World ᴀᴅ ᴀꜱᴛʀᴀ ᴩᴇʀ ʙᴇʟʟᴜᴍ - ʙʟᴀᴄᴋ ᴅᴀᴡɴ

Ottoman · Nov 28, 2022

Know that it is the year 2731 by the ancient reckoning.

My father, the Emperor, rules over the civilized galaxy, and His will is law.

With the fall of New Empyrea, protocol ALESIA was enacted by the Federate, and our longstanding terms for unconditional surrender were accepted. A parade the likes of which the galaxy had never before witnessed was held on the throneworld as the forces of our victorious host were celebrated in unparalleled splendor. A pyre, raised of the regimental and political standards of the Coalition, roared in the center of the Imperial Plaza, devouring too the gloves we wore to carry them.

The Interstellar Coalition - our ancient, eternal foe - had finally been crushed.

After seven centuries, we have reclaimed the homeworld.

His homeworld.

Scatter.

Now our puissant Supremacy reigns over the Garden and beyond as our mighty starfleets sail and thunder to every corner of the cosmos. Across the stars His personal guard, the sable legions of the Landwächter, enforce the rule of Tannhäuser with fire and steel, and the Seraphim, armored angels of His divine gospel, ensure the purity of hatred for the traitorous, the alien, and the demonic. Against such threats noble and common stand as legion, ready to lay down their lives for His - for our - vision.

But there are some who resist.

Coalite holdouts, defiant member-states that splintered away in the aftermath of the Federate's surrender, continue to pursue forlorn campaigns of insurgency on the fringes of the Garden. The Terrans, a backwards and quarrelsome folk, continue to wallow in the misery of the failed Commonwealth and the warlordism of the ruined Federation. The Outer Soviet Republics, once allies in our struggle against Empyrean tyranny, now stand as the only other heir to the Garden. And this is to say nothing of the alien Collective, still silent since we ended their apocalyptic foray into the Garden some three centuries ago.

Their sacred flames shall be smothered, never to be rekindled.

Their silvered promises shall tarnish, never to be restored.

Know that it is the year 683 by our reckoning.

They will all be made to understand.

We are inevitable.

So is He.

Ottoman · Nov 28, 2022

LEXICON
THE GARDEN
1. THE SUPREMACY
  1. GOVERNMENT // DEMOGRAPHICS
  2. RELIGION // RESEARCH // MILITARY
  3. ECONOMY // THE TRIPLE ESTATE
  4. DIPLOMACY // LEGALITIES
  5. APPENDIX A. CULTURE
  6. APPENDIX B. TANNHÄUSER
  7. APPENDIX C. HOLY WORLDS
  8. APPENDIX D. HELL WORLDS
  9. APPENDIX E. MINOR WORLDS
  10. APPENDIX F. BLOCS OF THE ASSEMBLY
  11. APPENDIX G. THE HOUSE IMPERIAL
  12. APPENDIX H. THE HOUSES MAJOR
  13. APPENDIX I. THE HOUSES MINOR
  14. APPENDIX J. THE LANDWÄCHTER
  15. APPENDIX K. LEGION
  16. APPENDIX L. [̸̪͌D̸̝͛Ą̵͒Ť̴͓Ä̴̺́ ̵͍͒C̷͗͜O̴̥̒R̷̲͋R̴̀͜U̴̝͠P̵͕̓T̷̠͊E̶͎͐D̵̮̆]̶̘̅
  17. APPENDIX M. SMALL ARMS
  18. APPENDIX N. LIGHT WEAPONS
  19. APPENDIX O. CONVENTIONAL VEHICLES // INFANTRY MECHS
  20. APPENDIX P. LIGHT // MEDIUM MECHS
  21. APPENDIX Q. HEAVY // SIEGE // UTILITY MECHS
  22. APPENDIX R. ATMOSPHERIC AIRCRAFT
  23. APPENDIX S. INTERDEPENDENT STRIKE CRAFT AND VESSELS
  24. APPENDIX T. FREIGHTERS // BULK TRANSPORT
  25. APPENDIX U. CORVETTES // FRIGATES // DESTROYERS
  26. APPENDIX V. CRUISERS // BATTLECRUISERS // BATTLESHIPS
  27. APPENDIX W. CARRIERS // DREADNOUGHTS
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FORWARDS TO THE FINAL VICTORY

A Humble Disclaimer:
I do not claim ownership of any of the art used in this thread, or any of my threads, save for the maps, insignia, and crests.
It's something of an ambition of mine to go through and credit every artist for their stunning, lovely work that has inspired me so.
But this is a herculean task for such a lazy soul as myself, and though I shall get around to beginning eventually, I beseech you for patience.
I have assembled a veritable treasure trove of art over the course of the last decade or so, and only a fraction of it has the original titles or artist's names attached.
So, should you see your art present in these threads:
Firstly, thank you for making such a lovely thing!
Secondly, should you wish it removed, I will (with sadness) do so!
Thirdly, if you would simply like to be credited, I will be delighted to!
Please just let me know the title of the work and how you wish to be referred to and it shall be done.

Ottoman · Nov 29, 2022

Preface

While my father believes that foreigners can only understand us by our past, I must respectfully protest. His fascination with history undermines His efforts with you, the foreign-born. I would commend you should you choose to study my father's works, to have the chance to read the words of the only survivor of a bygone age, but it is not necessary. You do not need to know what was.

Only what is.

To that effect, I have personally compiled a grand appendix - a lexicon - in my time, for the benefit of you who do not yet know us. Our languages are particular, and though we share the blood of mankind I know many things can be misunderstood or lost in translation. It may take some time to access fully as it is the product of two centuries of my labor, but it should take little longer than the data itself.

I beseech your patience, and pray that this aids you in your understanding of my people, our ways, and the galaxy at large.

-- Her Imperial Highness, Kronprinzessin J. Kampf

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Ottoman · Nov 30, 2022

"I wish to remind you that we are a free people: free from uncertainty, free from doubt, free and secure in knowing that we - and we alone - are capable of surviving the hardships of space, and that we Scatterrans are fit to lead the universe - and all of its peoples - through the trials that are to come."

W̵̢̧͔̼͈͉̞͇͔̖̰̹̹̦̯̺͎̫͎̝͕͈̌̐͜O̶̧̢̲͇̩͈̮̪͉̗͇̜̜̤̐̉̏̔̒̄͂̀͌͋̀͆̎̽̓͛̈̀̀̽̎͛̕͘̚̚͠͝Ŗ̴̤̹̻̺̗̯̑́̍̎̈̂̉̾̆̎͒͊̈̐̍̒̄͗̈́͘K̴͉̹̝̳̘͕̻̓̔͐̓̓̔͌̎̒͐̈̽̋̐̀͊̑͗̕̚͝E̵̼̠̤̹̋̉̓̍͂̊̓́̓̃̎̇̚͘͜͝R̴̨̛̼̥͎͈͖̞̲̭͕̮̳͈͆͑̀͑̈̎̈́͋͐̈̿̈́̅́̾̆̌̉̆͐̽S̸̡̛̤̣̟̞̗̭̙̦͍̪̝̰̠͚̫̫̝̭̬̙̲̖̜̊̉̏̊̊̈́̏͋̓̈́̋̂̈́͘̕̕͘͘͝ͅ ̸̡̢̯̤̘̘̻̪͚̤̪̞̙̇͆̒̓̋̎͗̿̀͊̈̔́͑̆̔O̸̱̦͒͗̂͌ͅF̸̧̛̩̻͍̫͇̥̯̤͕̣͍̲̗̣̯͕͍̭̌́͊́̀̒̄͛ͅ ̶̬̪͚͖͈̲̘̙͒̄̋́̓̅̈́͋̿̅͐̒͝ͅT̵͈̺͈̓̓̑̎̆͑̾̎̀͆̇͠H̵̡̳̲͓̙͔̭̻͋̾̏̉̐̕͠E̸͓̲̬͙̮͗̀̇̔̃̎̉͌̇̊͛̂͒̂̏͊̄̆͘͘͠͝ ̸̨̛̠͔̳͎̯̣̦̬͚̦͓͉͇͈͉̭̠̦̮̬̝̯͈̅̑̈́͊͗̓̏̎̆́͒̂̾̐̿̾͘͘͜͝C̴̨̟͚͚̪͓̦͙̳͕͚̠̟̏͆̓̉̉͌̆͑̓͑͌̈́̅͋̄͗̐́͌̕͝͝͝O̷̜̖̥͖̞͍̗̥̘͆̀̑͊̇̇͊̽́͐̈́́̊̕͘͠͠S̷̠͚̹̼͔̙̣̺̺͈̱̝̩̭͈͚̙̯̦̔̆̾̂͆̄̊̃̄̕̚͝͠͠M̵̨̛̘̭͓͙̖͖͇͙̉̈́̾͗̋̑̓́̏͒͋̀̅̀̆̑͋̈̓̈́̚͘̕Ơ̷͙̩͔̝̝̳̈́̐̊̆̈́̍͠S̴̢̨̨̡̛͓̮̫͕̹̬͕̱̻͙͚̫̳̞̻̥̖̳̗̹͖͉̽͌̾́̊͌̔͆ ̸̧̨̠͙̹̘͎͔̟͙̣̏͂̀̏́͑̍̅̄̃͛́͠Ã̵̧̬͎̺̠̯̜̺̱͔̫̩͍̭̭́̏͆̀͑͝Ŕ̸̨̡̧̫̘͇̩͓̗̹̬̜̞̜͎̙͇͕̮̦͖͉̣̀̋̋͆̀̌Į̴̧̢̞̦͓̞̭̯̝̞̜̪̻͇̥̟̪̠̩͔͇͂̓̿̎̈́̑̀̌̀̾̈́̇͒̆͘͘͜͝͠͝Ș̵̼̩̻̹͇̙̦̥̯̙̫̤̹͙̹͇͖͎̲̹̯̯̮̥̹͒́̋̒̀̊̅͝E̴̞̘̪̳̞̝̳͖͚͙͈̲̐̐̓͑͝

̴͖̘͎̰̝̯̱͕͕̍́̓̊̊̆̐̿̏̈́̋̚͝
̸͍̦̲̥̉̑̓̋̏̌͊̅́͐̍̌̈́͊̚̚͠Y̷̧̧̝͚̯͉̖͎̥̩̝͚̱͎̪̹̍̓̓̑͒͆̑͌̇͆̍͑͆́̂̃̋́̒̆͋̕̚͠͝ͅƠ̷̧̫̤̣͚͉̟͇͎̋͗̌̕ͅṲ̸̧̙̫̺̩̬̱̤̮̱͍͍̰̤̰̱̊̃͊̓́͐͛̒̈́͆̄̈̑͆̋̽̔́͗̈́ ̶̨̛͚̝̈͂̅̍̓͗̾̀͋̿͛́̉͐̿̽͛̒͐́͘H̷̡̨̨̛̠̦̖͓͈̟̭͈̉̌̔̉̊͐̃͛̒̿͒̅́̒̃̿̓̕͝͠A̵̛̛̩͌̉̊̓̾̌̏̈́́̋̓̔̀̅̊̀̈͒̿̚̚V̵̡̧̖͉̠͓̰̺̜͖̣̠̤̤̬̱̉̐̂̆͑̆̒͆̏̈́̉̆͛̾͛̓̅̏͒̃͋̂̚Ė̷̛̻͖͉̫̹̻̞̦͙̫̥͖͚̦̝̠̰̩͇͓̉̈̿͆̉̇̋̇̓͛͑̒̀̕͜͜͜͝ ̵̡̡̦̗̣̳̲̙͙̥͉͗̏̑̈́̀̀͊͋͊͊̇̂̌̿̄̒͗͋̎͒̄̓̊̆N̴̢̢̡̢̡̰̤̮̳̰̪̻͔͇̦̺̠̥̙̳̹͈̟͖̜͌̂̃̇͂͌́͆͑̌̂̀́̌͛͑̓̊̽̀͑̎̄̅͘͘͘͜͜͝Á̸̲͙͌͋͝Ų̶̹̱͍͈̫̯͕̞͚̗̟̠̭́́͆͛G̵̠̉͆̅͒̐̇̀̐͑́̑̏̒͑́̃͘̚̕Ḩ̵̮̹̙̦̻̪͔̟̻͕͍̠̅̀̋̍̒̾͂̅̿̀̾̂̀̕̕T̶̨̬͖̪͚͉̳͙̗͓̥̲̯͂̽͆̑̚ͅ ̶̨͚̙͉̣͚̗̥̲̰̭̲̯̠̼̯̬̺̪͚͓̭̬̪͍̗͛̏͐͑̈̃̏̌̒́̿̓̾̆̽̉̈̉̅̿͛͌̒̕͘̕͠͝ͅͅṮ̵̢̡̨̧̢̘͓̝͚̖̞̦͈̼̭̻͙̝̳̣̙͕͙͓̊̇̓̑̀̈́́͊̋͂͊͘͜ͅÕ̷̢̼̹̦̬̞̜̗̱̘͕̠͈̞̘͖͚͍̘̥͔̞̜̝̰͒̔̍̑̊̏̒̂̎̇͒́̈̀͘͘͜͝͝ ̷̡̧̻͔͕͕̦͙͖̝̘̠̮̤̟̳̲͍̬̤̩͍̦͕́͒̃́͜͜͝ͅĻ̷̧̧̛̼̠͍̣̫̤͓̻̱̺̥̐̅̏̈́͗̀̊͒̍̐̂̈́̎̈́͒͝Ȯ̷̡̨̨͉̹͈̖̳͍͇̟̤̮͖͍̟̰̩̙̘̩̫̰͚̂̋́̍͒͛Ș̴̡̬̯͍̥͚̼̳̣̹͋́́͆͒̉̓̆̽̏͐̒̃͘ͅĒ̷̡̡̟͓̝̳̦̳̗̙̟̲̥͕͓̱̘̠̠̮̞̼͉͇̘̋̒̾͛̊͗̈́̊̓̌̉̒̅̇̐̅͋̈́̓͘̚͘̚ͅͅ ̶̡̞͇̻̯̗̳̙̓̈́̈́͐̌͂͗̏͑B̴̠̥̞̥͗̏̀͋̎͗̊̐̈́͐͑̓́̓̃́̍̇́̀͘͝͝͠Ư̶̡̧̲̙̬̹̹̩͍̱̯͉̱͉̰͈̼̣͔̯̺̞̳̗͉͐͒̆̌̓͛̊̏͋̂̋͒̎̔͑̋̐̀͒͋͘͜͜͝ͅT̷̝̦̳͈̘̔͛́̍͑̈͆̄̊̔̓̏͌͑́̃͑̎͝ ̷̨̢̛͖͇͎̘̻͆͂̏͋̿͊͒̌͛͆͆̚͘ͅͅY̶̡̡̦̫͖̦͚̤̦̜̼̣̟̭͍̥͕̮̩̙̱̩̦͔̤̳͆̀̍̈́̀̌̄̀̇̈́̽͌͊̋͐̽̊̕̚Ơ̴̡̫͉͌́͊͐̿̈́̐̔́̓̎̍̉̎̄̕͘͝Ų̴̢̡̧̠̗͖̯̥̭̦̗̙̳̟̓ͅR̵̨̨̙̣̣̦̦̭̻̝̰̭͚̫̙͙̪̮͍̟̘̤͙͈̣̃̈́̈̇̊͂̈́͋͗̚͘͠ ̵̡͈̠͚̞͉̙̰̭̗̌͒͋̈́͂͑̉͐͑̋͠͠C̶̨͕͉̤̫̥̰̩̳̦̎̆́̏̏̄͑̿̏̓̎̐́̓́̚͠H̶͚̲̲͇̥̋̇͜A̷̢̗̥̖̞̩̞͓̩͎̜̣̠͔͇͕͓̓̍̀̈͆̀́͐̂̆̚̚͝I̴̻̮͖̤̟͉͍̫͔͙̼̖̳̮̘͋̌̊͊̉͒̏͂̾̓̈́͒̈́͐̏̂̾̓̆́̉̓̏̑͠ͅṈ̶̢̧̨̳͈̪̹̼̟̲͚̰̦̼̱̺̾̉̀̀͋̾͐̃͛̈́͝S̸̢̢̮̳̦͙̹̝͇̠̭̙̟̺̬̞̞̳̰̖̯̯͓͈̳͈͗̈́̂

Ottoman · Nov 30, 2022

"The Coalition so often spoke of the individual.

They constantly preached of the rights of every man - of one man:

Who was this man and why was he more important than the rest?

Why must the needs of the individual come before the needs many?

How could this one man have hoped to stand against a unified Scatterran empire?"

OFFICIAL NAME:
The Supremacy of Aligned Systems

OTHER NAME(S):
COLLOQUIAL:
The Supremacy
The Scatterran Supremacy
DEROGATORY:
The Hegemony
The Scatterran Hegemony
UNRECOGNIZED:
The Empire
The Scatterran Empire

DEMONYM:
OFFICIAL: Imperial
UNOFFICIAL: Scatterran

NATIONAL COLORS:
Black, White, Gold

NATIONAL ANTHEM:
Rise o Voices of Exile / Forevermore

Penned by Adalind Rosdower, Forevermore (often alternatively titled Rise, O Voices of Exile) was accepted as the anthem of the Supremacy of Aligned Systems and ratified by the Imperial Assembly in 2259 AC (211 AE) following the victory in the Mind War. While often sung both in the Imperial Assembly and in various state functions, Forevermore is more commonly known by its instrumental tune, played incessantly on almost all state media channels between programming blocks, and very often incorporated as a melody into various popular genres and export-variant music for use in foreign markets.

Stanzas three and four have been met with some small controversy by allied governments in both the Augustine Republic and the Freeguild Alliance, though the throne maintains the stance it always has - the third and fourth stanzas remain what is known colloquially as the 'war anthem', and is only officially played when an official state of war exists between the Imperial Government and a foreign power.

Sung to the tune of Auferstanden Aus Ruinen

1.
Rise, o voices of exile,
God may we thy bounty share.
Give us strength to face all danger,
And where challenge is to dare!
Guide us, Kampf, to wise decision,
Ever of thy grace aware:
Oh, let our hearts beat brave always
For these stars within thy care,
: Reign forevermore! :

2.
May all join our righteous union
which the Seshan blood did start;
Holy purpose brings together
What the past had wrought apart!
Not one of us is the lesser
In the eyes of our monarch:
We author the final triumph,
That Tannhäuser's light shall spark,
: Reign forevermore! :

3.
May our sorrows yet inspire,
All thy thought, ye nobleborn,
War is all our hearts' desire,
To the people you are sworn!
By the Emperor united,
We shall crush eternal foes:
Let our paths by hate be lighted,
So their mothers' newborn woes,
: Reign forevermore! :

4.
Let us plow and build our nations,
Learn and work as never yet,
That these free new generations,
Faith in their own might beget!
Saren youth, for whom the striving
Of our peoples are as one:
You are our nascent vengeance,
Vanguard of the Sable Sun,
: Reign forevermore! :

5.
Rise, o voices of exile,
Bringing all your proud acclaim,
Grandly echoing through the mountains,
Rolling over far-flung plain!
Roaring in the mighty rivers,
Joining in one grand refrain:
Ascending to the sunlit heavens,
Telling of your honored name,
: Reign forevermore! :

NATIONAL SLOGAN:
One Realm. One Will. One God.

"Look to the future - beyond the Coalition and accursed memory - the dark days of vendetta and fratricide have passed.

Arise and assume the mantle that was stolen from you!"

POST-ORWELLIAN NEO-FEUDAL THEOCRATIC MONARCHY

Democratic |--------------------|| Authoritarian

Political Left |----------|----------| Political Right

Social Left |--------------------|| Social Right

Open Society |-------------|-------| Closed Society

Hawk Lobby |----|----------------| Dove Lobby

Intervention |-----------|---------| Isolation

Nationalist ||---------------------| Pacifist

Modern |----|-----------------| Obsolete

KEY MEMBERS OF GOVERNMENT:

Emperor - Josef Kampf
Empress - VACANT
Lord Chamberlain - VACANT
Supreme Avatar - Sabine Roth
Minister of Foreign Affairs - Constantine Lancaster
Grand Admiral of the Fleet - Ernst Dietrich
Oberkommandant des Landwächts - John Redwing VIII
Grand-Abbess of the Seraphim - Nadezhda Voroshiloviere
Supreme Justice of the Court - VACANT
Minister of the Interior - Craig Nichols
Oberkommandant des Zivilwächts - VACANT
Minister of Public Enlightenment - Josephine Kampf
Supreme Executive Officer of SARDAS - Alyssa Hoffmann
Governor General of Empyrea - Alphonsine Subercaseaux

LEGISLATIVE BODY:
The Imperial Assembly

HOMEWORLD:
Official:
Tannhäuser
Symbolic:
Scatter

CAPITAL:
Tannhäuser

POPULATION BREAKDOWN:

Total Population: 197 Trillion approx.

By Percentage:

Scatterran - 73%, [143.81 Trillion]

Austran - 19%, [27.32 Trillion]
Azrican - 13%, [18.69 Trillion]
Vendragan - 11%, [15.82 Trillion]
Salian - 9%, [12.43 Trillion]
Vitestovak - 8%, [11.5 Trillion]
Oriyak - 7%, [10.07 Trillion]
Soruk - 7%, [10.07 Trillion]
Tokaigan - 6%, [8.63 Trillion]
Farasi - 5%, [7.19 Trillion]
Helvett - 4%, [5.75 Trillion]
Seshan - 1%, [1.44 Trillion]

Other - 10%, [14.39 Trillion]
Zwerg - 12%, [26.64 Trillion]
Alfar - 5%, [9.85 Trillion]
Other - 11%, [21.67 Trillion]
Legionaries - <1%, [D̸̖̩̋͊́́̕͝͝Ḁ̷̠̼̦̮̩͆̅͊Ṭ̶̆Å̶̰̙͖͈̜̯ ̴͉̃̈̂͆C̵̨̧̛̘̾͒̂͝Ó̵͍̲͍̣͓̀̀̾̎͋R̷̢̧͔̀̄̀̔̔̀̾R̸̫͍̊́͛ͅŲ̶̘̖̗͖̀͜P̷̨͇̞͇͌̚T̴̞͇̹̘̐̂̇́̊E̸͚͖͛̎̀͂̒Ḑ̸̞̓͑̕]

The Austrans are a Scatterran race hailing from the peninsula of Austra, and perhaps the most infamous. Humans, if they can be called such, from the planet Scatter, the Austrans have always been an imperious, proud people, founding one of the first civilized states on ancient Scatter since the times known to most as the cataclysm. They stand, like most Scatterrans, roughly half a foot taller that a typical Terran at the least, and often sport fair-to-olive complexions.

They are the dominant political and cultural force in the Supremacy, having gradually shaped the other peoples therein to absorb their culture over the past several centuries since their exile. They speak a guttural germanic tongue known to the Scatterrans as Austric. Though they no longer enjoy the undisputed majority of the imperial population, there is little doubt amongst any imperial subjects that it is the Austrans who are the vanguard of their great enterprise.

Scatterrans from the ancient land of Azrica - a conglomerated republic for most of its history - were, and are still, a diverse mix of peoples, though that diversity had been waning in the centuries since the Exodus. They, like many Scatterran peoples walking the stars, may have lost much of their genetic identity, but hold proud to their language and traditions as Azriks. The Azricans speak Aenglis, a anglophone counterpart to the germanic Austric.

Following the surrender and annexation of the Coalition, the Azricans now enjoy a higher demographic majority, and welcome many of their wayward cousins back into the fold with open arms.

The forgotten theater of the Exodus - Vendraga - saw some of the bloodiest fighting. Often considered a 'wild continent', Vendraga raised both harsh people and harsh ethics, both of which clashed violently in the Exodus. What few survived rallied to Austra and took to the stars, exemplifying themselves in colonizing the most dangerous worlds and the bringing the Emperor's light to the darkest of reaches. Once the only continent and people who could compete with the Austrans, the hispanic Vendragans proudly hold high their traditions and language.

While they may have been one of the smaller demographics of the Supremacy before the Second Garden War, the Vendragans now find themselves thrust forward to the third largest population amongst the Imperial Scatterran peoples, their numbers heartily bolstered with the liberated peoples of the Coalition. It is up to the traditionalists of House Benavente, among others, to guide their new brothers and sisters towards the imperial ideal.

Ancient allies of the Austrans, turned bitter enemies following the defeat of the Triple Alliance in the Great War of Scatter. One of the first nations to join the International Coalition of Organized Nations. Salia had gone from being one of Austra's foremost and steadfast allies to vehement enemies, an animosity galvanized by the War of the Exodus as both nations suffered heavy casualties in the Aleuronic theater of operations. A francophone folk, who speak flowing languages known to the Scatterrans as the Salic Tongues, the Salians were once an extreme minority in the Supremacy.

Ironic, perhaps, that the Governer General of the former Coalition, Alphonsine Subercaseaux would hail from what were once the most ardent supporters of ICON - the Salian Blue League. The last two decades of imperial rule have not been terribly kind to the Salian folk, but, with due guidance and eternal vigilance, they are coming to understand the Emperor's vision for the galaxy.

A hard and hearty people hailing from the farthest north of Scatter, the Vitestovakians were once puppets of the Oriyaks but found independence through Austran backing. The relationship between Austra and Vitestovakia has always been strong, even after they both ascended to the stars. A slavic people, they proudly adhere to the Orthoxan Sight and maintain their own alphabet. The Vitestovakians speak a hybridized derivative of the Oriyak language. Formerly the third most influential imperial demographic, the Vitestovakians have been displaced by the influx of Coalite Azricans and Salians, but it still remains most difficult to avoid finding Vitestovakian authority in the Syndicate and beyond.

Another slavic people, the Oyirak were divided in the War of the Exodus - part of them sided with ICON, whilst others threw their lot in with the CIS. The Oriyak Tsardom was split in two when the Exodus came, and those that fled with Josef Kampf have clung tightly to their monarchistic traditions and the Orthoxan Sight. What was once the greatest slavic people on Scatter are now limited to being a practical client state to the Supremacy. Bolstered, slightly, by the influx of annexed Oriyaks, the former Wardens of the North look now with vengeful eyes to the Soviet State of the Outer Republics, the final obstacle that remains in the reunification of their peoples under the true Saren Ministry.

From the northern coasts of Sorukoy come the Soruks, an ancient and wealthy people. Almost as old as the Austrans, the Soruks have long considered Austra their cultural fatherland, inheriting many of their laws, customs and language from them. When the call came during the War of the Exodus to support father Austra, Soruks near and far answered - and it is their blood that fed the Scatterran grass the most in that dreadful war. They speak an ancient, punic tongue that pre-dates the first Austran Empire. While no longer the middling demographic of the Supremacy, the Sorukan folk still maintain a healthy influence upon imperial trade and domestic politics.

Despite the Pan-Tarsonic Alliance's third-party stance in the War of the Exodus, monarchist Tokaigans fled to enlist with the CIS in the war, and who survived fled with Kampf's loyal cadres to the depths of space. Determined to reclaim their lost homeland and smite those who dared stand against their former empire, the Tokaigan are some of the most passionate zealots in the Hegemony. Almost completely dominated by House Uesegi, the Tokaigan culture in the Supremacy is nigh-on monastic, where humility and obedience are considered two of the highest virtues one can aspire to in their life, and material wealth and worldly pleasures are shunned.

The second Kasian people to join the Supremacy in earnest numbers, the now-sizeable Farasite minority was largely acquired through the surrender of the Interstellar Coalition. Formerly one of the largest demographics of ICON, the Second Garden War was not kind to the Sons of Turan, as they bore the brunt of imperial fury alongside the greatly diminished Bolshoks. However, many Farasite conservatives have wholeheartedly embraced imperial rule, seeing the reign of the Kaiser as an incredible opportunity to reclaim and reinstate ancient traditions long-since abandoned under the rule of ICON.

A celtic people from central Aleurone, never since the days of the First Austran Empire have they proven a sovereign people. For centuries they dreamed of a pan-Aleuronic fatherland, united under a Helvett monarchy, but always suffered under the yoke of Ludecan oppression. With the rise of the Austran Empire, and later the CIS under Josef Kampf, the Helvetts again knew hope, and when the time came for war they were some of the first volunteers. Now, in the Post-Exodus age, the Helvett finally have their own home, granted to them by the Kaiser, and they will defend it to their dying breath. Now, in the Second Pax Australis, the Helvetts have outlasted their ancient enemy, and seek a new golden age in the era of Imperial Sarenism.

A darksome and proud folk from Denlo, the Seshans are genetic and cultural cousins of the Austrans. Long content to live and cultivate their homeland, they answered the call to war once in the Great War, siding with their cousins against the Western Pact, and again in the Exodus on the side of the Confederacy. They proved valiant and capable soldiers in both wars and on many fronts, but their true valor shown on the Night of the Exodus, for as the many Confederate survivors of the war plotted their exile from Scatter it was the Seshans who volunteered to hold the line. Every man and woman capable of holding a rifle went forth, accepting certain death as their fate that their comrades and their cause might live on.

Only the elderly and the children escaped with the rest, and their sacrifice has never been forgotten by those that survived that night, and even today Seshans are proudly celebrated as the saviors and guardians of the Empire. To boast that one has the blood of Seshakone in their veins is to claim honor in the Supremacy.

A client race of the Supremacy, the Zwerg are a race of abhumans discovered on the Northern Frontier early in the Supremacy's history, not long into the twenty-third century. Already at war with elements of the Collective, the arrival of the Supremacy saw the ascension of their people to the stars with Kampf as their benefactor. Feeling their entire species to be indebted to the Imperial Scatterrans, a vast majority of the Zwerg pledged themselves to Kampf's state. Welcomed wholeheartedly into the fold of the Scatterran empire, the Zwerg quickly took to the Imperial Saren Synod and exacted eager vengeance upon their would-be exterminators.

They are a hardy folk hailing from their homeworld of Aulë, having evolved from their human roots in the light of their red giant to live underground. Still hampered by their subterranean heritage, the Zwerg eye is best suited to darkness, though they are incredibly resistant to radiation. The Zwerg are integrated into the Imperial Assembly and possess their own noble houses and realms.

The unfortunate byproduct of a nightmarish industrial catastrophe on the Grierr world of Lothar, the Alfar are a strain of mutant Scatterrans who have adapted to a purely carnivorous state. Incapable of digesting or processing plant matter, the Alfar live a hard and trying life in a realm such as the Supremacy, where food already is a thing rationed. Legally protected still as Scatterrans and citizens of the empire, the Alfar face only discrimination in the social sense as some are unwilling to look past their pale appearance and predatory nature to see that they are still comrades in the struggle for the Final Victory.

Unwavering in their devotion to the Supremacy, the Alfar enjoy a longer lifespan than their unaltered cousins, and relish the longer opportunity to serve their homeland. As the condition is genetic Alfar are often incapable of interbreeding with typical Scatterrans, though through a dedicated effort on the part of their people they have ensured their survival through an abundance of progeny. The first generation of Alfar are only beginning to pass away, thanks to natural causes.

LANGUAGE(S) SPOKEN:

Aenglis - 89%, Trade language, taught in public education
Austric - 81%, Official language, taught in public education
Salic Tongues - 45%,
Vendragan - 43%,
Stovak - 29%,
Soruk - 26%,
Oriyak - 22%,
Farasite - 13%,
Tokaigan -9%,
Helvaic - 6%,
Khorkaans - 4%,
Assorted Scatterran Tongues - 34%,

RELIGION(S) PRACTICED:

(AS PER IMPERIAL CENSUS C. 680 AE)

Imperial Sarenism - 76%,
a. Austran Order - 61%
b. Orthoxan Sight - 27%
c. Other - 12%
Atheism - 18%,
Other - 6%,

Ottoman · Dec 1, 2022

"A Saren should argue with a pagan only by running one's bayonet through their bowels as far as it will go."

THE IMPERIAL SAREN MINISTRY

OFFICIAL NAME: The Saren Ministry [contested]

OTHER NAME(S):
COLLOQUIAL:
Imperial Sarenism
The Imperial Saren Ministry
DEROGATORY:
Neo-Sarenism
The Neo-Saren "Ministry"
Kampfism
UNRECOGNIZED:
Sarenism
The Saren Synods

DEMONYM:
Saren, plural Sarens

TYPE:
Universal Religion

CLASSIFICATION:
Belkic

SYMBOL:
OFFICIAL:
The Scales of Virtue/The Scales of Saren
UNOFFICIAL:
The Fulcrum of the Law

SCRIPTURE:
The Imperial Saren Bible

FOUNDER:
CLAIMED:
St. Belka
RECOGNIZED:
St. Charlotte Dollmann III

ORIGIN:
CLAIMED:
2nd Millennium BC approx.
RECOGNIZED:
2153 AC

SEPARATED FROM:
The Saren Ministry

SEPARATIONS:
[DOWNLOADING . . .]

THE AUSTRAN ORDER

One of the oldest religious sects hailing from Scatter, the Austran Order, while it was not always the most popular sect of Sarenism, is considered the most pure. Hailing from the homeland of Scatter the God-King, Austra, the Austran Order was formed from St. Belka's original disciples and are known often for the strictest adherence to her scriptures. The Austran Order has been, and still remains, the primary religious belief of the Austran people.

Since their ascension to the stars, those Sarens who fled with the former Confederacy at the end of the War of the Exodus came to believe that their leader, Josef Kampf, was not simply a saint but the inheritor of the greatest prophecy known to the Triarch: the Second Coming of Scatter. While the Ludecans of the west believed that their God-King had already been reborn, the Sarenites across the board - not simply the Austran Order - rejected the notion. But as Josef Kampf guided his nation and his people through the trials of the Plague of Six and then the horrific War of the Exodus, none could deny that he was indeed the reborn Scatter - though some tried.

In the centuries following their exile, the Austran Order of the Imperial Saren Ministry has cemented its position as one of the three Triumvirs of the Chancellery, providing the foundation of national unity and His authority through one primary point of faith imposed upon every Saren institution in the Supremacy: Josef Kampf is the second coming of Scatter, the firstborn of the Creator, returned to deliver them out of bondage and unto greatness.

THE ORTHOXAN SIGHT

Traditionally an Oriyak and Vitestovakian school of Sarenism, the Orthoxan Sight, or rather an Orthoxan set of values placed upon the Imperial Saren model, was carried into the Supremacy by those Oriyaks and Vitestovakians who fled their homeworld in the Confederacy's ranks. While a minority in comparison to the Austran school of thought, the Orthoxan Sight has managed to maintain the largest Neo-Saren following outside of the Austran Order, bolstered by strong cultural connections and the separate alphabet of its practitioners.

LESSER IMPERIAL SAREN SCHOOLS

THE PRISMATIC HINGE
(ABOVE)

Aside from the original schools that originated on Scatter, several new denominations have emerged since the Scatterrans have taken to the stars. From violent blood-cults to minimalist agnostic thought, a wide variety of smaller schools have taken up the Neo-Saren banner, though the throne and the clergy does its best to make sure they do not gain too much sway over the people.

ATHEISM

While other faiths are, by and large, prohitibted within the borders of the Supremacy, the state has taken no effort to curtail or combat the presence or practitioners of atheism within its borders. Considered an acceptable alternative to espousing Kampf's divinity, rejecting the notion of any divinity whatsoever has been deemed permissible by the state, so long as the atheist in question does not deny Kampf's position as supreme sovereign of the nation. The only form of discrimination weathered by atheists from the empire itself is a minor tax, and though heavily discouraged by the throne and the state many Sarens look down on those who reject the notion of a creator and the divine heritage of humanity.

Of particular note is the utilization of listing oneself as atheist on the imperial census, and simply continuing to practice one's own belief in private. Such has lead to a general understanding with the state and its executors that, so long as such beliefs are not of a particular list of faiths, and so long as it is hidden, the practice does not occur, and a sizeable number of minority faiths have survived within the borders of the Supremacy through this loophole.

OTHER FAITHS

While faiths not a part of the Imperial Saren school are prohibited, there are varying levels of prohibition. Some faiths earn one a veritable slap on the wrist, others a penal sentence, or worse. None are more heavily persecuted than that known as the 'One True Faith', the religion of the alien Collective. A monotheistic faith as well, the One True Faith is regarded with fear and superstition by a great deal of the imperial population, and its practitioners often suffer the wrath of those who discover them before the authorities have any chance to dispense justice.

"Change is inevitable.

No one understands this better than we do.

We not only embrace change, we bend it to our will - master it - and must always be ready to do so again."

Perhaps the most obvious and lasting impression on the galaxy of Imperial Decree 3013, the Supremacy's fleets are made up of classes that have established a new and crushing precedent for naval tonnage. The harsh lessons of self-imposed exile and a century of near-constant retreat from the apocalyptic brutality of the Collective had engendered a cultural sense of paranoia into the Imperial peoples, so scarred from the trauma of abandoning dozens - if not hundreds - of worlds in defeat. ID 3013, or the Martial Modernization Initiative (MMI) as it was known from broadcasts, stipulated the necessity of vessels that would not only allow the Imperial Starfleets to meet and defeat the alien foe, but to also provide enough population and genetic diversity to begin a new colony at any given time, so that never again shall the Imperial peoples be threatened with extinction.

The result are titanic ships with compliments numbering often in the tens of thousands, veritable cities in space, it is to say nothing of the civilian population on board, not just the families of those serving but the laborers and craftsmen needed to sustain a local economy and the ship's supply needs.

Since ascending to the stars the Imperials insist on further perfecting the Scatterran form, adapting it - by nature or their own hand - to best suit the environs in which they have come to dwell. Heavily interested in the possibilities of the Scatterran genome and its manipulation, from growing replacement limbs and organs from scratch to augmenting the human form, extending lifespans and activating genes to access paranormal power, the Supremacy has embraced a synthesis of spirtualism and transhumanist thought.

Another byproduct of Imperial Decree 3013 developedto combat the nightmarish alien hordes that lie beyond their frontiers. Veritable titans of the battlefield, often two or three stories tall and weighing in at hundreds of tons, their armaments allow them to face down everything from low-orbit corvettes to the gargantuan abominations fielded by the Collective. With the fleet, the LW, the Home Armies of the Assembly, and even the Syndicate's Security Forces, Panzermechs are the vanguard of nearly all imperial planetary maneuvers.

"The merchant speaks of prosperity.

The bureaucrat speaks of authority.

The diplomat speaks of policy.

The soldier does not speak.

The soldier acts."

In truth not a singular martial body but a collection of hundreds, the Assembly Home Armies are the planetary and interstellar forces belonging to the noble houses of Supremacy. Every noble house, major or minor, possesses their own wing of the NHA - the levied power of their fief - directly proportional to their influence in the Imperial Assembly. The AHA are used in a primarily defensive role, leaving most of the offensive tasks to the forces of the civil government and House Kampf's Landwächter. The variety of uniforms, tactics and hardware reflects the variety present in the various houses and peoples of the Supremacy.

Though many houses possess fleets of great renown - not least of which being the Landwächter's vaunted Reichsmarine - they all pale beside the Fleet. The Starfleet is the mighty arm of the Supremacy and its peoples, answering to the civil government alone. The Fleet is by far the largest branch of the imperial armed services, and without a doubt the most powerful. Their starpilots are without peer, rivaled only by the most elite squadrons in the Soviet Republics, swarming from triangular leviathans that eclipse the sun.

While the Fleet possesses many legions of naval infantry - troops trained and schooled in the way of ship-borne small-unit warfare - they are not who fall upon the foeworlds with ruthless abandon. The planetary hammer of the Fleet, the will of the Scatterran peoples made manifest in ruthless abandon, the Star Corps is the dedicated planetary landing force of the Supremacy's civil government. Drawn from the prisons and penal colonies of the Supremacy and fearless volunteers, the men and women of the Star Corps have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Redemption or commendation, futures are forged and felled by the day in the ranks of Corps.

The same concept utilized in the Home Armies but on an exponential scale, the Ländwachter is the personal military of House Kampf, exempted from the rules and regulations of the common and noble estates, answering only to the Emperor. A fully functional and capable planetary and interstellar force in its own right, once one is deep enough inside of imperial territory the Fleet and her Star Corps are nowhere to be found, in their place the black-clad legions of the Emperor keep the peace and hold a mighty blade over the heads of any would-be traitors and their families. Many scions of the realm - common and noble - flock to the Landwächter for a chance at steady work without the complications of the noble houses or the woes of the commons. Devoid of the rampant nepotism of the Home Armies and their noble masters, unbeholden to committee or debate as the Fleet, the Landwächter is more than just opportunity - it is a calling.

Far more well-equipped than the Fleet, and far more professional than the Home Armies, the Home Guard of the Emperor epitomize the ideals of Austran militarism in the interstellar age.

Perhaps the most horrifying force employed by the Scatterran Supremacy are not levied by the state, but the Saren Ministry itself. The all-female martial organ of the Ministry are the Seraphim, the church's private army, at the beck and call of the Saren Diet, and by extension the throne. Holding devoutly to an ideal of purity and utter fealty to their Emperor as the second coming of Scatter, the Seraphim pledge themselves as symbolic brides to Josef Kampf and guardians of His holy enterprise. Deployed most often as shock troops, the Seraphim are often the first on the field when facing the alien or the demonic, as they are often the only ones capable of meeting and defeating such foes in single combat.

Coming from all walks of life, from homeless beggars and desperate brothel-workers to disillusioned university students and shamed noblewomen, the paramilitary that is the Seraphim accepts all who will kill in the name of God. Though their numbers can never hope to match any other branch of the imperial forces, they make up for such scarcity with relentless ferocity, exhaustive training, and the finest wargear the minds and forges Supremacy can create.

Not so much a legitimate military force as a national civil paramilitary, the Zivilwächter - often referred to as 'Civil Protection' in Aenglis - are the police force for the vast majority of imperial space. While some areas are administered specifically by noble or military police, Civil Protection's one true job is to safeguard the population, and more often than not Civil Protection engages organized criminal elements or serve as a planetary militia against foreign invasion, though when the case of a rogue house does become an issue they are oft-used to bolster loyalist forces against the traitors.

The Zivilwächter are incapable of interstellar offensive action, and only possess smaller ships for ensuring the orbital security of imperial worlds.

Ottoman · Dec 2, 2022

"People speak of the cost of war as if it is a simple equation.

Let them be reminded that no life spent in the service of a nation is wasted -

That no blood spilled for a righteous cause is in vain.

We do what we must because we know it to be necessary for the Final Victory."

TRIPARTITE COMMAND CORPORATISM

CLOSED MARKET |-----|----------------| OPEN MARKET

COMMAND ECONOMY |------|---------------| FREE ECONOMY

SOCIAL OWNERSHIP |---------------|------| PRIVATE OWNERSHIP

SUSTENANCE |-------------|--------| COMPETITION

AUTOMATED PRODUCTION |--|-------------------| MANUAL PRODUCTION

MODERN AGRICULTURE |----|-----------------| SIMPLE HUSBANDRY

CURRENCY:
Mark(s)

CURRENCY TYPE:
Digital

BACKING:
Various Precious Minerals

GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT:
168,100,000,000,000,000,000,000 Marks (est.)

ORGANIZED UNDER:
The Triple Estate

ECONOMIC TENDENCIES:

Core Worlds:
- Manufacturing
- Consumer Goods
- Heavy Industry
- Refining Raw Materials
Inner Empire:
- Manufacturing
- Heavy Industry
- Synthetic Chemical Production
- Refining Raw Materials
Outer Empire:
- Limited Manufacturing
- Agriculture
- Light Industry
- Raw Materials
The Frontiers:
- Agriculture
- Raw Materials

MAJOR EXPORTS:

Consumer Goods
Military Hardware
Industrial Hardware
Fertilizers
Cybernetic Augmentations

MAJOR IMPORTS:

Consumer Goods
Foodstuffs
Pharmaceuticals

"History shows us that all who have power are inclined to abuse it; they go until they find limits.

To prevent abuse, it is necessary for power to stop power.

So shall we be constituted, as so none shall be compelled to do that which the law does not oblige, nor forced to abstain from that which the law permits."

Immediately following the Declaration of Empire and the formation of the Supremacy in 90 AE (2138 AC) it became swiftly apparent that the economic infrastructure of the Confederacy could not be salvaged. Within hours of the declaration dozens of corporations aligned with Confederate loyalists rose up in insurrection during the Wars of Unification. The throne was forced to immediate action to redress the calamitous straits of the Supremacy's infancy, to develop a lasting solution and preserve the newborn state. The Triple Estate is that solution.

Not simply a ministry of a government assigned to oversee economic affairs, the Triple Estate is the very fabric which holds imperial society together, the engine that drives the Emperor's great enterprise. The vital functions of the national economy are separated and delineated to the three elements of imperial society: the Peerage, the State, the Syndicate. The various noble houses and states of the Supremacy comprise the Peerage, tasked oversee the development of the vast expanse of space, utilizing their immense capital to shoulder the leviathan costs of stellar speculation and planetary colonization. The people, represented in the State of the civil government, are the beating heart of the Supremacy and their labor its blood, without which the mines and farms of the peerage and the foundries and refineries of the Syndicate would grind to a screeching halt. SARDAS, often referred in common parlance as the Syndicate, is the synthesis of the acumen and wealth of the Peerage with the unrelenting ferocity of the State, a collection of various bureaus and syndicates responsible for all manufacturing and refining within the Supremacy.

"Nobility does not consist of pedigree and ancient lineage, nor great revenues, lands, or possessions;

But wisdom, courage, knowledge, and virtue, which in man is true nobility."

Those of the commons who have demonstrated themselves to be individuals of merit and valor are raised into what is known as the Peerage, the Nobility, or the First Estate. The vassals of imperial will, the Peerage speak with the voice and authority of the Emperor in his stead. Raised not simply for valor on the battlefield, but any contribution to the Supremacy which betters the ambitions or the well-being of the imperial peoples - be it cultural, scientific, economic, or otherwise. Such meritocracy has lead to a remarkable diversity of opinion and origin amongst the peers of the realm, a state which invariably results in conflict.

Foreseeing this, the Emperor has harnessed this natural discontent to fuel the Imperial Assembly, the legislative power of the Supremacy, the last vestige of the Volksrepublik of His late father - may God avenge him - and the international confederation it came to helm. A bicameral legislature consisting of two diets, divided between the Houses Major and Minor, the Assembly meets biannually to discuss matters of the realm, and to develop an agenda to submit to both the civil government and His Imperial Majesty. Regulated by a triumvirate of individuals - the Archduke or duchess, the Lord or Lady Chamberlain, and the Emperor or another member of the Imperial House - within the Assembly and the Diet Major and Minor, houses of the Peerage wield voting power equivalent to their populations. As lesser houses pledge themselves vassals to greater ones, blocs and leagues develop from the generational rivalries and differing philosophies of the families. Amongst the great houses of the realm, a fierce war is waged on the floor of the Assembly and across the stellar reaches of the Supremacy, known colloquially as the Great Game.

The Great Game is not one of armies and fleets, of logistics and production, but war in its true totality - the struggle of powers seeking to gain the upper hand by any means necessary.

Restrained from complete annihilation by the might of the Starfleet and the Imperial House, the houses of the Peerage shift their energies to trade wars, espionage, and limited, state-sanctioned warfare. Flourishing economies built on the mighty shoulders of agriculture, mining, and the extraction of the natural wealth of the galaxy vie for domination as they supply the other estates with the raw materials and foodstuffs they require to maintain their own responsibilities, the favor of the State and the Syndicate proving vital to the survival of any house in the Game. Though their titles are hereditary following being raised into the Peerage, the foolish, the incompetent, and the tyrannical are quickly removed by the ruthlessness of the Game, and so the powers of the Assembly are guided further towards the principles that befit ruling in His name.

While nobility in the Supremacy is often acquired through heredity with one's parentage, it can also be bestowed by the Emperor or the Houses Major as a token of His, or their, gratitude, for efforts and services rendered in any field. None are excluded from being raised into the peerage, save for the heretic and the criminal, though only very few will be raised into the Peerage as anything more than a Knight, anything more requiring only the most astounding achievements. Without any check on their ambitions or the means to realize them, acquiring a title should be a goal of every loyal citizen.

Such introduction to the Peerage brings most into the realm of the Houses Minor, the houses and families of the Diet Minor, as few will find themselves amongst the Houses Major with control of at least one planet. So it is that there is no delineation in the titles themselves - a Duke may only rule a continent, but a Viscount may rule a star system - only in the Diet in which they wield their voice.

AENGLIS	AUSTRIC
Emperor \|\| Empress Crown Prince \|\| Crown Princess Archduke \|\| Archduchess Duke \|\| Duchess Prince \|\| Princess Marquess \|\| Marchioness Count \|\| Countess Viscount \|\| Viscountess Baron \|\| Baroness Knight \|\| Knight	Kaiser \|\| Kaiserin Prinz \|\| Prinzessin Erherzog \|\| Erherzogin Herzog \|\| Herzogin Kurfürst \|\| Kurfürstin Markgräf \|\| Markgräfin Gräf \|\| Gräfin Visgräf \|\| Visgräfin Freiherr \|\| Freifrau Ritter \|\| Ritterin

"The heart is everywhere - every part of an organism is only the specialized force of the heart itself."

The State, the civil government of the Supremacy and the Second Estate, is known domestically as the Chancellery. Itself a tripartite union of the Landwächter, the Fleet, and the Saren Ministry, the State oversees the vast majority of the day to day operations of the Supremacy, and safeguards the interests and welfare of the common man. With the overwhelming majority of the national population within their estate, the Chancellery is responsible for meeting whatever labor demands the first and third estates lay before them. To ensure the fair and equitable treatment of the Second Estate by the others, Imperial Law mandates that the judiciary system in its entirety to be drawn from the commons alone, with any and all nobility barred from law, its practice, or interpretation.

Beyond the law and justice, the Chancellery oversees numerous functions vital to the operation of the Supremacy, including but not limited to education, law enforcement, intelligence, media regulation, postal services, and healthcare. Whether such functions are performed locally by the representatives of the LW, Fleet, or Ministry is dependent largely on location and social development. The combined might of the three aspects of the State - much less any one - is reason enough for the other Estates to hesitate in any exploitation of the commonborn under their rule.

Headed by the Imperial Cabinet on Tannhäuser, the Chancellery's tendrils extend throughout the Supremacy, from the throneworld to the most spartan frontier outpost. Dispensing the will of the throne and the peoples as one, it is the estate of the common man, and one that only a fool could ignore. With over a hundred trillion souls spread throughout the stars, the Chancellery dwarfs every other aspect of Scatterran civilization, the largest - and mightiest - state to ever exist in the annals of their history. One would not be blamed for the assumption that these masses languish under the rule of the privileged few, blinded by the pomp and circumstance of the Peerage and the vast capital of the Syndicate, to think the people at the mercy of their wealth and their hubris.

But one would be wrong.

Whether administered by the sable legions of the Landwächter, the black-clad men and women of the fleet, or the mothers and sisters of the Saren Ministry, the Chancellery provides universal, single-payer healthcare to ensure the well-being of common and noble alike, fair and equitable wages adjusted for the current value of the Mark, extensive social welfare programs to safeguard stability no matter the circumstances, the code of Imperial Law to guarantee and protect the rights of every Imperial in its courts, and the elimination of any and all barriers or checks on employment, service, or education. Those who make the mistake of thinking the Imperials to be easily riled to rebellion forget the most basic truth of government: tyrants are not suffered for long.

The Judiciary, the courts system of the Supremacy's Chancellery, is the arbiter of all legal disputes within imperial space. While civil cases and disputes are often handled and resolved in the courts of the Peerage, for any judgement regarding the law or necessitating forced labor, corporal, or capital punishment, the Judiciary is the ruling authority. No matter who is brought before the judges of the bar - be they common, noble, or gentry - they are tried as an Imperial Citizen, with all the same rights and privileges as any other. As per the Imperial Code, there is no way to circumvent the use of the Judiciary's courts for criminal trials, save for the Emperor himself to be petitioned to serve as the sole judge and authority in hearing the case.

All trials within the Judciary - extempting the aforementioned Imperial Trial - are bench trials comprised of a tribunal, with one judge presiding from each of the three constituent elements of the Chancellery. The judge from the Landwächter is seated in the center, flanked by the representatives of the Fleet and the Ministry, the bridge between the two. Within the Supremacy there are no juries, however during complicated cases or on the frontiers of the Supremacy, lay judges may be randomly selected from a pool of qualified volunteers.

"Power - true power - is found neither in the thesis or antithesis, but the emergent synthesis which reconciles them."

Where the Assembly is the last vestige of the republic, SARDAS is the last shred of the corporation. SARDAS, the Supremacy Arms and Research Development Administration Syndicate, or simply the Syndicate, is the Third Estate and the linchpin that binds the commons and the nobility. Headquartered on Tannhäuser, its true center of power lies on the hellworld of Rienzi - the oldest of the planets slated exclusively for industrial production - where the Syndicate is managed by the Council Organic. This council meets twice a month on Rienzi to discuss matters pertinent both to the Syndicate and to the Supremacy which they serve. Thought to be held responsible to both the throne and the state, the Syndicate often skips the latter and solicits permission for their actions solely from the former.

The Syndicate controls all imperial means of production, but is prohibited from harvesting the materials needed to run such a massive industry on its own. Instead they must rely on the efforts of the Peerage to acquire the resources needed for any significant production. In the tripartite system, the houses and civil government require the production facilities that only the Syndicate possess in order to produce anything manufactured or refined. In this separation of power, the Emperor discourages upstart houses and tyrannical syndicates from mounting any effective rebellion by dividing the means of production, its fuel, and the labor required for both.

SARDAS has a presence on almost every world in the Supremacy, though it might not be in the form of a factory but rather a spaceport, a university or a simple recruiting office. Trillions work and serve in the Syndicate, noble and common alike, as the Syndicate maintains its own standing army and navy - the Handelswächter - to protect their facilities and worlds from sabotage and attack and resist the foe until proper reinforcements can arrive. With fleet as professional as it is swift, the Syndicate safeguard the tradelanes of the Supremacy and her allies with cold efficiency, and countless pirates have discovered far too late that the mercenaries of the Syndicate take no interest in prisoners.

Formed with the establishment of the Syndicate in 2139, the Council has gradually expanded to its current size as necessity has dictated, the Council's primary objective is to oversee the various efforts - research, production and trade - that the Syndicate oversees and to reply to and submit reports from the Throne and the Civil Government. Every industry and organ is represented, from small arms design and production to reactor fuel refinement, by a single representative from amongst that industry's various bureaus, combines and syndicates, appointed by the SEO and rotated or retained every ten years. Presence on the Council may be revoked at any time for incompetence, corruption, or failure of any sort. The SEO is naturally appointed by the Imperial House and may be sacked at any time at their discretion for the very same reason the SEO possesses the same power over the Council.

Once a month the Council meets at the Syndicate's de facto headquarters on Rienzi, with the council members coming from nearly every corner of the Supremacy to attend. Typically the meetings take little longer than a day, though when significant discrepancies or setbacks are brought to light, an extended session may be called for by the SEO. Should any member of the Council be absent from its meeting without excuse, an official inquiry within the Syndicate will be launched and - should it be deemed necessary by the internal echelons of SARDAS according to evidence gathered - the Verhör will be contacted.

Though in truth more mercenary than professional, the presence of the Handelswächter shows that there is some truth to the Empyrean joke that in the Supremacy "everyone has an army." Largely raised to protect both production facilities and the trade-lanes of the Syndicate, the HW is known to engage in anti-piracy and COIN operations, among other, less honorable, pursuits. Composed partially of discharged, rejected or retired members of the other branches of the armed services, the HW also fields large numbers of otherwise alien forces in the Supremacy, from infamous Krokodil Marines to weaponized Legionaries, producing an unorthodox, if elite, force in imperial service.

The HW is often also contracted to third-parties, serving who could otherwise be seen as the ideological or economic enemies of the Supremacy, should they have deep enough pockets and the good sense to never ask them to turn their guns on the Supremacy.

Ottoman · Dec 4, 2022

"We cannot entertain an alliance until acquainted with the designs of our neighbors."

SCALE OF DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS

ALLIED

Whether by treaty or by blood, the state is willing to go to war to support this power.

FRIENDLY

Generational partners and ideological comrades, the state regards this power and their people as legitimate.

WARM

Trade partners or signatories of non-aggression pacts, the state finds this power to be agreeable.

NEUTRAL

The state has no real opinion on this power, or considers it none of their concern.

COOL

Whether due to a lack of information or a legitimate dispute, the state regards this power with caution and concern.

COLD

Longstanding rivals and ideological opponents, the state regards this power with contempt just short of warfare.

HOSTILE

Officially or unofficially, open conflict exists between the state and this power.

DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS:

THE COLLECTIVE OF CONSTELLATIONS - HOSTILE
- THE UMMAH - HOSTILE
THE SOVIET STATES OF THE OUTER REPUBLICS - COLD
THE INTERSTELLAR COALITION OF ORGANIZED NATIONS - HOSTILE
THE FREE SYSTEMS CONFEDERACY - WARM
THE TERRAN REMNANT - WARM
THE FREEGUILD ALLIANCE - FRIENDLY

"The Code is no restraint upon the freedom of the good, for the good desire nothing with which the Code interferes."

SCALE OF LEGAL RESTRICTION

PROTECTED

Enshrined in the laws of the state and defended by the courts.

UNRESTRICTED

Available, but not explicitly outlined, as per the legal code of the state, violations or problems may result in debate in the courts.

LIGHTLY RESTRICTED

Regulated by minor laws, state punishments for violations will be more lenient.

MODERATELY RESTRICTED

Extensive scrutiny by the legal code of the state, and punishments for violations will range from mild to severe.

HEAVILY RESTRICTED

Crushing restrictions, the violation of which the state regards with severe contempt.

OUTLAWED

Completely prohibited under the legal code of the state, punishment will range depending on the violation.

BASIC FREEDOMS:

FREEDOM OF ELECTIONS:
OUTLAWED

FREEDOM OF RELIGION:
HIGHLY RESTRICTED

FREEDOM OF SPEECH:
MODERATELY RESTRICTED

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION:
HIGHLY RESTRICTED

FREEDOM OF PRESS:
OUTLAWED

FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY:
LIGHTLY RESTRICTED

FREEDOM OF PETITION:
PROTECTED

FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT:
PROTECTED

FREEDOM TO WORK:
PROTECTED

FREEDOM TO BEAR ARMS:
MODERATELY RESTRICTED

FREEDOM TO MARRY:
LIGHTLY RESTRICTED

FREEDOM TO REPRODUCE:
HIGHLY RESTRICTED

FREEDOM FROM SLAVERY:
PROTECTED

PERSONAL FREEDOMS:

DRUG USE:

CAFFEINE - UNRESTRICTED
TOBACCO - LIGHTLY RESTRICTED
ALCOHOL - LIGHTLY RESTRICTED
CANNABINOIDS - LIGHTLY RESTRICTED
NEUROCAINE - OUTLAWED
DELYSID - OUTLAWED
DIAMORPHINE - OUTLAWED
AMPHETAMINES - OUTLAWED

SEXUAL ACTIVITY:

PORNOGRAPHY - HIGHLY RESTRICTED
HETEROSEXUALITY - PROTECTED
HOMOSEXUALITY - PROTECTED
XENOSEXUALITY - MODERATELY RESTRICTED
POLYGAMY - MODERATELY RESTRICTED
PEDOPHILIA - OUTLAWED
ZOOPHILIA - OUTLAWED

ABORTION:
MODERATELY RESTRICTED

HUNTING:
MODERATELY RESTRICTED

CONSUMPTION OF MEAT:
UNRESTRICTED

LEGAL AGE:

LEGAL AGE OF MAJORITY:
18 Tannhäuser Cycles

LEGAL AGE OF MILITARY ENLISTMENT:
18 Tannhäuser Cycles

LEGAL AGE OF VOTING:
18 Tannhäuser Cycles

LEGAL AGE OF VEHICULAR OPERATION:
18 Tannhäuser Cycles

LEGAL AGE OF RECREATIONAL DRUG USE:
18 Tannhäuser Cycles

CITIZENSHIP:

PREREQUISITE(S):
Oath of Fealty to His Imperial Majesty

PARTIAL CITIZENSHIP:
Member of the Handelswächter
Parent of a Citizen
Defector

FULL CITIZENSHIP:
Practitioner of any Imperial Saren Sect
Member of the Armed Forces
Birth within Imperial Borders
Birth to Parents with Full Citizenship

IMMIGRATION // VISITATION:

THE COLLECTIVE OF CONSTELLATIONS - OUTLAWED
- THE UMMAH - OUTLAWED
THE SOVIET STATES OF THE OUTER REPUBLICS - MODERATELY RESTRICTED
THE INTERSTELLAR COALITION OF ORGANIZED NATIONS - HIGHLY RESTRICTED
THE FREE SYSTEMS CONFEDERACY - LIGHTLY RESTRICTED
THE TERRAN REMNANT - LIGHTLY RESTRICTED
THE FREEGUILD ALLIANCE - UNRESTRICTED

Ottoman · Dec 4, 2022

"My principles are only those that, before the Great War, every well-adjusted person considered sane and normal."

Imperial culture as it is now known and observed has only existed for but a brief six centuries, having come into being with the establishment of the Scatterran Supremacy and the maturation of the imperial system, but the foundations were laid many centuries before, and from a multitude of sources. Though heavily Austran, the Scatterran Supremacy can also trace its lineage to such distant shores as Tokaiga, Vendraga and Khorkoy, all woven together into a great tapestry by the Emperor, tailored by religious and secular traditions from around the Scatterran globe, and now the greater galaxy - the end product being an incredibly conservative, nationalistic society built around the single, accepted truth that the Supremacy is superior to any and every other option in existence.

Austric is not simply one of two official languages of the Supremacy spoken by a vast swaths of the population, but a binding element as the language of the Imperial Code. All legal documents and any official dispatches from any memberstate, regardless of ethnicity, are written in Austric, the language proving mandatory curriculum for any imperial educational facility and literacy is a requirement for martial or civil service. Austric utilizes a runic alphabet, often stylized in a gothic manner, which has been incorporated into most other languages present in the Supremacy's memberstates, from Aenglis to Helvaic, and is easily distinguishable from the more clean cut and utilitarian fonts and alphabets of the Coalition.

However many other languages are spoken and written in the Supremacy, for though Austric is one of the official languages for the Supremacy as a whole, each memberstate may not necessarily prove Austran culturally. The Vitestovakians and Oriyaks, in particular, prove quite stubborn with their alphabet and respective languages, irking the Austran precedent with their Orthoxan traditions. Many of the languages present in the Supremacy have incorporated Austric loanwords and phrases, the Austran language's pervasive influence in the Supremacy permanently shaping the socio-cultural models of those peoples who had elected to flee with Kampf in the Exodus.

Thanks to the Syndicate's activities beyond the borders of the Supremacy, even a sizeable minority of the other Scatterran nations are fluent in the Lingua Austra, gradually coming to be associated with culture and sophistication across the Garden. Nearly three quarter of the Imperial population list on the census that they are at least bilingual, with many polyglots listing even more than two.

Austran literature has its origins Scatterran antiquity with the many scholars and writers of the First Empire, though the literary contributions of the Vitestovakians, Soruks and others are hardly overlooked. When it comes to social culture, not simply literature, the Supremacy is obsessed with its glorious and storied past on their former homeworld, and it matters not in their eyes whether the source of such culture is or isn't Austran. From the histories by Viktör of Süd to the minimalist, fatalistic poetry of Tokaiga, the literature present in the Supremacy draws heavily on the traditions established on Scatter and rarely, if ever, breaks away from them.

With the exception of an infinitesimal minority, all publications in the Supremacy are digital for, just like their currency, literature has become paperless. Printed materials, especially bound books, are incredible status symbols for whoever can afford originals from Scatter or have newer publications printed for them, and libraries are often a choice location when hosting any social event of status.

While the philosophical schools present in other powers might reflect the correlation of the rise of science and the decline of spirituality, those within the Supremacy focus heavily on the combination these elements, working their faith into every element of thought that they can. But every school of imperial thought, from Austran to Tokaigan, owes its current form to the diligent work and passions of one man - Otto Kampf, born Johannes Dietrich, the father of the Emperor. Founding both the Volksrepublik Südreich in the wake of the Second Empire's defeat and the hyper-militant Volkist socio-political school of thought, Dietrich changed his name to Otto Kampf and became the most beloved figure in Austran history, still revered just as highly as his son. With Austra leading the Pact of Steel, Kampf forged a haven for tradition and faith in a modern world rife with corruption, greed, and apostasy, forming an international bloc that would eventually become the Confederacy of Independent States with the advent of the Exodus War.

While the musical tendencies of the Supremacy might be considered backwards by other Scatterran states, the Supremacy prefers to view its musical pursuits as cultured and playing to their natural skills. Heavily influenced by the Austran father-culture of the Supremacy, the musical scene in the empire tends towards one of two major schools: electronic or classical. The classical school is, as the name would imply, dominated heavily by the traditions and styles established on their homeworld before their self-imposed exile, producing new symphonies, concertos and operas in the centuries since leaving Scatter, with some becoming international sensations.

The electronic school could be considered far more modern in comparison, more akin to those found in the Coalition or former Commonwealth, producing music that could just as easily be calm and ambient or exciting and harsh. As equally common as the classical school, the electronic school is no more popular with the youth or urban populations than its competitor, and is just as likely to be found in the clubs and lounges across the Supremacy. Of particular note are those practitioners of the arts who meld the two schools together, such as Devika Arqa, often to critical success.

To some, imperial cinema is hampered by the highly restrictive regulations put in place by the Verhör and the Ministry for Public Enlightenment. While not every film released is a blatant piece of propaganda glorifying the Supremacy, every film is scrutinized to not criticize the imperial government, the divinity of the emperor, or the righteousness of the imperial cause, as well as to promote positive qualities for the general populace, encouraging imperial doctrine and pride in the nation.

To others, imperial cinema is the culmination of Scatterran film, with all professional film media being produced by the Ministry for Public Enlightenment for the various organs and clients of the Supremacy. With dozens of subordinate offices within the Houses Major and the Syndicate, the MPE scours imperial space for the best of the best, before and behind the camera, to realize the weapon that is cinema.

One field the Supremacy has come to pride itself on are its architectural styles, at the forefront of which are two schools: Neo-Dollic and Australic.

Neo-Dollic is a neo-baroque school, echoing the ancient golden age of the Dollmann Dynasty, and has become the traditional - and stereotypical - style for the Supremacy. Present in every corner of the Supremacy, even if it is simply a local post office, as every Chancellery building is mandated by the Imperial Code to be built in the general style. Perhaps the most notable setting to observe Neo-Dollic architecture in person is the throneworld, Tannhäuser. A veritable gallery of examples and standards, Tannhäuser and its skyline is known, even if only through textbooks and videos, the whole empire over as the standard by which all cities are measured.

Imperial art is renowned the Garden over for its tremendous and spectacular dedication to the classical schools. Rejecting modern tendencies on nearly every level, only the most liberal of artists would dare dabble in impressionism or surrealist work, risking investigation from the Verhör if they bothered to do so. Building on various long-established and distinguished traditions from Scatter, everything from traditional Austran schools to Tokaigan Ukiyo-e, the art present in the Supremacy strives to present the world as it is seen by mortal eyes.

While fully embracing and utilizing modern clothing and textiles for the practicality of interstellar empire, tastes and tendencies in the Supremacy favor modesty and traditional style. Commonly designed to show as little skin as possible, the typical clothing - personal and professional - seen across the Supremacy is best described as Neo-Edwardian, even among the commons. Commoner and noble alike follow many of the same social customs regarding dress and clothing, and thanks to the organization of the Supremacy, imperials often regard these social mores with nigh-on religious reverence.

This is not at all to say that the unique styles of dress and clothing of the many ethnicities of the Supremacy are extinguished, as many have evolved alongside the Imperial Style to remain in the 28th century. Encouraged as much as any other art or expression, as per the Volkist ideal, as a celebration of cultural identity and tradition.

Known internationally for its obsession with propriety in appearance and manner, the Supremacy has become the butt of jokes across the Galaxy for their antiquated and eccentric styles.

While largely dominated by Austran influence, to say that the cuisine found in the Supremacy is homogeneous is a terrible understatement. Wherever there are elements of one of the many member races of the Supremacy, so too is their cuisine, whether it is being served in restaurants or privately to friends and family. From the spicy, hearty fare of the Vendragans to the light meals of the Soruks, all can be found on the plates of the common folk and the nobility alike. A definite organic food market is growing for the gentry and the nobility, who would prefer to avoid many of the materials that the common people are forced to use thanks to war rationing.

Of important note is the voluntary recycling of the deceased present in the Supremacy, to provide for those who are unable to provide for themselves. The social security services provides these high-calorie supplements free of charge to any who apply for aid. Such supplements are often used bolster house and civil military field rations. Such practices have lead to a wide variety of disparaging rumors concerning the Supremacy, labeling them as cannibals and savages.

As far as alcohol goes, both wine and beer are equally regarded as national beverages, with the popularity of harder liquors varying depending on the ethnicity involved, with darker beers and red wines being largely preferred within the Supremacy. Non-alcoholic beverages of particular popularity are coffee and tea, both warm and cold.

An integral part of imperial life, sports and sporting events in the Supremacy vary drastically from Terran examples. With a pronounced focus both on classical Austran events from the First Empire and competitive contact games, sports in the Supremacy are geared to getting the populace of the empire not only into fighting shape, but to lay the groundwork for a basic, empire-wide militia. Starting in the fourth year of public education the children are organized into companies in lieu of classes, and beginning in sixth year the companies begin to compete against each other in various martial training exercises and maneuvers. This continues until the end of state-sponsored public education at eighteen years of age.

The Supremacy, despite its disenfranchisement of the commons and its antiquated veneer, is a modern and advanced society that is shaped by a plurality of lifestyles and ethnic identities. The Supremacy has not simply maintained the rights of the female sex established by its predecessors, but vastly expanded them with the adoption of absolute primogeniture with the Imperial Code. Divesting itself of petty squabbles the Supremacy has long-since embraced its homosexual citizens, who now enjoy entire lives free from the fear of shame, vitriol, or persecution. While easily classified as authoritarian by most metrics, even tyrannical when one considers the intensive regulations imposed on reproduction and religion, the Supremacy is also renowned for its staunch protection of its members, both legally and physically, and the provision of a near universal standard of living for the common folk.

Ottoman · Dec 10, 2022

"On Tannhäuser you are not what you were born, but what you have it in yourself to be."

Of the millions of worlds across the Supremacy there is one that reigns above all, the metric by which all are judged, the pattern by which all are to be shaped - the Throneworld, Tannhäuser - but it was not always so.

The first world settled by the Exiles following their disastrous defeat at the hands of the then-International Coalition, Tannhäuser was not always what it is today - in the century that had followed its colonization, the central nexus of the reborn Confederacy became a nascent ecumenopolis, a hub of senatorial and corporate activity as the capital of the alliance. Towering steel monoliths - skyscrapers and converted sleeper ships - dominated the skyline as a vast urban sprawl came to dominate the world as factories worked tirelessly to fuel the second Confederacy, poisoning the air, the water, and the land. Billions called it home, and as the first century of Exile gradually came to a close, the peoples of Tannhäuser had forgotten why they had taken to the stars, bickering amongst themselves in the squalorous shadows of the wretched city, the massive landfills, the polluted seas - so the Emperor reminded them.

In the opening ceremonies of the peace summit to end the war between the Confederacy and the Extrasolar Electorate - a thinly-veiled facade to conceal the Confederacy's entrance into the Electorate's memberstates - a decrepit and ancient Josef Kampf, the symbolic Chancellor of the Confederacy kept alive far too long by perversions of medicine and science, was wheeled out to give - or attempt to give - some form of remark. What came in its stead came a firm, rasping voice, and for the hundreds of billions watching the ceremonies there was a momentary flash of light and an instantaneous, unceremonious end to the video feed. So it was that the Confederacy, its mighty Senate and seat of power, was annihilated by the very weapon that the Electorate had brought to bear against the worlds of the Exiles, hidden within the confines of the automated wheelchair he was relegated to, its detonation triggered by the single word that proved their eulogy:

"Never."

Final image captured from video feed of Security Camera C13
Ghorbani Tower, Tannhäuser, ca. 90 AE [2138 AC]

Within minutes, the feeds returned with live footage of a Chancellor restored to the height of his vigor, dressed now in the sable uniforms of his mother's paramilitary legacy, the Landwächter, declaring in no uncertain terms the activation of his emergency powers, and subsequently the immediate dissolution of the Confederacy. While the Declaration of Empire was not well-received by all of the former Confederacy, even in this opening act the nascent autarch made plain his intention to begin efforts to restore Tannhäuser immediately, and within hours ships were already en-route to provide relief for the now-devastated planet.

The weapon, a fission bomb of such extraordinary magnitude as to wipe clean the surfaces of worlds, was a favorite terror weapon of the Electorate, and had already been used on several Confederate worlds in the Extrasolar War thus far. Its power didn't simply evaporate the great city that had come to spread itself across the surface of the exile's home, it boiled away the diseased seas and reshaped the very land, hidden beneath the steel monstrosities of Confederate hubris. In moments, great seas hissed and vanished and great mountains were forged, jutting into the fiery skies. The sights that greeted those dispatched were not of rubble, ruins, and refugees, but of complete and utter annihilation, the restoration of a primordial, barren state.

Know then that today Tannhäuser is the mark by which all civilized worlds are measured: it great cities testament to the drive and glory of its masters, held in balance with the captivating splendor of the world's restored natural beauty, where no new buildings are ever built or needed, and no drop of rain falls without the planning and permission of the Emperor and his agents. Though it has taken centuries, the Emperor has forged his people's new homeworld into the imperial ideal for all of the galaxy - man and nature, noble and common, old and new, held in balance for the good of all.

What follows are some of the distinctive regions and major landmarks of the Throneworld, known throughout the Supremacy and beyond.

Today, vast swaths of Tannhäuser's largely terrestrial surface are protected - preserved - from any further development or exploitation. The dramatic geography and sweeping vistas created with the detonation of the ancient weapon has been a favorite of billions to visit, but such places are wild land - kept so for the planet's health. Many ranges and forests are hiked regularly, and often the Landwächter will practice maneuvers in the depths of the wilderness, far from the comfort of cities and civilization. But for all of its splendor and majesty, the Preserve is a facsimile of that-which-was, as only a fraction of its native biodiversity remains - reintroduced from specimens that had been off-world at the time of the detonation. The remainder have been carefully selected from other worlds for compatibility with and function within the restored ecosystem.

The first step in the restoration of the world as the capital of the Exiles, the revitalization of Tannhäuser's health became the driving priority for imperial efforts on the planet - the memories of salted Scatter still fresh in their minds. Know then that despite the beautiful estates of the Peerage or the grand dome of the Assembly, it is the complete subjugation of Tannhäuser's climate that is the crowning jewel of the Supremacy. A vast network of countless satellites, managed by man and LEGION alike, push and pull at the jet stream of the world, heating and cooling the lakes and poles and necessary to provide predictable, pleasant weather with absolute precision - a capability that has not eluded the Ministry for Enlightenment.

Regardless of this precision and lack of severity, it is not recommended to venture into the Preserve unaccompanied, with dangers ranging from exposure to predatory fauna.

Tannhäuser itself sports a ratio roughly inverted to that of Terra, with two-thirds of its surface dry land even before the detonation. Despite the cataclysmic results of the detonation, a saving grace has been the creation of several new depressions and strong rivers, and the number of lakes upon the surface of the Throneworld has only grown since. Bolstered by shipments from offworld, while not genuine oceans in their own right, several of their number are vast enough to sport sea-like conditions. While often hubs of development and settled populations, great stretches of their shores are kept in a natural state, much like the many rivers that feed them.

Across the breadth of Tannhäuser, numerous rural estates have been built and parceled out from the available land, around which greater communities have gradually developed over the centuries into various townships, though none quite to the scale or size of the New city. While dominated by the Peerage of the realm, many estates have been made for both the State and the Syndicate - not least of which the several Syndicated Universities sprinkled upon the Throneworld's surface. Each of them a nexus for work and amenities, the various estates make up the vast majority of Tannhäuser's civilized surface.

Of all of the sights on Tannhäuser, none are as iconic as the New City.

Dominated by the towering dome of the titanic Imperial Assembly, stretching forth a kilometer into the sky, the New City is centered on this assembly hall, built over the precise coordinates of the old Confederate Senate, the very epicenter of the planet's reformation from the detonation. From the embers and ashes of atomic devastation has risen a city that is completely and genuinely imperial. Without being forced to work around decades of preexisting development or infrastructure, the Supremacy was free to shape Tannhäuser - and their new capital - as they saw fit, uncontaminated by the ills of corporate shortcuts and bureaucratic meddling.

Aligned on a north-south axis along the Grand Avenue, it sprawls in every direction of the Greater Stehung Valley, framed by the range of the same name. Despite the great dome at its center it is not a city of towers and glistening skyscrapers, but of winding cobblestone streets, warm wrought-iron lamps, and baroque buildings - each unique in its own way - nestled snugly together between healthy greenspaces. Many of the Peerage and Gentry forgo estates in the country in deference of the common homes and townhouses of the New City, often living alongside the many commonfolk who help keep the imperial capital functioning.

The Mirror of Exile is the largest reflecting pool in the Garden at just over six kilometers, it is a lasting tribute to the past of the Scatterran Exiles and the sacrifices born by their mothers and fathers before the Supremacy. It stretches between the Mausoleum of the Exodus and the Assembly Hall, flanked by an obelisk for each of the peoples annihilated by the Coalition in the Exodus War, their names inscribed vertically upon the inward faces. It is a placid pool of cold water, rippling with the quiet force of the rushing waters of the River Isa, which is diverted to feed it.

The Mausoleum of the Exodus itself is a symbolic memorial to the billions who perished in the last war on Scatter, a wide, somber structure dominated by its sable and charcoal brickwork - with every one of its countless number inscribed with a name. Drawn from Confederate records throughout the war, the imperials believe that they have catalogued every individual lost in their ancient struggle for freedom. A place visited as often as any other imperial sight, for half of the travelers to the New City it and the Mirror are the first things they see coming above ground, should they have arrived on board one of the many mag-lev trains running to the subterranean station below it.

"No, it was not my aim that the spectator should feel anything, much less awe for the Throne - I only wished to impose the grandeur of the Hall itself on those within. I read once in Gariad's 'Travels in Austra' that, when he saw the primordial amphitheater in Stiera, he said to himself:

'If people of all different creeds were pressed together in such a place, they would be of one mind.'

That was the aim of the Hall; it had nothing to do with the Emperor."

The Imperial Assembly, the Gotteshalle, the Great Hall - it has many names, but one unmistakable profile.

A building of leviathan proportions, the Hall is the Supremacy's answer to the demands of housing and hearing the throngs and multitudes of vassals and peers of the realm in open assembly, a forum large enough to comfortably host millions of representatives from thousands of worlds. Great balconies of seats ring the marbled assembly floor, dominated at their head by a towering, three-faceted podium, at which a representative of the Imperial House, the Archduke, and the Chamberlain sit to preside over the hearings. Great holograms and extensive sound systems broadcast the voice and image of the noble who has the floor to the masses gathered, and all are heard equally before Throne, Peerage, and State.

Upon the interior of the great dome, two scenes are depicted, bisecting its expanse. Centered above the podium is the image of a forlorn and terrible battle rendered in stark relief - the last stand of the Seshans in the Night of the Exodus - the holy blood that binds the Emperor to the people. Opposite, above the entrance of the Hall, are hundreds of various ships of all manner of shapes and sizes, streaking forth to the heavens above, urging those departing the Assembly to emulate the intrepid courage and indomitable spirit of their forefathers.

At a kilometer in height, it stretches over two at its base, and many times clouds and drizzling rain can form in the lofty heights within.

On the eastern flank of the Imperial Assembly, the Offices begin. While there are literally thousands of various offices, ministries, bureaus and more on the Throneworld, when one refers to the Offices, one means only one thing - the Chancellery, and the offices of all of its various constituent organs. The nexus of the civil and common government, the Offices are often bustling with activity even on the quietest of days, and is the meeting-place of the Imperial Cabinet. Almost every decision of import within the Supremacy is finalized in these marbled halls.

Bisecting the Offices of the Chancellery is the Imperial Cathedral, Hagia Zofia. Named in honor of the Emperor's late mother, St. Zofia Marie [MGAH], the Hagia is far from the largest church in all the Supremacy. Dwarfed by many of the surrounding institutions of the imperial center, the Hagia is absent the imposing scale of the Hall or the sprawling size of the Palace it sits opposite, it stands on the merits of its charm and beauty alone. While only the symbolic headquarters of the Imperial Saren Ministry, it is the church where all religious functions surrounding events of the Imperial Family - be they weddings, funerals, christenings, or otherwise - take place, and has thusly gathered a debatable reputation as the center of Imperial Sarenism.

Directly opposite the Hagia rests the Imperial Palace, a sprawling structure that stretches the length of the Imperial Plaza. A three - occasionally four - story building, it is the personal residence of the Imperial House and all of its members. This is not to say that it is theirs alone, as the entire southern wing is maintained solely for hosting foreign dignitaries and emissaries, nevermind the many who come - whether on pilgrimage or simple vacation - to pay their respects or take in the sights. With certain spaces open to the public at certain times on certain days of the week, the Palace plays host to great and small alike, though the entire northern wing is entirely private. While not everyone who visits manages an audience with any in the imperial family many do, and while most affairs are handled on the part of his vassals, the Emperor maintains a court for the hearing of petitions that have come to him personally.

Covering just as much ground, if not more, than the Palace itself are the Gardens that stretch behind and alongside it. Open to the public as often as the Palace is, it is the culmination of the efforts of the imperial firstborn, Josephine. Home to all manner of native and foreign flora, the Crown Princess has toiled alongside the many servants and groundskeepers to produce a greenspace without peer. Just as often the site of many international talks and domestic social events as the palace, the Imperial Gardens of Tannhäuser are a destination of choice for anyone that loves greenery in the galactic west.

Covering the distance between the various buildings that comprise the area known as the 'Imperial Center', the Plaza - or Imperial Plaza - is the final termination of the Grand Avenue, the central axis of the New City. Kilometers wide and deep itself, the Plaza can be a daunting sight to those unused to it, who underestimate the distance between the various institutions and attempt to walk between them. The site of numerous formations, celebrations, and ceremonies, the Plaza is as common a sight on imperial broadcasting as the Hall or the Palace.

The Grand Avenue is the mighty road that stretches along the heart of the New City, and one of the few paved roads on the planet. It is restricted entirely to foot traffic during most hours, the various vehicular traffic routed above for aircars, and into tunnels below for more conventional vehicles. Only when one of the Supremacy's infamous parades are held is the necessity for its pavement made evident - built to withstand the rigors of all manner of military equipment and civil equipment, the Avenue is a boulevard meant to showcase imperial architecture, organization, and might. Stretching from the Imperial Plaza at its terminus to the Triumphal Arch of 2716 at its origin, the Avenue is typically the other sight greeting those arriving to the New City, be it from either the various trains coming to rest in the station beneath the arch or the starport that lays further south.

A massive facility of several offices, bureaus, and garrisons, the High Command, or simply the Command, is the headquarters of all State military activity, including both the Starfleet and the Landwächter. Sitting astride the western side of the Grand Avenue, the Command is an intentionally imposing, imperious sight, meant to intimidate foreign delegations on their way north to the Imperial Center. Always bustling with activity, the Command features its own limited starport, complimented by hangars of fast-reaction craft readied for the safety of the city.

Just as if one refers to the Offices, if one refers to the Ministry they mean one thing - the Ministry for Public Enlightenment. The state organ responsible for the regulation and production of all imperial media operates from a central headquarters opposite the Command, on the eastern side of the Grand Avenue. Not simply blocks of offices, the Ministry headquarters also sports dozens of soundstages and studios to fuel the imperial propaganda machine, as well as housing for the thousands that work there.

Ottoman · Dec 19, 2022

"New worlds, better worlds: kingdoms of conscience, kingdoms of kindness."

Across the length and breadth of the Supremacy rest thousands of planets classified as Holy Worlds, pinnacles of imperial development and colonial strategy, they are developed worlds that can not only sustain themselves but have preserved the natural state of the planet itself. Touted and trumpeted not simply for their natural beauty but as nexuses of imperial power, the Holy Worlds are often home to powerful houses of the Peerage, hosting many of the Supremacy's most distinguished universities and vast swaths of its agri-zones. Varying wildly from one to another thanks to the various cultures and blocs within the Supremacy, no two Holy Worlds are quite the same, though they all are truly a sight to behold.

The following are some of the most well-known and influential Holy Worlds within the Supremacy.

Ottoman · Dec 19, 2022

"There is no wilderness where I can hide from these things, no haven where I can escape them; though I travel to the ends of the earth, I find the same accursed prison!"

A tragic byproduct of both the Confederate Era and the biblical displacement of the peoples of the outer Scutum-Centaurus Arm - if Holy Worlds are the thesis Supremacy's ideals, Hell Worlds are their antithesis. Planets whose development has proceeded without morality, ethics, or reason, they have completely subsumed the planet that once existed, now a living abomination of industry, vice, and urban decay. Hell Worlds have the highest population density within the Supremacy, and often can be found both deep in the core of the Empire as well as on its fringes, serving both as ports of entry and the concentrated might of the Throne's industrial capacity. Ecumenopoleis of endless refineries, foundries, hab-blocks, and all the infrastructure required to support them, Hell Worlds are easily the most dangerous places in the Supremacy - veritable breeding grounds of crime, disease, and worse.

The following are some of the most well-known and influential Hell Worlds within the Supremacy.

Ottoman · Dec 19, 2022

"The physical qualities of a planet are written into its economic and political record.

We have the record in front of us and our course is clear."

The vast majority of all imperial territories, Minor Worlds are worlds who cannot yet fully sustain themselves, and have not reached the level of development or population density to warrant reclassification as a Holy or Hell world. While a great many Minor Worlds are well-developed planets, boasting large populations or mighty industry of their own, many are also frontier worlds, new colonies or hostile planets that are not well-suited to large populations, or that simply haven't been subdued yet.

The following are some of the most well-known and influential Minor Worlds within the Supremacy.

Ottoman · Dec 20, 2022

"An alliance with the powerful is never truly safe."

Within the Imperial Assembly, three primary divisions have formed in the centuries since its founding. Molded by the crises of the Great Reformation and the Crusade of First Contact, the various blocs and alliances within the Imperial Assembly reflect the primary political philosophies present in the Supremacy. Whilst a steadfast and fraternal power to outsiders, to those within the Supremacy the differing blocs border on being separate national alliances, with tendencies and policies that vary from one to another. With the three primary blocs engaged in bitter competition for influence amongst the State, the Syndicate, and the Imperial House, it is little wonder that the Supremacy produces such militant ideologues in common and noble alike.

THE LEAGUE OF NON-ALIGNED HOUSES

Dominated primarily by the Imperial House, the Non-Aligned League is a political force built more on the desire and aim to achieve a lasting peace, and ensure stability and safety for the imperial peoples than to participate in the great game of intrigue and further personal ambitions. Beyond House Kampf, the League is home to numerous Houses Minor that find themselves unable, or unwilling, to align themselves with one of the other major factions.

LEADING HOUSE:
House Kampf

MEMBERS:
House Kampf
House Matterhorn
House Räder
House Voss

THE OAKEN AXIS

A broad coalition of liberal Houses, the Axis is the league of the Scatterran Burden. Despite the negative experiences with alien life in the cosmos thus far, the Oaken Axis believes that only through the cultivation and uplifting of lesser peoples will the Supremacy stand a chance against the nightmares that await them between the stars. A moral alliance built upon the values of Sarenism, Axis policy is dominated by a determined focus on economic and social development, with strong emphasis on morale and family planning.

Creation shall stand united, or fall divided.

LEADING HOUSE:
House Redwing

MEMBERS:
House Redwing
House Lixus
House Caluim
House Wrangel
House Botha

THE KEYSTONE CONCORDAT

What could be described as the 'bridge' between the Axis and the Entente, the aptly named Keystone Concordat is the centrist wing of the Imperial Assembly. While the Houses therein vary in their positions between the lofty ideals of the Axis or the ruthless pragmatism of the Entente, they have elected to pursue a more balanced path. The Concordat as a whole finds itself concerned with striking a balance between economic and martial pursuits, stressing both the glory of imperial civilization and its necessity of its defense.

Only with steadfast vigilance will the flame of Tannhäuser be kept alight.

LEADING HOUSE:
House Dollmann

MEMBERS:
House Dollmann
House Benavente
House Barca
House Fujiwara
House Dowding

THE RAMPANT ENTENTE

Opposing the Oak Axis, the Rampant Entente are a coalition of houses which have suffered most extensively at the hands of the alien menace - or fear suffering such a fate - and seek to return the favor tenfold. With an aim to strike fear into the hearts of those who would subjugate and brutalize the Scatterran peoples, members of the Entente are typically characterized by an uncompromising devotion to defense, or pursuits easily turned to such purpose. Nothing is beyond the pale for the Entente in the pursuit of the Final Victory.

The blood of blessed memory shall be avenged.

LEADING HOUSE:
House Stier

MEMBERS:
House Stier
House Drazović
House Uesegi
House Bahamonde
House Aodha

Ottoman · Dec 20, 2022

THE HOUSE IMPERIAL

PAST AND PRESENT

'BY THIS SIGN SHALL WE CONQUER'

HOUSE KAMPF
OF THE
SCATTERRAN SUPREMACY

PRESENT MEMBERS

HIS IMPERIAL MAJESTY

JOSEF KAMPF

EMPEROR AND CHANCELLOR OF THE SUPREMACY

B. 1998 AC

HER IMPERIAL HIGHNESS

DR. JOSEPHINE KAMPF

CROWN PRINCESS AND MINISTER FOR PUBLIC ENLIGHTENMENT

B. 2212 AC

HIS IMPERIAL HIGHNESS

WILHELM KAMPF

CROWN PRINCE AND ADMIRAL-LANDWÄCHT

B. 2589 AC

HER IMPERIAL HIGHNESS

DR. AUGUSTA KAMPF II

CROWN PRINCESS AND MINISTER OF THE INTERIOR [RETIRED]

B. 2629 AC

HER IMPERIAL HIGHNESS

VIKTORIA KAMPF

CROWN PRINCESS

B. 2712 AC

MEMBERS OF BLESSED MEMORY

HER IMPERIAL MAJESTY

ANNAMARIE KAMPF, OF BLESSED MEMORY

EMPRESS OF THE SUPREMACY

BORN TO HOUSE DOLLMANN

B. 2181 AC | D. 2273 AC

HER IMPERIAL MAJESTY

DR. ISABELLE KAMPF, OF BLESSED MEMORY

EMPRESS OF THE SUPREMACY

BORN TO HOUSE STIER

B. 2541 AC | D. 2673 AC

HER IMPERIAL MAJESTY

HYACINTH KAMPF, OF BLESSED MEMORY

EMPRESS OF THE SUPREMACY

BORN TO HOUSE REDWING

B. 2662 AC | K. 2716 AC

MAY GOD AVENGE HER

Ottoman · Dec 22, 2022

THE HOUSES MAJOR
OF THE
IMPERIAL ASSEMBLY

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