Stoinian Star Kingdom (A1-0)
The Stoinian Star Kingdom is a Terran Star Nation located 1304 light years south of Sol in the Perseus arm or that is presumed. Its most notable feature is its impressive Military which is run entirely separate from the civilian government and lead by the monarch himself.
Etymology
The word Stoinian derives from the ancient Greek word stoic. The word became popular as a philosophical one which would later characterize the Stoinian people. Thus through intermingling of multiple Terran languages the word stoic became Stoinian and became a part of the core identity of the Stoinian people. They themselves claimed themselves to be Stoinian out of the stoic acts during the War at Home. Now the word is associated with courage, pride, honour and duty.
History
The Founding of the Colony
In the year 1232 Post Diaspora the colony ship Zamolxis arrived with it's Terran colonists on the 1st of may on the world of HD-8762-III, a small continental ringed world flourishing with life never seen before by man, most notable a creature resembling the old Terran Ethiopian lion. The lion in particular proved nearly identical to the ones found on old Earth. The 100.000 colonists were part of a project made possible by Alexandru Stoian, a wealthy Romanian business person. However they didn't arrive at the planet they intended and were stuck on this lush world. The colony was named Sinaia after its biggest city and was made into a small nation with a council of shareholders. Although there were three main cities, many colonists led by the Dutch colonists went and formed rural areas, although their location had to be known as to make the necessary infrastructure for trade. This would later be known as the Trek, honouring the old Dutch South African colonists. With the main cities laid down industrialization could commence as the rural areas would provide food. The planet's soil by nature was nutritious, but with knowledge and experience it far exceeded old Earth standards.
The War at Home
On the 6th of march in 1241 PD, the Mardakii, a tall mammalian species resembling a gorilla, invaded the planet and started massacring civilians. With only a small police force, the colonists were unable to hold off the Mardakii attack. People formed local militias while the women and children went into the rural areas. Alexandru Stoian declared a state of emergency and declared himself the Colonel of the newly declared army and relocated in Bloemfontein to amass an army. With little to no industry to beat the Mardakii Stoian ordered the production of swords as they were easier to manufacture. He also ordered that all horses be confiscated as they should be used for cavalry. The amount of horses proved less than optimal and so the search for a new domestic animals began. This resulted in the use of the Suph Horses and the Crescent Horn Bucks in the cavalry. The Mardakii didn't just pillaged they settled inside the cities make their new homes and enslaving the Terrans which they could find. Stoian personally lead his cavalry towards New Brussels and was able to overwhelm the Mardakii pillagers, commonly called the Miracle of the Horses. With New Brussels liberated industry was available to manufacture guns. Not long after the liberation, the Mardakii from the other two cities attacked but were successfully repelled. Thus for a year long the Terrans lead by Alexandru Stoian repelled the Mardakii forces. With enough guns to retake the other two cities, Stoian ordered a coordinated attack on both the cities Sinaia and Salisbury. Salisbury was successfully captured after a gruesome campaign of 5 months but Sinaia proved to be a major setback. Every street costed a week to capture and every building was full of traps, Military advisors decided that it was best to destroy the buildings rather than fight in them. They proposed to ram the buildings with enormous local fauna, the Foombars. This plan worked, but was very costly on the Foombar population as they became a priority target for the Mardakii. After a year of sacking buildings with Foombars and explosives the Mardakii were pushed away into the wild. The populace cheered as Stoian held his famed Lion speech, which later became known as the [i]Birth of the Nation[/i]. Alexandru Stoian became the hero of Sinaia and proposed a new constitution and renamed the planet Stoinia. The new constitution reformed the government into a Kingdom, with notable shareholders of the original colony project and people who performed outstandingly in the war were declared noble houses. The most extraordinary feat a Terran could do was to single handily kill a Mardakii Chieftain, only eleven persons were able to succed in this and on the places this feat happened statues were build. Alexandru Stoian was able to do this and killed the biggest Mardakii spotted on Stoinia, this Mardakii later became known as the Colossus and a real life size statue of Alexandru killing the Mardakii was made in the middle of what later would be known as the King's Square. Out of the Colossus' hammer were made the King's Crown, Sword, Honour Sword and Mardakii Claw Knives from its claws. From its fur, the King's Mantle was made. However the War had been costly, only 48.000 colonists survived it. With the handful Mardakii that escaped into the wilderness, the Great Hunt could commence as these needed to be exterminated from Stoinian soil. Mardakii skulls and claws became common trophies and signs of great prowess. Corpses of Mardakii children who died between the fights were burnt as killing innocent children was dishonourable even if they were Mardakii.
The Great Hunt
With revengeful Stoinians randomly hunting the woods for the remaining Mardakii, some regulation was required. As Mardakii were still a threat to any Terran who goes alone in the woods, there were reports of Mardakii eating Terrans after all, the Great Hunt Act was made. It constituted that only a select few of hunters were to be licensed to hunt the remaining Mardakii. However to make sure that they wouldn't pose a threat to the rural areas, a large reservation of 1000 square kilometres was made surrounded by thick 40 metres tall walls. The Hunting reservations consists of mostly Jungle terrainwith plains surrounding the lush vegetation. To keep the reservations safe from the Mardakii who might escape a new organization was founded, the National Mardakii Hunting Police. The remaining Mardakii were captured and set free inside the reservation. Over the years the Mardakii devolved and two centuries later scientists declared them no longer sentient, but semi-sapient. Inside the reservation they became top tier predators, just under the Stoinian Lion who occasionally eat younger Mardakii. Although it lost its intelligence, it didn't lose its predator features, which mad it dangerous to hunt them alone. The select few Hunters who may hunt the Mardakii may only do so in groups of in-between 4 and 6 and only once a year to keep the Mardakii population at a steady 200. These special hunts are televised into series by the Hunters themselves, called the Great Hunt, after the Hunt took place. These series are extremely popular amongst the populace, although the Progressive Party condemns them. In the Great Hunt of 1334 PD disaster struck as the group of 6 Hunters were attacked by a massive Mardakii brute who killed 5 of the Hunters, leaving only one alive, Sly Marbo. Marbo continued his Hunt on the Mardakii brute, now called the Great Brute. Sly Marbo hunted for several more weeks searching the Brute, while a rescue party found the graves of the other five and their weapons except Marbo's Mardakii claw knife. He also left the message that he wouldn't rest until the Great Brute was dead. Two months after the Great Hunt had started Marbo arrived at the south west wall tower. With the Great Brute's head, limbs and most notably its heart. Sly filmed the entirety of his Great Hunt and it became the Greatest Hunt of them all. The King thanked him and offered him the tittle of Lord but Marbo refused, stating that he lives for the Great Hunt not a noble title. Nonetheless he offered the House of Stoian the Great Brute's heart. He refused any publicity or awards for his actions.
The Stellar Ascension
Sixty years after the War at Home, the Stoinian people had already set up mining posts throughout the star system. Now there was a need for a space navy, which was also responsible for exploration for other planets to set up new colonies. With a new and eager generation ready to spread the Stoinian way of life. With this goal in mind in 1364 PD 70.000 people set out to colonise the first colony worlds of Triton, Hellas, Ossia, Karelia, Virginia, Shetland and Cornucopia. When the colonies were set up King Iulian I proclaimed Stoinia a Star Kingdom and this became known as the Stellar Ascension. From this point on the Star Kingdom would further its grasp on the stars and seek new resources and opportunities. During the next centuries the Star Kingdom expanded its colonies into the hundreds, this became know as the Great Stellar Trek.
The Madman's Reign
In 1465 PD the sudden death of Iulian II, left his son Carol the crown. Carol the first was a rather peculiar character. He had rare tastes and reports showed he mauled down animals during hunts, even though this was considered taboo. He also became delusional and paranoid. This all would climax when he tried to dissolve the civilian government as he found some evidence that House Thorne may consider a coup against him. This evidence was quickly debunked and the King deemed mad. However he had already sent his troops towards the Capitol. The people however encircled the governmental institutions and formed a human shield. Carol I was quickly dethroned and his daughter Elena became the first Queen of Stoinia. Later it was revealed that he also had a bastard son with the daughter of the head of House Thorne. This bastard son is the current leader of House Thorne.
The Velutarian War
In 1584 PD a Xeno Nation had been discovered to the South of the Star Kingdom known as the Velutarian Technocray. The Technocracy was an agressive Science Directorate who were technologically superior to the Stoinians who didn't even have shields. King Alexandru III himself lead an expedition to visit the Velutarian against his advisors, but argued that as the Stoinian people's protector he should meet the aliens. When the expedition arrived in Velutarian space the expedition was scanned by a Velutarian scout vessel. The expedition followed the ship as there was no other way of contacting the ship as they didn't respond to hails. The expedition was met with a small Velutarian patrol who immediately started firing on the expedition leaving only a few to escape. When news of this arrived in the Capital riots broke out requesting for war. However Crown Prince Andrei was only 2 years old and thus a regent was necessary. From the crowd came Grand General Anson MacArthur, who had been known for more power to Military Command on Military Affairs. He gained popular support, and was made the Supreme Marshal of Stoinia. The Royal Council stil was debating as who should be the regent, but House Thorne proved very stubborn. His first act was to declare war on the Velutarians they had killed the King, which to this day is considered an act of war. Chancellor O'Connell at the time conflicted with MacArthur over his control and argued that he himself instead should lead the Nation, he was elected after all. MacArthur agreed that O'Connell should be the head of government, but MacArthur the head of the Military. The initial border invasion proved successful, Velutarians met the Stoinian with open gun ports and the Stoinians destroyed the initial Velutarian Forces. Soon after the Velutarians would show their full force pushing the Stoinians back. The technologically supremacy proved insurmountable with some Stoinian fleets being destroyed in twelve seconds. MacArthur however saw an opportunity, if they couldn't be beaten in space then they would be on the ground. This strategy seemingly left worlds unprotected and it proved very controversial with O'Connell who didn't approve of MacArthur's strategy. This lead to serious trouble between the two which even lead to the two openly attack each other. However the Royal Council viewed this as a distraction and thus an unpreceded action was taken. The proclaimed MacArthur as the regent. This resolved the squabbling between O'Connell and MacArthur, O'Connell had to comply now. The first year proved grim for the Navy, but the Army proved a fighting chance on the ground. MacArthur installed a new program for the Special Forces the infamous SPARTAN Program. The Spartan Program took orphans and made them into living killing machines through genetical augmentation, called Spartans. This was kept a secret from the public and were sent to help the ground forces on the isolated planets. It was said that one Spartan was worth an entire army. This was demonstrated in their prowess. High Admiral Cole also proposed the so called Cole Protocol, which protected the location of Stoinia and prevented the Velutarians from taking their technology. The Velutarians were a ruthless enemy, they didn't care who their target. The Stoinians were technologically inferior to them and that was reason enough to exterminate them. A lot of civilians died in between the crossfire. The following decade proved a slow march by the Velutarians, thanks to the newly imposed Cole Protocol. Though after stalling the enemy as much as possible, they had reached the core worlds. Eventually the Velutarian Fleet arrived at Triton. If they took Triton, Stoinia's location would be revealed and all hope would be lost. The Navy however was prepared to hold the line and give the Velutarians hell. With the new upgrades to their ships the Stoinians held the line, which later became known as the famous Battle of the Line. High Admiral Douglas Hague (the current Strategos) became known as the Hero of the Line and was deemed a savior. Meanwhile the Army started to repel Velutarian Forces from the planets. Finally MacArthur could launch his offensive. The final year of the war were characterised by MacArthur's push and the liberation of the contested worlds. After the successful liberation, the Navy proceeded to march towards Velutaria itself. Crown Prince Andrei III joined the forces to march towards Velutaria. Although the march was slow, they arrived at Velutaria and started to bombard the military bases. Then the ODST Squads were sent to secure the Velutarian government key figures and military commanders. While the Velutarian heads of government refused to surrender and the populace tried to break inside the buidings, after the Stoinians made it clear that they shouldn't, the Stoinian soldiers were forced to fire upon the populace. Soon after that, the Velutarians surrendered on King Andrei III's birthday, which became known as MacArthur's gift. However the civilian populace of Velutaria proved rebellious. Thus King Andrei himself ordered the complete bombardment of Velutaria. The whole planet soon became all but craters. The Stoinians didn't stop there however. They bombed the planet with their Mac cannons until eventually, the planet broke. This Sacking of Velutaria spanned several months. The Velutarians had bitten the Stoinian Lion, but the Lion had unleashed it's wrath. The Velutarian War became Stoinia's bloodiest incident in history, over 8.7 trillion Stoinians died during the War. It reminded the Stoinians that if they are to survive in space, their military needs to be strong. For in space the golden rule still applies: survival of the fittest.
The MacArthur Reformation
As a result of the Velutarian War, MacArthur and the newly crowned King Andrei III reformed Stoinian society as was needed, due to the clashes between O'Connell and MacArthur. The Military became entirely independent from the civilian government and ensured operational freedom. For this the military was allowed to fully own planets and their resources. The entire military budget was scrapped, except for the pensions, as the military now took its resources directly from their designated planets. From now on servicemen and servicewoman joined the military to serve and keep the rest of Stoinian society safe. Aside from reserved pensions for ex-military personnel, they also received special tax status as to ensure they have an easier time getting employed in the civilian sectors. This reformation became part of the constitution and both the King and civilian government approved of this changed. Since then MacArthur is deemed as one of the greatest Stoinians ever and his reform became a new foundation of Stoinian society. MacArthur also redefined Stoinian military doctrine which remains active to this day. The role of Strategos was also inaugurated, he leads the Armed Forces alongside the King and serves as his aide-de-camp. When the Monarch is unavailable, the Strategos assumes the function as Commander in Chief. The Strategos is elected by the Royal War Council, which consists of both the Grand Admirals and the Grand Marshals. To prevent a coup against the civilian government, the Congressional Guard was founded. The Congressional Guard exists solely to protect the civilian government's institutions. The Guard is lead by the High Sentinel, who has voting powers if there is an equal number of votes on both sides of the voting for he helps moderating them.
The Cheunh Compromise
With the continuation of the Stellar Trek, the Stoinians eventually bumped into the Cheunh Ascendancy. The Stoinians recognised several Mardakii ships attacking the Cheunh ships. The Stoinians attacked the Mardakii and broadcasted messages for the Cheunh to translate it. Eventually the Cheunh started to contact the Stoinians and a dialogue was established. The two nations started to exchange intelligence on the Mardakii and began to hunt them down. After several months the central hub of the Mardakii was located, a small desert planet. A joint operation to capture the planet was held and was a resounding succes. Both sides impressed each other. The efficiency of the Cheunh impressed the Stoinians and the Stoinian technology impressed the Cheunh. Eventually both sides became heated with one another as the planet was a strategically located one for the Cheunh, but the Stoinians wanted to hunt down Mardakii and open new reserves. With tensions rising King Andrei III sent a proposal to the Cheunh. They could keep the planet if they became part of the Star Kingdom. The Cheunh heavily debated the proposal, but a consensus was reached after several negotiations with King Andrei. They would become a Special Autonomous Region within the Star Kingdom, this way they would keep some of their independence. The Cheunh realised that the Stoinians could take over the planet and hold it if they wished. There was some resistance to this through the Cheunh Front, a political party which wanted to secede from the Star Kingdom. After 10 years of full citizenship in the Star Kingdom the Cheunh realised that joining the Star Kingdom peacefully was perhaps the best of choices. The Cheunh Ascendancy officially became part of the Star Kingdom on the 11th November 1604 PD.
Astrography
The Star Kingdom consists of around 26.000 star systems. Within these star systems there are 257 colonised worlds. These are then divided into sectors. There a total of twelve sectors each partly lead by one of the Great Noble Houses. The Star Kingdom also consists of a special autonomous region, the Cheunh Ascendancy, lead from their government from Csilla. The Cheunh Ascendancy although a special autonomous region, acts more like a powerful sector. With the MacArthur Reformation the Military received designated planets. In total the Military holds 35 military outpost. These outpost aren't exclusively planets, the military also utilises heavily fortified space stations, designated Deep Space Stations. All the occupied star systems have buoys which transmit system wide transmissions that notify any ship that enter the star system. This proces is also done for newly claimed systems and thus the Star Kingdom expands. For planetary colonization however, permission must be granted by the Military which takes in consideration the minerals and strategic value and if there is enough infrastructure to hold the planet in cases of war. After that a military mandate is granted for the first 15 years of the colonies life, afterwards the mandate may be given to a civilian governor or kept in a military mandate.
Demographics
The Star Kingdom holds about 12,683 trillion citizens. 83.62% are Terrans while the other remaining 16.38% are Cheunh. The Star Kingdom is responsible for their protection be they Terran or Cheunh. The Cheunh were peacefully annexed in 1593 PD through the Cheunh Compromise and have since then proved worthy of the Star Kingdom. The Terrans are your standard humans from old Earth. However, there may be some small variations such as height due to the varieties of inhabited planets. It is considered quite rude to call a Terran a human, this is because they prefer the name Terran as a reminder to the proper name of Earth, Terra. The Cheunh on the other hand are a bipedal humanoid species, with blue skin and glowing red eyes. They are very similar to Terrans in appearance, but there are some other differences. For example, they mature twice as fast as humans and are considered elderly at the age of 60 Terran years. They also tend to breed slower than the Terrans, but this seems to be due to cultural norms.
Language
Although the national language is standard English, Romanian, the language of the royal family, is regarded as the language of the elite and culture. With the original colonists coming from many nations of Terra, there were a lot of languages. However as the Stoinians expanded into the stars a new trend was formed, certain ethnicities went together and formed their own ethno-planet. This was partly done to perserve the cultures and ensure that Mankind wouldn't become monotone. With the Stellar Ascension, King Iulian II promoted for local languages to be used for localised government as long as the written documents would also be done in standard English. This would later also apply to the Cheunh Ascendancy. Linguists from Stoinia have done numerous studies regarding the evolution of languages within Stoinia. They found that most languages, barely changed, except for new vocabulary. The reason for this remains unclear.
Education
W.I.P.
Politics and Government
The Star Kingdom is lead by the Monarch, but he is helped by the civilian government. The civilian government uses a unitary bicameral system. Legislative power is held by Congress which consists of the Planetary Assembly and the People’s Assembly. When there is an equal number of votes for or against a certain legislation, then the High Sentinel, the head of the Congressional Guard, may also vote. Executive power is held by the Royal Cabinet, which is lead by the Chancellor with the Kings grace and elected by popular vote. The King however may overrule the Chancellor’s decisions at any given time. The Cabinet is divided into multiple ministries that influence the civilian populace daily life. Although the Ministries of Colonial Affairs and Foreign Relations work with the Military branch of society in some degrees. Apart from these institutions there also is the Royal Court which is the judicial part of the government.
Planetary Assembly: One Viceroy and Senator represent the planet in the assembly. Viceroys are hereditary titles and held by nobility. Senators are elected by popular vote and serve mandates of 8 years. However, both these roles are not immune to a planetary referenda to resign them. There are at the moment 514 seats int he Planetary Assembly.
People’s Assembly: Each planet has a number of representatives in accordance with the total number of its population. Each representative is elected for 4 years. They however fulfill their mandates and are immune to planetary referenda. There are a total of 845 seats in the People's Assembly.
Ministry of Finance: Responsible for managing the government’s budget and expenses.
Ministry of Education: Responsible for education on all colonies.
Ministry of Law: Responsible for the judicial branch.
Ministry of Industry: Responsible for the development and maintaining of planetary and system industries.
Ministry of Agriculture: Responsible for regulating food production and distribution.
Ministry of Trade: Responsible for regulating trades and their fiscal side and managing of trade routes.
Ministry of Bioscience: Responsible for regulating scientific advancement and healthcare.
Ministry of Infrastructure: Responsible for planetary infrastructure and energy systems.
Ministry of Colonial Affairs: Responsible for colonial affairs and expansion of the Star Kingdom. New Colonies must be approved by the Military before its founding can begin. The Military also holds a 15-year mandate for the first part of the colony’s development.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Civilian part is fully responsible for trade partnerships. Co-run by Military for formal alliances that imply the Military.
The Great Houses of the Star Kingdom
Originally big shareholders of the colony project, they now serve as the nobility of the Star Kingdom and help in its governance. Not all major shareholders took nobility titles, but instead opted for exclusive industrial mining rights. These noble houses are now the King’s backbone and represent his interest on the many colonies.
House Stoian: Lead by King Andrei III, responsible for the line of succession and the Core Sector.
House Winton: Lead by Lord Roger Winton, nobility of the Elysium Sector.
House McGregor: Lead by Lord Ewan McGregor, nobility of the Corillian Sector.
House Smuts: Lead by Lord Jan Smuts, nobility of the Rhodesian Sector
House Selassie: Lead by Lord Mohammed Selassie, nobility of the Paragon Sector.
House Yang: Lead by Dame Chin-Ling Yang, nobility of the Qingdao Sector.
House Thorne: Lead by Lord Ethan Thorne, nobility of the Tozorian Sector.
House Zhukov: Lead by Lord Yuri Vasilyevich Zhukov, nobility of the Gagarin Sector.
House Rouhani: Lead by Lord Navid Rouhani, nobility of the Charian Sector.
House Mann: Lead by Dame Cara Mann, nobility of the Hyperion Sector
House Arnold: Lead by Dame Jasmine Arnold, nobility of the Arcadian Sector.
Political Parties
Libertarian Trade League
Centrist Party
Liberal Party
Democratic Freedom Party
Traditional Party for Colonial Empowerment
Progressive Xeno Party
Crown’s Guard
Foreign Policy
Stoinian Foreign policy is dictated by the King himself. He is however assisted by the Chancellor, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Royal War Council. This may initially seem as a long and slow method to make policy, but the King ultimately makes the final decision and must enact any formal treaties with his own signature. The Stoinians have taken it upon themselves to protect Humanity after they learned that Terra had been lost. They wish to meet their fellow Terrans and ensure their existence, not necessarily under the same banner. However, if a said banner proves to be oppressive against Terrans, then repercussions may follow by the Stoinians. Non-Terran sapients, commonly referred to as Xenos in the Star Kingdom, are initially viewed as inferior and to be subjugated under the guiding hand of the Terrans. Although this guiding hand has barely seen practice, its role and methods are a highly debated subject in Congress as a result from the Cheunh Compromise.
Military
Royal War Council
The Royal War Council consists of the Monarch, the Strategos, the 13 Grand Admirals, the 10 Grand Marshals and the 4 Marine Marshals. This Council is responsible for the overall strategy used by the Stoinian Military. They also convene in matters of war and formal military alliances with other nations.
The Royal Navy is the primary line of defence of the Star Kingdom. In total there are around 165.000 ships who serve to protect the nation. They are divided into 13 Armadas and several Exploratory Fleets. Armadas are lead by the 13 Grand Admirals and patrol their sectors and if needed wage war. The Expeditionary Fleets are used to survey new worlds and form the primary defence for newly claimed territories <<Naval Asset Manifest>>
Royal Army
W.I.P.
Special Forces
The Special Forces are the most prized forces of the Stoinian Armed Forces. Although after the MacArthur Reformation the Special Forces too were reformed. The main two programs are the ODST and the SPARTAN Program. With the recent annexation of the Cheunh a new distinct group has been inaugurated in the Special Forces.
The Orbital Drop Shock Troop Program utilises shock troops who are specialised in fighting behind enemy lines. They are divided into dozens of squad containing six members each. They are then launched from drop pods from orbit into enemy lines. From there they use their specialised equipment to complete their designated missions.
The SPARTAN Programs consists of super soldiers called Spartans. They are divided into Fire Teams of four members. They then perform covert or support missions. With the first generation of Spartans consisting of orphans from the Velutarian War, it remains a highly debated issue in Congress. Though the SPARTAN Program was deemed necessary to win the Velutarian War by the majority of the Stoinian people.
The Cheunh Covert Special Forces are Stoinia's most prized non-Terran military unit. They are run by a joint staff of both Terrans and Cheunh, although the operatives are mostly Cheunh. They are specialised in both long range and close quarters combat. The most famed sniper units come from this unit. They also specialise in operations behind enemy lines, through the use of exceptional camouflage.