An interview with developers suggested that the civilians have all been evacuated ahead of the arrival of US forces. Skira is sparsely populated with some towns and more isolated houses and settlements. A ridge of 1,000+ foot mountains runs down one side of the western portion of the island while the other side is generally flatter with numerous lakes and small waterways. At one end is a stratovolcano, 8.5 by 6.4 km (5.3 by 4.0 mi) in diameter at its base and 1,221 m (4,006 ft) high, and at the base of the volcano is a section of low lake lands. Skira is a volcanic island with a variety of terrain. The developers have aimed to copy the 277.698 km 2 (107.220 sq mi) accurately to give players a sandbox composed of natural terrain, instead of artificially designed or procedurally generated terrain. It was at one point liberated by US and Canadian forces after capture by Japanese forces. The real-world island of Kiska (on which the in-game island of Skira is directly based) is located on the western end of the Aleutian Islands, Alaska and was involved in WWII. Skira is based directly on Kiska Island, Alaska. Bound by treaty arrangements made after the end of the Cold War, America agrees and the two biggest armies in the world begin to clash on the island. Russia, already countering the PLA on the Chinese mainland, calls to the United States to retake Skira from the Chinese. The situation deteriorates quickly and China begins to fortify its northern provinces in anticipation of armed conflict with Russia. Peace talks prove useless as both combatants lay claim to Skira due to previous ownership of it.

After the 2008 Global Economic Crisis causes mass unemployment and political destabilization in China, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) seize control of Skira and the vast, newly discovered reservoir of oil there, from the Russian Federation. Dragon Rising takes place on the fictional island of Skira, in May 2011.

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