Federation

Insignia of the Federation

The Federation, officially the Galactic Federation, is the oldest of the three major factions in the galaxy, the other two being the Empire and the Alliance. The planet Earth (Sol), birthplace of humankind, is the historic former capital of the Federation and regarded as the centre of human-inhabited space. The Federation loosely lies between the Alliance and the Empire on the galactic map. The Federation's current capitol is on the planet Mars

The relationship between the Federation and the Alliance is one of tolerance. The relationship between the Federation and the Empire is one of deep hostility.

The Federation is highly dependent on technology and is economically and socially Corporatist. In the period of rebuilding after the end of World War 3 on Earth (circa 2044-2055AD) the corporations became powerful and dominant. In modern times it is the corporations who are the life-blood and backbone of the Federation. It is rumoured that these corporations have such influence and power that they can even direct the Federal government, perhaps even to the point of choosing the President.

Corruption and bribery are not unusual in the Federation and law enforcement has been known to turn a blind eye if the price is right.

History

The Tourist Spot 0165 beacon near Earth chronicles the ancient history of the Federation.

Mankind's first ventures into space were tentative and gradual. The early part of the 21st century saw the first manned spaceflights beyond the moon, but it took major population and economic problems to stimulate enough commercial commitment to start settlements beyond Earth.

The Third World War saw this exploration expenditure dragged back again and it wasn't until the very end of the 21st century that colonies on Mars and the Moon became truly permanent and viable.

After the war, the dominant power was the United States of the Americas, and as the remaining other countries joined it over the next few decades, it was renamed the Federation of the United States and later "The Federation" as the implied reference to one of the pre-war powers was a block to the remaining countries joining it. It had a constitution and laws derived from the earlier powers, but much simplified.

Ranks

Federation/Ranks

Faction Ships

• Farragut Battle Cruiser
• Federal Corvette
• Federal Gunship
• Federal Dropship
• Federal Assault Ship
• F63 Condor

Permits

For a list of permits, see Permits/Federation.

Permits are required to access certain systems that are otherwise locked out by the computer of your Frame Shift Drive (FSD).

Such permits are rewarded by the the controlling faction for that locked system, when you become friendly with that faction, by accomplishing missions such as "Federal dispatch" and receiving ranks. You can often find that faction on a station outside the main system they control.

Once finished several dispatch quests, simply visit the Bulletin Board at any of the faction's stations to accept a job titled "Federal invitation". Accepting the job automatically adds the permit to your FSD computer.

Minor Factions

Faction	System	Station	Current (YYYY MM DD)
61 Cygni Resistance	61 Cygni	Broglie Terminal	3301 02 04
Barnard's Star Advanced Corp.	Barnard's Star	Boston Base	3301 02 04
Barnard's Star Advanced Corp.	Barnard's Star	Levi-Strauss Installation	3301 02 04
Barnard's Star Alliance	Barnard's Star	Miller Depot	3301 02 04
Beta Hydri Democrats	Beta Hydri	Edmondson High	3301 02 04
Beta Hydri Democrats	Beta Hydri	Stevenson Base	3301 02 04
Beta Hydri Partners	Beta Hydri	Matteucci Enterprise	3301 02 04
Blue Public Solutions	Ross 104	Bunch City
Confederation of Larais	Larais	Burbank Orbital	3301 02 07
Crimson Comms Corporation	Larais	Volta Landing	3301 02 07
Federal Congress	Sol	Daedalus	3301 02 04
Federal Congress	Sol	Li Qing Jao	3301 02 04
Future of Altair	Altair	Solo Orbiter	3301 02 04
Gold Public Incorporated	Turdetani	Rushworth Port	3301 02 07
Green Party of Lutyen's Star	Lutyen's Star	Ashby City	3301 02 04
Green Party of Wise 1506+7027	Wise 1506+7027	Dobrovolskiy Enterprise	3301 02 04
Independents of Duamta	Duamta	Davis Terminal	3301 02 04
Independents of Duamta	Duamta	Polyakov Station	3301 02 04
Independents of Mildeptu	Mildeptu	Buchli City	3301 02 04
Independents of Mildeptu	Mildeptu	Singer Enterprise	3301 02 04
Independents of Mildeptu	Mildeptu	Wheelock Terminal	3301 02 04
Independents of Ross 154	Ross 154	Birkeland City	3301 02 04
Jet Power Commodities	Duamta	Wang City	3301 02 04
Kruger 60 Free	Kruger 60	Kepler Gateway	3301 02 04
Liberals of Eta Cassiopeiae	Eta Cassiopeiae	Morgue's Mortuary	3301 02 04
Lutyen's Star Co	Lutyen's Star	McNair Gateway	3301 02 04
Mother Gaia	Sol	Abraham Lincoln	3301 02 04
Mother Gaia	Sol	Columbus	3301 02 04
Mother Gaia	Sol	Galileo	3301 02 04
Mother Gaia	Sol	M. Gorbachev	3301 02 04
Mother Gaia	Sol	Titan City	3301 02 04
Partnership of Alpha Centauri	Alpha Centauri	Hutton Orbital	3301 02 04
People's Procyon Values Party	Procyon	Cormack Hub	3301 02 04
People's Procyon Values Party	Procyon	Pontes Gateway	3301 02 04
Purple Travel Industries	Eta Cassiopeiae	Angus Manwaring	3301 02 04
Purple Travel Industries	Eta Cassiopeiae	J.F. Kennedy	3301 02 04
Ross 104 C	Ross 104	Bunch City	2015 05 09
Social Abrocmii Future	Abrocmii	Rennie City	3301 02 04
Sol Workers' Party	Sol	Burnell Station	3301 02 04
Wise 1506+7027 Company	Wise 1506+7027	Borman Port	3301 02 04
Wise 1506+7027 Company	Wise 1506+7027	Parise Dock	3301 02 04
V2151 Cygni Independents	Tun	Tun's Wart	3302 01 02
People's Tun for Equality	Tun	Tun's Wart	3302 01 02
Independent Apala Independents	Tun Apala	Tun's Wart	3302 01 02
Tun Dynamic Corp.	Tun	Tun's Wart	3302 01 02
Tun Netcoms Services	Tun	Tun's Wart	3302 01 02
Gold Power Partners	Apala	Wilson City	3302 01 02
Bonitou Republic Party	Bonitou	Lyakhov City	3302 01 02
Bonitou Jet General Party	Bonitou	Lyakhov City	3302 01 02

History

The Federation was formed circa 2240AD as a direct response to the colonists on Tau Ceti 3 ignoring Earth's demands to stop killing the native wildlife (to near extinction levels) over a period of approx. 20 years. The newly formed entity was then able to cast great influence throughout known space. The founding members of the Federation are: Earth (Sol), Tau Ceti, Delta Pavonis, Altair, and Beta Hydri. The Federation has always seen itself as the major power in the galaxy. From the very beginning, long before the Empire or Alliance existed, it took upon itself the task of policing the galaxy and being the peacekeepers. While sometimes not in the best interests of minor factions involved, the decisions made by the Federation are usually made for the benefit of its citizens.

Notable Presidents

2599-2607: Sadiq Kessler

2862-2866: Issac Gellan (Disgraced - lost Vote of No Confidence (VoNC)) (See the Gellan Scandal)

2866-2874: Olaf Smith

2874-2882: Jeremy Tann

2956-2960: Verity Campbell (Lost VoNC)

2968-2976: Ulrich Vale

2976-2984: Grant Keller

3008-3016: Tyrell Biggs

3184-3192: Loric Tander

3260-3264: Eugene Cooper (Unpoplar - lost VoNC))

3264-3272: Antiona Madison

3300-3301: Jasmina Halsey (Disappeared, see Starship One incident)

3301-Present: Zachary Hudson

Lore

Main article: Lore

To an outsider, the hierarchy of Federation society is based on democratic principles - people vote within their System/State to elect Congressmen, and a President with an 8-year term and a ‘vote of confidence’ after the first 4 years. However, corporate loyalty oils the machine, and Federation space is a battleground of commerce. Commercial organisations compete as aggressively as the law will allow for the time and attention of the Federal citizen, who goes through life bombarded by advertising. Corruption is not unusual – individuals defend it shamelessly when caught as ‘getting one over the system’. Social class is only determined between ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’. There is a lot of poverty about, as well as conspicuous wealth. The huge gross domestic product (GDP) of the Federation economy funds a large, well-equipped Federal Navy which projects its values and influence. Culturally the Federation is tolerant of some things (like religions) but utterly intolerant of drug-taking, political activism, and certain cultures. A great many things are illegal, like slavery, cloning and certain narcotics. Federal law is based on an agreed Constitution. People have rights and freedoms, enshrined by this agreement. Local ‘State’ law prohibits other trafficking to a greater or lesser degree. Things like ship-based weapons, personal weapons, other milder drugs and alcohol are banned in some systems. The media drives a culture of celebrity. Top ranking politicians, social commentators, entertainers and super-rich all command a great deal of media attention. This provides a massive distraction for the populace, to the extent that foreign wars conducted by the Federation on their behalf get little media attention. This has gone on for many hundreds of years, and there is no sign of it changing.

— Newsletter #22

Federation Congress

Structure

Federal Congress is made up of 500 Congressmen (the term for both men and women). They sit in Congress, which is in Olympus Village on Mars – which replaced its location in Washington DC early in the previous millennium.

Location

Olympus Village (a misnomer – it is now a sprawling metropolis) on Mars, and Congressmen are expected to attend in person to vote.

Congress members

Selection / Appointment

Anyone can stand for election. They do not need to be backed by a political party or minor faction, but it helps. There are three major parties, Democrats, Republicans, and Libertarians. Corporations generally do push (and fund) their chosen candidates or parties (eg Hudson), as do other special interest groups

They are elected for an eight year term, along with a President, with a ‘vote of no confidence’ after four years. If the vote of no confidence succeeds then a full election takes place. A Congressman (or President) cannot serve multiple consecutive terms, though a Congressman can (and often does) become President immediately after a term as a Congressman.

System Representation

Every Federation system has representation at the Congress, but generally a Congressman represents multiple systems, except a few (like Sol) that have more than one Congressional representative, based loosely on historic population. Phenomenal growth in the outer systems has meant that they have little representation in Congress, and there is frequent discussion about creating many new Congressmen to address this balance, but the various power blocks realise it will change the balance of power away from the core systems, the very people who would have to vote it through – so many agree it is unlikely to happen in the near future.

Tenure

Up to eight years. They can get voted out after four, as above.

Day to Day Responsibilities

Congress persons spend their days representing their constituency. They can also hold other office as part of government – for example chairing committees etc. They are not allowed to have corporate interests that might conflict with their political roles (though quite often some hide them via their friends, spouses etc, and not all get found out)

Do Congresspersons change when their system's controlling Minor Faction is flipped?

Not until their term is up, but their life could become difficult, so they might resign, triggering a local election.

- Governments and politics in Elite Dangerous

See also

• Federal key people
• Federal hierarchy
• Events