Also the entire Bogota section really doesn't give much of a purpose to why they're even at war. Or why even wage war in that area of South America? It's nowhere near strategic for the Azzies to be overextending like that into hostile territory.
Hello, everyone. My name is Mike Wich. I am one of the authors for War! and just wanted to step in here and respond to The Laughing Man, and maybe clarify the reasons for the war. A lot of the explanation for this war is contained in the section of "Bogota History," which I wrote (along with Bogota Culture, the vast majority of Bogota Neighborhoods and half of the Mercenary section).
It is important to understand that Aztlan and Amazonia hate each other. It is a hatred that sometimes blinds them to practicalities (ie, modern day North and South Korea). This hatred has been brewing since official hostilities ended toward 2050. Since that time, both sides have been fighting proxy wars against one another, using whatever resources they had available to them (ie, the population of Bogota). There were several times that all-out war *could* have been declared, but other emergencies and other priorities kept getting in the way (YoTC, Crash 2.0, etc). In those proxy wars, both sides were doing things that were rapidly escalating the tensions.
Spoilers Ahead:
[Spoilers] Aztlan was intentionally seeding the forest with Diablos, to prevent Amazonia from invading and conquering Bogota. Bogota is a prize for them, and no nation really wants to lose territory and resources to anyone, especially to a hated enemy. And there was a real (or perceived) threat of that happening during and after the Year of the Comet, when their military forces were spread so thin. Amazonia despised having their forest altered so radically, and so they fiercely retaliated, and violence rained down on the streets of Bogota. There was a tit-for-tat response going on in that regard between 2062 and 2073. The way the violence was being waged, all out war was all but inevitable. The two attempted diplomacy, and an agreement was even signed, but Amazonia really failed to live up to its side of the bargin in failing to effectively police its own guerrilla cells. I attempted to try and show that both sides were really guility of the hostilities that were happening down there, and that both sides had blood on their hands. I find that it is better drama when both sides contribute to the start of a war. Many people think Aztlan is the bad guy in this, where it should be understood that both contributed to the current climate, with Aztlan being a little bit more responsible for it by intentionally misleading Amazonia into attacking their lab and giving them a valid reason for a full-out war. Strategically speaking, it is also in Aztlan's best interests to find a way of stopping this violence. All this violence is costing them *A LOT* of nuyen. And diplomacy wasn't working. And so, when the diplomats fail.... [/Spoilers]
I hope I have helped to clarify the reasons for the war. And I hope that despite various concerns with War!, this is a product that many fans can still enjoy and use for their gaming groups.
Any way, That's about it for me. Seasons greetings and happy holidays to everyone here on the forums!