I've been working on a reimagined FS (including some of our own) universe to build some sort of missions around. I've even decided on the names and models for most of the ships, and I have constructed fleets made almost entirely out of non-retail ships. Only a couple reappear, like the Sekhmet, since there are about two good-looking Vasudan bombers in total. Unfortunately, I have a FRED skill of 0, so I am staying with the writing for now. In the time that the campaign will take place (~2500), there are nine human factions (they don't call themselves Terrans):
Solar Federation (Sol, Delta Serpentis, Ross 128)
Capital: Sol III
Antares Syndicate (Antares, Beta Aquilae, Beta Cygni, Betelgeuse)
Capital: Antares II
Ikeyan Union (Ikeya, Ribos)
Capital: Ikeya I, Satellite XI
Outer Systems Alliance NOTE: this is a very loose group of allied systems, similar to the Non-aligned Movement (Altair, Aldebaran, Tau Sigma, Phi Eridani, Laramis, Luyten 726-8, Wolf 359, Alphard, Epsilon Eridani, Tania Australis)
Capital: Altair II
Sirius-Regulus Axis (Sirius, Deneb, Vasuda, Alpha Centauri, Regulus, Mintaka)
Capital: Sirius III, Satelite IV (Supreme Court) & Regulus II (Legislature)
United Commercial Systems (Capella, Vega, Gamma Draconis)
Capital: Capella III
Islamic Systems State (Tegman, Delphi, Kaus Borealis, Gienah Cygni, Naos)
Capital: Kaus Borealis II, Satellite XIX
North Star Republic (Polaris, Epsilon Pegasi, Adhara, Mirfak, Procyon A, Cygnus X-1)
Capital: Polaris IV
Communist Systems Union (Dubhe, Barnard's Star)
Capital: Dubhe II
Unclaimed: N362
As you might have guessed already, I am using the BWO team's nodemap, not the Volition one.
Major alliances are the Central Powers and the Outer Systems Alliance. Central Powers consists of the Solar Federation, Antares Syndicate, Sirius-Regulus Axis, and the United Commercial Systems. These are the richest and most powerful factions (compare NATO). For the most part they share ships and weaponry, and the game's weapons are basically split between Central Powers and everybody else. If I ever actually complete the mod, the weapons will be comparable but have slightly different stats.
If you're wondering about the Vasudans, that ain't their name anymore. They're the Tarquins (after Tarquinius Superbus, last king of Rome), and they don't live on Vasuda. They're somewhere else. As you might expect, since they are named after a Roman, their ships have Roman names (e.g. Romulus, Mars, etc.). They also possess some pretty sweet subspace technology, which allows them to essentially to do intersystem jumps without nodes.
The focus of most of the material I've written is the humans, however, especially the history. Here's some stuff that would go in the intelligence section of the tech room.
THE DOMINION OF MAN
The Dominion of Man was founded on September 7, 2116 with the signing of the Saturn Treaty. It united the various factions within Sol and began exploring outside the system. Exploration of Delta Serpentis had begun in 2100, but no colonization efforts had been attempted. Colonies were established across the system, and ships began exploring neighboring systems. Scientists announced the discovery of alien structures on the surface of Delta Serpentis I in 2120, and fearing a powerful alien force, a moratorium on colonization was put in place to prevent civilians from leaving the two safe havens of mankind. For a hundred years this was enforced, fueled by the paranoia of the citizenry.
Nothing ever happened, however. In 2225, the moratorium was lifted and humanity burst forth like water from a dam, pushing further and further. A Golden Age ensued, where virgin planets were exploited and systems charted. The economy boomed, and there were seventy-five years of prosperity and peace. But in 2299, the Naos system was charted and no jump nodes were discovered leading further out into the cosmos. Mankind was trapped again, but this time by nature, not itself. The euphoria over mankind's conquering of the universe died out within months, and the economy crashed. General unrest followed, and the Dominion began to unravel. In 2338, the Dominion Civil War began between the outer colonies and the inner stalwart loyalists. It ended in victory for the colonies, and the Dominion was reduced to a bare fraction of its original size. Crippled by post-war debt and disillusioned constituents, the Dominion was dissolved in December 2362.
DOMINION CIVIL WAR
Fought on and off between 2338 and 2360, the Dominion Civil War (often referred to afterwards as simply 'The War') resulted in the deaths of nearly 12 billion people. The Dominion of Man had expanded into all known systems by 2300 and the union from the expansion was waning. In 2304 the colony on Vasuda II rebelled against a corrupt governor, who brutally crushed the rebellion by bombarding the focus of the rebellion from space. This atrocity resulted in the removal of the governor by the Senate, and the colony was given greater self-governance. This was seen as a poor substitute for the millions killed in the bombardment, and tensions between the colonies not represented in the Senate and the central government increased.
These tensions came to a head in 2337 when the Dominion enacted stricter regulations on trade between the colonies. Fighting broke out on New Year's Day, 2338, when a Dominion cruiser over-enthusiastically enforcing these regulations was destroyed by a heavily-armed merchant ship at the Capella jumpnode in Vega. The ship was under the control of the Vega government, and the colony was declared in rebellion. The situation spiraled out of control from there, with an all-out war raging in several systems. The Dominion had the upper hand until 2357 when it was crushed by the newly-formed Colonial Alliance in the Battle of Deneb. From there it was a quick march to Sol, where the Dominion made its penultimate stand at the Delta Serpentis jumpnode in Sol. It was again defeated, and Earth itself was besieged, and large areas of the planet were permanently scarred by bombardment (the planet remained inhabitable). The Dominion surrendered on Labor Day, 2360, signing the Saturn Armistice aboard the CAD Liberty.
So, suggestions? Comments?
