Praetorian PMC
Praetorian Private Military Contractors, also known as "Praetorian" and "PPMC," is a group of CMDR's providing quality contracting services to the galaxy. Praetorian completes business in almost all fields, from mining to security work, using experience and professionalism to pull the corporation ahead of the competition. Praetorian went through a radical reorganization in 3302, turning the corporation from simple contractors, into a corporate government capable of leading star systems.
Mission Statement
Veterans and Beginners Alike
From the beginning, Praetorian attracted both veterans and new pilots. This allowed the new pilots to learn from those with experience, and allowed the veterans to use their experiences to help the faction. We accept all, from brand new pilots to the most grizzled veterans.
Quality over Quantity
Each member of the Praetorian Council is a veteran of Elite Dangerous. The Praetorian Council takes pride in its experiences, and uses them to help old and new CMDR's alike. We are not looking for Praetorians in name only, we aim to have only dedicated, active members. Size is not an important factor to the council. A small group of dedicated pilots can do more work than a large group of unenthusiastic pilots.
Creating our Legacy
Praetorian is constantly working towards crafting our legacy in the galaxy. We hope to make our mark in this galaxy, and earn a spot within the history of humanity.
Providing Quality Services
Praetorian provides quality service at an affordable cost. Each contract taken by Praetorian should be completed to the satisfaction of the CLIENT. Praetorian aims to to go above and beyond what other contractors would provide.
History
Humble Beginnings (3259 - 3301)
Praetorian PMC (Private Military Company) was founded in 3259 by Tobias Flavian, a seasoned mercenary and pilot. Flavian had developed a reputation as a reliable contractor, and so he sought to create a company of like-minded contractors. After gathering several other pilots, he officially filed for a corporate charter with the Federation on March 20th, under the name of Praetorian PMC. Flavian, along with his other pilots, continued to give out their services to corporations and individuals through the galaxy. In 3289, Flavian opened the logistics branch of Praetorian. This branch was aimed at providing valuable services that didn't involve combat. The branch proved to be a success, and the contracts poured in. With lots of attention on the growing faction, it began to attract many new pilots looking to make a name for themselves. With the increase in numbers, leaders were needed to help run the faction, and a young Federation pilot by the name of Mark Shepard began to make headway within the faction, proving himself to be a good pilot, fighter, and leader. Flavian, in need of leaders, took Mark Shepard under his wing, and began grooming him for leadership.
By 3290, Shepard had begun to feel the faction was outdated, and that Praetorian needed to evolve to adapt with the changing times. Flavian continued to run the company, but disagreed with Shepard, stating that "good old fashion mercenaries will never be outdated." The corporation had expanded into several other fields, but beyond those expansions, had stagnated. The contracts continued to flow in, but Shepard continued feeling like something was missing from the group. Shepard's predications came true, with the invention of the Frameshift Drive in 3297. Shepard began making plans to upgrade the entire Praetorian fleet, while Flavian continued to take on contracts.
Tragedy struck in 3301, when Flavian was killed while negotiating a new contract with a small corporation. The corporation, named Artemis Corp, was a shell company for a larger faction in which Praetorian had fought against previously. The faction, Titan Industries, had wanted revenge, and succeeded. Mark Shepard was selected by the Board of Directors to take over Flavians position as CEO. Upon taking his position, Shepard promised two things: to avenge Flavians death, and to lead Praetorian PMC into a new age.
Clash By Night (3302 - 3305)
By January 3302, Shepard had started making plans to push Praetorian through radical reorganization, although such plans would require a long term commitment. At the same time, Shepard also began using Praetorians influence to learn more about Titan Industries. Several pilots clashed with Titan Industries recon elements in LP 1-52. Shepard made plans for defensive and offensive actions. Shepard capitalized on these plans to push his changes within Praetorian, and by February, all Board of Directors members had agreed to Shepard's plan.
Shepard's use of influence uncovered much intel that Praetorian could capitalize on, and the first action using this intel came by March of 3302, when Praetorian pilots engaged several Titan mining vessels, caught off guard by the attack. This assault caused a flood of Titan combat vessels in LP 1-52, and soon an all-out war broke out. Praetorian pilots continued to defend their territory, while the board came up with a plan. Shepard led the charge against the enemy forces, and eventually a stalemate was reached. Praetorian and Titan had suffered many losses, and it was decided that Shepard and the Titan Ind. CEO would settle this dispute with single combat.
After a grueling fight, Shepard came out on top, securing a victory for Praetorian. In the following years, Praetorian worked on rebuilding its strength, as Shepard slowly implemented his changes, now nicknamed "Shepard's Plan." With the appearance of Thargoids in the Pleiades Nebula, Praetorian pilots spent a good chunk of their time engaged in Thargoid combat. This continued well into 3304 and 3305.
Noxx Conflict (3305 - 3306)
With mounting casualties in the Pleiades Nebula due to the Thargoids, mass recruitment campaigns began to strengthen their numbers. Among the new recruits was CMDR Noxx, who became a trusted advisor to Praetorian. He quickly rose through the ranks, until one day Noxx sabotaged the Praetorian Network, and tried to overthrow Praetorians leadership. He was quickly removed from the faction, but still took a number of members with him. They founded the 104th Humanity Defense Force. 104th Pilots began attacking Praetorian pilots, both in LP 1-52 and other systems. The factions began fighting conflicts, with Praetorian mostly working to defend its territory while the 104th tried to push inside of it. Eventually, after losses on both sides, Praetorian and the 104th met for mediation. The fighting was briefly stopped, but the cease-fire didn’t last, and battles continued for control of LP 1-52. Eventually, the 104th forces pulled out and moved to the “Marines” system. They issued a formal declaration, informing Praetorian to stay away from the system, and the conflict ended.
New Friends, New Faces (3306 - 3307)
By 3306, Praetorian had largely become a different corporation, and Shepard introduced a new name to the corporation; Blackstar Interstellar Corp. Shepard also began moving resources to a new home, the Barathaona system. As it’s influence grew, the faction gained many contracts, completing multiple anti-xeno contracts and several mining contracts. Eventually, in late 3307, Blackstar was contacted by the Elite Xbox Stellar Alliance, and offered a place in the coalition. The EXSA was a multi-faction alliance headed by CMDR Lev of the Deep Space Syndicate. Blackstar happily accepted, becoming the third faction to join the alliance and a founding member. During this time, Blackstar also reached out to several other independent factions, including the Guardians, The Explorers of the Galactic Table, and the 227th DSRT.
The Guardians War (3308)
Flying with the EXSA, Blackstar participated in several events and operations with the faction. During this time, Blackstar pilots participated in several money-making ventures. During one of these trips, Blackstar pilots were engaged by a known pirate, CMDR Kermit. As Blackstar pilots moved to defend themselves, the leader of the Guardians, CMDR Dog Brandon, began defending Kermit, attacking Blackstar pilots. Communication attempts were made, to inform Brandon who he was attacking, but Brandon continued the assault. The news of the Guardians attack was brought to the EXSA, who sent reinforcements. CMDR Lev and several DPSS ships entered the system and helped Blackstar push Brandon and Kermit out of the system. Blackstar and the EXSA began making preparations for war. The EXSA offered several attempts to make peace, offered that Brandon only play reparations for the ships destroyed. The Guardians denied all requests, on January 24th, 3308, Blackstar officially declared war on the Guardians. EXSA war ships poured into the Guardians home system of Dvorsi. The fighting lasted several weeks, and more attempts to get Brandon to pay reparations were made, but ultimately all failed. During this time, the Guardians hired many pirates and gankers to aid in their fight, but eventually Brandon's wealth ran out, and he was forced to retreat. The EXSA celebrated a well-fought victory.
A New Era (3309)
By the end of 3308, Praetorian was nearing its 50th anniversary, and Shepard, always looking towards the future, made several announcements. First, Blackstar would be moving all its assets back into LP 1-52, their old home. Second, Blackstar would once again return to its original name, Praetorian PMC. By February of 3309, these changes had been complete, and a new era in Praetorians history had begun.
Key People
Tobias Flavian, Founder
Tobias Flavian was the originally founder of Praetorian PMC. Before his death in 3301, he was a seasoned pilot, fighter, and leader. He forged Praetorian into what it was today, and even as age began to creep up on him, he refused to leave the cockpit.
Flavian founded Praetorian after his Roman heritage. He took great pride in his old earth heritage and visited Rome several times.
Mark Shepard, CEO
Mark Shepard became the CEO of Praetorian after Flavian. He is noted to be a capable leader, and has a good mind for both strategy and business. Shepard's ideology lead him to believe Praetorian needed to adapt to the new century, and he convinced the Board of Directors to follow a reorganization plan, known as "Shepard's Plan."
Shepard served in the Federal Navy, earning a piloting job, and was honorably discharged from the Navy in 3288 and bought his first ship, a Cobra MK2. After flying solo as a CMDR, Shepard began to miss the brotherhood of the Navy, and searched for a group to provide him this brotherhood. He joined Praetorian after seeing a local ad, and quickly made a name for himself, even catching the attention of Flavian himself. Shepard was officially promoted to a team leader position in late 3289, and by 3290, Shepard had become the right hand of Tobias Flavian.
Shepard has been noticed by several media outlets for both his business sense and his leadership. On several occasions, Shepard allowed reporters to ride in his ship during missions.
Branches
Praetorian consists of two primary branches, which cover the operations of the group. Praetorians complete their service while assigned to one of these branches. The Praetorian Guard runs the military operations of Praetorian, both on the ground and in space. The Auxiliary Branch runs the economic and legislative operations of Praetorian, in charge of supplies, resources, and the government. While Praetorians may serve with one distinct branch, Praetorians are not limited to what operations they may participate in. An Auxiliary CMDR may participate in combat operations, as long as they are prepared.
Praetorian Guard
The Praetorian Guard was first established on June 30th, 3302 after CEO Mark Shepard radically reorganized Praetorian PMC. With the restructure from a small PMC to corporate government, Praetorian needed a corporate military forces that could keep up with the growing demands of the group. The Praetorian Guard was created and slowly all combat forces of Praetorian entered its ranks. The Praetorians Guards unique status as both state-run and corporate military allows it to accept contracts as well as provide the military forces needed to deter war and ensure Praetorians security. The Praetorian Guard is led by a council of high ranking officers called Fleet Command.
Praetorian Auxiliary
Along with the Praetorian Guard, the Praetorian Logistics Branches received a major refit into the Praetorian Auxiliary. Shepard organized the Auxiliary into a half corporation, half government, allowing it to retain the structure of a corporation, but with the same reach as a government. The Auxiliary controls and organizes profit making through non-combat methods. The Praetorian Auxiliary is also primary responsible for foreign affairs. The Praetorian Auxiliary leadership is known as the Board of Directors.
Organization
Praetorian Council
The Praetorian Council is the governing body for Praetorian PMC. The Praetorian Council reports directly to the CEO, and is responsible for the day to day operation of Praetorian. The Council is made up of two separate commands; Fleet Command, which is responsible for the Guard and its operations, and the Board of Directors, which is responsible for the Auxiliary and its operations. While Fleet Command and the Board of Directors run the day to day operations of their respective branches, the two commands come together to make decisions that effect the faction as a whole.
Gallery
- The Official Praetorian Logo, 3309 Edition
- The PNV Osiria Rose in battle wreckage during the Titan War
- ADM. Wyatt Novak, CMDR bb942, and CMDR VinylicTomb673 during a Halloween Event in 3303
- Tau Ceti Journal Cover, May 3303 Edition
- PNV Victory and PNV Widow Jane on patrol during the Noxx Conflict
- The PNV Osiria Rose heads off on a new mission
