaka’s secure database with a tactical nuclear device. The nuke detonated prematurely, leveling the Corporate Center, killing over half a million people, and leaving the city in ruins.

6. Aftermath and the Time of the Red In response to the Night City nuke, U.S. President Elizabeth Kress nationalized Militech and effectively banished Arasaka from the United States. The war officially ended by 2025, but the world was forever changed. The atmospheric debris from the war and the nuke turned the sky a permanent, haunting crimson for years, ushering in the “Time of the Red.” The era of global megacorporations was replaced by a period of scarcity, decentralization, and local survival.