The EvoClopedia is a project I started nearly a year ago and still isn't complete yet (the upcoming Arvoch Conflict means some additions, so some more time). The idea of the EvoClopedia is it being an encyclopedia for all SW3D-related things, including a (fictional) history of all events in the SW3D universe, crafts, political factions and stuff.
For the forums, I've left out some parts of the EvoClopedia and only posted the most necessary stuff (imho). So, in fact, this is an EvoClopedia Lite.
I hope this is of any use for story-writers or anyone interested, I put a lot of work in it . You're free to use anything you want but ofcourse, free to figure out anything you want yourself as well . This is just the information that can be substracted from the games summarized into one, large, story - but it's fan fiction. Hope to see some great stuff around here .
The real EvoClopedia should be available anytime soon after the release of the Arvoch Conflict.
Now read more about:
tha_rami - The best way to predict the future is to invent it.
Vlambeer - Dutch indie game studio
Twitter - Weird news, life updates & game-related news
In the year 2178, humanity finally succeeded to travel large distances in space due to the invention of Fulcrum Jump technology. This quickly resulted in the colonisation of all planets in the Sol sector, even including the gas giant Jupiter, which was colonized by building space-bases just above its atmosphere. Most influential countries on Earth formed up in a mayor pact, that united for the pursuit of space exploration, thus avoiding wars in space. The countries formed up in a faction which was named the Terran Alliance.
Over time, this Terran Alliance started to reach for further locations, eventually expanding their exploration efforts many light years away from Earth. This resulted in the exploration of the Orion sector between the years 2190 and 2205. In 2197, the first drones were sent to the Orion sector to build Fulcrum Gates there.
The Fulcrum Gates, installed in various locations across the newly explored regions of space, offered instantaneous transportation across the universe.
The sector was quickly colonized and the Alliance declared it part of its territory. However, unrest and unhappiness about the Alliance control started to rise with one of the colonies of the Orion sector. This colony seperated from the Alliance since they had a desire for unrestricted exploration and squatter's right's to systems they colonized and settled. They wanted control over planets and systems they discovered and didn't want the Alliance to have any say over how those planets (and their resources) would be colonized and used. This led to major disagreements and rising hostilities. Several groups, although in much disagreement over many other things, decided to unite over this and formed the Federation around 2229. But it wasn't until about a dozen different colony groups formed together in the mid 30's that the Federation truly became a powerful force.
The Alliance didn't respond to this new threat, since this 'riot' was too remote to risk devoting that many resources to confronting the threat... it would leave the majority of Alliance space vulnerable to attack.
In secret, the Alliance also developed a mobile system that allowed instantanious transportation between large distances, even reaching into nearby systems. This system was classified military secret and the purple flashes that were a result of a warping carrier were explained as aurora's or bright stars. The Alliance would keep the Fulcrum Drive, as it was named, a secret until the late 70's. The system was so large and powerconsuming that it only fitted into the larger carriers or vessels.
Less than 20 years after the development of the Fulcrum Drive, in 2212, the Alliance built the first space-built carrier at the Enigma Asteroid base in secret, which allowed far thicker plating and advanced technology that was too heavy to launch from the Earth's atmosphere. It became the largest cover-up ever, and noone except for the best pilots would learn of the existence of the Lexington project until the year 2254.
Fulcrum Gates in turn lead to the early stages of Colonisation of the Orion sector. However, the Alliance pact seemed to lose it's value for certain less influential factions on Earth. This lead to the founding of Rogue clans in space, and the production of the first true space-optimized weapons. Several Rogue clans started to fight over the recourses in the Orion sector and peace in the sector quickly turned into a life-death situation for any fighter-pilot. Carrier assaults became weekly news, and space-weapons started to evolve quickly.
A century ended, with small conflicts raging in the Orion sector and wars in the Sol sector, as the Alliance started to fight back the Rogue clans from their territory. But spacial conflicts wouldn't start to rage until a particular miscommunication, which was to occur in the on March 12, 2252. An event that is described as the Aros Assault in any history-class now-a-days.
The Alliance started to work on creating a spacefighter created solely for the purpose of special operations in the defense of Alliance interests. This lead to several expiremental fighter projects to branch off from the original concept. Every fighter from the UFA-25 introduced in 2224 to the early F-144A introduced in 2278 were developed to help protect Alliance colonies and territory. During the same time, they also created the Raven, Shadow, Quasar and Lamprey.
- Rise of the Mercenaries (2220-2274)
The impression of a huge which had existed since 2178, free space for all mankind to enjoy, was quickly proven to be fake, as the Alliance quickly made sure that they gained control of the discovered and colonized extra-atmospheric area's and new planets. Many commercial space-transport organisations immediatly negotiated treaty's and contracts with the Alliance, and those who failed to comply with the Alliance's strict rules, or refused to accept that space was ruled by a single organisation, were all left with nothing.
This ofcourse lead to planetary unrest on the planets Earth, Mars and Jupiter. Commercial Organisations that had been ruled out by the Alliance started to work together with small resistance groups, which are now-a-days known as the Rogue Clans, and provided these groups with technology and ships to pursue their goal. This resistance was, except for minimalistic, also futile. The Alliance had consolidated it's place in space.
But it would take until the year 2229 until the passed-by 'T. Enterprises' and several other companies were approached by several groups in the Orion system. The nearly bankrupt enterprises relocated all their activities to the Orion sector, and there started to provide these groups with hardware nearly equal to the Alliance's newest hardware. Engineers were able to quickly, cheap and efficiently built a fleet of the by then 5 year old UFA25 model. The group started to gain strength quickly, and worries started to take hold of the Alliance. The first statement of the 'Federation' was made on 6 March 2229, and included several warnings and threats to the Alliance.
But, since the Alliance was not prepared for such 'disloyalty', as the high-rank officers named it, they had to balance their forces. After almost two weeks of discussion, the Alliance High Counsil had decided to ignore the riots and strengthen the defences. Priority was given to defense, expansion and invention, above regaining several lost systems. No noteworthy conflict arised in this period.
In 2250, space technology had evolved into affordable hardware for the wealthier people. What until then had been a trade exclusively reserved for commercial and military organisations now started to change into public property. The introduction of the Argus Ferret, the first public single-man craft, lead to a revolution. Large groups of people bought the Argus Ferret, to try and find their luck in space.
Naturally, even with such a wide area to operate, the first mercenary clans and formations decided to 'take out' their competition and thus, some still equipped with ballistic weapons, the first mercenary conflicts had born. Before the 12th of March 2252, space was swarming with lone pilots, ranging from miners and traders to smugglers and pirates.
However, it was not until 2288, near the end of the second Terran-Vonari war, that Mercenary's started to add to the expansion and defense of humanity across space.
- The Aros Assault and the second Terran faction (2252-2270)
March 12, 2252 - 3:57AM Universal Space Time - Aros base in orbit around Jupiter. More than 200 well-trained UFA-25 pilots return to their daily duty as the Alliance Battle Cruiser Morpheus was to pass by with an update of the situation nearby the base, where a large cluster of unknown, probably Rogue ships were fighting Alliance fighters. However, the long-distance radar on the base was down due to maintenance and thus the base was fully dependant on the information recieved from ABC Morpheus, which orbited the planet at a location that prevented any radio-contact. However, they would restore radio-contact as soon as possible.
March 12, 2252 - 3:59AM UST - The force that was probably a cooperation between several Rogue clan forces and the Federation had quickly disabled the Alliance fighters, and started attacking the ABC Morpheus, which launched 25 fighters and already prepared it's turrets. In an heroic fight, most of the hostile forces were destroyed and it seemed as if radiocontact would be restored around 4:03AM.
March 12, 2252 - 4:01AM UST - A third Federation assault started on the ABC Morpheus, which had already been quite damaged in the previous battle. The outer hull was breached at 4:05, after the engines had been professionally disabled at 4:02. The radiocontact was never restored.
March 12, 2252 - 4:12AM UST - Aros Base in orbit around Jupiter. Red alert had been sounded during lunch time, as a massive hostile force was located on the close-distance radars. Within two minutes, the attackers succeeded in destroying most of the power-generators in the base and thus locking the hangar doors for most ships. A small 60 pilots succeeded in escaping the base, 13 being killed in the chase that followed. The attacking ships seemed a new, high-tech model used by the Federation.
The Federation finally started to slowly become more united after this assault, since even after it was formed, many groups in the Federation still fought among each other. But by the early 2270's, their anger started to become more focused on the Alliance as they began to realize that while they were fighting themselves, the Alliance was making massive strides technologically and in expanding their territory.
- The F-144E and the Lexington (2254-2284)
The Alliance ofcourse reacted furiously, and sent the most powerful battlecruiser ever made by mankind: The Lexington. At the same time, they started building combat carriers under the projectnames Bismarck, Zenith and Victory, which would be completed in 2259. The Lexington was equipped with the most powerful weapon-systems available and started to head for the Orion sector in 2254. It would remain there until and during the first real Alliance-Federation war. The Alliance succeeded in making mankind accepting that 2254 was the year in which the Lexington was built to avoid unrest about such a Black Op. Escorted by a small navy of Ravens, the Lexington heroically became a proof of the Alliance power. However, the Alliance was still bothered by the superiority of the new UFA-80, which was introduced in 2272 and an upgrade of the UFA-25. The UFA-25 had gotten the name of the official Federation craft since it's founding, but was built by the Alliance in 2224 - But now the superior UFA-80 was starting to take it's place. Federation realized it's advantageous position and tried to assault Earth in 2275. In a civil war of unmatched proportions and interests, after two years of war the Alliance gained the upper hand thanks to the heroic actions of the Lexington and it's crew Raven fighters.
The Fulcrum Drive could no longer be hidden from the public, and thus became public knowledge, just as the technological details. Independent scientists immediately started improving the technique and succeeded in fitting it in the larger, mercenary ships in the year 2274. This resulted in the quick exploration of the RiftSpace sector, since independent pilots were able to quickly reach their destination and nearby planets.
In 2277, the war had ended in favor of the Alliance. Both parties, however still hostile, didn't have the strength nor will to engage in another bloody conflict of these proportions. This way, an unwritten peace was formed, one with minor conflicts still raging through the Orion sector, and one that didn't take away the tensions between both factions. Federation forces and support started to expand more and more as they gained the sympathy of the poorer people living in the Orion sector. They quickly started to gain in numbers and with their UFA-80, which was quite a match for the F-144 StarWraith, formed quite the threat to the Alliance space navy.
These troubling discovery's lead to a new research which in turn lead to the introduction of a new all-purpose fighter/bomber craft in 2278: The F-144, due to it's code-name also dubbed the Star Wraith. Several advancements were made on this new fighter, ranging from the original A type up through the latest E version introduced in 2285.
The Federation was shocked and in response to their new opponents built the Vengeance and the Richton, the most powerful Federation carriers ever built. Comparasions learned that the Vengeance would even outgun the Lexington, but the Federation decided to make the Richton their official flagship so they could gamble with the Vengeance a bit.
The Richton didn't last to gain an impressive history, as less than 8 years later, life in the Orion sector suddenly became more uncertain than ever before.
10 years had passed since the Federation made their push for Earth and the Alliance successfully held back the invasion. An unwritten peace had existed between both forces for nearly 8 years.
- Enigma (2285-2287)
Then in 2285, the Federation's flagship, the Richton, was mysteriously attacked and destroyed while on route to a peaceful colony establishment meeting. The ship was carrying many elite political and military leaders of the Federation. Because the ship was so heavily armed making it nearly impossible to destroy and was so close to Alliance space, the Federation blamed Alliance forces for the ship's destruction. The Alliance denied the accusations and pleaded for an immediate investigation. War was immediately declared by the Federation and the forces of the Alliance were dispatched to secure the borders from attack. Mostly minor engagements took place over the next two years with little or no casualties, neither side seemed willing to fully engage in battle as what had been so destructive in the previous war. As forces from both sides spread into the Orion system, the Alliance battle carrier Becker approached from the nearby Rucker Asteroid field.
The Becker was attacked shortly afterward, on April 14, 2287. It was apparently destroyed in a matter of a few seconds, something Alliance intelligence believed would be impossible for any Federation force to accomplish. Rumors began to spread about a 'super weapon' being used by one of the rogue clans, but no evidence could support the theory. 48 hours after the attack, several Wraith pilots from the Becker who were on patrol and survived the attack arrived at the nearby AH-104 starbase. They reported seeing a massive dark gray vessel that attacked the Becker from the side.
They also reported that the vessel fired a series of energy blasts before the Becker was destroyed. The weapon used was apparently powerful enough to penetrate both the shields of the carrier and the heavy armor plating. The end result was the Becker blew apart with no chance to respond.
The mystery of the Becker's destruction and continuing reports of Federation casualties had raised suspicions of a new faction with advanced technology. The Lexington, flagship of the Alliance and veteran of the Alliance-Federation war, had been dispatched to the Orion system to investigate and hold back any advancing Federation forces.
Shortly afterward, a small group of experienced F-144E pilots stationed in the Enigma asteroid base were put up to the challenge of escaping their own base, as enemy marines had taken over the automated defences of the station. After disabling all defences, they succeeded into meeting the Lexington and from there on coordinated the attack against a new threat.
It turned out the Federation was sustaining mayor casualties, which was strange as their campaign against the Alliance seemed not to lose them too much pilots. But slowly information about an highly-developed, alien race started to reach Alliance Intelligence and while joining forces with clans from the Alpha Centauri system, they decided to counter the attack.
The Alien race was dubbed the Vonari and they seemed capable of destroying entire carriers in a single salvo. Their main-fighter, classified the A-50, seemed to overpower the strengths of as well the Star Wraith ánd the UFA-80. However, the Vonari underestimated Earth's space navy in aswel size as skill. They still succeeded into reaching Earth with the Vonari main vessel, and appeared near humanity's homeplanet at July 1, 2287.
The Vessel there met the Earth's last line of defence, and while these lines stood and fought bravely, the Lexington arrived just in time to offer reinforcements. In a battle that must have broke down the nerves of every pilot, Human or Vonari, two Lamprey pilots under cover of the F-144E pilots from the Enigma asteroid base succeeded into breaking through Vonari barricades, and evading Vonari turret fire. They reached the Vonari vessel and planted several Hull charges, while the vessel was engaged from two sides by the F-144E squadron and the Earth's defences.
The Hull Charges turned out to be effective, as four explosions rocked the dark vessel and tore it apart. Earth seemed safe, but the Vonari would definetly return.
- Reviction (2288)
Alliance forces successfully destroyed the Vonari capital ship that was headed for Earth. After sustaining major losses in Orion, Rucker, Deneb, and Sierra, the success of Earth's defense finally gave the Navy much needed time to regroup and redesign many technologies to confront the new alien threat. Everyone knew that it was just a matter of time before they would strike again, and this time, they would have the advantage of knowing our capabilities. They would undoubtedly be faster, smarter, and more powerful. So the Alliance upper ranks decided to maximize whatever time remained to transform the military to a technology level capable of resisting any future attacks. At the top of the priority list was the Star Wraith space superiority fighter, which would receive several improvements to its weapon systems and shielding. The Alliance hopes to be prepared for whatever attack the Vonari may initiate, but another problem seemed to be forming.
Rumors surfaced that indicate the Federation might be trying to convince several high ranking Alliance officers to defect.
Indeed, in the year 2288, several high Alliance officers defected to the Federation.
The Lexington was dispatched as a result, to investigate the defections from behind enemy lines, together with several special operation squadrons. All cells operated apart to make them harder to detect. The Enigma Star Wraith Squadron was renamed to be the 80th Star Wraith Squadron and assigned to the Lexington.
On 12 October of the year 2288, during a routine strike, the F-144E squadron from the Enigma asteroid-base succesfully destroyed an UFA-80 strike. However, while they fought in the Orion nebula, without visual contact with the Lexington, a unknown hostile object appeared on their radars. Less than 10 seconds later, the allied blip that was the Lexington, with a proud 30 years of history without ever having failed a single mission, had been torn apart by the destructive energy blast of a Vonari carrier.
The 80th Wraith Squadron was transferred to another special operations squadron which warped in after the last hostiles had left the area. And continued their investigations on the defections from behind the enemy lines. After several medium engagements and research, it turned out that the Federation had convinced several clans and Alliance-officers that humanity could not stand divided and at the same time confront the Vonari invasion. The Federation planned to consolidate space and it's recourses and after eliminating or taking over the entire Alliance, stand united against the Vonari invasion.
The 80th squadron, still operating behind enemy lines, started to chase a large fleet of Federation and Alliance Rebels. As they reached a Nebula cloud, halfway the hostile fleet seemed to retreat slightly, giving the impression of a counter-Alliance attack. After two retreating squadrons had been intercepted, the radar-blips of the large fleet suddenly started to disappear. Since the Nebula limited the connection to Alliance command, the officer of the 80th squadron carrier finally decided to try and pass-by the fleet.
The radar displayed a large amount of weaker debris blips on the location where the fleet would have been, and a smaller debris field straight ahead. All pointed to an successful Alliance counterattack. 3 F-144E's were send to check the smaller debris field.
The debris was quickly confirmed to not be debris, but a small patrol of A-50's. With an unmatched effort, the 3 F-144E pilots succeeded in destroying over 12 A-50's, once again proving humanity's strength in space combat.
Alliance intercepted Federation communications pointing a safer path out of the Nebula towards the Olympus system. Most Federation ships had already been destroyed during their first contacts with the Vonari, and thus the 80th squadron found itself amidst of uncountable Vonari patrols. In a desperate attempt, the 80th squadron started fighting its way through the swarming nebula's.
In the meanwhile, outside the Orion Nebula's, the Alliance and Federation forces agreed to cease-fire. The Vonari had advanced very rapidly, and the civil war between the Alliance and Federation had cost the Federation more than expected. They forfeit their ambitions and decided to cooperate against the Vonari.
The first transmission of the 80th squadron after they had restored radiocontact described them preparing to engage a large Vonari vessel nearby the Olympus system. After another heroic battle of ex-Enigma pilots, they succeeded into clearing the path for their carrier, which headed towards the Orion system. From there, they quickly succeeded into clearing Argus from hostilities and setting up a base, and withholding the Vonari from taking Rigel, a neighbour system for Earth.
However, the Vonari prove to be an intelligent lifeform, since the whole Rigel-conflict turned out to be a distraction. A massive Vonari fleet passed through the Alpha Centauri system, leaving the 80th squadron in Rigel without the time to intercept the Vonari fleet. On 30 October 2288, around 5:32PM UST, the alien Fleet appeared on Earth's low orbit radar. Aboard the Special Operation carrier, in a last desperate attempt, the officer in charge prepared to use an experimental, classified propulsion.
In early February 2288, Dr. Adam Shefeld developed a new warp-gate device that could open a temporary fulcrum field pathway capable of transporting an entire ship from one region of space to another without the need for a receiving gate. This was revolutionary and his technology was built into one specific gate, the so-called Shefeld Gate nearby the Rucker asteroid field.
The 80th Squadron fought their way through the Orion sector towards the Rucker belt, and succeeded into reaching the Shefeld Gate at the Rucker Belt at 5:40PM UST. Their first glance after reaching Earth was an unmatched Vonari fleet again trying to bash through the Earth's last line of defence. Once again, the Vonari were suprised by the sudden attack in the back.
However, this time they aimed at destroying Earth instead of invading it, as several Vonari Vessels powered up their energy array and uplinked their energy to a main vessel. The 80th squadron teamed up with the Earth defences and succeeded in breaking through the enemy defences. Engineers had figured out an emergency plan, which would require exact timing. While the main vessel prepared it's attack, several F-144E's started attacking it.
The plan was to use the linked arrays to trigger a chain-reaction in the Vonari carriers. The timing was crucial, as with too little power the explosions wouldn't have the required strength to destroy the entire fleet and would leave the fleet damaged but intact. Too much energy and the main carrier could fire and destroy Earth with a single blast.
The timing was perfect. As the hull of the main carrier was breached and the entire vessel tore apart in a huge fireball, the energy-uplink process which was almost completed started to spread the effects of the explosion into the internal systems of the other Vonari ships, which resulted in a turning point in this siege. The remaining of the Vonari forces where quickly overwhelmed and repelled. At 6:01PM UST a universal broadcast declared the Earth safe.
In the search for Vonari strongholds, and the attempts at tracking down the Vonari homeworld, in 2288, a lush, mainly oceanic planet was located. It was called Sapphire after it’s resemblance with a sapphire marble. The news wasn’t secret for long and mercenary’s started to head of to EvoChron, in the hope of more luck than in 2276, when the paradise planet ‘RiftSpace’ was discovered but also limited to a lucky few.
Riftspace (2274-2288)
In 2274, the hurried launch of the Lexington’s journey behind enemy lines had sturred quite a commotion, as for the first time, many people had learned of the existence of these portable Fulcrum Drives. The technology became public knowledge and less than half a year later, had been perfected to fit class-B crafts, the larger mercenary class.
This higher efficiency resulted in the finding of an ancient artefact of the Vonari in December 2287, stating an ancient prophecy. It told of an outsider who would find a paradise world hidden in the realm of RiftSpace. The outsider would come from a distant place and posses great wealth and powerful machines to find the planet which would bring safety to a dying race.
Altough in no way finding that humanity is a dying race, groups from several planets hunted for the planet RiftSpace to find this paradise world. These groups came from the planets where poverty was large and their single goal was to find a new home, and wealth.
One of these mercenary’s then retrieved another artifact nearby the planet of Sierra B. This became universe-wide news and the hunt for RiftSpace started to grow. However, this one mercenary had a minor advantage, he knew where to search.
The drawing on the artifact resembled the land pattern of the planet Onyx, a stone-cold, even moonlike planet. After extensive searching, the second artifact was retrieved in January 2288. This time, the retrieval of the artifact was kept top-secret, and the disappointment of not finding any artifacts caused many ‘Riftspacers’ to return to their homes.
Not even the Alliance knew of this last discovery, and not a earth-season later the third artifact was found in the Thuban-system. In May of 2275, the fourth artifact was located and retrieved. It did however, contain an unclear clue and a coded, Vonari message. It took nearly 9 months to unravel this clue, until a fifth artifact was found nearby Sirius. After the mercenary retrieved this last artifact and was unable to understand both the 4th and the 5th clue, he contacted the Alliance. After top-secret Alliance research on Sirius, the 5th artifact turned out to be the ‘key’ to the encrypted message on the 4th artifact.
However, now the Alliance had been involved they claimed RiftSpace as Alliance space. However, knowing the Alliance could not enforce this claim as they had other problems; Just to name a few, the defections to the Federations and the constant fear for a Vonari invasion, their ambitions where cut down immediatly by the mercenary, who was the only one to understand the clue.
He headed for the planet of Thuban, where he located a structure similar to a Fulcrum Gate. It activated as he approached with the combined artifact, and after the transportation he quickly located the planet of RiftSpace. However, Vonari ‘guardians’ had been awaiting the arrival of this outsider and naturally, disliked him being human. After a true inferno in space, in which 4 human fighters engaged 9 Vonari guardians, the humans had again claimed victory. RiftSpace became a neutral location, but also a secret one. Only those who were invited were given the way to RiftSpace, and inhabitants of the paradise system only showed up to sell their goods. As they were using technologies as Cloak fields, it would take until far in 2300 until RiftSpace made itself public space.
EvoChron (2288-2300)
After the 2nd Vonari wars had ended in favour of mankind (2288), the Alliance used satellites to track down the fleeing Vonari ships and use them to pinpoint their homeworld. However, most Vonari ships where lost as they passed through nebula’s. Now, however, mankind knew in which direction to look. This search however, led to another discovery. EvoChron XVI, a satellite, discovered an oceanic planet in the probable direction of the Vonari homeplanet. This discovery was originally kept secret by the Alliance, but for unknown reasons, this secret leaked – however, not leaving the Alliance.
In November of 2288, the Alliance rushed towards the new sector, named after the series of the satellite that discovered it: EvoChron. The planet was named after it’s appearance: Sapphire.
Hoping to find more than just Sapphire, mercenary’s started to follow the Alliance fleet towards the new sector, and quickly, almost 14 new systems were discovered and colonized. Also, Sapphire had been terraformed and turned into a rather green marble.
The outer 10 systems had been wrapped up in Nebula clouds, and named the Nebula systems accordingly. Mostly pirates and daring mercenary’s went into these systems. Actually, the entire sector stayed an anarchy for quite a while, a place for experienced mercenary’s. As the mercenary's in EvoChron demanded to have their systemcomputer updated with the most recent data available, and new systems were discovered regularly, a new supernode was set up. This supernode, from which mercenary's could download all data available about the sector, was dubbed the Registry.
However, we had again sturred up the Vonari. They tried to assault the EvoChron sector, but this time, they somehow originated their attack from inside the sector. Understanding the problematic situation, a large number mercenary’s formed up as a faction too, and fought alongside the Alliance. Together they succeeded in pushing back the Vonari, but not in repelling them from EvoChron. In a last attempt, a desperate one, the Alliance succeed locating an unknown blueish phenomenom nearby a newly discovered system: Pisces. This phenomenom turned out to be a natural form of the Fulcrum Gates, a wormhole. This was where the Vonari ships had been pinpointed to orgin from, so they sent a small force of independant mercenaries to attack the Vonari in their own homesystem. Armed with experimental Fulcrum Torpedo’s, they headed for the Vonari sector and the huge explosion of the Fulcrum Torpedo's tore apart a huge number of A50's and a Vonari orbital structure. This warning was enough to have the Vonari retreat back into their own system.
During this period, several new systems where located, and more of these wormholes were found. A particular one, in a system owned by a wealthy mercenary, turned out to link to other wormholes, thus forming a chain-reaction, warping the player over huge distances almost instantly. All systems located after the location of the 30th system of EvoChron were dubbed the 'Expansion' systems, and were uploaded to the Registry.
The end of an Era (2292)
In 2292, humanity controlled 4 sectors: Sol (since the year 2100), Orion (since 2156), RiftSpace (since 2288) and EvoChron (since 2288). The human race was still divided as Federation and Alliance, and it was clear that true peace is still far away.
There had been not a single sighting of Vonari since the assault at their home-system in 2288, and the F-144E was being kept at the top of the Alliance priority list.
The Aros Assault was and is described in any modern History book, both Alliance and Federation. The Alliance built a monument at the former location of the Aros base on Jupiter in 2260.
In memory of the Lexington and it's crew, a monument was built in Washington, where it firmly stands since it's official revelation on the 12th of October 2289. 12 October became an Alliance holiday.
The Enigma squad returned to their precious Enigma starbase nearby the Orion Nebula. They would remain there until it turned into one of the largest Alliance monuments.
Federation Flagship Richton is remembered yearly in Federation space, with a ritual similar to the Lexingtons. Alliance Officials respect the 2 minutes of silence held every 21th of May, at 2:41PM UST.
The link of natural wormholes in the EvoChron sector was named the 'highway' and the mercenary claimed all exits of the Highway. These systems were named the "Quay's".
The various rogue clans that still existed after the Vonari wars, now live retreated at secret locations. Rumours go that larger clans have their bases in various nebulae throughout known and unknown space.
The Registry spread over all Terran Space. From the year 2291 it included the information about all known Terran systems.
The Orion Sector remained an unstable location in human space.
RiftSpace would remain a neutral, hidden paradise until far in 2300, when suddenly, it would become the central point of numerous wars and conflicts.
EvoChron became the first buffer in the wars against the Vonari. However, mercenary's and traders still visit this highly profitable sector on regular basis.
- Calmth (2292 - 2346)
After the Evochron war against the Vonari, peace settled. For over twenty years, peace and prosperity built once more in most of space. The Alliance and Federation signed a treaty in that lead to a terran peace in all of colonized space, once more except for in Evochron. A race for colonisation, wealth, power and influence kept the sector on a certain balance between calmth and chaos. No government succeeded in controlling the sector, and finally it was decided that sectors could have local governments. This led to the creation of the Mercenary guild for the sector, which, like the Sol and Orion guilds, was created to regulate and organize mercenary life without impeding or limiting it, nor setting any ethical boundaries. The guild, unlike in the other sectors, was purely an advisory set of guidelines and an AI and a group of representatives monitoring the behaviour of any connected mercenary. The guild was succesful in creating some stability.
In early 2346, there were talks of merging the Alliance and Federation and real peace. Representatives of both factions were sent to the Peace Dome, a specially built conference location on New Hope station, to - for the first time since the founding of the Federation - discuss true peace.
- Lost Paradise (2320 - 2340)
RiftSpace was farther away than any of the systems, and only reachable through a 'spatial anomaly'. While it was reached by humanity, it wasabandoned as any kind of colonial location due to its distance and restricted entrance around the year 2330. By 2340, it was still being explored for scientific purposes, but research teams are the only people that travelled there until the Renegades would assault the location.
- The Depression ( 2344 - 2347 )
As a result of the progressing negotiations, by May 2346 depression struck all of human space after several large weapon markets collapsed and inflation rapidly struck. Resources became more expensive than ever with prizes soaring up on daily basis. Correctly acting on the high demand for nearly everything, several businessmen plotted to ignite a war to restore the economy and gain fortune from this war through renewed weapon sales.
They orchestrated, convinced and bribed two men, Alliance captain Dirk Jermany and Federation captain Ed Sarrickson to disappear from radar and sabotage their respective factions into believing there was an upcoming war. In a horrible explosion at the Peace Dome on June, 28 (12:41UST); covered live by most news channels, all representatives of both factions were killed. This cancelled the peace negotiations.
The setup succeeded, and if it were not for the conscience of captain Sarrickson, war would probably have broken out. Sarrickson rushed for the destroyed Peace Dome as Federation and Alliance forces awaited on the edges of the New Hope system. He succeeded in reaching the Dome and explaining the setup, resulting in renewed peace conversations and finally, on the 26th of February 2347, one merged faction conveniently named the Alliance.
- The Seekers ( 2321 - 2363 )
The Evochron sector turned out to be the most unstable region soon after the guild became large. In 2324, Alliance investigations uncovered a massive underground organisation calling themselves the Seekers.
The Seekers were nothing short of a modern day secret sect that believed that not everything there was known about Riftspace was public, and they searched for the truth. Their founding, in late 2292, was a result of a defection within the Alliance by Jonathan Marchant, an communication expert. He claimed to have had proof of a cooperation between the Alliance and legendary mercenary Garret, the one who found Riftspace. He claims there was secret talk of 'unequalled tactical advantage' and 'more secrets than one could imagine'. Although he did not find any details, his proof was never found. Jonathan believed the relevant papers where destroyed. In frustration, he started to search for Riftspace himself, and his theory quickly started to gain power through symphatisants, Federation and Clan remnants and opportunists.
The Alliance ignored the reports that dubbed the Seekers as a non-agressive underground group and left them to search for their to the Alliance unknown goal - focussing once more on more important and stable sections of space.
Within 40 years, the Seekers had become a large, anonymous crowd operating using stealth as their main weapon while they grew. Marchant, however, did not live long enough to see their true potential unleashed. His ship was destroyed during the Arvoch Conflict on the 23rd of September, 2361. A charismatic man, Douglas Yager, succeeded him and ignited a new era of war.
- The Renegades ( 2361 - 2363 )
The Seekers, now under the command of Douglas Yager, quickly changed their attitude. Using sheer numbers, they decided to forcefully step out of the dark and find the answers they sought. This earned them their public name: the Renegades. Starting with conquering the Evochron sector for the resources required to assault Alliance space, they triggered a brutal civil war that lasted for two long years. By the end of the year 2362, they had conquered large portions of the Evochron sector.
The guild reacted by organizing the government of several large Evochron sectors and pleading for Alliance help. They were granted large numbers of equipment by the Alliance and the war raged on, yet now the guilds were stronger. The Renegades, after a month-long stalemate in late 2363, suddenly broke and fell back into space. They vanished completely shortly afterwards.
- The Beacon Trail ( 2371 - 2407 )
After nearly ten years, a shocking discovery was made nearby Sapphire. Hidden from radar, an object emitting an encrypted message was located in high orbit above the best known Evochron planet. The object was declared harmless by the guilds, and was confirmed to be created by the Renegades after their downfall in late 2363. Several mercenaries believed the beacon to be the first in a trail and embarked on a quest to find the second one, none of them returned. Sightings of most of the pilots were made in Sirius and Rucker. The beacon quickly lost attention, seeing no mercenaries were willing to disappear as well for a hypothetical treasure.
In 2407, a lone mercenary embarked on a journey to uncover the secret of the beacon and succeeded in finding a Fulcrum Gate that lead to the Riftspace system. Surprisingly, he found it filled with Renegades forces. In a beacon communication, Michael Garret explained that Riftspace was attacked by Renegade troops and how the Riftspace resistance crumpled against the might and numbers of Renegades. Bitterly, he added that requested Alliance backup never showed up, although they had promised a powerful carrier, the ABC Phantom, to be dispatched to Riftspace for his aid. His communication ended with Michael hoping that they would make it to the Fulcrum Gate. Whether he made it is unknown. The mentioning of the Phantom implies that the recording was made directly prior to the Arvoch conflict - most likely in December 2407 or the first week of Januari 2408. It appears unlikely that the Alliance simply ignored Michael.
- The Arvoch Conflict ( 2402-2408 )
The Arvoch Conflict started on January 7, 2402, when Federation forces threw up blockades in the Evochron sector, leading to renewed tensions between Alliance and Federation. The Alliance dispatched the experimental Phantom cruiser and large numbers of the new Wraith and Evoch fighters to control the situations and uncovered a Vonari influence in the battle after the first two weeks of the conflict. The Vonari invaded the Evochron sector once more and this time, they succeeded in progressing rapidly even with the resistance of the Alliance, which only proved to be capable of winning occassional small skirmishes. The Phantom, however, proved to be a Lexington-like carrier. Acquiring victory after victory, it turned out to be the key factor of winning the war.
In late February 2408, a fighter squadron of the Phantom succeeded in locating and obtaining a powerful Vonari weapon, an upgraded version of the weapon the Vonari tried to use against the planet Earth in the previous century during the Vonari wars. Using the wormhole in Pisces, humanity assaulted the Arvoch system, an outpost of the Vonari. Being attacked in their own territory, the Vonari retreated, probably in fear of human advance in their systems. The Federation remnants were destroyed and peace returned to the sector.
[Edited on 18-1-2009 by tha_rami]
[Edited on 29-1-2009 by tha_rami]
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Coding:
Crafts have a name, and a code. This code usually exists out of one or multiple characters, followed by the model number and eventually a upgrade character.
Code: (SHIPCLASS) - (MODELNUMBER) - (UPGRADE)
The shipclass can be one of the following, or a combination of the following:
F: Military Fighter
M: Mercenary
C: Cargo
UFA: Universal Fighter/Assault
A: Alien
If any of these are used in combination, the craft is used by several instances. For example, the MF-95A is a Mercenary Fighter, also used by the Military, modelnumber 95 and had a mayor upgrade once.
The modelnumbers are assigned by date, and vary by class. The F-140 (2272) is not necessarily introduced earlier than the C-184 (2258), since every class or combination of classes (in this case the classes are F and C) has a own range of model-numbers. With combinations of classes resulting from imitating a craft, the modelnumber is preserved, as seen with the MF-138 and F-138.
Eventually, there is a character behind the code. This is only done when a ship has had mayor upgrades. Every update this letter is changed. For example, the F-144E has had 5 mayor upgrades (A, B, C, D and E). Older versions ships are not necessarily abandoned as new versions are introduced. The F-144D is still flown by rookie F-144 pilots.
(From: "Spaceflight Theory" by Kurt Marquand)
Military Crafts
After humanity first became able to colonize large portions of space, earthern conflicts could be moved into space. To avoid such wars, the Terran Alliance was formed. This Alliance held ground until in 2229 a large part of the neutral and Alliance people joined a new faction: The Federation. Altough Space Combat had been researched by those days, except for the UFA-25 (codename: Ravage), the Raptor (M-25) and a few other crafts no notable steps had been made towards a true warship. However, as tensions rose, space combat crafts, as well fighters as bombers, became more and more important. Inventions and new crafts were created one after another, but only few made it to the 'hall of fame' of the Terran Fleet.
Military Statistics
C: (Maximum) Cruise Speed
A: (Maximum) Afterburner Speed
J: (Maximum) Jump Speed
deg/sec: Maximum rotation per second in degrees.
BWR: Billion Watts Resistance, the standard for measuring shield-power.
Alliance Crafts
The Alliance armada has a large variety in it's fleet, ranging from Transporter-like fighters to the 'space superiority fighter' the F-144E (Star Wraith).
Star Wraith (F-144) - Alliance Fighter - 2278
Military Statistics: 100C/150A/400J; 70 deg/sec; 80BWR
The Alliance's most powerfull Fighter-Class craft, introduced in 2278. This 'space superiority fighter' has been upgraded and tweaked and now, in 2290, has advanced from the first F-144A to the F-144E. Speed and manoeuvrability make this a realiable craft to fly and a formidable foe. It's complexity however, limits it's use to the elite of pilots.
Raven (F-138) - Alliance Fighter - 2257
Military Statistics: 54C/110A/250J; 15 deg/sec; 100BWR
A heavy assault craft used by the Alliance for full frontal attacks or defence purposes. Altough slow, it offers the most powerful shielding in the Alliance fighter fleet. It was introduced in 2257, and has had a single mayor upgrade since then. Now classified F-138B.
Quasar (F-140) - Alliance Fighter - 2272
Military Statistics: 70C/130A/300J; 30 deg/sec; 70BWR
A overall craft used in large numbers by the Alliance. It's high reliability and overall performance have made it into one of the most flown ships in the Alliance fleet. The Quasar, introduced in 2272, was the direct predecessor of the F-144. The most current version is the F-140C, with upgraded shielding and weapon hardpoints.
Shadow (F-125A) - Alliance Fighter - 2249
Military Statistics: 90C/140A/350J; 55 deg/sec; 40BWR
The Shadow is the educational craft for the Alliance, with overall average stats. This craft, originally built to be limited only for it's educational purposes - mostly to learn ensign's to fly and fight in space - was introduced to active service in 2249, on demand by just graduated pilots, accustomed to the Shadows reliability.
Lamprey (C-184) - Alliance Cargo Transport - 2258
Military Statistics: 30C/50A/90J; 18 deg/sec; 75BWR
The Lamprey is officially a Cargo class ship, however, it's heavy armor and huge cargo space make it more of a military transporter or armored personnel carrier. The Lamprey is slow in speed, but has proven it's worth through its active history since 2258. The thick armor plating make the Lamprey a terrifying opponent, stronger armored as the commercial Freighter and Transporter. Only the Raven and Star Wraith exceed the Lamprey in shielding, while none exceed it in armor. Lightly armed, it fully serves it's purpose as 'cargo'-ship.
ABC Lexington (2254-2288) - Alliance Carrier - Destroyed in Combat
The Lexington was the strongest of the Alliance carriers, and the home for the most skilled pilots available to the Alliance. It's duty record includes not a single failure. This carrier was constantly upgraded and equipped with the latest inventions, which resulted in a carrier that was as complex and chaotic as it was powerful and fearful.
Built as a black-op in 2212, introduced in 2254. Destroyed by a Vonari carrier on 12 October 2288.
ABC Victory (2259) - Alliance Carrier - Still on Active Duty
The Victory is one of the three Lexington-clones built after the Aros Assault. This 'Version 2' of the Lexington, though, isn't nearly as powerful as 'version 1'. It has thinner plating and could not be equipped with secret equipment as the pilots aboard the Victory, unlike the Lexington's crew, aren't the absolute elite.
ABC Bismarck (2259) - Alliance Carrier - Still on Active Duty
The Bismarck was the second of the three Lexington-clones built after the Aros Assault. The Bismarck offered almost the same stats as the Victory, altough the Bismarck was more combat-orientated. It has thicker plating and shielding, leaving less room for cargo.
ABC Zenith (2259) - Alliance Carrier - Still on Active Duty
The Zenith was the third of the three Lexington-clones built after the Aros Assault. Built mostly for recon missions, it was far faster than the Lexington, Victory and Bismarck, and in return, had thinner plating. The Zenith is currently stationed in the Orion Sector, and on active duty.
ABC Becker (2252) - Alliance Carrier - Destroyed in Combat
The Becker was one of the Alliance Battle Carriers located nearby the Rucker Asteroid Field. It's purpose was defending the Fulcrum Gate in the field, which lead straight to the planet Earth. It was destroyed on April 14, 2252. The destruction of the Becker was the first step towards the discovery of the Vonari. It was the first Alliance carrier destroyed by a Vonari ship.
Federation Crafts
The Federation flies two main crafts, the UFA25 and UFA80. The Federation relies on numbers above technology, in most cases with success.
Ravage (UFA-25) - Federation Fighter - 2224
Military Statistics: 85C/135A/350J; 45 deg/sec; 50BWR
The UFA-25 was built in 2224, as the first military fighter for mass production. It was abandoned by the Alliance in 2229, and exchanged for the stronger Raven. In 2229, 'T. Enterprises' started building UFA-25's for the Federation. It quickly became the Federation's main craft. A fighter with overall average stats, and a impressive combat history. It was the only craft flown by the Federation from 2224 till 2272, and has won uncountable dogfights against nearly every imaginable fighter-craft in these 50 years. It was still used after 2272, altough it is now slowly being exchanged for the UFA-80.
Phantom (UFA-80) - Federation Fighter - 2272
Military Statistics: 95C/145A/375J; 65 deg/sec; 75BWR
Due to the unanimously accepted success of the UFA-25, it would take until 2272 before the Federation introduced a new fighter, the UFA-80. The UFA-80 is more of a extreme update of the UFA-25, and offers allround improvements. The UFA-80 is nearly as powerful as the F-144E, which is the main Alliance craft. It's large missile bay, with up to 10 hard-points, compensate for the overall slightly lower performance of the UFA-80.
FBC Vengeance (2280) - Federation Carrier - Still on Active Duty
The Vengeance was the Federation's reaction on the introduction of the F-144 fighter by the Alliance. It was the most fearsome carrier ever built by mankind, and was rumoured to even overpower the Lexington. It never came to a clash between both carriers, as the Lexington was destroyed 8 years later, without ever running into it's concurrent.
FBC Richton (2280) - Federation Carrier - Destroyed in Combat
The Richton was the Federation Flagship and the first human ship ever destroyed by a Vonari Carrier. In 2285, the Federation's flagship, the Richton, was mysteriously attacked and destroyed while on route to a peaceful colony establishment meeting. The ship was carrying many elite political and military leaders of the Federation. Because the ship was so heavily armed making it nearly impossible to destroy and was so close to Alliance space, the Federation blamed Alliance forces for the ship's destruction.
Vonari Crafts
The Vonari are the only alien species ever encountered until this date, and an aggresive species as well. The Vonari use highly advanced technology, nearly unpenetratable armor and powerful plasma weapons.
Vonari Fighter (A-50) - Vonari Fighter - Unknown
Military Statistics: Class B Classified
This fighter is quickly recognized by it's exceptional appearance. But one would better not be distracted by it's looks as it is the most powerful fighter mankind ever met. It has more powerful shielding than the Lamprey, is as fast and maneauvrable as the F-144E and uses unknown weaponry to quickly end battles. Mostly deployed in small patrols.
Vonari Carrier (Firstly encountered in 2285, first reports in 2287) - Vonari Carrier - Unknown
The Vonari Carrier is the main proof of the Vonari highly advanced technology. The Vonari carrier provides almost unpenetratable defences (altough reports claim there is a weak spot on the front side of the carrier) and unmatched weaponry. It's main cannon can tear apart the most heavily armored human carriers in a single salvo, and linked together their energy array can store enough energy to destroy a medium-sized planet. It's mysterious appearance freightens even the most experienced pilots, a large, threathening, black vessel escorted by A-50's.
Mercenary Crafts
"The Mercenary's, ah, yes, probably the most important faction in space. Brave pilots sacrifising their lives to make a fortune, but in the meanwhile we wouldn't be able to build and maintain such an empire without them. In their quest for wealth, they keep our economy's running." - Edward Morris (Alliance 20th Squadron CO)
Mercenary Statistics
Mercenary Statistics differ from the Military statistics. Most important differences are:
Cruise and Afterburner speed are, compared to military crafts, at 1000%. This is due to differences in standards between Military and Mercenary measuring. So, 1020C in Mercenary Stats would be 102C in Military Stats.
The old military standards exist since the early stages of space colonisation and the new, mercenary, measuring has been widely adapted to in the public world. Most mercenary crafts are not equipped with a Military Jump drive, but newer models (especially in the EvoChron sector) do have a Fulcrum Jump Drive installed. No ship can be equipped with both systems, taking into account the currently available power supplies.
Mercenary's have come up with a method to enhance their shield and bypass the military. Since this is a very recent discovery, the Alliance is still trying to improve their shielding to match the watts of resistance produced by these 'boosters'. Since these boosters are patented and copyrighted by certain large companies in the EvoChron sector, and a deal between the Alliance and this enterprise has not succeeded, the larger mercenary ships have some compensation for being so much larger.
Mercenary ships usually range from 5 times the size of the F-144 (Star Wraith) to 12 times.
Additional acronyms:
FJDP: Fulcrum Jump Drive prepared - A EvoChron Fulcrum Drive can be equipped
Sol, Orion and RiftSpace sectors
Argus Ferret (MF95-A) - Mercenary Craft - 2265
Statistics: 820C/1640A/FJDP; 86 deg/sec; 22BWR
The Ferret is the most common mercenary type fighter and is even used by military forces in Alliance space. It offers outstanding performance with plenty of speed and manoeuvrability. It's 4 hardpoints make it a well armed light duty fighter. A very usable fighter for a variety of assignments. Only the small cargo bay and weak shielding keep this fighter from being a top choice among wealthier mercenary squadrons.
Rigel Corvette (M-240) - Mercenary Craft - 2280
Statistics: 1000C/2000A/FJDP; 100 deg/sec; 45BWR
The space fighter of choice for civilian squadrons. The corvette offers superior maneuvrability and speed to other common used mercenary crafts in Terran space. Pilots state it is the best fighter for combat duties, and is only matched by the M-244, an upgrade to the platform. Combined with modern technology, the Corvette is an unbeatable performace choice. It's speed and manoeuvrability, together with the 8 hardpoints, make it a superior choice for pilots relying on speed.
Firehawk (MC-144) - Mercenary Craft - 2274
Statistics: 550C/1100A/FJDP; 75 deg/sec; 72BWR
Loosely based on the military Quasar platform, the Firehawk provides a solid combination of shielding, performance, cargo capicity and default weapon loadout. With an experienced pilot, the Firehawk can be a nearly unstoppable force. The shielding is only a few levels below the Raptor's, and, with the newly-invented booster will probably match or pass the Quasar's. The Firehawk has superior agility compared to the Raptor, making it an excellent choice for larger engagements.
Raptor (M-25H) - Mercenary Craft - 2222
Statistics: 750C/1500A/FJDP; 55 deg/sec; 84BWR
The Raptor is a veteran in the field, with a history longer than that of the UFA-25. First built in 2222, the Raptor is a heavily shielded assault fighter designed to provide a strong offensive role with the added benefit of a high cargo capicity for transport duties. It's high cost make it a fairly scarse fighter, but it's a force to be reckoned with in combat. Before the introduction of the UFA-25 two years later, enemy squadrons were known to break of an attack if these crafts were present.
M-Raven (MF-138) - Mercenary Craft - 2260
Statistics: 540C/1080A/FJDP; 16 deg/sec; 100BWR
The fighter for heavy-assault duties, capital ship engagements and dogfights against large numbers. Expensive and hard to find, illegally produced in Grissom space. The high price ensures the buyer of complete domination in nearly any combat situation. It's shielding gives it the ability to go whereever it wants, altough it could take some time to get there as it is a slow craft. It is nearly identical to the Alliance military's Raven class, the only changes being the addition of a large cargo bay between the fuel/weapons pod.
EvoChron sector
Most ships in this sector are built by two rivaling companies which are trying to establish a monopoly in the freshly discovered sector. They've ruthlessy removed all other opposition from the field by stunting with prices and free equipment, however, they've found an equal in their remaining concurrent.
Scout (M-340A) - Mercenary Craft - 2287
Statistics: 1020C/2040A/FJDP; 75 deg/sec; 12BWR; 1 Cargo Bay
The Scout was first offered in early 2287 in the Orion sector. It's overall statistics made it a impressive mercenary craft which was adequate for most beginning pilots. It's low costs, quick manoeuvring and powerful engine compensate for it's lack of shielding, shields which are to say the least, quite weak. With boosters installed, the shielding still can't match the Strikers normal shield. However, the scouts speed make dodging easier.
Fighter (M-244) - Mercenary Craft - 2286
Statistics: 920C/1840A/FJDP; 65 deg/sec; 22BWR; 1 Cargo Bay
The Fighter does no less than it's name implies. It is a allround, combat-worthy ship, widely used in the EvoChron systems. The Fighter, which has little cargo-space available, is mostly used by small (pirate-) factions as attack crafts, after which larger ships like Transporters or Freighters pick up the loot.
Striker (M-357) - Mercenary Craft - 2288
Statistics: 880C/1760A/FJDP; 55 deg/sec; 37BWR; 2 Cargo Bays
The Striker is another multi-purpose craft with very average stats on every possible statistic. It's shields, engine, cargo bay and manoeuvrability are all middle-class, making it the mostly used craft in the sector. An advanced or expert pilot can do near-impossible things with the Striker, ranging from taking on several Freighters to making a fortune in mining.
Transporter (MC-160) - Mercenary Craft - 2279
Statistics: 580C/1160A/FJDP; 25 deg/sec; 58BWR; 4 Cargo Bays
The Transporter is widely known as the 'lorry of the 24th century'. It's 4 container cargo bay, impressive shielding and armor make a hostile Transporter a freightening appearance, but it's slow speed and low manoeuvrability can make a Transporter an easy prey. This ship is mostly flown by miners and traders, and a common sight in the EvoChron sector.
Freighter (C-188, now MC-155) - Mercenary Craft - 2259
Statistics: 730C/1460A/FJDP; 15 deg/sec; 73BWR; 5 Cargo Bays
The Freighter is the C-184's little brother. Officially an Alliance APC, it was abandoned by the Alliance in 2264, after the Lamprey turned out more effectively. In 2288, the Freighter's building rights were bought by a shipyard nearby Pisces which started producing the MC-155 in large number. The Freighter, which has enormous proportions and equal shielding, has become a dangerous enemy for most ships. It's low manoevrability slightly compensates for it's shielding, which, when Boosted correctly, can turn out to be unpenetrable for most laser weapons.
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The Terran political factions in the SW3D Universe
The Alliance
After 2178, the year in which space-flight finally became a realizable dream, a political war begun over the unclaimed new territory. Minor conflicts arose over minerals on certain planets and tensions rose as new inventions made space-travel even more efficient.
The most important moment in the forming of the Alliance would be the speech of the leader of the United Counsil, Leroy Hayden. He spoke of "uniting as one" and "the pursuit for exploration, knowledge and peace". His speech was broadcasted worldwide, and resulted in riots in several influential countries which were not convinced yet. In the two weeks following the speech, known as the Space Revolts, twelve governments had fallen and replaced by "pro-Terra" governments.
Then, on 27 August 2179, political leaders from all over the world met in Cagliari, Italy. There, the Cagliari conventions were held, which resulted in a pact deciding the future of humanity in space.
The ambitious pact stated several direct quotes from Hayden's speech, and each country signing the contract would be bound to terms which included that a special government would be set up for space. Each country would submit one person, whom together would form the Alliance Counsil. Also, space would belong to no country in special. No special rights were given to any country at all. Leroy Hayden became the first leader of the Alliance.
Under pressure of several influential countries the Counsil was formed for only 23 years. In the year 2200, the new century, the Counsil would be disbanded and instead of countries, systems and planets would send in their diplomats. This political system is used till this day. Most systems deputies are chosen by planetary elections every four years. Certain systems use slightly varying selection procedures. Today, the Counsil consists out of 55 people.
The leader of the Alliance is the High Counsil, consisting out of the leaders of Earth, Mars, Argus and Olympus Prime, and one president along these 4 members. They have no direct influence concerning the policies of the Alliance, but function as spokesmen. The only exception would be if all 4 members of the High Counsil disagree with a certain decision - then it will not be executed. However, this right has not been exercised yet.
The current president of the Alliance is Lieutenant Nathan Gregory, born on Argus on 14 March 2229.
The Federation
On 6 March 2229, as the Alliance had colonized most of the Orion sector, unrest had reached a boiling point. A new faction had claimed space for itself, a faction consisting out of several colonies in the Orion sector.
The unrests started in 2224, when a small group of anti-Alliance activists appeared on Thuban. Their message spread quickly, and their ideals of free space and exploration, a mercenary's paradise, quickly sparked the anger of millions of people around the sector. Riots and demonstrations were the result, followed by a harsh Alliance reaction.
This was exactly what the activists-group Grissom had hoped for. They propagated the Alliance as a Tyrannic organisation, and started to attract more and more people in the Orion sector. Several planets were evacuated, leaving only Grissoms behind.
In 2225, the Grissom attracted several other contra-Alliance groups, including several rogue clans. Their actions were against the Alliance, however, due to the lack of spacecrafts or the technology to make them, mostly planetary. In the same year, a large underground group named the Richton Federation joined the Grissom group, and the first minor conflicts between small patrols of Alliance and these revolutionary’s took place.
In Alliance space, business had become war. Commercial enterprises and organisations fought each other not only with pricing, but with anything allowed by law (and beyond in several cases). Unlucky competitors in the race for the space-craft industry were simply left out of business, as the Alliance only signed several contracts. Certain enterprises contacted the Grissom and Richton Federation, whom had consolidated large portions of the Orion sector and it's economy. These enterprises became the backbone of the factions, and provided them with technology and crafts. On 4 March 2229, the both groups merged into one faction, and shared the part of space they owned. Altough both contra-Alliance, the groups disagreed over several important points, but anyway formed a split faction with a common leader and control. The Federation was born.
On 6 March, they held their first public broadcast. They claimed the Orion-sector Federation space, and threathened to by force remove any opposition left there. The Alliance reacted shocked, but was unable to send many forces since the 'riot' was too remote to risk devoting that many recourses to confronting the threat. It would leave the majority of Alliance space vulnerable to attack. They focussed on defending Argus and Olympus Prime, the most important Alliance systems in the sector.
In the mid 30's, the Federation had proven it's worth. Their large numbers and UFA-25 expertise had made them an impressive enemy for the Alliance. However, conflicts remained relatively small, compared to what was about to occur.
In 2252, the Federation risked an open assault on the Sol sector. They attacked the Aros base near Jupiter and destroyed it as a warning to the Alliance. Ofcourse, retalliation did not take too much time, and not much later the Orion sector was heavily patrolled by Alliance crafts.
This forced the Federation factions to work together even more closely. A central government was founded following simple guidelines. The guidelines stated that the political leader of the Federation was chosen for life, and would be assisted by 12 senators. These would in turn be assisted by a parliament consisting out of 72 people, which would be chosen by the Federation people in universal elections.
The current, third leader of the Federation is named Saef Ramondt. He has been leading the Federation since his predecessor died in the destruction of the FFS Richton in 2285.
Clan
The Rogue clans have been haunting space ever since space became public. They consist out of small squadrons of pilots working together, eventually reaching a size to be reckoned with. Clans vary in size, government and motives, and can not be grouped easily. Clan controlled space is usually unstable as clans do rival eachother. In most large conflicts, the majority of the clans take the Alliance's side.
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Calmth (2292 - 2321)
After the Evochron war against the Vonari, peace settled. For over twenty years, peace and prosperity built once more in most of space. The Alliance and Federation signed a treaty in that lead to a terran peace in all of colonized space, once more except for in Evochron. A race for colonisation, wealth, power and influence kept the sector on a certain balance between calmth and chaos. No government succeeded in controlling the sector, and finally it was decided that sectors could have local governments. This led to the creation of the Mercenary guild for the sector, which, like the Sol and Orion guilds, was created to regulate and organize mercenary life without impeding or limiting it, nor setting any ethical boundaries. The guild, unlike in the other sectors, was purely an advisory set of guidelines and an AI and a group of representatives monitoring the behaviour of any connected mercenary. The guild was succesful in creating some stability.
In early 2346, there were talks of merging the Alliance and Federation and real peace. Representatives of both factions were sent to the Peace Dome, a specially built conference location on New Hope station, to - for the first time since the founding of the Federation - discuss true peace.
The Depression ( 2344 - 2347 )
As a result of the progressing negotiations, by May 2346 depression struck all of human space after several large weapon markets collapsed and inflation rapidly struck. Resources became more expensive than ever with prizes soaring up on daily basis. Correctly acting on the high demand for nearly everything, several businessmen plotted to ignite a war to restore the economy and gain fortune from this war through renewed weapon sales.
They orchestrated, convinced and bribed two men, Alliance captain Dirk Jermany and Federation captain Ed Sarrickson to disappear from radar and sabotage their respective factions into believing there was an upcoming war. In a horrible explosion at the Peace Dome on June, 28 (12:41UST); covered live by most news channels, all representatives of both factions were killed. This cancelled the peace negotiations.
The setup succeeded, and if it were not for the conscience of captain Sarrickson, war would probably have broken out. Sarrickson rushed for the destroyed Peace Dome as Federation and Alliance forces awaited on the edges of the New Hope system. He succeeded in reaching the Dome and explaining the setup, resulting in renewed peace conversations and finally, on the 26th of February 2347, one merged faction conveniently named the Alliance.
The Seekers ( 2321 - 2361 )
The Evochron sector turned out to be the most unstable region soon after the guild became large. In 2324, Alliance investigations uncovered a massive underground organisation calling themselves the Seekers.
The Seekers were nothing short of a modern day secret sect that believed that not everything there was known about Riftspace was public, and they searched for the truth. Their founding, in late 2292, was a result of a defection within the Alliance by Jonathan Marchant, an communication expert. He claimed to have had proof of a cooperation between the Alliance and legendary mercenary Garret, the one who found Riftspace. He claims there was secret talk of 'unequalled tactical advantage' and 'more secrets than one could imagine'. Although he did not find any details, his proof was never found. Jonathan believed the relevant papers where destroyed. In frustration, he started to search for Riftspace himself, and his theory quickly started to gain power through symphatisants, Federation and Clan remnants and opportunists.
The Alliance ignored the reports that dubbed the Seekers as a non-agressive underground group and left them to search for their to the Alliance unknown goal - focussing once more on more important and stable sections of space.
Within 40 years, the Seekers had become a large, anonymous crowd operating using stealth as their main weapon while they grew. Marchant, however, did not live long enough to see their true potential unleashed. His ship was destroyed during the Arvoch Conflict on the 23rd of September, 2361. A charismatic man, Douglas Yager, succeeded him and ignited a new era of war.
The Renegades ( 2361 - 2363 )
The Seekers, now under the command of Douglas Yager, quickly changed their attitude. Using sheer numbers, they decided to forcefully step out of the dark and find the answers they sought. This earned them their public name: the Renegades. Starting with conquering the Evochron sector for the resources required to assault Alliance space, they triggered a brutal civil war that lasted for two long years. By the end of the year 2362, they had conquered large portions of the Evochron sector.
The guild reacted by organizing the government of several large Evochron sectors and pleading for Alliance help. They were granted large numbers of equipment by the Alliance and the war raged on, yet now the guilds were stronger. The Renegades, after a month-long stalemate in late 2363, suddenly broke and fell back into space. They vanished completely shortly afterwards.
The Beacon Trail ( 2371 - present ) - HERE BE SPOILERS
After nearly ten years, a shocking discovery was made nearby Sapphire. Hidden from radar, an object emitting an encrypted message was located in high orbit above the best known Evochron planet. The object was declared harmless by the guilds, and was confirmed to be created by the Renegades after their downfall in late 2363. Several mercenaries believed the beacon to be the first in a trail and embarked on a quest to find the second one, none of them returned. Sightings of most of the pilots were made in Sirius and Rucker. The beacon quickly lost attention, seeing no mercenaries were willing to disappear as well for a hypothetical treasure.
In 2407, a lone mercenary embarked on a journey to uncover the secret of the beacon and succeeded in finding a Fulcrum Gate that lead to the Riftspace system. Surprisingly, he found it filled with Renegades forces. In a beacon communication, Michael Garret explained that Riftspace was attacked by Renegade troops and how the Riftspace resistance crumpled against the might and numbers of Renegades. Bitterly, he added that requested Alliance backup never showed up, although they had promised a powerful carrier, the ABC Phantom, to be dispatched to Riftspace for his aid. His communication ended with Michael hoping that they would make it to the Fulcrum Gate. Whether he made it is unknown. The mentioning of the Phantom implies that the recording was made directly prior to the Arvoch conflict - most likely in December 2407 or the first week of Januari 2408. It appears unlikely that the Alliance simply ignored Michael.
The Arvoch Conflict ( 2402-2408 )
The Arvoch Conflict started on January 7, 2402, when Federation forces threw up blockades in the Evochron sector, leading to renewed tensions between Alliance and Federation. The Alliance dispatched the experimental Phantom cruiser and large numbers of the new Wraith and Evoch fighters to control the situations and uncovered a Vonari influence in the battle after the first two weeks of the conflict. The Vonari invaded the Evochron sector once more and this time, they succeeded in progressing rapidly even with the resistance of the Alliance, which only proved to be capable of winning occassional small skirmishes. The Phantom, however, proved to be a Lexington-like carrier. Acquiring victory after victory, it turned out to be the key factor of winning the war.
In late February 2408, a fighter squadron of the Phantom succeeded in locating and obtaining a powerful Vonari weapon, an upgraded version of the weapon the Vonari tried to use against the planet Earth in the previous century during the Vonari wars. Using the wormhole in Pisces, humanity assaulted the Arvoch system, an outpost of the Vonari. Being attacked in their own territory, the Vonari retreated, probably in fear of human advance in their systems. The Federation remnants were destroyed and peace returned to the sector.
Not gonna drop this .
[Edited on 10-12-07 by tha_rami]
[Edited on 12-11-2007 by Vice]
tha_rami - The best way to predict the future is to invent it.
Vlambeer - Dutch indie game studio
Twitter - Weird news, life updates & game-related news
Yes, this is considered canon. I have not found the time to update everything yet, but the ship database seems such a pain to do that I've not gotten to it yet. As far as that concerned, these few centuries have seen many changes of measuring, I guess.
tha_rami - The best way to predict the future is to invent it.
Vlambeer - Dutch indie game studio
Twitter - Weird news, life updates & game-related news
I mean, does all this story really happened in previous games? Canon means facts established by the events related in the game and / or stated by the game developer. Now, how much in this story is its author invention and how much has been established by the previous games / game dev?
Most of it is told through or referred to in the previous games, starting at Starwraith II. While certain parts of it started out as author invention, but all of it was declared canon by the game developer at some point.
tha_rami - The best way to predict the future is to invent it.
Vlambeer - Dutch indie game studio
Twitter - Weird news, life updates & game-related news
Thanks, it was a good read. It's quite full of details!
My only criticism concerns the organisation of the events through the entire timeline. You anticipate in single sentences some events, specifying even the date only to get back to them later, and then later again giving out other details, some of them trivial, others vital. In this way it is not clear if those anticipated details are important or not. This blurs the stage a little if you're at the first dive into this universe.
By setting up the entire scene divided in chapters with overlapping timeline you leave little space to clarity for those who are newcomers, like yours truly.
Just to say I found it interesting but a little bit confusing. I'm no writer but maybe you could just try to separate the events more evidently.
The events are described in the way they were told in the games, so yes, there are some difficult points in the story. For example, Riftspace's story is pretty much in-between.
Glad you liked it
tha_rami - The best way to predict the future is to invent it.
Vlambeer - Dutch indie game studio
Twitter - Weird news, life updates & game-related news
In 2407, a lone mercenary embarked on a journey to uncover the secret of the beacon and succeeded in finding a Fulcrum Gate that lead to the Riftspace system. Surprisingly, he found it filled with Renegades forces. In a beacon communication, Michael Garret explained that Riftspace was attacked by Renegade troops and how the Riftspace resistance crumpled against the might and numbers of Renegades. Bitterly, he added that requested Alliance backup never showed up, although they had promised a powerful carrier, the ABC Phantom, to be dispatched to Riftspace for his aid. His communication ended with Michael hoping that they would make it to the Fulcrum Gate. Whether he made it is unknown. The mentioning of the Phantom implies that the recording was made directly prior to the Arvoch conflict - most likely in December 2407 or the first week of Januari 2408. It appears unlikely that the Alliance simply ignored Michael.
I've been in the Riftspace but I've never found that part in the game. Did I miss something?
The above text can be found in Evochron Renegades, at the end of the beacon quest. You'll get a notice to find the text as soon as you find the last beacon.
tha_rami - The best way to predict the future is to invent it.
Vlambeer - Dutch indie game studio
Twitter - Weird news, life updates & game-related news
Originally posted by tha_rami *** SPOILER ALERT ***
The above text can be found in Evochron Renegades, at the end of the beacon quest. You'll get a notice to find the text as soon as you find the last beacon.
Well, if you play Legends, you can't get all the story from Star Wraith II, Star Wraith 3, Star Wraith IV, RiftSpace, Evochron, Evochron Alliance, Evochron Alliance 2.0, Arvoch Conflict and Evochron Renegades. The problem is that the story to those games is revealed in respectively Star Wraith II, Star Wraith 3, Star Wraith IV, RiftSpace, Evochron, Evochron Alliance, Evochron Alliance 2.0, Arvoch Conflict and Evochron Renegades. Obviously, those games are not Evochron Legends.
Honestly, I'm not really certain what you were trying to say.
tha_rami - The best way to predict the future is to invent it.
Vlambeer - Dutch indie game studio
Twitter - Weird news, life updates & game-related news
I'm afraid not. I still have the files, but the story got thrown back and forth after Evochron Alliance 2.0.
I've not yet really found the time to upgrade it with all the new ships, items and story (plus since I can't predict the direction of the story at this point, it's hard to write it out).
tha_rami - The best way to predict the future is to invent it.
Vlambeer - Dutch indie game studio
Twitter - Weird news, life updates & game-related news
. You're free to use anything you want but ofcourse, free to figure out anything you want yourself as well 
. This is just the information that can be substracted from the games summarized into one, large, story - but it's fan fiction. Hope to see some great stuff around here 
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