[b]Federate Karkosian State[/b] [hider=General Information and Location] [img]http://i.imgur.com/QOx4lww.png[/img] [b]Name: [/b] Federate Karkosian State [b]Capital System: [/b] Lomoro [b]Capital Planet:[/b] Uoak [b]Dominant Species: [/b] Karkosian [b]Sub-Faction(s): [/b] None [b]Distance From Galactic Core:[/b] TBD [b]Direction From Galactic Core: [/b] TBD [/hider] [hider=Politics, Power & Economy] [b]Head of Government and State:[/b] Emperor Hazik of Barkas, all Emperors are elected after the death of the incumbent, lack of any hereditary lines in the Karkosian make this a necessity. All living Karkosians are considered eligible for the title of Emperor upon the death of the incumbent or his life-term runs out, the elected is usually one who has proven exceptional merit in the eyes of the people. [b]Government:[/b] The Karkosian government was created in the aftermath of the Sentience War through the first great vote which decided to nullify the authority of brood queens and transition the government into a body composed of those best fit to lead, brood queens would be excluded from elections due to the risk of them accumulating further power and all elected officials would serve a lifetime term or a term equal to on natural lifetime. The Karkosian government would take some core values from the alien settlers and adapt their government structure to fit the Karkosian race. Composed of several branches the Government operates as a mostly elected body with lifetime terms or terms equal to one natural lifetime for all members. Based in the capital city of TBD in what was formerly the colonial magistrates head office the Karkosian government generally breaks decisions down into three groups. These are, domestic decisions, which are left to the domestic council, an elected council made up of one representative from every major brood with the Emperor having the right to veto a decision. Foreign decisions, which are left to the Emperor and the court, the court differing from other branches by it uniquely being composed of appointed representatives drawn from the domestic council; and finally emergency decisions, which are left to the Emperor, and require approval from the domestic council. Examples of emergency decisions would be declarations of war or surrender, as well as major legal changes such as the reorganization of the government. The latter specifically differs somewhat from other emergency decisions, as any reorganization of the government can be contested by a 2/3rds majority in the council and opened to a grand vote among the entire populace. In practice the Karkosian government has pursued an extremely expansionist policy while avoiding direct confrontations with other nations. Brood queens allow entire colonies to be set up in mere weeks if necessary and as a result the Karkosian government has expanded its political influence exponentially by exerting large amounts of control over territory far more quickly than foreign powers have been able to contest it. This policy has however drawn controversy as the rapid expansion of the Karkosian race has forced it into several areas where it shares borders with foreign powers whose policies and culture are unknown. Nevertheless Karkosian expansion continues at a breakneck pace and the resources gained by such endeavours have allowed Karkosian industry to quickly grow. As a result the Karkosian military has swelled in size, though never actually having been in a war Karkosian forces have proven capable, taking on several campaigns to entirely obliterate vessels in violation of Karkosian space such as pirates and nomadic ships of unknown intention. This policy of complete control of Karkosian space is perhaps another hallmark of the government. The policy has reinforced a reputation of security and strength and as a result has bolstered trade, but has also aliened many nomadic factions and on occasion started international incidents where Karkosian territory expanded faster than the maps did. As a whole the Karkosian government has operated peacefully and has avoided direct provocation of other foreign powers. However its expansionist and territorial policies have nevertheless made it highly controversial in the interstellar community and its meteoric rise has often been credited to the Karkosians being little more than insects who can’t stop breeding. [b]Economic System:[/b] The economic system of the Karkosian race is one based upon strong government regulation and high tariffs on states without a special trade agreement. This economic system was first put in place as an attempt to emulate the historical economic systems identified in the records of the alien settlers who came to the Karkosian home world. Notably changed for use in the system the Karkosians created the government usually has control of specific rights to do things, these rights are sold off to various companies under agreements by the government to uphold certain values. As a result there is very little corruption in Karkosian space as all interactions are closely monitored to ensure the values of the rights agreements are upheld. In practice the government will sell a company the rights to establish a store under the conditions that said store is obliged to sell a certain percentage of something, or rights to mine an asteroid belt will be given out provided that a certain percentage of resources are reserved for government use or a certain amount of the profits go the government. This is augmented by free transactions among citizens, use of conventional money between citizens is unregulated and as a result large markets are extremely popular. All real corruption in in Karkosian space occurs here. Still measures are taken and legally citizen to citizen transactions are to be recorded, in practice however this can be difficult to uphold. As a final result small businesses are extremely common and large corporations often have a difficult time out competing them, however publicity campaigns and large PR markets generally ensure corporations succeed. [b]Economic Prosperity:[/b] Generally good, Karkosian core worlds usually have a high standard of living and the more recent colonies usually have a slightly lower standard. There is relative stability in the Karkosian economy as a result of its regulated system and consistent interdependent trade with KEFTZ member states. [b]Empire Size:[/b] Federate Karkosian State: 518 Billion (Grows as new planets are colonized) Politically/Economically Dominated States: 243 Billion (Variable population of several nations) [b]Power Type:[/b] Major Regional: Military Power: The Karkosian military has grown expansive in the last five hundred years. Projecting an almost omnipresent ability in Karkosian space border conflicts are usually resolved through decisive military action. Karkosian Military forces may be spread out but the ability to draw on forces from all parts of the FKS has made the Karkosian military a terrifying and immense force when it on rare occasion has truly engaged an enemy faction. Political Power: The FKS has used its military and economic strength to seriously influence the policy of nearby nations. FKS policy has largely been the peaceful installation of friendly governments by exerting FKS influence and funding. This is what allows the FKS to maintain a political alliance that dictates common defense and cooperation in various matters with various nations around it. The Political power of the FKS is also what allowed the installation of the KEFTZ or Karkosian Economic Free Trade Zone that is the source of most of the FKS’es economic power. Economic Power: FKS economic power is permitted by the KEFTZ or Karkosian economic Free Trade Zone. Maintained by Karkosian military strength and political influence the KEFTZ has allowed Karkosian industry to take over some foreign markets and to lose to others, having created an interdependence that benefits both. With the KEFTZ in place codependency became vital and most parties involved profited immensely. The states in the KEFTZ are a huge source of wealth and stability for the FKS. [/hider] [hider=History, Biology & Society] Karkosian individual [img]http://th04.deviantart.net/fs70/PRE/i/2011/104/e/f/mantis_like_alien_by_casa4563-d3e0rob.jpg[/img] Karkosian Brood Queen [img]http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2012/328/a/b/insect_monster_by_casa4563-d5m2sx0.jpg[/img] [b]Race Name:[/b] Karkosian [b]Race Info:[/b] The Karkosian race began as a semi-sentient life form with evolving hive mind ability. However when their home planet was colonized by the Commonwealth and spores that were being used as a method of basic hive mind control infected the colonists the intelligent thoughts received precipitated a change in the neural structure of the Karkosians. That change promoted independent thought and made the average Karkosian individual as intelligent as most humans. As a result the Brood queens lost their hive mind status; however Brood queens are still the only method of reproduction used by the Karkosians, with one brood queen able to spawn nearly a thousand individuals in an hour when breeding at a maximum rate, the rate of birth for a Brood queen can be consciously manipulated by the queen to whatever is necessary. As a result of this Brood queens are still extremely important, if not more so then before due to genetic manipulation giving them complete control over their birthrates, a boon which has allowed the karkosians to manage a biologically immortal population. Other examples of genetic modifications in the Karkosians include basic manipulations to make the hands of individuals more useful as well as minor adjustments to make Karkosian wings more efficient at flight. As a result of that specific manipulation an individual Karkosian can fly for almost a minute under power and has no definite limit to gliding. Genetic modifications have also been performed to raise the Individual and Brood queen life spans to biological immortality from birth. This biological immortality is allowed through the addition of engineered micro organisms that act to repair the DNA of their hosts in order to keep them at whatever biological age the Brood queen has chosen. Currently in order to maintain a stable population even with immortality every planet has a set birthrate that is maintained to counter deaths as a result of accidents and keep the population of every planet steady. As new planets are colonized individuals are born at the highest rate possible until that planets sustainable population is reached. This cycle repeats for every new colony and is the reason the Karkosian population consistently grows. In all Karkosians are the result of both an accident that made them intelligent and directed modifications that made them efficient and immortal. [b]Average Lifespan:[/b] Karkosian Individual: Natural: (90-110 Years) Augmented: (Biologically Immortal) Brood Queen: Natural: (100-200 Years) Augmented: (Biologically Immortal) [b]Individual Physical Characteristics:[/b] Karkosian physiology is still very insectoid, however extensive genetic modification has eliminated many of the issues faced by the Karkosians. Currently Karkosian individuals appear mantid in form, standing tall on four legs and with large abdomen covered by large wings. The head of a Karkosian individual is in a slumped looking configuration, supported by the chest and just above the shoulders. Karkosians lack any conventional neck, but special joins allow 180 degree turning of the head. Karkosian arms are unique as most of the time they appear in a “folded” form where the hand appears to the end of the arm. However Karkosians can extend large blade like secondary arms from a joint under the hand. These large scythe like appendages are very similar to that on smaller mantid creatures. Of note on the Karkosian individual is what appears to be spiked feet. This however is untrue as the spiked areas are usually folded out flat to act much like feet, they, like the secondary arms, can be unfolded into spikes for combat or hunting. Similarly interestingly the antennas on the head of a Karkosian are actually the tongues of the creature, the mandible flanked mouth of the Karkosian lacks taste buds so these antenna developed to test food, they are specially evolved to be able to detect poison in food. Below these antennas Karkosian eyes are noted for their ability to see “telescopically” or with a greater detail and range than most creatures. When the Karkosian individual is observed as a whole it is seen as a powerful predator with an equally proficient capability to manipulate tools and equipment that has been bolstered by centuries of genetic engineering. [b]Dominant Culture and Society:[/b] The Karkosian race has, through the necessity of restricted immigration, become culturally homogenous and though minority groups exist their influence is too minor to be counted. This homogenous culture, though long ago based on Valyncian values, has since become expansive and entirely unique to the Karkosian race. Perhaps the defining fact of Karkosian culture is that Karkosians operate in a merit based system where action is valued over popularity. To exhibit positive action is to be respected and looked favourably upon, while to exhibit negative action is to be rejected and ostracized by the community. However negative actions can just be negated by consistent positive behaviour, apology is valued less than consistent change in an Individuals behaviour. This is not to say however that popular figures do not exist or are not valued. Movie star equivalents and the like certainly exist as part of the Karkosian media machine and culturally they are respected but not considered to necessarily be good citizens or people unless that have proven that through real action. This value on the merit of an individual has also made martial arts an extremely popular part of Karkosian culture. Many Individuals will enrole in such martial arts to prove their merit. However this is not a symptom of a warrior culture as it is in many other nations, rather martial arts are a way of prove merit through [i]resolve[/i] rather than strength. The most popular and televised martial arts are not the violent ones, but the intensely acrobatic ones that take decades or centuries to master. These martial arts are proof that an Individual has excelled at the art despite it being very difficult and taking many years to do. Of course less intensive martial arts are more common, to the point that a Karkosian knowing a small amount of some art is just normal. Ultimately this culture of merit permeates all facets of Karkosian life, corporate promotion to political election; they are all extensions of this with the person who has done the most being assumed as the most capable. Another vitally important aspect of Karkosian culture is its somewhat counterintuitive habit of forming tight closely knit “families.” Culturally this is perhaps the one Valyncian value that stayed strongly with the Karkosians, the family. Karkosians as brood insects technically lack any real family structure however such a value truly emerged not long after the one hour revolution. Knowing how the Valyncian concept of family close knit groups of perhaps two to five Karkosians would often take responsibility for raising a similar number of Karkosian spawn. This practice evolved and families grew, splintered, and repeated or hundreds of years with the average Karkosian family being an extremely tight group of Individuals. This practice had the stunning effect of biological lineage, of brood, becoming a political distinction rather than a social one. The Karkosian family structure did however experience significant change at the advent of immortality. Families usually splintered at the death of an important figure, and thus family sizes were kept consistently small. However since immortality came around Karkosian families either split by choice or balloon in size until they stabilize. The effect this has had has been that of making Karkosian families on average a hundred strong rather than five. Within these larger families sub families usually form, made up of the Karkosians who have decided to live together. On the whole Karkosian families are a strange thing that has become normal, and perhaps the largest vestige of Valyncian influence left in the Karkosian race. [b]Moral Values:[/b] The Karkosian peoples morals while once entirely conventional in the galaxy have shifted somewhat from that early idea. Perhaps as can be expected of an immortal race nothing is as highly valued as life, Karkosians can steal and fight and only be considered to have done minor things morally if not legally. However murder is unspeakable, such a thing is considered to be the act of a Karkosian who is not Karkosian at all. This is perhaps why the most common punishment for the crime of murder is death, not because murder justifies murder, but because the murderer is no longer a Karkosian, and they are widely doubted to even be truly intelligent at all. To end such an abomination is often considered to be a mercy. Of course this moral policy has long been an issue standing in the way of military service. The potential crisis of conscience for a recruit is usually averted by the military and the government as a whole maintaining that the military exists fundamentally to preserve life, and chiefly to protect Karkosian life. This idea of the military as saving lives has been consistently promoted by the Karkosian media and while the truth may not be as pure the comparative lack of war in Karkosian history does lend credence to the idea. Another example of Karkoisan morals in a less clear cut sense is the outlaw on slavery. This law is both extremely important and irreverent to Karkosians. That an immortal should never be a slave is seen as a universal truth, however mortal creatures are not thought of quite as highly. As a result it is illegal to make slaves in Karkosian space so no immortals are made slaves. However it is legal to transport and sell slaves (though not to Karkosians) in Karkosian space, this is a result of two things, a moral disregard of mortals, and the potential of tax collection on these operations by giving them the title unethical and using that to increase taxes. Interestingly Karkosians having slaves is not unheard of even though it is technically illegal for a Karkosian to own a slave of any kind. This is a result of "ownership proxies" or people who are paid to buy and own slaves for Karkosians. Though these people cannot stay in Karkosian space due to immigration laws their bought slaves, which legally are semi-people (making it illegal for Karkosians to own them) are exempt from these regulations. As a result Karkosians can own slaves, and though it often thought of as a taboo to say it never happens is incorrect. [b]Religion:[/b] While religion is uncommon now and has been in large supplemented by secular thinking what remains of once massive Karkosian religion is perhaps unique as it is composed of equal parts fact and fiction. Centered around the Valyncian people the Karkosian religion revers them as the creators of all Karkosians, something that is firmly based in fact. The religion as it stands considers all Valyncians gods, however rather than taking the more optimistic view of the afterlife found in most of the galactic religions the Karkosian religion posits that as punishment for the mass murder of the gods all dead Karkosians will spend eternity as servants for the Vayncian gods who have walked into the afterlife as well. Though the honour of serving the gods for eternity may have been a recruitment tool for the religion at first as time went on the prospect seemed considerably less attractive. By the time Karkosians gained immortality the religion had become significantly less popular. The blow dealt by the loss of faith after immortality came around was enough to throw the religion into a small minority group. Still while it may be small today the cultural effect it had had is undeniable, it is to this day considered a shameful act to offend or cross a Valyncian, even outside of the religion. [b]History:[/b] The Karkosian race is unique for its advanced state as it was only in a semi-sentient state as recently as just more than one thousand years ago. Emerging as a mantid predator on their home planet of Uoak the Karkosian race was slated to develop as a hive mind race, with some basic hive mind ability beginning to form. This ability was dependant on a sort of microscopic parasitic spore that primal Brood Queens produced, the spore hooked into the mind of the host and allowed their thoughts to be transmitted among primal Brood Queens. However when Commonwealth settlers landed on Uoak and established a colonial settlement something peculiar happened. When the settlers came to be infected by the parasitic spores the advanced nature of the thoughts being transmitted was too much for the primal Brood Queens and the mental strain was lessened by the thoughts being shared among the Individuals of the Karkosian race. This proved an unforeseen boon; the advanced nature of the thoughts of Valyncians precipitated a drastic and unforeseen change in the neural structure of the Karkosian Individuals and Brood Queens. The minds of the Karkosians began to change and mimic the individual intelligences of the Valyncians whose thoughts they were reading. Though as the neural change accelerated the spores mental connection weakened the Karkosian individuals were still early in the change by the time they attempted to contact those whose thoughts have given them agency. The primal Karkosian Individuals on the command of the primal Brood Queens sent small groups to the gates of the Commonwealth colony. Unfortunately the Commonwealth killed the Individuals immediately as they were considered a dangerous predator that could endanger the colony. This enraged the Karkosian primal Brood Queens who thought their own creators, their gods hated them. To compound the anger of the primal Brood Queens when the Commonwealth studied the bodies of the individuals and found them intelligent the Commonwealth colony that at this point had become concerned if not paranoid with the Singularity War raging in the background made the decision to destroy the Karkosian race as it was clearly predatory and hostile. That was a thought that was clearly heard in the minds of all Karkosians. The Karkosians, while they were slowly losing the ability to read the thoughts of each other and the Valyncians took the chance and used their fading ability to its largest in the time leading up to what would be known as the Sentience War. The Sentience war began when the Commonwealth forces first moved against the Karkosians, using knowledge of the Valyncian movements gained through the ever fading mental reading ability the Karkosian Broods as they had named themselves fell upon the Valyncians in a valley and managed to overwhelm the extermination forces who had severely underestimated the Karkosian numbers. The equipment the Karkosians stole was equipment they already understood how to use due to listening to the forces thoughts. Using the military equipment the Karkosian Broods fell upon the Commonwealth colonial capital numbering in the millions and breached the defenses by using the gas intended to kill the Karkosians. Commonwealth casualties were massive as the toxic gas flooded the city. By the time it had dissipated Brood force had taken the outer areas of the city. Though the fighting would go on for a month and would see the Karkosians lose their mental ability as more and more equipment fell into the hands of Brood forces the fight against the insects became hopeless for the Commonwealth. The last stand of the Commonwealth was intended to give time for the colony ship to take off and evacuate the survivors, however when the colony ship was launched the primal Brood Queens decided that the only option was to smite the gods and gain independence forever. All brood forces focused on the ship and it was obliterated shortly after takeoff. The remaining Valyncian civilians lived short lives as Brood forces swept over the city. The Sentience war ended in a pyrrhic victory for the Karkosian Broods; while victory was complete massive losses incurred meant that the primal Brood Queens would have to replenish their number by breeding for months. The end of the war marked the beginning of Karkosian civilization as Individuals quickly started to make use of and occupy the Commonwealth colony. During this period of dormancy in the Queens while they replenished numbers the Karkosian Individuals began to decry the final decision to destroy the Commonwealth civilians. As Karkosian Individuals began to read into Commonwealth society using the online infrastructure they left behind support mounted to overthrow the Brood Queens. The Karkosian Individuals recognized the opportunity presented by the Queens dormancy and once the majority agreed to depose the Queens as leaders the hour long rebellion began. With very few casualties the Queens were surrounded as they were dormant and kept hostage after they awoke, the newly spawned Individuals were pledged to the state and not the Brood. It was over the next five years that study of Commonwealth governance and new Karkosian ideas blended together to form the legal and governmental structure of what would be the FKS or Federal Karkosian State. The next decade was defined by the FKS sending individuals across the planet to be infected and precipitate the same mental changed that had occurred with the Valyncians. In this time some newly made intelligent Broods Queens attempted to rebel but popular support from Individuals and the might of the technology left by the Commonwealth assured FKS victory in all these cases. The next step was to do as the Commonwealth had done and build cities, and so for the next hundred years cities grew across Uoak, infrastructure was developed and expansion into all corners of the Lomoro system occurred. The FKS soon was a power that had complete and total control of its stellar system, in addition it had fully caught up to and in some areas surpassed the knowledge left behind by the Commonwealth. After that period of building the next four hundred years could be categorized by three things. Expansion, Science, and Immortality. The FKS made it a priority to expand across space, and given its somewhat isolated nature was able to do just that without impediment. For close to four hundred years there was a constant state of colonial scouting and expansion, before anyone really knew it the Karkosian race has asserted itself as a regional power. At the same time vast leaps in science showed that the Karkosians were not simply a race created by accident that was stagnant, but an entity capable of improvement and individual strength. Perhaps as a direct result of this a religiously motivated scientific pursuit came about wherein the Karkosian race sought to improve itself as the gods who created them once had; genetically. By making the wings hands eyes and legs of the Individual all more efficient Karkosians began to become a more and more common sight in their local space, more suited to tasks and more willing to do them. The ultimate innovation came 480 years after the Sentience war; Karkosian scientists perfected a nanoorganism that repaired DNA in an individual. These organisms were injected into Brood Queens immediately and to many the achievement was more religious than it was practical. However immortality was something that would forever change Karkosian society. It would not be a year later that breeding limits were imposed and the maximum sustainable population for every planet was calculated, filled, and maintained. Even more importantly the Karkosian public had grown fond of democracy, when lifetime terms were forever that was impossible. As a direct result the first real change in government structure occurred when the domestic council agreed to turn the decision on the government restructuring over to the public. The vote was one sidedly in favour of a restructuring, and so it came to be that terms were amended to a lifetime, or the span of one natural lifetime, whatever was shorter. With that in place FKS expansionism exploded, the need for new planets was not one of necessity but rather one of common purpose. Expansion of Karkosian space was the thread that kept the peace for nearly 400 years and it had become integral, even is population growth would be stopped on a whim. Interestingly it was 35 years later, 515 years after the Sentience war, that contact with the Commonwealth was re-established. A small Karkosian mapping scout crossed into Commonwealth space and encountered a large fleet. Unknown to the scout it has stumbled upon a fleet belonging to the Imperial faction of the Commonwealth, which had been cast into a great civil war. Regardless the scout established contact and immediately recognized the Valyncians as gods. A contact was sent back home and a specifically chosen group of Karkosian Individuals were chosen to be ambassadors. These specific ambassadors were all chosen based on their non-religious respect for the Valyncians, though they recognized the Valyncians as the creators of the Karkosian race they knew that they were not divine. Contact initiated with the Karkosian diplomats explaining their position and the return of all Valyncian bodies that had been preserved for centuries. Regret was expressed over the Sentience war but the Karkosian diplomats held that such actions at that point in history could only be expected from such a young people. The Imperial Commonwealth faction received the news peacefully and a Karkosian diplomat was left with them to maintain formal ties even as the Commonwealth fought amongst itself. News of the Commonwealth civil war was common for the next four hundred years as it progressed but as Karkosian borders continued to expand and relations with closer nations became more important the Commonwealth civil war was often cited as a conflict among gods for the religious, and an event that did not concern the FKS among the secular majority that developed in that time. The next four hundred years by and large was defined by minor border incidents and FKS'es political influence backed by its powerful military bringing several nearby nations under a common political alliance and free trade zone that in essence allowed the FKS industries the ability to completely overwhelm local ones. This free trade zone provided resource markets that only expanded the Karkosian desire for expansion and the political alliance the chance to do so with impunity as Karkosian power had been massively expanded. However 940 years after the sentient war, a mere 60 years ago, the first truly dangerous incident in Karkosian expansionist history occurred. It would happen when a fringe Karkosian border expansion fleet entered a seemingly unimportant system with a habitable planet that had been slated for Karkosian colonization some years prior. The fleet had arrived with simple orders, clear out any pirates or rouges and by doing so ensure the safety of the colonists that would be arriving within the next few months. However shortly after entering the system the Karkosian fleet registered a scan of their vessels and noted a small number of ships over the planet which had what seemed to be a small base on it. Having all the traits of a common pirate outpost the Karkosian fleet blocked all communications and sensors. Unknown to the Karkosian fleet these were no pirates, but rather members of the expansive Hau race who had set up a colony before the Karkosians. Thinking the enemy would be of minor significance a plan was drawn up to engage the Hau vessels and seize the base below in the most efficient manner possible. The first stage of such plan had the main fleet move to engage the enemy in space while several ships bore down on the planet and deployed masses of automated light attack drones to the ground to gather Intel on the base and if possible break the defenses of what the Karkosians presumed was a pirate base, but in actuality was a Hau colony. In space the Karkosian fleet forced the enemy off of the planet and engaged them at a distance just outside its orbit. Though the Karkosian fleet was comparatively small the Hau had only colonial vessels and were utterly outgunned. The other part of the fleet also moved in and deployed the drones over the planet. These drones suffered minor casualties in their drop but on arrival quickly surrounded the base and engaged the enemy forces while gathering data and sending it to the fleet. The ships that dropped the drones took erratic fire from ground batteries below, still it was small so shields were boosted and the sporadic fire proved negligible. The ships in low orbit opted to hold position if a drop of the main ground contingent was necessary. In this time smaller attack ships were sent out from the main fleet while it fought to establish a perimeter around the planet and prevent any escape. Initially a mere small probe was destroyed by this force but as they rounded the planet a large station came onto sensors. Fearing a powerful pirate warlords dock the attack ships loosed several anti-ship swarm missiles and pulled away. The Hau structure was in truth a waygate, and the missiles proved more than a match for it in its unfinished state. The Hau, or to the Karkosians, the pirates were on the verge of collapse as their ground shield was overwhelmed by the volume of fire from the drones and the fighting pressed closer to the Hau colony proper. However it would be that in this time the drones reported on the state of the inner Hau colony and noted it appeared to be ordered with little static defense but augmented with walls as if a militia had set up a last minute defense, very much unlike a pirate base and more like a colony as it truly was. At this realisation the Karkosians ceased combat and opened comms, the fleet demanded the Hau surrender or be destroyed. Perhaps out of arrogance the Hau refused this offer and the Karkosian forces opted to limit bloodshed by ending the conflict quickly and deploying heavy ground forces. The large mechs quickly annihilated resistance not long after their drop and were moments away from wreaking havoc on the inner colony when the Karkosians proposed surrender a second time. The Hau, who were faced with complete destruction, complied. The Karkosians quickly moved to board the Hau ships and established a dialogue. Soon it was discovered that the Karkosian fleet had attacked a small colonial holding of the Hau Empire, not a pirate base. The Karkosian forces occupying the ground colony pulled out and returned to their ships at that revelation as a sign of good will and respect to the Hau forces who had given their lives in the defense of their colony. The Karkosians asked the remaining leadership of the colony how the Hau Empire proper could be contacted to resolve the situation and sent a signal detailing the situation to the nearest Hau system. The Hau used a nearby gate in a close star system to dispatch a task force that arrived in the system some weeks after the incident. Though the Hau must have wanted revenge for the attack they decided to maintain dialogue on the advice of the colonists themselves. The Hau taskforce approached the Karkosian border fleet diplomatically not long after their arrival. The Hau although hesitant to do so proposed that since the conflict had been resolved, no reparations were needed. With this good will in mind and the Karkosian colony ships coming soon the Karkosian fleet was more than willing to negotiate with the Hau task force. After an extended negotiation, with a Karkosian diplomat arriving and taking over the fleet commands diplomatic position half way through, progress was made on a mutual deal. To mend the damage the incident had on relations it was decided the planet would act as a mutual colony, with both sides working toward peaceful understanding. As part of this deal the Hau agreed that no waygate, like the one destroyed by Karkosian attack ships, would be built in the system. Similarly the Karkosian ambassador agreed that the birthrate of the coming Brood Queen would be severely limited as to ensure the Hau were not made into a minority on the planet. With that deal in place, and with the Karkosian colony established not a month after, a peace was had. Though perhaps the worst first contact in Karkosian history the incident proved that though their battles were few the Karkosian military was strong, and despite that, peace was often the better solution for all parties. For now both sides of the incident speculate on the size of the other, or their intent, but diplomacy continues on a small scale and the Karkosian state is content to leave things as they are and avoid risking a war with a power they hardly understand. In the last few years Karkosian expansionism has slowed in the face of the Hau incident and military power has been built up. Today the FKS is a major political power in its region proper and a military power that can project force from any of its numerous fringe colonies that rest far away from Karkosian home space. [/hider] [hider=Technological Overview] [b]Instant Printing[/b] Instant or “flash” printing is a sort of 3D printing where all construction is done in less than one millisecond. These printers are usually limited in size as to maintain speed so they usually mass produce things that are later coated in Nanomachine paint and assembled. However Instant Printers are a common sight in all civilian aspects of Karkosian space and are used for everything from food to munitions. Instant printers are not the most advanced construction technology in Karkosian space but they generally re the most widely used as their simplicity makes them easy to use and easy to fix compared to significantly more advanced machinery. [b]Nanomachine “Paint”[/b] While commonly called paint the Nanomachine coating used in Karkosian construction is something significantly more potent. It is a coating of specialized Nanomachines that after being added to a materiel can manipulate it and itself to self-construct the rest of a lager structure in the presence of other coated parts. This has made ship construction easy as after instant printing of larger parts those parts are simply coasted in Nanomachine paint and dropped into a space. The Nanomachines form micro thrusters and organize the entire ship out of parts, contact welding and covering every surface. This layer of Nanomachine paint however is not only used in construction, it is never removed. As a result Karkosian ships can self-repair; using Nanomachine paint to replace parts destroyed by battle or if the damage is very extensive cannibalize other unimportant parts to make more Nanomachine paint to fix the important ones. Nanomachine paint however is used in a smaller civilian role too, all construction has been supplemented by “part dumping” and allowing Nanomachine paint to quickly assemble the parts. This has made Karkosian industry extremely efficient, if not somewhat behind other more advanced nations. Nanomachine paint is a staple of Karkosian industry. [b]Local Absorption Shield:[/b] The Absorption Shield is a Karkosian state secret and the primary defense on all their vessels. Acting as an energy sponge the shield absorbs all the kinetic or direct energy put into it until it reaches full capacity and falls in a powerful discharge of energy. The energy discharge would be a catastrophic explosion if not for limiters making it a slower process of constant discharge. The Shield can be brought back up after this, but not until a suitable time has passed for the energy banks to entirely discharge. Local shields work by the shield being a multi-layered construct, with one large general shield over the ship’s hull and one to two shields above this that only activate after an incoming threat is detected, minimizing strain on the main shield and providing a sort of means to maintain the main shield’s integrity through extended battle by the first and second layers discharging and covering for each other if there are two outer layers. If the incoming fire is not concentrated this means of taking the damage and discharging while the other shield takes the hits can be maintained indefinitely so long as the shield has local outer layers. As a result volume of fire and concentrated fire are the most effective means of countering absorption shields of two local layers. Single local layer shields are more vulnerable to large singular hit weapons that can drop the local shield and leave the general layer exposed, however if the volume of fire is too low from even a large weapon the general shield and the local shield can swap out similarly to the two local shield system. This however leaves the ship proper exposed to fire for a split second. Currently three shield layers, two local and one general, is the effective maximum before energy discharges of the first layers begin to influence the general layer and cause a drop of all shields. [b]Modular Local Absorption Shield:[/b] A variant of the systems used on ships, walkers and medium to large mechs often make use of the M-LAS as it is called. Lacking any general shield the M-LAS operates with only a low power version of the first local shield used on ships. Activating to intercept incoming munitions the M-LAS operates identically to its larger ship borne counterpart, however lacking a general shield the M-LAS is more vulnerable to sneak attack or mines, if the attack cannot be anticipated an impact against the armour of the mech or walker is unavoidable. The M-LAS however encounters a problem less present in space, the energy discharge. The M-LAS as a result can run in two modes, a common mode that flares the energy into the sky when the M-LAS reaches maximum, this can obviously reveal a combatants position. The second mode deactivates the M-LAS at 99% capacity; this is risky as a hit to the M-LAS would result in a massive energy dump. However this mode is still somewhat popular among risk takers as mech and walker pilots have been known to use the M-LAS as a bomb in this mode, giving them another munition if they are in trouble. Usually however the M-LAS is simply dumped or thrown far away after it reaches 99% in this mode when it is used by the general soldier. [b]Neutron Cannon:[/b] The Neutron Cannon is a powerful energy weapon that works though a simple means. Stripping neutrons from high atomic number elements through the use of a powerful Neutron generator and forcing those highly concentrated neutrons as well as the associated products into an accelerator that fires them at relativistic speeds. The Neutrons in this state are free and as a result they are underdoing neutron decay further increasing the impact energy of the weapon. Despite its already fearsome potential the Neutron Cannon has another secret, by pumping the gamma rays created during the stripping process into a Graser and focusing them into a containment beam the Neutron Cannon gains increased focus and coherence as well as a secondary beam. Needless to say this increases the precision and destructive potential of the weapon significantly. There also exists another type of Neutron cannon in use with the FKS, this one utilized on the ground. In this smaller mounted weapon the same process as is used on ships is utilized. High atomic mass elements are stripped of neutrons and the cannon accelerates the free neutrons and other products while the graser contains the beam. However the difference in the ground variant is obvious enough, the destructive potential is considerably reduced simply because the beam must be slower and smaller in order to stay within power generation capacity. While the weapon is less useful than others in some atmospheres the other weapons used by the FKS army more than compensate. [b]Railgun:[/b] While no longer seeing use in space Railguns have found a strong place in the ground forces of the FKS. Operating on basic electromagnetic principles railguns can fill roles from artillery to automatic fire and are simple and rugged, one of the main reasons, discounting atmospheric spread, they are favoured over the Neutron cannons so often used in space. In the modern day all railguns in use fire "smart" munitions that make active course corrections, this gives ground forces the ability to fire over obstacles even when supressing the enemy with automatic fire. All in all railguns are used in many roles on the ground and prove to be a weapon that while not as powerful as the newer weapons are much more dynamic and well suited to the ever changing demands of ground combat. [/hider] [hider=Military Forces] [b]Space and Air Forces[/b] Vario Dreadnought: [img]http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2012/216/7/e/20120803_by_zhangx-d59s2ix.jpg[/img] Description: Parzar Battleship: [img]http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2014/016/6/1/20140116_by_zhangx-d72ei2r.jpg[/img] Description: Nurol Destroyer: [img]http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2013/149/1/5/20130529_by_zhangx-d670xp4.jpg[/img] Description: Juiz Cruiser: [img]http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2011/200/c/1/a_practice_by_zhangx-d40v9c0.jpg[/img] Description: Proius Frigate: [img]http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2013/115/c/a/20130425_by_zhangx-d62y6jw.jpg[/img] Description: Markis Light Combat Ship: [img]http://th08.deviantart.net/fs71/PRE/f/2010/330/f/8/mjolnir_class_destroyer_by_darklorddc-d33n277.jpg[/img] Description: Upisn Space Combat Vessel: [img]http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2011/306/c/2/20111102_by_zhangx-d4etha2.jpg[/img] Description: Morikai Space/Air Gunship: [img]http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2013/361/0/8/20131226_by_zhangx-d6zpeba.jpg[/img] Description: Unji Space/Air Multirole FighterInterceptor. [img]http://th06.deviantart.net/fs71/PRE/f/2014/164/8/e/combat_fighter_by_leonovichdmitriy-d7m8368.jpg[/img] Description: [b]Ground Forces[/b] Light Mechanized Infantry Combat System: [img]http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2011/213/9/0/daily_practice20110801_by_zhangx-d42bwkk.jpg[/img] Description: Light Mechanized Infantry Combat System Fast Combat Package: [img]http://th08.deviantart.net/fs71/PRE/i/2013/133/d/5/20130513_by_zhangx-d654rdz.jpg[/img] Description: Medium Mechanized Combat System: [img]http://th09.deviantart.net/fs71/PRE/i/2012/061/4/4/sketch_by_zhangx-d4rgw9x.jpg[/img] Description: Medium AA Mechanized Combat System: [img]http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2013/077/b/a/mech_by_lazymk-d5yftxa.jpg[/img] Description: Fast Attack Medium Combat System: [img]http://th06.deviantart.net/fs46/PRE/i/2010/130/4/a/Humanoid_suspension_arm_by_zhegesha.jpg[/img] Description: Heavy Mechanized Combat System: [img]http://th03.deviantart.net/fs70/PRE/f/2012/124/4/a/commission___fast_attack_mech_by_shimmering_sword-d4yjuqb.jpg[/img] Description: Fast Attack Heavy Mechanized Combat System: [img]http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2013/192/c/4/20130711_by_zhangx-d6czh7c.jpg[/img] Description: Super Heavy Support Mechanized Combat System: [img]http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2012/110/9/1/battletech___super_heavy_longbow_by_shimmering_sword-d4x0mjk.jpg[/img] Description: Armoured Walker Combat System: [img]http://th02.deviantart.net/fs22/PRE/f/2009/244/9/5/Quadropod_by_ka1000.jpg[/img] Description: High Survivablity Walker System: [img]http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2013/304/d/d/20131031_by_zhangx-d6sh5nm.jpg[/img] Description: Hunter Killer Light Automated Walker Combat System: [img]http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2012/048/a/d/desert_by_zhangx-d4q0sdk.jpg[/img] Description: Heavy Armoured Walker System: [img]http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2012/213/4/6/spider_mech_is_tingling_by_brotherostavia-d59emgk.jpg[/img] Description: Armoured Direct Fire Support Mk.I/Combat Engineering Walker System: [img]http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs36/f/2008/271/a/7/Spider_Tank_by_MeganeRid.jpg[/img] Description: Armoured Direct Fire Support Mk.II: [img]http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2014/121/d/5/mpu_07_by_st_pete-d7gpsk0.jpg[/img] Description: Light Armoured Artillery Combat System: [img]http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2013/346/8/d/20131212b_by_zhangx-d6xnwfo.jpg[/img] Description: Medium Armoured Artillery System: [img]http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2011/332/e/8/mobile_mechanized_artillery_unit___mmau_by_balaskas-d4hl75p.jpg[/img] Description: Heavy Armoured Artillery System: [img]http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2014/027/4/9/cliff_artillery_by_belovp-d73yo26.jpg[/img] Description: Mobile Defensive Gun Platform: [img]http://th07.deviantart.net/fs71/PRE/i/2013/091/1/7/artillery_mech____work_in_progress___by_trinitydigitaldesign-d602wfh.jpg[/img] Description: Mobile Command Unit: [img]http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2014/122/8/5/type_59gai_by_zhangx-d7gt9v6.jpg[/img] Description: [/hider]