The Bad Years were hard on everyone. Rich, poor, homeless, middle class, whites, blacks and many others suffered through these dark days. One of the hardest-hit groups was the American Indian.
Even before the oil shortages, or the grain blight, many American Indian communities were in sad shape. In 2010, 8096 of all Native Americans were still on reservations, and most reservations were dismal places, with alcoholism, unemployment, dropouts and poverty being only a few of the major problems. There were a few shining exceptions of prosperity and progress, but most reservations remained inferior places to live.
Things got even worse in 2012, at the climax of the Russo-American war, as each side "pushed the button." Orbital defenses managed to intercept most incoming warheads, but a few got through. Unfortunately, some of the reservations were too close to sensitive military targets (like airfields and silos). Several whole towns vanished overnight, consumed in an instant by the nuclear fireballs.
Then came the Food Riots. Starvation ran rampant in the reservations. The old ways had to be relearned ... and quickly! The winter of 2012-13 was harsh and unforgiving. More communities disappeared, others disbanded into the wilderness, while still others united into a formidable force.
In 2016, a new threat emerged, as cycle gangs roamed the plains like wolves on the hunt. This was the last straw for the Native Americans. On reservations all over the country, Indians began forming their own MONDO and warrior societies. They were fighting back! In that year chief Andrew Little Wolf of the Omaha tribe began the intertribal conferences that would eventually result in the formation of the Native American Alliance (NAA) in 2019.
The NAA is a semi-militaristic society whose function is to preserve the Indian way of life and reclaim ancestral lands. The NAA is most active and numerous in the midwest, but there are groups in Florida (Seminoles), Maine (Iroquois), Northwest (Crow, Blackfoot), and Southwest (Apache, Comanche, Utes). The most powerful Midwestern tribes are the Sioux, Cheyenne and Omaha. Total NAA membership is about 50,000, but many more Native Americans remain sympathetic and supportive of NAA goals.
The NAA governing body is a Council of Elders; the Elders act as liaisons and messengers between the various tribal governments. The council has no official political power, but their views are respected and their decisions generally obeyed. The council serves as an advocate for the Indians among the white governments, and an impartial moderator in intertribal disputes.
In many ways the NAA is like the Brotherhood -- there is an unspoken but unbreakable code of honor, which requires that members help their brothers in time of need. Perhaps because of this similar moral code, the NAA and the Brotherhood have become close political allies.
The NAA goals are simple and ambitious. They seek to reclaim the land that was theirs before the white man came, and to perpetuate the ancient traditions. The official methods of the NAA are legislation, communication and peaceful demonstration. Violence is only used as a response to violence, and then only as a last resort. Currently, the NAA's best publicized operation is a campaign to gain control of the Black Hills region, which several tribes consider to be holy land.
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Areas of Operation: The NAA is active on all Indian reservations. The NAA is also extremely active in Oklahoma, a state which has never had a reservation system, as such, but which has a large and active Native American population. NAA headquarters are located in Ponca City, Oklahoma. The current corporate government of Oklahoma welcomes the NAA, in return for which the NAA discourages labor disputes among the republic's many Native American workers, and moderates those disputes which do occur. The Oklahoma NAA also enjoys the support of several powerful Native American captains of industry.
Much recent attention on the NAA has focused around the small town of Dupree, South Dakota, on the Pine Ridge reservation -- the headquarters of the Black Hills campaign.
Most reservations are protected by NAA patrols. Reservations vary widely in their tolerance of outsiders. Reservations can be broadly placed in five "tolerance categories."
1. No outsiders allowed. Anyone except members of the local tribe or the NAA must have a special pass. Anyone without a pass is committing criminal trespass, and force may be used to eliminate them or drive them out.
2. Outsiders may pass through the territory, but must pay a
toll and proceed directly through without stopping. Roads are
heavily patrolled and visitors are often escorted through the
reservation. They may not leave officially-designated roads, except
to go to a pre-registered destination by the most direct route.
3. Outsiders must pay a toll, and may stop for 6 to 18 hours. Visitors will be watched, and may be followed.
4. Outsiders pay a toll, and may stop for up to 24 hours.
5. Outsiders are welcomed (more or less), but still must pay a toll. They can stay for up to three days. Extensions are available for additional fees.
Outsiders may or may not be allowed hand weapons on Indian lands. In most cases only small arms and hunting weapons may be carried by outsiders. Travelers are advised to radio ahead to check local policies when approaching a reservation, as they are subject to frequent change.
Tolls usually run from $50 to $250. This can double arbitrarily if the car is heavily armed or the toll taker considers the driver suspicious. Truckers, on the other hand, are customarily given a 50% discount. Reservations that allow travelers to stop usually provide tribal-owned rest areas with cafes and garages. Most tribal garages provide good service at prices up to 15X below outside prices. Ammo, however, is limited and rather expensive. Expect to pay up to 25 X more than off-reservation, Most exotic munitions will not be available. Note that while ammo is sometimes available, actually driving with a loaded vehicular weapon is often grounds for arrest and expulsion!
Reservations that encourage visitors provide modest but comfortable motels and a thriving tourism industry. Sight seeing, camping, fishing and hunting are typically available. Organized tours are often offered, otherwise hiring a guide is encouraged. A tribal permit is required for hunting or fishing, however state permits are usually not required on Indian lands. Expect to pay $50 to $150 for a fishing license, and $100 to $250 for a hunting permit.
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General Advice
1. Be polite! Be respectful! The quickest way to get into serious trouble on a reservation is to enter with an attitude of, "you savage, me superior!"
2. It is generally advisable to take care of your business, then leave. The natives are suspicious of outsiders who stay too long. When a long stay is necessary, or when visiting on vacation, hiring a guide or liaison is recommended. Such individuals provide valuable service, and their fees are reasonable (usually less than $100 per day).
3. If you ever find yourself involved in a fight on a reservation, particularly with a local, you're best advised to get out as quickly as possible. Even if you feel you were justified in defending yourself, it's best to leave. The tribes are slow to forgive, and they never forget.
4. Be aware of the practice of "counting coop," an ancient tradition which has been revived among younger members of the NAA. The practice involves touching enemies or outsiders with a blunt "coup stick," or with the hand. Successfully counting coup enhances the young warrior's status among his peers.
Today young men sometimes seek to count coup on passing vehicles on the highways. Such an attempt is easily recognizable ... the "attacking" vehicle approaches without weapons fire, typically with the driver brandishing the coup stick from the window, accompanied by traditional war cries.
If you become the target of such an attempt, do not, by any means, respond with force! Neither you nor your vehicle will be harmed. Relax and go along with it; yon might have fun! Reacting with good grace in such situations can lead to an outsider acquiring a good reputation among the locals.
5. Most reservations frown upon heavily-armed vehicles and will keep such vehicles under observation, charge extra toll, require that the driver deactivate certain weapons, or flatly deny them entry. Most reservations will not allow bikers wearing club colors to enter under any circumstances.
6. Know the law. Don't assume that the rules are the same on the reservations or off. The reservations are legally autonomous, and many US or state laws are different, or don't apply at all.
Reservations are generally remarkably safe areas. Though the security forces are relatively lightly armed, they are extremely well trained and know their way around the area blindfolded (literally!). Troublemakers are hunted down and expelled or destroyed with whatever force is deemed necessary.
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Security Forces: The Allied Native American Security Forces (ANASF) are the paramilitary arm of the NAA. Their primary mission is to police Indian lands against intrusive outsiders -- they act as game wardens, constables, highway patrolmen and, at great need, militia. The NAA trains ANASF officers, then returns them to their home tribe, which equips them (usually with weapons and vehicles purchased under NAA defense-industry contracts) and pays their salaries.
The return to traditional values advocated by the NAA is obvious in the training of ANASF officers. An officer is trained in deadly commando tactics, both in and out of vehicles. A graduate of ANASF training will have the base-level skills Blade, Climbing, Driver, Gunner, Handgunner, Law, Running and Survival, Area Knowledge 1, and 20 extra points to spend as they wish. ANASF Drivers are usually more experienced individuals, with Driver 1 and Area Knowledge 2, and frequently other skills. The skills Archery and Stealth are very common among ANASF officers.
ANASF Officers wear a uniform consisting of a brown denim shirt with badge and name tag, blue jeans and a red bandanna worn as a headband (some local tribes will change or modify this uniform). On patrol they wear brown body armor and carry a heavy pistol, a Bowie knife and a walkie talkie.
ANASF vehicles are typically lightly armed and armored, but designed to go anywhere, with extremely powerful electric power plants (gasoline is almost never available on reservations, except in very small quantities to passing travelers).
ANASF officers will avoid direct confrontations with serious duelling vehicles. Instead they often go off-road, relying on secret tracks and trails to get them ahead of the troublemakers and into concealed positions where they can fire from ambush. Like their fighting ancestors, the ANASF has a reputation for being smart, fast and elusive in combat.
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Bruin: The ANASF "work horse," the Bruin is a lightly armed and armored pickup designed for off-road power. The cab includes a gun rack, usually stocked with a double-barrelled shotgun and an HAVR. A 1-space, under-seat cargo compartment holds two pair of light-intensifier goggles, four gas masks and a portable searchlight. The small truckbed holds an unarmored, 2-space equipment box containing a portable fire extinguisher, a toolkit, a mini medkit, a stretcher and two backpacks. The bed can also hold up to four passengers (or prisoners, the bed is fitted with iron mounts to secure handcuffs or manacles to).
Pickup, X-Hvy Chassis, Super PP with Platinum Catalysts and Superconductors, OR suspension, 6 ORFP plasticore tires, 2 x rocket launchers with AP ammo, 2 x rocket EWP (side mounted, forward pointing), targeting laser, laser guidance link, machine gun (rear), Searchlight, LD Radio, brushcutter, HD shocks, IFE, antilock braking system, extra driver controls, HD Brakes, overdrive, radar. FP armor F20, R20, L20, B20, U20, T20. 10 points FP armor on each pod. Acc. 5 (2.5 with overdrive) , HC 2, top Speed 105 (125 w/ overdrive). 7,110 lbs. (before passengers and cargo), $51,530.
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Scout: The Scout is the ANASF off-road interceptor. It's a lightly armed, one-man mid-sized with enough legs to catch anything off the road, and most highway vehicles as well. The Scout is the most often seen highway patrol vehicle on Indian lands.
Midsizcd, X-Hvy Chassis, Sport PP with Platinum Catalysts and Superconductors, OR suspension, 4 ORFP plasticore tires, VMG with HD ammo in universal turret, Heavy Rocket front. Targeting computer, searchlight, LD Radio, brushcutter, HD shocks, IFE, antilock braking system, HD brakes, overdrive, radar. FP armor F25, B25, R25, L25, T23, U23. Acc. 10 (5 with overdrive), HC 2, top speed 132 (152 with overdrive), 5,658 lbs., $33,072.