History
The closing years of the 20th Century saw a fading of the great Nations and a rapid increase in the power and influence of multi-national Corporations. These Corporations were not restricted to a single field; their interests were vast, covering all aspects of industry and economics, as they diversified into every field that held profit. They were also not defined by country, society, or ideology. In industry, in business, and in the media, the multi-nationals became more powerful and more visible.
The first planet to have a scientific colony on it was Mars. The moon followed thereafter. Needless to say, Earth's space exploration was not united; many different countries have established colonies in space. The major colonizers were: The United Americas (USA, Canada, parts of South America), China, Japan, The European Federation and Russia. Though rare, conflicts have occurred between countries in space. The most significant cases are between the UA and China, because of the differences in government between these two powers; diplomatic unrest has occasionally turned into war. China was believed to back the notorious PRA, a communist extremist group that has been responsible for numerous communist takeovers.
As the corporations grew, they wove together the economic interests of the Nations of the world, and the specter of large-scale warfare was reduced. With head-to-head warfare economically unacceptable, the advanced states settled for venting their hostilities and waging wars in Third World nations.
This trend continued through the following decades, as the corporations prospered and the interdependence of the major Nations of Earth grew. Tensions did not end, but were kept under control and released in ways that did not damage anyone's ability to make money. Thus humanity entered the age of Space in an atmosphere of controlled tension but not outright war.
The Age of Space came in the wake of two tremendous technological breakthroughs. The first was the reactionless Dyson Engine, which allowed Humanity to travel quickly and cheaply within the Solar System. The Jump Drive soon followed, expanding on the principles behind the Dyson Engine and taking Humanity out into the stars. As technologies were perfected, exploration craft went out from Earth.
The search for minerals and other raw materials was only a secondary goal of the explorers; those things were available within the Solar System itself, in amounts that would keep humanity supplied for many years. The most important things the stars held were knowledge, the potential of new habitable planets to ease the population pressures of Earth, and the opportunity to study new life forms.
The greatest value for the corporations lay in the life forms. Each world is like a gigantic laboratory, where the forces of nature have experimented on for billion of years. The creatures produced in those laboratories, and the complex chemicals contained within them, possess abilities far beyond those available to Humanity. Many of these abilities are nearly miraculous.
The expansion into Space had been a slow progress, since useful systems were rare and the effort involved in establishing colonies was great. Still, at least 21 Earth-like systems have been found, and dozens more that are at least habitable. On other worlds, the process of terraforming is underway, as hostile environments are slowly changed into places where Humans can live.
On every habitable world, colonies have been established. They have expanded at varying rates, depending on the corporate support they have received and the qualities of the worlds. Shiploads of people and equipment are sent to each Colony, and eventually the colonies begin to send items of value back to the rest of Humanity; unusual life forms and mineral combination, the product of local industries, and after a generation, skilled workers.
These skilled workers are part of the rapidly growing populations of the colonies, and the corporations have developed many techniques for managing them successfully. Colonists have developed many techniques for making them successfully. Colonists are taught to live active, disciplined lives, to maximize their economic value and reduce the risks of living in the colonies. Good educations are available for those who are not. By contrast, the disorganized state of the population of Earth means that there are relatively fewer people who are well disciplined and well-educated, as the quality of life diminished on Earth. The value of trained, energetic, and obedient workers from the colonies increase.
In addition to the above aspects of corporate life, a major part of each corporation's management approach has been the establishment of a corporate military force. These forces are not large, but they are well trained, and have the best equipment their Corporation can afford, which typically means the best in the known systems.
With Colonies on many worlds, the power and influence of the Corporations rose rapidly. As they became more powerful, they became more of a threat to the nations of the systems. The situation was a very delicate one; the nations had far larger armies, but the Corporation controlled space and vital high technology. The same economic interdependence, which prevented war among the Nations now, prevented the Nations from harming the Corporations.
At some point an independent Aerospace Engineer discovered. FLT, Faster than light travel and sold his discoveries to the corporations, which enabled reaching far off planets quicker than ever though possible.
Tensions between the increasingly wealthy Corporates and the Governments of Earth increased. The governments felt threatened. They saw the fabric of society changing and thought they might not be a part of the future of humanity. Every political weapon was used, including diplomacy, bribery, blackmail, and economic pressure. Separatist movements were created to destabilize Nations, which responded by seeing corporate property. Finally, one small crisis got out of control and erupted into warfare. Dozens of other small wars began within weeks, and the systems spun into chaos. Fortunately, the wars remained limited in destruction; few nuclear or biological weapons were used.
The wars lasted for 36 years. The wars concluded with the formation of an alliance between Corporations and most systems, the NNL (New Nations League). This organization was in charge or regulating activities among its members, and the NNL Marine Corps was created as its military arm under the charter that they did not have to answer to any single orginization. The wars had taught everyone that it would be valuable to have some sort of “police force” to discourage them from using violence to solve their problems.
Throughout the wars, some systems strongly resented the newly created NNL. They wanted to remain free from the nations, and many believed they would receive status as independent entities with increased control over their own affairs. When the NNL was formed, it became clear this would not be the case; the systems were treated as rebels. Another cycle of hostility, tension, and intense diplomacy began, an eventually the systems actively rebelled. The NNL Marine Corps, supported by corporate forces was given the job of bringing the rebels back under control.
The cause of the rebel Systems was in danger from the beginning. The tremendous financial and military resources available to the NNL meant that their losses could be quickly replaced, while the rebel systems were very weak in technology, industry, and population. One by one, the Systems were defeated militarily and economically. There are still underground rebel movements on the once rebel system worlds, but they pose little threat to the NNL at present.
The Rebel Systems, thought they would win more independence from external rule, but they were proven wrong with their defeat. The creation of the NNL confirmed society's view that the colonies were nothing more than NNL property. But in fact one more time the Rebel systems rebelled, but they were boundto lose. The NNL, Corporate forces and the NNLMC waged economic and military warfare and overpowered all but one corner of resistance. The rebel system of Alexandria sealed itself off from the rest of humanity. Soon after, the Union of Progressive People formed from several rim colonies and set up a military border. Their size is small but fortified. Attempts to retake their territory proved fruitless. Alexandria acknowledges the UPPs independence but the NNL does not.
The NNL Marine Corps was created at the same time as the NNL. The intent was that the Marines, funded by coalition of all the space-going Nations, would be an independent force that would resolve disputes among the Nations and Corporation, and keep the peace in the NNL systems as well. Each nation had its own portion of the force made up of its own citizens, but they shared equipment, training, and doctrine. They were led by the NNL Marine Corps High Command, which included representatives from several nations and major corporations.
Most of the power belongs to the NNL, however, but the largest corporations also have great influence among the stars. Their shared tool is the NNL Marine Corps, and its power is on the rise. Every year, the NNL Marines become more ruthless in and singleminded.
The shortage of personnel is also a growing a problem for the rebel system of Alexandria. They have not replaced the losses suffered during the wars against the NNL, and the additional drain imposed by the current turmoil has made the problem even worse. For the rebel system, the loss of a single spacecraft can mean that areas will remain un-patrolled and unmonitored for months or even years. This has spawned the use of Licensed Teams of specialists, simply mercenaries which in their own way picks up work for Alexandria.
The colonization of the stars eventually led to the discovery of intelligent alien races. The world called Chronos, close to the system of Nebellin, is inhabited by a race of carapaced, intelligent creatures, the Thraun. The Thraun are fierly independent and territorial and colonization have thus far proven ineffetive.
The Colonial Marine Corps greatest alien struggle was in the system of Persephone on the edges of discovered space where a stone age technology race, The Mi´tarri, assulted human holdings on a planetar scale. Orbital bombings proved useless as the Mi´tarri fled to extensive underground cities. Punishment was harsh and the Minbarri are now a though to be extinct, allthough rumors of their survival persists.
A remote stellar race of Aliens is most likely the biggest alien threat at the moment. The Kreel or simply "squids" are a race of bio engineers which can modify the base Kreel DNA to suit a specific environment. This allows them to modify appearence completely, to better adapt to hostile environments, and hostile aggressors such as mankind. Their biological programming have helped them settle many worlds from their ancestral water world of Ghes. Their bio ships are a match for most of the of the NNL ships, but their remote location, the System of Leth as the closest, have kept skirmishes to a minimum.
The first planet to have a scientific colony on it was Mars. The moon followed thereafter. Needless to say, Earth's space exploration was not united; many different countries have established colonies in space. The major colonizers were: The United Americas (USA, Canada, parts of South America), China, Japan, The European Federation and Russia. Though rare, conflicts have occurred between countries in space. The most significant cases are between the UA and China, because of the differences in government between these two powers; diplomatic unrest has occasionally turned into war. China was believed to back the notorious PRA, a communist extremist group that has been responsible for numerous communist takeovers.
As the corporations grew, they wove together the economic interests of the Nations of the world, and the specter of large-scale warfare was reduced. With head-to-head warfare economically unacceptable, the advanced states settled for venting their hostilities and waging wars in Third World nations.
This trend continued through the following decades, as the corporations prospered and the interdependence of the major Nations of Earth grew. Tensions did not end, but were kept under control and released in ways that did not damage anyone's ability to make money. Thus humanity entered the age of Space in an atmosphere of controlled tension but not outright war.
The Age of Space came in the wake of two tremendous technological breakthroughs. The first was the reactionless Dyson Engine, which allowed Humanity to travel quickly and cheaply within the Solar System. The Jump Drive soon followed, expanding on the principles behind the Dyson Engine and taking Humanity out into the stars. As technologies were perfected, exploration craft went out from Earth.
The search for minerals and other raw materials was only a secondary goal of the explorers; those things were available within the Solar System itself, in amounts that would keep humanity supplied for many years. The most important things the stars held were knowledge, the potential of new habitable planets to ease the population pressures of Earth, and the opportunity to study new life forms.
The greatest value for the corporations lay in the life forms. Each world is like a gigantic laboratory, where the forces of nature have experimented on for billion of years. The creatures produced in those laboratories, and the complex chemicals contained within them, possess abilities far beyond those available to Humanity. Many of these abilities are nearly miraculous.
The expansion into Space had been a slow progress, since useful systems were rare and the effort involved in establishing colonies was great. Still, at least 21 Earth-like systems have been found, and dozens more that are at least habitable. On other worlds, the process of terraforming is underway, as hostile environments are slowly changed into places where Humans can live.
On every habitable world, colonies have been established. They have expanded at varying rates, depending on the corporate support they have received and the qualities of the worlds. Shiploads of people and equipment are sent to each Colony, and eventually the colonies begin to send items of value back to the rest of Humanity; unusual life forms and mineral combination, the product of local industries, and after a generation, skilled workers.
These skilled workers are part of the rapidly growing populations of the colonies, and the corporations have developed many techniques for managing them successfully. Colonists have developed many techniques for making them successfully. Colonists are taught to live active, disciplined lives, to maximize their economic value and reduce the risks of living in the colonies. Good educations are available for those who are not. By contrast, the disorganized state of the population of Earth means that there are relatively fewer people who are well disciplined and well-educated, as the quality of life diminished on Earth. The value of trained, energetic, and obedient workers from the colonies increase.
In addition to the above aspects of corporate life, a major part of each corporation's management approach has been the establishment of a corporate military force. These forces are not large, but they are well trained, and have the best equipment their Corporation can afford, which typically means the best in the known systems.
With Colonies on many worlds, the power and influence of the Corporations rose rapidly. As they became more powerful, they became more of a threat to the nations of the systems. The situation was a very delicate one; the nations had far larger armies, but the Corporation controlled space and vital high technology. The same economic interdependence, which prevented war among the Nations now, prevented the Nations from harming the Corporations.
At some point an independent Aerospace Engineer discovered. FLT, Faster than light travel and sold his discoveries to the corporations, which enabled reaching far off planets quicker than ever though possible.
Tensions between the increasingly wealthy Corporates and the Governments of Earth increased. The governments felt threatened. They saw the fabric of society changing and thought they might not be a part of the future of humanity. Every political weapon was used, including diplomacy, bribery, blackmail, and economic pressure. Separatist movements were created to destabilize Nations, which responded by seeing corporate property. Finally, one small crisis got out of control and erupted into warfare. Dozens of other small wars began within weeks, and the systems spun into chaos. Fortunately, the wars remained limited in destruction; few nuclear or biological weapons were used.
The wars lasted for 36 years. The wars concluded with the formation of an alliance between Corporations and most systems, the NNL (New Nations League). This organization was in charge or regulating activities among its members, and the NNL Marine Corps was created as its military arm under the charter that they did not have to answer to any single orginization. The wars had taught everyone that it would be valuable to have some sort of “police force” to discourage them from using violence to solve their problems.
Throughout the wars, some systems strongly resented the newly created NNL. They wanted to remain free from the nations, and many believed they would receive status as independent entities with increased control over their own affairs. When the NNL was formed, it became clear this would not be the case; the systems were treated as rebels. Another cycle of hostility, tension, and intense diplomacy began, an eventually the systems actively rebelled. The NNL Marine Corps, supported by corporate forces was given the job of bringing the rebels back under control.
The cause of the rebel Systems was in danger from the beginning. The tremendous financial and military resources available to the NNL meant that their losses could be quickly replaced, while the rebel systems were very weak in technology, industry, and population. One by one, the Systems were defeated militarily and economically. There are still underground rebel movements on the once rebel system worlds, but they pose little threat to the NNL at present.
The Rebel Systems, thought they would win more independence from external rule, but they were proven wrong with their defeat. The creation of the NNL confirmed society's view that the colonies were nothing more than NNL property. But in fact one more time the Rebel systems rebelled, but they were boundto lose. The NNL, Corporate forces and the NNLMC waged economic and military warfare and overpowered all but one corner of resistance. The rebel system of Alexandria sealed itself off from the rest of humanity. Soon after, the Union of Progressive People formed from several rim colonies and set up a military border. Their size is small but fortified. Attempts to retake their territory proved fruitless. Alexandria acknowledges the UPPs independence but the NNL does not.
The NNL Marine Corps was created at the same time as the NNL. The intent was that the Marines, funded by coalition of all the space-going Nations, would be an independent force that would resolve disputes among the Nations and Corporation, and keep the peace in the NNL systems as well. Each nation had its own portion of the force made up of its own citizens, but they shared equipment, training, and doctrine. They were led by the NNL Marine Corps High Command, which included representatives from several nations and major corporations.
Most of the power belongs to the NNL, however, but the largest corporations also have great influence among the stars. Their shared tool is the NNL Marine Corps, and its power is on the rise. Every year, the NNL Marines become more ruthless in and singleminded.
The shortage of personnel is also a growing a problem for the rebel system of Alexandria. They have not replaced the losses suffered during the wars against the NNL, and the additional drain imposed by the current turmoil has made the problem even worse. For the rebel system, the loss of a single spacecraft can mean that areas will remain un-patrolled and unmonitored for months or even years. This has spawned the use of Licensed Teams of specialists, simply mercenaries which in their own way picks up work for Alexandria.
The colonization of the stars eventually led to the discovery of intelligent alien races. The world called Chronos, close to the system of Nebellin, is inhabited by a race of carapaced, intelligent creatures, the Thraun. The Thraun are fierly independent and territorial and colonization have thus far proven ineffetive.
The Colonial Marine Corps greatest alien struggle was in the system of Persephone on the edges of discovered space where a stone age technology race, The Mi´tarri, assulted human holdings on a planetar scale. Orbital bombings proved useless as the Mi´tarri fled to extensive underground cities. Punishment was harsh and the Minbarri are now a though to be extinct, allthough rumors of their survival persists.
A remote stellar race of Aliens is most likely the biggest alien threat at the moment. The Kreel or simply "squids" are a race of bio engineers which can modify the base Kreel DNA to suit a specific environment. This allows them to modify appearence completely, to better adapt to hostile environments, and hostile aggressors such as mankind. Their biological programming have helped them settle many worlds from their ancestral water world of Ghes. Their bio ships are a match for most of the of the NNL ships, but their remote location, the System of Leth as the closest, have kept skirmishes to a minimum.