[hider=The Ecumene of Holy Orion] [center][h1]The Ecumene of Holy Orion[/h1][/center] [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/TG5zbVf.png[/img][/center] [center](or “The Ecumene” for short)[/center] [h3][b]Brief Description:[/b][/h3] A highly militarized Theocratic State founded on the belief that Orion was neither wholly man, an avatar of the Spiritus, or a prophet, but a God. Controlled by a ruling class of Elite Priests, their zealous belief in the Divine Orion is only matched by their general disdain for Alien races, whom they view as unworthy of “The Mantle” of carrying out Orion’s divine plan. [h3][b]Claim:[/b][/h3] A swathe of space within the Orion Cygnus arm of the Galaxy, between the borders of Martian and Resurrectionist space. In their early stages, they were largely shunned and ignored by most in the Empire for their zealous beliefs and cultish personification of Orion. In the wake of the Imperial collapse however, they’ve managed to expand into their own as an established power, and have entered into a treaty with the Martian state to obtain control of Orion’s Tomb on Luna. Which is regarded as a sacred site to any and all faithful within The Ecumene. [h3][b]Government:[/b][/h3] The Ecumene is ruled top-down by the elite class of Orionic Priests. [hider=Typical garb of a High Priest of Orion] [img]https://i.imgur.com/DVYqvvj.jpg[/img] [/hider] The greatest of these Priests are known are the Elder Priests of Orion, and each of these seven Elder Priests form the governing body known as The Conclave, the de factor and de jure final executive, legislative, and judicial authority in The Eucumene. The leader of The Conclave is the Archpriest of Orion, who is considered a ‘first among equals” although in practice their opinion tends to weigh more than others when it comes to matters of policy and especially religion. While The Conclave is the overall governing body of The Ecumene, lesser Priests of Orion run most of the day-to-day functions of its government. The vast number of men and women which make up this holy order are The Ecumene’s bureaucrats, ministers, and Governors for both spiritual and worldly affairs. Their ranks are as follows: Archpriest of Orion - Spiritual Head of The Conclave Eldar Orionic Priest - Serve on the The Conclave High Priest of Orion - Generally serve as planetary or system governors. Noble Priest - Serve as Planetary or Regional Governors of a particular world Minor Priest of Orion - May control a city or a relatively high ranking planetary official Protopriest of Orion - Generally high level bureaucrats Initiate Priest - General low level bureaucrats or adjuncts to higher ranking priests Neophyte Priest - The lowest level of a Priest of Orion, and generally handles local religious matters or minor political affairs [h3][b]History: [/b][/h3] The origins of The Ecumene (by its own accounts) lie shortly after the supposed life of the mythical figure of Orion, who according them was the perfect embodiment of humanity and a man who ascended to godhood. The Cult of Orion began as a small desident sect of Kinetic Divinists, and gradually spread throughout the Orionic Empire, mostly existing in small pockets of isolated followers. The Empire tolerated The Cult’s spread and turned a blind eye to their activities, mostly believing it to be little more than a harmless religious sect, albeit an odd one from their perspective. However, that all changed when members of The Orion Cult attempted a coup against The Emperor, planning an assassination of the galactic leader as well as a number of high ranking religious and political officials. The coup attempt was blocked thanks to the swift reaction of the Imperial Military, but it was enough to warn Imperial officials that The Cult was far from just a harmless, divided sect. It was becoming far more organized and increasingly more zealous. The Cult was therefore pushed to the fringes of Imperial space, and its practice, while not completely outlawed thanks to a few well placed bribes and threats, it was increasingly looked on as a fringe movement and certainly nothing a proper citizen of The Empire would involve themselves in. Meanwhile, The Cult did little to warrant the ire of Imperial forces again, and did their best to bide their time and generally stay out of political affairs in the galaxy. They focused their pursuits on building relations, slowly expanding their influence and gaining converts, and, secretly, building up military might. With the fall of The Orionic Empire came the opportunity they’d been waiting a millennia for. The chaos and infighting caused by the collapse allowed The Cult the chance to expand into a proper state, and begin claiming large swathes of former Orionic space for their own. Claiming to be the true heirs of Orion in a way that the Empire could never have been, wading knee deep as Imperial officials were in their own HERESY, they quickly carved out territory in the Orion Cygnus arm of the galaxy, and followers of the religion who’d chafed under Imperial rule swiftly rallied to them. Now known as The Ecumene of Holy Orion, the theocratic state desires both the supremacy of humanity as the true heirs of Orion and the only ones worthy to take up his Mantle, as well as the domination of their religion as the only (truly) rightful interpretation of the ancient faith passed down by humanity's forefathers. [h3][b]Military: [/b][/h3] The naval power of The Ecumene is one of its greatest strengths, and its massive heavy carriers are extremely adept at bombarding their targets from range with overwhelming firepower including high-powered kinetic orbital bombardments. When supported by smaller, but still formidable, Corvettes, an Ecumene fleet can be a daunting proposition to face. [hider=Ecumene Heavy Carrier:] [img]https://i.imgur.com/hOPGOrK.jpg[/img] [/hider] [hider=Ecumene Corvette Class:] [img]https://i.imgur.com/DTXI72Y.jpg[/img] [/hider] [hider=Ecumene vessels engaged in orbital bombardment] [img]https://i.imgur.com/SSEFYwL.jpg[/img] [/hider] Where its weakness in its naval power lies is in close ship-to-ship engagements, where its large and difficult to maneuver carriers are usually outperformed by lighter and swifter craft of lesser firepower. If an enemy fleet is allowed to close distance with an Ecumene carrier group, they are in a very real danger of being outflanked and picked apart. To help counter this, typical Ecumene naval doctrine includes a heavy emphasis on boarding engagements whenever ship-to-ship combat arises that cannot be directly avoided. To this end, The Ecumene Navy utilizes a large number of armed transport ships and light fighters, deployed directly from their Carriers, which are intended to swiftly maneuver through the larger engagement and attempt to directly assault and board the offending vessels to take them down from the inside. In a sustained engagement, these craft are too lightly armored to be a direct threat themselves, but their intent is to slow, distract, and harass the enemy long enough for either the Carriers to escape, or for a boarding action to be made. [hider=Ecumene Troop transports] [img]https://i.imgur.com/z8bDyDg.jpg[/img] [/hider] [hider=Ecumene light fighters] [img]https://i.imgur.com/Rp1hWJE.jpg[/img] [/hider] Ground forces: [hider=Examples of Ecumene Tanks and Vehicles] [img]https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/supcom/images/a/a0/AeonT2Tank.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20100719011540[/img] [img] https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/supcom/images/b/bc/AuroraTank.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20090115004420[/img] [img]https://images-ext-2.discordapp.net/external/VJHPkSUuKnHt3JmJDH6dILxn0I0CnFATvPg8LcHHwCA/http/atomhawk.com/images/365_1500_900_auto.jpg?width=1127&height=677[/img] [/hider] Running in direct opposition to the strengths of its navy, The Ecumene army typically excels at close quarters fighting, and many of its units are specialized to this task with short-range automatic weaponry and close-quarters specialized melee weapons. [hider=Ecumene footsoldier] [img]https://i.imgur.com/sMh1TGE.jpg[/img] [/hider] [hider=Ecumene “Knights”, close quarters melee specialists] [img]https://i.imgur.com/DsHSvA5.jpg[/img] [/hider] The exception to this general favor to short-range fighting within its ground troops, is small numbers of Elite “Seraphim” units, which add a badly needed long-range component whenever it is necessary. A veteran unit of these Seraphims, admission to which is a proclamation of great praise, also serve as an Honor Guard to the The Conclave. [hider=Ecumene “Seraphim”] [img]https://i.imgur.com/MrQwLjf.jpg[/img] [/hider] [h3][b]Religion/Culture: [/b][/h3] The religion of The Ecumene is based around the Divinity of Orion and the belief that bringing his ordained Great Plan for the Galaxy can only be achieved by humanity, who are the rightful heirs to Orion’s Mantle. Orion is quite literally revered as a god figure, and his ascendance to divinity marks the cornerstone of their religious dogma. As such, the Tomb of Orion (a necessarily empty building, Orion did not truly “die” after all, but still one of great ceremonial significance) is seen as one of the most Holy sites in The Ecumene’s faith, and pilgrims flock to Luna to visit the shrine daily. A mutually beneficial treaty with the Martian State is the only thing that makes this possible, as the Tomb itself lies well outside of Ecumene controlled space. [hider=The Tomb of Orion, a prime example of Ecumene architecture] [img]https://i.imgur.com/olVN4Yu.jpg[/img] [/hider] [h3][b]Demographics (Species):[/b][/h3] Humanity makes up a large portion of The Ecumene’s population, and are the only species considered to be full-fledged citizens within its territory. Aliens, while not directly threatened by The Ecumene, are treated as second-class citizens in effect. Provided they freely submit to the will of Humanity and Orion’s Mantle, however, they can usually be expected to live long, if generally unfulfilled, lives. Those that show exceptional devotion may even be offered places of servitude to their human masters onboard Ecumene vessels as melee fighters and the “first wave” in any engagement. For there is no place more fitting for them to be, than giving their life in place of a human and therefore protecting those who would lead the galaxy to the fulfillment of Orion’s Great Plan. Aside from Alien species living within Ecumene space, The Ecumene also makes use of a large number of androids to act as servants and laborers, as well as warriors if the need arises. They are not considered to have “True AI” and are not granted citizenship, but are actually more favored than Aliens when it comes to filling jobs and roles. [hider=Ecumene Android Servitor] [img]https://i.imgur.com/sdx06Mm.jpg[/img] [/hider] [h3][b]Characters:[/b][/h3] [hider=Archpriestess Vayla Dretheen] Current Archpriest of Orion and leader of The Conclave and The Ecumene of Holy Orion. [img]https://i.imgur.com/qeOYcPv.jpg[/img] [/hider] [hider=Admiral-Lord Talaran Vitrix] High Lord of The Ecumene's navy (and thus its highest ranking military officer), and captain of The Ecumene's flagship carrier, the ECS [i]Righteous Truth[/i] [/hider] [hider=Seraphim-Captain Valen] Captain of the Seraphim Honor Gaurd, who serve as the bodyguards of The Conclave and accompany its members wherever they go. [/hider] (more characters to be introduced as the RP progresses) [h3][b]Relations:[/b][/h3] The Ecumene, alongside the Martian state, secretly helps to fund the war efforts of the Scorpids against the Resurrectionist state. Their HERESY being considered so great, as to warrant the necessity of working with lower life forms to expunge it. Martian State - A pact has been forged between The Ecumene and The Martian state to allow The Ecumene direct control of The Tomb of Orion on Luna. The Ecumene is permitted to have its own security on-site for protection, but the Martian state is generally expected to provide wider military support in the form of naval action should the need arise. The result of this treaty has been favorable to both states thus far. Habitation: The Ecumene puts quite alot of effort into terraforming any planets settled by its citizenry, and where terraforming technology is not possible, establishing domed hermetically sealed environments where its people can live in safety and in relative comfort. Typical architecture of the Ecumene usually features towering thin spire-like buildings, domed structures reminiscent of earthly cathedrals and places of worship, and pristine sterile-like living spaces. [img]https://i.pinimg.com/originals/2c/e0/19/2ce0199826be492bdcaf74fed4d697c0.jpg[/img] Of course, this level of comfort and refinement is only reserved for its human population. Lesser species live in packed, sometimes squalid conditions on the outskirts of Ecumene cities, and perform daily drudgery work for human overseers. They are, however, at least afforded a modicum of protection and, provided they do not step out of line, can expect to be mostly left alone. [/hider]