Ideas for a Space Feudalism sort of game: Mare Umbrae

[Poach]

Introduction

Humanity has taken to the stars and controls a large Empire, each Solar System is governed by a Noble House, and the Empire is bordered by another NPC Empire of insectoid aliens who operate as a Hive Mind. No known contact or diplomacy can be made to them. The starting Emperor is old, weak and easily manipulated. The player who plays him first must conform to that, but Emperors elected after him will grow from ingame and have no mandatory personality traits.

Map and Region Information

System Information List

This list is organised like so: Terra/100/L/L/Consumer Goods meaning the Terra System has an income of 100,000 Crowns, a Large Naval Levy, Large Land Levy and produces Consumer Goods. Systems (71 inhabited, 2 lost): Throne Worlds (1): Terra/100/L/L/Consumer Goods Old Lords (10): Terra Nova/90/VL/VL/Consumer Goods Sirius/70/L/L/Small Arms Procyon/70/L/L/Small Arms Kepler/70/M/M/Small Arms Mira/70/M/M/Foodstuffs Mizar/70/L/L/Consumer Goods Castor/80/L/L/Electronics Orion/70/L/L/Heavy Arms Capella/80/L/L/Foodstuffs Nu Scorpii/90/L/L/Heavy Arms Merchant Lords (20): - Southern Merchant Lords (8) Spica/60/M/M/Targeting Sensors Algol/60/M/M/Consumer Goods Izar/60/M/M/Super Heavy Machinery Gumpalt/50/S/S/Foodstuffs Solaris/50/S/S/Electronics Durdane/70/L/L/Heavy Arms Corelia/50/S/S/Foodstuffs Kalgash/50/S/S/Precious Metals - Northern Merchant Lords (12) Regulus/70/L/L/Super Heavy Machinery Thuban/60/M/M/Precious Metals Kruger/60/M/M/Targeting Sensors Eridani/50/S/S/Small Arms Sabria/50/S/S/Foodstuffs Lagash/50/S/S/Heavy Arms Trey/50/S/S/Targeting Sensors Patru/50/VS/VS/Heavy Arms Tano/50/VS/VS/Electronics Sitha/50/S/S/Small Arms Marcarb/50/S/S/Heavy Arms Villa/50/S/S/Consumer Goods Slave Lords (20): Dorsum/90/M/M/Precious Metals Delpha/90/M/M/Slaves Dabot/90/M/M/Electronics Vici/90/M/M/Slaves Altam/90/M/M/Super Heavy Engineering Meta/90/M/M/Small Arms Acamar/90/M/M/Slaves Cyngi/90/M/M/Heavy Arms Zerman/80/S/S/Super Heavy Machinery Yensu/80/S/S/Consumer Goods Lylat/80/S/S/Electronics Colic/80/S/S/Foodstuffs Ailoth/70/VS/VS/Targeting Sensors Crim/70/VS/VS/Super Heavy Machinery Jalta/70/VS/VS/Foodstuffs Gertha/70/VS/VS/Slaves Melfynch/70/VS/VS/Small Arms Luyten/70/VS/VS/Precious Metals Descent/70/VS/VS/Slave Kappa/70/VS/VS/Foodstuffs Zealot Lords (8): Porteno/50/VL/VL/Electronics Thrax/50/VL/VL/Heavy Arms Gelfing/50/VL/VL/Super Heavy Machinery Eta/40/VL/VL/Consumer Goods Eden/40/VL/VL/Small Arms Batalix/30/L/L/Precious Metals Tiamat/30/L/L/Targeting Sensors Helliconia/30/L/L/Foodstuffs Technocrat Lords (7): Gateway/90/VS/VS/Heavy Arms Manticore/80/VS/VS/Super Heavy Machinery Marune/70/VS/VS/Precious Metals Metropolis/90/VS/VS/Consumer Goods Osmo/90/VS/VS/Targeting Sensors Maddar/70/VS/VS/Heavy Arms Helix/80/VS/VS/Electronics Marcher Lords (10): Kzin/70/VL/VL/Consumer Goods Goliath/50/VL/VL/Small Arms Pell/50/VL/VL/Small Arms Aquilae/70/VL/VL/Heavy Arms Varth/60/VL/VL/Electronics Nusku/60/VL/VL/Super Heavy Machinery Majoris/60/VL/VL/Foodstuffs Bastion/50/VL/VL/Targeting Sensors Hurken/50/VL/VL/Heavy Arms Krak/70/VL/VL/Heavy Arms

Map and Backstory to it

Humanity took to the stars countless centuries ago, settling Terra Nova as the first System outside Terra itself. The relative proximity of nearby habitable systems allowed Humanity to quickly expand into a dozen systems, many of these rising to become the realms of the Old Lords. Outposts in the furthest southern reaches saw the birth of the Merchant Lords, whose capital investment soon spurred expansion northwards, colonising the Calmar Loop after its discovery by an adventurer by the name of Calmar. The Human Empire stayed this way for millennia, occasional civil wars and secessionist movements amongst the colonies seeing the rise and fall of various independent states, all of which were eventually returned to Terra’s grasp. The discovery of the Reptile Empire changed everything for humanity, with a war being sparked between the two Empires. Eventual conquest of the Reptiles saw Humanity annex a vast, if sparsely populated, region of space that the Reptiles once ruled, bordered to the north by a vast, starless expanse. The Hook was the next to be discovered, long known to the Reptiles but regarded as too poor to be worth establishing a major presence in, this area was gradually colonised by various human groups fleeing the Empire’s more controlled systems due to beliefs, crimes or wanting a new start. The Zealot Lords arose here, the plethora of religions brought to the region by various outcasts eventually melding into a single creed. A chance discovery by a sensor sweep in the southernmost Slave System of Lylat uncovered a new star cluster, the first of which was dubbed ‘Gateway’ as humanity arrived to explore it. The area was opened up to colonisation and industrialisation for the Empire, hoping to create a new workshop for the Empire to relieve the Old Worlds and allow the sitting Emperor to pursue his pet project of making the Old Worlds into vast garden cities. The discovery of Gateway and its adjacent stars lead very quickly to a link with the Hook being created, as ships in both Helliconia and Marune were able to coordinate from each side and establish safe calculations for jumps. The region that would become home to the Marcher Lords is the newest to be colonised by humanity, as adventurers delved deeper and deeper into unknown space hunting for trace signals that many thought to be from intelligent life somewhere beyond known space. They were, unfortunately, right. The Human race first encountered the Insects in the Goliath system, with fragmented reports talking of spacefaring monsters. The Empire was eventually compelled to send a Fleet to investigate, resulting in the Battle of Bastion, where the first major Swarm was encountered and only narrowly defeated. All attempts to negotiate with the Insects failed, with many unsure if they were even a sentient species. Eventually the Empire rose many prominent Admirals and Generals to Lords and granted them fiefs along the Insect Marches, resolved that the ‘heartlands’ of Humanity must be protected by establishing a highly militarised forward presence in these contested systems. After centuries of occasional conflict with emerging Swarms, the Marches are a developed, if still highly militarised and officially still called ‘contested territory’. Trade flows took off along two primary routes: the 'Southern Passage' saw flows of technology and goods to and from the Technocrat Systems and Marcher Systems towards the Merchant and Old Lord Systems, while a Northern Passage saw trade from the Slave Lords and Northern Merchant Lords move down into the Zealot Systems and Marcher Systems.

Starting Narrative, Long Version

Start point (LONG VERSION ~1.4k words): It is the 146th year of the 10th Stellar Era, or 10,146 to the layman. The 46 years since the turn of the Century have been eventful, if rocky, for Humanity. Ending in 10,101, the Great Slave Revolt was finally crushed in a methodical, bloody and brutal campaign that involved quarantining systems one by one and scouring every planet, asteroid and moon for rebel forces. The war, lasting 16 long years, drastically reduced the Reptilian race from around 30% of their pre-conquest population to around 15-20%: at least one third of the entire race that existed before the revolt perished. Questions were asked during and after the war about how an impoverished slave race gained such ready access to weapons, ships and resources: many Slave Lords accused hawkish Merchant Lords of secretly funding the revolt, as the Merchant Lords had long agitated against slavery, on the surface for humanitarian reasons, but the belief held by many stated that they were jealous of the free labour the Slave Systems had in abundance. It took the Slave Lords until 10,140 to recover and completely pacify the slave population. In 10,120 the Emperor Alexander XVI passed away peacefully in his bed, resulting in the Imperial Council convening to elect a new Emperor. At the same time, and in a move that challenged the long-standing assumption that the Insectoid Empire was a non-sentient hive mind race, a Swarm several times larger than anything previously seen erupted forth from Insect space, engulfing the usually secure Marcher system of Ervan, the local defences finding themselves hopelessly outnumbered. Garbled transmissions and video feeds from Ervan resulted in all the Marcher Lords mobilising for war, gathering hastily in the Marten system, one jump from Ervan, and sending a call to arms to the rest of the Empire. As the Insects could not perform Jumps, taking nearly a year to move between Systems, the Marchers hoped they would be substantially reinforced. The Imperial Council, deep in deliberations regarding a new Emperor and controlled by the Old Lords, disdainful of the Marcher Lords as they were, disregarded the call to arms as the Marcher Lords trying to appear relevant at a time of important Imperial Elections. No order was given for the Empire to mobilise, and the newly crowned Emperor Maximilian XXVI was not even reminded of the request when he was crowned after 6 months of debate, deliberation, negotiation and accusations of bribery. The Battle of Marten was devastating, for the system and for the Marcher Lords, with two thirds of the fleet lost to the swarm. The picket screen of Destroyers and Light Cruisers fought a heroic battle against the billions-strong clouds of wasp-like creatures that comprised the Insect’s own light ‘ships’, if they could be called ships, while the Battleship line aimed to tear the Insect Motherships apart, but it quickly began to shift in favour of the Insects. The fleet was able to withdraw only when the captain of the rapidly collapsing Battleship ISS Dragon piloted his warship directly into the Swarm’s heart and intentionally detonated his Jump Drive, vaporising both his own vessel and a huge chunk of the Swarm, sending it into temporary disarray. The fleet withdrew to the Hurken System, the last heavily defended System in the Swarm’s path. Again a desperate call to arms went out, highlighting that two Systems had already been lost and the Marcher Fleet was all but destroyed. Maximilian ordered a mobilisation, too little too late. The Marcher Lords drew their line at Hurken, determined to at least take as many Insects with them as possible. The two inhabitable planets in Hurken were turned into fortresses of bunkers, castles (the best way to fight Insects on the ground was from high, fortified positions where their advantages in speed and melee ability were hampered) and surface-to-space cannons, preparing themselves for the ‘Insect Rain’, as the clouds of pods fired by the Motherships crashed into the planet and burst forth with ground-based creatures. The Insects finally arrived, with the Marcher Fleet once again waiting in their lines, and once again the battle devolved into the human fleet being engulfed in clouds of swarming insects, great bursts of light visible within the cloud as battleships fired salvoes at Motherships, totally invisible to the ships themselves, the shots guided purely by sensors, with a constant light display from the light ships as they fired every laser, cannon, flak turret, torpedo and gatling gun in any direction they pleased: it wasn’t like they could miss. As all seemed lost, with a third of the Battleships overcome and the picket line fragmented into pockets of desperate resistance, the fleet of the Technocrat Lords jumped into the system. Materialising directly atop the cloud, they appeared with all guns blazing and carved a path to the beleaguered Marcher ships, while transports made landfall on the embattled planets to unload the newest Technocrat advance: Shock Legionnaires. A terrifying combination of infantry and armour, every soldier was almost a walking tank, armed with a personal mech suit that enabled the users to wield weaponry that usually sat in fixed emplacements, these troops were ideally suited to standing their ground and devastating charging Insect hordes. Video footage of these troops walking steadily forwards in line formations – reminiscent of warfare on ancient earth – shredding oncoming Insect forces as they moved, captured the imagination of Imperial Citizens everywhere, but deeply worried the Lordly classes. The Battle of Hurken was won that day, as the Marcher forces rallied alongside their newly arrived allies and wiped out the Insect fleet with withering fire. Two Systems had been irrecoverably lost, consumed by the Insect swarm, but the greatest threat humankind had ever faced from an alien foe had been turned back. Before the dust had even settled, internal strife began. The Old Lords, Slave Lords and Merchant Lords wanted the Shock Legions either disbanded forever or shared amongst the entire Empire. The Zealot Lords wanted the technology for themselves. Nothing came of it, as the four groups could never come to an agreement about who should have custodianship of the technology and how many of their own Legions would be equipped with it. The Marcher Lords angrily denounced the Imperial Council for their incompetent response and directly blamed them for the loss of two Systems, a failure the Council blamed on the Marcher Lords, citing their sworn duty to man the frontier against any threat. Throughout the decades of 10,120 and 10,130, the Emperor Maximilian XXVI proved himself to be a shrewd diplomat among the factions: he had opened talks with the Zealot Lords about potential religious freedom, he had lowered taxes for all to please the Merchant Lords, he had toured the Slave Systems to show support to the Slave Lords, made available funds to rebuild the Marcher fleets and made sure to be regularly seen with some new gadget or utility coming from the Technocrat worlds. His popularity was huge among almost everyone: his major enemies being the conservatives among the Old Lords, some conservative Slave Lords, the more hawkish Zealot Lords and some bitter Marcher Lords. In 10,138 he died of a heart attack. Many suspected foul play, as the man was healthy and at the respectable age of 85: too young to die of something like a heart attack. In his place was swiftly elected the Emperor Louis VII, an old man of 116 years who was cut from the oldest of Old Lord cloth. Weak willed and easily controlled, the Old Lords held him in an iron grip. As was tradition, with the death of an Emperor all the appointments made are voided, allowing the Emperor to safely name his own Government without having to be seen to remove anyone. He appointed a conservative Old Lord First Minister (without consulting the Imperial Council for candidates, as was traditional) whose advice he sought about every major issue before making any commitments, and filled the various appointments of the Imperial Government with Old Lords or their yes-men: the position of Marshal of the Marches went to a second son of an Old Lord, who was given the desolate and totally de-populated Marten system to make him a Marcher Lord, outraging the Marcher Lords, and the position of Lord Treasurer went to a Slave Lord, upsetting the Merchant Lords. Taxes went back up and aid stopped to the Marchers, citing a need to balance the Imperial Treasury after two decades of ‘reckless spending’ under Emperor Maximilian, talks on religious freedom never resumed, and the new Emperor was rarely seen in public life. So begins the year 10,146. The Emperor is an Old Lord puppet and almost every faction in the Empire has deep grievances with multiple others. The last Emperor, a good and popular man, died suspiciously while the new Emperor is old, weak, and probably won’t have a long reign.

Starting Narrative, Short Version

Start Point (SHORT VERSION ~400 words): - A 16 year long Slave Revolt was finally put down in 10,101. The Slave Lords accuse the Merchant Lords of funding the revolt in an effort to remove the free labour source the Slave Lords enjoy. - In 10,120, Emperor Alexander XVI died peacefully. The Imperial Council convened to elect a new Emperor in a process that would take nearly a year of heated debate. - A Swarm several times larger than anything seen previously attacks the Marcher System of Ervan, annihilating the defenders. The Marcher Lords gather at Marten and issue a Call to Arms to the Empire. It is ignored as an attempt by the Marcher Lords to look relevant during the Imperial Election. - The Battle of Marten is a disaster and the system is lost. The Marchers retreat to Hurken, the last heavily defended System in the Swarm’s path. Another, more desperate, Call to Arms is issued. The newly elected Emperor Maximilian orders mobilisation, which is too slow to help Hurken. - The Battle of Hurken is fought desperately, and only won when a last-minute intervention by Technocrat forces rallies the line and breaks the Insect fleet. New Technocrat ground forces, dubbed ‘Shock Legions’, are instrumental in holding the two planets in Hurken. - Debate rages about the Shock Legions, with a coalition of Old, Slave, Merchant and Zealot Lords wanting them abolished or handed over. The coalition collapses to infighting and nothing is done. - Maximilian proved to be popular, funding the rebuilding of the Marcher fleets, touring the Slave Systems, being seen to wear or use Technocrat inventions and lowering taxes for all. He retains enemies in almost every faction, each harbouring men bitter over at least one of his policies. He dies of a heart attack at 85, ‘too young’ for such a thing. Foul play is suspected. - A new, weakling Emperor Louis is elected. He appoints a Government full of Old Lords or Old Lord yes-men, breaking several unwritten rules and unspoken agreements in the process: a second son of an Old Lord is made Marshal of the Marches by giving him the destroyed Marten System (it had always been held by a senior Marcher Lord), a Slave Lord is made Lord Treasurer (a position that usually went to a Merchant Lord) and a conservative Old Lord First Minister is directly appointed (the Imperial Council usually recommends a few candidates from their own ranks and the Emperor selects from that). Taxes go back up, talks on religious freedom stop, and the new Emperor is rarely seen in public.

Imporant character development points taken from the starting scenario

Important points to take regarding character development: - The Emperor is basically controlled by the First Minister. The First Minister must be a hardcore Old Lord that fits basically every stereotype. He must be ruthless. - The new Warden of the Marches is an Old Lord by culture, but is the second son of some landed Old Lord House. Two players must thus cooperate in making a shared background here, with whoever is the Warden of the Marches being the second son of someone playing an Old Lord. He will not, however, have any real territory: Marten is destroyed, unpopulated and stripped bare of everything useful. The Warden of the Marches might better serve someone as a secondary character rather than their main focus. He should be militarily quite incompetent, holding the standard dislike for real Marchers (as he’s an Old Lord), and almost never physically visits the Marches. - Around 80% of the Marcher Fleet was wiped out fighting the Swarm. Most Marcher Lord characters should therefore be the sons of Lords that fought and died in Marten and Hurken. Moderation approval will be sought if you want your Marcher Lord to be a survivor of those battles, as we need to keep that number small. This new Marcher generation is bitter towards the entire Imperial Council, not just the Old Lords, for betraying their fathers. They’re quite fond of Technocrats now, though.

Character Rules

The Emperor and Noble Houses

The Emperor The Empire is controlled by an Emperor, whose powers include calling up armies, setting taxes, and passing any laws he sees fit. The 'check and balance' is the Imperial Council, a court of representatives of the Great Houses of the Empire. The Council decides its own membership (adding or removing Houses as they please) and can depose the Emperor if they vote for it, but may not legally summon armies, set taxes or pass laws. Noble Houses The Empire's nobility is divided into many loose 'factions', with Lords belonging to a faction primarily through their political, social and religious circumstances. The Old Lords are the 'Old Money' of the Empire, their Houses being the oldest of the noble houses and their solar systems being the most populous in the Empire's centre. They, at game start, have a majority in the Imperial Council and the Emperor is from Old Lord stock. Their worlds are wealthy and have large populations, giving them high income and high levies, but very few Systems are governed by Old Lords. This faction of Lords is a loose one, with each Old Lord always out for their own House first and the 'Old Lord' faction second. The Merchant Lords are the 'New Money' of the Empire, being traders and capitalists by nature. They gain extra trade lanes, and have medium incomes and medium levies. They share second place in the Imperial Council with the Slave Lords. Merchant Lords are a somewhat loose faction, seeing each other as competition, but still cooperating to force their mercentile beliefs and laws onto the rest of the Empire. The Slave Lords are the Lords of conquered Reptile Systems. When Humanity took to the stars they fought a war against a Reptilian species and conquered their own fledgling empire, killing approximately 80-90% of the species and reducing the rest to total slavery. Their lands are productive and labour costs low, but a small class of Humans preside over a large slave class, giving these Lords high income and medium levies. Conscript slaves can also be used but are very poor quality soldiers. They share second place in the Imperial Council with the Merchant Lords. They are a more close-knit faction, seeing each other as fellow Slavers and feeling persecuted by other Noble Houses. The Marcher Lords are those whose Systems border the Insectoid Empire. Not of truly noble blood, these Houses were raised from successful Generals, Admirals and other military men of the Empire centuries ago. They are totally unrepresented in the Imperial Council but, at game start, do not pay taxes. They tend to associate among themselves and tend to see Imperial politics as petty at best and decadent at worst. Their unique position and culture gives them discounts on creating and maintaining military power, and their worlds are medium income, high levy worlds. A major drawback for these Lords is the ever present danger of the Insectoids who, though never engaging in a massed invasion, conduct semi-regular Swarms into Human space in an effort to devour any resources, from asteroids to ships, that they can find. The closest-knit faction by military necessity: they must cooperate to fight the Swarms and share a general outlook on the rest of the Empire, most of which looks down upon Marchers. The Technocrat Lords are similar to the Merchant Lords, but their interest lies in industry and technological development rather than commerce and capitalism. Their worlds are advanced, but their populations are usually somewhat low and largely involved in professional-level work like research and engineering rather than low-skilled labour. Their income is high and their levies low, but their forces are far better equipped than those of other Systems. The Zealot Lords inhabit a small sector of the Empire, a grouping of fanatically religious worlds that follow a religion separate from the State Religion, bringing them into conflict with the religious conformists of the Empire. These Systems are densely populated, as they are a pilgrimage point for all those in the Empire who convert to the new religion, an increasing trend as priests, missionaries and pilgrims travel to and from every corner of the Empire in search of new believers. With low income but very high, if often ill-equipped, levies, the Zealot Lords are able to field enough troops to overwhelm smaller numbers of better equipped troops. Lords Relations By lore, the following opinions are generally held (and would be held by AI Lords and thus would influence their decisions to support or oppose things): Old Lords think: -- Marcher Lords are jumped up commoners. -- Slave Lords are quaint country folk whose antics and culture are privately made fun of. -- Merchant Lords are upstarts, newcomers, and greedy by nature. -- Technocrat Lords are necessary to the Empire, but are bookish folk with very dry, overly technical personalities. -- Zealot Lords are dangerous firebrands who ought to be brought to heel. Merchant Lords think: -- Marcher Lords are brutish military men who would be more interested in testing their guns on an asteroid rather than establishing a mining colony on it. -- Slave Lords are inhumane for keeping slaves. This is mainly a dress-up, with Merchant Lords really being upset about the rock-bottom labour source Slaves provide the Slave Lords, whereas they need to employ humans. -- Old Lords are relics of an old time and have no real place in the 'modern' Empire. -- Technocrat Lords are nothing more than bad businessmen who better belong working for the Merchant Lords rather than being Lords in their own right. -- Zealot Lords are too concerned with the spiritual rather than the physical, touchable, and acquirable. Slave Lords think: -- Marcher Lords are brutish military men who don't matter in politics and shouldn't be allowed to encroach on the fancier and more refined cultures in the Inner Empire. -- Old Lords are the height of class, culture and refinement, but are also arrogant by nature. This stems, though the Slave Lords don't start knowing this, from the Slave Lords being a source of ridicule for the Old Lords. -- Merchant Lords are greedy, jealous of the Slave Lords, and their anti-slavery agitation is a threat to humanity as the Reptiles will 'surely' seek revenge if given any measure of freedom. -- Technocrat Lords are boring bookworms who are best left to tinker with their toys in peace. -- Zealot Lords are the greatest threat to the 'natural order' of things for humanity. A Slave Lord's dislike for Merchant Lords is surpassed only by their rabid fear and opposition to the Zealot Lords and their followers. Marcher Lords think: -- Old Lords are arrogant and pompous. -- Merchant Lords are greedy and would happily sell you a broken warship to make a quick buck. -- Slave Lords are a tad oppressive to the Reptiles, but Marchers generally agree that the Reptiles must be kept down and that a harsh system does it well: an image persists of Slave Lords being somewhat sadist in their treatment of Reptiles, which Marchers view as a waste of good resources. -- Technocrat Lords are vitally important, churning out new military technologies and advancing the Empire's capabilities. -- Zealot Lords are wild people but, if they can be made allies of, would make for an excellent source of fanatically motivated recruits. Technocrat Lords think: -- Old Lords are more concerned with looking fancy and acting the part than they are with advancing the Empire's interests. -- Merchant Lords are out to steal the advances created by the Technocrats purely to increase their own wealth. -- Slave Lords are so far removed from the technological world that Technocrats live in that they're best just ignored. -- Marcher Lords are practical, reasonable people who tend to be grateful for advances the Technocrats provide, but they're fairly thick-skulled and are best treated more like children than adults. -- Zealot Lords are a simple people, happy with what there is but, perplexingly, not motivated to reach new heights in technology. Zealot Lords think: -- Old Lords represent the 'old order' and must be swept aside. -- Merchant Lords are greedy profiteers but their money would be most useful. -- Slave Lords are an over-reacting conservative faction who are very dangerous to the new religion. -- Marcher Lords are an appealing military force and a potential source of converts oweing to their bad relationship with the Old Lords. -- Technocrat Lords are far too concerned with the corporeal than the spiritual and that their learning and advances must be strictly controlled by religious oversight.

Imperial Appointments

Ministerial Positions These are voided at each Imperial Election, leaving the new Emperor to appoint a Government of his choice. - Emperor. The Emperor is elected by the Imperial Council and has, in theory, unlimited authority. He alone appoints and dismisses Ministers, though traditionally the First Minister is selected from candidates suggested by the Imperial Council. He may dismiss and appoint to the Imperial Council, though rarely does as this may anger the Council and imperil his rule. He may summon armies and fleets to do his bidding. He is the sole figure that can make something law, though he may be presented with proposals for laws by the Imperial Council. He may exercise any power that his Ministers have without their consultation, as by Constitution their powers are granted by him to exercise in his name. - First Minister. The Head of Government and responsible for daily administration of the Empire. Sits as the Chairman of the Imperial Council and may summon or dismiss it to discuss any issue he deems fit, but cannot himself alter the composition of it. May suspend, for a period of up to 2 years, any Minister or member of the Imperial Council, for any reason. After the two years, the suspension must be lifted or the Emperor or Imperial Council must agree to a removal. - Lord Treasurer. Head of the Treasury, he may raise or abolish taxes as needed for the Empire, and may be as selective as he pleases in applying the tax (eg taxing only certain Systems or people), he may make available funds from the Imperial Treasury for anything he deems fit and controls access to and editing of the State’s financial records, and thus may control what the Emperor sees. (Powers: May use tax money to fund other Ministerial posts, or to fund whatever else he wishes) - Warden of the Marches. The most senior military figure in the Marches, the holder of this position automatically assumes overall command of any Marcher forces mobilised to engage Insect or other hostile forces marauding the Marches. In theory a Warden title can be made for any region of the Empire, though only the Marches has a permanent Warden post. - Lord Admiral of the Empire. The holder of this position is in overall command of any Imperial forces about the Emperor’s business. In times of general war or insurrection, all Wardens, and thus all local forces, are subordinated to him in an act known as the War Provision. The last time this happened was during the Reptile War, with an attempt to activate the War Provision during the Great Slave Revolt being vehemently opposed by the Slave Lords, who did not want to be seen as needing outside help to rule their own slaves, and thus it was never activated. (Powers: Ship/Troop hire cost -25%, Imperial Ship/Troop upkeep costs -25% [Both do not apply to personal ships/troops owned by his House, only ships/troops in service to the Emperor]) - Lord Master of the Apparatus. The ‘Apparatus’ is the Empire’s term for the secret service and information gathering services of the Government. The holder of this position controls the Empire’s Spy network and may summon anyone in the Empire for an ‘undocumented discussion’ about any issue he deems appropriate. He may also detain said individuals for up to 2 years without stating a cause, requiring the agreement of the Lord Justicar for longer periods. (Powers: +5 max Spies. Spy hire cost -50%) - Lord Justicar. Head of the Empire’s judicial system, the holder of this title may issue arrest warrants and may summon any Lord to answer to accusations of treason or wronging another Lord. He may issue any punishment he deems appropriate if the offending Lord is found guilty. By tradition, a Lord convicted of Treason is, at best, sentenced to death and at worst, his entire House is stripped of their status and their lands granted to another House. For wronging another Lord, compensation of some form is usually mandated. Non-Ministerial Positions In addition to the above Ministerial posts, other posts exist and may be activated or deactivated as the relevant Minister desires. - Warden of the Palace. The Head of the Palace Legion, a hand-picked 50,000 strong Legion of soldiers whose sole duty is the security and defence of the sprawling Imperial Palace Complex on Terra. These troops have 20 Attack/Defence stats and never leave Terra. The Imperial Palace Complex is heavily fortified with +4 to defence rolls, and may serve as a fall-back point for defeated defenders if Terra falls, enabling the Palace to continue resistance even if the planet itself is occupied. - The Emperor may appoint anyone he pleases to any position, real or imagined, that he pleases.. - The Lord Admiral of the Empire is responsible for defences of the Terra System. The Terra Garrison, a force of 6 Infantry Legions, exists on the planet itself while the Terran Fleet, a force of 3 Battleships, 5 Heavy Cruisers, 4 Light Cruiser Squadrons, 4 Destroyer Squadrons and a Transport Squadron exists in orbit, with a Captain-General sometimes appointed to run it, though many Lord Admirals have commanded it directly as their own Flag Squadron. The Captain-General position was last activated during the Reptile War, as the Lord Admiral was needed to command the entire Empire’s forces. - The Lords Treasurer, Justicar, Master of the Apparatus and Admiral of the Empire may appoint deputies with whatever powers and remit they deem appropriate.

Composition of the Imperial Council

Fourteen sit on the Imperial Council, with one serving at any one time as the Emperor, leaving Thirteen to act as the functional body. The Old Lords control seven seats, with the current Emperor drawn from one of the Houses. The ancient stranglehold of the Old Lords on the highest of political power is most evident in the Council, where seven Houses are represented out of a total of ten. It is sometimes a source of ridicule to the remaining three, who at one point held seats but lost them over the centuries for crimes, intrigue or loss of status. 1 Terra Nova 2 Mizar 3 Castor 4 Orion 5 Capella 6 Nu Scorpii 7 Sirius The Merchant Lords hold three seats, two from the Southern Lords and one from the Northern Lords. 8 Durdane 9 Algol 10 Regulus The Slave Lords also hold three seats, with the triple star cluster of Dorsum, Delpha and Dabot being home to the three Houses that hold them: once the innermost nucleus of the Reptile Empire and being the planets with the largest slave populations and most advanced economies. 11 Dorsum 12 Delpha 13 Dabot Finally, the Technocrat Lords hold a single seat. 14 Metropolis

Imperial Council Powers

The Imperial Council The Imperial Council is the ‘Parliament’ of the Empire, voting on many issues. Votes are conducted strictly by those who decide to appear for any vote called, with those not present not counted in the vote tally. The Council has the following powers: - Upon the vacation of the Imperial Throne, the Council elects a new Emperor from their own ranks. - May elect or dismiss Houses to the Council by vote. - May submit legal proposals to the Emperor. - May create and appoint people to committees to investigate any aspect of Imperial affairs. Once created these committees cannot be legally opposed by the people they are investigating. - May, by unanimous vote only, call upon the Emperor to abdicate. While not binding upon the Emperor, he would risk civil war if he refused.

Characters

Characters Players will play human characters and may have up to eight main characters, controlling as many as three noble houses. Players may not control more than one house of any single faction. Death rolls will be done at 80, starting at 2/20. Each 5 year period adds +2 to the roll (eg at 85 the roll is 4/20, at 90 the roll is 6/20). Characters may only rule one System each. If a player acquires more than one System, they must appoint a non-landed character to rule it. Characters may not pool income: every character has their own bank account and cannot provide gifts to each other except where Moderation approves it for suitable RP justification, such as bribery. Characters start with one year's base income from the System. The Emperor, for example, will start with 100,000 Crowns because Terra has a yearly base income of 100,000 Crowns.

Traits

Traits are not gained by ageing as we have seen in other RPs. Traits are gained by deeds. New characters may start with 2 points for every decade they have lived, and may not start with more than +4 in any trait regardless of age. List of traits: Admiral, +1 to Naval Battles. Trait awarded for winning a battle where you do not outnumber the enemy by more than 1.1 to 1. General, +1 to Land Battles. Trait awarded for winning a battle where you do not outnumber the enemy by more than 1.1 to 1. Mercenary Contractor, -2.5% to Mercenary hire costs. Trait awarded for every 500,000 Crowns spent hiring Standing or Mercenary forces. Veteran Jump Navigator, -1 to detection rolls for entering a System. Trait awarded for every successful ambush on an enemy fleet or planet. Guerilla Warfare Expert, -1 to SOS roll (eg makes it less likely for enemy ships to intervene), +2% to loot gain. Trait awarded for each raid that gains more than 30,000 Crowns in loot. Administrator, +2.5% to System income. Trait awarded for appointment as Lord Treasurer, or if economic power is wielded for significant political result (as decided by the Moderators). Spymaster, +1 to Spy rolls conducted for this character. Trait awarded if information gained from a Spy roll results in someone else being arrested, suspended from an Imperial Appointment or the Imperial Council, expelled from an Imperial Appointment or the Imperial Council, or executed. Counterspy, -1 to Spy rolls against that character. Trait awarded if a spy is captured trying to make a roll on you. Charisma, +1 to rolls when attempting to convince AI characters of something. Trait awarded if an AI character is successfully convinced to vote for your position in the Imperial Council, and for every 3 AI Lords convinced to take your side militarily or politically. Duellist, +1 to Duel rolls. Trait awarded for every 2 serious duels won or for foiling an assassination attempt. Sparring, showing off or otherwise jovial duels do not count. Moderator discretion. Assassin, +1 to Assassinton rolls (applies only if the character is doing the deed himself). Trait awarded for every successful kill.

Freeman Pofessions

A Freeman of the Empire is typically regarded to be of a higher social class than many other humans: free from feudal obligation to one of the aristocracy, they are the masters of their own destiny. Freemen make up the overwhelming bulk of small business owners, professionals, independent traders and producers of creative arts. Players are able to play as a Freeman in one of a few professions. Piracy A ‘pirate’ is defined in Imperial Law as ‘any person being in illegal ownership of a spacecraft, or any person using a legally owned spacecraft for illegal endeavour, or any person employed on a spacecraft engaged in illegal endeavour.’ This covers everything from smuggling to highway robbery in a single blanket definition that expedites the judicial system’s decisions: piracy carries the death penalty. A pirate player will start off in either a Corsair or a Smuggling Ship and have a starting wealth of 10,000 Crowns. Pirate Ships Pirate Ships: - Corsair -- The smallest, and most common, vessel operated by pirates. Somewhere in-between Light Cruiser and Heavy Cruiser, most Corsairs are converted from other, less sinister, classes of ship such as medium-sized transport ships or pleasure yachts, and as such no two Corsairs are ever the same. Costs 10,000 Crowns. -- Attack: 20 // Defence: 20 // Speed: 7 - Barracuda -- The second in the size scale of pirate ships. Closer to a Heavy Cruiser than their smaller Corsair cousins, a Barracuda is similarly a convert ship, often starting life as some sort of industrial ship or larger transport, having the superstructure and engines to fit bigger guns and retain some speed. Costs 20,000 Crowns. -- Attack: 40 // Defence: 40 // Speed: 6 - Marauder -- A Marauder is a rare ship to see, most readily compared to a Battlecruiser and operated by very few pirates. It comes with great risk: any pirate that operates a Marauder-sized vessel will quickly draw the attention of the Empire, which usually drastically shortens his lifespan. Costs 40,000 Crowns. -- Attack: 60 // Defence: 50 // Speed: 5 - Smuggling Ship -- Legitimate transport vessels, equipped with concealed cargo bays at the expense of armour, allows those engaged in illicit trade to move their goods with less likelihood of capture. Costs 10,000 Crowns. -- Attack: 0 // Defence: 5 // Speed: 5 Career Paths Raider Clan The traditional and most well-known avenue for a pirate to pursue: get a ship with guns, find a ship with less guns and something valuable in it, go take what you think should belong to you. A pirate can conduct raids on Systems much like legitimate vessels can, and as a Pirate gains a -4 on SOS calls (eg less likely the System’s defenders can intervene). As with real raiding, any loot the pirate takes comes off of the System owner’s yearly BASE income. If a Pirate is engaged by local system defenders (eg the SOS roll summons ships either before or after the raid), the local Lord may appeal to the Lord Justicar for legal intervention. The Lord Justicar may then elect to declare the pirate as Wanted or not, and set a bounty, which both he and any other character is free to add to, providing they have the money. If a Bounty is set, the Imperial Spacelane Authority will broadcast the pirate’s location every time he is detected entering a System. Anyone, even other Pirates, are then free to attempt to hunt the pirate down and the bounty will be claimable when he is handed to the Lord Justicar. The Pirate is regarded as captured if he loses a space battle. Only the Lord Justicar may abolish the bounty, and he may decide the pirate’s fate. The proscribed punishment is death, and the Lord Justicar may face questions if he elects to let a known pirate walk away with his head. Pirate Base A Pirate may establish a base of operations for himself in any System he chooses. Note that the base isn’t actually in the Solar System, this is merely the easiest way of fixing a location. For RP purposes, the pirate’s base is in the deep, dark void in between Solar Systems, jump coordinates known only to those who have visited the base before, or been forced to divulge the calculation. Every time the Pirate leaves his base, however, he must do a detection roll, done as usual based on his fleet’s defence stats. A base comes with costs and benefits: Small Base. Costs 20,000 Crowns. Grants 100 points of vessels. Medium Base. Costs 40,000 Crowns. Grants 200 points of vessels. Large Base. Costs 60,000 Crowns. Grants 300 points of vessels. More than one base may be established, with one serving as the 'HQ' of your Clan. Your home thread will be this HQ, with additional pirate bases listed as assets in that thread. Smuggler A smuggler is a man who can move illegal goods back and forth on his Smuggler ship, which includes people. As such, wanted persons (such as pirates) might do well to contract a smuggler if they need to reach someone who can pull a few strings if they end up being hunted. Additionally, Smugglers are adept at moving people off of planets who might find the space around that planet suddenly occupied by hostile ships. If a Smuggler is moving illegal cargo or illegal persons, he must do an intervention roll when he moves it, which is dependent on the distance moved. Police Intervention Roll: Base chance 5/20, +1 for every System the illegal cargo will be moved through. If the Smuggler is caught he is taken before the Courts, and is usually allowed to walk free if he confesses his employer’s identity. There are multiple illegal substances a Smuggler can trade, with conditions: 1. The smuggler must have a trade partner, which can include a Pirate Clan or a Lord. 2. The smuggler may only move one illegal good per Smuggler ship. The goods are: - Drugs -- Produced in moveable quantities in Tiamat. In demand in the Core Worlds. -- Per each successful delivery, the Smuggler gains 10,000 Crowns and the recipient 5,000 Crowns. - Illegally Mined Metals -- Rogue companies that mine asteroids in secret to avoid paying tax. Produce in moveable quantities in Patru. In demand in the Technocrat Systems. -- Per each successful delivery, the Smuggler gains 10,000 Crowns and the recipient gets 5,000 Crowns. - Counterfeit Electronics -- Illegal copies of many consumer gadgets created in the Empire. Produced in moveable quantities in Helix. In demand in the Northern Merchant Systems. -- Per each successful delivery, the Smuggler gains 10,000 Crowns and the recipient gains 5,000 Crowns. - Untaxed goods -- Goods for which no legal tax has been paid. Produced in moveable quantities in the Core Worlds. In demand in the Slave Systems. -- Per each successful delivery, the Smuggler gains 10,000 Crowns and the recipient gets 5,000 Crowns. - Reptilians -- Illegal outside the Slave Systems, some people still want small quantities of Reptiles for all manner of things, from unsanctioned medical research to blood sport. Produced in acquirable quantities in Delpha. In demand in the Marcher Systems. -- Per each successful delivery, the Smuggler gains 10,000 Crowns and the recipient gets 5,000 Crowns. - Firearms -- Un-licenced firearms have a variety of uses in organised crime. Produced in moveable quantities in Krak. In demand in the Southern Merchant Systems. -- Per each successful delivery, the Smuggler gains 10,000 Crowns and the recipient gets 5,000 Crowns. - Banned texts -- Texts that have been banned by the Empire for whatever reason. To the Zealots, that means ‘suppressed by the Old Lords’. Produced in Gumpalt. In demand in the Zealot Systems. Mercenary A man in charge of a private army, he pays no upkeep for Standing Forces and -50% hire costs. He starts off with a Small Company and works up from that. He starts his career with 30,000 Crowns. The usual limits of 20% Battleships and 50% Capital Ships by points apply. A Mercenary who wishes to legally operate Battleships must gain permission of the Imperial Council for each Battleship he intends to commission. The Imperial Council is normally against this act, with no existing Free Company permitted to operate such ships, out of fear that large Free Companies that are legally allowed to amass Battleships could challenge the Aristocracy: Battleships are the preserve of the Gentry. Like all Free Companies, the player can be employed for five years before requiring a one-year stand down. Moderators are encouraged to act against a Mercenary player becoming the exclusive client of a single Lord player: these are professional business contracts, not personal loyalty-driven relationships. Small Company: Max 500 points total, land and space. Medium Company: Max 1,000 points total, land and space. Costs 20,000 Crowns. Large Company: Max 1,500 points total, land and space. Costs 40,000 Crowns. Huge Company: Max 2,000 points total, land and space. Costs 80,000 Crowns. Captain-General of the Empire: Max 3,000 points total, land and space. Requires promotion by the Emperor after recommendation by the Imperial Council. Must have a Huge Company before being eligible. The rank of Captain-General of the Empire was created during the Reptile War in order to encourage the creation of private armies, removing part of the burden of the war effort from the Government and passing it to the private sector. The rank comes with privileges: the holder is regarded as being minor Aristocracy (though without land and much lower in rank than the Landed Houses) and thus able to acquire Battleships as he pleases; in the event of the War Provision being activated, is guaranteed employment by the Lord Admiral of the Empire, though the level of pay demanded is subject to the Imperial Council’s approval and alteration, which the Captain-General may refuse and thus refuse the offered employment; and the rank carries great prestige and honour, as it is one personally conveyed by the Emperor and thus puts the holder in a league above normal mercenaries, potentially securing him fame and leverage in gaining employment. A Mercenary who turns pirate will do a 50%+d50 for desertion, spread out across all ship types evenly. He will take whatever money and ships he has left and convert to the Pirate Clan career path. His Company will be seized and shut down. If he is over his points limit on ships he may keep the ships he has, but cannot hire new ships until he has points available to do so. Condotierri A Condotierri is a Swiss Army Knife in human form: a jack of all trades in the employ of one of his social betters, conducting a range of darker tasks that his Lord may not want to personally get involved with. A Condotierri starts his career with 40,000 Crowns. A Lord must pay a Condotierri a salary, as the position has no income of its own. This salary must be agreed each week, though if no new agreement is made the old agreement is regarded as still being in effect. (This means you get the same salary every week unless, at some point during the week, you specifically get a raise) Providing of lump-sum gifts to a Condotierri is not permitted: salary only. He may act as the Lord’s Spymaster, with the Lord’s spies reporting to him. In this capacity he also grants the Lord a 20% reduction in hire and upkeep costs for the Spies. Note that this means the Spies report to the Condotierri directly, and the Lord is reliant on him to pass information on. He may hire his own 2 Special Forces teams, for which he gains 25% off. He may hire Hitmen or Assassins on behalf of his Lord, for which he gains 20% off.

Military Rules

Units

Land Forces Land forces are comprised of 'Legions' of 50,000 men for levying purposes. They can be broken down into smaller components if necessary. - Infantry Legion -- Forms the backbone of Imperial Forces. 50,000 soldiers equipped with land transport and light weaponry. Easily moved in bulk throughout the Empire, easily trained and easily equipped. -- Attack: 50 // Defence: 50 // Size: 50,000 men // Transport Size: 50 - Armoured Legion -- Better trained, better equipped, more dangerous, but comes with a much larger compliment of machinery requiring more money and more transport space. Many of the Empire's best soldies are found in the Armoured Legions. -- Attack: 75 // Defence: 75 // Size: 50,000 men // Trasnsport Size: 75 - Shock Legion -- The highly advanced forces of the Technocrat Lords, Shock Legions come equipped with superior equipment at the cost of higher upkeep and taking up more room on transports. Man for man, however, Shock Legions are the most feared in the Empire. (Available only to Technocrats) -- Attack: 100 // Defence: 100 // Size: 50,000 men //Transport Size: 100 - Slave Legion -- Available only in Slave Systems, these are Reptilian Slaves pressed into service by force or a promise of better conditions for their families. Poorly equipped but dirt cheap, expendable and easily raised. Lack of care for their morale and wellbeing also makes cramming transports full of them a less space-consuming task. -- Attack: 20 // Defence: 20 // Size: 50,000 slaves // Transport Size: 20 - Zealot Legion -- Available only in Zealot Systems, these are fanatical converts who will give their lives for the cause. Much cheaper in upkeep than regular Infantry Legions, as they are willing to accept less pay and poorer conditions 'for the cause'. -- Attack: 40 // Defence: 40 // Size: 50,000 men // Transport Size: 40 Space Forces Movement and warfare in space are conducted with space-faring versions of the sailing ships of old. Divided into a number of classes, these vessels each fulfill a differing role in naval warfare. - Battleship -- Behemoths of the space lanes, massive ships with heavy armour and huge cannons. The backbone of any serious battle fleet. Capital Ship. -- Cannot hit targets smaller than a Heavy Cruiser. -- Attack: 100 // Defence: 100 // Speed: 3 - Battlecruiser -- A variant of the Heavy Cruiser with less armour but higher attack, built for speed and firepower at the expense of being able to slug it out in a pitched battle. Ideal for beefing up patrols, raiding or fast response. Capital Ship. -- Attack: 70 // Defence: 30 // Speed: 6 -- Advanced Cruiser -- The Technocrat take on a traditional Heavy Cruiser, this ship is equipped with superior sensor technology and innovative electronic countermeasure technology, enabling it to engage in battle both offensively and defensively with both physical force and cyber warfare. The result is a ship that is more accurate and harder to gain a target lock on. (Available only to Technocrats) -- Attack: 70 // Defence: 70 // Speed: 5 - Heavy Cruiser -- The 'poor man's battleship', Heavy Cruisers are a downsized Battleship, with thick armour and large guns, designed to absorb any punishment given while dealing out plenty itself. Capital Ship. -- Attack: 50 // Defence: 50 // Speed: 5 - Light Cruiser Squadron -- One of two available screens for fleets, the Light Cruiser is a smaller version of a Heavy Cruiser and is equipped with an array of smaller guns to fight other small vessels as well as torpedo tubes to attack larger ships. -- Attack: 15 // Defence: 25 // Speed: 7 - Destroyer Squadron -- The Destroyer is the smallest, most lightly armoured ship available to the military, sacrificing armour for extra space to fit larger torpedo tubes. These ships are very dangerous to poorly protected Capital Ships though are equally at risk against other predatory Destroyer or Light Cruiser Squadrons. -- Attack: 25 // Defence: 15 // Speed: 8 - Transport Squadron -- Unarmed, large and slow, these ships can move goods or troops in bulk throughout space. -- Capacity: 200 // Defence: 15 // Speed: 5

Levies

Levies are broadly organised into five groupings, from Very Large to Very Small. Points are assigned based on the Attack Value of a Ship or Legion. Very Large: 1,500 points Large: 1,250 points Medium: 1,000 points Small: 750 points Very Small: 500 points Battleships may not comprise more than 20% of your warships, by points. Capital Ships may not comprise more than 50% of your warships, by points. Levies take twelve hours to muster after being called. For Marcher Lords, this is reduced to six hours.

Mercenaries and Standing Forces

Standing Forces Standing Forces are capped at 2,000 points of Warships and 2,000 points of Ground Forces. The same Fleet limitations apply: maximum 20% Battleships by points, maximum 50% Capital Ships by points. Standing forces contribute the same points values as their levied equivalents unless stated otherwise. Warships - Battleship. Costing 100,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 20,000 Crowns. - Battlecruiser. Costing 70,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 14,000 Crowns. - Advanced Cruiser. Costing 50,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 10,000 Crowns. - Heavy Cruiser. Costing 50,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 10,000 Crowns. - Light Cruiser Squadron. Costing 15,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 3,000 Crowns. - Destroyer Squadron. Costing 15,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 3,000 Crowns. - Transport Squadron. Costing 10,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 2,000 Crowns. - Minelayer Squadron -- Attack: 0 // Defence: 10 // Speed: 5 -- Minelayers are Transport Ships converted to set up and control a Minefield. Are able to lay and maintain one Minefield at a time, which effects an entire system for as long as the Minelayers remain in it. Ships who elect to attempt to cross the Minefield will do a d20*1% for ships destroyed, friend or foe, spread evenly across all ship types (rounding up). Should they decide not to run the field, they may remain in the System but cannot engage any targets and can only jump back to the system they came from. -- Costing 30,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 6,000 Crowns. - Minesweeper Squadron -- Attack: 0 // Defence: 10 // Speed: 8 -- Destroyers converted for anti-mine warfare. Armed with drone bays, very small cannons and sensors designed to detect small objects these vessels are able to position themselves inside minefields and methodically clear paths for their parent fleet to pass through. A Fleet with a Minesweeper Squadron is exempt from Minefield rolls. -- Cost 15,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 3,000 Crowns. - Monitors. -- Attack: 90 // Defence: 30 // Speed: 0 -- Heavy Cruisers whose guns have been stripped of their weapons and had Battleship-size weapons put in their place. To make room and power available some of their armour has been stripped and their jump drives removed, trapping them in the system they have been built in. A formidable, if immobile, defence. Capital Ship. -- Cost 50,000 Crowns and with an upkeep of 10,000 Crowns. Ground Forces - Infantry Legion. Cost 40,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 8,000 Crowns. - Armoured Legion. Cost 60,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 12,000 Crowns. - Shock Legion. Technocrats only. Cost 60,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 12,000 Crowns. - Slave Legion. Slavers only. Cost 16,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 3,500 Crowns. - Zealot Legion. Zealots only. Cost 32,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 6,500 Crowns. - Engineer Division -- Attack: 0 // Defence: 0 // Size: 10,000 men -- +1 to attack or defence if there is at least 1 Engineer Division per 5 Legions. -- Cost 20,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 6,000 Crowns. - Marine Division -- Attack: 10 // Defence: 10 // Size: 10,000 men -- +2 to Capture Rolls if at least 1 Marine Division exists per 500 points in the Fleet. -- Cost 20,000 Crowns with an upkeep of 4,000 Crowns. Free Companies The Free Companies exist in Merchant Lord Space and form the easiest and cheapest way for the Merchant Lords to wage war. Ready-packaged taskforces of varying sizes and abilities, they are a product of the unrestricted capitalist culture that exists in those regions of space: someone might want to buy an army, so Free Companies sell them. These Free Companies exist on the open market as providers of security at all levels: from the bored-looking security guard in the shopping centres to the battle-ready soldiers streaming out of transport ships making landfall on hostile planets. Massive corporations with a monopoly on the security market from the bottom up. Free Companies will contract themselves to an owner for up to five years, at which point they enter a one year stand down where the soldiers (that survived the contract) enjoy their bounty before re-applying to the Company for the next five-year contract. A Free Company will muster in your home system 3 days after the contract is signed if you are a Merchant Lord. They will muster in 7 days if you are not, and prices are 10% higher. List of Companies Planetfall Solutions - 7 Infantry Legions - 2 Armoured Legions - 2 Transport Squadrons - Cost: 75,000 Crowns/year Land Management Corporation - 2 Infantry Legions - 1 Armoured Legion - 1 Transport Squadron - Cost: 25,000 Crowns Fortress Corp - 8 Infantry Legions - 2 Transport Squadrons - Cost: 62,000 Crowns Shield Security Services - 3 Heavy Cruisers - 2 Light Cruiser Squadrons - 2 Destroyer Squadrons - Cost: 38,000 Crowns/year Escort Services - 6 Destroyer Squadrons - 6 Light Cruiser Squadrons - Cost: 30,000 Crowns/year Spacelane Management - 2 Heavy Cruisers - 4 Light Cruiser Squadrons - 2 Destroyer Squadrons - Cost: 35,000 Crowns Stellar Security Corporation - 1 Battlecruiser - 3 Heavy Cruisers - 4 Light Cruiser Squadrons - Cost: 50,000 Crowns/year Solar Security Division - 1 Minelayer Squadron - 1 Minesweeper Squadron - 2 Destroyer Squadrons - Cost: 12,000 Crowns

Titans

A Titan is a massive warship that is meant to serve as the culmination of human ingenuity and technological prowess. Originally designed and produced by House La Nausca approximately 2,000 years ago, Titans were introduced into the world to destroy capital ships. These massive warships are equipped with the most powerful guns ever known to humanity giving them immense killing power. However, the Titans do have a weakness, screen vessels. Though their weapons are powerful, it is very difficult for them to target the smaller silhouette of a screen ship and as a result, Titans are vulnerable to them. After a series of long and bloody wars, Titans were banned by the Imperial Council and can now only be constructed with the permission of the Emperor himself. - Cannot hit targets smaller than a Heavy Cruiser. - To compensate for their costs, Titans will only take up half of their attack value in points - Attack: 500 // Defence: 500 // Speed: 2 In order to construct a Titan, the following requirements must be met. Construct a Titan Shipyard - These massive warships are so large that they cannot be built within the confines of the standard shipyard. In order to build one of these behemoths, a specially designed shipyard must be constructed for it. - The shipyard will cost 150,000 Crowns to build with a build time of two years. Also, the Titan Shipyard will take up 2 of your military building slots. - For the Old Lords, the shipyard cannot be counted as your one free building at the start Acquire Permission from the Emperor for the ship to be built - Construction without his consent can be considered as an act of treason - Getting the Emperor’s approval may require a coup to overthrow the Emperor and replace him with a more supportive one - Members of the Imperial Council have the right to demand that construction be halted and can force a council vote to demand the Titan’s destruction and construction be stopped. Refusal to do so will be considered as an act of treason - It may be necessary to bribe a member or several members of the Imperial Council to garner their support. Amass the necessary resources to produce the Titan. - A Titan requires a massive amount of resources to be used in its construction. These resources must be acquired from other players (no NPCs) either through trade agreements or direct purchases. - The number of resources acquired through trade agreements is limited to how many trade routes that you have. - Direct purchase of a resource will require a payment of 25,000 per resource. - If your trade partners discover that you are using their resource to construct a Titan, they have a right to either terminate their trade with you or require you to pay the same 25,000 fee to keep trading for their resource. - Players must acquire Heavy Arms - Players must acquire Super Heavy Machinery - Players must acquire Small Arms - Players must acquire Slaves - Players must acquire Precious Metals - Players must acquire Electronics Constructing the Titan - The actual cost of the Titan is an additional 350,000 crowns on top of whatever else has been spent on acquiring the necessary materials and building the shipyard. - Construction time will require a minimum of two weeks and it is subject to other RP modifiers (If the Empire is at war and a full mobilization is order, construction will slow due to workers being sent off to fight) - During the construction period, the Titan and its shipyard will be vulnerable to attack by pirates and raiders as well as the fleets of other lords. - If the Titan is damaged in a raid, then its construction will be delayed by a week to represent repairs being made - The Titan Shipyard and the Titan that is currently being built can be destroyed in an attack. The destruction of either will force the player to restart the entire process. - To prevent its destruction, players must protect the Titan Shipyard with their military forces and if necessary, obtain allies via RP to help with the protection. Notes: - All funds for the Titan must come from one player and one player only. The only exception to this is if the player manages to Rp with the Emperor/Imperial Council to obtain additional funding. - This will be the only source of outside support. - Creating a Titan will not be an easy process and players who wish to attempt to create one must accept that they are making a long term commitment to something that may take two or three months in real life if not more to come to fruition. If you cannot put in the required devotion for this project. - This entire process was designed specifically as a challenging RP path that could spark other RP in this game. - The minimum cost of the weapon is 550,000 crowns but this is assuming that you have one of the trade resources as your own and four trade lanes. Having only two trade lanes and not having your own resource being one of the six will increase the minimum cost to 625,000. Remember, this price does not include money needed for bribes or protection.

Battles

Land In order to conduct an assault battle players must post the following information: Total troops attacking (in real numbers, for example if 10 Armoured Legions are landing, state 500,000 Armoured Troops), and total Attack/Defence values. The defender must post the same for defending troops. Attack/Defence values must apply to the numbers you provide: if half a Legion is landing, post half of the full Legion Attack/Defence score. It is not the job of the Moderators to work out fractions. When attacking forces land on a planet, they attempt to seize important military and civil administration centres to take control of planetary functions. When battle commences, do the following rolls: [Side 1 Attack]*d20 [Side 1 Defence]*d20 [Side 2 Attack]*d20 [Side 2 Defence]*d20 If the attacker's warships are engaging in planetary bombardment, a +1 to the Attacker roll is granted for every Battleship in orbit up to a maximum of +5, and any Battleships that engage in bombardment are locked in the planet's orbit for the duration of the battle. [Side 1 Attack Score]/[Side 2 Defence Score] = Side 2 losses in %. [Side 2 Attack Score]/[Side 1 Defence Score] = Side 1 losses in %. The side with greater losses is the loser. If the planet's defenders win, the attacking forces retreat to their transport ships and return to orbit. If the attacking side wins, the defending forces are dismantled and sent away as POWs, their equipment used for the attacker's benefit or destroyed. A planetary battle rages for 3 RL days from the time the troops are ordered into the assault. If reinforcements arrive during this time, the battle will be re-rolled with these new troops and a further 3 days' battle will rage. This encourages attackers to secure dominance of space and keep their fleets to control the system during the planetary assault. Space In order to conduct a space battle players must post the following information: Total ships in the fleet, total Capital Ship attack/defence, total Screen attack/defence. When two fleets engage each other, they split into Left, Centre and Right Squadrons and engage their opposite foe (eg Side A's Left fights Side B's Right) . For each section, do the following rolls: [Side 1 Attack]*d10 (d ten) [Side 1 Defence]*d20 (d twenty) [Side 2 Attack]*d10 (d ten) [Side 2 Defence]*d20 (d twenty) If a fleet does not have at least 1 Screen per Capital Ship, subtract 20% off their defence score as their own Screens cannot adequately protect all their Capital Ships. [Side 1 Attack Score]/[Side 2 Defence Score] = Side 2 losses in %. [Side 2 Attack Score]/[Side 1 Defence Score] = Side 1 losses in %. Losses are capped at 50% lost. The side that has lost less (in Capital Ship % terms) is the victor, and the losing fleet will attempt to withdraw. The victor undertakes a capture roll: d[Number of Loser Ships Lost]*0.25 (eg, if the losing side lost 100 ships, roll d100*0.25) This enables up to 25% of the enemy ships 'killed' to be captured. Split up up evenly among types (eg if the enemy fleet had 100 ships, 10 Battleships, 30 Heavy Cruisers and 60 Destroyer Squadrons and 10 enemy ships were captured, it would be 1 Battleship, 3 Heavy Cruisers and 6 Destroyer Squadrons). In addition, every enemy character undertakes a capture roll, 5/20 chance of being taken prisoner.

Raiding

Warships in any System may engage in raiding, which attacks local trade lanes, outposts and asteroid facilities. When a target is struck, 2 d20 rolls: SOS Call: 2/20 chance the raiders are seen as they’re making an approach, alerting local defenders and allowing them to intervene. A battle will be rolled before the raid can happen. 8/20 chance the victims get an SOS call out as the attack is underway. A battle may be rolled after the raid has happened. 8/20 chance the victims cannot send an SOS but do put up a fight. No battle. 2/20 chance the victims are taken completely by surprise. +10% loot. If defenders arrive on the scene, the speed of the ships will determine whether a battle is fought. The raiders may withdraw (either before the raid or after depending on when the defending ships arrive), and the attackers may only engage them with ships that match the slowest ship in the raiding fleet. The raiders are obliged to give battle to any ships that can therefore engage them. Loot is d20*2% of the System’s trade revenue. AI Lords are assumed to operate two trade lanes. AI Merchant Lords are assumed to operate three. If the System hit is player-run, the player loses the Trade Income they would have otherwise gained as a result. Raiding of AI territory will only be done sparingly: they are not cash cows free to farm as you please. Excessive raiding of AI territory as a means of manufacturing money will be halted. Raiding warships cannot move for 12 RL hours after the timestamped raid post.

Occupied Territory

If a System is occupied, taxes may be levied from it depending on the strength of the occupying garrison. Each Legion stationed on the planet allows for 5% of the base tax revenue of the planet to be collected in the New Year. No trade revenue may be collected. Legions must be present in the System for the full duration of Friday (in your own timezone) to count towards the garrison. Legions arriving on Friday itself cannot be counted, they must be in the System before 00:01 on Friday. Legions leaving before Friday ends (00:00 on Saturday) cannot be counted.

Spying

Players may hire up to 5 spies and assign them to watch individual characters, not entire Houses. The Imperial Appointment of Lord Master of the Apparatus provides +5 to max spies, which applies only as long as the holder remains Lord Master of the Apparatus. Spies are hired and operated by entire Houses, not individual characters, though players are free to have the Spies report to whomever in the House they please. Spies gain the +Spy benefit of whichever character they report to as long as that character is alive and not imprisoned. Spies cost 20,000 to hire and 4,000 in upkeep. A Spy must make an infiltration roll in order to get close to their target. They have a 50% chance of succeeding, a 25% chance of failing and a 25% chance of getting caught while trying. Once a spy has infiltrated the character’s staff, they are regarded as always following from afar, allowing their handlers to know where their targets are, but nothing more. This does not apply to military movements, as a spy on an enemy warship is subject to the very strict and controlled communications systems on military vessels. A spy that wishes to relay the position of an enemy fleet must make their yearly roll to do so, and may also relay the composition of the fleet, but not the destination. In order to pass more valuable information to their handler, the spy must make a roll. He has a 25% chance of relaying important details (specifically who his target met, the topic they discussed and the general outline of the agreement they reached [eg, cooperate against the Lord of New Terra]), a 25% chance of relaying vague details (specifically who the target met only), a 25% chance of gaining no information at all (though in following from afar you still know where he is), and a 25% chance of being discovered and caught.

Capturing Characters

If a player character is attempting to be captured, a roll must be done on a d20. Make an Assassination roll, but the result is the character being taken alive rather than murdered. Note that the Hitman and Assassin buyable in the 'Items' section cannot be used to capture a character. This does not apply to space conflict. Please see the rules for fighting a space battle to determine whether a character is captured.

Assassinations

An assassination is rolled for when one character makes an attempt on another character’s life. For all assassinations, a justified, in-game motive must be provided. Attacking with a gun or knife requires no prior preparation, attacking with poison requires that it be purchased on the black market, and sending a hired assassin requires that one be contracted from the black market. The base chance depends on the circumstances: - In the Assassin’s home, or an area so controlled by the attacking party that they can be regarded as the owners, the base chance is 16/20. - In a secluded area that is not regarded as the above, it is 12/20. - In an uncontrolled public space with onlookers, it is 8/20. - In a controlled public space (regarded as somewhere that would feasibly have guards that could intervene, like the Imperial Council chambers, on a Warship, in an agreed meeting place where both parties have entourages, etc as per Moderator discretion), it is 6/20. - In the would-be victim’s home, or a place so controlled by them that it can be regarded as being owned by them, it is 4/20. The chance may be increased via purchases made for the benefit of the Assassin, or by the presence of conspirators (+1 per conspirator) The chance may be decreased via purchases made for the benefit of the would-be victim, or by the presence of allies who would reasonably intervene (-1 per ally). If the victim or ally has a Duel skill, half that skill (rounding DOWN) will be applied as a negative modifier to the Assassination success chance. This illustrates the increased difficulty of killing a man who is experienced in defending himself, or who is with friends who are experienced in defending themselves. The chance may be further modified at Moderation’s discretion. If the Assassin fails, 10/20 chance of capture, modified by any modifiers present above. If Captured he may be interrogated, with the Counterspy trait of the interrogating character providing a +modifier. 5/20 chance he reveals the House he was hired by (Assassins always know, they have their contacts...), 5/20 he reveals only the faction (eg, ‘It was some Slaver! That’s all I know!”), 5/20 he reveals nothing, 5/20 he dies under interrogation.

Scouting/Detection Rolls

Roll: Chance = ([Total Fleet Defence Score]/10). d100, with Chance as detection chance. Example: Two Battleships. Total Defence Score = 200. Therefore 20/100 chance of detection. Scouting: Destroyer and Light Cruiser Squadrons can be dispatched to scout up to two jumps away from their parent fleet. They will scan every system they pass through for deployed ships, friend, neutral or foe. If they themselves are detected, d10 with 5/10 chance of withdrawing back to the fleet (therefore cancel any further systems still to be scouted), if caught by defending Destroyer and Light Cruiser Squadrons the scouts are destroyed. If they are detected, the direction they came from is known. Bear in mind that if they are scouting two systems, they undertake three detection rolls as they must pass through the first system again on the way back, though to the enemy it therefore looks like they came from a different direction if caught on the third roll. Detection: Modern sensor technology is always passively scanning the surrounding System, taking in vast amounts of data for traffic control, law enforcement, census purposes and local defence. Any fleet entering a System is subject to a detection roll (this can be waived as circumstance dictates, like passing through friendly AI territory). If a fleet enters a System undetected and attacks a fleet or planet in that System, they will get +5 to their attack roll as the enemy is taken by surprise.

Duels

Surviving in the sentimental cultural leanings of the Old, Slave and Marcher Lords, the gentlemanly sport of duelling with swords continues to exist in the Empire today, though duels to the death are technically illegal. In the modern Empire, a Duel is most often used to settle perceived insults, as a show of prowess, as evening entertainment amongst the gentlemen and, perhaps most practically, as a way to prepare oneself against assailants in a world where assassination of the aristocracy isn’t so uncommon as to be entirely discounted as a threat. A Duel is conducted with Health and the Duel stat, with items and traits being used to augment each. Two rolls are conducted, one for each participant, with the difference between the two numbers being the health deducted from the participant with the lower roll. Items, stats, and any Moderation-decided modifiers are added to the rolls before the health deductions are made.

Trade and Economy

Buildings

Planets will have 10 slots in which they can construct buildings. These are divided 50/50 into Civil and Military slots. A building may be built no more than twice unless otherwise stated. Though called ‘buildings’, these slots represent a mix of infrastructure and legal policy in the System. Buildings take 4 days to build and take effect on the first new year that arrives after their construction finishes (eg, anything built friday-sunday will be ready for the next friday) Military Expanded Levy Requirements - +250 Land Levy Points. 30,000 Crowns. Dedicated Military Shipyards - +250 Fleet Levy Points. 30,000 Crowns. Mercenary Legislation. -10% Standing and Mercenary hire cost. -5% upkeep cost. 40,000 Crowns. Orbital Defence Platforms - +2 to space battle rolls in this system. 15,000 Crowns. Planetary Defence Infrastructure - +2 to land battle rolls in this system. 15,000 Crowns. Military Sensor Array - Allows for detection rolls that are made when a fleet enters your own system to also be made in neighbouring systems. 30,000 Crowns. Civil Defence Force - Fund a local territorial defence corps, which will produce 1 Heavy Cruiser and 3 Destroyer Squadrons for battle if this system is invaded or raided, and muster 2 Infantry Legions if the planet is assaulted. These forces will stand down when there are no enemies in the System. 15,000 Crowns. Civil Trade Hub. Enables Trade Lanes. Both parties involved in the Trade must have this. 30,000 Crowns. Industrial and Business Zones. +20,000 Crowns/year. 40,000 Crowns. Expanded Freeman Caste. -250 Land Levy Points, +30,000 Crowns/year. Resricted by your available Land Levy: you may not go into negative points. 40,000 Crowns. Established Supreme Court. +5 to persuasion rolls for AI of your own faction. Only one Supreme Court may exist per faction. 40,000 Crowns. Undermined Judicial Independence. Enables the System owner to prevent the Imperial Spacelane Auhthority from broadcasting about pirates within his System, though the System owner still learns about them if they're detected. 15,000 Crowns. Surveillance State. -3 to Spy Rolls conducted in this System by anyone except owners. 10/20 chance that any information a spy gains in this System also being gained by System owner.

Items

There are many things available to the aristocracy that can be purchased for their own benefit. Each item may be purchased only once unless otherwise stated. Duelling Instructor. A permanently employed swordsman, coming equipped with all the training equipment and attendance staff necessary, enabling his employer to regularly practice his sword arm against a seasoned foe without the pressure of competition or onlookers. +2 Duels. 30,000 Crowns. Physical Conditioning. Through regular courses of ‘enhanced medication’ the buyer’s muscles and organs can be kept well-tuned and fit beyond their years and without requiring dedication of lengthy time periods to exercise. Since no permanent technological alterations are made to the sanctity of the human body, this is one of the few personal enhancement options not explicitly barred by Promethean Creed. +5 hp in duels. 30,000 Crowns. Special Forces. Though every Lord commands hundreds of thousands of soldiers and fleets of warships, they’re trained to fight on battlefields, not in the far more difficult art of personal protection against concealed threats. A 6-man team of the Lord’s most dedicated, skilled and best equipped soldiers can be intensively trained to engage in, or guard against, such threats. +3 to assassination rolls if Special Forces are helping kill someone, -3 if they’re helping protect someone. The Special Forces will be removed as an item if the assassination they’re helping in fails, or if the assassination they’re trying to stop succeeds, as the surviving soldiers desert and disappear, fearing the wrath of the aristocracy. 50,000 Crowns. May buy up to 2 teams. Hitman (Black Market). Illegally contract a hitman to murder someone for you. +2 Assassination. 50,000 Crowns. Assassin (Black Market). Armed with poison, this Assassin is more professional and deadly than a mere Hitman. He gains +4 to Assassination rolls and also -4 to capture rolls. 100,000 Crowns.

Trade Goods

Heavy Arms - +250 Fleet levy. The presence in this system of heavy industry producing weaponry that can be mounted on warships makes maintaining a fleet cheaper. Superheavy Machinery - +250 Fleet levy. The presence in this system of heavy industry producing massive engines, hydraulics and superstructures makes maintaining a fleet cheaper. Small Arms - +250 Ground levy. A domestic arms industry allows for the cheaper equopping of larger numbers of soldiers. Foodstuffs - +250 Ground levy. A strong surplus in local food production has contributed to very low food prices in the System, allowing for cheaper army maintenance costs. Consumer Goods - +10% Income. A well-developed service economy creates a more productive workforce in this System, increasing tax revenues. Slaves - +15% Income. The presence of an industrial-scale breeding facility for the Slave Lords in this System contributes to a significant source of free labour. Use of Slaves is illegal outside the Slave Systems. Electronics - +1 to detection and spy rolls done by you, -1 done against you. An advanced electronics industry in this System allows for export of highly sensitive equipment. Precious Metals - -10% mercenary hire and upkeep cost. Large mines hauling precious metals from the ground are useful as collateral in mercenary contracts, as the commodities are highly valuable. Targetting Sensors - +1 to attack rolls for fleets. An advanced institute for warfare in this System is producing sensors that are a step above industry standard, making warships equipped with them better able to calculate firing solutions.

Trade Income

Each Trade Good will generate a certain amount of tax revenue as long as one of the player’s trade lanes are devoted to it. Players gain 2 Trade Lanes as standard, Merchant Lords gains +1, and players with the appropriate regional bonus also gain +1. A Trade Hub is needed to facilitate trade. Players may only claim the money from their own trade resource if they are actually trading it. This means players can claim three trade incomes: their own resource, trade lane 1, and trade lane 2. Players with 3 or 4 trade lanes can claim those, too. As mentioned, however, you can only claim trade income if trade is happening: you cannot trade with no one and still claim your own trade good's income. Heavy Arms - +250 Fleet levy. Worth 25,000 Crowns. Superheavy Machinery - +250 Fleet levy. Worth 25,000 Crowns. Small Arms - +250 Ground levy. Worth 25,000 Crowns. Foodstuffs - +250 Ground levy. Worth 25,000 Crowns. Consumer Goods - +10% Income. Worth 25,000 Crowns. Slaves - +15% Income. Worth 30,000 Crowns. Electronics - +1 to detection and spy rolls done by you, -1 done against you. Worth 45,000 Crowns. Precious Metals - -10% mercenary hire and upkeep cost. Worth 30,000 Crowns. Targetting Sensors - +1 to attack rolls for fleets. Worth 45,000 Crowns.

Regional Bonuses

‘The Marches’ – Marcher Lord territory is under a constant state of military administration and readiness, with fleets and armies always on increased readiness when compared to other, safer systems. Marcher Lords are able to mobilise their forces in 6 hours rather than 12. ‘Core Worlds’ – Old Lord Systems are all densely populated, with mature economies and well-developed infrastructure. Old Lords may elect to have one free building in their System from the start. ‘The Hook’ – The Systems of the Hook (Helliconia, Tiamat, Batalix, Eden, Eta) are situated within a stellar cloud that greatly distorts sensor technology. The natives have reached an understanding of it. +2 to attack rolls for fleets in this System friendly to the System owners. +6 Zealot Legions for the System owners. ‘The Pilgrimage’ – The orignal Zealot Systems (Porteno, Thrax, Gelfing) are the most densely populated in the region. +10 Zealot Legions for the System owners. ‘The Southern Passage’ – The southern Merchant Lords and the Technocrat Lords sit directly along the most active trade lane in the Empire, providing them with +1 Trade Lanes. ‘The Calmar Loop’ – An economically vital part of the Empire, exporting both to the Core Worlds and Slave Systems, the Northern Merchant Lords have a wealthy, export-based industrial economy. +40,000 starting Crowns to characters from Northern Merchant Lord Houses. ‘Homeworlds’ – The old heart of the Reptile Empire, dubbed the ‘homeworlds’ by that species, were the first to fall and also the most populous, which today translates into larger slave populations. The Systems are Dorsum, Delpha, Dabot, Vici, Altam, Meta, Acamar and Cyngi. +10 Slave Legions for the System owners. ‘Farworlds’ – The outer reaches of the old Reptile Empire, dubbed the ‘farworlds’ by that species, rise in a slope above the galactic plane away from the homeworlds in a sparsely populated section of the galaxy. As a result of the openness, ships entering the system struggle to do so without being easily spotted. The Systems are Zerman, Yensu, Lylat, Colic, Ailoth, Crim, Melfych, Kappa, Descent, Luyten, Gertha and Jalta. +4 to detection rolls for the System owners. +6 Slave Legions for the System owners. ‘Roofworlds’ – The three systems furthest above the galactic plane in the Empire (Luyten, Gertha and Jalta) are very cold, but still inhabitable, systems. The majority of the populace live below ground in cities and communes below the vast ice sheets, making the planet surface especially inhospitable for unwelcome guests. +3 to defence rolls for the planet defenders. +3 Slave Legions for the System owners. ‘Infested’ – Any ships entering Elvan will be attacked by Insects. Any ships entering Marten have a 5/20 chance of being attacked by Insects.

* * *

That's all I have, 99% of which has come from a skype chat between myself and BF.

[Lucius Malfoy]

I am in. Totally in on this.

Edit: Whiling to be a moderator too.

[Poach]

We can also expand the number of factions if people want more opportunity, for example:

- A cultist faction of some sort, a region of the Empire where a certain religion is adhered to almost zealously. The rest of the Empire dislikes them and their goal is to expand their religion.
- A technocrat faction of some sort with medium income, low levy, access to some cooler units (better spies, better warships, etc). Merchants dislike them, Marchers like them, Slavers/Old Lords are neutral on them. Their goal is to control the Empire like everyone else so their research can be funded (eg more taxes and the money being given to them)
- Any other sensible faction idea someone has for a playstyle/background story

[Xion]

Hm..I'm interested, unsure if I'll actually play though.

- A technocrat faction of some sort with medium income, low levy, access to some cooler units (better spies, better warships, etc). Merchants dislike them, Marchers like them, Slavers/Old Lords are neutral on them. Their goal is to control the Empire like everyone else so their research can be funded (eg more taxes and the money being given to them)

I would probably play as this if it was added, although where in terms of the empire would they be (close to the incestoids/Marchers, near the 'capital' systems controlled by the OLs, etc.?). That or a merchant lord who happens to be a bit more of a technocrat if it is not.

Edit : This is presuming technocrats will not look like the picture Zector posted below.

[Wheatley]

I've never done or read Sci-fi before so this looks like a fun way to try it out.

Pretty sure I am in on almost every roleplay presented to me.

[Zectorman]

Technocrats

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

I'd like this. Or if push came to shove a marcher.

[Diamat]

Technically, you could also base it on the Stargate universe, in an earlier period when the Goa'uld system lords were ruling the galaxy, since the Goa'uld were feudal.

[Honors Bastion]

I am definitely interested in this and I am offering to be a mod for it as well.

[Poach]

Everyone looks human. Since we're in the future people can go light augments like a robotic eye because their character lost an eye in a battle or something. It wasn't my intention to go all 40k on this and have huge tracts of humanity more machine than man.

[Lucius Malfoy]

Everyone looks human. Since we're in the future people can go light augments like a robotic eye because their character lost an eye in a battle or something. It wasn't my intention to go all 40k on this and have huge tracts of humanity more machine than man.

Probably a good idea you didn't go all 40k. Its best to use a ton of settings as references to help build this up instead of copying it from one particular genre.

[Xion]

Probably a good idea you didn't go all 40k. Its best to use a ton of settings as references to help build this up instead of copying it from one particular genre.

I have to agree with LM. 40k could be the primary reference, but a few other settings as references could attract people who may not like 40k that much or specific aspects of it.

Also, this is what I think the insectoid aliens would look like. For anyone who doesn't know, the picture is of the bug aliens from Starship Troopers. That or the Zerg.

[Librarian]

I'm in, when is this planned for?

[knightofhonnor]

Eh, it is a good time to get involved in something intersting. I'm game!

[Jokern]

I'm totally in on this. I also volunteer to play as the Emperor at the beginning of the rp, with my noble house being his.

[Librarian]

I don't think arachnids can survive with out oxygen and propel themselves in space swarm, as stated in the thread.

[Xion]

I don't think arachnids can survive with out oxygen and propel themselves in space swarm, as stated in the thread.

Evolution on whatever the insectoid alien's homeworld is could allow for them to survive in space/move in swarms..although I think the swarms probably use some form of spaceships for movement and combat in space.

[Lucius Malfoy]

Evolution on whatever the insectoid alien's homeworld is could allow for them to survive in space/move in swarms..although I think the swarms probably use some form of spaceships for movement and combat in space.

Look at the buggers from Ender's Game. They still utilized carriers and motherships in space combat. If anything, they would use an organic type of ship if we are talking species like Zerg, incest like, etc etc. Similar to how the Yuuzhan Vong from Star Wars utilized living ships (these ships even died after lifespans of up to 700 years) and Yammosk brains to coordinate their battles.

[Librarian]

The nomad ship from Freelancer is like that.

image

[Jokern]

I think it would be interesting if there was some kind of state church a la catholic church along with a head of church, inquisition and ecclesiastical polities.

[Lucius Malfoy]

I think it would be interesting if there was some kind of state church a la catholic church along with a head of church, inquisition and ecclesiastical polities.

I think it would be best to just see how the game develops before we see if we need something detailed in terms of religion.