"Mare Umbrae" Revisited

[General Retreat]

So here's my basic idea for a rebellion / civil unrest system.

Rebellion and Revolt

Every system has a Rebellion score that is generated through a mixture of traits, system characteristics, buildings and player actions. At the end of each week, if your Rebellion Score is over 31, you must take a D20 roll on the Unrest Table. Your Rebellion Score is added to whatever you roll. 0-50: Nothing happens. 51-60: Absenteeism: Many industries shut down as minor demonstrations crop up in your cities. -20% to base system income. 61-70: General Strike: Mass demonstrations break out system-wide and workforces grind to a halt. -30% to base system income. 71-80: Civil Unrest: Strikes and demonstrations are hijacked by a violent minority, attacking security forces and vandalising local property. -10% manpower, -40% base income. 81-90: Riots: Violent mobs take to the streets - troops must be deployed to quash the madness. -20% manpower, -50% base system income. Roll a D4 - this many garrisoned land units are destroyed in the clash. +5 is added to next week’s roll. 91-100: Revolt. A full blown rebellion has erupted! Insurgents are coming for your blood! Revolts There are different forms of revolt, which are determined by your traits and the system’s characteristics. In the event that your system is susceptible to multiple types of revolt, a moderator will roll to decide, with each type receiving equal chance. Civil revolt - this is a rebellion of the working classes and serfs, usually in protest against the lords and ruling classes. For a small revolt roll 1 D20; for a moderate revolt roll 2 D20; for a huge revolt roll 3 D20. That many Planetary Militia troops are spawned. In the event that the rebels defeat any garrisoned soldiers - or there aren’t any garrisoned - the planet falls and becomes a rebel settlement. Slave uprising - this is a rebellion of any enslaved aliens, usually in a bid for freedom or escape. For a small revolt roll 1 D20; for a moderate revolt roll 2 D20; for a huge revolt roll 3 D20. That many Alien Auxiliaries are spawned. In the event that the rebels defeat any garrisoned soldiers - or there aren’t any garrisoned - the planet falls and becomes an alien settlement. Prisoner riot - this is a rebellion of prisoners inside a penal colony, usually in order to make a bid for freedom. For a small revolt roll 2 D20; for a moderate revolt roll 4 D20. That many Marauder Bands are spawned. In the event that the rebels defeat any garrisoned soldiers - or there aren’t any garrisoned - the planet falls and becomes a rebel settlement. Coup d’etat - a rebellion of the aristocracy and merchant cartels, usually in a bout of opportunism when the current incumbent looks weak. If your character is present in the system a Hitman will make an attempt on their life, assumed to be in their own home. Roll 2 D20. That many Line Infantry are spawned. In the event that the rebels defeat any garrisoned soldiers - or there aren’t any garrisoned - the rebel aristocrats will attempt to impose a new NPC lord and swear fealty to the Empire. If the Emperor refuses to recognise this appointment, the system will become a rebel settlement.

Notes: It is deliberately quite difficult to provoke a rebellion, and the D20 for the roll is intentionally small. Chance will play a moderately minor role in whether or not unrest occurs. It will be far more linked to system characteristics and player actions. To expand on that, I'm hopefully going to do something for Condotierri similar to my merchant write-up on the last page. I'm envisioning them as spymasters, as well as agent provocateurs for antagonizing populations. Conversely, they could also lead operations for a lord to quash dissent in his own system.

EDIT: Just noticed this:

Given that Terra Nova is much further south than the original map, I feel it might be best that a terra-formed Mars be the capital of the Empire. A capital along the border doesn't really seem to fit the Empire.

Bare in mind that if we go with the idea of those southern rebels being ex-Imperial systems, Terra Nova would have been directly in the center of the Empire until the civil war happened. If you were looking to transition away from Earth, that would still potentially do the trick.

We could also just rename Terra to Sol, so it refers to the system instead of the planet?

[Poach]

The stability system was very unpopular in GoT and this sounds more complex than Stability.

[The Mad Skylord]

I support Mars as the capital, mainly because I want Nova Terra.

[Ganbarenippon]

So a quick detour here:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

After a conversation with Oznerol where he decided to ask me the question of "How do you imagine the world of Mare Umbrae?" where I explained how my vision of MU is 'very specific', I've decided to post here about it. Now, my original and ongoing vision of Mare Umbrae isn't enforced. It can't be enforced, simply, because it comes out of my mind.
It has the level of uniqueness that makes me wish I was Hayao Miyazaki, so I could at least show you all.

If Mare Umbrae was a book (it may yet be! ), it may surprise some of you (or all of you..).
I don't see Interstellar, Firefly, or anything like that.
It isn't a world that is relevant to the anything before its Imperial timeline, in the same way as people in the 21st century consider them "cut off" from the age of the Romans and the Bronze Age.

The world is different. Not as much Latin, and not so much "uniformity".
It is a vast, diverse, confusing, complex, and ultimately chaotic world.
There is no ongoing "information age." If you went there, you might find it quite "alien" to what you know.

There is a such thing as "clans" and "tribes" and so on.
No, those aren't primitive. Get your minds out of the box and please realize that worlds can exist with both spaceships and traditionalist cultural customs.
Individualism (not the democratic individualism of the 21st century) over the mass produced uniformity of most post-1600 portrayals.

People are often moved by and live their lives by codes dictated by religion or philosophy.
I particularly imply a Muslim and Confucian-like approach to Prometheanism, with customs of temperance, self-control, and training of the body (martial arts and mathematics etc). The rise of the Empire is to be best compared to the rise of Islam in the Middle East in the 600's and 700's.
Humanity was nearly destroyed. Never forget this. It came back. Humanity then descends from the handful of survivors, especially culturally.

One time and place that I often look to for inspiration is the Boshin War in Japan.
Men carried swords, traditional clothing/armor, alongside rifles and advanced cannonry.
Skill and uniqueness. Not every soldier is the same as the one next to him.
And yes, in Mare Umbrae, swords and melee weapons are actually quite prevalent, regardless of how much they may be used and to what effect.
Clothes are made for specific individuals, not mass-produced in humid factories.

More of this and less of this.

Realize that humanity that changes over each decade, century, and millenia.
And the 1,000-year empire does not begin in the late 21st century, but maybe even 1,000 years later.

Recall all the alien civilizations that have been crushed under the rise of the human empire.
It lost much of its previous technology and adopted the technology (notable the warp gate/spacelane tech) of the alien civilizations.

So I hope you will be much more creative than just "House Romanesque III" and "House Romanesque XIV".

----------------------------------------
So if you ever stop and wonder about my view on something in this context, just remember who I am, for those of you who know me well enough.

I live in California. I'm type of Californian who really pretty much finds the rest of the USA dull or uncomfortable.
I can be a bit of a hippie, according to some. I had long hair that reached down nearly to my rump until about a year ago.
I'm into Carl Jung's way of thinking. I find Confucianism and Buddhism to be great models of living.
I love Dune. I basically worship Dune. I like worlds and narratives that use religion and messianism, among other things such as divination.
I'm agnostic, but I generally believe in underlining spirituality in the world and even enlightenment in the Asiatic sense of the word.
That said, I'm hugely pessimistic and analytic, and believe that humanity will always be paranoid and blind, and that its future existence will rely on being spread out so vast and wide that it couldn't be easily wiped out.

Just remember who came up with MU when you're trying to understand what it should look like according to that original creator.

Interesting. So are you reworking Promenthianism? Will there be scope for sects and subsects (sort of like Islam or Christianity, particularly Islam)? I could certainly see the splintering of religious views as something that may drive the colonisation of a system, or drive a militaristic swing in Imperial policy?

[Pinkerton]

What about a prestige system? You could for example, live a pompous lifestyle spending large amounts of money yearly to be granted a certain amount of prestige points. These points then could be used for certain actions and give some bonuses

Winning battles and be granted certain positions can also improve your prestige, etc.

[Poach]

Mix the rebellion and prestige system together (negative prestige = rebellions kick in?) to make it optional. If you want the extra work, you can reap the risks and rewards. If you don't want the extra risk, you'll neither benefit nor be put at risk.

[Dirty Chai]

Interesting. So are you reworking Promenthianism? Will there be scope for sects and subsects (sort of like Islam or Christianity, particularly Islam)? I could certainly see the splintering of religious views as something that may drive the colonisation of a system, or drive a militaristic swing in Imperial policy?

Detailing it better, if I'm allowed the time to do so.
More important is to add a better "heterodox spread" - more than just Astrism, or something. Or a system for choosing to be sectarian/dissenting.

One idea is to model it a bit on how religion was often in the far east - each temple and shrine at different locales often formed their own forms of a religion/philosophy.
In Japan, this led to quite violent fighting all the way up to the Sengoku period between the clergymen.
So I thought this might be a good way to approach it.

[Ganbarenippon]

Very interesting. It might add a lot to the gameplay if we can flesh this out. I'd certainly be interested in playing a House linked to religious factionalism, not fanatics or fascists those have been done elsewhere, but something with a fundamental dogmatic or philosophical difference that drives my actions. But I'm still fleshing things out in my own mind. I'll wait and see what you come up with.

[Lucius Malfoy]

Bare in mind that if we go with the idea of those southern rebels being ex-Imperial systems, Terra Nova would have been directly in the center of the Empire until the civil war happened. If you were looking to transition away from Earth, that would still potentially do the trick.

We could also just rename Terra to Sol, so it refers to the system instead of the planet?

The transition would have happened during the reign of the First Emperor, the very early days of the Empire. Earth/Terra/Sol would have been made this site of pilgrimage and a sacred planet during the infancy of the Empire. Cause it really doesn't make sense to do it in the middle of the Empire. The capital will be set as Mars. However figure out that southern rebels idea soon since I am writing the lore here. I don't wanna make that many changes after I am done writing it.

[Ace_General]

Back I have been busy with my girlfriend and hitting up my old frat buddies

And IDK Earth should be Holy Terra

[Oznerol]

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

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[Lucius Malfoy]

I have renamed the Empire as the Sol Empire seeing as Terran has been used too much, though it is still called from time to time as the Terran Empire. That being said, I will probably keep the planet's name as Terra and thus the Grand Duchy of Terra the way they are with Mars being the capital of the Empire and Terra being a scarcely populated planet that is considered a site of pilgrimage with the important ceremonial function of being where each Emperor is crowned and where they are buried (in the Imperial Mausoleum).

[Dirty Chai]

It's just the Empire of the Known Universe, as it was before.

[Lucius Malfoy]

It's just the Empire of the Known Universe, as it was before.

Its gonna have many official names; Sol Empire, Terran Empire, Empire of the Known Universe.

The transition would have happened during the reign of the First Emperor, the very early days of the Empire. Earth/Terra/Sol would have been made this site of pilgrimage and a sacred planet during the infancy of the Empire. Cause it really doesn't make sense to do it in the middle of the Empire. The capital will be set as Mars. However figure out that southern rebels idea soon since I am writing the lore here. I don't wanna make that many changes after I am done writing it.

Actually GR, I am not gonna with southern rebels seeing as I am writing the lore. We will say that systems on the southern part of the map will be proud warlords who refuse to bend their knee to the Empire, remnants of the alien invaders from the days of the Great Invasion and domains that are xenophobic and refuse to accept vassalship of the Empire. Though during its strong times, the Empire can exercise influence over these various independent domains and force vassalage upon them.

[Pericles of Athens]

@GR You've been doing a good job making the non-lordly positions more appealing(at least on paper), keep up the good work! Perhaps the Pirate and Smuggling professions can be fleshed out next..

On the issue of the capital I'd say Terra Nova would be more prudent if we're having Earth be a site of religious and ceremonial significance, instead of political or economic import.

[Lucius Malfoy]

Terra Nova seems a bit far off though. Its on the border of the Empire, which doesn't make sense as a location for a capital. It borders territories that are defiant towards Imperial authority or are all around hostile. Moving it to Mars, the most likely planet to be the first to be colonized/terraformed makes sense. The Emperor would be considered a protector of Terra throughout his reign, thus Mars's location makes it assume a symbolic role as a shield. Its the same system so we don't have to toy with the map much save clarifying that the Imperial capital is on Mars and Terra is a sacred planet that with a sparse population.

Plus it seems Skylord really is set on Terra Nova for some reason.

[Pinkerton]

What about a prestige system? You could for example, live a pompous lifestyle spending large amounts of money yearly to be granted a certain amount of prestige points. These points then could be used for certain actions and give some bonuses

Winning battles and be granted certain positions can also improve your prestige, etc.

No one?

[Ganbarenippon]

Terra Nova seems a bit far off though. Its on the border of the Empire, which doesn't make sense as a location for a capital. It borders territories that are defiant towards Imperial authority or are all around hostile. Moving it to Mars, the most likely planet to be the first to be colonized/terraformed makes sense. The Emperor would be considered a protector of Terra throughout his reign, thus Mars's location makes it assume a symbolic role as a shield. Its the same system so we don't have to toy with the map much save clarifying that the Imperial capital is on Mars and Terra is a sacred planet that with a sparse population.

Plus it seems Skylord really is set on Terra Nova for some reason.

Agree. It might be handy to think of the title Guardian of Terra (or whatever) as something akin to (Holy) Roman Emperor. You would still have a lot of authority without it but the title and role is seen as highly desirable. No Pope equivalent though, but that could spice things up further!

No one?

I wouldn't mind, but then again I always wanted to push for a fame system in GoT as it seemed a bit daft that outside of highly visible positions there were no famous knights etc. But I can see how it might involve more trouble for mods.

[Poach]

No one?

What about a prestige system? You could for example, live a pompous lifestyle spending large amounts of money yearly to be granted a certain amount of prestige points. These points then could be used for certain actions and give some bonuses

Winning battles and be granted certain positions can also improve your prestige, etc.

Mix the rebellion and prestige system together (negative prestige = rebellions kick in?) to make it optional. If you want the extra work, you can reap the risks and rewards. If you don't want the extra risk, you'll neither benefit nor be put at risk.

9 minutes after you posted.

[General Retreat]

@GR You've been doing a good job making the non-lordly positions more appealing(at least on paper), keep up the good work! Perhaps the Pirate and Smuggling professions can be fleshed out next..

On the issue of the capital I'd say Terra Nova would be more prudent if we're having Earth be a site of religious and ceremonial significance, instead of political or economic import.

Given that the rebellion idea might not be too popular, I've lost a few spokes for my ideas on Condotierris. I've got a bunch of stuff in mind for pirates and smugglers though, so I'll probably skip straight to them and figure out Condotierris later on.

Actually GR, I am not gonna with southern rebels seeing as I am writing the lore. We will say that systems on the southern part of the map will be proud warlords who refuse to bend their knee to the Empire, remnants of the alien invaders from the days of the Great Invasion and domains that are xenophobic and refuse to accept vassalship of the Empire. Though during its strong times, the Empire can exercise influence over these various independent domains and force vassalage upon them.

Sure thing. Let me know what impact that should have on the map - i.e. system names and how they should be grouped together and I'll get the changes committed.

As for Earth and Mars, it's reminding me of a Sydney / Canberra situation. Canberra's the capital of Australia, but a lot of people don't seem to realize /act like it.

Agree. It might be handy to think of the title Guardian of Terra (or whatever) as something akin to (Holy) Roman Emperor. You would still have a lot of authority without it but the title and role is seen as highly desirable. No Pope equivalent though, but that could spice things up further!

I suppose you could still have Nova Terra as an important counterbalance to Mars/Terra if you wanted a religious figurehead. Perhaps in the long distant misty annuals of the past, humans and aliens co-existed on whatever Nova Terra used to be called back then. Then something happened, the alien's butchered the human population and the Great War began (or so the Creed preaches).

Nova Terra could be like a religious focus point as the place where 'it all started', so to speak. Maybe have the reigning lord hold some kind of traditional religious post on the Small Council as a nominal pope like figure and call it a day. I guess it'd make sense for the heart of the Promethean Creed to be closer to the borders, out where it can inspire those fighting to push forward into the slavering alien butcherers, etc etc.

What do you think LM?