Empire
The Empire is one of the three major factions in the universe, the other two being the Federation and the Alliance. The Imperial Palace, seat of the Emperor, is situated on Capitol in the Achenar system.
Although a peace treaty has existed between the Empire and the Federation since 2382AD, there have never really been any peaceful relations between these two old enemies. The Empire despises the Federation and everything it stands for, and vice-versa.
The Empire is less technologically dependent than the Federation, choosing to keep and employ slaves for the work which machines would usually perform in other parts of the universe. The Empire is also a proponent of human cloning, a topic which the other factions find abhorrent and have officially banned within their own jurisdictions.
Imperial society is based on a "cliens" system - much like ancient Rome - and strictly stratified, with people being able to move between strata based on money, patronage and influence. It values both status and honour very highly. Whilst it is acceptable to flaunt wealth, treating people well is a question of honour - and this includes slaves. Having an unpaid debt is seen as utterly dishonourable - an honourable Imperial citizen would sell themselves into slavery to clear a debt they couldn't otherwise afford.
The Imperial Law is seen and enforced by Senators who themselves are above the law. They can order executions, and can even kill people themselves, though sometimes (rarely) they may be held to account for their actions by the Emperor. In the Empire very little is illegal, but many things are frowned upon, like excessive use of narcotics.[1]
Imperial design puts an emphasis on the glamorous, glorious, and aesthetically beautiful, with extravagance in abundance. Everything in the Empire looks impressive, from their cities, to their ships, right down to the clothes worn by Imperial subjects.
Ranks
Faction Ships
Permits
- For a list of Permits, see Permits/Empire.
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 controlling faction for that locked system, when you become friendly with that faction, by accomplishing missions such as "Imperial 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 "Imperial invitation". Accepting the job automatically adds the permit to your FSD computer.
History
What is now known as the Empire began around in the middle of the 23rd century, with the architect of peace and an anti-Federation activist Marlin Duval[2]. She had long spoken out against the oppressive Federal administration of the time. Such was her disenchantment that she gathered her family together, along with many supporters, and left the Federation. Marlin led them to a distant star system called Achenar, many light years from Sol, in order to found a new colony based on peaceful ideals. A suitable home was found orbiting Achenar 6, a Class III gas giant, and Achenar 6d was colonised. Now named Capitol, this moon formed the core world of what would later become the Empire.
The colony started off extremely well, and an administrative council was formed with Marlin at the head, in order to fairly distribute power throughout the colony. As the colony expanded, so did the council, with a determination that any and every situation was dealt with via peaceful methods and dialogue. This arrangement worked very well indeed and the colony continued to prosper.
Accusations of Genocide
Imperial historians record that many native species were found on Capitol during colonisation, which the colonists took great care to protect as best they could. Among these species, unbeknownst to the newly-formed republic, were one of the few sapient species to have been encountered by humanity. Imperial scholars have suggested a number of factors led to the extinction of this species, not least of all imported bacteria carried along with the colonists.[2] Within a few short years, this indigenous species had been rendered extinct.
Federal historians, citing Federal decrees of the time, paint a different tale. The official Federal version of events alleges that Capitol was in fact sterilised on the orders of Henson Duval, brother of Marlin Duval, prior to terraforming some years after Marlin's death. Imperial scholars disagree on whether this was due to innocent confusion over misunderstood or misrepresented information, associating plans for the terraforming of nearby world Conversion (a project which would not be completed until 2696) with that of the genocide, or a deliberate political smear campaign based on Marlin Duval's antagonistic relationship with the Federation.
Whether mistakenly or not, the Federation threatened retaliation if this action were repeated, later using this event retroactively as the pretext for a failed invasion attempt in 2324AD[2] which would secure the newborn Empire's standing as a major galactic power.
The Birth of an Empire
The original government of Achenar was recorded as a democratic republic, elected senators representing the people and a council of high-ranking politicians acting as an executive body for the republic. Marlin Duval, as the founder and a popular political figure, retained a great deal of political power in this period, but enjoyed only a position of influence within the council rather than the absolute leadership of later Emperors.
Some few short years after the founding of the Republic of Achenar, Marlin Duval was killed in a shuttle accident, in which her partner and children also perished. No evidence ever surfaced linking her brother Henson to the incident, but even the most loyal Imperial historians openly accept that the event was suspicious in light of his subsequent actions.
Assuming control of the senate as Marlin's closest living heir, Henson Duval quickly disbanded the ruling council and installed himself as leader of the Achenar system's colonies. Citing the continued threats made by the Federation and their defencelessness in the face of a military invasion, Henson began a campaign of propaganda rejecting his sister's pacifistic ideals. Such was his passion and power of persuasion that he succeeded in converting the capricious colonists to his doctrines in a remarkably short period of time.
Utilising his popularity among the colonists and strong control over the colony's government, Henson declared that control of the colony and any associated systems would pass from father to son. With this declaration in 2314, the Empire as we know it was born.
At this time, the federation continued to invite the colony to accept Federal rule and abandon their fledgeling Empire. Not only were these invitations met with outright refusal, but the Empire also began to approach nearby colonies to recruit them away from the Federation. Most historians agree that this was the catalyst for the Federation's move from diplomacy to military action.
The First Empire / Federation War
Whether in the face of the Empire's sedition or the stated charges of genocide, the Federation began an armed invasion of the Achenar system in 2324. As the largest power in the known galaxy, the Federation hoped to cow the rebellious system with sheer military might and thus bring them under Federal control.
They arrived to find a fleet of military vessels and defence platforms, designed and constructed in anticipation of just such an armed invasion. It is worth noting that while Achenar did not represent the first system that the Federation had sought to bring to heel through military dominance, the primacy of the Federation had not yet been challenged at this time and historians suggest that the Federation's military may have grown complacent. While sizeable, the Federal fleet of this time was made up of multi-purpose vessels and not the warships employed by the Empire. Outgunned and outmanoeuvred by the Imperial Fleet, the Federation were forced to retreat and accept the sovereignty of the Empire for the time being.
With the Federation embarrassed and the threat of the Federal fleet undermined, many systems flocked to the Empire in the following years. From one system, the Empire had quickly grown to a galactic power in less than a century since its founding.