The Cradle End is the fourth entry in the Schwarzschild series. The events of the game take place in 3958, two years before those depicted in Schwarzschild II: Teikoku no Haishin. The setting this time is Bardis star system. The omnipresent dominance of empires has been replaced by alliances and struggle between smaller nations. The player takes control of Clair Youngleaf, the leader of one of these nations, who must decide its future fate through diplomacy and wars.