Stellaris: Tale of the Sol Dominion

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

History of the Sol Dominion

In 2078, three great Ark Ships were loaded with nearly a million human colonists and sent through an artificial wormhole towards the nearest star system likely to contain a habitable world. Things went well up until the last ship passed through the wormhole. Once the final ship was through, the wormhole generation device exploded and sent a shockwave through the wormhole just before it closed. This shockwave threw these ships massively off course and stranded them far from their destinations. While the first two ships were destroyed by the shockwave, the third made it through and arrived at a distant system containing a lush new world similar to Earth. The colonists made landfall on the new world which they named "New Terra" and began to make a home for themselves there.

After a few weeks on the planet, contact was made with the natives. An industrial age civilization known as the Tebazoids called the planet home and proved to be quite friendly. The happily gave the human settlers large tracts of land near the area they had made landfall as their own and for a time, the two civilizations were able to live in relative peace.

However, nearly a century later that peace was shattered when the humans began pressing them for more land to be granted to them. The fact that the land was being torn to shreds by their industrial machines in search of more minerals and other natural resources certainly did not help their case.

The Tebazoans tried to maintain the peace without surrendering more of their land and it even worked for a time but eventually, the peace broke down and the Tebazoans went to war to force the human settlers off their world. But despite their superior numbers, the Tebazoan forces were unprepared for the advanced technology, military organization and innovative tactical doctrine that the human military brought to bear against them.

In just under five years, the entirety of the planet had been conquered by the settlers and the Tebazoids had been either enslaved or exterminated depending on the local needs. Rechristening the planet as "New Terra", the human settlers spread out across the land, claiming it as their own as they spread and prospered.

Regardless of what their intentions had been when they arrived, the war with the Tebazoid people had doubtless changed the humans. No longer were they the friendly, peaceful men and women who had arrived on the planet with such great hope for the future. Now they were violent, xenophobic and prone to lashing out at the slightest provocation.

If their forefathers back on Earth had been able to see what these colonists' descendants had become, they would scarcely have recognized them. But the war had not only changed them philosophically and diplomatically; it had also changed them politically. Where before, they had been nominally democratic and had believed that only a democratic state could govern them fairly and justly, now they had willingly handed over power to a military dictatorship in the pursuit of victory over the Tebazoids.

By the time humanity stood as the uncontested rulers of New Terra, they were united under a brutal, repressive military dictatorship known as the Sol Dominion. Under the newly appointed Grand Marshal Alec Bennet, the Sol Dominion sought to usher in a new age of human glory and prosperity unlike anything ever seen.

As they launched their first spacefaring warships from the newly built starbase of the Utopia system, they looked to the future and hoped. Hoped for the greatness of humanity and the long sought after day when they would return to Sol and claim it in the name of the Dominion. They watched. And hoped for that day to come soon. But would it? They could only guess.

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

Politics of the Sol Dominion

The Government
In the simplest terms, the Sol Dominion is a military dictatorship. It is led by the Grand Marshal who is advised by the High Council which is made up of the current ranking Generals and Admirals of the Dominion's armed forces. The High Council is permitted to issue official edicts, pass laws and change certain national policies although the Grand Marshal can overrule their decisions should he wish to. Beneath the High Council sits the various provincial governors responsible for governing the various territories and provinces under the rule of the Sol Dominion. These governors are nominally answerable to the High Council although the Grand Marshal is legally allowed to bypass the council and issue directives to the territories directly should he choose to do so.

However, a Grand Marshal bypassing the council like this to issue direct rulings is practically unheard of as it would create a logistical nightmare should the High Council and Grand Marshal issue conflicting orders.

Besides the territorial governors, the High Council is also responsible for controlling the Research and Development Branch of the Dominion, the military expenditure, approving overall local developments in the territories as well as approving the annual budget and appointing the jurors to serve on the court in the event of a legal case requiring federal intervention.

In addition to the High Council, the Grand Marshal is also directly responsible for the Dominion Intelligence Services (DiS) who serve as the covert operations and counterespionage branch of the Sol Dominion government.

Unconfirmed
The Grand Marshal is also rumored to have control over another secret branch of special forces soldiers known only as the Cabal. They are believed to be an elite military division responsible for covert and off the books black operations - military and covert operations that will never be acknowledged and officially never took place at all.

Removing the Grand Marshal from Office
In the event that a Grand Marshal is believed to no longer be acting in the best interests of the Dominion as a whole, the High Council is legally able to remove them from office and appoint a new Marshal to replace them. However, this power is granted to the council in name only as it is unlikely to ever be legally exercised as not only does it require a unanimous vote from the entire council (two of which are always the Grand Marshal's personally appointed advisors) but the Grand Marshal is in personal command of the military and would most likely respond to such an order for their removal by ordering the army to eliminate the council for treason.

For these reasons as well as the care taken in the selection of the Head of State, no Grand Marshal has ever been removed from office by the High Council nor has the removal of a Grand Marshal ever come up for a vote even once since the formation of the Sol Dominion.

Election of a Grand Marshal
While every Grand Marshal serves the state in their own way and is equally great, all eventually perish and a new leader must be chosen. When a Grand Marshal dies and another must be chosen, all significant military figures of any substantial rank will be up for election. A simple majority will determine the winner. Whoever gets the most votes from the High Council will become the new Grand Marshal. If there is a draw then the vote will be repeated with the candidates who received less than 30% of the total votes being eliminated from the process. This vote will then be repeated until a victor has been determined.

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

My Empire:

My Starting Leader:

My Starting Location:

New Terra:

So, this post is just the basic information about what my empire looks like just as it's starting out. Next post will be the demographics. For lore and roleplaying reasons, I wanted to give actual numbers to the population rather than "x number of pops" and since I start with slaves, I had to figure how much of the population should be the native slaves and how many should be the human colonists. So yeah, that's coming next.

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

Human Population: 3.5 Billion (each human pop is 291,666,666 people at the moment - subject to change as population increases)

Tebazoid Population: 1.2 Billion (each Tebazoid pop is 100,000,000 "people" at the moment - subject to change as population increases)

Just FYI: these numbers are not based on any facts or estimates beyond the fact I figured the population should be lower than the estimates for Earth in 2200 since New Terra has only had human settlers since about 2067 which only gives them 133 years to build up their numbers before the game starts so it should be in the low to mid billions but not above 5 billion. I mean, humans might breed fast but 5 billion people in less than 150 years even on a brand new colony is pushing it, in my opinion.

As for the Tebazoid number, this was mentioned in the lore but the settlers killed a bunch of them so they wouldn't be too outnumbered and therefore able to control the new slave population. So there's still a lot of them but significantly fewer than before they were enslaved/slaughtered. If you think I should change my numbers and have a good reason as to why I'm willing to consider it.

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

In the year 2200, Grand Marshal Alec Bennett convened a meeting of the High Council, his advisory council, to help him chart the dominion's future course. Construction of the Utopia System's new Starbase had just finished construction earlier that year and the first three Dominion warships, the ISS Ravesburg, the ISS Orion and the ISS Petrograd had finished construction which provided them with a rudimentary defense against any hostiles they should encounter. The Dominion might control New Terra but there were still plenty of terrorists and insurgents who refused to be brought to heel and these dissidents necessitated a military response.

In addition, the exploratory vessel christened the ISS Alacrity was also completed which allowed the Dominion research and exploration arm to begin survey operations of the local sector to discover and secure resource-rich systems as well as determining if any nearby systems were viable targets for future mining and colonization initiatives.

After a brief meeting of Grand Marshal Bennett and the council, they were able to set the yearly budget as well as decide on a course for a number of contentious issues. It was decided to allocate the majority of the budget to the exploratory division to prioritize survey operations in nearby star systems to determine their viability for mining and colonization. The issue of the lackluster naval strength of Utopia's defense fleet was brought up but the majority of the council felt that there was no need to construct additional warships as there was no clear threat to Humanity that would require such a bolstering of our fleet. Our funds were better allocated where they were more needed like expanding the mining operations in our home system.

Eventually, the council decided to construct no new warships at this time but to focus the Dominion's efforts on further economic development and potential territorial expansion through the construction of local outposts around resource-rich local stars as well as potentially establishing additional colonies.

While Marshal Bennett did not agree with the assessment that they didn't need any new warships in the fleet just yet, he decided it was not the time to overrule the council. Besides, they had a point in that the Dominion needed to focus on economic development for the time being. He would revisit the matter in a few years (and probably reallocate funds to the navy at that time also).

With that decided, the council adjourned. They would meet again in either twenty years or when Grand Marshal Bennett summoned them.

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

At the dawn of the 23rd century, New Terra was the realm of humanity and was under the absolute rule of the Sol Dominion and its Grand Marshal. The Tebazoids had been put in their place and their numbers culled and the Dominion had finally launched its first spacefaring starships, constructed a space station in orbit of Utopia's star and successfully developed the technology of faster than light travel. The future looked bright for humanity.

Now it was time for the Sol Dominion to stretch its wings and venture beyond the Utopia system for the first time since the original human settlers had arrived there 122 years ago. What would they find? A galaxy teeming with aliens who saw all others as inferior? A dictatorial super-state that ruled every system with an iron fist? Dead stars devoid of life? Only time would tell. Now was the time for the Dominion to search the stars and see what they would see.

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

Tale of the Sol Dominion

Chapter One: The Great Unknown

The Local Cluster: 2200-2205

On January 21st, 2200, the ISS Alacrity emerged from hyperspace on the edge of the Ditrim system. They traveled through the system, eventually arriving in orbit above Ditrim III which the crew proceeded to scan from low orbit. Amazingly, the planet seemed to be teeming with alien life, albeit not life of sentient nature equal to humanity.

Shown above: Ditrim III

In his report back to his superiors on New Terra, Captain Amir Abbas stated:

This world is the most incredible thing I have ever seen. The entire planet teems with life and the atmosphere is so like that of New Terra. Ditrim III is perfect for human colonization and can and will wholeheartedly recommend this world for the Dominion's first extrasolar colony.

At the same time, the Dominion's R&D division had greenlit a number of research projects to further the sciences in a vast slew of different fields.

At the same time, the military's R&D labs finished field testing the current warship designs. They had identified several key flaws in the designs currently utilized by the navy. To correct these flaws, they suggested the fleet's corvette class ships be redesigned to utilize a combination of mass drivers and targeted nuclear warheads for their weapons and increased energy shielding to compensate for their lackluster armor plating.

Grand Marshal Bennett saw the potential of these upgrades to enhance the fleet's combat capabilities and ordered an immediate upgrade to bring the fleet up to these new standards which did not take long to complete. He also began the process of allocating spare funding to expand the navy from the current 3 ships up to a total of 16 total which he felt should be sufficient going forward.

On the 27th of September 2201, the guns came to life again as the fleet came under attack for the first time since being commissioned. A group of religious extremists known as the "Throne of God" have been lurking amongst our military and population for many years now and have remained undiscovered until recently. It was discovered that they had been constructing their own private armada of warships at a private facility on New Terra using illegally obtained State funds. When their treachery was discovered, they attempted to flee on those ships and were engaged by Strike Force Kraken near the Tumbleweed mining station.

WIthout a proper Fleet Admiral to direct the battle, the first phases of the combat were unorganized and chaotic. Admiral Masuku was forced to issue orders from a ground transport midway between New Terra and the fleet battle lines for several days before the transport arrived on-board his new flagship, the ISS Orion.

The chaos of the early battle had shown how ill-prepared the fleet's individual captains were to manage on their own without proper higher level coordination as, by the time Admiral Masuku arrive on the battlefield, the ISS Ravensburg had been destroyed, the Orion had sustained serious hull damage and the Petrograd's shields were down to 62% strength.

The admiral's arrival quickly turned the tide of the battle and he was able to redeploy the Orion and the Petrograd to weak points in the enemy lines, turning the battle around. In the space of a few hours, he destroyed two of the enemy ships and disabled the third, allowing an assault boarding party of marines to capture the crew for interrogation.

What was discovered from the crew was truly shocking. This conspiracy went far deeper than anyone could have imagined and included nearly a dozen prominent officers in the military, two provincial governors, a prominent slave overseer on a powerful plantation and six members of the High Council.

While the governors and overseer were dealt with in short order by a cooperative venture of law enforcement and the military, it was the council members that were of the greatest concern. Legally, the Grand Marshal had every right to have them arrested for treason. However, he did not want to expose the true depths of the conspiracy to the people as it could cause them to lose faith in his leadership as Grand Marshal.

In an effort to dispose of these troublesome councilors without exposing the conspiracy, Bennett invoked the so-called "Option Zero": the deployment of his personal special forces known as the Cabal to remove the problem. 12 hours later, these councilors were found dead in their homes and the Grand Marshal announced that they had been found guilty of treason and dealt with accordingly.

While talk would never truly die down and it would remain a favored topic of gossip for decades to come, most people would eventually move on to more recent topics of discussion.

Above: The Ditrim System's newly established outpost station

With this insurrection seemingly put down, for the time being, the Dominion was free to focus on more important matters such as the Ditrim system. Now that the resources were no longer needed for other matters, a station was established in the system to begin extending the Dominion's reach and gain access to more resources to grow the economy.


A few weeks later, it became apparent that the Throne's insurgency was not as dead as the Grand Marshal would have liked. While traveling to the neighboring Lyctabon system to establish a base of operations, the ISS Developer ran across a battlegroup of cultist warships. This time, however, they were led by an imposing vessel of colossal size and strength.

What could this mean and more importantly, did the cultists have more of these massive ships at their beck and call?

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

To say the Grand Marshal was concerned about the latest developments would be an understatement. He did not like the fact that these cultists had so brazenly undermined his authority. The fact that they had managed to construct a fleet of starships on the surface of New Terra itself was of even greater concern. It was obvious that he could not hide the presence of this fleet from the Sol Dominion's citizens. He would have to say something to quiet the rumors. Of course, it went without saying that he would not be revealing the true extent of the conspiracy or the fact that the High Council had members taking part in it.

On December 9th, 2205, he finally addressed the Dominion.

The Grand Marshal's speech, broadcast live to the Dominion

People of the Sol Dominion. I come before you today bringing solemn news. Many of you have heard the news of a battle between the brave sailors of our valiant defense fleet and an unknown hostile forth near the Tumbleweed mining station. I can now confirm that these rumors are fact. The fleet was organized and constructed by a group of religious insurgents who call themselves the Throne of God. For years now, they have existed below the radar, siphoning funds from various sources and building up. Just months ago, we discovered their treachery and forces were sent to end the scheming of these malcontents. Unfortunately, the malcontents chose to resist arrest and fled to a force of ships constructed at an unknown location. The forces of our heroic defense fleet dispatched them, bravely placing themselves in the line of fire to protect us from these malcontents and traitors. Sadly, in the course of the battle, the ISS Ravensburg was destroyed and all hands were lost as were 30 crewmembers from the ISS Orion.

However, their noble sacrifices were not in vain. The forces of our defense fleet were able to capture one of the enemy ships and we have identified the true depths of the conspiracy. A number of military officers and corrupt politicians who put lining their own pockets with the funds of these traitors above the service they owe our great Dominion have been apprehended. Unfortunately, not every member of their band of traitors was present here in Utopia when the discovery was made. Many of their kind have scattered across our local cluster. We shall not hesitate in our pursuit of them. Every effort shall be made to bring them to justice. The full might of the Sol Dominion will be brought down upon their heads and they WILL be made to pay for all the blood they have shed in their corrupt and morally bankrupt campaign of treachery and terror.

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

War Report: Jaguar Sector

To: Grand Marshal Alec Bennett
From: General Cordoba - Senior Commander, Counter-Insurgency Division, Northern Front, Agrica Province

Subject: Agrican Garrison Update - January 1st, 2205


My Lord Marshal,

The insurgents in Agrica have proven to be a greater threat than we initially assumed. Per my last report, there are 79,000 troops stationed in the province to provide counter-insurgency support to the regular armed forces. Over the last seven years, they have inflicted considerable damage through hit and run attacks, guerrilla campaigns and general terrorism. It is my duty to inform you that, as of this moment, the insurgents have inflicted roughly 13,000 casualties on my task force and 300 on the regional garrison. While we have been largely successful in limiting the damage done to the civilian population and local infrastructure, the casualties inflicted on the military by these rebel groups continues to climb.

I am unsure of how long we will be able to continue maintaining control in the region without additional ground forces to bolster the current garrison. Additionally, I must once again request the deployment of air assault units for rapid response deployment. I am well aware that this request has been denied on the last four occasions I made it but I do not believe we can successfully fight off these rebels without some means of more rapidly responding to their attacks on our vital areas of operation.

I also believe that it is in our best interests to commence slash and burn operations in the sector. There are a number of ruined cities and overgrown forest regions on this continent and I am of the opinion that they are being used as a base for rebel activities. Unless they are removed as a factor, I do not believe that rebel operations can be effectively suppressed in this sector to the degree your edicts require.

I hope you will seriously consider my requests, sir.

With the utmost respect,

Gen. Cordoba - Senior CMDR. Agrica Province Counter-Insurgency Forces

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

To: Grand Marshal Alec Bennett
From: Secretary-General Alice Mason, Frontier Development Brigade

Subject: Agrican Redevelopment Campaign - March 10th, 2205


My Lord Marshal,

I am writing on the subject of the Agrican slums in the Rubicon Sector. The "re-education" campaign has now concluded and we are seeing success already as many of the people across the sector have been made to understand the peace and stability that the Dominion provides and have left their shelters and begun to seek work alongside their fellows. Our estimates put the number of people that have joined our workforce so far as a result of this campaign at roughly 50,000,000 and we expect that number to increase by at least another few million before the decade is up.

Judging by the success of this "re-education" campaign here in the Rubicon Sector, I am recommending that we commence a similar campaign on a planetary scale. If our census numbers are accurate then we stand to gain at least another few hundred million workers through this campaign if it can be successfully executed on a global scale.

The frontier development brigade remains at your service in this matter, Lord Marshal, and I hope you will carefully consider my proposal.

Respectfully,
Secretary-General Alice Mason, Frontier Development Brigade

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

Tale of the Sol Dominion

Chapter Two: Manifest Destiny

The Scramble for the Stars: 2205-2220

In the decades since the ISS Alacrity exited hyperspace in the Ditrim system, thousands more starships crossed the border of Utopia and made their way to the new frontier. As more and more ships spread out across the boundaries of known space, the Sol Dominion discovered countless wonders. They found ancient alien ruins, dissected the remains of ancient ships and more.

But even as humanity continued to explore the stars, division within the Dominion itself would bar their way. Late in 2201, an insurgent religious group known as the Throne of God was discovered on New Terra where they were appropriating resources of the state for their own nefarious agenda. After being driven off by the 1st Dominion Fleet, another force loyal to their sinister agenda was encountered in the Lyctabon system.

The encounter with their forces had shown Grand Marshal Alec Bennet just how ill-prepared the fleet was for this conflict and he then took an action none before him had done and invoked Clause 37 of the Sol Dominion Articles of Statehood. He overruled the High Council and temporarily took direct control of the Dominion’s finances to redirect funds from economic development to naval expansion.

Shown Above: The Dominion Fleet mobilizing for an attack on cultist forces in the Lyctabon System.

Over the next year, the navy would be expanded from three ships to eleven and on the 10th of November 2207, the fleet was ordered to engage a battlegroup of three cultist corvettes and an accompanying battleship in the Lyctabon system.

Shown Above: The Battle of Lyctabon

Admiral Masuku’s tactics in the Battle of Lyctabon were not exactly inspired but one cannot deny their effectiveness. The fleet sped towards the cultist positions at top speed, firing missiles and mass driver rounds as they went. The weaker corvettes caught out of position crumpled like wet paper. The battleship was a different story however. It stood up to wave upon wave of fire from the fleet’s ships and was able to successfully maneuver into position to return fire.

The ISS Eclipse and the ISS Damascus found themselves taking fire from the Battleship, designated the Temple of Light, for most of the battle. Ultimately, the Eclipse was unable to stand up to the Temple of Light and was torn apart after the Temple’s main gun pierced the hull and caused its reactor to go critical.

The ISS Eclipse was lost with all hands shortly after its reactor overloaded.

Shown Above: The destruction of the ISS Eclipse during the Battle of Lyctabon

Moments later, however, a cheer rang out through the halls of the fleet as the first rounds pierced the Temple of Light’s shields and made contact with the hull. Once its shields were down, Admiral Masuku took advantage of the fleet's numerical advantage and positioned the remaining vessels of the 1st Fleet out of the Temple’s angle of fire so the fleet could pound the ship into submission without taking unnecessary damage themselves.

Shown above: The Dominion fleet pierces the Temple of Light's shields .

After a few hours of fire, the Temple of Light’s reactor went critical and the fleet was ordered away from the ship before it went critical. The fleet’s captains caught a brief glimpse of the Temple of Light as it exploded in a brilliant flash of light.

Shown Above: The wreck of the battleship, Temple of Light, just before its reactor goes critical.

10,600 cultist sailors perished in that battle. Dominion losses were only 215. Spirits were high that day as the Admiral set the fleet’s course back to Utopia Station. We had removed a major threat to the Dominion’s expansion with minimal losses. What more could be asked for?


Shortly after the Dominion’s crushing victory at the Battle of Lyctabon, a Dominion colony ship rolled off the production lines, ferrying tens of thousands of Humans and their Tebazoan slaves to their new home in the Ditrim system with millions more to follow over the next few years. The Sol Dominion’s first extrasolar colony had finally been established.

Shown above: The colony of Pallas, early in its development.

As the Dominion’s hunger for new starships continued to grow and grow, it became increasingly obvious that the current shipbuilding industry lacked the resources to sustain the level of ship and station production the Dominion required to keep expanding. To meet the growing needs for the various alloys required for that production, the Grand Marshal ordered that a section of unutilized land on New Terra be allocated to the transformation of raw resources into alloys so the Dominion would have access to additional resources to fuel the growing interstellar expansion.

A census of the Dominion’s new colony on the planet of Pallas determines that their slaves are idle. Nothing could be worse than idle slaves so the planet’s provisional government starts the establishment of a series of mining complexes planetside to provide the Dominion with more raw resources and to give the slaves work to do.

Shown above: The provisional government of Pallas orders the construction of additional mines on the planet's surface to give the slaves some work to do.

As the Grand Marshal’s focus turned increasingly to interstellar expansion, he no longer cared so much about restricting the various underground political factions of the Sol Dominion as he had before and repealed an old law put in place by his predecessor banning all political parties save his own. Any new political party still had to go through a lengthy appeal process and prove that their platform would not threaten the Sol Dominion or attempt to undermine its foreign and internal policy agenda but the formation of political parties was no longer illegal.

Shown above: The result of the Grand Marshal repealing a law passed by his predecessor, banning all political parties.

As part of the Dominion’s interstellar expansion, a number of artifacts were found in a local system which indicated the area had once been under the control of a race of synthetic humanoid beings known as the Cybrex. Little is known so far but these Cybrex seem to have been linked together by a form of synthetic hive mind.

That fact seems to be the good part. Sadly, it seems that these Cybrex were nowhere near peaceful and there is strong evidence to suggest that they were engaged in a crusade to destroy all sapient biological life in the galaxy approximately 600,000 years ago.

After taking note of this information, the Grand Marshal has it sealed away and access designated Beta Omega Trinocon 6XA (Literally, nobody but the Grand Marshal and his personally appointed representatives on the High Council can even request it and granting unauthorized access is punishable by immediate execution).

Shown above: An intelligence report from the ISS Alacrity concerning their findings in a local system.

As the Dominion’s population begins to climb, our access to certain consumer goods becomes more problematic as we no longer have enough for the growing population. To counter this growing problem, an undesignated region on the colony world of Pallas is set aside for the construction of a set of factories to increase the Dominion’s production of these goods.

Shown above: The construction of additional manufacturing plants on Pallas to produce more consumer goods.

While the Dominion fleet is sizeable at this stage and more ships are an absolute necessity, the Grand Marshal decides to take the approach of “better safe than sorry” and orders the construction of an additional five corvette class ships to join up with the 11 that currently make up the 1st Dominion Fleet.

Shown above: The starbase in the Utopia system producing additional warships for the Dominion fleet.

As more systems are explored in the name of the Dominion, countless stellar bodies, rich in resources are found, exploited and utilized. With such vast riches flowing into the coffers every day, the Dominion is experiencing an untold era of wealth and prosperity. With a dozen new systems rich in mineral wealth discovered every year, it would seem that the golden era of the Sol Dominion is now.

Shown above: The territory of the Sol Dominion and the surrounding star systems.

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

Heya! So this is just because I couldn't find a good place to fit it in. This is just going to be a list of the techs I researched as well as my choices for Unity Traditions and such.

So we'll cover traditions first. Since I don't have screenshots for this, you'll just have to take my word for it. I started out with the expansion tree and as of 2020, I have completed that tree. As for my ascension pick, I went with Interstellar dominion. I tend to expand a lot to try and grab up as many resources as I can early on and bringing down the cost of that expansion struck me as a good idea.

Now for research:

At this point, got hit by the grey goo event from an anomaly which, among other things, gave me the Assembly Patterns technology for free.

Now back to the non-anomoly techs I went through:

So that's what the Dominion's R&D labs have been up to for the past few decades.

So the final list of the three techs I was working on at the end of the last chapter (just so this is clear) is:

Physics: Global Energy Management
Society: Society Research From Researchers +20%
Engineering: Ceramo-Metal Armor (Or Level 2 Armor, if you prefer)

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

Tale of the Sol Dominion

Chapter Three: A Golden Age

Endless Mysteries: 2220 to 2240


It was a new golden age of wealth and prosperity for humanity and the Sol Dominion but that didn't mean that it was without challenges. As humanity journeyed through the infinite void of space, they were beset by murderers, pirates and religious fanatics.


While the destruction of the Throne of God forces in the Lyctabon system brought the Dominion no small measure of relief, it was by no means the end of their troubles with this group. Just a few weeks later, another smaller force of theirs was discovered in the Ablapus system. The fleet was sent to dispatch them and, thanks to the veteran sailors of the Dominion Navy and the expert martial experience of Admiral Masuku, they were quickly disposed of with no casualties inflicted on the Dominion forces.

Above: The Battle of Ablapus

Despite the stubborn and foolhardy attacks against the Dominion by these cultists, the Dominion continued to expand and grow with every moment that passed. In 2228 they colonized the world of Arcadia, in the system next to the Lyctabon system, establishing the latest in a series of strong and interconnected trade routes that crisscrossed the Empire.

Above: The colonization of Arcadia

As wealth and mineral resources flowed from the outer territories and back to New Terra, the Sol Dominion flourished like never before. Even when another cultist force emerged from the Cuunbar system, this golden age still continued, uninterrupted. Like all those before them, these cultists were dispatched with ridiculous ease.

Above: Battle of Cuunbar

Throughout all of this, the Dominion prospered as trade flourished and the economy grew exponentially after the confidence of the citizens was bolstered by the fleet's victories over the cultists. They came to believe that there was nobody the Dominion fleet could not defend them against and the hyperspace lanes of the Sol Dominion filled with hundreds of merchant vessels moving back and forth as they traded their goods across the Dominion. Despite the battles with these cultists, it was still considered an age of peace and profit.

But thanks to this golden age, the merchants were bringing in enormous profits from across the Dominion. These thousands of credits worth of goods transiting across the Dominion every day were too tempting a target for some to resist and piracy began to run rampant across the Dominion's most lucrative trade routes. Particularly badly affected was the trade route between Arcadia and New Terra which was the most profitable trade route in the entire Empire.

This trade route had long gone without regular patrols by the navy due to a lack of hostile incursions in the region as well as the fact that it was so deep in the Dominion's core territory. Capitalizing on the lack of military presence, renegades, outlaws, and pirates began to raid the shipping lanes, making off with thousands of credits worth of goods over the next three years.

This was too much for the Dominion to take and they had to respond. An edict was passed by the Grand Marshal, authorizing all civilian merchant vessels operating within the Dominion to be armed in case of pirate attacks. Eventually, as the raids became more and more intense, it became clear that this would not be enough and Admiral Masuku was forced to take a direct hand in suppressing this pirate activity.

DIS operatives traced the base of pirate activity to an asteroid outpost in the Lyctabon system and the fleet was sent in to finish the job. Truthfully, it wasn't much of a fight. Total Dominion casualties for the entire operation, including both destroying the pirate fleet and laying siege to the outpost, were about 30 injured and 3 killed in total.

Above: Operation Crimson Vendetta

A few months after the pirates were put down, the Sol Dominion encountered an alien civilization for the first time outside of their Tebazoid slaves. At first, the Dominion's citizens were nervous about this encounter with another alien species considering that their meeting with the Tebazoids had led to a war for control of the planet.

But, soon enough, they relaxed. This particular race was particularly small and had no real galactic ambitions and they were traders. This group, known as the Muutagan Merchant Guild, seemed to base their entire society around a concept that the Dominion had long since embraced: money makes the galaxy go 'round.

The Muutagan's entire society existed for the sole purpose of making money and the Dominion found they could work with them. They were really nothing more than a gigantic hub of trade and posed no threat to the Dominion as a whole. With that matter resolved, trade was established and the Sol Dominion found themselves with a brand new trading partner.

As the economy grew and the Sol Dominion was strengthened at every level and every trace of the pirate scourge that had once plagued the Arcadia trade route was mercilessly hunted down, it only remained to see what mysteries of the galaxy would be found next.

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

From: Director Marcus Lawrence
To: Grand Marshal Alec Bennet

My Lord Marshal,

After a thorough examination of the black box computer systems of the destroyed cultist starships encountered, the source of their vessels has been determined. As you are, no doubt aware, the DIS has been increasingly skeptical of the idea that all of these ships could have been produced on New Terra. Regardless of how long their facilities operated there, the number of ships deployed far exceeds the number of ships that facility would have been logistically capable of producing within the lifetime of any human settlement of significant size on New Terra. This leads me to the only logical conclusion: after being discovered and rooted out, the cultists somehow gained access to a xeno shipyard somewhere nearby and are utilizing it to reinforce their numbers.

After completing the examination of the ship black boxes, this theory has been confirmed. I have attached the approximate coordinates of the shipyard in question.

Above: The approximate coordinates of the Throne of God's shipyard, as determined from the black boxes extracted from their destroyed starships.

As you can see, our current position does not allow us to make an attack on this shipyard in any reasonable timeframe. In fact, as of this moment, the survey corps has yet to determine the hyperspace route that our ships would have to take to even reach that region. Until we determine the appropriate hyperspace route to reach the shipyard, we shall have to remain on the defensive. I know this is not what you want to hear but you did not hire me to give you good news.

I shall keep you posted of any additional developments.

Respectfully,
Director Marcus Lawrence

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

From: Director Marcus Lawrence
To: Grand Marshal Alec Bennet

My Lord Marshal,

One of our reconnaissance probes has recently reported back concerning the shipyard. We have confirmed that it has been destroyed. While we have not been able to determine who was responsible for the shipyard's destruction, our long-range sensors have detected the presence of a faint subspace emission signal that is consistent with the drive signatures detected from previous cultist vessels.

I am of the opinion that, while the cultist's shipyard was destroyed, not all of their ships have been dealt with. I believe that whoever this cult's leader is has escaped aboard their flagship with a small contingent of loyal vessels.

Following the route taken by these signals, we have determined the most likely destination of these cultist forces to be in a local star system. As fortune would have it, that system lies directly on our border - just one jump from the Ruinam system and easily within striking distance of our fleet. I recommend we send a survey vessel to confirm the presence (or lack thereof) of a cultist fleet.

Above: Estimated coordinates of the remaining cultist forces.

If their fleet is present then it is imperative that we immediately deploy our forces to neutralize them. This may be our best opportunity to end this threat before they can scatter again. I urge you not to waste this chance.

Respectfully,
Director Marcus Lawrence.

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

From: Andrew Miller, Dominion Exploratory Corps
To: The Office of Colonial Development

To Whom This May Concern,

The Exploration Corps has made a rather substantial discovery in the Ruinam system - one that falls into the Office of Colonial Development sphere of influence as it concerns a potential target for future colonization. The world I am referring to is Ruinam III. It is, quite literally a perfect world in every possible way. There is no other way to describe it than that.

Above: Ruinam III

At least that is what we thought when the planet was first surveyed. The planet is a strange one. Every three months it seems to... change. It becomes a darkened world, covered in purple and corrupted clouds that block all light and choke the life from the world. It is truly a baffling conundrum - one month it is a vibrant paradise just begging to be colonized and the next, a dead world covered in clouds of total darkness.

Above: Ruinam III as a Shrouded World

Our best theory is that the world is somehow shifting between dimensions. I do not know how such a thing is even possible but it seems to be happening regardless. We have devised a means of locking the planet in this dimension and will be able to proceed as soon as one of our number with the skill to pull of this operation is available. Please inform us when you wish this to be commenced and we will proceed.

Respectfully,
Andrew Miller, Dominion Exploratory Corps

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

There may be more than these. Not totally sure right now. But these ones I know for sure are ones I took by 2240. Research next post.

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

Tale of the Sol Dominion

Chapter Four: Age of Peace or Age of Complacency?

The Cult’s Last Gasp: 2240 to 2252


As the Sol Dominion pushed their borders further and further away from the core, they found themselves beset by cultists and other renegades who opposed the government. These fanatics proved no match for the mighty Dominion fleet and were smashed again and again.

After years of crushing these terrorists, the DIS was finally able to locate their base of operations. But an unidentified power destroyed it before the Dominion could successfully determine the hyperspace route to that base.

However, our long-range sensors have recently picked up a set of subspace signals consistent with the vessels employed by the Throne of God. Intelligence believes that this cult’s leader and a group of loyal followers escaped the destruction of their base and have fled to another location.

Our local sensor grid has determined that the most likely position of this force to be in the Trijam System, a single jump away from the Ruinam System and right on our border.

Above: The cultist flagship and it's accompanying fleet.

Admiral Masuku and the fleet were immediately dispatched to hunt down and destroy the remnants of this cult of fanatics.

The battle did not last long and the cultists proved no match for the disciplined and battle-hardened Dominion Fleet which easily tore them to shreds.

Unlike the last engagement with a cultist Battleship, it was clear that this vessel’s commander was no tactical expert. His seemingly just threw his ships at the Dominion, with the expectation that their “Holy Mandate” would carry the day in the face of the Dominion’s overwhelming tactical and numerical superiority.

Above: The Battle of Trijam

It didn’t. Once the flagship’s escorts were destroyed, it crumpled like paper. But, following orders given by the DIS, Admiral Masuku’s forces did not destroy the flagship but damaged its engines, weapons and other critical systems to the point that the ship could no longer continue to resist in order to pave the way for a Dominion boarding party to take control of the vessel.

With the enemy forces in tatters, the DIS, working in conjunction with the newly formed Sol Dominion Marine Corps(SDM) took the opportunity to capture the cult flagship. The remaining cultists on board the flagship offered stiff resistance but the Dominion Marines were eventually able to secure the bridge and imprisoned all of the former sailors below deck, in the ship’s prison.

In order to get the ship moving again, the marines had to send several thousand of their own to man it until they could find a crew to staff it. They also had to do a significant amount of work to patch up the hull and engines.

The battle had done significant damage to the ship and there were multiple hull breaches across all decks as well as the engine damage keeping it in-system for the moment. Fortunately, a number of the marines were skilled engineers and were able to repair the ship enough to temporarily deal with the hull breaches and bring the engines back online.


It wouldn’t be combat worthy anytime soon but the former cultist flagship was now safe to take through hyperspace and should easily be able to reach the nearest starport in order to be repaired enough to join the fleet.

Above: Dominion Marines secure the Cultist Flagship.

At the same time, the Sol Dominion’s R&D lab completed their research into destroyer class ships and designed two new types of Destroyers. One, designated the Archangel-class, was a long-range siege destroyer which was meant to neutralize enemy vessels from extreme range with its two large cannons. The other was designated as the Argo class and was designed to engage multiple enemy vessels at close range using its series of medium to small-sized cannons mounted on the hull.

Above: New Destroyer Designs

Once these ship designs were successfully tested, the Grand Marshal decided that they were sufficiently useful to be added to the fleet and decided to add three of each new class to the current fleet in order to reinforce its strength.

Above: Utopia Station building new warships to reinforce the fleet.

With the military situation well in hand, Grand Marshal Bennet turned to civic matters. Specifically, those of the exploratory corps. The elderly captain of the ISS Alacrity seemed to have reached a point where his skills were no longer advancing and he had no desire to change this. Due to the man’s age and the fact that his skills had ceased to improve, Grand Marshal Bennet decided to grant him a “mandatory early retirement” in order to replace the man with a younger and more flexible exploratory officer.

With the exploratory situation dealt with, Bennet then turned to the establishment of new trade routes across the Dominion. A series of resource-rich planets had been discovered and were being mined in the Blondei system’s local sector but the system lacked a proper trade route which prevented these resources from making their way back to New Terra with any real speed.


With this in mind, a trading station was established in the Blondei system in order to establish a more cohesive trade route back to New Terra.

On March 3rd, 2245, Grand Marshal Alec Bennet passed away in his sleep at the age of 93. A debate of tumultuous intensity immediately took off in the High Council as factions vied for support and furiously lobbied for their preferred candidate.


The vote was extremely close but, in the end, the former Admiral of the Sol Dominion’s 1st fleet, Thuso Masuku, was elected the new Grand Marshal.

Above: Grand Marshal Alec Bennett dies and is succeeded by Grand Marshal Thuso Masuku

Grand Marshal Masuku’s first order of business was the appointment of a new admiral to take his place in command of the fleet. As a military man at heart, Masuku believed that it was of crucial importance to keep the fleet as strong as he could.


Thus, only days later, the former commanding officer of the Lyctabon Patrol Group, one Edward Bradock, was appointed as commanding officer of the Dominion 1st Fleet. Bradock’s first act as commander was to transfer his flag from the ISS Orion to the former cultist Battleship which he rechristened as the ISS Ravensburg in honor of one of the vessels destroyed in the first encounter with the cultists.

Above: Edward Bradock is appointed as the fleet's new Admiral.

A scant few years later, the Dominion’s peaceful exploration was shattered when they made contact with yet another race. Unlike the Muutagan, these were not a race of peaceful traders in search of the next good deal but a species of brutal warlord insects who sought to raid their neighbors for slaves and prove their strength was superior to all.

Above: First contact is made with the Husko Despoilers.

It would seem that the Dominion’s age of peaceful expansion had ended. A harsh new age of competition, conflict, and blood was now upon them.

 

[DarkPhoenix Gaming]

From: Admiral Thuso Masuko, 1st Fleet
To: Grand Marshal Alec Bennett

My Lord Marshal,

I am writing concerning the update you requested regarding the status of the cultist forces in the Trijam system. All cultist forces have been neutralized and the system has been secured. Further, as per the DIS's request, we have refrained from destroying the flagship but have instead damaged its engines and weapon system to prevent further combat or escape attempts.

The fleet will hold position to secure the system until the promised Marine divisions from Pallas arrive to take control of the cultist flagship.

Respectfully,
Admiral Thuso Masuko