pirates of the crimson galaxy background

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[++Pirates of the Crimson Galaxy++]

“Fluff Bible”

Basic Tenets: 1. The Crimson Galaxy consists of the tyrannical, power-hungry Dominions, disillusioned mutants

and rebels, those who would seek to overthrow humanity and those who wish to ensure its

dominance. The galaxy is filled with people trying to make a living, be it piracy, selling

themselves, or stealing and killing. Life is short and brutal and you will not be remembered.2. This is not the greatest time to live. If you grew up living under a Dominion, you are

brainwashed into believing everything that the authorities want you to believe. If you didn'tgrow up under a Dominion, it's quite likely you are on a backwater world and you have other

problems to deal with, like mutant gangs, pirates, and the native creatures.

3. Not everything is high tech. The distant colonies of many of the Dominions suffer from this

problem, as do those who are cut off from contact due to disruption of communications for asignificant amount of time. Some planets are being discovered with humans on them, they are

typically from cut-off colonies of long-extinct Dominions. This is fairly uncommon.

4. The setting is a back drop for your games and stories. In addition, the Dominions are powerful

but are avoided and ignored outside of systems that they do not control. Do not feel constrainedto make your story about the Dominions when mercenaries and pirates and gangers are on the

rise!

Author's Note on Technology: Technology in Pirates of the Crimson Galaxy has been purposefully left vague, and for several

reasons. Basic descriptions are all that is really needed so that the players will understand, and that isall there is unless a more complex description would be required. Too many scifi universes fall into the

trap of over-describing their weapons and armor, breaking the suspension of disbelief that is needed for

fantastic situations.

The most important reason for not describing everything is that, to be plainly honest, no-onewould understand it. Current 21

stcentury terms are not adequate to describe a society in which

concepts such as heads up displays and basic AI are about as ground-breaking as a stone wheel.

Though many dominions are more technically inclined, they do not make up the entire galaxy. Thosewho are lucky (or unlucky enough, depending on your point of view) to be born outside of a Dominion

will not have as great of an education and will doubtfully understand the majority of technology.

Due to the Nuclear Dark Ages, humanity had to rediscover almost everything again, though

most its progression was still linked to pre-Dark Age technology due to key discoveries during its newdevelopment. This vital difference means that post-Dark Age civilization advanced far more rapidly but

in a way that would still be familiar.. Yet regardless of the obvious link, different progression means

that very little can be accurately described with 21st

century terminology. Virtually all weapons,equipment, ranks, and names are interpretations and as such more subtle parts of Dominion language

will not transfer correctly or be understood by today's readers.



Time: Time is given two designations: PrJD and PoJD: Pre Judgment Day and Post Judgment Day;

respectively. Judgment day, of course, is when earth was engulfed in nuclear fire.Full time dates are as follows: YYYYYY:MM:WW: DD:HH:MM

For example, the date PoJD15222:08:10:02:02:45 would be the 45th

minute in the 2nd

hour of the 2nd

day of the 10th

month of the 15222nd

year after Judgment Day.

Officially, given earth time, each year consists of 10 months. Each month then has 100 different

segments which are akin to days except that the sleep patterns of many people are very differentcompared to those of 21

st century earth. Finally, each “day” breaks down into 10 “hours” which all

have 100 “minutes”. The structure continues breaking into segments of 100, with micro-minutes, and

so on and so forth into infinity.

Note on Language:

As with technology, the many languages of the Dominions are not easily relatable. Though

everything is presented in English (as otherwise it would be impossible to read), some words willappear odd or bastardized, and that will be because that is the most accurate interpretation of the word.

The written form of many languages in the Crimson Galaxy will be in pictograph form, much

like hieroglyphics. Adding further complication is the fact that each planet will tend to have its owndialect(s), meaning that even two planets from the same Dominion will have trouble communicating.

This is often fixed by having a “standard” dialect, which will differ from the local dialect. The result is

that most citizens will be bilingual at the very least. Those with an aptitude for learning languages havea very lucrative career ahead of them.

For your reference, here are is a list of words that are useful to know:

Abdalkamat: Slaves of the lord, the lower class

Asailaka- ban: “May you never have peace.” A common insult.

Fasood: Forsaken. They are criminals and disenfranchised.Fawagiz: The enemies of a Dominion

Hakkam: The Enlightened. The upper class

Nazr: The unexplored areas of the galaxy

Saldat: The seventeen minutes of worship for one’s spiritual liege, the commander of the Dominion.Zalmanser: Of impure birth



Space Travel in the Crimson Galaxy Space travel is an important part of life in the Crimson Galaxy. Without it, the Dominions would

not exist and humanity would have gone extinct as Earth collapsed.

The History of Faster than Light space travel

During the 845th

Hate War in PoJD11278, an Azurian patrol came upon a bunker on a moon of Jupiter which contained, among other things, plans for faster-than-light interstellar travel. At this time, all

Dominions were restricted to Lord's Dwelling (the solar system containing Earth) and as common as

war is now, it was even more common back then. With resources dwindling, dominions wouldfrequently raid other dominions, and piracy was on an upswing.

However, nothing stays secret forever and no more than a year later, Arkinian Kommandotroeps

raided a top-secret Azurian installation which contained the plans. These same plans would later fall

into the hands of Frebrenions and Espannians. Ultimately, it would be the Espannians who would benefit the most as they would go on to discover Hieromnion.

The Cortazinian Drive

The Cortazinian Drive, as it is known, allows vessels to break the light barrier, thus allowingships to travel faster than light. It is the result of the discovered plans and, for the first (and only) time

in human history, a joint operation between the various Dominions to get beyond the war-torn Lord's

Dwelling, where the corpse of Earth lies.The Cortazinian Drive needs the utmost precise calculation in order to function properly and to

get the ship to where it needs. That, and the fact that the ship needs to attain light speed in the first

place, makes it very strenuous on the ship's systems. A typical freighter will take about 15 earthminutes to attain light speed and to break the light barrier. The larger F-Class warships will take about

25-45 minutes to break the light barrier.



Communication and Relays

One of the biggest hurdles to overcome in the galaxy is the vastness of space. It takes almost a

week to travel from one end of a system to another, and inter-system travel may take even a month.This means that if there is a mutant rebellion on one end of a system and the closest allied planet is in a

different system, it will take quite some time to regain order!

It is for this very reason that each Dominion-held planet will have a Governor whichcommunicates directly with the Dominionator himself. In the absence of orders from the Dominionator,

the Governor is tasked with assuming full control of the planet and asserting authority as he sees fit.

Predictably, this means that someone governing a planet is potentially incredibly dangerous and as suchthese individuals must be highly loyal to their Dominion and to its leader, for they could wreak untold

havoc otherwise. Some planets may also have Counts, which oversee smaller parts of the planet and

then answer to the Governor.

Since communication by ship is incredibly slow, each system has communication relays whichare used to transmit messages from planet to planet. This is typically a much more reliable way of

communication, but even then, inter-system messaging may take several hours to transmit and as such,

split-second decisions must be made by the planet's ruling class until the messages arrive. Another

thing of note is that communication relays are typically the first target of attacking parties, becausewithout them communication (as noted earlier) would takes weeks to months. Predictably, these relays

are very well guarded and it is no easy task to eliminate them.

The 13 Lost Espannian Colonies

Many earlier communication relays were incredibly faulty, and the most famous example is the

lost colonies of the Espannian Dominion. Early in the Galaxy Race after the discovery of Hieromnion,the Dominions spread themselves far too thin to be adequately counted for. It is estimated that nearly

10% of the early colonies lost contact with the main group, but the 13 colonies are most remembered

because of the eerie set of circumstances in which they were lost.

In the system of Zhaido, 13 Espannian colonies were set up to mine and to make bases of operations through which they could strike at a nearby Frebrenion system. However, one day contact

was lost with every single one of them. Losing contact with one or two was expected at this point, but

not all 13. No less than a month later, scouts came upon the intact prefabricated structures of thecolonies, however all were curiously devoid of any human life. Indeed, it seemed that there had not

even been a sign of battle. There has never been an explanation for the disappearances and unless new

information is discovered, there never will be one.



Civilian Travel: Civilian travel in the Crimson Galaxy, much like life in general, is fraught with peril. Pirate

vessels are known to “camp” in many ty pical civilian travel routes. In this way, they are like thehighwaymen of the Dark Ages. No civilian vessel will be without some sort of weapon system, or an

escort ship with a weapon system. Civilian space travel is expensive, but not so expensive that most of

the population will never be able to leave their home planet. Then there are groups of nomads, oftenderided and called “stargazers” or “sperglords”, who are born on civilian vessels that go from system to

system, only stopping to gain more supplies that could not be attained otherwise. Stargazers are socially

very awkward and often look and act somewhat ”off” to planet dwellers.

Merchant Ships: Some groups, especially adventurer and stargazer groups, will use Merchant ships.

Merchant ships aren't very well armed, but have the added bonus of a large cargo hold. Some merchant

ships are so large that they are akin to galleons of the Dark Ages

Pilgrim: Pilgrims are large vessels, which are capable of holding thousands of passengers and

prefabricated structures in order to create a colony or other structure. Typically a Pilgrim will have a

small amount of point-defense weaponry in order to guard itself against attack, but will more oftenhave lots of shielding. Very few Pilgrims have a Cortazinian drive because breaking the light barrier is

near impossible for ships of this size, and is in most cases dangerous. For very long voyages, a Pilgrim

will have an automated system pilot the ship as the passengers are all kept in suspended animation.

Yacht: Only really available to the upper classes, yachts are typically very small. They will not always

have a Cortazinian drive as any destinations are likely to be in the same system. However, they willalways have at least a minor field protecting the ship in case of pirates.

Corvette: Corvettes are also typically civilian ships, though they are a bit larger than the yacht. Some

corvettes are retro-fitted to include weaponry. Many pirates will use corvettes because of their speedand the fact that most will underestimate a civilian vessel.

As a result, civilian corvettes are becoming more rare as Dominion vessels will typically shoot

any corvette it sees just to safeguard against pirate attacks.

"They say they'll they rise up. They say they'll show us our ignorance

and why we're wrong. They all have some variation, but in the torture

chamber all they say is "please don't kill me"." -Attributed to Interrogator Mordin de Toya Y Salinez



Piracy: In the vast, cold vacuum of space, there are no laws. If for some reason there are, they are

unenforceable and are more for show than anything else. The Dominions attempt to make sure thatthere is some semblance of order in their systems, but again it is impossible to make sure that rules are

followed.

As such, space is ripe for piracy. Merchant ships are incredibly vulnerable and anytransmissions begging for assistance from pirates will go unanswered. For this reason, many merchant

ships are now being escorted by a small corvette which will do its best to protect the merchant ship.

Regardless, Piracy is on the rise and really does not show any signs of stopping in the near future. Life in the dominions is utterly soul-crushing and grinds away at one's will to live. Many

disillusioned youth will therefore turn to something more hot-blooded such as piracy or mercenary

work. Very rarely does this work out however, for most are conscripted and will serve in the PDF and

then go onto a menial factory job. But those who escape will join the first mercenary contingent thatthey can find.

Dominion officials are worried about the uprise in Piracy but at the same time accept that there

will always be those who will not follow them: this merely means that they must be killed and made an

example of to the rest of the population.Pirates are most noted for flying corvettes and other small, fast ships. Most ships are not heavily

armed for the money is in capturing these ships and selling them and their cargo for a ransom. In some

rarer cases, the captured ship will actually be added to the fleet of the pirates.In all, piracy is a dangerous but lucrative career. Ships with pirate codes are shot on sight and

captured pirates are tortured and killed publicly.

Space Combat: Typically, space combat is fairly indecisive due to the incredibly long range at which

combatants fight. It is not uncommon for a “medium range” encounter to take place between 2 shipsthat are a thousand miles apart.

The biggest reason for the timidity of space combat is the incredible amount of destruction that

close-range encounters result in, for both sides. In close-range combat, victories are Pyrrhic at best andcounterproductive at worst. There have been horror stories of ships cut in half by a single Railor hit,

and entire sections of the ship subjected to the heat of a sun by a phaser hit. For this very reason, the

crew on the ship will be often very spread out to avoid -most- casualties, but no one survives when the

entire ship explodes.

Of course, there are proponents of close action encounters. The Brenthons have had reasonable

success with such maneuvers, but some Dominions, particularly the Azurians and the Espannians, stick rigidly to their combat tactical manuals and there have been instances of Espannian victories where the

almiront of the fleet was executed for going outside of the proscribed battle plan. Such is life in the

Crimson Galaxy.

Force shielding also plays a major role in space combat, protecting ships against debris and alsoagainst glancing hits. Although typically not strong enough to survive a direct hit, force shielding can

mitigate some of the damage and allow many of the crew members in breached holds to still survive.



Warships: The History of Crimson Galaxy Space Conflict:

In PoJD10765, when earth was still the domain of the kingdoms of men, the first space ship waslaunched. It landed on the moon and the astronaut team discovered a massive complex which was

theorized to have been pre-Judgment day society. There the shuttle team discovered a wealth of

information, and though they could not entirely understand all of it, scientists back on irradiated Earthwere able to reverse-engineer much of the technology. The discovery would jump technology forward

by about 350 years. A similar base would be discovered on Mars no more than a year later.

Basic Information:

Warships are possibly the most common vessel in the galaxy, and there are many different

types. Regardless of how different they are, each warship will have a Cortazinian drive standard, plus

force fields and multiple weapons systems. Most planets will have a planetary defense fleet consistingof retro-fitted transports and cruisers, though some will have more proper warships. The Espannian

capital planet, El'vorheez, is renowned for almost literally having a ring of warships surrounding it.

F-Class Warships:F-Class stands for Front-line Class, which are the ships that are going to be at the forefront of

any engagement.

F-Class warships are further divided into 5 classes: I, II, III, IV, and V. The larger the number, the larger the ship. Most F-Class warships are either Class II or III. “Capital” ships, as they are known, tend to be

Class IV or even V. Support ships are typically Class I.

F-Class warships will often have a crew in the tens of thousands that is equal to its class. Hence, a F-

Class I ship would have around 10,000 crewmembers and an F-Class III ship would have around

30,000 crew members.

The Espannians are known to have constructed at least 2 ships that would be listed under F-Class VI,making them the largest vessels in the galaxy.

Weaponry: Most warships, including the F-Class are designed to have point-defense systems of SH-Bolters, SH

Launchers and SH-Shredders (with SH standing for Super-Heavy) against fighter craft. However,

fighter craft are rarely used due to the long engagement distances but point-defense systems are still

good to have and can also be very useful for subjugating populations without utterly annihilatingeverything.

Turret-mounted weapons are the most common, and they are often formed in batteries of weapons. Dueto their design, virtually all turrets have a 360 degree field of fire and tactics such as “crossing the T”

that were popular in pre-Judgment day Earth would not do much against an F-Class warship!

A popular tactic is to “dig a grave”, as most ships do not have much turret defense on the bottom and

most turrets are on the top-side of the ship. If a ship gets underneath another ship, the lower ship canfire more shots.

Most warships will have SH-Beamers, SH-Phasers and SH-Railors as a main armament. Due to therange and accuracy of the Beamers, most ships frequently will have a 2:1:1 ratio of Beamers to Phasers

and Pulsars. SH-Pulsars will occasionally be used when planning for a closer engagement, where the

large explosions produced by the weapons can be used to fry sensors and to scramble targeting systems.



Shielding: As has been briefly mentioned before, all warships will have force shielding in order to protect

them from debris and glancing hits while in combat. Most civilian craft will have shielding as well, to protect from petty thieves and also the aforementioned debris.

The Shield generators on F-Class ships are huge pieces of machinery which are delicate to

maintain and incredibly volatile. During the Battle above Naldir, Frenthon flagship The Excruciator had its shield generator penetrated by a SH Phaser, and the resulting explosion was so spectacular that

all fighting ceased for about 15 seconds. There were no survivors aboard the flagship.

The Shield generator is typically the most protected part of the ship, but even so there have beencases, like at Naldir, where damage to it has resulted in 100% casualties amongst the ship's crew.

Transport and Boarding ActionsMost F-Class warships will carry contingents of marines which can be rapidly deployed on

planets as reserve troops or for the front lines. Famous examples include the Brenthon royal marines

and the swift Imperial Battalion. Thus, fleets of battleships are also mobile fortresses and can dispense

justice at any given time. Boarding Actions are rare during space battles: as mentioned before, conflicts take place

thousands of miles apart. Where boarding actions are most common is -after- battles, when the victor

sends out small groups to damaged or surrendered enemy ships. Because of the size of F-Class shipsand the tight hallways, boarding actions often take quite a while to complete and the casualties are

horrendous. Sealed powered armor is a requirement, and the heavier the better. Flamers and shredders

are very popular boarding weapons, and the Subjugator's radioactive rays go from brutal to utterlyinhuman in a cramped space.



The Frebrenion Civil War At one point in time, the Frebrenion Dominion was one of the most powerful Dominions, even

with the advantage that the Espannians had with Hieromnion. This, of course, was all to change whenthe Host infiltrated the central government and began to corrupt it from the inside. Their infiltration

was designed to utterly split the Dominion into many parts, and to slowly but surely eradicate the fringe

elements from the galaxy. The large amount of systems the Dominion controlled coupled with the longdistance between them meant that the Dominion was a prime specimen.

The Civil War was an example of how chance is a cruel mistress. At Hel's Fang, the Frebrenions

came upon a distress call from a downed freighter, which was carrying some cryogenically frozensamples of different alien life-one of which was the near extinct Host. The search team accidentally

deactivated the decontainment cells and after a quick firefight they were painfully and horrifically

assimilated into the Host.

Soon, the entire patrol fleet had been assimilated by The Host, who then, using the captain'sknowledge, headed for the main fleet.

The main fleet and its acting Lord-Admiral Victor Vice CXVII was soon completely overrun.

The Avengers and the JudgesKnowing that brute force would get them nowhere, the Host declared that the fleet (and the

current system it was in, Eleesr) were separate of the Frebrenion Dominion and would henceforth be

called the Frenthons. Much to their delight, many senators echoed the statement, feeling that the bureaucracy was constraining.

However, the Frebrenion Dominionator would not let this happen. He sensed something was

awry, and called those who were still true to Frebrenion to fight under his banner- and so the Brenthonswere formed. For Frebrenion in its native tongue can be roughly translated into English as the

Avenging Judge. So the Brenthons would be the Dominionator's Avengers and the Frenthons would be

the Judges.

Dominion: Total War

Soon the entire former Frebrenion controlled space was embroiled in a tough and bitter war,

with neither side able to gain the upper hand. For although the Frenthons (unknowingly at the timecontrolled by the Host) had the majority of the fleet, they lacked the manpower, leadership, and

resources that the Brenthons had.

Eventually, the Brenthon Dominionator would discover the Host influence of the Frenthons, and

he set to work all of his scientists to develop counter- Host measures. Despite all of the measuresdeveloped, the Host had spread too widely to be adequately dealt with, and it became clear that the

Brenthons would have to do as much damage control as they possibly could.

The death toll from the ensuing Civil War would never be fully counted, such was thedestruction that engulfed the 2 sides. Neither side was able to get an edge, until the Arkinians and

Azurians stepped in on the side of the Brenthons, supplying their scientists and weapons tech in order

to stop the Frenthons, who left unchecked could have disrupted shipping lines and destroyed colonies.

Not to be outdone, the Espannians began indiscriminately attacking both the Frenthons and theallied Dominions.

Epilogue The Brenthons and their allies would eventually be victorious over the Frenthons (and to some

extent the Espannians and the now-destroyed Ixalian Dominion), yet at a great cost. The Host were

driven out almost completely, and now will rarely make attacks. They are still there, however, waitingfor another moment in which they can strike and destroy the hated human race.



The Host

[++Excerpt from call-in during Frebrenion broadcast++] I, I don't have a whole lot of, of time. Um, OK, I'm a former scientist Kontralian Installation on the Maw. I, I was let go on a medical discharge about a

week ago and, and . . . I, I've kind of been runnin' across the galaxy. Um, um, damn, I don't know where to start. They're, they're gonna, um, they'll triangulate on this position really really soon. OK, um, um, OK, what, what we're thinking of as, as aliens, uh, they're, they're shape shifting beings that an

earlier precursor of the, um, Frebrenion space program they made contact with. Uh, they, they are not what they claim to be. Uh, they've infil trated a lot o f,

uh, about a lot of aspects of, of, of the military establishment, particularly the Kontralian Installation. Uh, the, the disasters that are coming, they, the, themilitary, I'm sorry, the government knows about them. And, and there's a lot of safe areas in this Dominion that they could begin moving the population to

now. They are not! They want those major population centers wiped out so that the, the few that are left will be more easily controllable. I say.... [++Transmission Terminated++]

What were known as “Vampires” in pre Dark Ages terminology were actually The Host, a race of vile,

shape-shifting beings that infiltrate other races and corrupt them from the inside. It is believed that a small portion of the race had actually infiltrated much of earth’s government and were annihilated in the nuclear

firestorm. It is theorized that the mysterious “Tyrant of New Delhi” was one of these creatures.Regardless, a minute number of the infiltrating Host survived Judgment Day: either they were frozen and

in suspended animation in one of earth's poles or through some other way.

Though they have not been discovered, it is possible that there are many more Host than have just beenencountered during the Frebrenion Civil War.

AssimilationThe Host are able to morph to look like any biological structure of their choice, as long as they have had

contact with the victim for at least 5 seconds. This gives them enough time to absorb data from the victim'sDNA. How the Host are actually able to change their form is unknown, but it is theorized that they developed it

to protect themselves from larger predators. Of course, they would soon become the predators themselves as theywere able to morph into these larger predators and hunt them down and kill them. In espionage, the Host willmorph into the victim and then disintegrate their victim with their acid vomit. The more worrying part of theassimilation process is that the Host are able to partially absorb the mental state and memories of their victim.Only those who had close relations to the victim would be able to tell a difference in the personality of the victim

versus the copy-cat. The entire assimilation process from absorption of DNA to the transformation itself takes along time and to assimilate an entire populace would take centuries.

The Victim: In some instances, instead of disintegrating the victim, the Host can drain the victim of their will and

blood yet still keep them alive through its mind, turning them into a zombie of sorts. How many zombie servitorsa Host can control is subject to how strong in mind it is.

An un-morphed Host The true form of a Host is perhaps the most horrific, disgusting abomination that one could lay their eyes

on. They have a vaguely humanoid shape, except that their skin is highly translucent and their muscles areapparently obvious. A Host's “head” if it can be called that is a mangled mass of eyes, mouths, and tendrils. Even

in their non-morphed state, a Host is able to form bone or tendril weapons at will, making it a foe to be reckonedwith in close quarters.

Reproduction: The Host do not reproduce in a normal sense. Instead, they are able to split at will, except that these split

Hosts (known as Imps) will be much weaker. The actual splitting process takes an incredible amount of time tofully recover from, explaining why they were not able to completely overwhelm pre-Judgment day earth or theBrenthons. It is also believed that the original Hosts on Earth did not split as they were advance agents,

preparing Earth for the final assimilation. This final assimilation of course failed with Judgment Day.



Robotics and A.I. In the Crimson Galaxy As has been noted earlier, the race that inhabits the Crimson Galaxy has developed much

differently than the society of the 21st

century. As to be expected, some things have fallen by thewayside. Artificial Intelligence is a technology that has fallen by the wayside in recent decades, mostly

due to its unprofitability. A working artificial or virtual intelligence with as few glitches as possible

requires time and precision. And since most A.I requires calibration via human hand, it takes a longtime to mass-produce. The more simple versions do not require this same calibration so it does not

hinder robots that work in assembly lines or do tasks that allow room for error. Many mundane tasks

are performed by robots. Although some argue that they take jobs away from citizens, their complaintsfall on uncaring ears.

Combat Roles of Robots:

Despite popularity with commanders for reducing casualties, combat robots are fairly

uncommon and it remains to be seen if there will ever be a better format for using them. Typically,robots will serve as medics or as advance spotters. In several instances, some Dominions have used a

very simple robot as a “living shield” for their troops to advance behind.

Combat Roles of A.I: Synthetic intelligences provide a crucial role in the galaxy-wide conflict between the

Dominions and the scum outside of it. Without it, space combat would be completely indecisive, as no

human would be able to calculate the ranges between the ships. Indeed, space travel in general would be nearly impossible, such is the amount of technology that goes into even the smallest of ships.

Without A.I and V.I, a yacht that would normally have a crew of 5 would have to have a crew of at least

100. In short, these intelligences are invaluable.In space combat, even though A.I assists in target acquisition and targeting ranges, it all requires

an input of data from a human crewmember in order to be optimal. Because of this, the two are not

mutually exclusive as they require the other to function. A ship without A.I. is a hulk of metal, but so is

a ship without a human crew.

Propaganda:

Of course, the ideas presented above about A.I that the general populaces of the Dominionshave been told is false. In reality, A.I.s and V.I.s are incredibly simple to make, however biggest

problem is that robots fighting against robots is boring because they lack the same bravado and guts

(both figurative and real) that human troopers possess. During a Hate War that took place shortly after

the creation of combat A.I. units, virtually all “casualties” were synthetic. It was reckoned to have beenthe least hateful Hate War in the entire history of man and as a result, all of the Dominionators came

together and agreed to always have the majority of the combat be around humans, as it makes for

entertaining movies and holo-net vids. But behind the scenes, A.I and V.Is run most of the technology,for they can calculate in mere nanoseconds what would take thousands of years for a normal man to

process.

Superstition: Outside of most dominions, the populace views any sort of non-biological intelligence as

“bewitched” or cursed. This is due to the lack of education that these particular populaces possess, and

these views are most common amongst the more primitive worlds which have not yet been properlysubjugated.



Mutation in the Crimson Galaxy, or The Enemy Within

The survival of the human race is quickly becoming a losing proposition. Wars reduce its

number and new technology is being developed all of the time to kill more and more. However there isa graver threat that, if left unchecked, can doom humanity.

Due to the nuclear warfare that led to the Dark Ages, the gene pool of humanity has become

increasingly unstable and erratic. It has gotten to the point where almost 50% of humans are born withsome sort of genetic mutation, although of that 50%, only 10% have an obvious, appearance-morphing

mutation. If both parents are mutants, then the chance of a child having a mutation is near 95%. Most

Dominions will have an official from the government present during birth to make sure that there areno complications. Depending on the severity of the malformed child, it may be killed outright or it will

be taken from the mother and sent to live in a ghetto specifically for the misfit population. Mutants

born on some more “forward thinking” planets will simply live with less rights than the average citizen.

On less civilized planets, the mutants will either be killed or they will be killed and then eaten.The Dominion governments are understandably very wary about mutants and do their best to

quell them when possible. The pathetic mutant populations are very rebellious and will from time to

time uprise and try and depose the government, to predictably horrifying results. Crack riot police,

known as Enforcers on Dominion worlds, will kill any mutants in their path, and for days afterwardthere will be news stories and the smoking corpses of mutants impaled on pikes lined on streets.

Propaganda is very effective and the average civilian is taught to hate the impure and those with

mutations.In some rare cases where mutants do take control, the city will quickly fall into despair and ruin

as the “norms” (people who aren't mutated) are captured and eaten.

Just as worrying for Dominions are the cults that can be behind mutant uprisings. These cults preach annihilation of the “norms” and that the mutants are in fact an advanced, evolutionarily superior

version of humans. As long as the mutants are kept stupid and forced to work in labor camps in order to

survive, they will not be able to overthrow their oppressors. But given hope (no matter how

misguided), the sickly mutant populations are a force to be reckoned with.Due to their condition, mutants are typically found in large mobs. If they manage to escape

whatever planet they were born on, they will become mercenaries, pirates, and gangers.

Cults and Secret Societies Many of the cults and secret societies pervading the Crimson Galaxy are fairly new; however

some are millennia old, having first been founded during the Nuclear Dark Ages. Many of these cults

are mutant-based, however some are actually dedicated to the the removal of mutation. A popular idea

is that there is a Secret Society formed during the Dark Ages known as The Forge who actually controlall of the Dominions and see the entire galaxy as their playground. The Crimson Legion is the name of

another cult that is whispered about in the darker corners of the galaxy.

Crime Syndicates Just as there are cults and secret societies dedicated to anarchy and hedonism in an unforgiving

world, so too there are groups that are dedicated to greed and lawlessness and corruption. These

Syndicates (or Corporations), as they are known, are comprised of individuals who care only about

themselves. They control banks, rings of assassins, mercenaries, and other uncaring individuals. Inshort, the goal is money, and lots of it. Many syndicates have infiltrated Dominion governments and

lobby to pass laws which benefit their corrupt hierarchies.

Notable syndicates: Exkalibur: Controls most of the tech and pharma trade in the Brenthon and Arkinian

Dominions. Vorzhod: Bank and money launderer in almost 15 systems and also deals in narcs. Zodiac: Specializes in private security forces and bounty hunting, with some illegal narcs on the

side.



Gangs, Punks, and other Crime

For those living in the claustrophobic cities of the Dominins, crime is common. There are so

many people and the cities are so large that it is near impossible for any police force to patrol. ThoughDominion Enforcers (often referred to as “the Freeze” or Gronks) brutally impose laws upon the

citizens it is sworn to 'protect', the youth are rebellious. However the daily grind brings them to their

senses and they soon become model citizens, whether through prison school and brainwashing or through being made an example via public execution.

Many youths join gangs and will often stay a part of them well into their late teens, though

many are “corrected” by then. Virtually all gangs hang out in the industrial or ghettos, where Gronk presence is minimal.

Even punks and gangers have certain subcultures. There are jetcycle and motorbike gangs, and

there are also thieves who steal to make a living. Some do it for power, some do it for the thrill, some

do it for the sake of anarchy and bringing down an oppressive government. Irrespective of the reason behind joining a gang, youths will join gangs because it is a dark and cold universe and being alone is

dangerous in and of itself.

Rebellion

Despite the best efforts of Enforcers and propaganda perpetuated by the media and politiciansand schools, there are those who find their Dominion's government to be oppressive and cruel. A wide

variety of people are attracted to anarchy. The aforementioned punks, gangs, cultists, and mutants all

hate the iron-fisted rulers of the galaxy and seek to supplant them. However, rebellion is incrediblyrisky and its victories are often short-lived, for retribution is swift and terrible.

Rebellion is more common on outlying systems where a ruling government has not been fully

established, or where a new government has been put in place after a coup or invasion by an enemydominion. As noted before, Enforcers have been tasked with ensuring that there is peace at any cost:

even the lives of its citizens are secondary to a pacified populace.

Perhaps the gravest form of rebellion comes from the actual betrayal of a Governor of a planet.

Though this is very rare, rebellion from the actual governor always comes about because he believesthat he can get away with it. Again this is more common on outlying systems for a swift response isn't

always possible and it could take several days for there to be an adequate response to such treachery!

“Walk softly and carry a BFG”

-Varden the Hunter



The Arkinians: Though almost half the size of the Espannian Dominion, the Arkinian Dominion is nearly as

wealthy. This is due to its trader society and its willingness to make deals with other Dominions. TheArkinians are a trading people and its huge ships filled with all sorts of raw materials will be docking at

ports all over the galaxy.

The Arkinians are rich because they view humans as a resource. Nowhere in the galaxy is thequality of human life worse. Its citizens are slaves and it is not beyond the nobles to enslave captured

populaces to work in the huge factories and ships that make the Arkinians so rich. In all, these poor

souls are just another cog in the machine and can be easily replaced.

The Houses of Arkinia

To add to the political complication of systems and planet governors, the Arkinians are further

divided into many different royal houses. Although it is believe that there are about 20 different RoyalHouses, there is no telling of how many there are. Only the High House of the Dominionator truly

knows how many there are at any time.

Arkinian Houses are comprised of the different noble bloodlines of Arkinia, and these houses

oversee the government and expansion of the Arkinian dominion of the Crimson Galaxy. Most housesare rife with genetic deformity, for interbreeding is the norm in order to make sure the bloodline is not

weakened. Despite this gross crime against the human gene pool, they are permitted to live because

they and they alone hold the power of Arkinia.Furthermore, it is not rare for Houses to hold grudges against eachother. Sometimes these

rivalries become deadly, as with the Norokian Insurgency in which House Van Daow and House Van

Solomon engaged in a brutal war against House Van Ract and House Van Lindor.The Houses of Arkinia are rich and opulent; their soldiers are heavily armored and just as

heavily armed.

Adventurers:

Adventurers are politically neutral rag-tag groups of people who, as their name suggests,

adventure. These groups travel to planets in search of artifacts and wealth beyond their wildest dreams.Many of them also scavenge battlefields in search of items to re-sell. This often puts them into conflict

with many of the dominions who are also looking for these same objects or who are seeking to recover

lost equipment. Most Dominions actually have shoot-on-sight orders against adventuring groups and

see them as no better than pirates. The Arkinian Houses, however, actually strike deals with adventurer groups in hopes of stealing enemy equipment and also the discovery of new places to mine.



The Azurians: The Azurians are a curiosity amongst the many Dominions. They are incredibly superstitious

and each family will typically pray to their ancestors and also to the various Azurian gods. TheDynasty-Lord of the Azurians is considered to be a god in human form. The Deuxmashinar is the

standard religion of the Azurians, and in addition to being polytheistic, the Cult also places a great deal

of importance on machinery, which is held with the same amount of superstition. For this reason, thosewho can afford it will often purchase bionic parts. This belief stems from when humans were still tied

to irradiated Earth, where the radiation would damage their flesh. In order to avoid such pain, they

would replace parts of themselves with bionic parts. However, not everyone can afford such luxury andas a result, only the most wealthy will have synthetic limbs or parts. To the poor, these cyborgs are the

epitome of life-the “Azurian Dream”.

In a way, the Azurians dislike extremes- they are very reserved with everything they do. Much

like they dislike anything fully biological, they also dislike anything fully synthetic. Their space vesselswill often have humans built into the ship. Azurians are difficult to deal with because they think so

differently compared to the other Dominions. They also do not interact kindly with other Dominons

because of the Cy-War.

The Cy-War occurred during the Azurian golden age, where the Dominion had a stroke of luck and discovered the incredibly mineral-rich system of Hatori. In response, virtually all of the other

Dominions ganged up on the Azurians, reducing them to a few systems. To add insult to injury, the

Espannian council decreed that they could not ever again raise an army.Luckily for them, the Frebrenion Civil War that would take place less than a year later would

take the heat off of the massively weakened Azurians.

The Iron Age: The Azurians rule with its Principalities, the current being the Sacrum. Its leader, Josiah Il-

Kordheimian promises a return to the great Azurian golden age. He has declared an Iron Age, one

where all other Dominions will bow before the great Azurian cyborg warriors.

Animals:

Due to the increased amount of technology, some Azurians have started to place an emphasis on

animal life. In some colonies, it is almost viewed as a faux pas not to own some sort of pet or animal.Particularly poor Azurians will own a bionic animal, and these animals range from cheap knock-offs to

almost genuine replicas.

Selected Service:After the Siege of Madonnebal which would foretell the end of the Cy-War, the Azurian

emperor declared that all Azurians that reached the age of 17 would be drafted into the Selected Service

for 2 years. Only those who did this would become a proper citizen. For during the Siege of Balestein,Azurian defenses were so meager that the commander of the Frebrenion forces actually believed that

the Azurians had surrendered.

Now with the Selected Service, each Azurian planet has a formidable PDF (Planetary Defense

Force). The Azurian Selected Service is a largely immobile force, but during prolonged engagements,divisions of the Service will be sent to support the Imperial Battalion and the Neuro-Warriors.



The Brenthons: The Frebrenion Dominion was once one of the greatest Dominion in the Crimson Galaxy. Its

power was sublime, for it controlled more systems than any other dominion and even the now-mightyEspannian dominion, for all of its success, did not compare.

This was all to change when an alien species infiltrated the dominion's highest ranking officials

and orchestrated the Frebrenion Civil War, in which the galaxy's most powerful dominion split itself intwo.

The Brenthons were those who stayed loyal to their Dominionator. During the civil war, many

of the Frebrenion ground forces pledged themselves to the Frenthons, the defecting portion of thedominion. This left the Brenthons with a great portion of its naval power, but only a fraction of the

manpower it had as a whole.

Although the Brenthons were able to succeed in driving away the Frenthons, it came at a very

high cost. More Brenthons are estimated to have died in this galaxy-wide conflict than have died sincethen. The Civil War has left the Brenthons with a seething hatred of the aliens who set the plan into

motion, and the Frenthons who joined of their own free will.

Despite its inferiority in manpower, it makes up for it with excellent training for its troops and

its highly elite commando units. Its Royal Marines and Doom Berets are amongst the best equippedtroops in the galaxy, and can bring entire portions of planets under their control with little help from its

main army.

It should be noted that many see the Civil War as a comeuppance for the Frebrenion meddlingin many other dominion's affairs, sometimes going as far to insert rebels for coups in rival

governments.

Brenthon Military and Culture

The Brenthon Dominion prides itself on its martial law and its militaristic culture. They are are

shallow culture and all of its citizenslaves pride themselves on their “individuality”, even though it

could be said that there is not as homogenous of a culture as the Brenthon culture is.



The Espannians The Espannian Dominion is currently the most powerful dominion in the galaxy, and most

collegia authorities would argue that this is due to chance. The finding of Heiromnion, for example,was pure chance. Nevertheless, the Espannians capitalized on the discovery and soon they were

spreading outside the Lord's Dwelling.

Granted, they would soon lose this advantage as the Frebrenions began instilling rebels anddissent into Espannian colonies and took control, but the devastating Frebrenion civil war once again

allowed the Espannians to climb to the top and declare themselves masters of the Crimson Galaxy.

A curious part of this Dominion is the fact that it does not have a leader by birthright-instead, ithas the highly bureaucratic Council, which will pass most of its laws after the Senate writes them (the

Senate of course in reality is just a puppet). From time to time, the Council will decree what other

dominions can and cannot do, but these rarely ever will produce fruitful results. For example, after

Heiromnion it declared that only it could settle on new planets. This of course was blatantly ignored,much to the disgust of the pompous and arrogant Council.

Once every 4 years, the Council elects one of their own as Dominionator. Due to bribery and

extortion and assassins, the entire voting process is a farce and the same Dominionator has been in

control of the Dominion for about 35 years.The Espannians have massive armies and fleets with the best technology that money can buy,

but its training for its troops is lackluster at best. Nobles will buy their way into army and fleet

positions, and they will know very little of how to command an army or navy. This has resulted inmany decisive defeats.

The final part of the Espannian dominion is the Order of the Interrogators, which will survey the

populace for mutation and dissent and are known for killing without provocation and for being totallymerciless. The Interrogators, as they are known, are the iron fist of the Order and can occasionally be

seen leading Espannian troops into battle.



Unit Descriptions:

The Arkinians Kopalitine

Kopalitines oversee the Provincial Troop regiments. Much like the Espannians, Kopalitines

come from the upper classes.

Adventuring Privateer Captain

Many adventurers will look into becoming mercenaries for extra work. Mercenaries that arehired by Dominions are typically called Privateers. On some outer territories, Privateers serve in stead

of actual state troops.

Arkinian RetinueMany Dominions have retinues but the Arkinians are the most famous for the advisors which

accompany its Kopalitines into battle.

AdventurersThese are adventurers that have been hired by a governor of an Arkinian colony. They often

know the layout of terrain and are beneficial to the Arkinian forces in the area.

Provincial Troopers

The sledgehammer of a House's forces, the Provincial Troopers are the Arkinian Dominion's

front line troopers and are drawn from the most able of its PDF.



The Azurians Imperial Battalion Lootnint-Koemandint

These are the highest rank of Imperial Battalion commanders. They are a bit more free-thinkingthan their savage Legionnaires but still remember vestiges of their old life.

Imperial Battalion Kaptann Each Kaptann commands a contingent of 500 Battalion Legionnaires. A Kaptann always leads

from the front to serve as an inspiration for the troops. Most Kaptanns still are incredibly violent and

are not to be trifled with. They may also oversee sections of the PDF troopers.

Selected Service:

In order to safeguard against enemy Dominions and to protect their meager systems, each

Azurian planet has a significant PDF trooper population. Every Azurian that turns 17 is required tospend at least 2 years as a soldier to protect their planet from harm. The Selected Service is an

immobile force and in rare cases will have units sent to support a campaign.

Neuro-Warriors:The primary fighting force of the Azurian Dominion, Neuro-Warriors are troops that are fitted

with a variety of bionic parts in order to gain an edge over the soldiers of other Dominions. They are

rightly feared, and most divisions of Neuro-Warriors will be fitted with bionics to give them further specialty.

Imperial Battalion Legionnaires:The Imperial Battalion is the most powerful (and disturbed) arm of the Azurian military. It

draws its recruits from the scum of the galaxy: serial killers, psychopaths, and maniacs. These recruits

are then brainwashed and fitted with bionics to make them powerful (and more importantly)

controllable warriors. They have a base on each Azurian planet and are the first responders to any crisisin an Azurian system. Their primary function, however, is as the vanguard for any attack on an enemy

planet.



The Brenthons: The Brenthons control 5 base systems: Ola, Gliese, Phaeton, Vertomno, and Landor. Landor

provides the base of operations for the Brenthons. The Brenthons control many other systems but theseare the most noteworthy.

Master-At-Arms:A Master-At-Arms is a very prestigious position. The Master has access to the entire Brenthon armory

and has first pick of weaponry and other equipment.

Red Band Commander:

These commanders oversee the main fighting troop of the Brenthon army, the Red Bands. And

unlike other dominions, these commanders have been chosen not for their wealth or social status but

for their intellect and military knowledge.

Royal Marine Lieutenant:

If Royal Marines are the elite fighting troop of the galaxy, then the Lieutenant is the elite

commander. Not only have they survived countless encounters, but they also have the intelligence tomatch their strength.

Red Bands:Unlike many other Dominions, the Brenthons do not use conscripts. Instead, they have a

professionally trained army. The Red Bands are the result, and though they are few they have much

better training than other Dominion troops.

Highlanders:

A unit formed in honor of the Frebrenion Civil War, the Highlanders are those who are sworn to

protect Brenthon from any outside threat. To be a Highlander is an honor in and of itself, but it isincredibly dangerous. Highlanders are typically given Furm, a drug that increases a user's violent

tendencies and decreases fear. Given a sword, bolter, and a force shield, the Highlanders can be seen at

the front of any Brenthon assault.

Royal Marines:

One of the most elite troops in the entire galaxy, the Royal Marines are a small but select group

of individuals who will often form the spearhead of a Brenthon assault. They have been known toeliminate entire enemy strongholds by themselves.



The Espannians:

Interrogators: The Interrogators are servants of the Espannian Dominionator himself, sworn to seek out those who

would subvert his great empire. They are trained to kill mutants, rebels, and to destroy any form of

witchcraft both within the Espannian Dominion, and abroad. They are the most highly trained warriorsin the entire galaxy and are prepared for just about anything, but that's because they have to be.

Line Capitan: A frequent stop for Nobles who wish to bypass the annual conscription quotas, Line Capitans provide

as commanders for the Conscript legions and also for their Line Infantry platoons.

Conscripts: The front-line troops of the Espannians, Conscripts are vital as they take the heat away from the

valuable Line Infantry units and also will support the Conquistadores. They are equipped with Laisers

and light body armor. In most cases, the Conscripts are actually worth less than the equipment they are

given. A Line Infantry sergeant will often command the conscripts into battle.

Line Troops:

The line troops of the Espannian army consist of those who managed to dodge conscription andinstead went to a boarding school, only of course to end up on the battlefield anyway. Line troopers

disdain conscripts, but they are still nothing more than meat shields for the Conquistadores anyway.

Conquistadores:

The upstart offspring of many nobles will become Conquistadores. The pull for becoming a

Conquistadore is that whatever they find during battle, they can keep. Being a Conquistadore is

incredibly dangerous, but because of the spoils of war, is incredibly lucrative. There are often entirefamilies composed of Conquistadores. One notable example is the Miranda Y Nunvatez family, which

literally owns an entire planet in the Varalian system because of their findings during the Subjugation

of Hieromnion.As the Conquistadores come from very wealthy families, they will purchase the best equipment and

weapons that money can buy. The preferred armor for these sons of nobles is the Eradikator powered

suit, which can protect them long enough to make use of their newfound wealth!



The Perennially Popular Hate Wars

The once-a-decade Hate War that ravages the galaxy has been part of Dominion culture for as

long as its populace can remember. Its purpose is simple: ensure that the Dominionators have control of the population by forcing them to watch propaganda films on how great their own Dominion is, while

seeing how terrible all of the other Dominions are. Mutants and rebels are also thrown in a very

unfavorable light, but in retrospect they always are so there's nothing new there. With the populationwhipped into a frenzy, it is quite easy to gear the economy into preparing for a war effort.

Hate Wars are believed to have begun thousands of years ago on now-decrepit Earth after

Judgment day, when knights rode to war under the banner of their lords. In that vein, experts on post-Judgment Day human history have traced the concept of a “hatred war” to a certain Grandlord Rochster

Simion Gardun, who, according to manuscripts recovered during that time, hated people a lot. This

utter intolerance for his fellow human beings led him to go on crusades where he and his men would

kill everyone that they could find. Of course, after a while his list of targets grew ever smaller so hewould go on his hatred war about once every 5-10 Earth years instead of every year.

The Hate Wars are a win-win scenario, at least for the Dominionators that orchestrate it. A Hate

War jump-starts the economy, keeps the populace under the control, and kills enemy soldiers. For the

populace, it adds some excitement to their terrible, mundane and ultimately meaningless lives.

Timeline of the Crimson Galaxy:

00000: Judgment Day, beginning of Dark Ages

--Dark Ages--10200: Beginning of the Millennium War

10756: First unmanned satellite launched into space, end of Dark Ages

10760: First manned space ship launched, crew lands on moon.

11278: Azurians discover blueprints on the planet of Mars for intergalactic travel during a Hatred War 11303: Yandrago Dominion annihilated during destruction of Venus, end of Millennium War

12219: Hieromnion discovered by Espannians and subsequently colonized

12250: Frebrenion invasion of Heiromnion repulsed by Espannian fleet12399: End of Cy-War, Treaty of Terref signed

12400: Frebrenion Civil War begins

12411: End of Febrenion Civil War

13088: Current Year

“The meek may inherit the ear th, but the strong shall conquer the Galaxy”

-The More You Know



Colonization Colonization is incredibly important in the Crimson Galaxy, especially to the Dominions.

Establishing colonies helps expand their reach and also grants access to more raw materials.

Becoming a Colonist: In most Dominions, all citizens have to apply for a “draft” once they have

reached the latter stages of puberty. Some will be put into selective service, others will be chosen ascolonists. Potential colonists are screened to make sure they have good health and good genes and lack

mutation. Then, all colonists who have cleared screening are sent to a new planet.

Life as a Colonist: The planets that are colonized by Dominions have vastly different ecosystems and

some may be fraught with peril. Otherwise, it's generally agreed that being a colonist is even worse

than being part of the selective service, and for several reasons. First of all, it is incredibly boring

(unless you happen to live on an aforementioned dangerous world) and there is not much to do besideshelp plant gardens or develop the land. Finally, colonists will never be able to return to their home

planet, although if they have the money they can still communicate with their family. It can be quite

bleak and depressing to be drafted as a colonist.

This is why many colonists use the drug Yum-E, a derivative of a lichen from the Porter system, first discovered by Emerson Eldritch. The drug is a hallucinogen, and for short period of time

the colonist can imagine that he is somewhere else entirely. There are no real side effects save for the

crushing realization of realizing that the person is on a colony after the hallucination!

The Suppression of a Population As is apparently obvious, Dominions are for the most part incredibly large, spanning multiple

systems and dozens, if not more, of planets. In total, the human population could be counted in trillions.

This of course presents a problem for those in command, for although these humans are spread out,

control is always an issue. Hilariously, as it turns out it is not nearly as difficult as it would really

appear.

First of all, brain function is suppressed. By the time a child can talk, it will have been bombarded with

subliminal messaging. The human mind has not progressed to a point where it has evolved past its most basic needs, and these are exploited to the greatest extent possible. Media abounds everywhere and the

human mind is rewired to a point to where it has lost most of its potential.

Males are subject to an injection of estrogen yearly, for suppression of testosterone is important toensure that there is less violence. Women are given birth control to ensure that they are only attracted to

feminine men. This all only takes place in the poorest classes to ensure that there is no rebellion. Of

course, this presents the higher classes with a dilemma on the degradation of the human gene pool, butmany are willing to accept this as long as they remain in power.

Furthermore, there is no such thing as a “right”, only a “duty”. From the age of 5 onward, a person will

be employed in some kind of work. Typically, the more formulaic the better. Such factory jobs are notneeded in a society in which various robots can perform all functions, but it is important to ensure that

a Dominion's citizens are kept in line.



The Dominion Class System

In the Dominions, there are typically 4 classes. The abdalmakat (literally translated: slaves of the

Dominion) comprise nearly 90% of any given population. Then there are the Fasood (translated: theforsaken). Finally there are the Zalmanser (impure conception): the mutants, and the genetically

damaged. The Zalmanser are forbidden from reproduction, and the Fasood are mostly criminal. The

final class are the Hakkam (translated: of light), the elite population or the upper class. Despite thedifferences of the Dominions, these 4 classes (and some variation of the name) appear. For example, in

the Espannian Dominion, the nobles are known as El-Santokkam, which is roughly “the

sanctimonious”.

Entertainment in the Crimson Galaxy The Feast of Blood:

Incredibly popular in the Espannian Dominion but much less popular everywhere else (kind of likeAmerican football in the 21

stcentury), the Feast of Blood entails 2 contestants from each Espannian-

controlled planet being flung into an unknown, hostile environment. This happens once every year, and

is always met with celebration and applause (Except from those who happen to know the contestants

personally). In a typical Feast of Blood, about half of the contestants will be brutally killed in somefashion on the first day. No expense is ignored in making each Feast of Blood better than the last, with

all sorts of alien fauna and creatures being thrown into the fray.

The winner, or should it be said, the last standing contestant wins absurd amounts of money andother amenities which they can use to soften the fact that they'll definitely never be normal again. Most

Feast of Blood winners will commit suicide or get addicted to all manner of drugs.

The Lightning Sphere:

The Lightning Sphere is a place where two combatants engage in what is akin to the wrestling

of pre-Judgment day Earth, except that it happens in a zero-gravity setting. It is the most popular sport

in the galaxy outside of kavlinball. Each Dominion has their own Heroes which combat in the arena.Heroes are huge, hulking individuals, and it is asserted (not without some truth) that their blood is more

chemicals than anything else such is the amount of painkillers, mentally enhancing substances, and

steroids that go into them. The fights are bloody and “two men enter, one man leaves”.

Kavlinball

Only really truly enjoyed by those in the abdalmakat, Kavlinball consists of people flying on

hoverboards attempting to drop a ball (Known as the Kavlinball, after Jorge Kavlin, the onlydeclassified scientist involved in the creation of Xerium gas) into a hoop on the opponent's side.

Hoverboards are notoriously unstable and it is not uncommon for several people on each team to die

during the contest. The rules in Kavlinball are ever-changing to placate the masses and to make surethat they are always paying attention.

Intraweb forums have led to thousands of arm-chair Kavlinball players arguing over the right

strategies to play, but the general consensus is that they are a bunch of neckbeards who wouldn't know

strategy even if it eviscerated them with an Acheranian pylon-stinger.

So You Want to be the Galaxy's Greatest Warrior?

Citizens from all Dominions sign up every year on the only show that “has all of the gore and blood of a chainsaw battle in your living room, but without the mess!”

The show pits chainsaw-equipped gladiators against all sorts of alien species, and also against

other gladiators. All of the action takes place in a cage called “the dodecahedron”. There are also judgeson hand to rate the fatalities of all of the members. The surviving gladiator (if there is one) with the

most gruesome kills wins!



Weapons, Wargear, and Equipment in a Galaxy engaged in Slaughter

Armor: Most conventional armor works on the principle of sandwiching a dense, spider-web esque material between plastic and ceramic plate, with the ceramics facing the outside. On a battlefield, ven the most

basic armor will contain ID synced to the user which allows for a major reduction in unintentional

friendly fire. All conventional military armor also includes a positioning system which allows for thetracking of all friendly units. If the user is ever killed, the positioning device will notify all of its squad

and also any commanders in the area. For further utility, conventional helmets will include a vid-cam

which allows an off-site battle coordinator to track troop movements, and for sergeants to switch toanother soldier's view point.

The spider-web material is actually synthetic spider silk mixed with a fire-resistant fibre. It is

mostly used to protect against shrapnel and also weapons that still use slug ammunition. The fire

resistant fibre is obviously more useful against energy based weapons. Underneath the armor, mostsoldiers wear a bodysuit composed from the same composite material. Many suits nowadays will have

the material bunched on the joints for additional protection, although they still retain the same

flexibility.

Powered Armor is unique in that it is an exoskeleton that uses carbon fibers which areelectromagnetically stimulated by movement. Then, this exoskeleton is covered by the plastic/ceramic

armor. The result is that powered armor increases the user's physical capabilities many times beyond

that of a mere mortal and offers protection beyond what normal armor could grant. It requires extensivetraining to use properly, and in the hands of capable troopers, is nigh undefeatable. This armor never

runs the risk of “running out of juice” since its main power source is the movement of the user and also

via solar power.

Powered Muscle Suits are similar to Powered Armor in that they increase the user's physical

capabilities. However, instead of being protected by ceramic armor, it has additional carbon fiber to

form armor. This results in a much more agile suit (and also much tougher) but the drawback is that itrequires even more training to use properly and can be expensive and laborious to create. The nickname

for those who use these Muscle Suits are Aquanauts because of the 'bowl' shaped helm that the muscle

suit has.

Dominatrix Suit: Used for scouting and for quick assaults, the Dominatrix does not provide the same

sort of protection as heavier powered armor but makes up for it with an increased amount of carbon

fibres in the legs for increased movement. It also incorporates a small shield generator.

Eradikator Armor is infamous for its use amongst the malicious Conquistadores who desire their own

survival above all others. The Eradikator Exo Suit is a Powered Muscle Suit except that in addition ithas heavy plastic/ceramic plate on top of the carbon fiber bundles, much like Powered Armor. This

armor is incredibly powerful and virtually impossible to penetrate except by heavy military grade

weapons. There are many stories of a single unit of Conquistadores conquering entire tribes of native

species with this armor.

Aegis of Vlaadonexar: These suits are an anomaly, for they were not invented by any known Dominion

and are not constructed with conventional material. Its appearance is disturbing, to say the least. Itappears to be almost alive and over time actually bonds with its wearer and becomes impossible to

remove without killing its owner. It acts much like powered armor as it increases strength and agility,

however no scientist has been able to identify how it works. Furthermore, it reacts to changes in theuser's body and has been found to actually grow around mutations of cult leaders.



Bionics: The flesh is weak, and is vulnerable to a plethora of toxic gases and other biological weaponry.

On the other hand, synthetic materials are resistant to these weapons and much less easy to damage.Many nobles and elite commanders will have bionics for this very reason. With bionics, they can see

further, move faster, lift more, and take more hits without missing a beat. Although bionics are not very

expensive because of the ease in which they can be made and fitted, they are nonetheless a veryimportant part of the upper class culture.

As mentioned before, the Azurians have an obsession with bionics and they seek to become

more than human. The army incorporates many bionic soldiers, called Neuro-warriors.

Force Shields:

Instead of having to wear bulky body armor, many high ranking officials and commanders

instead will choose to use a force shielding device. It is very effective at preventing against would-beassassins. Indeed, assassinations have gone down ever since the introduction of force shielding

technology. Force shields work on the principle of creating a field around the body that is capable of

absorbing the energy of an attacking weapon and by dissipating it or by breaking it if it is a physical

object. However, prolonged attacks wear down the shield and eventually it will short out. This ismitigated by a backup generator which will regenerate the shield in around 15-20 seconds.

Implants:Unlike bionics which are mechanical, Implants are biological enhancements for humans, and

are often grown in vats in small numbers in freezing temperatures, for implants are highly unstable and

encoding someone with a faulty implant is sure to cause a tissue rejection, which in most cases meansdeath. All kinds of implants can be grown: lungs, eyes, muscles, ears, ad nauseam. Only a bio-artificier,

ordained by the legendary and equally mysterious Dal Hassar order, can be tasked with encoding

someone with an Implant. The expense of an implant means that implants are reserved for the upper

class and the powerful.

The Dal-Hassar

The Dal-Hassar order of bio-artificiers is the premiere creators of implants and cloned specimens. Theywork in secret in giant underground laboratories that are so cold that they would be inhospitable for

normal humans. However, the Dal-Hassar is not comprised of normal humans. In a way they are

bizarre constructions of flesh and their implants that they create for combat and for other hedonistic

ways of life.



Ground Combat

Ground combat has changed significantly over the years, and is slowly becoming obsolete with

the exceptions of missions that require more care and finesse than simply nuking the target from orbit.Of course, the more things change, the more things stay the same. There is still the need for ground-

pounders, grunts, and bullet-catchers. However, their application has changed since the first time two

cavemen went at it with rocks and sticks.The large amount of technology in conventional warfare allows for troop movements to be

tracked to the nearest micrometer. Troops are given updates and enemy positions typically from an off-

site position, though there will still be officers present to ensure morale and orders are followedthrough with. On some battlefields, officers will participate solely because of the fame that is

associated with fighting on the battlefield. This is perhaps another reason for ground battle: it is useful

in instilling patriotism in the abdalkamat of the Dominions.

Powered armor has seen great strides in the last centuries, going from bulky, unwieldyexoskeletons used for loading to fully incorporated suits which fit like a glove for the user. With its

improvements, armored vehicles have seen a downturn and many vehicle manufacturers have switched

production to powered armor instead. The speed granted by powered armor suits meant that armored

vehicles were too easy to destroy, especially considering that troops using the armor are more thancapable of using tank-grade weaponry!

Increased range and targeting systems on weapons has led to most encounters taking place at a

range of 600-1000 meters. Of course, this depends on the planet and also the environment of theencounter and it is not uncommon for encounters to take place at less than 100m, but these encounters

are textbook examples of Mutually Assured Destruction.

Such is the power of many weapons and the inhumane properties of many toxins and chemicalstoday that combat has become more unforgiving and deadly for those who are lightly armored.

Interestingly, with advances in armor technology, some battles have begun a move towards a range of

around 200-400 meters. This is particularly prevalent in those wearing the Eradikator or Muscle suits,

for they can weather most incoming fire from all but the heaviest and most powerful weapons.As has been mentioned before, most combats are recorded for propaganda used by Dominions.

To this end, the elite classes of the Dominions and other empires use battles to entertain the stupid,

easily fooled lower classes. With that in mind, certain things don't really fly, the most obvious being toomany A.I. Combatants. Viewer attendance is much higher with organic combatants and this shows!

There is a sort of unwritten rule amongst the Dominions and their leaders that there are certain rules

that must be followed. Those who fail to follow these rules are quickly extinguished.

Weaponry: As armor progresses, so does weaponry. The Dominions are in a perpetual arms race, each

seeking to out class the others. Weaponry has evolved in other ways. Solid ammunition is also becoming obsolete, as energy weapons have made great advances recently. For example, most energy

weapons need little to no maintenance. Furthermore, due to great gains in solar energy technology,

these weapons are rarely in need of recharge. This has all but solved the problem if troops scouting on

alien worlds, for there is almost no need for weapons resupply. Slug weapons are still preferred by pirates and mercenaries for the loud noises that they create, but most military organizations prefer

energy weapons.

Weapon Naming: As has been mentioned before, we do not speak the languages of this odd andvery different era. As such it is impossible to translate the names fully, and you should think of the

names of the different weapons as a stop-gap and a descriptor of what it does. For example, a “beamer”

fires beams. Also, the more gruesome the weapon sounds, the more powerful it probably is! For example, the “Annihilator” is a weapon of great power. Note that there are still weapons like crossbows

and muskets, these are easily recognizable weapons and as such have conventional names.



Boom. Boom. Boom. The Heavy Bolter continued firing as the Royal Marines advanced through

the rubble of what once was the pristine colony of Rothstein. The Sardathi Dominion had for too long

moved against the Brenthons, and now this was their reward: destruction.“Dammit! Stay in formatio-” the Sergeant's order was cut short by a Heavy Bolter round to a

Marine's chest, blowing whatever was left of his body back several meters. The chunks of meat painted

the wall behind them red with gore. Had the Marines been of lesser status, they surely would have fallen back. But they did not. Would not.

The Marines took cover against a wall segment as they figured out their plan of attack. Boom.

Boom. Boom. A Marine peeked out from behind the cover, and fired a tank-buster round at one of thebunkers with the Sardathi heavy weapons teams. The shot hit a support and the bunker came crumbling

down, and the screams were cut short as the remains of the bunker hit the ground.

“Alright, you see that building there? We'll jump to it. From there, I want Kayne and Haepel to

offer covering fire as Lake and John use the fallen bunker as cover to ad vance.” “Affirmitive. We'll show those Sardathi dogs how it's done.”

The Marines used a 2-1 pattern as they jumped to the next building with their powered armor.

They needed to keep moving, or else they would die. Like a shark. Luckily, their powered armor

enhanced their movement and their strength so that they could evade enemy fire. As they jumped, several more bunkers began to open fire. If only they hadn't been separated

from the rest of the Brenthon force, if only the teleporter had actually worked. Such was life. But they

were Marines. They did not fall back. Would not.



The Extraordinary

Even in this time of highly advanced technology, there are still many unknowns. Alien sightings are

known by Dominion officials, but with-held for fear of panic. One must consider the constantly-

changing human mind, the new organisms and molecules discovered on alien worlds. The authoritarianTribulanes de Griall is the first responder to “fringe” elements in the Espannian Dominion, and there

are similar organizations in other Dominions. Here are a few tales...

Sargon-Pal During the waning days of the Febrenion Empire, the Dominion scientists of Sargon-Pal had

discovered ways in which they could warp time and travel between the different universes. It had long

been a theory that this universe was one of many; and the scientists proved it. These scientists hadnamed the device which allowed them to defy all laws the Exkalibar Device. The Exkalibar Device was

a device that required immense power, an entire system and its sun were devoted to all of the different

projects that required the device to run. The scientists saw the many universes and its infinite wonders.

Furthermore, Exkalibar allowed them to travel back in time, and attempts to travel to the future werefailures as it offered vague, unclear hints for the future is never truly set.

However, the glimpses of the future were unsettling: it was a nightmare future, one of eldritch

horror. In an ironic display, attempts to reverse such a possible future only made that future even morecertain: the traverses into other universes had weakened the fabric of realspace in this one. During the

Helnight (as it is known), multiple realities converged into one in the Sargon-Pal Dominion. People,

worlds, and space itself mutated and became corrupted and disturbing. This merging was a literal

merging: in seconds, one person could be fused with three, different planetary alignments collided andtwisted. Untold billions died, their collective screams causing the universe to groan in agony. In mere

minutes, the entire Dominion had been destroyed and rendered inhospitable to any conceivable form of

life. Its territories are now damned ruins, the graveyard and after-birth of the misguided and foolish.

Across the blasted landscapes of Sargon-Pal, putrid masses of flesh, sinew and bone still wander

aimlessly, begging for a death that will never come. The entire area of space is effectively quarantined,

and only those with a death wish would even conceive of entering.

As for those who were a part of the Exkalibar Device, their location is unknown. It is said that

many of them fled to the past, but time is fickle and works against those who actively try to change it...



Psyians Psyians are a controversial topic amongst the leaders of Dominions and its leading authorities

on mutation and the path of human evolution. It is first and foremost agreed that any Psyian is amutant. Whether they are the next step in human evolution or a dangerous aberration is a hot topic.

The facts are these: Psyians are extraordinary individuals. Intellectually, they are above and beyond most humans and the “average” Psyian is ranked in the .0001% of all human intelligence. Were

it just for this, they may be useful. However, what makes them incredibly exceptional is the fact that

they are able to focus their bodily energy to increase their physical and mental abilities. In some cases,Psyians are able to affect other's bodily energy. The War-Psyians of the Dominions and the Brujasalinn

of the Tribulanes de Griall are two such examples.

Physically, there is nothing to distinguish a Psyian from a normal human with the exception of the Psyian having a small tail that can be up to 2 feet in length for a fully matured adult. Its function is

unknown and in most cases it is surgically removed.

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