From the moment the first artificial satellites were rocketed into the orbit of Earth, the human
conquest of space was perhaps inevitable. The path to becoming a true interstellar
civilization was marked by great discoveries, terrible wars, and the fires of revolution.
Yet as mankind enters the latter half of the 30th century, the dozens of star systems over which
it now holds dominion speaks to the power and resolve of the United Empire of Earth.
The empire exerts control over roughly three dozen star systems and hundreds of planets,
moons and various other orbital bodies. Centuries of interstellar development have created worlds
that rival the Earth in commercial, industrial or scientific output, and a few have even nearly
eclipsed the homeworld in terms of their cultural and historical significance. They are notable for
their vast megacities, highly developed orbital infrastructure and large corporate presence.
While these worlds, together with Earth, represent the core of the empire’s power, the majority of
settled territories remain underdeveloped. On these worlds the strength of the Empire’s
institutions struggle with a lack of resources, losing their inherent benefits of employment
and education and reduced to the dull instrument of a colonial power. Often megacorporations will
capitalise on this, moving in to monopolise the economy and industry of a fledgling world.
As a federal republic, the political mechanisms of the United Empire of Earth are ostensibly
democratic, but in reality resemble a kind of educational oligarchy bordering on enlightened
absolutism. Citizens from worlds that reach a certain level of influence are able to
elect one of their number as their Senator. This individual represents their world in the Senate,
the organisation responsible for the democratic process of government.
Collectively these representatives debate and determine the motions of government,
headed by a High-Secretary who is tasked with maintaining order and reasonable progress within
the organisation. A Senator will stand for a five-year term before facing re-election,
with no term limit existing. The vast majority of worlds will only be afforded a single Senator,
though more influential planets may have two or three, leading to a vast interconnected web of
political alliances that exerts influence on every decision. The Senate itself is housed on Earth,
which holds the most Senators at five, creating a political power bloc centered around humanity’s
birthworld. In the modern era, the senate is divided between three dominant political parties,
the largely traditional and conservative Centralist Party,
the progressive Transitionalist Party and the free market advocates of the Universalist Party.
Acting as a counterweight to the democratic mechanisms of the Senate is the Advocacy,
the judiciary and law-enforcement branch of government. Although the Senate may vote on
imperial laws, the Advocacy will define and enforce them. In the more turbulent years of
the facist Messer Era it also served as a secret police force, involved in intelligence gathering,
espionage and assassination, as well as propaganda campaigns and other, more disturbing accusations
that remain unproven. Today it serves as a federal anti-crime agency, persecuting
interplanetary lawbreakers and able to travel with impunity through every jurisdiction of the nation.
As much ace pilots as they are skilled investigators, Advocacy agents are feared by
criminals across the empire. The organisation is headed by a single High-Advocate, the counterpart
to the Senate’s High-Secretary and ostensibly the most well-informed individual in the human race.
The empire itself is ruled by an Imperator, the head of state and commander-in-chief.
This individual is elected from amongst the members of the Senate but, due to the nature
of Citizenship, it is possible for them to have roots in any branch of the government.
The Imperator will serve for an extended, though term-limited reign.
Since the days of the Messer Era restrictions have been placed on the rule of the Imperator.
They may still wield extensive political power as well as influence over the
Advocacy and the military, but they will never again be able to approach
the level of authoritarian domination that the Messer dynasty practiced.
While the federal government aims to bring the same level of state services to all its citizens,
regardless of their socio-economic status, it’s mixed record in this era has created a widening
divide. This is epitomized in the disparity between the core and outer worlds which
manifests itself most strongly in the unequal access to education and Citizenship. Whilst a
child in the megacities of Terra 3 or Rhetor may be crowded into a classroom of several hundred,
it is likely that a child of the colonies will have no classroom at all, instead being taught
remotely through a mass distributed e-learning program. Such programs are of little use to these
frontier generations and many will leave school before earning their Equivalency.
Though a lack of formal education does not officially preclude one from entering the
workforce, it does drastically limit their opportunities. Equivalency is necessary for
certain higher-paying jobs, holding public office or entering any kind government related work.
This has the effect of vastly skewing the ratio of Commoners and Citizens in the empire’s
underdeveloped corners. Whilst ‘Commoner’ is a catch-all term for the majority of the
inhabitants of the UEE, Citizenship is a formal status attained through higher education or
service in the military. Designed as an incentive to drive it’s populace to greater accomplishments,
Citizens are able to hold public office and take part in the democratic process,
as well as enjoying certain taxation benefits and economic opportunities excluded to Commoners. It
is this division, more than race or religion, that defines society in the United Empire of Earth.
The only reliable method of bridging the widening social strata of the empire, is
a career in the military. While the Armed Forces technically requires Equivalency in its enlistees,
it has been known to waive these requirements if a cadet displays certain “desirable traits”.
Those who are successful will rarely return to their homeworld after their tour of duty, instead
using their newfound mobility to settle elsewhere in the empire or become a career soldier.
As one of the most prolific ways for a Commoner to earn Citizenship,
the military holds an influential place within the public and political spheres of the UEE.
A surefire, if dangerous, means for one of the many downtrodden young adults of the empire to
better their lot in life, almost every Citizen of the UEE will either have served or knows
someone who has. The Senate is rife with former soldiers who used their time in service to acquire
the necessary knowledge to successfully conduct a Senatorial campaign, whilst some of the top agents
of the Advocacy learned the more overt skills of their trade within the ranks of the armed forces.
Often the Imperator will have a service record themselves, their heroics in the cockpit of a
starfighter or on the bridge of a battleship forming a uniquely patriotic element of their
campaign for ascendency. As such, the High-General of the armed forces often wields considerable
political power, able to influence either branches of government or even the Imperator themselves.
The military is divided into three services: the Navy, the Army, and the Marines.
The UEE Navy is by far the most lauded element of the three, receiving the highest accolades,
the most active press coverage, and the largest budget. The image of Naval vessels patrolling
the far flung reaches of distant systems, hanging above densely populated core worlds
or clashing with the myriad dangers of space, is a sight recognisable to many across the empire.
The Army in contrast receives far less attention, relegated to the role of
planetside operations and garrison duties on the strategic worlds of the empire.
A fully mobile and mechanised force able to conduct security missions and full-scale
warfare under a myriad of conditions, the Army is nevertheless seen as a secondary combatant
when compared with the service record of the Navy. Though the nature of war has changed drastically,
both branches form an essential part in the security apparatus of the United Empire of Earth.
Filling in the gaps of that apparatus are the UEE Marine
Corps. As much a shipboard defensive asset as they are a special operations unit, the Marines take
a myriad of roles within the UEE warmachine. Expected to serve as an expeditionary force,
security detail, or long-range operations detachment with equal skill,
the Marines rely on rigorous training and a wide use of technology rather
than the overt specialisation of the Navy or Army.
Though widely praised and well regarded, the military is not without its critics.
Many still link its institutions with the atrocities of the Messer Era,
where the armed forces spearheaded the rapid growth of the UEE at the cost of
brutal crackdowns and acts of xenocide. To many, particularly in the colonies where
the older generations see their children disappear into service never to return,
the military still represents the clenched fist of the oppressor and the enforcers of fascism.
It was this expansion of military power, hand-in-hand with the development of practical
terraforming, that birthed the United Empire of Earth from the former United Planets of Earth,
itself a distant descendant of the old United Nations. While many modern institutions within
the Empire can trace their history to both those preceding states, the first interstellar
war fought against the militarist Tev arin race between 2543 and 2546 exposed many of the nation’s
systematic weaknesses. The conflict also brought to the public eye the actions of Ivar Messar.
A hero of the conflict, Messar utilized his celebrity to embark on a political career.
Elected first to the Senate, and later named the High-General of the Armed Forces.
Messar advocated a number of reforms, primarily the strengthening of executive power and the
creation of a new office for their use. Messar himself would assume that new role, elected as
the first and only Prime Citizen. His reforms culminated in the declaration of the United
Empire of Earth, and while the rapid changes this brought to society faced some internal opposition,
they helped usher in an unprecedented age of expansion and colonization.
A second triumphant war against the Tevarin further cemented Messar’s power who had adopted
the new title of Imperator. This authority was transferred to his children upon his death,
creating the first Messar Dynasty. The rule of the Imperators swayed the Empire towards an
increasingly facist state and the threat of future wars against the neighboring Xi’an and Vanduul
species used to suppress dissent. In 2792 however, leaked footage of a state sponsored massacre of
human colonists, led to widespread demonstrations and the overthrow of the Imperial government.
In the years since, the federal government has instituted a series of counter-reforms,
aimed at reversing the autocratic acts of the Imperators and restoring the public
trust. It initiated enormous public works, notably the Ark, a galactic repository of
knowledge and inter-species meeting space, and the Synthworld, an artificially constructed planet.
It has even attempted to normalize relations with previously hostile species,
although the results of these diplomatic efforts have been mixed.
In 2951, The United Empire of Earth now stands at the precipice. Stretched militarily and
economically, with the threats of the galaxy amassing and unrest fermenting in the largest
megacities and smallest townships, the UEE has entered a time of uncertainty.
Laylani Addison the current Imperator, faces political attacks from the Senate,
internal pressures from the Advocacy and the bleak forecasts of the armed forces,
all whilst wethering the diplomatic pressures of the wider galaxy.
With technological momentum grinding to a halt it will take either an era-defining breakthrough
or a titanic effort to reawaken the machine of human ingenuity. The Ark, though impressive,
has fallen far-off its mark as a place for all the species of the galaxy to meet in congress.
The Synthworld remains an empty dream, a hulking mass of sunken investment
that will take the economic strength of an entire species to get moving again. As the
promise of progress crumbles to dust, the threat of war looms. The empire’s military, so lauded
and entrenched in its society and politics, draws ever more influence in the voices of the Senate.
With such jingoism running high, the empire could easily be plunged into a devastating
conflict with another galactic power, all over some foolish thing in the borders.
Whatever the galaxy may hold for the United Empire of Earth, one thing has become clear.
The institutions of government, weighed down with politics and intrigue, have lost their impact.
The tools of politicians are blunting, the grip of centralised power is waning in
strength. The corporations, though prolific and powerful, are being muzzled by their dedication
to the bottom line. The next age of humanity is coming and it will be determined, not by the
efforts of its governments, nor the schemes of its corporations, but by the actions of its Citizens.