Tom Clancy is the king of the techno-thriller. One could even say that he invented (or at least wildly popularized) the genre with his series of bestsellers starring Jack Ryan. But, as times have changed, Clancy has been setting himself up to change with them, introducing the character of John Clark in Without Remorse and Clear and Present Danger. Rainbow Six is the book to get, though, if you really want the lowdown. You don't have to read the book to love the game, but hey, it's an excuse to read Tom Clancy. (Like you needed one … )
John “Rainbow Six” Clark Clark is an ex-Navy SEAL. His beliefs are not entirely in line with Jack Ryan's, but his sensibilities are more palatable in today's world than ever before. Clark is a man who believes that delivering violence back to the terrorists is the only message they will understand.
In line with this ideal, Clark has set up shop in Hereford, England (where the Twenty-Second Special Air Service Regiment is headquartered). Using his considerable contacts, he has formed a shadow organization called Rainbow. Covertly supported by western governments, Rainbow is an ostensibly independent and very secret antiterrorist group that offers western governments the same plausible deniability that the terrorist organizations have offered their state sponsors—a license to use any tactics, even those normally contraindicated by international law, to accomplish the mission. The Rainbow Six team is a group of Americans mixed with specialists from other nations, who have picked for their high degree of professionalism and skill. As the head of the group, Clark takes the code name "Rainbow Six."
Ubi Soft has cast you as Domingo "Ding" Chavez, the best soldier that Rainbow has to offer. As a team leader, Chavez is trusted by Clark to accomplish any mission. But, Clark trusts him with more than that. John Clark's daughter Patsy is Ding's wife.
Domingo "Ding" Chavez Identification Number: RCT0047-X0566 Nationality: American Specialty: Command Date of Birth: 12 January 1963 Height: 176 cm Weight: 72 kg Hair: Black Eyes: Brown Gender: Male
Chavez was raised in Los Angeles in the 1960s. He was involved in street-gang activity in his youth, until a close friend was killed in a shooting. Driven to get out of the gang scene, he joined the U.S. Army as an infantryman. A natural leader, Chavez rose to the rank of staff sergeant in only four years, during which he also graduated from the Combat Leaders Course. In the late 1980s, he was recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to work in a narcotics interdiction team in Central America, and during that time, he worked under John Clark. Shortly afterward, he was discharged from the Army and became a full-time CIA employee. While serving under Clark, Ding realized he lacked the edge of a higher education and managed to gain a degree in political science during his term with the CIA. Chavez is skilled with a wide variety of weapons and is a hand-to-hand combat expert with a strong grasp of small-unit tactics. In a word, he is the fellow you want to play as, so try your best to keep him alive.
That's not going to be easy, though, because Ding's mission—your mission—is to go up against the best armed, best trained, most dangerous terrorists in the world. This mandate will take Ding and his team across the world in pursuit of the root of a series of terrorist acts in Venezuela, Switzerland, the Caribbean, Quebec, Croatia, San Francisco, and New Orleans. Ubi Soft has wisely decided to set the game's events in 2007, opening up an additional degree of freedom for the story by separating it from today's headlines. While the events will seem plausible (and in a way familiar and damn satisfying to stomp out), they don't hit a raw nerve. The game's story line was approved by Tom Clancy himself.
