A universe... at war. In videogames, it almost goes without saying. A universe in blissful unity isn't exactly a well-explored fictional backdrop. This is a science-fiction wargame. The universe is going to be at war.
The problem facing Gas Powered Games is that it needs to feel like that. Supreme Commander had the sort of mechanized destruction that made other RTS games look like a slap-fight. To make the add-on pack mean anything, they need to raise the stakes. How do you raise the stakes