This post will be amended after C# becomes available to reflect all the details of the various powers.House Rules- No missiles. All Earth powers start with beam weapons and only battle experience will unlock the paradigm shift.
- No fighters. The concept of fighters is too radical at first and requires time to be accepted.
- No shields. I'm trying to recreate the slugging matches of WW1 in space, so shields will be an alien invention to be discovered.
- Jump Point Theory will not be researched until the Sol system is properly exploited and the nations have sufficient motivation for it. This means that for the first phase of the game, all action will be contained in Sol.
- Jump Point Stabilisation technology (former Jump-Gate Construction) will also be secret alien tech, to be discovered later. This is to encourage the use of jump tenders for initial interstellar expansion.
- No Mesons. This exotic weapon is forbidden from humans and remains unique for the Swarm. The only exception is if an NPR uses Mesons and a human power captures/salvages them.
Game Rules- Precursors ON, Star Swarm ON, Invaders OFF, Rakshasa ON
- Realistic Promotions ON Fleet Training ON Asteroid Movement ON
- Maintenance ON Jump Tenders ON
- Real Stars ON
- Research Speed 50% Terraforming Speed 100% Survey Speed 50%
- Aliens will be handled both by me as well as NPR's, per plot demands. I plan for Earth powers to encounter both conventional and TN aliens.
Starting FacilitiesAll powers start with the following:
Spaceport
Ground Force Construction Complex (Minor powers have 1, Major and Great powers have 2)
Military Academy (Minor powers have 1, Major and Great powers have 2)
Naval Headquarters
Starting nations will be divided into three categories: Great Powers, Major Powers, and Minor Powers. Note that the preferred beam weapon will depend on what scientists each nation has. If they have scientists with MK and EW specialties, then the nation will research both. If they only have one, they will focus on that one and ignore the other. These are only for the game start, combat experience can and will affect their preferences.
Starting populations have been adjusted to take into consideration new pop demands by facilities.Great PowersGermanyThe Imperial Germany of 1890 is one of the two Great Powers on Earth. While her colonial Empire was largely lost during the Martian War, the resources and population of central Europe ensured that Germany remained the most powerful country on the continent, if not the planet. Politically, Germany has remained a parliamentary monarchy. The large autonomous powers of the 38 separate German states were successfully curtailed during the Martian War, which significantly strengthened Germany as a whole - no longer would Bavaria have its own War Ministry or Saxony have its own postal service. Germany has the best social programs to ensure good labor conditions and the
Deutsches Heer, led by the famous
Großer Generalstab, is widely considered the premium military force.
Still, Germany has its issues. The Polish question remains a thorn in her side, and tensions with France are simmering now that the threat of extinction has passed. The German parliament is largely a rubber stamp for the Reichskanzler (
Otto von Bismarck) and the Kaiser (
Wilhelm II). There has been significant tension between the two men, as well as between the conservative and socialist elements in the Parliament. Many suspects that as soon as the Martian threat has been eradicated, the Kaiser will force chancellor Bismarck to retire. How this will affect Germany in the future, remains to be seen.
Population: 100 million
Industry: 500 conventional
Research: 10 labs
Naval prefix: SMS
Highest naval rank: Grand Admiral
Highest army rank: Field Marshall
Ship priority: Firepower
Beam preference: Laser / Rail
Great BritainThe supreme colonial power, Great Britain, has had her vast holdings dramatically reduced by the Martian War but remains the other Great Power. The near-complete destruction of India and China spelled the end of lucrative colonial trade, and the destruction of much of Africa was almost as severe of a blow. Through great efforts and hardship, Britain managed to keep the Empire going. The Dominions of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and South Africa have gained some measure of independence but are still well tethered to London. Britain maintains mandates and protectorates around the Caribbean, the Mediterranean, the Red Sea, the Persian Gulf, as well as all three oceans. Despite losses to the Martian Flying Machines, the Royal Navy is still considered the most powerful naval force on the planet.
Yet problems persist. The Irish question remains to be solved, and the two Boer Republics in Africa are a possible threat. There is a clamour for more independence among the White Colonies, and many in the parliament demand for a return to both India and China as soon as possible, while others press for more daring expansion to space. Social unrest, dampened by the war, is likely to make a return once the Martian threat has passed even if the current monarch,
Queen Victoria, is beloved. Her Prime Minister
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, not so much.
Population: 100 million
Industry: 500 conventional
Research: 10 labs
Naval Prefix: HMS
Highest naval rank: First Space Lord
Highest army rank: Field Marshall
Ship priority: Firepower
Beam preference: Plasma / Gauss
Major PowersAustro-HungaryThe twin-kingdoms of Austria and Hungary form the Austro-Hungarian Empire, one of the oldest and most diverse in Europe. Long a rival of Germany, events in the second part of the 19th century convinced Vienna that competing with Germany was a doomed path, and ever since the Austrian chancellors have guided their emperors to maintain friendly relations with Berlin. The Martian War did not change this - armies of both powers worked together to defeat the invaders from the Red Planet. Balkans, long considered the powder keg of Europe, suffered badly during the invasion and it is unlikely that the smaller powers there would pose any threat to Austro-Hungary in the short term.
Austro-Hungarian leadership, in the form of
Kaiser Franz Joseph I and the Common Ministers for War (
Ferdinand von Bauer) and Foreign Policy (
Count Gustav Kálnoky de Köröspatak), is in a difficult crossroads position. The multi-ethnic empire is barely hanging together and it has only been the threat of Martian genocide that has kept nationalist dissidents at bay. The cumbersome dual rule was proven ineffective and inefficient during the Martian War, but real progress has been blocked both by Germans and Magyars for their own reasons. The possibilities of funneling population growth to space while directing wealth back to Earth is seen as a real possibility of maintaining the Empire. The fact that
k. u. k. A-H is seen as the junior partner of the Dual Alliance bristles with many in both Vienna and Budapest.
Population: 50 million
Industry: 250 conventional
Research: 8 labs
Naval Prefix: SMS
Highest naval rank: Grand Admiral
Highest army rank: Field Marshall
Ship priority: Firepower
Beam preference: Particle / Rail
FranceThe French Third Republic weathered the storm of Martian invasion relatively well. Her colonial landings were lost but metropolitan France and its North-African holdings were spared the worst of destruction. French army and navy performed reasonably well against the Martian Death Machinery, doing much to restore the prestige of the Republic after the disastrous war of 1870.
François Sadi Carnot, the current President, has worked hard to maintain the Republic against attacks from both the Left and the Right, as well as forming a tentative alliance with Russia in order to contain Germany.
France has pledged support for the Grand Alliance and has lofty plans for its future. While there are tensions with Germany, the domestic situation, for once, is calm. While France cannot directly challenge either Germany or Great-Britain, it is hungrily eyeing the solar system, with space resources as a possible shortcut back to greatness.
Population: 50 million
Industry: 250 conventional
Research: 8 labs
Naval Prefix: none
Highest naval rank: Grand Admiral
Highest army rank: Field Marshall
Ship priority: Armour
Beam preference: Laser / Gauss
RussiaThe Empire of Russia, ruled by the Czars under a divine mandate, is the last remaining absolute monarchy in Europe. A staggeringly vast country, it is plagued by backwardness, despite the attempts of multiple rulers to modernize it. The Martian attacks struck Russia hard, laying waste to many areas, though luckily with haphazard targeting. The Russian industry was mostly spared, whereas her agriculture was devastated. Combined with the low technological level of farming, this means that half of the Russian population is directly tied to their farms, considered illiterate serfs, and not available for the government to use in other sectors.
Tsar
Aleksandr III Aleksandrovich, a highly conservative man, wants to turn back the clock and the Martian War has been a good excuse for that. The modest liberal reforms of his predecessor have been overturned and
Aleksander III has initiated wide-sweeping Russification programs across the empire. The autonomous rights of Finns, Poles, Jews, Germans, and other minorities have been swept away and the
Okhrana have been given a free hand in suppressing activists of all kinds, as well as squashing even the idea of land reform. In foreign policy, he has agreed to the alliance with France, in order to contain any future German ambitions. Needless to say, these programs have not gone down well amongst the population. The peasants hate their Imperial "land captains" and the ethnic minorities plan uprisings and revolts.
Population: 60 million (the number of available population)
Industry: 250 conventional
Research: 8 labs
Naval Prefix: none
Highest naval rank: Fleet Admiral
Highest army rank: Field Marshall
Ship priority: Speed
Beam preference: Plasma / Rail
United StatesThe large Republic of United States of America has vast potential, but several problems as well. The scars of the bloody Civil War had barely begun to heal when the Martian Invasion fused the population together behind the Star-Spangled Banner. American industrial power played an important part in empowering her military to repel Martian invaders, while the European powers were busy elsewhere. This event cracked the traditional isolationism prevalent in US politics, and President
Grover Cleveland has leveraged his wartime popularity into having good chances of becoming the first US President to be elected for a third term, as he commands wide support from both parties. It doesn't hurt that her young wife, Frances Folsom Cleveland, is immensely popular.
The US, perhaps more than any other power, is in a position to shake up the old balance. She has no ancient burdens or ethnic tensions like her European competitors, and there are no conventional threats in North-America that she would need to worry about. While the Great Powers dismiss America as an upstart, the US is adamant about establishing itself as an equal.
Population: 60 million
Industry: 250 conventional
Research: 8 labs
Naval Prefix: USS
Highest naval rank: Fleet Admiral
Highest army rank: General of the Army
Ship priority: Firepower
Beam preference: Particle / Gauss
Minor PowersItalyThe Kingdom of Italy has barely had time to unify after centuries of war and strife when the Martians landed. Sardinia was completely wiped off the map by a Martian bomb and only glowing rocks remain. The Italian Army and Navy performed abysmally poorly against the Martians and, to the shame of the nation, had to accept help from other powers. However, this had led to a national fever of modernization, that the reigning king,
Umberto I, has channeled towards productive measures. The Italians have managed to progress by leaps and bounds, though they still have ways to go.
Italy is keen to advance to the ranks of major players on the world stage and views expansion into space as a safe way to do it, without triggering conflict with her larger neighbors.
Population: 30 million
Industry: 100 conventional
Research: 5 labs
Naval Prefix: none
Highest naval rank: Grand Admiral
Highest army rank: Field Marshall
Ship priority: Speed
Beam preference: Laser / Rail
JapanThe Rising Sun of the East, Empire of Japan, has astounded foreign observers with its rapid transformation from a medieval agrarian society to a modern industrial one. The Martian Invasion bypassed most Japanese islands, which was an important boon to the fledgling industrial sector. Japanese Army acquitted itself well in anti-Martian campaigns in Korea and China. Her colonial ambitions have been curtailed by the Martian War, as not even the most ardent militarists can justify waging war on other human powers while the Martian Killing Machines still pose a threat. However, thanks to the Martian destruction of most of China, Japan has managed to expand to the island of Formosa and to Chinese coastal areas.
Japan is desperate to prove herself to the European powers and views the invasion of Mars as only a first step on this path.
Population: 40 million
Industry: 100 conventional
Research: 5 labs
Naval Prefix: none
Highest naval rank: Marshal-admiral
Highest army rank: Marshal-general
Ship priority: Speed
Beam preference: Plasma / Gauss
Iberian UnionThe Martian invasion caused a collapse of the Kingdoms of Spain and Portugal. Out of the ashes rose a new country, the Iberian Union. In reality, it was the re-emergence of an old 16th-century political union. Both countries had been in economic and political trouble before the invasion, as their colonial status had been on the descent for years. Survivors of the initial attack had to face reality and the various areas banded together.
Charles I of Portugal, the only surviving immediate member of an Iberian royal family, ascended to the throne of the Union at the age of 21, becoming the youngest ruler in the world.
The Iberian Union is bent on revenge and rebuilding. It has no territorial ambitions on Earth and its main goal is to kill all aliens.
Population: 25 million
Industry: 50 conventional
Research: 5 labs
Naval prefix: none
Highest naval rank: Captain-General
Highest army rank: Captain-General
Ship priority: Armour
Beam preference: Particle / Rail
The Rim PactThe Rim Pact is another international compromise to emerge from the ashes of the Martian War. It consists of five smaller European Kingdoms that banded together in order to avoid
de facto vassalisation by their larger neighbors during the tumultuous events of past years. Despite lacking a common language and being geographically diverse, Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden have managed to, at least so far, stick to a common foreign policy and joint military force. While there are minor religious and ethnic issues among them, the practical need to maintain their independence between France, Germany, and Russia has ensured a smooth existence. The five states all maintain full control of their domestic policies and organizations, and there are no attempts to promote one language or culture above the others.
The Rim Pact is fiercely independent and neutral, having no interest in colonialism after their few colonial possessions were destroyed by the Martians, or in adventurous saber-rattling. They are only involved in the invasion of Mars in order to ensure that the other powers take them seriously and respect the independence of its member states after the war.
Population: 20 million
Industry: 50 conventional
Research: 5 labs
Naval prefix: KKS
Highest naval rank: Chief of Navy
Highest army rank: Field Marshall
Ship priority: Speed
Beam preference: Laser / Gauss
I ended up having each country start with no ground forces. It is assumed that they maintain non-TN equipped national armies but creating and maintaining them is significant amount of work for no gain.[/list]
