Core ThreadDiscordFor the moment, you are in a state of Tabula Rasa. The only defined fact about your empire is that you exist, everything beyond that is as yet to be determined. Before designs begin, you need to make three important choices that will last until the end of the game.
1. You must choose the Species of your Empire.
2. You must choose the name of your Empire.
3. You should choose the name of your Homeworld. Your Homeworld is located at Alpha.
The number of pips beside a planet indicates its size. Larger planets usually have larger resource pools and can support more potent infrastructure, but the infrastructure is more expensive to build there. Small planets, conversely, are cheap to build on but provide more limited resources.
Map design is courtesy of evictedSaint; scholar, artist, and warrior poet.
Don't feel too bound by the political fluff at the end of each race description, it's entirely possible that, for you, it's incorrect. Your race could have taken a different path, the only real things that matter are your physiology and mechanical bonuses.
Up until you make a post in this thread, you may view the other team threads freely. If you want to switch after that point, shoot me a PM and we'll see.
Terran
Advantage: Bore-Savants: When working with and innovating using bore drives, Terran empires are more effective.
Drawback: Lastborn of the Stars: Rush dice have a 75% chance to degrade performance.
Details: Bipedal primates, usually between 150 and 200cm in height and weighing between 60 and 80kg. They are dual gendered and display only limited sexual dimorphism. Adept and aggressive tool users, humans are characterized by their integration of tools (simple or otherwise) into nearly every aspect of their lives. It is uncommon in the extreme for a human in public to not be covered nearly head to toe in various garments (tools to deal with heat and cold) or to be without various technological tools to provide entertainment when bored, facilitate social connection, and provide enhanced awareness of the world. The current human system of government is both militaristic and rigidly authoritarian, but this was not always the case. Sadly, Earth was once united and mostly harmonious, largely eschewing machines of war and utilizing rapidly advancing technology to make great strides against problems of hunger, disease, and social disparity created by their barbarous past. A first contact event with a hostile alien species, however, nearly destroyed the people of Earth- and it succeeded in turning dreams of peaceful stellar exploration into drifting ash.
Liir
Advantage: Biomastery: When manipulating biology, genetics, or living organisms, Liir empires are more effective.
Drawback: Ecological Sensitivity: All Liir regiments have increased cost.
Details: Closely resembling the cetaceans of Earth, albeit with greater variability in color and marking, the Liir are highly intelligent, and natively telekinetic, creatures. They were once very gentle creatures, seeking only to live simple lives in harmony with their oceanic environs, and completely lacking in a concept of 'war' on the scale of hundreds of nations. Even now, the Liiran word for war is actually developed from the phrase 'blood feud between great families'. Natively, they never developed beyond the bronze age in terms of construction and principally used their native telekinetic abilities to shape their world as a place of a balance between great and small instead of resorting to tools. Unfortunately, however, this peace was shattered by a race known as the Suul'Ka (A complex phrase, basically meaning The Enemy, but in such a way as to represent an Anethema to Peaceful Liiran life) which enslaved the Liir and basically force marched their technological understanding forwards. The Liir rebelled with a tailored bio-weapon made in one of the very labs they served in as slaves, an act so successful that the Suul'Ka have not been seen since. Still, the event shaped the Liir, and those of the current age are harder and more unforgiving than their ancestors. Where once the Liir would have accepted that some of their own must pass on so that all could grow together, they now seek an assurance of power so that they can never be made slaves again.
Tarka
Advantage: Brothers of Battle: When working to improve infantry, through training, superior weapons, or vehicles, Tarka empires are more effective.
Drawback: Honorbound: Overmatched Tarka take more damage when retreating.
Details: Somewhat similar to humans, Tarka resemble scaled apes. A three gendered species, they consist of females, inactive males, and active males. Females are slightly larger than humans, and are generally kept far from the gaze of outsiders. However, their role in culture is central, as though they are forbidden from government, they are the only ones allowed to own land or decide inheritance. Inactive males are characterized by lithe bodies, obedient personalities, and quick intellects. Human sized or slightly smaller, these creatures form the bulk of the male population, and thus are the stock for government positions and ground forces both. Active males are roughly twice the height and four to eight times the mass of a human, their physical form and senses heightened dramatically- though their intelligence suffers somewhat from the hormonal cocktail raging through them. Their cultural, though strict and ordered, is conflict oriented by nature- requiring that failure be repaid by sacrifice, and disobedience remedied with death. They are creatures of strict laws and codes, both of written law and of unspoken bonds between each individual. Though many would see Tarka society as cruel or needless draconian, at heart they are a simple people. They cleave the universe into clean lines, with little room and less tolerance for doubt or equivocation.
Hiver
Advantage: The Swarm: When working with tactics, or pushing against the command limit, Hiver empires are more effective.
Drawback: Distributed Intelligence: All project durations are slightly longer.
Details: The Hiver share many similarities with the insects of Earth, but are rather distinct entities. They have an endo-skeletal structure, and their external chitin is often cut and ornamented heavily. Hiver 'gender' is complex, with Drones, Warriors, Princes, Princesses, and Queens all being distinct forces. Drones are small, exceedingly common, affable, and unintelligent- receiving psychic instruction from their princess and then running mostly on routine. Warriors are similar, but their forms are of thick armor, strong musculature, and natural weaponry- with their minds bred to little more than biological combat computers. Princes are similar in form to small, lightly built warriors, but are vastly more intelligent. Princes are needed to remain near a princess in order to fertilize her offspring, but they are capable of independent thought are often used to supervise important affairs in science or military matters. Princes, however, can only extend limited psionic control over their peers. Princesses are the governors large planetary regions, and (given the assistance of a prince) are capable of birthing hundreds of thousands of drones and warriors. Queens are far rarer still, and can command hundreds of princesses across interstellar distances. Culturally, the Hiver behave somewhat like an unusually effective system feudal lords- with Queen at the top of the chain and the princesses managing various fiefs below.
Morrigi
Advantage: Firstborn of Heaven: Dice spent to advance projects get +1.
Drawback: Decadence: Morrigi planetary infrastructure is always slightly more expensive.
Details: Morrigi are both large and ancient, described as 'feathered dragons' when they visited ancient human cultures, and are thought to be the origin for the Quetzalcoatl myths of the Aztec people. While they breed slowly, they are also exceptionally long lived- a trait which resulted in strong breeding restrictions enforced by their government. Strong proponents of automation, Morrigi drones and robotics were once the most advanced within known space. There was a time when the Morrigi were masters among the stars, with a span of dozens of worlds and a technological crown second to none. Cultural decline, however, did what no enemy ever could. Their society decadent and cumbersome in its unending social restrictions, generations of Morrigi grew up barely aware of how the technology around them worked- until that technology began to fail. The Morrigi now are the result of a cultural revolution, one that began with the destruction of the millenia old system of government that had stalled nearly all progress in favor of maintaining order. Though they have lost nearly all that they were in the long, dark centuries of the decline, Morrigi seek to reclaim the old world and forge a new empire in the stars.
One particular point that I would like to reinforce. You are not bound to realistic technology, and what species you pick does not have to have any bearing on your technology. Maybe the aliens that nearly killed-off humanity had kick-ass bioship technology that the humans reverse-engineered and repurposed. Maybe the Morrigi got so fed up with their ancestor's reliance on technology that they ended up relying on forgotten Gods and eldritch energy instead. Maybe the Tarka got really into focusing their Ki during martial exercises and now rely on space mecha that jujitsu enemy ships to death. Maybe the Hivers got cut of from the main hive and rely on cybernetics and advanced robotics to maintain a queenless Ronin culture. Maybe, in a truly bizarre twist, the Liir got a bit more militaristic than usual after their imprisonment and end up being the ones with railguns and power armor.
Please, for the sake of my sanity, do not all be conventional. Be distinct from one another, be bold, be daring. Take from your favorite fictions, whether they be Heinlein Sci-Fi or Lovecraftian horror. Take from anything that makes you fascinated, or filled with awe at the possibilities. Blend science and fancy, reality and fiction, and create something interesting. I will probably hammer this point again when we begin the design phase.
While we're here...
Event 1: Who are you?Yea, slimy things did crawl with legs;
Upon the slimy seaWhere did you come from? Where do you see yourself going? How do you wish to end? These questions can be asked of men, but they can also be asked of Empires. Your empire is motherless and fatherless, and any who would lift a finger to aid you are either too far away, have gratefully forgotten you, or are dead. Whether you have pulled yourselves up to the stars from humble beginnings, or are a fallen colony from a once mighty empire, you are at the precipice of a new beginning.
How did you come to this new beginning, and what sacrifices did you have to make along the way? What are your strengths and your glories, what are the landmarks you've writ large upon your world, and what are the beliefs that drive your people? What are the mistakes that your cultures have made on their rise to the stars, what are the horrors lurking within your histories, and what are the great fears that will scourge you to claim the stars at any price?
Along with the great questions, you should also share with me bits and pieces of daily life and routine. Stories that aren't grand, but that still define you. Show me who you are. Be interesting, be different, and write yourself a good canvass to work from in the future.
The empire with the most interesting, thought-provoking, and unique entries will get to have 10 dice per turn for one turn beyond the 7 introduction years. After the race and name of each empire has been decided, you may begin posting submissions into the core thread. You can have as many submissions from as many people as you like, but submissions should be mutually consistent with one another, each submission must be made into the core thread to be considered, and each MUST carry the Empire's name as a header.
Your Tech SheetHereYour Empire PlannerHere2.0 Version
HereLogin: HiverTeam
Password: CouncilOf16
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Topic: [We] Empire Thread | Hivers | GalactiRace (Read 23556 times)