Taeryn

The Last Laugh

Im not sure if anyone knows the implication but the last IC post regarding cover projects and what not relates to FedNat superdread building. IE: We're building more so it'd be weird to have to change that now.

The Last Laugh

--=Highfield Crossing, Horizon, Tau Ceti.

Highfield Crossing was the true heart of Horizon. Whilst Couerlene and its Federal sector was the de jure seat of governance for the Federation, Highfield Crossing, only a hundred miles away, was the planetary capital of Horizon and was often where Federal officials decamped to during weekend recess, or during official recess of the assembly. Couerlene was an effective capital, but Highfield Crossing was a true city, with all the wonders and vices that could be had in such a place. It had grown from a sedate farm market town to a bustling city with the establishment of the Federation, and had, most figured, simply through proximity ended up as the planetary capital.

It had its charms. Alanna had not often had time for it since her election to highest office, but she found time here and there to escape the official protocol of Couerlene in favour of the bustle of Highfield, now and again, she could even meld into the scores of people that made their way around the city, living the lives she worked to protect and make prosperous in her own way, though often the trail of security made such a thing more of a distant hope than reality. It was not one of those days today. She had found herself largely confined to the official residence in Rainley Tower in downtown Highfield, but it had given her time to meet with people she normally would of had to go in circles to do so, officially and unofficially - and her office her though far more opulent gave her nearly all the same sort of access she would of gotten if she had never left Couerlene. It was at least, quiet. A few security staff were spread around the residence, whilst a few Aides were hidden about, doing their best to make sure she didn't have to deal with minutiae. Her constant companion, Mikhail, amused himself somewhere within the sprawling penthouse, but she had one more meeting and quite a bit of reading and writing to do this evening. They would be back in Couerlene soon, but she remained hopeful she'd find just a little bit of time for a discreet backdoor entry into the exclusive new club down the street she'd heard so much about. There might be a waitlist four years long already, but being Chancellor had to have some perks, didn't it?

She raised her head from the report she'd been half perusing, sunk into the scandalously comfortable chair in this office she was sure had been designed with the idea of ensuring no-one ever really got work done that didn't involve napping. There had been a sound - the entrance to the office was some absurd security measure with multiple doors that often let her knew someone was coming in a good few moments before they were. She didn't bother checking the cameras on her desk display - it wouldn't help, she never knew who she would be meeting when it came to Intelligence matters when they were not completely on the books.

The inner door opened with a slight swish of air and metal being moved by unseen mechanisms, and a man stepped in, nodding respectfully and approaching Alanna, who motioned to the seat opposite her - one she noted was likely far less comfortable, but still more than suitable. She took a moment to take stock of the man, he was.. average. They normally were. The Intelligence Services had a knack for taking nearly anyone and making them appear perfectly, boringly average. There was an edge of above average attractiveness to this one though, which told her he'd probably actually not been altered much, if at all.

"Chancellor." He said, sitting himself down as indicated by Alanna.

"C7, I've not had the pleasure previously, but in these meetings I don't think I've ever had the pleasure of re-acquaintance." She said, smiling.

"Indeed, Chancellor, though as you know, there are a finite number of C's to meet. Sooner or later, you may have the pleasure of seeing a familiar face." He responded, sharing a smaller smile. Though she expected pretty much anything he did or said was calculated, not that it mattered, they were on the same side.

"I Live in hope. What do you have for me that I can't get through the Committee or Minister officially?" May as well cut straight to the point, she could be business if she needed to be.

"It'll be 14 total by the end of this standard calendar week. No plans for more - we don't have enough for that, as you know. Everyone thinks you don't know the entire puzzle, but that's the idea. Project Helios on track though with withdrawl from the treaty, we can unveil Helios fully and scrap plans for the fourth cover project. Shakedown testing is nearly done for the launched Helios 1, Helios 2 and 3 are on track for completion as outlined previously. The cover projects have also kept to schedule and have proven viable in simulations. The Triumvirate in High Command is in on this, of course, we're using High Admiral Lieng now as the Liason there. High Admiral Rochester has taken over all Agdenmar operations as per your request. I believe High Admiral Alyentsov has your confidence for the current Rolvian issue." C7 said, not stopping at any point for breath but never going too fast that she didn't take everything in.

"I see. I'll leave the Helios timetable to AIS and the Admiralty, the public are quite invested in the cover projects, so we will certainly have to proceed with them to completion, if not their mission profile. Agdenmar is a mess, but involvement now would of been troublesome, and Lieng requires too much convincing sometimes, but he should be fine overseeing Helios. Rochester will act when appropriate, and he is considerate enough to keep us all informed, so I foresee no issues there, considering our involvement will not hide behind questionable legalities. As for Alyentsov, I've not had the honour of a face to face meeting with that particular member of the Triumvirate, but they have seemed most capable in my few encounters with High Command. Alyentsov wants to back up Piazza's 12th with Patel's 16th, Defence tells me, The Admirality gave that the go ahead a few hours ago with my blessing for whichever course of action pursued. I'm not going to personally inform the Rolvian's of that, but they'll get notification of them joining the "wargames" through normal channels by the time anything I send reaches them. Its mostly a show of intent for everyone other than the Rolvians at this point, given the guarantee I've all but given them, and all should proceed without incident, provided we do not violate Rolvian Sovereignty. On that note, speaking of violating sovereignty, anything to share?" Alanna almost leaned back in her chair, but decided against it.

C7 nodded. She probably hadn't told him anything he didn't know or wouldn't find out, but she was forthright with the C's and they were forthright with her. He began to speak.

"Most things you've been briefed on, there's been a number of direct engagements on Agdenmar again, though I am aware you've been given the full reports on those. Little more to provide on that. Our Embassies are relatively quiet - nothing out of the ordinary there." She knew he meant intelligence embedded in Embassies by that. "Sources are mostly detailing reactions to our withdrawl from the era of Detente, As per expectation, most don't regard the Federation as a threat in a military sense, let alone much of anything else. Biggest concerns have been economic, but that's a general concern across most quarters. Honest assessment is that the Federation will continue to be considered economically and to some extent politically, but as a military near non-entity until we take aggressive or defensive action. Nearly every political operator and intelligence agency, even those with smart analysts and good sources still measure by the standards of the Great War, it counts in our favour for the moment." Alanna nodded, she even appreciated the frankness with his admittance that other powers had good sources in the Federation - but that was an inevitable reality. It implied some familiarity, so she hoped he knew who some of them were, at least.

"The Foreign Minister had thoughts on a similar assessment, he implied that its very likely that sooner or later someone will force us to lose the carrot and use the stick, to borrow an old phrase, simply because they think it won't hit them." Alanna responded, shaking her head a little.

"Astute, to be sure, Minister Adler does know his craft." C7 said, matter of factly. He shifted in his seat slightly, an indication that he had nothing much more to add, unless he was specifically prompted on a subject.

"I'm sure he'd appreciate AIS's praise, though I wouldn't want to make him think he's too good at his job. However, that should be all. Let's keep in touch." Alanna watched the man rise.

"Never out of it, Chancellor. Have a good day." He said, and strode out of the room with a self-assured confidence that belied his near complete averageness.

Alanna took a moment to reflect, before turning back to her display. There were things to respond to - some she had waited on - some were new. She drew closer to the desk, escaping the near sinful comfort of her chair, and began to work.

Rolvian Response

@Aleranicus
I can always cut to business, Prime Speaker.

This is noted and understood. We have taken the decision to dispatch the FASV Deepwater. It is an unarmed Salvage Vessel, and functions as an element of the Unified Fleet's auxiliary support craft. It is functionally unarmed, though it of course possesses elements necessary to engage in its primary functions, though of course at close range. Given the ongoing situation, we of course accept and encourage any and all Rolvian protection for the Deepwater. The Deepwater will be under a military crew and will of course be carrying staff of the Ministry of Justice who are operating this investigation at the behest of the Admiralty. The Deepwater should arrive at Manir not long after you receive this message.

You once again may receive my assurances that I have personally made certain that the commanding staff of these wargames are aware that the Rolvian border is not to be violated at any time, except under explicit request from an official of the Rolvian Republic, the direct order of our own High Command or similar authority, or to engage in rescue operations as determined under Federal Law. Bluntly, however, it is not within the Federation of Nations interest to see an armed conflict take place in Rolvian space, a sentiment we can both undoubtedly share. We are however not going to act unilaterally in this regard, but will of course take all measures we deem appropriate without violating Rolvian sovereignty.

In perhaps more welcome news from Maya. Federal Police and Federal Intelligence tasked to assist have a reliable lead on Doctor Foia - in that she has been traced to the southernmost continent of Maya and her exact location is likely to be discerned soon. All sources indicate that she is alive and well, and may have been "kidnapped" by a group of discontent colonists on Maya for the purposes of helping reverse the failure of a terraforming project in the region, whether she is equipped to do so or not does not seem to of factored into this groups thinking, but this rare failure has been a point of contention between the region and the planetary governor who has not rectified the situation to anyone's satisfaction. Regrettably this seems to of brought Doctor Foia into it, though thankfully, this means her safety is far more assured than if other more malignant forces had been at work. Hopefully her soon safe recovery and the resolution of ongoing concerns in the Republic will open the door to much greater co-operation between us.

-Alanna

Alanna took a moment to think. Rolvius had its importance, even to projects in the Federation. They'd made a mistake before, of course, and millions of individuals around the galaxy had died, but not on the doorstep of the Federation like it had been with the Republic. She was determined that it wouldn't happen again, not on her watch, anyway, and she'd essentially just galvanized the populace for it too, making it almost an internal political matter. She couldn't force the Rolvians into anything, not without taking either military or economic action, and that was exactly the kind of strong-arming she wanted to avoid.

More awaited, though.

Kadathi Response

@Predawnia
Most Honourable, First Minister Arta Smiljer

Thank you for your warm words, though we both may arrive at the same conclusion through differing means and methods, we cannot ignore that the conclusion is indeed, the same, and as such is something that cannot be ignored. Whilst we must await what the future holds, we can surely now be best positioned to provide for a safer one.

While I am of course, going to leave details to the Ambassadorial Staff and the Ministry of Trade, as you may of course be aware, the Federation's raw and refined materials production from private and state endeavours far exceeds that of domestic and military consumption at current rates. While I am of course, reliably informed that such excess will be reduced in the upcoming years due to increased military production and economic matters, I am certain that a trade agreement on favourable terms for us both is a matter we can surely discuss and likely come to fruition upon.

Your representative is free to engage directly with the Trade Ministry and the Foreign Ministry where deemed appropriate, and I will see both departments are informed of your intentions.

-Chancellor Alanna Descoix,
With the Authority of the Office of the Chancellor,
Unum Liberum.

Alanna didn't know the most about the Kadathi, but they were, as ever mentioned, driven by their desire to not end up part of the Commonwealth - the Ashtar had seen that was fact, now it remained up to them themselves to ensure it. Alanna had, she realised, declared a policy of containment contingent on whatever the Federation decided was keeping the peace - she saw that a coming to blows with the Commonwealth was a likely outcome of that, but hardly one she wanted to speed along. Aiding the Kadathi for now would retain some sort of balance, though if an agreement was signed she expected the Commonwealth would hardly react positively, but it was an economic matter, what it was used for was hardly for the Federation to dictate.

Taulron Response

@grimely
Unto His Imperial Majesty, Salos VI, Imperator Taulrosum

It is the utmost duty of any ruler, be they born into power, anointed into it, or elected, to ensure the prosperity of their people, and assure they have the means to pursue the betterment of themselves and their families through the security provided by a time of prevailing peace. It is as such my duty to gain that peace for the Federation and its citizens, to do anything less would be a profound failure, and we welcome your acknowledgement of such.

The Ashtar have shown much which is possible, though they certainly were not without flaw. The peace of the Ashtar, though imposed, can certainly not be regarded as a flaw - and so the peace that was once ensured by mutual agreement certainly cannot be considered as such - upon which we are most certainly in agreement. It may be inevitable that a conflict erupts, but the Federation of Nations is, despite what some may believe, not without the means to take pro-active measures in the pursuit of peace, using whatever means are deemed appropriate. If war comes, we will not be found wanting, but wanting of war we are not. Taulron concern for the security of the Federation is of course a welcome sentiment, and not one to be disregarded.

I must admit to some manner of perplexion in regards to this request. Democracy, as such as it is established in the Federation, has a legacy spanning thousands of years of development and evolution. Even in the Federation with its grand, direct democracy, there is variation in our member states of great degrees. The enabling of the voices of ones citizenry is a laudable goal - but one that can be twisted, as we can see in many states, where "citizen" applies to few, and concentrates power in the hands of those deemed above or better than others, a concept that is not truly democracy. We do not envisage that you pursue a democracy identical to our own, however, with some bluntness, I must make it known that we will not engage in creating a mockery of one either, Though I do not assume that is your aim.

The Foreign Ministry and other applicable government institutions however will be instructed to contact your own with regards to this matter. I expect that through our Embassy we may work on creating a group made up of Federal advisors and your own officials to begin the creation of a working group to ascertain exactly what the new vision for the state may be, and the work that may begin be undertaken towards it.

Rome was not built in a day, of course.

-Alanna Descoix
With the Authority of the Office of the Chancellor,
Unum Liberum.

Alanna had not expected that, of all things, and she would be sending off a number of messages around the Federation - including to intelligence. She didn't quite know what was going on here, but it wasn't something she'd disregard either. She noted the Latin, the anachronistic formality of some of it, whether it meant more than what it seemed to was a different subject, but one she'd leave to some poor analyst somewhere.

She sighed. She really needed to go to that club.

----------

--=FRCHS Hermione, Hospital Ship, Agdemnar System

The Hermione had been busy being put to use, a resupply ship had just arrived and gone - and many were busy offloading the supplies that were replenishing the stocks that were being used up by the recent casualties incurred by forces in the recent flurry of combat in the system. The Hermione's doctors were however, excellent, and most had undergone extensive sim-training with most notable species they'd encounter, and rates of survival even in alien patients were higher than in some hospitals found on Horizon or Hippocrates.

In a way, it made the crew of the ship feel safer, having countless sick or injured individuals onboard was hardly conducive to morale, but it made the likelyhood of an enemy ship coming along and blowing them out of the sky far less likely, and a system of separate wards and security systems meant that even if opposing factions ended up being treated at the same time, they couldn't interact without intent from the command staff.

Captain Argyle had been picked to command the Hermione mostly because he had intelligence clearance and familiarity with the operations of a ship dedicated to the art of healing. Being unerringly calm had also helped, given where they were deployed - and for the most part nothing too concerning had happened. Now he was staring over the shoulder of a bridge technician wondering how in the world they were going to avert a disaster.

"Captain, we're looking at a faulty stabilising mechanism, whether its structural or the Devite was off and warped the containment, I couldn't say from here, but when they did this ship over it wasn't designed for this kind of power system. If we don't replace that mechanism the secondary fusion core is gonna make what happens down on that stupid planet look like a fun day out." The technician said, mostly composing himself.

"Why exactly do we not have one in storage?" Argyle asked, frowning.

"We did have four according to the manifest, but looks like when they converted some of the storage areas into wards and centralized the whole logistics aspect they didn't think to recheck whether they put the things back on board, who the hell messes up like that?" The technician said, growing exasperated.

"This was a rush job, be glad that's the only thing important they forgot." Argyle responded, he frowned again as the ship shuddered a little. Alert lights began to blink.

"We just got a uncontrolled power surge, no permanent damage but engine block one and two have just gone offline temporarily and several thrusters are firing independent of control due to a short, were basically about to begin rolling at a list to anyone outside till its fixed, Captain."

Argyle rolled his eyes.

"Fantastic, issue a warning to all nearby ships of our uncontrolled movement. Magnetize all docking clamps so no-one still latched onto us goes flying off or into us. Damnit, No-one out there is going to have what we need, we're going to have to call in one of the cavalry." Argyle frowned once more, he walked over to his own station, punching a few codes into a console, simultaneously sending a dispatch homeward and one out into the black void of Agdenmar. A few moments later, Argyle hit another key, bringing the holoscreen into life, a woman in a standard Unified Navy uniform greeted him, he supressed a smile, as he noted her captain rank.

"Having a problem there, Argyle?" Said the woman, Argyle knew her from way back, she'd risen pretty far to end up on a Pharos, the premier stealth ship of the Federation. Couldn't say she didn't deserve it.

"A very big one, Captain Tsang, you're going to have to break cover and come in to help us, unless you'd like us all to explode into a small micro-star for a few seconds. Personally, not a fan." Argyle said, non-chalantly.

"I see." She hit a few keys herself, and nodded to someone offscreen. "What do you need?"

"Stabilising mechanism for a Fusion Core, they seemed to of misplaced ours during this girls refit, I'm just glad that's all they missed - or we'de probably of blown up a lot sooner."

She looked down for a few seconds, then back up. "We've got what you need, we're going to have to go live when we come in to dock and the entire system is going to see us blazing our IFF out of nowhere, so I'm sure Horizon is going to be unhappy about those questions, but that's not our problem. We'll help stabilise your movement until repairs are complete, then drift back into the black. ETA 15, hope you've missed me."

"If we didn't have 45 till critical, I'd say take your time. See you on the Hermione."

Argyle frowned as the holoscreen blinked out of life. At least he could be thankful the Pharos was shielded against most levels of scanning. If a dozen powers were about to get a look at it, at least they wouldn't know what it was other than it was a Federation Cruiser.

The Last Laugh

--=AIS Plainsight, Equatorial Free Region, Bastion, Bastion.

AIS Plainsight was named entirely in the dumbest way possible but no doubt the most accurate, it was simply an AIS Installation in plain sight, after all. Even though Bastion was the nexus of the military, it still held areas of beauty, and whilst general tourist traffic was not exactly as high as say, Tyralene or New Vegas, it was still a planet with a diversified economy - Bastion still had bills to pay, after all. That said, the overwhelming number of visitors to the equatorial tropical regions tended to be military on leave, but posing as a tourist was one of the the easiest ways to begin going incognito on Bastion, so Plainsight had been built. Most of it operated as a tourist resort, but it had so much behind and below it that even people in the know weren't quite sure how big it was.

It was also currently rotating as the planetary side HQ for this half of the year, considering some genius had come up with the idea of rotating senior authority of the AIS through different installations planet side for a few years - it half smelled of a trap to draw the curious out, but one could never really know.

That was the game after all.

C3 didn't think about it all too much, to most with the clearance, they were still just a number, and to everyone else they were long dead and buried. Here, at least, they could fake some relaxation, though truth be told, they might start enjoying it, probably around the time they had to decamp again. Ha.. truth be told.

They shook their head, and turned their attention back to winding up today's work. They'd signed off on all the collated reports from around the known galaxy for this quarter, as well as prepared a dozen of their own with appropriate addenda for everything that was known as of, well, an hour ago. This would be going to the Chancellor, for sure, High Command, disseminated amongst fellow C's and a few others, and would no doubt trickle down in some form to just a few more, it was hard work for just a few people to ever see, but it had to be done, and they'd never stop doing it as long as the Federation called for it.

They'd even prepared a comprehensive Agdemnar report. At this point, they were relatively certain they had a considerable section of the deployable Pharos assets in system, yet for what purpose was not yet for them to know, everyone only had a piece of the puzzle, though no doubt it would all come together soon. They couldn't hide that many active stealth ships for much longer, that much was known.

Other, trivial matters, at least to C3's own mind were also attended to, and so they began to transmit. Data left in seconds, and wheels began to turn again.

Truth be told, the game never stopped.

--=FMIS Triumph, Outer Asteroid Belt, Bastion.

While Galatis Station was the true orbital headquarters of the Unified Navy of Nations, Triumph was often used by the Admiralty to meet and discuss in unofficial capacities, as well as conduct business between each other that High Command didn't strictly disapprove of but often needed to distance itself from. The Starbase Triumph was close enough, yet well obstructed enough to serve that purpose, and was more than outfitted enough to suit the Admiralty from Rear to Grand and sometimes even High.

However, there was to be no somewhat off the books business, and certainly no unofficial meetings of Admirals of any stripe. High Admiral Cassius Rochester had had quite enough of that for this moment, thank you very much. He had gotten answers, of a sort, from Intelligence - and the Foreign and Defense Ministries had already begun their machinations for the new era, and yet, for all being at the top of High Command meant, his own subordinates were being too much like Intelligence for his own liking. He was one of three of the Triumvirate - the High Admirals who sat on the High Command with other representatives of the armed forces, and sometimes it felt like he didn't even know what anyone was doing.

Rounding a corner, his silent but dutiful aide keeping a respectful distance and appearing once again a moment later. He almost couldn't tell that the latest android model was anything other than human. Almost, though he did admit to himself that it had taken a few days of conversation for it to be truly apparent. Yes, by all means, they could think, to some extent feel and express the correct emotional responses, but it was programmed, and eventually, you noticed it. That said, they were invaluable - a human could eventually be broken. Any android assistants assigned to the military deleted their memory cores the moment they got too far from their charges, or upon any order, coded or otherwise, delivered electronically or audibly. That he could talk classified matters with at least one entity at nearly all times had done him good, that much he knew.

He didn't slow down as he remotely keyed open the conference room doors for the Triumph's main conference room. He knew there would be two occupants, and he had been here himself before, so he took no time to appreciate the view or acknowledge the two present, simply taking the seat at the head of the table - neither present possessing the rank and thankfully the violation of protocol to of done so themselves. He watched their faces as they looked at him, he had not been expected. Good. He took a moment to get comfortable, then began to speak.

"Admiral Piazza, Vice Admiral Laurent, you both have some explaining to do, don't you think?"

Martina Piazza looked at Cassius, raising an eyebrow. For a moment, she lingered, then turned to her counterpart.

"It is as you say, High Admiral, though I would have to inquire as to what specific matter you are referring to?" Francois Laurent said, his earther french accent thick. He was speaking Standard English, so ever prevalent automatic translation had done nothing to ease that.

"Well, Francois, I would very much like to know why we have deployed a considerable portion of Pharos assets to Agdemnar far beyond the official order of, and I stress, one escort. Though of course, I did perhaps give you the implication of much freedom in my personal communications with you regarding the subject, I would very much like to know, when the Chancellor inquires, as to why one has become, I believe, thirteen." Cassius asked, he had of course not let even the tiniest bit of respect for getting so many stealth ships into the system in just a few resupply runs for the Hermione come into it, but it was there, in the back of his mind.

"The Hermione's safety is of course, of paramount concern - and the AIS convinced the Ministry of Defence to upgrade Agdemnar information gathering priorities to a scope that could not be accomplished by the Hermione, respectfully, at all, let alone with a singular Pharos, High Admiral. Regretfully, as per protocol, plausible deniability was key and I acted unilaterally in this regard." Francois responded, simply, matter of factly.

"That may very well be the case, however, in the future, all deployments of critical assets to the Unified Navy, which the Pharos programme is very much part of, are not to be taken unilaterally, at least one of the Triumvirate is to be informed at all times so that way we may all be informed and, more importantly, I do not have to cram myself into a stealth shuttle to come and berate one of my better Intelligence liasing Admiralty Members in person, and that is very much an order. Am I clear?"

Francois nodded "Yes, High Admiral."

He turned his focus to Martina.

"And of course, you are to immediately explain to me a very simple matter, Where in the heavens is the 12th Fleet?" He asked, letting a small amount of exasperation come forth.

"The 12th Fleet is currently on location or en route to a rendezvous point of my choosing, High Admiral, as you know we recently received clearance to conduct deep space war games near the main trade routes towards Rolvian territory - as we know they would not view such a thing as threatening if they detected it prior to them being fully informed, as well as given the 12th Fleets requirement to react to incursions in that area." She said, almost convincingly.

"Admiral Piazza, You know full well that the 12th Fleet is nowhere near the Rolvian routes, though given latest reports, I would very much like it to be. That is also an order, from the entire Triumvirate." He avoided that Agdenmar could wait ending for that sentence. High Admiral Lieng had taken long enough to let him in on that plan - and he and the Chancellor had both decided it was too early. Lieng of course couldn't recall Piazza personally, and Cassius had had to wait until she met with Laurent.

Martina nodded knowingly. "The 12th Fleet will be in position within three days, High Admiral. War games will commence shortly after, of course."

"Hold off on the war games, Admiral, there's an intelligence packet waiting for you on your Command Ship from my staff, you'll understand why. Maybe you could have a little.. chat with the Vice Admiral here about getting more intelligence, if it so suits you." Cassius responded. With that, he rose - this was, after all, still off the books, so neither of them were required nor wanted to observe protocol, and remained seated, both simply inclining their heads.

With that, he departed.

--=Office of the Chancellor, Courelene, Horizon, Tau Ceti.

Alanna had done something that no recent Chancellor had done and secured a full council assent for a foreign policy matter, and it had been exhausting. She had received information and had to act on it, and everyone had been consistently convinced or so believed that the Treaty had been so harmful to whatever interest group that they were serving that they ready to tear it up even without good cause. Yet they had still required hours of debate, discussion and nearly outright argument.

She had wanted to rest and consider, for a moment, before making fact what had been made law a few hours ago, though she knew that the Foreign Ministry would have just about finished informing all its ambassadors just about now, and she would have to inform the Assembly and the nation soon.

She read the last reports as they came in, and signed off on a thing or two here and there.

There was, however, one small matter to attend to before she faced the podium.

From Horizon, with Love to Rolvius

@Aleranicus
Most Esteemed Prime Speaker, Vannifar

Your point is well taken, but is not all life lost in the pursuit of its restoration worth noting, mourning, and offering recompense for? That my be purely my own belief, but my offer comes from such a place, and has little to do with blame. Nature is, after all, its own beast. In regards to your inquiry, as of my last information from the ministries concerned, the Rolvian breeding pairs have meshed well with surviving captive natives, as well as re-introduced off world variant species. There have been no pressing issues although notably, Rolvian derived offspring have proven to be slightly above baseline intelligence recorded for the species. However, there is no issue with this and I have been informed is most likely a quirk of introducing slightly divergent genomes back together. Once a sustainable free-roaming population is once again ascertained, the Republic is more than welcome to host a breeding pair on one of its own worlds. Elephants have historically also been, to a degree, domesticated, though not without risks, if such a thing interests you.

We are of course familiar with Manir and its, shall we say, eccentricities with foreign populations, though we have no legal issues in this regard. We of course cannot take responsibility for their settlement, though all and any children born to them do remain Federation citizens irrespective of if they remain, potentially in a situation as Rolvian citizens or are returned to the Federation. I am informed that the Ministry of Justice is happy to send an investigation team with whom we would of course happily invite any liason and the Unified Navy possess a number of unarmed vessels capable of undertaking the engineering work necessary in regards to the wreck so that it may be fully investigated and reviewed, as well as transporting the team at your earliest convenience. Of course, our vessel will request a customary Rolvian armed escort once inside Rolvian territory for the purposes of safety and protocol. Whilst we view Rolvian territory as secure, piracy is a scourge that one never seems able to fully eliminate no matter where one goes.

Doctor Foia's disappearance concerns me on a personal level. Maya is a recently incorporated colony, from what I understand. If Federation control hasn't fully extended there, that is understandable. But the safety of my citizens is of the foremost concern to me. The Amazon project is going to require dozens of specialists with no security training be present on Terra. I fully intend for that project to continue with your blessing, but understand- the Rolvian government is monitoring this situation closely. It is my hope that she will be found alive. And quickly.

From what I now understand, the local administration did not file the Doctor's missing persons report as priority, this has been rectified given the amount of time she is now missing. However, a full investigation is now underway - given my own distance from Maya, my updates on this are not as immediate as they would otherwise be, and I will of course keep you or chosen representatives informed. I must however stress that the difference between the Fringe colonies of the Federation and its core worlds is stark. In particular, Earth is a cosmopolitan world and, I believe, the richest in the Federation. While I am of course understanding of your concerns, Earth has one of the lowest crime rates in the Federation - though of course we do not know the motive, if any is extant, behind the disappearance of Doctor Foia, or even if any Federation citizen is complicit in her possible disappearance. While I may seem overeager to assuage your fears, it is an important project and an important distinction to be made. As a Terra Novan, even I begrudgingly must admit Earth is a premier world in the Federation, with few dangers beyond accidental. I would even recommend you take the time to visit one day, if not Horizon, Terra Nova, or even Chiron or Trident.

There is however one major matter and one small matter I must inform you of, though you may be so informed by the time this missive arrives, though we are relaying such messages domestically to the nearest ansible before transmitting onwards to yourself. Within a short time of this communication being sent, I will be withdrawing the Federation of Nations from the Treaty of Madrigsa, commonly known as the Treaty of Detente. Given the unilateral withdrawl of at least one nation so far without contest, and the limitations it imposes upon us in regards to opposing nations who will soon withdraw who are arguably, not conducive to peace, we feel it is our only choice.

You may also note that an entire Federation Fleet will be on station near the main routes that lead between my nation and yours. This is not an aggressive pre-positioning of forces, but a pre-planned positioning for matters of war games training amongst said fleet forces. The Foreign Ministry would of informed you of this previously, but matters lead to a delay in the positioning of the fleet, and consequently I am informing you personally to assuage any fears, given our two nations good relations. Please take all note that we regard the security of the Rolvian Republic as paramount at this current time, and the Federation will answer calls for aid from the Rolvian Republic, should they come, with all appropriate measures.

~ Alanna Decroix,
With the Authority of the Office of the Chancellor,
Unum Liberum.

"Are you sure offering them what amounts to a unilateral guarantee of independence right after putting a fleet basically so close they could take observatory photos of it is the best idea?" Mikhail asked, quietly intruding into Alanna's pondering silence.

She hit send.

"The Rolvian's won't see this as an opportunity to do something stupid without consequence, and I haven't signed a treaty, I won't unless they ask for one. At the end of it all, they aren't going to start a war, but somebody will start one with them. You know they will sooner or later. And you know what? I'm not content to watch them die whilst we ferry around the survivors this time." She responded, daring Mikhail to contest her.

"Ever the optimist." He smiled back.

"And damnit Mikhail, stop remote accessing my station!"

----------

The Podium was for the Chancellor, the Deputy Chancellor, or the Speaker of the Assembly to address the entire hall. Normally, the Speaker held it during sessions, to hold order, deliver and address protocol, and all other matters such as that. When the Chancellor took it, as she did now, it was to make a statement, a speech, or to confirm that the Referenda had called for war.

It was thankfully, not the latter.

She wasn't quite sure it was good enough to be the second. It was a statement, and that was that. Half the Assembly already knew. Too many eyes and ears in the Foreign Ministry - but they hadn't told the Media - and the Media would tell everyone else in the Federation, perhaps beyond, if the Foreign Ministry didn't work fast enough.

"I stand before the Assembly to deliver a statement regarding a legally binding decision reached by the Federal Council regarding the Foreign Policy of the Federation of Nations at this current time."

Some of those not in the know groaned, some mumbled. This was usually boring formality.

"The Council has reached full assent on this subject, and as such, the Assembly must follow without contest, and may not call for legal challenge."

Nearly all of those not in the know now focused entirely on her. No Federal Council had ever made a decision in full assent in nearly thirty years.

"As of 15:00 Horizon Central Standard Time, The Federation of Nations, with all of its constituent member states, colony worlds and territories, officially and unilaterally withdraw from the Treaty of Madrigasa, commonly known as the Treaty of Detente."

Some gasps of shock - Silence from the Pacifist and aligned blocs, though a few were nodding - they knew the treaty was dying, and they'd soon have the rest of them in line. Good, she needed their support. Then the applause started, though it only lasted a few seconds - she had not left the podium.

"As your Chancellor, I receive information I must act upon in the best interests of us all, for the Federation and the community of nations it represents. As some of you may know, or come to know, the Treaty has come to lose meaning. It was only a matter of time before another would sound its coming end, and this has come to pass. As Chancellor, I listened to the talented people of the Federal Council, our advisors, our ministries and the brave, loyal guardians of our military. There was only one option - we had to withdraw, or we would not be able to protect our grand democracy and all it stands for from those who do not care for peace, for stability, for prosperity. These are three things I promised to uphold in my oath, and in my campaign for the highest office. I also championed fairness, and it most certainly would not be fair for me to limit our stalwart military to the obligations of a treaty no longer followed by those who could someday come to threaten us."

Applause. She let it continue, but she had not yet left, so it died back down.

"It is my vow that I will continue to stand for this Federation, as we all do. Let our clarion call for peace go out - but let us not be blind to the fact peace must often be, ironically, fought for. We will not stand aside as we once did, content to protect those most at risk but never acting truly in their defence when it matters. The Federation was born out of an ideal of peace for humanity, and by our hard work we have achieved it for many of us. Yet, we are not alone, is only humankind deserving of peace? A foolish question, most assuredly, so we must gird ourselves for action on the behalf of those who are not as fortunate as us, to prepare to protect all whom are requiring of it. That is what the Federation is for, and we shall carry that with us into the stars with dove or sword. Unum Liberum."

She stood back from the podium, the applause began again, and she began to walk back into the shadows, away from the Assembly. A voice entered her ear through her earpiece. Mikhail, as always.

"You wont get any more trouble from the rest of the industrialists, they know the Sanctuary Overhaul program is just the beginning - and uh, and i think you just won the Warhawks, I didn't think that was in the plan." He said. She didn't know where he was, but he was good at gauging these things, that's why she'd hired him, and he wasn't cheap.

"Next time I'll throw in a few terms from the old dialectic, might give me some peace from the Vegan faction then."

They both chuckled.

The Last Laugh

--=Federal Quarter, Couerlene, Horizon, Tau Ceti.
In the Federal Council Chambers.

The Federal Council Chambers were nowhere near as busy as they could, or should of been - but it wasn't necessary for everyone to attend to the minutiae of the day to day affairs of state, that was after all why the Assembly existed. It was why information was distilled into succinct reports for everyone that had an interest. For once, however, there was a minor impediment to the agenda not to mention news came from places of unwelcome developments, but you could only summon so many ministers and secretaries so fast.

It was, however, politics, so Alanna Descoix, although only six months into her term as Chancellor of the Federation of Nations, had endured prattling about inconsequential matters for no small time in a valiant effort to get to some measure of the point. She found some small comfort in the fact that the chairs were obviously made for comfort.

She refocused her thoughts, keeping her brilliant green eyes on the new exchange between her Political Advisor, Mikhail Kalinkov, and the Minister of Defence, Theodore Fox. Both were part of the new political breed that had begun to come to the fore before the Message, like Alanna herself, they were both younger than she, however - though that held a different weight in an age of advanced medical sciences that made life expectancy far beyond what had been thought possible.

"The Vegan Faction always pushes for an extra 3% to the Federal Subsidies for Health & Education, if they didn't we would have a real problem." Mikhail said, shrugging.

"And yet here we are having the same discussion we did about it the last time they tried to amend it to a arms appropriation bill, They didn't get it last time - we cut a deal there, but if they don't get it this time I'm not sure it'll pass the Assembly ready for Referenda." Theodore responded, turning to Alanna.

"They have the power to block our agenda domestically, though of course Foreign Policy lies purely in the remit of ourselves for the most part." He added, addressing her directly.

"You don't have to remind me, Theo, I've had to rely on the Vegan's and their associates for nearly every important social reform so far. It's only fair we return the favour. Treasury?" She asked, turning to the functionary that was present in place of the Treasury Minister who was currently on Earth.

"You'll have final figures on your desk by the end of the afternoon, Chancellor, but to put it plainly, it is doable, if we slow down current spending on the Fringe Worlds to a like for like increase this year, there shouldn't be any major impediments to any other current spending plans." The functionary responded.

"We can sell the increase in subsidies as a minor change to the Fringe, not much of anything there that's too difficult, politically speaking, or media wise." Mikhail interceded.

Alanna nodded. "Very well, I'll make a final decision on that when I can take a look at the figures. Please add any pertinent information for the worlds effected - if we slow down too severely on projected growth in the Fringe who knows where that could end."

"Of course, Chancellor." The treasury functionary said, making notes on her holographic pad.

"Well, Ladies and Gentlemen, Anything Else?" Alanna asked, spreading her hands to the assorted functionaries, secretaries and ministers. Her focus turned to the Foreign Minister, Reinhard Adler, he was part of the old guard - but she had found him adaptable and importantly enough, adept at his work. This was even more important than ever, given the current galactic climate.

"Chancellor, firstly, we have received a communique from the Rolvian's, which has been transferred to your office as per protocol and is awaiting your personal response. In other matters, all reports from Intelligence and Diplomatic sources indicate that the Imperial Systems Commonwealth's parliament will vote to abrogate the Treaty of Detente. If they have not already done so." Reinhard said, matter of factly.

Alanna raised an eyebrow as Theodore spoke.

"It was to be expected. Half the galaxy doesn't pay attention to the spirit of it these days, let alone the letter." He said, leaving out the obvious that the Federation was complicit in being very carefully defiant of their obligations to that particular treaty. Though they had hardly been the first and definitely not the last.

"That is an.. accurate description, more or less. It may be that some powers react... poorly to no longer being constrained, though there is no immediate and direct threat to the Federation's borders as of this moment." Reinhard said, nodding as Theodore stated a simple "Agreed".

"It is of course incredibly likely that other powers will withdraw from the treaty completely and with haste." Reinhard continued. "I cannot say with certainty that any of them will view withdrawal as tantamount to a declaration of war, but I do not doubt that some will view it that way. However, Madam Chancellor, we do require a forthright and appropriate response." He finished.

Alanna waited for a moment, then spoke. "The Treaty has arguably kept meaningful peace reigning this long, but we all knew it would be fleeting. We all know the Federation agreed to it out of necessity, and I do agree it was necessary. Reinhard, once we have confirmation, please issue a.. restrained but appropriate diplomatic protest to unilateral abrogation of treaty obligations, for protocols sake. I doubt they'll even pay any notice to it, but of course have it mention that we will have to take action in accordance."

"You intend to withdraw from the Treaty?" Reinhard asked, though not in a way which indicated any form of shock, simply confirmation.

Alanna nodded. "It is a matter of foreign policy and it lies within the Councils remit to withdraw. We need not take it to the people. While I appreciate the irony given the Commonwealth's likely parliament vote, Given the scope of the treaty itself however I will submit it to Council Vote. Please issue a full and essential summons for that purpose, Mikhail, I trust you to see to that matter. However, only do so once you have confirmation from the Foreign Ministry of what the Commonwealth has done."

A nod from Mikhail was enough, and Reinhard nodded that he would of course make privy information as it was confirmed.

"Very well. Unless there is anything else, I believe I have some matters of my own to attend to. Ladies and Gentleman, The Council is dismissed."

----------
Office of the Chancellor.

The Office of the Chancellor was functional - in its own tower a small distance away from the main Assembly building, its offices served the Chancellor foremost amongst all things - and it needed not be an opulent place. The Office of the Chancellor itself changed from occupant to occupant, who brought their own things to make their mark and took their own things away again, in a even more literal handing over of the office.

So far, she had kept it simple. The only thing of any real value was the oak desk that she had paid more than enough for - not because Oak was rare in a traditional sense, it just never seemed to grow anywhere but Earth, which gave it a rarity of its own. It was not particularly old - having had many of the modern technological computational devices built into it that she needed in this office. She seated herself, her chair too was her own, having been brought from her study back on Terra Nova. Taking a moment, she spent a few seconds making sure her long red hair was still in place, and opened up state matters once more. The Rolvian Message took priority.

Rolvian Communique

Most honorable Chancellor Alanna Descoix of the Federation of Nations,

I have been asked to convey the following concerns of the Republic's Prime Speaker in writing. First, the easy requests. The work of our genetic engineers in the restoration of your homeworld continues apace, and we have successfully cloned a breeding pair of your "Siberian Tiger" from the samples provided. The mauling of one of our interns by the beasts was regrettable, but I'm told he was at fault for entering the enclosure of the creatures. We would like formal instruction on this matter - shall we deliver the pair to the agreed upon location, or shall we liquidate the beasts and attempt to recreate them with more agreeable temperaments? Next we will begin work on the "Sequoia" trees per our agreements.

Next, there is the matter of the Federation Cruiser Trident. We have been working diligently to salvage the vessel from orbit over our world of Manir, and the remains of those who lost their lives in the Great War are being gathered for honorable return, but the black box of the bridge is still missing. It is unlikely to ever be found after being struck by a torpedo so long ago. The survivors on the planet's surface have elected one Captain Morgan Arin to speak for them. They continue to claim asylum with the Republic of Rolvius, and it is the Prime Speaker's opinion that she does not feel they will be given a fair trial for the abandonment of the vessel - in her eyes, Morgan ordered an evacuation, not a mutiny. She will not remand the survivors into Federation custody until she has sufficient proof that these individuals will not be sentenced to death.

Finally, the matter of your politician Governor Harris Oril on the moon of Maya. One of our citizens, Doctor Miryala Foia, recently docked on Maya's prime territory to begin a Goodwill teaching assignment. After checking in with the University of Maya, she has not been heard from for 7 local days. My office reached out to Governor Oril and he has let it be known, in no uncertain terms, that Doctor Foia's disappearance is a matter of local concern only. I believe his exact words were "My people will look for her. You tree-embracing goat copulators only make trouble." To date, my sources say the planetary authorities have done nothing but file a missing person's report with the local police and the embassy. If the safety of our experts in Federation territory cannot be guaranteed, we will have to re-examine our commitments in restoring your world of Terra to its original biome.

The Prime Speaker's Servant awaits your reply.

~ Ambassador Chelia Volinae, Servant of the Republic of Rolvius

She took it in, and began to compose her response.

FedNat Response to Rolvian Communique

Your Excellency, Ambassador Chelia Volinae

The continued good work which the Rolvian Republic provides the people of Earth and the greater Federation of Nations cannot be understated, and firstly let me once again extend our thanks for your assistance. Your efforts combined with our own will no doubt shorten by far our initial estimates to near complete biosphere recovery. On the matter of the Tiger pair. Please extend my personal sympathies and the sympathies of the Federation as a whole to the family of the unfortunate individual caught out by natures fickle nature. We would prefer that no alterations be made to the genome, and that the pair be delivered as per normal. If you require anything in regards to recompense for injuries sustained, please forward any pertinent information to the Foreign Minister.

This is a difficult subject. As you know, the Federation's Penal Code has no death penalty for any charge other than mutiny during a time of war or national emergency, although such a penalty has not yet been enforced by the Federal Government - though of course, as you may know, several states of the Federation have pursued such legal proceedings with members of their Militia forces. Without the Black Box we cannot of course ascertain whether a genuine evacuation order was given, and as such the Navy cannot rescind the charge of mutiny. It would be for a trial to determine, and I cannot of course know which way such a matter would unfold - for that is a matter of evidence and for the courts. Standing on principle, however, I can enquire with the Ministry of Justice as to whether they intend to pursue the death penalty. However, as stated, as the Federal Government has never pursued this punishment for this charge, it is likely, though not certain, that it would not. I would also be happy to arrange a meeting between representatives of our Ministry of Justice and anyone of your choosing to discuss this difficult case.

On the subject of this final matter, we may be able to speed a resolution. All Police in the Federation are Federalised, as you may know, and as such you or your chosen representatives are fully within your rights to liase with the Federal Police on the matter of a missing foreign national. I apologise that this is not made entirely clear - and the Governor may be at fault for this, A matter I will look into. As Maya is a recently organised territory, it does not yet have state representation, which also makes matters easier as the local governmental apparatus is federally administered. I cannot, of course, personally intercede, but I am sure Justice and the Police High Commissioner will be glad to assist you fully and effectively in this case. It is my hope that Doctor Foia can be found, and in the circumstances she cannot, we may discuss the presence of Rolvian personnel directly advising investigatory teams.

~ Alanna Decroix,
With the Authority of the Office of the Chancellor,
Unum Liberum.

----------

--=FRCHS Hermione, Hospital Ship, Agdemnar System

The Hermione was the only official presence the Federation of Nations possessed in the Agdemnar System. It was notable in the sense that it was an "official" presence, unlike most. The Federation had not really reacted, or so it had seemed, to the Message. At the outbreak of "hostilities" in Agdemnar not long after, the Federation of Nations had very publicly and loudly stated its intent to provide humanitarian aid as per its want and remit, and had done just that, sent a hospital ship. Everyone likely thought it was a front for something else, but it submitted to infrequent "inspections" and now was mostly ignored by everyone unless they happened to have need of the re-purposed luxury liner's extensive and rather, actually, quite good medical facilities. Its Crew largely thought it was a miracle no-one had decided to just blow it up first, whilst a few thought that had even been the intent - to provide an official reason to place a military presence in the system.

That wasn't particularly true, but the loud noisy arrival of the ship - and its subsequent resupplies - had provided cover for a number of Pharos programme stealth ships to enter the system. For now they had watched, just in case. Whilst the Hermione was well shielded, it was largely defenceless. For the time being, at least, anyone who did make an attack run on the Hermione was likely in for a nasty surprise.

The Federation could afford to be patient for now. To Watch. Why waste lives when you can learn from the mistakes of others?

The Last Laugh

Federation of Nations

Federation of Nations

FedNat

Minor Belligerent in the Great War

General Information

Overview

The Federation of Nations is the modern governing system for humanity and aligned species in space largely covered by the initial expansionary phases of human colonization and exploration of the galaxy. Made up of dozens of constituent member states and power blocs, the Federation of Nations is ostensibly a direct democracy founded in the wake of the end of the entanglements of the colonial and bushfire conflicts conducted following the collapse of direct rule from Sol during the Solar War. The Federation of Nations is a sprawling morass of bureaucracy arguably only able solidify into a cohesive state thanks to the peace once afforded by the Ashtar. Everything can be said to be found in FedNat, and, often enough, its legal somewhere.

History

Space Age and the FTL Period

The ravages of ecological devastation wrought by a rapid planetary industrialisation and the waxing and waning of an age old planetary cycle was looking to be the precursor of a major third global conflict on Earth by the time of the mid 21st century. Meaningful Expansion into Space - beginning to be seen as a key component of fostering new technological development, resource acquisition and an outlet for a still growing population, was stifled either by inability or inaction. By 2050, only a handful of research bases existed on Luna and a scattering of private and public concerns had made temporary habitation of Mars. The massive Pacific Storm period of that same year ravaged southern China, parts of Japan and inundated the Philippines - shortly followed by a tumultuous Atlantic storm season that battered Iberia, the Caribbean and even forced the full employment of New York's own new sea defences. Rather than precipitating a conflict, a turn in the common politic seemed to take place. Truthfully, this likely had more to do with the Indian discovery of a mineral on Luna that came to be known as Devite. Functioning in a number of useful industrial concerns, its most powerful employment was one as a function for stabilising the artificial fusion process - effectively opening up early fusion power to humanity. In a unprecedented move largely based on realpolitik, the United Nations was first placed in control of off-world mining of the resource, in an effort to curtail the precipitation of a resource war. Over time, the United Nations would come to be the primary logistics for multiple off-world sites and colonies, even as these colonies operated under the local laws of their sponsors.

Over the next century, humanity explored and colonised its solar system, beginning the terraforming of Mars and employing the technologies it developed to stabilise the Earth, as well as increase human populations throughout the system. The development of the Rosskovsky-Baker Drive by a joint Anglo-Russian research team on Triton would be the beginning of the first colonial era under the auspices of the United Nations.

By this time, the United Nations was effectively a proto-federal system wide government. In space, a standardised UN Law applied, while each colony was effectively ruled either by nation states on Earth or their own granted local autonomous governments, they all relied on the United Nations anti-piracy forces and most major companies involved in shipping critical resources were directly controlled or influenced by the UN. The Early Colonial period would see the final shift to true federal governance, with the nationstates of Earth slotting into a new tier in the bureaucracy, with the United Nations becoming a system of elected officials and departments instead of agencies and appointees. Under the United Nations, the first colonial period of the era saw humanity spread itself across the local stellar sector.

The great migration of Humanity, once first out into the Solar System - and then into the now well known worlds of the core systems and the following expansionary clusters and fringes, is well documented. The secondary and tertiary times of the expansionary fleets and the numerous endeavours, private and otherwise, to venture into the unknown saw humans survey countless worlds over centuries.

By the time the United Nations became challenged by its creations and by political manoeuvring on Earth itself, Humanity had laid claim to hundreds of systems - and many did not answer to Earth. The ensuing strain, both economically, militarily and culturally, resulted in the great conflagration known as the Solar War.

The Solar War and its Aftermath

The Solar War is the first great conflict to be conducted in the era where space was the primary battleground. While smaller police operations and other such engagements had occurred throughout the colonial periods, none saw major fleets engaging, nor orbital bombardment or planetary operations on the scale seen in the Solar War.

Whilst given the name, and with most of the major fleet engagements largely taking place in Sol and the Core Worlds, the Solar War was not a conflict exclusive to the Sol System and its surrounding environs. It even saw conflict on the planetary surfaces of numerous systems, including Alpha Centauri, Sirius and Tau Ceti, particularly given the allegiance of some of the now old core worlds of humanity to new governance. It was the case however, that while many colonies had grown self sufficient, most loyal to the Earthbound government, and even some not, were to some degree, reliant on the industrial capacity of Sol - the crippling of Martian industry by its declaration of support for the Intersystems Alliance and the subsequent major ground war, the freezing of financial markets on Earth by the orbital engagements and bombardment of West Africa, and the ensuing destruction of much of the fleets of both the United Nations and the Intersystems Alliance that had been founded to challenge its somewhat draconian authority, amongst the moons of Jupiter - Also unleashed a plague of piracy amongst the space lanes. While the Intersystems Alliance was the eventual "loser" - Though it achieved its aim of nominal independence - The United Nations ability to project power and enforce it was gone, and conflicts began to rage between the colonies over resources and for political gain. Sol itself also fell into an era of civil strife, with millions fleeing Earth and the other worlds of the Solar System to its closest neighbour in the newly founded Centauri Republics of Alpha Centauri, Earths many colonies and even beyond.

On Earth, in many areas, civil governance became temporarily ineffective, with riots and temporary "committees for public safety" engaging in atrocities against marginalised groups or those considered somehow responsible for any manner of problems. While the United Nations restored order planetary wide within a few months, the damage to some groups such as the "new" emerging group of psionics was on a level classed by the United Nations as genocide - although its own judiciary only succeeded in trying a few of the primary figures it could gain evidence on. Many, though not all, surviving members of such marginalised groups left United Nations territory, and some even left governed human space altogether.

Numerous new states emerged from the human disapora - and many colonies joined new power blocs or waited in hope for the restoration of order, though some did so in vain. It took decades for both sides to re-establish themselves, and wars raged between independent colonies for much of it, though the UN and ISA would not come to blows again, much of their military strength spent and what remained irreplaceable for decades.

The Federation of Nations

The two main powers - the United Nations and Intersystems Alliance - ironically would be the ones to come together to truly re-establish the new order of the core of human space, albeit decades after their initial clash. The United Nations, keen to restore peace, and the Intersystems Alliance, never opposed to the governance it had once had but its implementation, eventually conceived the Federation of Nations, inviting many of the new power blocs of Humanity into its fold. While not successful in combining all of humanity under the same banner once again, the Federation of Nations was initially founded with its capital on Horizon in the Tau Ceti System, roughly equidistant between Earth and Trident, the capital of the Intersystems Alliance.

The initial founding members of the Federation of Nations consisted of the United Nations, comprising Sol and its loyal colonies, the Intersystems Alliance, and her dozen member states, many solitary independent colonies as well as the now moderate powers located in the Centauri Republics, the Reach Alliance, Vegan Commonality, Eridani Kingdom, the Altair Confederacy, Capellan Federation, United Colonial Commonwealth, The Apollo Concordiat and the Federated States of the Svoboda Cluster. Over time it has come to incorporate new states as colonies have been founded, chosen to join, new planetary states have been founded and appropriate thresholds have been reached, or of course, a necessary "police action" has been undertaken on another world. Of note is a small number of populations settled in FedNat space by other species, though no other non-human power has officially joined the Federation of Nations, though a number of alien powers could be considered aligned.

The early years of the Federation of Nations were tumultuous, still dealing with the after-effects of war and civil decay across the vastness of space inhabited by humanity decades after its founding. It is stated by some historians of the period that the Federation of Nations was likely headed towards another era of strife within itself, if not for the coming of the Ashtar. The Ashtar effectively removed the threat of armed responses to political problems, as well as prevent enmities of the past from escalating into conflict.

The Ashtar Period is thus considered a golden age domestically, though not in matters of foreign policy. Nonetheless, it was a period where the states of the Federation solidified and rebuilt together, creating a non-compulsory but far reaching direct democracy. Their disappearance initially shook the upper echelons of the government, but the core of the federations, now unified behind its charter and a now more than century long bond between its core members prevented any dissolution or dissent against the idea of the Federation itself, no matter how unwieldy its bureaucracy had become stitching disparate powers together.

The Great War

FedNat involvement in the Great War was initially limited, and given a history of traditional non-intervention in anything not considered human affairs or confronted with some form of great horror that would galvanize the populace into a war declaration, not out of character. Add into the mix that the military was undersized, arguably chronically underfunded for a state of the Federation's size and had largely concerned itself with matters of domestic security almost exclusively for decades, if not centuries, and full-scale involvement was a practical issue as well as a political one. However, matters of realpolitik and a renewal of humanities martial senses in the absence of the Ashtar saw a great boom in the military-industrial complex, buoyed by a sense of defending the Federation in order to defend ones nation - and a true war footing declaration only secured by the slimmest of margins both in political circles and from the great consensus of the grand democracy. FedNat forces initially took no immediate "side" and operated largely as independent generally largely auxiliary forces - taking roles akin to escort duty and patrol, largely of merchant convoys and refugee flotillas - an area in which they were eminently qualified. Second Wave newbuilds entered the conflict to support nominal allies in front-line combat and fared competently for their experience level, though combat losses in such engagements were considered unsustainable for production levels at the time. By the time FedNat involvement was looking to be escalated, with formal relationships created, and as new shipyards came online and began to churn out designs created from hard earned experience and development - the peace treaty became the prime focus.

FedNat was a grudging signatory, if only because many of its newbuild's now violated treaty obligations, but saw the opportunity to, at least, not suffer any real war damage in its own territory and to use what could be argued, at the very least, as not a loss to solidify the Federation in the new era. The Federation is no doubt helped, or hindered, in its diplomacy of the modern, post Great War era if only because humans seem to get and then reside, everywhere.

Major Holdings

Horizon, Capital of FedNat:
Horizon is a gleaming, cosmopolitan world of planned cities, vast tracts of nature and breathtaking spires that house the numerous elements of bureaucracy that attempt to nudge the members of the Federation of Nations one way or another. Once a sedate, agricultural world, Horizon has become the beating heart of humanity where its many now far flung cultures meet and meld. Home to most of the primary organs of federal government in some way or another, Horizon and the system Tau Ceti are also notable for being under Federal Authority - that is, they belong directly to the FedNat itself.

Earth:
Earth is the cradle of humanity, though she has long since sent millions, if not billions, of her children into the stars. Modern Earth barely breaks the population it once had in 2100, and has long since managed to, if not recover, deal with the ravages of centuries of industrial development and ecological issues, as well as repair from the brief but damaging bombardment of the Solar War. Earth serves as capital for the United Nations, and standards of living on Earth are amongst the highest in the Federation. Earth's financial markets are also unparalleled in the Federation, and she serves as a nexus for the Sol System, where an incredible amount of industrial capacity churns out manufactured goods of all varieties.

Trident:
Trident is arguably a learned mans haven - whilst also serving as capital for the Intersystems Alliance. Trident is a world of boundless oceans, broken only by small island chains and a singular grand continent, criss-crossed with rivers. In nearly all of its conurbations stand grand universities and halls of learning, where the greatest minds in the Federation come to debate, learn, create and at times, dictate.

Chiron:
Chiron stands as capital for the Centauri Republics, and is the second oldest extra-solar colony founded by humanity behind Terra Nova in Sirius. The Centauri Republics are the most free and wild places in the Federation, barely adhering to the letter of Federal Law, but never without malice. Chiron stands at the heart of this, setting cultural trends and giving birth to the great artists of all stripes in the modern era.

Bastion:
Bastion is another federal controlled territory, and one committed to the upkeep of the Federation of Nations existence. Bastion - and its namesake system, is a hive of military activity. With numerous prototype shipyards and testing ranges, many ships are born and die here in the crucible of invention, whilst the Federal Military organises the numerous assortment of state militias and federal detachments from its complexes both in orbit and on the surface of Bastion.

Demographics

Population

The Overwhelming majority of the population of the Federation of Nations is humanity, in its many colours and derivations, including those who have undergone the legal genetic procedures to operate in certain environments or occupations. While small alien populations are present and the Federation actively encourages the immigration and cultural amalgamation of such populations, most barely meet the percentage mark.

Humans are a varied sort, though within the Federation strict federal laws and cultural norms have prevented the mass manipulation of the human genome except in the affairs of general health, mainly curing disease and ailments that have dogged humanity for generations. Modern humanity, male and female, ranges in height, weight, colour and strength depending on which world they are from, the cultural background they draw from and which state laws may have also been imposed in regards to genetic alteration. A bulky asteroid miner from the fringe may only be five feet tall but built like a tank, whilst a executive from Horizon may be six foot five and as lithe as an elf from fiction.

Society

Depending on where in the Federation you are and the career you have chosen, much can vary. However, the key would be where you have chosen, what you have chosen to do. Choice is king in the Federation - and whilst Federal and State Law may sometimes impose on those choices, you can likely find somewhere to make a go of it where you'd barely notice they existed at all. Nearly all major legislation is subject to referendum, though voting is not compulsory, and nearly everyone has the capacity to vote on the spot, either through device or implant. As a consequence, non-entertainment media is very information heavy, as nearly all sources attempt to inform or protest this or that.

Life in the Federation is, despite all its freedoms, heavy on the bureaucracy. Whilst thankfully it is relatively quick to act, everything has a "paper trail" and nearly everything goes through one agency or another. If the State has to know, the Federal Government knows, and if the Federal Government knows, then you can be sure the State government needs that written down too. However, all citizens are equal, and only very infrequently will grease effect any of the bureaucracy to action with less than it should have or faster than it normally would. As anyone born in the Federation is granted citizenship, and there is a pervasive social security net weaved into ones life from birth, much of the issues of such a bureaucracy for the common man or woman is largely overcome early on. However, obtaining citizenship via immigration and residency is a long process, though arguably worth the effort.

Culturally and politically the society of the Federation is, however, wildly different from planet to planet, sometimes even within the same planet depending on its history. The Centauri Republics all vary on even a basic level like fashion and slang from republic to republic, while the Vegan Commonalities implementation of futuro-marxism sees nearly every citizen taught and near raised in a identical way, leading to a form of subconscious uniformity.

Civil rights in nearly all respects are paramount, and the various religions of Old Earth and the new religions that have come since or amalgamated from those of old have been left with basic legal protections by Federal Law, with some member states giving more standing based on their own state laws that do not abrogate the Federal Charter. A few member worlds or states could be considered theocracies but all adhere to the Federal Charter, ensuring a high degree of freedom even on some of the more conservative theologically obsessed worlds. The most prevalent organised religion of the modern era is the Church of Humanity, a amalgamated pan-abrahamic monotheistic religion which has taken the core tenets of most modern monotheistic religions and turned it into one collective organised religion, though its progenitors in organised religion such as the Catholic church still exist with large numbers of followers. However, in essence, the right to religious beliefs are protected, whilst no religion is officially endorsed by the Federal Government or its founding charter.

The Federation has in its predecessors gone through long periods of stagnation or technological recession for many reasons, and while the modern Federation has attained a new height in technological progress, it has not been entirely uniform or embraced in all corners - and in some cases even ancient ships from the Solar War could be argued to be of equivalency to some modern designs. Some areas of the Federation are thus often quaintly at odds with even their own planetary capitals or neighbouring colonies, though for the most part these communities do not shun the benefits of newer technology, simply taking far longer to integrate or accept changes to communities that may have gone back to basics and have long prospered from them.

Federation families vary based on state, but even in the most conservative, same-sex marriage is legal, and Federal programs even support the creation of children from same-sex parents utilizing legal genetic procedures. Families are typically traditional in structure in most of the Federation, although in some areas multiple sets of parents and their children and extended families may live together for various reasons.

Psionically gifted individuals of any power have a formerly troubled place in the Federation and its member states, historically ignored, then a target of violence, although civil and not mandated by government, lead to the flight or death of many of these individuals - whether a rare product of the universe or the creation of human science. Modern Psionically gifted individuals are somewhat rare, though given the scope of the Federation far from few in number. With historical matters no longer applicable, however, many find occupations in healthcare, justice, the intelligence services and in a few elite military units.

Despite a history of engagement with human populations where found and a range of diplomatic actions with starfaring species, the Federation of Nations has a strict non-interference policy with pre-FTL sapient life forms in its own territories. The Federation and its preceding member states have always enforced such policies with the only time any exceptions being undertaken being during the period following the Solar War, those these exceptions did not result in any recorded contact with such sapient species. Federation Policy effectively prevents settlement of any world with an indigenous population which is not considered to have FTL capability, unless that population is either human (as has been the case with a number of "forgotten" colonies preceeding, during, and after the establishment of the Federation) or another known species that possesses the capability. It does not prevent observation, however, and many Federation science teams can be located where such species are present. All Federation installations other than observatory posts in such systems are temporary, and very few observation teams conduct regular stealthed ground operations. A dozen such species and consequently systems exist in Federation territory, and data and even media such as documentaries from such systems has a moderate following from the general populace. Non-interference by the Federation however is strictly limited to contact and development, and Federation ships have eliminated possible threats to such sapients on a number of occasions, such as potential pirate slaving raids or natural occurrences such as extinction level stellar objects under the Guardian protocol section of its non-interference policy. A notable psuedo-exception exists on the planet Lascaux, where a mammalian medieval era civilization present on two neighbouring continents exists without contact with a human presence on its third continent due to the planets strategic location.

Economy

The Economy of the Federation of Nations is a diversified and sprawling mass of corporations, federal special industries, self-employed venturists, state owned industries, conglomerates and co-operatives and everything in between. It is a largely efficient beast, though certain industries suffer from bureaucratic legalese and overmanagement, whilst some of its corporations suffer from restrictive legal codes depending on state.

A significant portion of the economy is fuelled by Devite exploitation, as Devite remains the key catalyst in stable Terran derived fusion. Centuries of development have seen the required raw Devite required for any single reactor over a period of time vastly reduced, as well as power output of Devite reactors exceeding the wildest expectations of their inventors, but synthetic Devite is extremely costly to produce and requires ideal conditions, whilst the prevalence of Fusion power in nearly all areas of life requires, even with minimal material required, a vast system of surveying, exploitation and refining. Many Devite Refineries are located near Gas Giants, were other raw materials combined in the fusion process are collected and refined into ready to use "fuel" shipments for everything ranging from planetary power plants to logistics vessels.

Sol remains the largest gross stellar product of the Federation of Nations, though it is closely followed by Epsilon Eridani and Tau Ceti - though in terms of financial clout they cannot challenge the aged and learned markets of Hong Kong, Moscow, Frankfurt, London, New York and Brasilia. Nor do many systems possess the built up refining capacity available to Sol. Consequently much of the liquid assets of numerous organisations move through Earth rather than Horizon, and wealth is slow to move to the lesser developed areas of the Federation.

The re-development of a true military-industrial complex and defence industry has seen a boom across multiple sectors of the economy - and has moved many out of basic assistance programmes ran by the Federal Government, which provide a basic standard of living to all citizens irrespective of anything else. Such savings have been re-invested in a continuing boom of ship construction and military manufacture, rather than being invested directly into the states and colonies of the fringe, however, though resentment has been offset by many of these same states and colonies benefiting from increased military presences and infrastructure to support them.

Consequently the economy is varied, dynamic and generally in an upswing, though opportunities can diminish the farther from the core worlds you are.

Government

The Federal Government is, despite its dozens of constituent agencies and departments, relatively easy to break down into a number of overarching categories.

The Federal Council sits at the top of the Federal Hierarchy, consisting of the Chancellor, Deputy Chancellor, the head of every department and agency as well as the Speaker of the Assembly, who comprise the effective Cabinet of the government. The Chancellor of the Council exercises a degree of final executive power, whilst the Council as a whole executes a power of veto in regards to "acts of the Chancellor" - that is, executive powers that the Chancellor may call upon without the consent of the Assembly. This Veto requires at least half of the Council's support, but forms a check on the powers of the Chancellor even in times of emergency. The Council as such oversees the federation and implements high level policies, whilst the Assembly deals with the general political scene of FedNat. Any Decision reached by the Federal Council that is not reached by full assent is able to be challenged by the Assembly, though this right is rarely invoked.

The Assembly of Nations is effectively the parliament of the Federation of Nations, comprising delegates elected on six year terms by planetary elections overseen by local governmental authorities, be they federal or state. The Assembly sits in session most of the year, debating policy, proposing legislation for referenda by the grand direct democracy of all and representing the concerns of their respective states and constituencies. Assemblymen and Assemblywomen are the only ones eligible for posts considered Cabinet posts, and as such all important offices in the Federation are overseen by directly elected representatives. All Assembly members are also subject to recall and subsequent re-election, or not, by their electorate at any time.

The Advisory Board, while holding no real legal power, serves both the Assembly and Council through its Corporate Board, Starborn Collective and Board of Settlement, with the Corporate Board representing corporate concerns not covered by local state or federal law, The Starborn Collective representing all independent stations and installations not covered elsewhere, while the Board of Settlement provides a voice for individuals and settlers not yet incorporated into a state or eligible for a direct vote in referenda.

State Governments are those governments, such as the United Nations or Eridani Kingdom, who administrate the territories of their constituent states. While States agree to implement federal law, they also possess a number of domestic freedoms in regard to certain areas not covered by the Federation Charter or not within the remit of federal authority. State Governments are also required to support domestic armed forces for the purpose of anti-piracy and defense, though they may not raise local police forces, with all police being Federalised.

Referenda are undertaken for every piece of legislation not concerning foreign policy and trade policy. In the latter, referenda are only issued if legislation is challenged by a grand petition or at the request of a state, or in the case of declarations of war. Voting is not compulsory for referenda, much as in normal elections and other such things, but the pervasiveness of the ability to vote from nearly anywhere means there is often a high uptake, even if some issue "null votes" - choosing no option. Several referenda have resoundingly had null votes and consequently went back to the Assembly for further discussion.

Member States of the Federation of Nations

What follows is a list of notable Member States of the Federation, notably excluding singular-system polities and similar.

United Nations (of Earth) - The United Nations is itself a federal government comprising multiple systems, most of which are densely populated and comprise a significant portion of the "core worlds" of Humanity. Economically powerful and culturally ascendant, its politicians opinions often carry more weight than otherwise would be thought. It is Governed from New York, on Earth in the Sol System.

Intersystems Alliance - The Intersystems Alliance is another federal style government comprising multiple systems, and including several member states with their own constituent territories. The Intersystems Alliance is a coreward polity, and consequently is generally densely populated and economy advanced. It is governed from Heraclea, on Trident in the Poseidon System.

Centauri Republics - While the Centauri Republics only administer a handful of systems, its close position to the coreworlds and status as one of those premier core systems has given it unrivalled political, cultural and economic clout. It is governed from Marlene, on Chiron in the Alpha Centauri System.

Reach Alliance - the Reach Alliance was founded as a confederation of multiple struggling mid-range and outer colonies, in the Modern Era, the Reach Alliance is centered around a few cosmopolitan worlds not dissimilar from the coreworlds of Humanity, with many of its colonies moderately populated and largely concerned with agriculture and mid-level industries. It is governed from Castellyr, on Tyrene in the Florentine System.

Vegan Commonality - the Vegan Commonality is a multi-system state based around the ideology of futuro-marxism-leninism, essentially a more up to date and thanks to intelligent AI and less resource scarcity, workable ideology. The Commonality is effectively governed by supercomputers, though these AI are not sapient beings. This has enabled a truly communal approach to living and ownership, though in a quasi-limbo with allowances for the Federal Charter. The Commonality is governed from Karl Marx City, on Vega Prime in the Vega System.

Eridani Kingdom - the Eridani Kingdom is the largest mid-level power operating in the Coreworlds of Humanity and reaching into the mid-expansionary areas of human space. A centre for the Church of Humanity and modern Anglo-Saxon culture, the state itself is governed by a Constitutional Monarchy. The Eridani Kingdom is ruled from Avalon, on Atlantica in the Epsilon Eridani System.

Altair Confederacy - founded by a Francophone based colonial expeditionary group prior to the Solar War, and located in territory largely considered "mid" - that is, not on the fringe but not in the coreworlds, the Altair Confederacy is a confederation of a dozen member worlds and their constituent territories based around the leadership of Altair itself. The Altair Confederacy is governed from Nouvelle Paris, on Couer, in the Altair System.

Capellan Federation - The Capellan Federation was a fringe power - and largely still is, though its core members are comparable to the hub worlds of the mid-territories. The Federation was luckily a recipient of much of the collapsed Mediterranean administrative zones refugees during the aftermath of the Solar War - this wealth and patronage network has enabled it to prosper faster than similar powers. The Capellan Federation is governed from Porto Novo on Galicia, in the Capella System.

United Colonial Commonwealth - The United Colonial Commonwealth represented an attempt at forming a proto-Federation of Nations, comprised of hundreds of disparate worlds largely in the fringe and mid-territories of human known space, the United Colonial Commonwealth lacked the backing of major coreward human territories and began to flounder prior to the Federation of Nation's establishment. It consequently immediately joined but continued its federal governance of its member worlds and territories. The United Colonial Commonwealth is governed from New Phoenix, on Port Victoria in the Freedom's Star Star System.

The Apollo Concordiat - The Apollo Concordiat is a single-state parliamentary democracy that governs much of the southern spur of what once UN territory in the mid-territories and fringe of human space. A progressive state, it was nonetheless a sufferer, despite its quick establishment, in the era post-Solar War, dealing with large amounts of piracy and worlds regressing technologically and economically. Membership in the Federation ended this, and the Apollo Concordiat is the primary bastion of human civilization pushing southwards. It is governed from Apollopolis, on Apollo in the Terrene System.

Federated States of the Svoboda Cluster - The pan-slavic movement was utilized by the United Nations, prior to the Solar War, to settle a dense cluster of stars for the purposes of Devite extraction. With the Solar War, the Svoboda cluster as it had come to be known established itself as a series of Federated States with ties back to their former countries on Earth enabling a prosperous trading relationship to establish. The Svoboda Cluster's corporations today comprise a significant amount of total tonnage in the Merchant Marine and in private Devite mining and refining ventures. The Federated States of the Svoboda Cluster is governed from Novvy Moskva, in the Rossiya system.

Republics of Tiānkōng de Zhōngguó - Formally established by the Federation of Nations itself 20 years after its own founding, Tiānkōng de Zhōngguó - or informally "China of the Sky" brought together nearly a hundred vying polities on multiple worlds. Comprised mainly of ethnically Han Chinese colonies founded in the wake of the diaspora following free-for-all colonial permits granted prior to the Solar War. The Federation brought together these states as republics and functionally bound them together for purposes of governance and due to shared cultural heritage. Tiānkōng de Zhōngguó is governed from Xingji, on Wenzhou in the Zhejiang System.

Bantu Allegiance - Similar to Tiānkōng de Zhōngguó, the Bantu Allegiance was formed from the westward spur of freeform colonies created through the non-selective processes instituted by the U.N. in its latter days of premier governance. Drawn from multiple African states, though primarily of the over-arching Bantu peoples, The Allegiance was not an extant state until formed out of the multiple polities found by the Federation in its process of re-establishing authority over human space. The Bantu Allegiance is governed from Mandela City, on Mandela in the Natal System

Bolivarian Technocracy - Discovered in a cluster of stars in the Federation's exploratory phases shortly after founding, the Bolivarian Technocracy was a singular polity covering multiple systems that had largely been founded by a private scientific foundation drawing candidates from primarily spanish-speaking countries and colony worlds. The Technocracy had managed to keep its colonial efforts secret - especially during the Solar War and its aftermath, and had founded a reasonably self-sufficient and scientifically advanced state. After some convincing, the Technocracy officially joined the Federation as a member state. The Bolivarian Technocracy is governed from Progreso, on Puerto Simon in the Bolivar System.

First Empire of the Stars - Known locally as Hoshi no Saisho no Teikoku, the First Empire of the Stars has a story older than some of the member states of the Federation. Initially chartered as a Japanese sponsored colonial effort under U.N. auspices, contact with the expedition, notably with a member of the Imperial Family on board, was lost a good many years before the advent of the Solar War. The Empire was rediscovered by Federation surveyors in the eastwards fringe 15 years after the Federation's founding, having entered a spatial distortion of some kind that took it far beyond the limits of human space at the time. Founding a number of colonies in a number of systems, the Empire came to be a reasonably industrially proficient and technically progressed state, though suffering from a lack of economic dynamism that the Federation soon brought. Membership was seen benificial, much as it had been to Japan in the United Nations, and consequently the Empire joined. It is ruled from New Tokyo, on Atarashii in the Honshu System.

Technological Information

The Federation of Nations is largely equal to its contemporaries in the multiple fields of military and civilian technologies, even if employing different methods or utilising dissimilar technologies for the same purposes. Miniaturisation and automation is prevalent in a large scale in the civilian sector, and to an extent in the military sector.

Major Techs

Accelerated Physics
While any sufficiently advanced civilization can create an energy weapon, be it plasma, laser, or particle, the weapon of choice for the Federation was no doubt chosen and honed to finesse by a few simple elements honed from observation and rigorous refinement in the Great War complimented by advances in power generation and miniaturisation. By applying initially unthinkable techniques and honing methods of theory into practical power application while also reducing stress on components, the ability to harness greater stable energy, cycled faster and maintained further has given Federal particle lances and high-capacity cannon banks and energy torpedo launches more bang for their buck than was thought capable before the war.

Advanced Miniaturisation:
The greatest gifts of the corporate community were arguably the continued drive on, perhaps ironically, reducing the workload on logistics and depot storage, with investigation and luck, elements of miniaturisation that must of borrowed from advanced jump theory at some point were identifiable, allowing the revolutionary employment of techniques that dramatically reduced the size of numerous every day components, allowing greater economic dividends from resourcing concerns and every day storage right up to civilian and military applications. FedNat ships of equivalent sizes, for example, can, on average simply "fit more".

Chemical Catalyst:
An innovation brought about by the flora and limited fauna of Atlantica in the Eridani Kingdom, Chemical Catalysts drastically changed construction techniques when its applications were understood. By employing specific chemical reactions learned from observing and testing, materials, such as the metal sheets used in early ship construction, could be bonded together at a chemical level rather than riveted or bolted together, with obvious implications. Rather than relying purely on the untested avenue of nano-technology at the time, or on the unwieldy concepts of energy to matter based pre-fabrication, simple mother nature, albeit her alien side, have enabled Federation to construct buildings and ships that are essentially one single element rather than many, with varying applicable results.

Advancements of Intelligence:
While the people of the Federation have remained largely apart from the runaway prospects of biological tampering, overbearing cybernetic enhancements and unrestricted AI research, there is no denying that the measured, methodological approach to advancements in Artificial Intelligence, Gene-therapies and a near un-rivalled art in the field of neuro-surgery have gifted the Federation with a unique insight into what a smarter human is, and how to make a smarter computer based upon the understanding of sapient intelligence as manifested in humanity. While Federal cultures embrace the treatment of ills enabled by the above, it has largely not indulged in attempting to create the perfect human - though one cannot deny that some of these lesser procedures must be utilized, by the very least, its intelligence community - and it has no qualms about creating the perfect artificial intelligence, if one so can. "Dumb" smart-AI are consequently a frequent occurrence in the management and every day life of Urban Centres, Foreign and Domestic Intelligence Analysis and in the operation of military craft, and it is likely only a matter of time before pandora's box is opened on a truly unrestricted intelligence intentionally created by the Federation.

Unseen, Unharmed:
Understanding that the sprawling demesne of the Federation is vulnerable to attack from greater powers, Federal obsessions both with intelligence analysis practical and theoretical, with its history in rooting out threats to its mercantile marine have spawned a legacy of a robust intelligence agency - and one backed up by government funds. The most prominent legacy is one of the Pharos Stealth Program - with the associated ships and crews effectively the eyes, ears, and daggers in the dark of the Federal Government, and even some of its corporations. Though varying at times from the basic, core design, the technology at play is intended to emulate the most critical components of stealth and strike, playing the dangerous game of hide and often, seek, in the dark depths of space, employing a mix of advanced construction techniques, basic technological advancement and the honing of electronic trickery to remain shrouded in the dark.

Military Information

Military Overview

The Federal Military

The Federal Military is at its core an academy based, voluntary system which makes up the majority of peace and war time troops. It consists of three official branches and their constituent subbranches - The Unified Navy of Nations, often referred to as Unified Fleet/Navy or the Federal Navy, The Combined Marine Corps and the Associated Intelligence Services (AIS).

The Federation commits to the concept of war and its associated doctrines with the matter of enforcing its survival through punching above its weight with, if not superior, then at least sufficient applicable force to make concepts such as invasion of Federal territory itself too bloody to entertain. The strength of the Federal Military is consequently dependent on its elite backbone found within the co-operating branches of the Marine Corps and Navy and the application of the ground forces, ideally never at all, and only when occupation is paramount. The Federation of Nations consequently relies heavily on reconnaissance, advanced deceptive electronics and further its intelligence services and the standing defensive strength of its Navy to deter aggressors and ultimately resolve conflicts - preferably before they enlarge and threaten Horizon itself.

The Combined Marine Corps
The Combined Marine Corps/FedMar are a small but highly trained force mostly centered around, primarily, small corps sized Marine Groups who can be rapidly deployed or withdrawn. The Federation maintains a training regimen for "army" grouped size operations of Marines in concert with standard infantrymen. Each State maintains a militia that can be suborned to the Marine Corps Command - as defined under the Federal Charter - and they are the ones responsible for the large part of peace time troop deployments and maintaining a standing defence force of infantrymen and associated equipment for the benefit of the Federation's Security.

Federal Marines are typically a moderately armoured, highly mobile force trained primarily in securing space-borne assets in capture or seizure operations and in insertion into contested areas to sever command and control networks by seizure of essential enemy ground assets. Marines consequently rely on speed, agility, and an efficient utilization of intelligence and and other support to effectively cripple an enemy and eliminate them piecemeal, though elements of "bulwark" or heavily armoured marines exist.

The Army at large however, does maintain an appropriate level of vehicle based support, although utilization of these assets, in doctrine, at least, requires orbital and air superiority.

The Unified Navy
The Unified Navy of Nations consists of a number of Fleets and dedicated Strike Battlegroups. Prevailing doctrine - in the case of offensive operations, would be for ships to switch jurisdiction to the regional command which most required them. The Federal Military has, largely, effected a unique mix of strong low level initiative and higher level lead by task - rather than a top to bottom lead by order doctrine that has been proved ineffective in most situations.

Fleet Doctrine relies on large, "ships of the line" supported by its smaller cousins and screening by varying numbers of picket forces. The Navy is currently coordinated from Beckett Spire on Bastion, with orbital mirroring of operations conducted from Galatis Station.

Associated Intelligence Service
Intelligence is paramount in any operation, and the Federation has begun to take this idea to the fore. The Associated Intelligence Service itself is arguably a "holding company" for intelligence from numerous sources, states and agencies, but has its own agents, agenda, and has ultimate control over all intelligence operations and branches, from domestic to foreign, as well as far reaching authority to accomplish its objectives with plausible deniability. The AIS remains free, largely, of political manoeuvring or games of influence by its control being tied into the civil service - however, it is overseen by an appointed minister selected by the Federal Council.

State Militias:
With States maintaining ground forces for defence purposes and to be suborned into Army units in times of war, Militias also include starships that can be requisitioned for offensive purposes or utilized in defensive ones. However under the remit of State Militias are a number of military groups employed by member states in their past or present that also provide elite units to the Federal Military, such as the Eridani Lords Templar or the Reach 21st Bloodroses.

Fleet Equipment

This Article Serves to provide a brief look at common Federal Naval Equipment, including vessels typically reserved for civilian duty but often found occupying military logistical roles. The Unified Navy has largely scrapped, phased out or retrofitted its lighter pre-war designs, with none in front-line service, and has nearly completely eliminated all pre-great war large ships from its reserve fleets. Most modern reserves are filled with the ad-hoc design "new builds" of the Great War, most of which violated treaty obligations and had to be stripped down or outright scapped, as well as vessels from the era of the treaty, which are now being replaced with modern, effective ships since the completion of front-line warships.

FNT Argos Transport

The industrious and aged Argos has become the standard military transport vehicle for the fleet. Argos sometimes carry new weapons and combat craft prototypes to and from testing grounds or to front-line deployment positions. Military VIPs occasionally commandeer Argos' to travel from star system to star system in some semblance of comfort. Argos are most often used as assault transports, carrying squads of Marines through heavy flak to board enemy vessels that Command has decided to capture rather than destroy. The Argos improved upon on its predecessor, the FNT Elysium, greatly increasing transport capacity, and is generally much more survivable due to much heavier armor. Defensive armament, however, remained deficient at only 2 Turret mounts and the Argos still requires escort to survive hostile situations.

FNL Anemoi


Logistics vessels are the newest class of support vessels commissioned by the Federal navy. These mammoth ships serve as an all-around support ship, combining freight hauling capabilities with field repair stations and medical facilities. They are an indispensable asset to long-range battle groups that are expected to undergo long-term operations far from friendly outposts. They are however, effectively battleship sized craft with the armament of a freighter, and require the appropriate defense afforded to them.

The Anemoi however effectively allows a fleet or task force to operate at great lengths of time without a considerable supply chain or infrastructure to support federal vessels.

FNSS Oculus


The Oculus is a class of fleet support ship designed to provide dedicated ECM/ECCM cover, sensor coverage and other similar tasks and roles in exclusivity to all else. The designs signature dome provides it with a dedicated sensor suite that can be fed into small fleet elements that may lack comprehensive systems or are operating away from other support.

Strike Craft:

FNF Loki:

The Loki is a Capellan-designed fighter that was used by the Capellan Federation just before the Great War for domestic security and then put into production as a stealth fighter by the Federation. Its hull and reactor were specially designed to make it invisible to nearly all forms of detection sensors. However, a minor flaw in its design, discovered shortly after the destruction of the FBB Krios, nearly completely nullified the Loki's stealth capabilities, reducing it into a heavily armed reconnaissance fighter. It later became an staple part of the Federation's fighter forces during the Great War. Its high speed, weapons compatibility, and maneuverability is offset by its low armor and weapons capacity. All the same, the Loki remains a capable heavy recon fighter - while not invisible, remaining difficult to detect.

The Loki is armed with 2 Primary Cannon Banks of 2 Guns each, and has space for upto 20 Secondaries in its two side mounts.

FNF Myrmidon:

A result of the "New Navy Project" undertaken by the Federation, Kamiko Aeronautical’s FNF Myrmidon replaced the Ulysses as the Alliance’s primary space superiority fighter. The Mymidon has received high marks for speed, maneuverability, armor, and loadout. An ultra-efficient hull configuration provides for the mounting of three secondary fire control systems, a first for Federation fighters. This versatility enables space superiority squadrons to fulfill a range of combat roles, from light assault to heavy reconnaissance. In the Deness system, the 22nd Starknight's of the FNC Perachora have demonstrated the effectiveness of the Myrmidon against pirate and insurrectionist forces alike.

The Myrmidon is armed with 1 Primary Cannon Bank and 1 Secondary, of 4 and 2 Guns each respectively. The Myrmidon retains space for up to 80 secondaries in 3 Banks, depending on missile type.

FNF Perseus:

The FNF Perseus was and is the newest fighter in the Federal arsenal. Slated to replace the aging Valkyrie as the Federations primary interceptor, the Perseus's high max speed and maneuverability make it ideal to hunt and destroy enemy bombers. Federation fighters have been assigned to the 1st Battle Group on a trial basis, with wide deployment expected after the OpEval period. Primary weapons (of 2 Banks totaling 4 guns) include the Subach HL-7 and Prometheus cannon, with secondary loads of Harpoon and Hornet missiles, of which she can carry up to 80 in 2 banks. Preliminary results have shown the Perseus to be a superb fighter.

FNF Hercules Mk2:

The former FNF Hercules Mark II is the next generation of Federal heavy assault fighter. Introduced during the Great War, the original Herc's balance of firepower and maneuverability made it the most versatile strike fighter in the fleet. Some military historians have claimed the Hercules single handedly ended piracy in the Reach, citing its deployment in key battles with pirate forces near the end of the Great War. Implementing recent advances in fusion drive technology, the Mark II improves the assault fighter's speed and maneuverability without sacrificing loadout capacity.

The Hercules is armed with 2 well placed cannon banks of 2 Guns each, and retains space for 180 Secondaries in its two missile banks.

FNF Erinyes:

A result of the "New Navy Project", the FNF Erinyes craft are still regarded as being fresh off the drawing boards of Hermes Dynamics. Though fast and heavily armored, their main attraction is firepower. With two banks totaling eight primary guns and two secondary weapon bays with a capacity for 90 secondaries, Erinyes are at the top of the combat craft food chain. Both sets of weapon banks have been designed to maximize compatibility with the greatest possible number of weapon system. Erinyes-class ships are being evenly distributed through the ITA fleet, but only elite pilots are currently authorized to fly them.

FNB Ursa:

The FNB Ursa is the slowest bomber in the Federation fleet. What it lacks in speed, however, it more than makes up with its massive payload. The Ursa was the first bomber designed specifically to destroy capital ships. With a rack of Helios bombs, in addition to a standard complement of Hornet missiles and Prometheus cannon, a squadron of Ursas can take out a battleship if it is caught without support. Ursas have the highest shielding of any bomber, along with a AIS-designed hyper-dense hull. These help ensure that the Ursa gets close enough to deliver its payload and possibly even survive the escape.

The Ursa hosts 2 Primary banks totaling 4 guns each and retains capacity for 240 Secondaries.

FNB Zeus:

Another product of former AIS R&D, the Zeus strike bomber is a worthy successor to the Athena. Its balanced design and increased reactor capacity give it remarkable speed for a bomber, yet still remains capable of carrying the powerful capital cracker bombs. These features make the Zeus a versatile and effective weapon against capital ships. The FNB Zeus is the fastest of all currently active Federal bombers. It replaced the fleet's old Athena bombers as they were mothballed during the years following the Great War. Though slightly slower than the Athena, the Zeus's heavier armor and armament give it a much better battlezone survivability rate.

The Zeus hosts 2 Primary banks totaling 4 guns each and retains capacity for 120 Secondaries.

Support Vessels:

FNCv Minos


The Minos is the most prolific vessel in the Federation Navy - easy to construct, requiring a small crew and yet moderately armed and defended, it serves as the main element of patrol forces, picket forces and is the main element of far flung trade defense, outpost cover and reconnaissance conducted by the Federation's military. The Minos is also a favourite for colonial militias, not requiring orbital infrastructure to produce or maintain.

FNCv Bellerophon Class Corvette


The FNCv Bellerophon Corvette was the first corvette design to enter service in place of the aging Eclipse design, and was the first ship of her class to mount modern weapons such as the Trinity-class main cannon. The Bellerophon, while sporting more turrets than the average Eclipse Corvette, is not as heavily armored as more recent designs, and her Trinity Cannon configuration is noticably weaker than that of the larger Chimera class. The Bellerophon has thus become the main escort vessel of the Federation fleet, Bellerophon-class multi-role corvettes fill the role of anti-ship combat and capital escort admirably. Possessing a anti-capital ship beam array and several short-ranged heavy turrets that provide significant firepower, the Bellerophon is also blessed with a surplus of reactor energy to provide an appreciable boost in speed.

FNFG Chimera Class Frigate:


The FNFG Chimera is the latest frigate design produced by the Federal Navy. Mounting three very powerful long-range beams in a forward configuration, the Chimera is designed specifically to engage craft at range and inflict maximal damage before coming in to weapons range of its target. The Trinity-class main cannons are derivatives of Mesonic technology, extremely powerful but so power-hungry that plasma must be vented directly from the main reactors to fire. The Chimera is more heavily armored than its lighter cousin, the Bellerophon. The result is a slower-propulsed but better-armed variant of the Bellerophon chassis, with new hull plating taking advantage of breakthroughs in armour research.

FNFG Pharos Class Frigate


Whilst the Pharos programme retrofitted dozens of existing or under construction vessels for use in a greater stealth programme, it also called for a bespoke design to function both as an independent recon vessel and as an element of small strike groups operating under stealth protocols. The result was the eponymous Pharos itself, a stealth vessel of moderate armament, but with comprehensive stealth and other support systems that also make it a valuable addition to fleet forces. Many Cruiser variants of the Pharos exist, as new technology has allowed upscaling of the Frigate design.

FNDD Hyperion Class Destroyer:

The FNDD Hyperion was developed shortly after the Great War as a testbed for fusing new energy reactors with a specially designed hull, preceded by the success of the Aeolus redesign. The Hyperion combines the anti-fighter capabilities and speed of the Aeolus and the armour of the obsolete Leviathan. As such, the Hyperion is a formidable target for lighter craft and ships to engage. The Hyperion was the first ship to mount new pulse weaponry after successful testing. The Hyperion is rapidly filling the ranks of the Federal Navy, phasing out earlier destroyer models.

FNDD Aeolus Class Destroyer:

The FNDD Aeolus was the first destroyer class ever produced by the CSN shipyards orbiting Pacifica. Only sixteen of these destroyers were initially ordered and put into service in the United Colonial Commonwealth, with the first production ending just before the great war. Federal Command initially assigned Aeolus-class ships primarily to guard slow-moving convoys against strike wings and lighter craft at the onset of the Great War, as these vessels were severely out-gunned by most capital ships in service at the time. Their flak and AAA turrets did serve as marvellous deterrents to smaller craft, however. The refinement of particle beam weaponry during the Great War led to the redesign and recommissioning of the Aeolus class. With the design of the Aeolus greatly suited to acting as a testbed for the new weaponry, this added a significant punch to the destroyer and led to the revolutionary design of anti fighter and ordinance beam weaponry, as such the Aeolus became a mainstay of combat fleets during and after the Great War.

Capital Ships:

FNCR Deimos Class Cruiser


Deimos-class cruisers are the newest addition to the Federal cruiser fleet. These sleek, ultra-modern warships are the products of a new era of ship design, maximizing manoeuvrability and firepower. Their hulls are strengthened with collapsed-core molybdenum sheathing for better protection against beam fire, and their custom-designed reactor core provides more energy per ton than any other federal ship class. As the Leviathan and Fenris cruisers of the pre-Great War era were gradually phased out, these cruisers have become the foundation of tomorrow's fleet.

FNCR Atalanta Class Heavy Cruiser


The Atalanta was envisioned as a heavy hitter for situations where the Deimos were not quite capable enough, built using the same design philosophy and technologies as the Deimos, and utilizing lessons learned from its design and construction, the Atlanata was born as a powerful heavy cruiser, forming a back line for strike forces and a compliment to Federal battle lines in fleet formations.

FNBC Sanctuary Class Battlecruiser:


The Sanctuary was designed as a compliment to the treaty-era Deneb Class Battleship several years after its commissioning. Touting limited capital grade weaponry save a few heavy turrets and a limited beam capacity, the Sanctuary's strength lies in her anti-fighter, electronic warfare suites and anti-ordinance capabilities. While large and somewhat vulnerable to a concentrated attack by larger ships, the Sanctuary's purpose was simply to shore up the Deneb's weaknesses. The Sanctuary overhaul campaign has, very quietly, stripped away some of the limitations of the Detente Treaty and made the Sanctuary less complimentary and more effective in its own right, but is likely to be replaced or completely refitted with an effective multi-purpose design in the near future.

FBB Orion Class Battleship


The Orion is the mainstay capital ship of the Federal Navy. A fearsome, modern build vessel now replacing the already near obsolete Deneb, the cost to build one of these has been challenged by multiple committees in the Federation. There is, however, no more important symbol of modern Federal Pride than a ship like the Knossos or the Corinth cruising past a colonized planet, patrolling the system and ensuring safety. The Orion class has become the premier ship of the fleet, bristling with dozens of death-dealing weapons, the Orion is as awesome in repose as it is in battle. All Orions have been fitted with the latest anti-warship beam weapons, as well as rapid pulse beam turrets for dealing with lighter craft. The Orion's own hangar bays also accommodate a number of strike and support craft for close in support.

FDN Amaterasu Class Dreadnaught

The Amaterasu was a product of the Great War's escalations. Prior to the era of the Hyper-dreadnaught, the Amaterasu were the largest, most expensive and, for their time, most technologically advanced vessels ever produced by the Federation, with a single Amaterasu requiring a dedicated shipyard and construction crews and drones in the tens of thousands. Only a handful of Amaterasu's came off the plate by the time of Detente, and were consequently the only ones produced before their construction was limited by obligation. Built around a veritable array of, at the time, newly designed particle lances and turret banks, the Amaterasu has, as a design, been kept up to date - just in case - though the actual ships themselves are arguably dated and have only recently begun to quietly enter yards for "servicing".

Ground Equipment

This Article Serves to provide a brief look at common Federal Military Equipment used on the ground or in space based combat scenarios utilizing elements of ground forces or marines.

Mainline Armour Series Phaeton


The Phaeton Mainline Armour series is the primary armour and support modules utilised by Federal Marines and Combat Infantry in the Federation of Nations. Phaeton runs from basic recon and standard frontline infantry configurations, to battle-standard armoured infantry to Breach-Protocol Marine Support Phaeton Suits, each incremental section of Phaeton consists of armour and support modules that increase the survivability of the wearer, whilst modules offer support such as enhanced optics, medical support, increased strength and other such uses, though at points impairing the mobility of the user - though through leg modules not the inherent speed of the user. Light Phaeton Variants are typically utilized outside the Militia and Infantry Forces throughout the Federation's Military structure in shipboard situations separate from Marines, or on board critical installations. The Federal Police also utilize Phaeton variants. All Phaeton Armour Variants feature integration with the modular STF-NB1 Battle Rifle, a modular rifle capable of being altered to suit multiple combat situations, utilising micro-fusion packs to create light through to heavy pulse laser fire.

A Unique Phaeton variant line is employed by psionically gifted individuals in military service, which are generally specifically tailored to suit their individual users talents and abilities.

MVS Equipment
IMAGE

Federal Military Doctrine is upheld by multiple independent militia forces during peace-time, consequently, the central notion of a series of vehicles which could be put together from component parts by disparate militia into vehicles suited for their environment and use whilst still being able to be produced, shipped around and otherwise utilised by all with the minimal amount of logistical variation lead to the design of the Modular Vehicle Series. MVS components are capable of being swapped and switched between numerous configurations, creating armoured support vehicles like infantry carriers, tanks, or artillery - with the only unique components generally being specialised armaments, excess fusion capacity and particular non-mainline weapon barrels favoured by certain militia. MVS Vehicles can consequently be disassembled in one theatre and re-assembled as something else entirely in another. MVS modules typically come with anti-grav standard, but for particularly harsh environments or other less suitable terrain, MVS modules exist for tracked or wheeled vehicles as deemed appropriate.

Hyperdread

FNFC Solaris

The Solaris is classed by the Federation as a "Fleet Command" ship, and is designed foremost with this in mind, capable of co-ordinating, if necessary, multiple fleets in real time as well as co-ordinating support from disparate forces, including its own onboard complement of close-in support craft. However, the Solaris is considered a hyper-dreadnought, and possesses the largest singular particle beam weapon ever conceived running the length of the vessel, as well as being equipped with a number of smaller and far more conventional variants and turret banks and launchers. The Solaris lacks somewhat in defensive emplacements, relying on its heavy armour and the power capacity of its shields to a certain extent, but is never meant to be found unsupported by at least the totality of a Federal Strike Group, if not a fleet.

----

Disclaimer: Credit for Mass Effect ship artwork goes to Euderion on DeviantArt

The Last Laugh

So it's cool that Humans didn't have natural Psychics/Psionics until the Society did their whole shindig and more or less seeded the species with them?

@Crispy Octopus

Best to go with didn't have natural "discovered" ones of any notability, because who knows? :D, apart from that yeah.

The Last Laugh

No Objections of any sort from me at all.

FoN, WIP

Federation of Nations

FedNat

Minor Belligerent

General Information

Overview

The Federation of Nations is the modern governing system for humanity and aligned species in space largely covered by the initial expansionary phases of human colonization and exploration of the galaxy. Made up of dozens of constituent member states and power blocs, the Federation of Nations is ostensibly a direct democracy founded in the wake of the end of the entanglements of the colonial and bushfire conflicts conducted following the collapse of direct rule from Sol during the Solar War. The Federation of Nations is a sprawling morass of bureaucracy arguably only able solidify into a cohesive state thanks to the peace once afforded by the Ashtar. Everything can be said to be found in FedNat, and, often enough, its legal somewhere.

History

The great migration of Humanity, first out into the Solar System - and then into the now well known worlds of the core systems and the following expansionary clusters and fringes, is well documented. The United Nations, bolstered by subsuming authority and effectively controlling logistics between the homeworld and its colonies became the governing authority for humanity beyond its cradle, directing much of early humanities efforts in spreading into local space within and without Sol.

By the time the United Nations became challenged by its creations and by political manoeuvring on Earth itself, Humanity had spread to hundreds of systems - and many did not answer to Earth. The ensuing strain, both economically, militarily and culturally, resulted in the great conflagration known as the Solar War - whilst largely taking place in Sol, the Solar War saw conflict on the planets of numerous systems, including Alpha Centauri, Sirius and Tau Ceti. While many colonies had grown self sufficient, most loyal to the Earthbound government, to some degree, relied on the industrial capacity of Sol - the crippling of Martian industry, the freezing of financial markets on Earth and the ensuing destruction of much of the fleets of both the United Nations and the Intersystems Alliance that had been founded to challenge its somewhat draconian authority, amongst the moons of Jupiter - Also unleashed a plague of piracy amongst the space lanes. While the Intersystems Alliance was the eventual loser - The United Nations ability to project power and enforce it was gone, and conflicts began to rage between the colonies over resources and for political gain. Sol itself also fell into an era of civil strife, with millions fleeing Earth and the other worlds of the Solar System to the newly founded Centauri Republics of Alpha Centauri and beyond.

The two main powers - the United Nations and Intersystems Alliance - ironically would be the ones to come together, albeit decades after their initial clash. The United Nations, keen to restore peace, and the Intersystems Alliance, never opposed to the governance it had once had but its implementation, eventually conceived the Federation of Nations, inviting many of the now settling power blocs of Humanity into its fold. While not successful in combining all of humanity under the same banner once again, the Federation of Nations was initially founded with its capital on Horizon in the Tau Ceti System, roughly equidistant between Earth and Trident, the capital of the Intersystems Alliance.

The initial founding members of the Federation of Nations consisted of the United Nations, comprising Sol and its loyal colonies, the Intersystems Alliance, and her dozen member states, many independent colonies as well as the now moderate powers located in the Centauri Republics, the Reach Alliance, Vegan Commonality and Eridani Kingdom, but has come to incorporate new states and power blocs as colonies have been founded and appropriate thresholds have been reached. Of note is a small number of populations settled in FedNat space by other species, though no other non-human power has officially joined the Federation of Nations, though a number of alien powers could be considered aligned.

The early years of the Federation of Nations were tumultuous, still dealing with the after-effects of war and civil decay across the vastness of space inhabited by humanity. It is stated that the Federation of Nations was likely headed towards another era of strife within itself, if not for the coming of the Ashtar. The Ashtar effectively removed the threat of armed responses to political problems, as well as prevent enmities of the past from escalating into conflict.

The Ashtar Period is thus considered a golden age, where the states of the Federation solidified and rebuilt together, creating a non-compulsory but far reaching direct democracy. Their disappearance initially shook the upper echelons of the government, but the core of the federations charter and a now more than century long bond between its core members prevented any dissolution or dissent against the idea of the Federation itself, no matter how unwieldy its bureaucracy had become stitching disparate powers together.

FedNat involvement in the Great War was limited. The military was undersized, chronically underfunded for a state of the Federations size and had largely concerned itself with matters of domestic security almost exclusively for decades. However, matters of realpolitik and a renewal of humanities martial senses saw a great boom in the military-industrial complex, buoyed by a sense of defending the Federation in order to defend ones nation. FedNat forces were largely auxillary - relegated to escort duty and patrol - an area in which they were eminently qualified. Second Wave newbuilds entered the conflict to support allies and fared competently, but largely ended up mauled in any of the decisive battles, win or lose. By the time FedNat involvement was looking to be escalated as new shipyards came online - or The Great War's true horrors had reached any of the Federation's own worlds beyond raiding and surgical strikes, the peace treaty became the prime focus.

FedNat was a grudging signatory, if only because many of its newbuild's now violated treaty obligations, but saw the opportunity to, at least, not suffer any real war damage in its own territory and to use what could be argued, at the very least, as not a loss to solidify the Federation in the new era.

Major Holdings

Horizon, Capital of FedNat:
Horizon is a gleaming, cosmopolitan world of planned cities, vast tracts of nature and breathtaking spires that house the numerous elements of bureaucracy that attempt to nudge the members of the Federation of Nations one way or another. Once a sedate, agricultural world, Horizon has become the beating heart of humanity where its many now far flung cultures meet and meld. Home to most of the primary organs of federal government in some way or another, Horizon and the system Tau Ceti are also notable for being under Federal Authority - that is, they belong directly to the FedNat itself.

Earth:
Earth is the cradle of humanity, though she has long since sent millions, if not billions, of her children into the stars. Modern Earth barely breaks the population it once had in 2050, and has long since managed to, if not recover, deal with the ravages of centuries of industrial development and ecological issues. Earth serves as capital for the United Nations, and standards of living on Earth are amongst the highest in the Federation. Earth's financial markets are also unparalleled in the Federation, and she serves as a nexus for the Sol System, where an incredible amount of industrial capacity churns out manufactured goods of all varieties.

Trident:
Trident is arguably a learned mans haven - whilst also serving as capital for the Intersystems Alliance. Trident is a world of boundless oceans, broken only by small island chains and a singular grand continent, criss-crossed with rivers. In nearly all of its conurbations stand grand universities and halls of learning, where the greatest minds in the Federation come to debate, learn, create and at times, dictate.

Chiron:
Chiron stands as capital for the Centauri Republics, and is the second oldest extra-solar colony founded by humanity behind Terra Nova in Sirius. The Centauri Republics are the most free and wild places in the Federation, barely adhering to the letter of Federal Law, but never without malice. Chiron stands at the heart of this, setting cultural trends and giving birth to the great artists of all stripes in the modern era.

Bastion:
Bastion is another federal controlled territory, and one committed to the upkeep of the Federation of Nations existence. Bastion - and its namesake system, is a hive of military activity. With numerous prototype shipyards and testing ranges, many ships are born and die here in the crucible of invention, whilst the Federal Military organises the numerous assortment of state militias and federal detachments from its complexes both in orbit and on the surface of Bastion.

Demographics

Population

The Overwhelming majority of the population of the Federation of Nations is humanity, in its many colours and derivations, including those who have undergone the legal genetic procedures to operate in certain environments or occupations. While small alien populations are present and the Federation actively encourages the immigration and cultural amalgamation of such populations, most barely meet the percentage mark.

Humans are a varied sort, though within the Federation strict federal laws and cultural norms have prevented the mass manipulation of the human genome except in the affairs of general health, mainly curing disease and ailments that have dogged humanity for generations. Modern humanity, male and female, ranges in height, weight, colour and strength depending on which world they are from, the cultural background they draw from and which state laws may have also been imposed in regards to genetic alteration. A bulky asteroid miner from the fringe may only be five feet tall but built like a tank, whilst a executive from Horizon may be six foot five and as lithe as an elf from fiction.

Society

Depending on where in the Federation you are and the career you have chosen, much can vary. However, the key would be where you have chosen, what you have chosen to do. Choice is king in the Federation - and whilst Federal and State Law may sometimes impose on those choices, you can likely find somewhere to make a go of it where you'd barely notice they existed at all. Nearly all major legislation is subject to referendum, though voting is not compulsory, and nearly everyone has the capacity to vote on the spot, either through device or implant. As a consequence, non-entertainment media is very information heavy, as nearly all sources attempt to inform or protest this or that.

Life in the Federation is, despite all its freedoms, heavy on the bureaucracy. Whilst thankfully it is relatively quick to act, everything has a "paper trail" and nearly everything goes through one agency or another. If the State has to know, the Federal Government knows, and if the Federal Government knows, then you can be sure the State government needs that written down too. However, all citizens are equal, and only very infrequently will grease effect any of the bureaucracy to action with less than it should have or faster than it normally would. As anyone born in the Federation is granted citizenship, and there is a pervasive social security net weaved into ones life from birth, much of the issues of such a bureaucracy for the common man or woman is largely overcome early on. However, obtaining citizenship via immigration and residency is a long process, though arguably worth the effort.

Culturally and politically the society of the Federation is, however, wildly different from planet to planet, sometimes even within the same planet depending on its history. The Centauri Republics all vary on even a basic level like fashion and slang from republic to republic, while the Vegan Commonalities implementation of futuro-marxism sees nearly every citizen taught and near raised in a identical way, leading to a form of subconscious uniformity.

Federation families vary based on state, but even in the most conservative, same-sex marriage is legal, and Federal programs even support the creation of children from same-sex parents utilizing legal genetic procedures. Families are typically traditional in structure in most of the Federation, although in some areas multiple sets of parents and their children and extended families may live together for various reasons.

Economy

The Economy of the Federation of Nations is a diversified and sprawling mass of corporations, federal special industries, self-employed venturists, state owned industries, conglomerates and co-operatives and everything in between. It is a largely efficient beast, though certain industries suffer from bureaucratic legalese and overmanagement, whilst some of its corporations suffer from restrictive legal codes depending on state.

Sol remains the largest gross stellar product of the Federation of Nations, though it is closely followed by Epsilon Eridani and Tau Ceti - though in terms of financial clout they cannot challenge the aged and learned markets of Hong Kong, Moscow, Frankfurt, London, New York and Brasilia. Consequently much of the liquid assets of numerous organisations move through Earth rather than Horizon, and wealth is slow to move to the lesser developed areas of the Federation.

The re-development of a true military-industrial complex and defence industry has seen a boom across multiple sectors of the economy - and has moved many out of basic assistance programmes ran by the Federal Government, which provide a basic standard of living to all citizens irrespective of anything else. Such savings have been re-invested in a continuing boom of ship construction and military manufacture, rather than being invested directly into the states and colonies of the fringe, however, though resentment has been offset by many of these same states and colonies benefiting from increased military presences and infrastructure to support them.

Consequently the economy is varied, dynamic and generally in an upswing, though opportunities can diminish the farther from the core worlds you are.

Government

The Federal Government is, despite its dozens of constituent agencies and departments, relatively easy to break down into a number of overarching categories.

The Federal Council sits at the top of the Federal Hierarchy, consisting of the Chancellor, Deputy Chancellor, the head of every department and agency as well as the Speaker of the Assembly, who comprise the effective Cabinet of the government. The Chancellor of the Council exercises a degree of final executive power, whilst the Council as a whole executes a power of veto in regards to "acts of the Chancellor" - that is, executive powers that the Chancellor may call upon without the consent of the Assembly. This Veto requires at least half of the Council's support, but forms a check on the powers of the Chancellor even in times of emergency. The Council as such oversees the federation and implements high level policies, whilst the Assembly deals with the general political scene of FedNat.

The Assembly of Nations is effectively the parliament of the Federation of Nations, comprising delegates elected on six year terms by planetary elections overseen by local governmental authorities, be they federal or state. The Assembly sits in session most of the year, debating policy, proposing legislation for referenda by the grand direct democracy of all and representing the concerns of their respective states and constituencies. Assemblymen and Assemblywomen are the only ones eligible for posts considered Cabinet posts, and as such all important offices in the Federation are overseen by directly elected representatives. All Assembly members are also subject to recall and subsequent re-election, or not, by their electorate at any time.

The Advisory Board, while holding no real legal power, serves both the Assembly and Council through its Corporate Board, Starborn Collective and Board of Settlement, with the Corporate Board representing corporate concerns not covered by local state or federal law, The Starborn Collective representing all independent stations and installations not covered elsewhere, while the Board of Settlement provides a voice for individuals and settlers not yet incorporated into a state or eligible for a direct vote in referenda.

State Governments are those governments, such as the United Nations or Eridani Kingdom, who administrate the territories of their constituent states. While States agree to implement federal law, they also possess a number of domestic freedoms in regard to certain areas not covered by the Federation Charter or not within the remit of federal authority. State Governments are also required to support domestic armed forces for the purpose of anti-piracy and defense, though they may not raise local police forces, with all police being Federalised.

Referenda are undertaken for every piece of legislation not concerning foreign policy and trade policy. In the latter, referenda are only issued if legislation is challenged by a grand petition or at the request of a state, or in the case of declarations of war. Voting is not compulsory for referenda, much as in normal elections and other such things, but the pervasiveness of the ability to vote from nearly anywhere means there is often a high uptake, even if some issue "null votes" - choosing no option. Several referenda have resoundingly had null votes and consequently went back to the Assembly for further discussion.

Technological Information

The Federation of Nations is largely equal to its contemporaries in the multiple fields of military and civilian technologies, even if employing different methods or utilising dissimilar technologies for the same purposes. Miniaturisation and automation is prevalent in a large scale in the civilian sector, and to an extent in the military sector.

Major Techs

Accelerated Physics
While any sufficiently advanced civilization can create an energy weapon, be it plasma, laser, or particle, the weapon of choice for the Federation was no doubt chosen and honed to finesse by a few simple elements honed from observation and rigorous refinement in the Great War complimented by advances in power generation and miniaturisation. By applying initially unthinkable techniques and honing methods of theory into practical power application while also reducing stress on components, the ability to harness greater stable energy, cycled faster and maintained further has given Federal particle lances and high-capacity cannon banks and energy torpedo launches more bang for their buck than was thought capable before the war.

Advanced Miniaturisation:
The greatest gifts of the corporate community were arguably the continued drive on, perhaps ironically, reducing the workload on logistics and depot storage, with investigation and luck, elements of miniaturisation that must of borrowed from advanced jump theory at some point were identifiable, allowing the revolutionary employment of techniques that dramatically reduced the size of numerous every day components, allowing greater economic dividends from resourcing concerns and every day storage right up to civilian and military applications. FedNat ships of equivalent sizes, for example, can, on average simply "fit more".

Chemical Catalyst:
An innovation brought about by the flora and limited fauna of Atlantica in the Eridani Kingdom, Chemical Catalysts drastically changed construction techniques when its applications were understood. By employing specific chemical reactions learned from observing and testing, materials, such as the metal sheets used in early ship construction, could be bonded together at a chemical level rather than riveted or bolted together, with obvious implications. Rather than relying purely on the untested avenue of nano-technology at the time, or on the unwieldy concepts of energy to matter based pre-fabrication, simple mother nature, albeit her alien side, have enabled Federation to construct buildings and ships that are essentially one single element rather than many, with varying applicable results.

Advancements of Intelligence:
While the people of the Federation have remained largely apart from the runaway prospects of biological tampering, overbearing cybernetic enhancements and unrestricted AI research, there is no denying that the measured, methodological approach to advancements in Artificial Intelligence, Gene-therapies and a near un-rivalled art in the field of neuro-surgery have gifted the Federation with a unique insight into what a smarter human is, and how to make a smarter computer based upon the understanding of sapient intelligence as manifested in humanity. While Federal cultures embrace the treatment of ills enabled by the above, it has largely not indulged in attempting to create the perfect human - though one cannot deny that some of these lesser procedures must be utilized, by the very least, its intelligence community - and it has no qualms about creating the perfect artificial intelligence, if one so can. "Dumb" smart-AI are consequently a frequent occurrence in the management and every day life of Urban Centres, Foreign and Domestic Intelligence Analysis and in the operation of military craft, and it is likely only a matter of time before pandora's box is opened on a truly unrestricted intelligence intentionally created by the Federation.

Unseen, Unharmed:
Understanding that the sprawling demesne of the Federation is vulnerable to attack from greater powers, Federal obsessions both with intelligence analysis practical and theoretical, with its history in rooting out threats to its mercantile marine have spawned a legacy of a robust intelligence agency - and one backed up by government funds. The most prominent legacy is one of the Pharos Stealth Program - with the associated ships and crews effectively the eyes, ears, and daggers in the dark of the Federal Government, and even some of its corporations. Though varying at times from the basic, core design, the technology at play is intended to emulate the most critical components of stealth and strike, playing the dangerous game of hide and often, seek, in the dark depths of space, employing a mix of advanced construction techniques, basic technological advancement and the honing of electronic trickery to remain shrouded in the dark.

Military Information

Military Overview

The Federal Military

The Federal Military is at its core an academy based, voluntary system which makes up the majority of peace and war time troops. It consists of three official branches and their constituent subbranches - The Federal Navy, or Federal Navy, The Federal Marine Corps and the Associated Intelligence Services (AIS).

The Federation commits to the concept of war and its associated doctrines with the matter of enforcing its survival through punching above its weight with, if not superior, then at least sufficient applicable force to make concepts such as invasion of Federal territory itself too bloody to entertain. The strength of the Federal Military is consequently dependent on its elite backbone found within the co-operating branches of the Marine Corps and Navy and the application of the ground forces, ideally never at all, and only when occupation is paramount. The Federation of Nations consequently relies heavily on reconnaissance, advanced deceptive electronics and further its intelligence services and the standing defensive strength of its Navy to deter aggressors and ultimately resolve conflicts - preferably before they enlarge and threaten Horizon itself.

The Federal Marine Corps
The Federal Marine Corps/FedMar are a small but highly trained force mostly centered around, primarily, small corps sized Marine Groups who can be rapidly deployed or withdrawn. The Federation maintains a training regimen for "army" grouped size operations of Marines in concert with standard infantrymen. Each State maintains a militia that can be suborned to the Marine Corps Command - as defined under the Federal Charter - and they are the ones responsible for the large part of peace time troop deployments and maintaining a standing defence force of infantrymen and associated equipment for the benefit of the Federation's Security.

Federal Marines are typically a moderately armoured, highly mobile force trained primarily in securing space-borne assets in capture or seizure operations and in insertion into contested areas to sever command and control networks by seizure of essential enemy ground assets. Marines consequently rely on speed, agility, and an efficient utilization of intelligence and and other support to effectively cripple an enemy and eliminate them piecemeal, though elements of "bulwark" or heavily armoured marines exist.

The Army at large however, does maintain an appropriate level of vehicle based support, although utilization of these assets, in doctrine, at least, requires orbital and air superiority.

The Federal Navy
The Federal Navy consists of a number of Fleets and dedicated Strike Battlegroups. Prevailing doctrine - in the case of offensive operations, would be for ships to switch jurisdiction to the regional command which most required them. The Federal Military has, largely, effected a unique mix of strong low level initiative and higher level lead by task - rather than a top to bottom lead by order doctrine that has been proved ineffective in most situations.

Fleet Doctrine relies on large, "ships of the line" supported by its smaller cousins and screening by varying numbers of picket forces. The Navy is currently coordinated from Beckett Spire on Bastion, with orbital mirroring of operations conducted from Galatis Station.

Associated Intelligence Service
Intelligence is paramount in any operation, and the Federation has begun to take this idea to the fore. The Associated Intelligence Service itself is arguably a "holding company" for intelligence from numerous sources, states and agencies, but has its own agents, agenda, and has ultimate control over all intelligence operations and branches, from domestic to foreign, as well as far reaching authority to accomplish its objectives with plausible deniability. The AIS remains free, largely, of political manoeuvring or games of influence by its control being tied into the civil service - however, it is overseen by an appointed minister selected by the Federal Council.

Fleet Equipment

This Article Serves to provide a brief look at common Federal Naval Equipment, including vessels typically reserved for civilian duty but often found occupying military logistical roles. The Federal Navy has largely scrapped, phased out or retrofitted its lighter pre-war designs, and nearly completely eliminated all pre-great war large ships from its reserve fleets. Most modern reserves are filled with the ad-hoc design "new builds" of the Great War, most of which violated treaty obligations and had to be stripped down or outright scapped, as well as vessels from the era of the treaty, which are now being replaced with modern, effective ships.

FNT Argos Transport

The industrious and aged Argos has become the standard military transport vehicle for the Federal fleet. Argos sometimes carry new weapons and combat craft prototypes to and from testing grounds or to front-line deployment positions. Military VIPs occasionally commandeer Argos' to travel from star system to star system in some semblance of comfort. Argos are most often used as assault transports, carrying squads of Marines through heavy flak to board enemy vessels that Command has decided to capture rather than destroy. The Argos improved upon on its predecessor, the FNT Elysium, greatly increasing transport capacity, and is generally much more survivable due to much heavier armor. Defensive armament, however, remained deficient at only 2 Turret mounts and the Argos still requires escort to survive hostile situations.

FNL Anemoi


Logistics vessels are the newest class of support vessels commissioned by the Federal navy. These mammoth ships serve as an all-around support ship, combining freight hauling capabilities with field repair stations and medical facilities. They are an indispensable asset to long-range battle groups that are expected to undergo long-term operations far from friendly outposts. They are however, effectively battleship sized craft with the armament of a freighter, and require the appropriate defense afforded to them.

The Anemoi however effectively allows a fleet or task force to operate at great lengths of time without a considerable supply chain or infrastructure to support federal vessels.

Strike Craft:

FNF Loki:

The Loki is a Capellan-designed fighter that was used by the Capellan Federation just before the Great War for domestic security and then put into production as a stealth fighter by the Federation. Its hull and reactor were specially designed to make it invisible to nearly all forms of detection sensors. However, a minor flaw in its design, discovered shortly after the destruction of the FBB Krios, nearly completely nullified the Loki's stealth capabilities, reducing it into a heavily armed reconnaissance fighter. It later became an staple part of the Federation's fighter forces during the Great War. Its high speed, weapons compatibility, and maneuverability is offset by its low armor and weapons capacity. All the same, the Loki remains a capable heavy recon fighter - while not invisible, remaining difficult to detect.

The Loki is armed with 2 Primary Cannon Banks of 2 Guns each, and has space for upto 20 Secondaries in its two side mounts.

FNF Myrmidon:

A result of the "New Navy Project" undertaken by the Federation, Kamiko Aeronautical’s FNF Myrmidon replaced the Ulysses as the Alliance’s primary space superiority fighter. The Mymidon has received high marks for speed, maneuverability, armor, and loadout. An ultra-efficient hull configuration provides for the mounting of three secondary fire control systems, a first for Federation fighters. This versatility enables space superiority squadrons to fulfill a range of combat roles, from light assault to heavy reconnaissance. In the Deness system, the 22nd Starknight's of the FNC Perachora have demonstrated the effectiveness of the Myrmidon against pirate and insurrectionist forces alike.

The Myrmidon is armed with 1 Primary Cannon Bank and 1 Secondary, of 4 and 2 Guns each respectively. The Myrmidon retains space for up to 80 secondaries in 3 Banks, depending on missile type.

FNF Perseus:

The FNF Perseus was and is the newest fighter in the Federal arsenal. Slated to replace the aging Valkyrie as the Federations primary interceptor, the Perseus's high max speed and maneuverability make it ideal to hunt and destroy enemy bombers. Federation fighters have been assigned to the 1st Battle Group on a trial basis, with wide deployment expected after the OpEval period. Primary weapons (of 2 Banks totaling 4 guns) include the Subach HL-7 and Prometheus cannon, with secondary loads of Harpoon and Hornet missiles, of which she can carry up to 80 in 2 banks. Preliminary results have shown the Perseus to be a superb fighter.

FNF Hercules Mk2:

The former FNF Hercules Mark II is the next generation of Federal heavy assault fighter. Introduced during the Great War, the original Herc's balance of firepower and maneuverability made it the most versatile strike fighter in the fleet. Some military historians have claimed the Hercules single handedly ended piracy in the Reach, citing its deployment in key battles with pirate forces near the end of the Great War. Implementing recent advances in fusion drive technology, the Mark II improves the assault fighter's speed and maneuverability without sacrificing loadout capacity.

The Hercules is armed with 2 well placed cannon banks of 2 Guns each, and retains space for 180 Secondaries in its two missile banks.

FNF Erinyes:

A result of the "New Navy Project", the FNF Erinyes craft are still regarded as being fresh off the drawing boards of Hermes Dynamics. Though fast and heavily armored, their main attraction is firepower. With two banks totaling eight primary guns and two secondary weapon bays with a capacity for 90 secondaries, Erinyes are at the top of the combat craft food chain. Both sets of weapon banks have been designed to maximize compatibility with the greatest possible number of weapon system. Erinyes-class ships are being evenly distributed through the ITA fleet, but only elite pilots are currently authorized to fly them.

FNB Ursa:

The FNB Ursa is the slowest bomber in the Federation fleet. What it lacks in speed, however, it more than makes up with its massive payload. The Ursa was the first bomber designed specifically to destroy capital ships. With a rack of Helios bombs, in addition to a standard complement of Hornet missiles and Prometheus cannon, a squadron of Ursas can take out a battleship if it is caught without support. Ursas have the highest shielding of any bomber, along with a AIS-designed hyper-dense hull. These help ensure that the Ursa gets close enough to deliver its payload and possibly even survive the escape.

The Ursa hosts 2 Primary banks totaling 4 guns each and retains capacity for 240 Secondaries.

FNB Zeus:

Another product of former AIS R&D, the Zeus strike bomber is a worthy successor to the Athena. Its balanced design and increased reactor capacity give it remarkable speed for a bomber, yet still remains capable of carrying the powerful capital cracker bombs. These features make the Zeus a versatile and effective weapon against capital ships. The FNB Zeus is the fastest of all currently active Federal bombers. It replaced the fleet's old Athena bombers as they were mothballed during the years following the Great War. Though slightly slower than the Athena, the Zeus's heavier armor and armament give it a much better battlezone survivability rate.

The Zeus hosts 2 Primary banks totaling 4 guns each and retains capacity for 120 Secondaries.

Support Vessels:

FNCv Bellerophon Class Corvette


The FNCv Bellerophon Corvette was the first corvette design to enter service in place of the aging Eclipse design, and was the first ship of her class to mount modern weapons such as the Trinity-class main cannon. The Bellerophon, while sporting more turrets than the average Eclipse Corvette, is not as heavily armored as more recent designs, and her Trinity Cannon configuration is noticably weaker than that of the larger Chimera class. The Bellerophon has thus become the main escort vessel of the Federation fleet, Bellerophon-class multi-role corvettes fill the role of anti-ship combat and capital escort admirably. Possessing a anti-capital ship beam and several short-ranged heavy turrets that provide significant firepower, the Bellerophon is also blessed with a surplus of reactor energy to provide an appreciable boost in speed.

FNFG Chimera Class Frigate:


The FNFG Chimera is the latest frigate design produced by the Federal Navy. Mounting three very powerful long-range beams in a forward configuration, the Chimera is designed specifically to engage craft at range and inflict maximal damage before coming in to weapons range of its target. The Trinity-class main cannons are derivatives of Mesonic technology, extremely powerful but so power-hungry that plasma must be vented directly from the main reactors to fire. The Chimera is more heavily armored than its lighter cousin, the Bellerophon. The result is a slower-propulsed but better-armed variant of the Bellerophon chassis, with new hull plating taking advantage of breakthroughs in armour research.

FNDD Hyperion Class Destroyer:

The FNDD Hyperion was developed shortly after the Great War as a testbed for fusing new energy reactors with a specially designed hull, preceded by the success of the Aeolus redesign. The Hyperion combines the anti-fighter capabilities and speed of the Aeolus and the armour of the obsolete Leviathan. As such, the Hyperion is a formidable target for lighter craft and ships to engage. The Hyperion was the first ship to mount new pulse weaponry after successful testing. The Hyperion is rapidly filling the ranks of the Federal Navy, phasing out earlier destroyer models.

FNDD Aeolus Class Destroyer:

The FNDD Aeolus was the first destroyer class ever produced by the CSN shipyards orbiting Pacifica. Only six of these destroyers were initially put into service in the Cygni Commonwealth, with production ending just before the great war. Federal Command initially assigned Aeolus-class ships primarily to guard slow-moving convoys against strike wings and lighter craft at the onset of the Great War, as these vessels were severely out-gunned by most capital ships in service at the time. Their flak and AAA turrets did serve as marvellous deterrents to smaller craft, however. The refinement of particle beam weaponry during the Great War led to the redesign and recommissioning of the Aeolus class. With the design of the Aeolus greatly suited to acting as a testbed for the new weaponry, this added a significant punch to the destroyer and led to the revolutionary design of anti fighter and ordinance beam weaponry, as such the Aeolus became a mainstay of Federal fleets during and after the Great War.

Capital Ships:

FNCR Deimos Class Cruiser

Deimos-class cruisers are the newest addition to the Federal cruiser fleet. These sleek, ultra-modern warships are the products of a new era of ship design, maximizing maneuverability and firepower. Their hulls are strengthened with collapsed-core molybdenum sheathing for better protection against beam fire, and their custom-designed reactor core provides more energy per ton than any other federal ship class. As the Leviathan and Fenris cruisers of the pre-Great War era were gradually phased out, these cruisers have become the foundation of tomorrow's fleet.

FNBC Sanctuary Class Battlecruiser:


The Sanctuary was designed as a compliment to the treaty-era Deneb Class Battleship several years after its commissioning. Touting limited capital grade weaponry save a few heavy turrets and a limited beam capacity, the Sanctuary's strength lies in her anti-fighter and anti-ordinance capabilities. While large and somewhat vulnerable to a concentrated attack, the Sanctuary's purpose was simply to shore up the Deneb's weaknesses. The Sanctuary overhaul campaign has, very quietly, stripped away some of the limitations of the Detente Treaty and made the Sanctuary less complimentary and more effective in its own right, but is likely to be replaced with an effective multi-purpose design in the near future.

FBB Orion Class Battleship


The Orion is the mainstay capital ship of the Federal Navy. A fearsome, modern build vessel now replacing the already near obsolete Deneb, the cost to build one of these has been challenged by multiple committees in the Federation. There is, however, no more important symbol of modern Federal Pride than a ship like the Knossos or the Corinth cruising past a colonized planet, patrolling the system and ensuring safety. FNBB Orion class has become the premier ship of the fleet, bristling with dozens of death-dealing turrets, the Orion is as awesome in repose as it is in battle. All Orions have been fitted with the latest anti-warship beam weapons, as well as flak and AAA turrets for dealing with lighter craft. The Orion's own hangar bays also accommodate a number of strike and support craft for close in support.

FDN Amaterasu Class Dreadnaught

The Amaterasu was a product of the Great War's escalations. Prior to the era of the Hyper-dreadnaught, the Amaterasu were the largest, most expensive and, for their time, most technologically advanced vessels ever produced by the Federation, with a single Amaterasu requiring a dedicated shipyard and construction crews and drones in the tens of thousands. Only a handful of Amaterasu's came off the plate by the time of Detente, and were consequently the only ones produced before their construction was limited by obligation. Built around a veritable array of, at the time, newly designed particle lances and turret banks, the Amaterasu has, as a design, been kept up to date - just in case - though the actual ships themselves are arguably dated and have only recently begun to quietly enter yards for "servicing".

Ground Equipment

WIP

Hyperdread

FNFC Solaris
The Solaris is classed by the Federation as a "Fleet Command" ship, and is designed foremost with this in mind, capable of co-ordinating, if necessary, multiple fleets in real time as well as co-ordinating support from disparate forces, including its own onboard complement of close-in support craft. However, the Solaris is considered a hyper-dreadnought, and possesses the largest singular particle beam weapon ever conceived running the length of the vessel, as well as being equipped with a number of smaller and far more conventional variants and turret banks and launchers. The Solaris lacks somewhat in defensive emplacements, relying on its heavy armour and the power capacity of its shields to a certain extent, but is never meant to be found unsupported by at least the totality of a Federal Strike Group, if not a fleet.

@Taeryn

Largely have something for everything now, let me know if theres any issues at the moment.

The Last Laugh

Still very much a work in progress, and likely things that look done will get fleshed out even more, but I wanted to get a little something up. History is kept "brief" if only because I don't wanna lock any other person who goes human into anything.

(See Later Post)

The Last Laugh

<Snipped quote by Taeryn>

You're all good my man! :) Earth is yours.

@Sigma

Neat. I'll get something up later, or tomorrow.

The Last Laugh

Considering this is the Milky Way Galaxy, its inevitable Earth would come up - and I see it does feature in the history of one sheet.

I'd like to make it part of - though not necessarily the centre of - a mid-level power, if there's no objections? I'd rather ask than assume and have to rewrite things!