Mar Sara

"The Confederacy has quarantined this entire planet, and we'll proceed with the lock-down within 48 hours. You're to relocate your core colonists to the outlying wastelands."

- General Edmund Duke to the Colonial Magistrate

Mar Sara, located in the Sara System, was one of the thirteen core worlds of the Terran Confederacy in the Koprulu Sector, founded by a prospector before the start of the Guild Wars. Although mainly covered by hard-baked mud and scrub, irrigation techniques allowed agriculture to develop. The planet's sky is a dusty orange and it has at least two moons.

Mar Sara is the setting for the beginning of the game's first campaign; the player's identity is that of the Colonial Magistrate.

History
After the Protoss destruction of the Chau Sara colony, the Protoss fleet approached Mar Sara. The Confederacy launched a clumsy counter attack as it's Executor, the High Templar Tassadar, commanded his ships to pull away and withdraw, for he couldn't bring himself to destroy Mar Sara or the fleet that had come to protect it. At the same time, the Confederacy sent the player's character, acting as Colonial Magistrate, to safeguard the colonists and keep their state of panic from escalating any further.

The Confederacy sends Alpha Squadron to quarantine the entire planet proceed with the lock-down within 48 hours. The core colonists are relocated to the outlying wastelands, escorted by the local marshal, James Raynor. Soon, Backwater Station is attacked by unknown alien organisms. Instead of waiting for Confederate reinforcements, Raynor heads out with the militia and saves the station. General Edmund Duke arrives with Alpha Squadron and arrests Raynor and his men for destroying an infested Confederate Command Center.

Soon, sixteen outland stations report sightings of the alien invaders identified as Zerg. The Confederates arrest all standing militia forces and continue to avoid action against the Zerg. Three stations fall to the Zerg before Sons of Korhal leader Arcturus Mengsk offers to send down a number of transports to the Mar Sara Colony and evacuating any survivors. Magistrate accepts his help, fending off the Zerg attack on the Evacuation Zone, and gets his tenure suspended. At the same time, the Sons of Korhal spring the Mar Sara Colonial Militia, including Raynor, from the Confederate prison ship. Raynor and the former Magistrate become commanders in the Sons of Korhal (with Raynor receiving the rank of Captain) in charge of the Mar Sara troops.

Three hours after colonial evacuation, Mar Sara is almost completely overrun by the Zerg. Both the Confederates and the Sons of Korhal are abandoning the planet. Before leaving, Raynor and a group of his men raid the Jacobs Installation, access the Confederate network, and retrieve data discs.

In the wake of the chaos resulting from the Zerg invasion, The Sons of Korhal escape with the stolen data discs. Thirteen hours after the evacuation of Mar Sara, Protoss warships take up orbit around the colony and unleash a massive planetary bombardment. All life upon the surface is extinguished.

It is later revealed that the Confederacy had planted a Psi Emitter on Mar Sara to lure the Zerg into isolated containment areas. The inhabitants were subjects of a Confederate weapons test in an effort to put an end to their rivals, the Mar Sara Colonial Militia.

Mar Sara in StarCraft II
Mar Sara appears as a Kel-Morian Combine salvage planet in StarCraft II. Raynor's Raiders will retrieve an artifact from the planet for sale to the Moebius Foundation.

Installations

 * Jacobs Installation
 * Vespene Refinery 1138

Military Bases

 * Backwater Station
 * Bunker Complex 3847
 * Fire Base Chimera

Settlements

 * Anthem Base
 * Mar Sara City (capital)
 * Scenic

Other

 * Turtle Island
 * Wasteland

Trivia

 * The Blue Terran faction is identified as the Mar Sara Milita. This remains true into Brood War (even when the forces are clearly not from Mar Sara).
 * "Mar Sara" is Spanish for "Sarah Sea" or, in the context of onomastics, "Sarah's Sea".
 * The orbital view of Mar Sara is identical to the orbital view of Moria.