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Please note that all of this ONLY applies to the Solarian Empire and any territory they claim, which includes Verge Worlds.



Central Government

The central government of the Empire is the Imperial Council, who oversees all, with a Councilor responsible for a different task. No Councilor has position or status over another Councilor and the Council answers only to the Emperor himself. Due to the Emperor's young age, the Council is the current government, until Emperor Rudolph reaches the age of 20. Rudolph retains the power of Knighthood and Nobility. Upon reaching the age of 20, the Council will revert to an advisory role and be Rudolph's Ministers.

• Councilor of Defense: Deals with appointment of high ranking Officers, as well as approving Naval and Marine budgeting and major changes. Also deals with the exploration of space.
• Councilor of Finance: Deals with taxation of all Imperial planets, based on their economic and governmental status. Also manages the overall budget and finances of the Empire, as well as establishing trade routes.
• Councilor of Law: Deals with all legal issues in the Empire, as well as heads the Court of Humanity, the highest court in the Empire.
• Councilor of the Interior: Deals with any matters brought forth by various system governments, as well as handles the establishment of colonies funded by the Council. Deals with the Imperial Senate and manages corruption.
• Councilor of Education: Deals with the spread of information, as well as the establishment of Institutes of Higher Learning. Manages the curriculum of public schools.
• Councilor of Foreign Affairs: Handles diplomacy and First Contact situations with foreign governments.

Imperial Directives

The Solarian Government tends not to interfere with planetary governments. There are certain laws that the Senate and council do enforce however.

• Unrestricted trade: Single planets may not impose shipping fees on freighters that travel through their space. This does not apply to docking fees on a station belonging to the planet. Governments that control an entire star system may only impose fees on shipping that passes through as a layover.
• Sovereign territory: No government/group/individual may impose laws that modify the sovereign territory of any celestial object, natural or otherwise. Sovereign territory includes the area of space up to one light-second max from the object, based on size. An order from the Imperial Court is the only exception to this directive.
• Real Estate: No government/group/individual may sell a star/planet/moon/asteroid/station/ship that rightfully belongs to another, barring legitimate, justified legal proceedings. No government may sell an area of empty space under any circumstance, nor may any government/group/individual own an area of empty space.
• Slavery: No government/group/individual may buy or sell humans as property or unpaid labor. This is a Capital Crime.
• Rape: No government/group/individual can force another to perform sexual acts without consent. No Government/group/individual can legalize this act. This is a Capital Crime.
• Terrorism: No government/group/individual can participate, nor sponsor, nor condone, any acts of terrorism. This is a Capital Crime.
• Piracy: No government/group/individual may attack and steal property from any vessel traveling from one point to another. This does not apply to Privateering.
• Privateering: A planetary or system government not part of the Empire may issue a Privateer’s license to the owner and master of an armed vessel, to raid the commerce of a specific and publically declared enemy government. A blank license is considered Piracy. Attacking another vessel belonging to a group or government not listed is an act of piracy. Privateering is still Piracy when the target is a Solarian vessel.
• Free information: No government/group/individual may restrict the flow of public information to and from any location. Official declaration of war is the one exemption.
• Education: No government/group/individual may restrict an individual from any form of education, nor can a government/group/individual outlaw any form of reasonable education. A declaration of war does NOT override this directive.
• Prospector’s Rights: No government/group/individual may take a valuable resource, planet, or moon from the government/group/individual that discovered it. Artifacts of sentient life are the sole exception, should they be found.
• Ownership: No government/group/individual may settle on a planet, moon, or asteroid that belongs to another government/group/individual without written permission or a bill of sale. Ownership of an object extends to all orbiting bodies.

Legal Establishment of Colonies

Humanity expands their knowledge and their living space through the colonization of other worlds, moons, or asteroids. Each colony is considered a sovereign nation in its own right and will be treated with the same respect as an older, more established colony, no matter when it was established. There are many ways to establish a colony, with two results in status.

• Funded by the Empire: A colony funded by the Empire normally ends up starting with a very large technological base, as well as having a Naval defense picket assigned to guard the planet or system. Upon establishment of an economy, the colony is added to the Official Trade Route registry. The government is a representative republic with an Imperial Governor and follows all Imperial laws. Each world/system elects a representative to serve on the Imperial Senate, to represent that world/system. These worlds are forbidden form declaring war on another world, as well as issuing Privateer’s Licenses. The Council maintains a large handful of empty habitable worlds for this purpose, among others.
• Funded by a private source: These colonies are granted almost complete autonomy, barring the Imperial Directives, in everything they do. They are not subject to a Naval defense picket and may form their own planetary defense force, merchant marine, and their own systems of government, no matter how free or oppressive. They are not considered members of any Star Nation unless they request membership.

Organization of the Solarian Empire

The Empire is organized into three layers, with the epicenter being the Sol System. As the Empire expands, so does the area of each layer.

• The Core Systems: Extending for 50,000 square light years, the Core Systems contain the oldest inhabited worlds, including Earth herself, many of which have governments a thousand years old. 98% of these worlds have a representative republic and follow all Imperial Law. These worlds are considered the safest places to live. The Core Systems have been almost completely explored and claimed, through the Council controls a small handful of habitable worlds, for new colonies, refugees, or any other special purpose. The Core Systems are protected by 1st and 2nd Fleets of the Solarian Navy. In the Sigma Draconis system, a navigational hazard known as the Badlands resides. The Council advises all non-Naval ships to avoid the area.
• The Shell: Stretching for 10,000 LY from the edge of the Core Systems is The Shell, which contains the largest variety of human colonies. Protected by 3rd and 4th Fleets, the Shell has rather high pirate activity, though the edges are rather safer. Cardamine, an illegal narcotic, is hard to control in the Shell, due to the high amount of shipping that moves through the Shell. Only half of the colonies follow complete Imperial Law.
• The Verge: The final layer of the literal sphere of influence is the Verge, which is actually larger than the Shell, going on for 15,000 LY. ¾ of the colonies in the Verge are autonomous, so the entire area is rather chaotic. You’re more likely to find yourself in the middle of a war than be nabbed by a pirate. Few large merchant companies send freighters through the area without an escort from 5th or 6th Fleet. Though the area is larger, the Navy maintains only a single fleet presence here, due to the autonomy of the area. Most of the colonies are less than 500 years old and, due to the distance from Sol, a few have even intentionally violated Imperial Directives, though few are ever reported. The Verge has been compared to the Ancient American West, considered by many people to the frontier of the Empire.
Exploration outside Imperial Space is common, either directed by the Council, or funded by an adventurous company. The Council has stated that anyone outside Imperial space runs the risk of having no one to rescue them, as the Navy is unable to operate in unexplored space without a directive from the Councilor of Defense to explore the area. Many outlaws have taken to unexplored space to hide, but few return, as there are no markers or waypoints to guide one to the nearest habitable location.

Military Might

Established for the defense of the Empire, the two branches of the military act as both military and occasionally a police force, depending on their location. In the long history of the Solarian Empire, neither the Army, nor the Navy, has ever had to mobilize more than a token force. As such, the Imperial military has never experienced an all out war, merely peacekeeping and anti-piracy operations.

In an area as extensive as the Solarian Empire, there are certain places that would be well known, for good reasons or otherwise. This is an incomplete list and will be updated as the story progresses.
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Important Systems:

Sol: The Sol System is entirely controlled by the Navy and contains Capital Fleet, the group of ships designated to defend the system. The Sol System is regarded as the safest place in the Empire, as no one gets into without the notice of Capital Fleet, which contains nothing but the most moderns of ships. There are no civilian stations oprbiting Earth, as Sol is a military system. However, civilians are still allowed to dock with Shield Base, which orbits Earth.

Alpha Centauri: The closest star system to Sol is almost as well defended as Sol, due to the Flagship of 1st Fleet taking up station there, along with a few squadrons of support ships. Alpha Centauri is a full civilian system, with no military presence, aside from the 1st Fleet ships in system.


Magellan System: One of the major Shell systems, the Magellan system is where the flagship of 4th Fleet is posted. However, Magellan is one of the rare autonomous systems in the Shell. Due to its location, Magellan is a major stopping point for shipping between the Core and the Verge. As such, the Solarian Navy actually pays the system government an annual stipend to station ships there. Due to the close relationship between the Magellan system government and the Solarian Navy, the system government is very friendly to the Navy and the Imperial Council, which is rather unusual for an autonomous system.

Omicron Alpha: Omicron Alpha is one of the very few systems under full Imperial control that resides in the Verge. Containing three planets, only one of which, Cernos, is habitable, Omicron Alpha is where the flagship of 6th Fleet has taken up station. The system contains a repair yard capable of handling anything short of full ship building.

Sigma-12: The Sigma-12 system, which is in the Verge, contains no planets. However, it happens to contain a Y-dwarf star, which resides in a nebula of ice. The Solarian Navy has put a shipyard in orbit around the star, as well as a trading post, for travelers and merchants to resupply and take a rest. Sigma-12 contains the largest Naval presence in the Verge, outside of Omicron- Alpha.

Important Planets:

Earth: Capital planet of the Solarian Empire, the majority of the inhabitants are associated with government service in one way or another. As such, poverty and unemployment is almost nil. The Imperial Archives in Vienna contain the sum of human knowledge to anyone at will, outside of classified documents.

Mars: Minor terraforming has transformed Mars into a massive human colony, though the planet is still dry and arid, being compared to living in Egypt. A large portion of the population are Marines or are family members of Marines.

Venus: Major terraforming has turned this acidic hothouse into a wet, humid jungle, where rainfall occurs 70% of the time. Most settlements exist partially underground or are heavily reinforced to deal with the constant deluge of water. However, the rain is pure water and human life is capable of surviving on the surface, though they will get soaked. The Imperial Archives on Venus contains information not available to the public. Access is granted on a case by case basis, as classified documents can be found.

Europa: Five cities are anchored to the permanent ice over the ocean. Most Europans spend their entire lives underwater, which has resulted in the only wet navy to still exist in the empire.

Arcadia: Resting in the Verge, Arcadia is an autonomous system known for its rich culture and artwork, being compared to the Italian Renaissance. Arcadia has no standing defense forces of any kind, instead leasing their defenses to the Solarian Navy, who's parked a squadron in the system. Arcadians are sought all over the Empire for their architectural designs and decorating, even though only a third of Arcadians are actually skilled at it.

Norn: Residing in the Verge, Norn is infamous for its Blood Pits, where predatory animals are forced to fight to the death, sometimes against other predatory animals, sometimes against humans. People will bring animals from all over the Empire to enter, though the hexapuma of planet Mornes is a fan favorite. Solarian military personnel are prohibited from entering fights and from betting, though they are allowed to spectate. Norn has no military, but it's no secret that they have allies, some of whom aren't exactly legal. Norn is considered neutral ground among criminals.

Mornes: Mornes is a very dense world, with a gravity 2.7 times that of Earth. The planet is one of the heaviest-gravity worlds that man has ever settled. Its sea-level air pressure is high enough to produce near-toxic concentrations of carbon dioxide and nitrogen. This fact limits the population to mountain ranges, plateaus, and other high altitude locations. Mornes is home to one of the deadliest hunters in the Empire, the six-legged hexapuma, which resembles an Earth panther. The hexapuma has a body length from 2.5 to 3.5 meters, with the tail being roughly the same length. They have an average weight of 650 kg, with larger specimens reaching 800kg or more. Mornes has a restricted visiting policy, due to the nature of the planet and its predators. Mornes is in the Verge and is an Imperial Protectorate world.

Marissa: Marissa is a heavy-grav world in the Shell, though only 1.9x Earth's gravity. Marissa is mostly agrarian, as the inhabitants are descendants of Quakers. Inhabitants rarely leave the planet. Those that do, tend to stick to their ways, though the rare few do join the Solarian Navy. Marissans aren't religious, but they idealize the ways of their ancestors. Marissa provides food for a good number of nearby systems.

Important bases:

Shield Base: 110 kilometers long, 50 kilometers high, Shield Base orbits Earth and is the headquarters of the Solarian Navy. Shield Base Astro Control, a civilian organization, handles all traffic in and out of the Sol System and is able to generate a powerful shield in the event of an attack. Shield Base is also fully capable of defending against enemy attack, aided by the AI

Veni: The sprawling headquarters of the Solarian Army, Veni is the only complex on the moon and is also the location of boot camp for the Army. Veni is massive, almost 600 square kilometers in diameter

Vidi: Vidi is a decommissioned Spirit-class Battleship, stretching 2.5km in length. Residing somewhere in the Kupier Belt, Vidi is used to teach Army soldiers how to defend ships and how to take them. While a few Spirit-class battleships are still in service outside of the Empire, Vidi will be the only one that will never be scrapped, due to her usefulness. Vidi's original commissioning plaque is still on the bridge, reading "HMS Spirit of Humanity BB-88." Any soldier who graduates the extremely tough "Shipboard Combat Course" becomes qualified to serve as a Marine.

Vichi: Vichi is the orbital station used by the Solarian military to train for scenarios they aren't easily able to recreate or visit. Vichi is a giant orbiting holoprojector, containing multiple holochambers, where holograms and force fields are able to create any scenario needed, to include Soldier vs Soldier combat, mainly for unit competitions.

Freeports: Freeports are civilian run space stations that are considered neutral ground for all. With the exception of Freeport 01, in the Alpha Centauri system, all Freeports are isolated and rely on laser turrets on the station for defense, though a Freeport being attacked tends to bring people running to help. Freeports are pure capitalist havens, where money is required for just about anything.