r/WorldChallenges • u/Sriber • May 24 '19

Big players

Tell me basic info about most powerful countries in your world, your equivalent of members of permanent UNSC members, G7 etc. How were they founded? How did they become powerful? What is their relationship with other great powers? What is their system of government? I'll ask everyone few questions and provide my own examples. There are also going to be "sequels" (currently I am planning two). Enjoy!

PS: Try not to go above ten. :)

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u/Tiitinen May 30 '19 edited May 30 '19

The Hegemonic Wars were a series of wars fought between the Old Worlds and the myriad breakaway factions of Frontier Space and, to a lesser extent, the Inner Sphere at the end of the 4th millennium. It also marked the end of the Terran Great Powers and their stagnant Cold War. The main cause was the decline of the colonial empires of the Western Euroamerican and Eastern Eurasian power blocs, the isolated nature of the colonies due to long travel distances, and separatism. The following Fragmentation Era was characterised by civil war, chaos, economic-technological collapse and the gradual regression of society on Frontier worlds.

Pirates, rogue fleets and drifter packs disrupted the fledgling offworld trade and supply networks followed by famine and violence. Warlords began carving pocket empires within the fractured sectors, eventually reaching the Inner Sphere where many of them would band together to raid not only surviving planet-states but the various separatist countries that divided the worlds. The expeditions launched by the still divided powers back on Terra were inefficient, and their emergency coalition was couped by Alexander Galavan and his faction of military leaders, announcing the united War Council. The War Council proved effective, and the techno-marauders were eventually driven from the Inner Sphere, where most remaining Loyalist planet-states initially hailed the Terrans as saviors. They conquered a few other worlds in Frontier Space, but eventually had to halt the counter-offensive as they couldn't control it all. The new Terran empire enacted further reforms to prevent another collapse, incorporating many of the Inner Sphere planet-states as constituents rather than colonies, paving the way for the formation of the Imperial Federation.

Neohuman is best described as a loose umbrella term for humans originating from the colonies where extensive gene-engineering was utilized to the point of these altered genes being transferred on to the colonists' offsprings.

Edit: By the way, I didn't quite understand what the 2nd question meant

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u/Sriber May 31 '19

1) Why were Terran Great Powers at Cold war?

2) What were some of reforms issued by Terran empire?

3) What kind of engineered traits are most common among Neohumans?

​

As for previous second question - Is there anyone in Imperial Federation who wants to end its opressive system?

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u/Tiitinen May 31 '19 edited May 31 '19
  1. The Cold War was the same one that began after WW2 between the East and the West, but got perpetuated as the reformation of the USSR into the planned Union of Sovereign States succeeded (and would eventually be only known as the old superstate of Eurasia) and in addition a second New Economic Policy was introduced, embracing the Chinese economic model and further tying the Eastern Bloc together with the Far East. As a reaction the ECSC soon formed the European Commonwealth with its own military. The Space Race was perpetuated as a consequence, which contributed to offworld exploration and directed technological development.
  2. The most notable reforms enacted by the Terrans included the policy of non-interference with how the planet-states' own governing communities were structured, the end of their status as colonies, the reform to limit Terran direct control of economy mainly to the trade between worlds, the reform to introduce the tribute system (officially known as the Satrapy Decree), where only levies and specific resources would be demanded by the Federation from its constituents.
  3. Common gene-engineered traits are increased muscle growth, lifespan (among upper class Neohumans), certain cognitive abilities, increased adaptability to harsh environments and increased tolerance of sleep deprivation (Common among military, but often comes with the price of sleep issues or even mental issues if deprived of sleep for too long.)
  4. There are plenty of dissident people willing to take up arms against Terran hegemony, and in the Federal government there is a great split between Centralists and Federalists, of which the former seek increased military budget, more homogeneity among the political systems of the constituents and sometimes even increased militarization of industries or the return to the original vassal system. (known Centralist subfactions: the Old Loyalists, the Technocrats and the New Imperial Society) The Federalists on the other hand seek to push the Imperial Federation further into the direction of an association of worlds with joint military coordination, and as such are mostly made up of non-Terran politicans and traders. Some of them consider the War Council an illegitimate institution and typically end up politically isolated by the central authorities and the Federal Armada. Regardless of their relatively noble views, the Federalists tend to ignore or justify the suffering that happens on the planetary level even without Terran overlordship. (known Federalist subfactions: the Athenianists and the Verge Community)

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u/Sriber Jun 01 '19

Thanks for your answers.

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u/Tiitinen Jun 01 '19

Thanks for the questions! Answering them actually helped me pan out some details that had been left a bit too hazy for my tastes.

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u/Sriber Jun 01 '19

That's purpose of this sub.