ANDY'S ROBOTECH PAGE.

United Galaxies Council Clariont Flag.

The United Galaxies Council, circa 2500.

United Galaxies Council Clariont Flag.

After the Invid's defeat on Earth, they left for what has been called "The Ranath's Star Incident." There they metamorphosized once again, returning to their pre-Zor state. During this chaotic time, the Carbonarans attempted to break

United Galaxies Council.

The Clariant, Flag of the UGC.		The Great Seal of the UGC.
Nicknames:	The Empire; The Council; The Whore.
Motto:	Civitas Et Liberi ("Union And Liberty").

Star Chart Of The UGC.
Government:	Confederate Constitutional Republic; - Chairman - Speaker of the Council - Chief Justice of the Supreme Courts.
Legislature:	- The Council Of Systems; - The Board Of Senators.
Type Of Power:	Astrocracy (a variant of Thalassocracy).
Est. Water Content:	61%.
Est. Population:	518 septendecillion (10⁵⁴); Density: 21/mile².
Currency:	Council Credit (€).
Date Formats:	DD/M/YY (AD), DD/M/YY, or DD/M/YYYY; ALWAYS Day, Month, Year.
Drives On:	Right.
Official Languages:	T'sentraedi (general); Terran (militry/aviation); Teuto-Tiresian (most technical).
Spoken Languages:	T'sentraedi (general); Terran (militry/aviation); Teuto-Tiresian (most technical); Spanish; Basic; Others.
Demonym:	Councilite UGC'er Galactic (generally derogatory).
Capital:	President's Point Space Station, Jove, Sol.
Area:	Over 200,000 galactic clusters.
Median Income:	75,000€.
Successor To:	Plenipotentiary Council/Sentinel Alliance; Inter-Planetary Alliance; United Words Alliance.
Founded:	2250.
Armed Forces:	The Spacy The Marine SPAES (Patrol) The Army The Aero-Space Forces The Robotech Defense Forces.
Abbreviations:	UGC.
Religion:	No official state sponsored faith.
Bird:	Tiresian Shalvalone.
Fish:	Garudan Jink.
Flower:	Opteran Flower Of Life.
Grass:	Opteran Flower Of Life.
Insect:	N/A.
Mammal:	N/A.
Reptile:	Opteranized Dinosaurs.
Tree:	California Redwood.
Beverage:	Water.
Colors:	Gold on Sky Blue.
Battle Colors:	Black on Red.
Dance:	N/A.
Fossil:	All Haydonite Tecchnology.
Gemstone:	Spherian Mind Crystal.
Mineral:	Iron.
Rock:	Limestone.
Soil:	N/A.
Song:	"RDF March."
Tartan:
Tartan:	The HAYES-HUNTER/ HESH-TULL Designed Startan.
Ship:	Sojourner-Class Cargo Ship.

UGC Clariant Battle Flag.

apart the Sentinel Alliance; After all, they reasoned, the Robotech Masters had built an empire- Now it's OUR turn. The Plenipotentiary Council saw it a little differently; Fragmented, the various worlds would seek to start their own, competing empires- Which would lead, once again, to war. Why more of the same?

The Unification War lasted 25 years, and was more a war of diplomacy and d'etente, than of open hostility and bloodshed. The Terran/Fantoman faction were joined openly by the Garudans and Paraxians; The Haydonites gave their sympathy to the Unification, but stated that their own world's rebuilding required their attention.

The Carbonaran lead Dissolutionist were joined by the Spherians; The Perytonians declared their hostile neutrality by saying that any ship on EITHER side attempting to approach their world for any reason would be considered an invasion. A diplomatic ship from Spheris attempted to land, and was attacked- Despite repeated attempts to contact Peryton. Thus, they were left alone. (The wounds of the late war on Peryton had not yet healed- Many feel they never have and may never fully heal.)

During this period, the Invid return to Earth (see "Return Of The Masters"). In late December of 2067, the REF reached the diplomatic solution that would finally end the Invid occupation of Earth once and for all, and bring the Invid into the Inter Planetary Alliance as a major player. (See Modern Invid.)

During this period, but after the return of the SDF-3 (and therefore the end of the second Invid Invasion), the Inter-Planetary Alliance went once again to war, against the Atorian Empire. (See Atorian Empire.)

The Unification war ended, effectively speaking, on 09 December, 2086, when the VEROCHA-Class warships were hijacked; The Carbonarans requested a truce the same day, and sued for peace 3 days after that.

The Plenipotentiary Council was in a HIGHLY forgiving mood; Rick HUNTER, now the Chairman of the council, wanted an end to this conflict, especially with the conflict with the Atorian Empire (see Atorian Empire) raging on the other side of the galaxy- But only a LASTING peace would do.

At the table were Rick HUNTER and Lisa HAYES-HUNTER, representing Terra; Cabel for Tirol; Max STERLING and Exedore FORMO for Fantoma; Kami and Hernara for Garuda; and Della and Miriya PIRANO-STERLING for the Paraxians, representing the Unificationists. Representing the Dissolutionists were Ghron and Hortar for Carbonara, and Teal and Dalan for Spheris. The neutral worlds sent observers, most notably the Haydonites, who served as councilors and intermediaries to BOTH sides, and the Invid who, at the recommendation of Councilor Domillion Exedore FORMO and the request of Chairman HUNTER (supported grudgingly by the Spherians but enthusiastically by the Carbonarans) sent a 5^th stage Invid Warrior and veteran of the second Earth Invasion by the name of Garnar as the mediator of the negotiations. The recency of the Invid Wars made, in their minds, the Invid the most neutral of all the possible groups, and therefore the best option for a mediator. Garnar was to fulfill his duties well, even attempting to fine Chairman HUNTER 50 credits for "disrespectful comments." (The surprise at this caused everyone to laugh, ending a tense stalemate over Veritechnology that threatened to end all negotiations.)

In the end, the forces allied to fight the Invid would ally as one nation, one EMPIRE; An empire with checks and balances against any one species gaining too much power, and ruling the others, as had the Tiresans' Robotech Masters and the Atorian Empire.

Type Of Power

The UGC is a pan-galactic astrocracy (a variant of thalassocracy); The simple fact is that the UGC is one of only 2 empires that have inter-galactic pojection ability (spacefold), the other being the Beorge.

The UGC isn't the only people that HAVE inter-galactic capability, but the only only that has the technolgy, understands how it works, the ability to replicate said technology (in fact the UGC has developed a total of 8 successive generations of space fold technology), and understands this fact. Several states either have the technology and don't understand it's significance (such as Ba'al), or are absolute dictatorships that no sane person would attempt to interact with (such as the Beorge).

Most groups don't actually WANT the technology anyways; For a few cents they can get a ship from thier home system across to the far side of the charted universe, reliably and safely, trading goods, information, and people. This makes a major EXPENSE of trade "someone else's problem," while gaining all of the benefits of someone else's expenses.

The Inter-Planetary Alliance

The Inter-Planetary Alliance in truth only lasted 12 years- The period the Perytonians held out.

During this time, the IPA approached other fragments of the former Robotech and Invid Empires. Most of these groups joined willingly, though a few had to be cajoled. None, at first, were strong-armed, but simply isolated, with the intent to deal with them later.

But the IPA also realized that ANY other empire would be a threat, and sooner or later they would have to join or be disbanded. Chairman HAYERS-HUNTER and her Cabinet debated the matter for one day; Who would be the test of IPA resolve? About a dozen groups were considered, and each was voted on in turn. Most received one or two in favor of war; A couple received none (not even their sponsor). A simple majority kept their name in the running. Of the groups presented, 4 eventually received a passing vote, but one carried a mandate: The Atorian Empire.

The Atorian War.

The Atorian Empire had been a perpetual collaborator; When the Robotech Masters came, they had offered to join the Tiresians, offering their services as the Master's agents in the systems they controlled in exchange for keeping their empire (and therefore their holdings) intact. The Masters saw the advantages; They would be able to control more worlds at basically no cost to them. It was then that they changed their name from the Atorian Empire to the Atorian Conglomerate.

As the Tiresian/Invid War swung in favor of the Invid, the Atorian switched sides; In exchange for Invid "protection," the Atorians would govern and police their worlds on behalf of the Invid- Including worlds they hadn't previously occupied. This had NOTHING but upside for the Regent; He would now rule VASTLY more systems, at no real cost, receiving slaves and raw materials. Only the occasional Clam ship would have to be dispatched as a show of strength, and maybe a parade of Scouts and Troopers down the capital's main street as a reminder of Invid military power.

With both the Tiresians AND Invid gone, and the REF embroiled in a civil war AND an invasion of their home world, the Atorians believed now was the time to throw off all outsider powers. They had had hundreds of years of building capital ships, and the better part of 50 years of basically NO masters of any sort; They believed themselves MORE than a match for what they called a "pitiful band" of some 150 or so warships, and maybe a million troops, racially and politically divided and simultaneously at war with EACH OTHER.

They couldn't have been more wrong if they'd planned it that way.

The Secretary of Diplomatic Missions, Domillion Kazianna HESH-TULL, was instructed by Chairman HAYES-HUNTER to send an embassador to Fehran to "offer" the Atorians a place in the IPA, and to do so in a way that the Atorians would NEVER agree to:

To demand they turn over all off-world assets other than ships to the host world;

To demand the Atorians release all slaves, and transport them back to their home worlds (or other world of choice) at the Atorians own cost;

To demand a stand-down of all Atorian Spacy and other military forces;

To demand reparations to worlds and peoples harmed by the Atorians;

And if all else failed, to demand some other unreasonable, even impossible things.

The Atorians answered with a very polite, but very firm, "Not a chance in Hell."

The REF then garudaformed a planet in a disputed system for Garudans. Garudan air, being toxic to all others, made the planet uninhabitable to the Atorians, who then simply responded by dropping an anti-matter bomb of the main colony. The entire surface of the planet was made barren and uninhabitable, an irradiated glassy rock with no atmosphere.

4 days later, after confirming the Atorians WERE responsible for the attack, the INTER PLANETARY ALLIANCE declared total, immitigable war on the Atorian Empire.

The Atorian Uprising (as historians now call it) lasted 5 years, during which the Invid would join the IPA as full members. During that time, the REF lost a total of 50 battle wagons (of which only 2 were destroyed out right). The Atorians lost 500 THOUSAND. The REF lost approximately 500 Spacers and Marines in combat, and maybe another 25 to 100 to post-combat injuries and illness. They had no MIA/POWs. The Atorians lost 200 THOUSAND killed in action, and 500 MILLION taken as POW, and it's still not known how many were MIA/Body Not Recovered. Every year for the next century and a half, mass graves of Atorian Empire warriors are uncovered, with as many as 150-2,000 bodies in them.

One of the mistakes made by the REF was to believe the Atorians were stronger than they really were. The Atorians has S.D.C. ships, and a few MD weapons, mostly nuclear and anti-matter (which they used EXTENSIVELY, especially towards the end of the war). The missiles which carried these warheads were easily destroyed by REF Laser Batteries, and few ever got through to strike their targets. The ease of the war, in fact, scared the IPA and the REF; This was supposed to be a showpiece war, as a warning to others; As the Atorians once used the Cerus as an example to others of the folly of fighting the greatest empire in the galaxy, the REF was supposed to show the galaxy the folly of fighting the IPA. "Fight Us And Lose" was to be the message; "Resistance Is Futile" was the war's motto. The war lasted 5 years because after the first round of victories, the REF itself recoiled at their own success, and stopped on their own for a year. It was during this first year that the Atorians suffered their greatest KIA rate, as the REF had not realized how MUCH greater their own power was compared to the Atorians. Numerically, they SHOULD have suffered a perfectly acceptable 15% loss to Atorian 25-32% losses, and still won. They were suffering less than 0.1% losses, and the Atorians were suffering between 86% and 92% losses. (It's now believed they actually suffered FAR higher losses that were never accounted for, possibly as high as 99.8% losses.)

As the REF closed in on the Atorians capital World of Fehran, a faction of Atorians made a desperate and cowardly move- They left their home worlds behind as fled into the galaxy to parts unknown. (See "Fehran Malcontents.") One Empress was among with them, as she ordered these same ships to sally out to fight the "invaders" (in fact, it was this order which the "Exodus Forces" used as their smoke screen). This, too, extended the war (to the REF and IPA's limited relief), as the REF was forced to re-deploy assets to encircle the empire to prevent another such escape. As many as 200 ships are known to have escaped; It is believed as many as 2,000 more many have joined them.

The Atorians were offered what Chairman PIRANO-STERLING (who succeeded Chairman HAYES-HUNTER 6 months before the war ended, as Lisa wanted to give her friend, confidant, and "wing man" the final glory of being "the" leader at victory) called "Excellent terms, under the circumstances":

Striping of the term "Atorian" from their collective name, and use of the term "Fehran" from there on;

Surrender of the Spacy and all weapons, power armors, robots, fighters, and etc;

Confiscation of all off-world assets, less one freighter with no FTL drive to serve as a space station for others to trade with the Fehrans;

Internment on Fehran for 100 years (they could leave ONLY with IPA approval on medical and educational business with other worlds, and diplomatic business with the IPA on Capitol Station);

Permission to man their ONE single space station;

Return of their prisoners of war (being held in prison ships, built out of their own warships anchored off Mars), less the 5 captured and surviving Empresses, and any surviving Duchess or Lady, or any other nobility (who would continue to be interned at Pella Internment Camp 21, which was formerly the Atorian Battleship SELTINA'OR, named for a former Empresses and converted to a prison ship);

Economic sanctions for 10 years, during which time they could trade with other systems ONLY for humanitarian needs (this was to be paid for by the IPA using a blank-check, low-interest loan);

Repatriation of ALL Atorian slaves, or transfer to whatever world they wished at Fehran expense (paid for by the same fund that would pay for their humanitarian needs);

Reparations to worlds and peoples harmed by the Atorians (also paid for by the aforementioned humanitarian needs fund);

Dismantlement of all Fehran-controlled gateways;

Confiscation of blueprints for ALL Fehran technologies, from toasters to Anti-Gravity Pods to whatever else there is (this was "assisted" by REF Marines securing industrial complexes and corporate facilities before the surrender was accepted);

And impounding of all Fehran spacecraft save 6 shuttles, none of which had FTL capability.

The Fehrans are now little more than galactic beggars due to the breadth of their punitive damages from the war, though they are rebuilding. Their century-long imprisonment ended almost a century ago, and the FIRST thing they did was attempt to re-claim their in-system colonies. Many of them were still abandoned, though some were not; These were not returned, despite several attempts to the contrary. They've also established minor toeholds in other systems, but few, if any will allow them entry, and the IPA refuses to allow them to settle any system not already settled by someone.

Fehran Malcontents

The escapees, referred to in Fehran mythos as the "Exodus Force," is another matter. They are known to be out there somewhere, and have not accepted the surrender. Many Fehran believe the Exodus Force will return one day to "liberate" them, and return to the Atorians what they believe is rightfully theirs. In truth, though, it's mostly a rag-tag pirate fleet, barely able to eke out a living by raiding worlds, taking as much booty as possible.

It is believed (rightfully) that they have established illicit colonies around the galaxies, and possibly beyond the U.G.C.'s controlled areas. (This in fact, is MOSTLY true; Their colonies tend to be more towards the galactic cores of the galaxies the U.G.C. controls, where most settlers do not wish to go.) If any of these squatters are ever discovered, the REF will be dispatched to destroy them, taking any surviving Fehrans (and any other pirates and slavers) to Pella Internment Camp 21, which is still in use to this day.

Favored Fehran Malcontent loot includes:

Gold, silver, copper, unused uranium and plutonium reactor rods, Mecha and Mecha parts, shuttles and shuttle and ship parts, weapons, food, medicines, and other medical supplies, tools (especially power and laser tools), computers and computer components (screens, speakers, etc; printers are rarely, if ever, taken), radios and communications equipment of any kind, occasionally sensitive documents (police records, military communications, etc), REF Body Armors (they especially love the "Beetle" REF Bioroid Terminator Body Armor variant), and civilian hostages as slaves (more as a way of insulting the U.G.C. than for any necessity). Noteworthily absent from their "shopping lists" is mining and farming implements and manufacturing equipment; This has led U.G.C. Intelligence to (wrongfully) conclude that they have no farming or mining capability, and aren't manufacturing anything (or at least, not that much). In truth, they have EXTENSIVE slave farms, and adapt Mecha components to manufacturing and Mecha to mining duties (remember, the T'sentraedi Raditzs Regult started life as a mining tool on Fantoma).

For more on the Atorians, Click Here.

Other Empires:

The IPA treated the Atorian Empire rather harshly; Most Empires the IPA (and later the UWA, now the U.G.C.) have come in contact with have been treated FAR better.

The Federation of Allied Races and Niamese Coalition: The Federation and Coalition at first opposed the IPA as "just another Atorian Empire." They also wrongfully believed that the IPA would be able to sustain the logistical support for a long-term war, and unable to stomach the scale of deaths and destruction that had befallen the Atorians.

They, too, were wrong. Still sore from a year of fighting the Fehrans, and with SOME Atorian worlds still resisting, the REF was ordered once again to war.

The strategy, this time, was to encircle the both empires (to prevent a second Exodus Fleet), then split the two empires apart. Once the last world on the campaign to do so was secured, the REF began widening what had been dubbed "Robby Alley." First they'd take a row or two of worlds on one side of the alley; Then the other side; Then back again.

So it continued for 3 years- The United World Alliance (as it now was called with joining or the Perytons), keen to avoid needless death and destruction, ordered the REF to use a little lethal force as possible; Putman Stun Guns and Tirol Arms Stun Rifles came in vogue in a big way, and disabling fire was the preferred method of attacking warships (civilian craft were NOT to be attacked at all unless they attacked the REF, in which case they, too, were to be DISABLED, not destroyed).

These rules of engagement actually hurt the REF for the first year of the war, so the UWA ordered a new "example" be made. REF commanders were to select an uninhabited, atmosphered planet on each side of the line, and turn it into a dead rock. No life was to be able to exist on it EVER. They were to do to these planets what Dolza had attempted to do to Earth. (DOLZA had the disadvantage of a VERY eager and HOSTILE reception, and mass panic in his fleet; The REF had no such disadvantage.) A full battle fleet was to level these planets; There would be no restraint. Every vessel detailed to these missions were to be maxed out on missiles and weapons. Reflex weapons were to be unleashed in mass.

The order took one year to fully plan out; It took another 8 months to supply and execute. On 12 December, 2102, at EXACTLY noon fleet time (noon on Fantoma's Megopolis and Terra's Los Angeles), the planets GX-2257630-Charlie and TT-4431142-Delta were reduced to irradiated glass balls in space; Worse still, these words were in systems with MAJOR power players in their respective empires in the same system. On 5 January, 2103 the Coalition surrendered. The Federation held out until 12 February of that year.

The Coalition and Federation were offered FAR better terms than the Fehrans; Fear of these same purely punitive conditions were one of the factors effecting their decisions to hold out. But they were allowed to keep their battle fleets, provided FTL drives were removed from anything over 27,000 tons in displacement, and ONLY used as escort vessels in convoys. No restrictions were placed on trade or movement; And in a HIGHLY unusual move, the U.W.A. agreed to pay the Coalition and Federation reparations; Possibly the first time in galactic history the VICTOR paid the VANQUISHED for losses experienced in the war. Combined, the reparations came out to 270 billion credits. Neither side was to admit to starting or perpetuating the war; No sanctions, no punitive damages except the reparations to be paid by the U.W.A.; The past was done and that was it; It was over.

This was to be the U.W.A., and later it's successor, the U.G.C.'s hallmark. Once conquered, the U.W.A./U.G.C. would NOT punish the loser, but to aggressively assist them n rebuilding and integration into the Alliance (later the council). After 20 years, the ban on FTL drives for the Coalition and Federation were lifted entirely as "ineffectual and counter productive" (though they were prohibited from owning or developing space fold technologies).

Formal Formation Of The UGC (Act Of 2250):

In early February, 2250, UWA Senators sat down in council. The doors were shut for a week.

In March, Counselors sat down in another closed door meeting. Those doors didn't open for 2 weeks.

In May, both Halls presented the Bill Of 2250. It read:

Henceforth, the Agency known heretofore as The United Worlds Alliance is disbanded. All debts and assets thereof shall be surrendered forthwith to the United Galaxies Council. This act shall be effective immediately upon passage.
Section 1: All documents bearing the letterhead of the United Worlds Alliance or subordinate agencies shall keep full force. All blank such documents currently in circulation shall be utilized until inventory is exhausted, unless specifically taken for historic value, to be marked "Void" in all blank spaces. As possible all such documents shall be remarked by locally procured stickers with the words "United Galaxies Council" over "United Worlds Alliance."
Section 2: All subordinate agencies of the United Worlds Alliance shall remain in force unless specifically disbanded or transferred.
Section 3. Monies coined by the United Worlds Alliance shall maintain full face value.
4. All representatives of the people of the United Worlds Alliance shall, as quickly as possible, return to their constituents for special election to return to office or to select new representatives.

And with that, it was done. The United Worlds Alliance was done- Well, sort of. It was renamed. The new name, Untied GalaxIES Council, reflected both the reality (the UWA had in fact encompassed significant tracts of several galaxies, as well as a few others outright by this time) and the ambitions of the members, as they truly sought to unify ALL the galaxies under one flag.

Other Empires Annexed Into The UGC:

While far from a full list (this list by any measure wouldn't even the former Tiresian Empire components combined), these states show some of the empires.

The New Geh 'Dia Order/Rakatan Galaxy: A warring galaxy suffering from "universal amnesia" in which any information more than 100 years old and not currently relevant had been forgotten; Whole empires had risen and fallen, and few people knew or cared. This galaxy was extensively littered with the detritus of these old wars, and it is believed that it was in fact one long sectarian conflict between the galaxies two major religious tenets, the Geh 'Dai who practice Ashla (or simply the Force), and the Syhith who practice Bogan (or Boga). The UGC refused to take "sides" in the Geh 'Dai/Syhith confict, but the Syhith, in a way, picked the UGC side for them- The Syhith refused then and has continued to refuse to negotiate with, speak to, or even admit the existence of the UGC (even though they will, on occasion, deal with the Geh 'Dia).

The Kobolese March (n'ee Royal Kobolese Empire): A collection of 12 systems (over 100 worlds, planetoids, and other colonies) bound together by religious tradition and mutual hatred; After annexation they settled down to petty squabbling (and filing endless lawsuits against one another), but the Gods of Kobol remained in power locally, both as Head of Church and State.

The Landsraad March: The Landsraad, ruled by the Atreides (the God-Emperors of the march), control over a million worlds, but only in a few dozen systems. They shared power with the Gesserit Bene, which served as the messengers of the Atreides, and their Spacing Guild, which controls all ships within the march EXCEPT UGC ships (exempt because they have enough firepower to force the issue).

High Nenomause Commonwealth (aka "The Commonwealth"): The High Nenomause Commonwealth was an empire on the wane; Some even argue that the commonwealth was actually gone, and the empire calling itself such was an usurper state. The annexation of the commonwealth went exceptionally well- Once the Space Defense Fleet was sent to flight after the Second Battle of Hephaistos.

Steiner Directorate (n'ee "Steinerian Empire"): The Steinerians are an empire that allegedly date back before even the Haydonites invasion of the Local Group, but was politically and economically weak from centuries of fighting (mostly with the Ghamorean Republic).

Ghamorean Republic: A breakaway state from the Steiner Directorate (as the Steinerian Empire). When the option to join the UGC came up, they signed on as quickly as they could in exchange for the promise of protection from the Steinerians. Otherwise the Ghamorean March is pretty much the backwater of the backwater of the UGC. They have nothing of value except muscle.

The Ring March: The home system of the Flyjt, Dwarf, Orc, Uruk-hia, and Dragon. Eons ago, the habitable planet apparently broke up, spreading the species across several planets. UGC Archeologist clearly determined that the worlds were one ring around the local star, and that it was artificial. This is generally attributed to the Ancient Haydonites, though no empirical evidence to this effect currently exists.

Economy:

25 Credit Peice.

The economy of the UGC is a free open market based mostly on trade between systems usually specializing in a sector of the economy (industrial or agricultural). It is moderately regulated, but far from the laissez-faire of some annexed empires nor the restrictive voucher- or ration-based systems of others. The basic unit of monies is the "Credit" and is symbolized by a capital letter "C" with twin horizontal lines through it (adopted from the pre-GCW "euro"). Typically the cost of a product or service is rounded off to the next full credit, though they can be sub-divided up to the third decimal point.

Presented here is a 25 credit piece; Other denominations include 1 credit, 2 credit, 5 credit, 10 credit, 50 credit, 100 credit, and 1,000 credit. However, 'cash' is infinitely the un-preferred form of commerce, and the average citizen usually uses their personal Identity Card as credit/bank/ATM card, business card, and vehicle operator's license (ground and otherwise). It looks just like a militry ID card, except with a UGC Emblem in place of the branch of service emblem (as militry ID does). The cash used by the UGC is coin; There is no paper money.

Note the "circle" in the image (right)- This is actually a hole to allow a cord to be run through, allowing them to be carried on the wrist (though some even wear them on clothes for a "ring" effect- These are only 1credit pieces by law to prevent violence, and is particularly loved by strippers).

Business Model:

Above all else, first, foremost, ALWAYS, the UGC has had to remain PRACTICAL. The Council simply can not regulate every matter to death, they can not tax everyone into state slavery, they can not let every voice be heard each and every time, and, at times, a dictator is needed- A modern day Cincinnatus. They WILL defend their territories, firstly with the civil populace, from attack, but they simply can not protect every person all day every day; You can't have a solider, cop, and fire fighter following you around all day, it doesn't work.

This is why gun laws are so extremely liberal in the UGC; Outside of urban areas, any degree of man portable firepower short of anti-aircraft weapons is pretty much legal, though it has to be registered and there are certain categories of people who aren't allowed even then to carry. Inside of city limits, certain categories of weapons can be carried in a vehicle, but not on your person. In case law, it has been determined that a case, box, valise, chest, or other CLOSED container is permitted provided the weapon is unloaded at the time. (People of Variint v. MARKHAM; Mz MARKHAM'S conviction for mere possession and of a loaded weapon was thrown out, but a new trial based solely on the fact that the container could not be closed was ordered. MARKHAM took a plea deal, reducing her 15 year felony of which she'd already served 5 to a 22-month misdemeanor, and she was released.)

"Promoveatur ut amoveatur" ('Let him/her be promoted so that s/he be removed' or, more intrinsically, 'Let him/her be promoted and transferred') is more than a catchy phrase in the UGC- It's necessary to the Council's survival. Whenever possible, an able employee is promoted so they can be transferred, either from an agency, post, or duty where they were hated, to an assignment where they can be respected, if not beloved.

Political Structure

The United Galaxies Council itself. Each system of the UGC has 02 representatives, called Councilors, who elect from their ranks a Chairman, and a member to The Senators, who's constituents are based on population; The number of Senators is based on the population of the smallest system (currently the Sol System at 200 billion total). The Council is a deeply minarchist State and has sole ownership of the Robotech Expeditionary Forces.
The individual systems: A 'system' refers to a star system, usually named for the local star; For example, Terra (earth) is referred to as the Sol System.
Planets, moons, and colonies: Each ball capable of supporting life, even if assisted, Regions; Analogous to the old nations. Mostly responsible for maintaining co-operation between Regions. They also maintain the Spacys, which generally are used in a fashion similar to the Patrol, inspecting vsls and interdicting vsls attempting to make a run in or out. This is generally applied to malconts trying to make good their escape after a successful raid- After all, the raid is still a failure if the ship carrying the prize is captured.
Regions; Analogous to the old nations. Mostly raises taxes, levies, and et cetera. Also maintains standing, full-time, professional armies, which forms the vast majority of the Robotech Defense Forces (less the Spacys). This is the force which is usually involved in the land battles against malconts. Their approach is usually the malconts' queue to make good their escape.
States/Provinces; Sub-regions of a given region. Mostly maintains the ground-transportation networks, usually in concert with neighboring states and provinces. Also maintains National Guards (large-scale, professionally trained militias) for emergency response and to blunt an initial incursion (such as by Tiresian malconts on a slave raid).
Shires, Counties, etc: A few cities under a regional control. Generally used mostly for the Militias (usually the first groups to meet with would-be invaders) and the county Sheriff's Office (still responsible for the Medical Examiners, who investigate cause of death, County Jail, which holds criminals and defendants in criminal matters, and County Marshals, who transport inmates from the jail to the courthouse and provide personal protection to judges and other court officers, witnesses, and occasionally inmates.
Cities: Permanently incorporated districts. Cities have systems for sanitation, utilities, land usage, housing, and transportation. There are usually suburbs associated with X, Y, or Z city, though some are associated with multiple cities. These are, almost without exceptions, "colonies" of the city where people go to live without the noise and hassles of the city itself. And extremely large city is referred to as a metropolis; A series of such cities that have merged, a megalopolis.
Townships: A section of a city, analogous to a borough, precinct, or district BUT with a tax right unto itself that is used, usually, to pay for increased law enforcement, typically extra police officers and patrol vehicles from the city (or, occasionally, county) but driving vehicles and wearing badges marked as "Township Patrol" rather than "City Police Department" (the badge and emblem are the same).
In this case, the police officer IS an XYZ Police Department employee, and the care IS an XYZ Police Car, but because ABC township is actually paying for the presence, they are required to identify themselves as such. It has been argued that Township Officers are little more than state-sponsored security guards, and the analogy, while purely technically correct, is significantly overstated.
Special Districts: Cities and counties can establish "special districts" for water, sewage, power, etc. Townships can establish special zones earmarked for off-district development (typically local retail in an otherwise residential or industrial area). Any of the above levels can establish closed or restricted areas based on conditions unique to the situation; National Forests, for example. These districts usually have some agent on site to administer it ("Sequoia National Parks Director So And SO"), who hires and fires subordinates (rarely more than 50). Some are elected (water, fire, school district employees), others are appointed (police district employees, park services administrators, etc.). Few, if any, of these employees actually live inside of the district, unless the purpose of the district is to service residents (such as a water district).
"Ex Politico Alliances": Collections of systems that, while not bound to one another by law, have established firm trade and mutual legal constructs, and usually of the same language and/or genetic background. These are usually old empires the UGC has annexed, though this is not absolutely so; In the Rakatan Galaxy, a smaller empire, the Hapes Consortium, split into two major elements, the Hapes Consortium and the New Hapes March, with the March taking on systems of the Northern Dependencies. These are NOT formally recognized bodies, but do tend to vote as clusters, with "breaking away" from the bloc being usually frowned upon; Those that do break from the bloc tend to have "difficulties" during re-election.

UGC Law.

UGC Psionic Laws;

The idea of "regulating" natural abilities, over which one had no way to NOT have, rubbed many at the Conference On Inter-Planetary Alliance very wrong, to the point of raw in some cases;

UGC Thaumaturgic Laws;

Like psychic powers the idea of regulating thaumatics (magic) rubbed some factions very poorly; However, it wasn't "as" unpopular as psychic power regulation, as thaumatics must be studied, and is not inherent to the user. (Some people, and some species, have an inherent gift to this ability, but even they must try, try again before "getting it right.")

UGC Slavery Laws;

In the beginning, slavery was strictly outlawed (based on Terran sensibilities and T'sentraedi discontent).

A Bellee Slave With Her Master.


Tamarar HATCH During Her Enslavemnet Training.

However, as the UGC spread, they found there were many empires where the ending of slavery was impracticable and in some cases impossible; the test was the annexation of the Virone; Amongst the Virone are the adherents of Gaballoen, a religion that COMMANDS their adherents "to serve their Masters." The outright ban was repealed, but the Council literally took it upon themselves to oversee the treatment of slaves in UGC territories, treating them generally as employees without cash payment, ENTITLED TO THE RIGHTS OF ANY EMPLOYEE ANYWHERE ELSE except the right to quit.

This came on the abolition of slavery in the D'Hacck systems, which led to a complete social breakdown for the Tenctonese- The civil war within the newly freed peoples left over 20 million dead, but not a single former slave Master significantly harmed. That by itself left to rethinking attitudes; The simple fact is some species are simply not suited to "freedom" in this sense, and some individuals either do not want it or are incapable of handling it. As a result, attempts to re-ban slavery in the UGC have simply failed, no matter what way the opposition tries.

With the evolution of attitudes on slavery throughout the UGC, whippings have become acceptable until skin is broken or internal organ damage is caused, shock collars are acceptable only to the extent possible to cause pain, but death is still strictly banned and any greater injury is still banned. As a result, remote shock collars are extremely popular.

Throughout the UGC, various organizations buy slaves and free them (Manumission Societies), and the taking of new slaves is strictly banned; Only those born into slavery can remain as such. The slaver religions are an exception, but these cults are viewed with deep suspicion and their offices are routinely raided, often without the courtesy of a pretext warrant.

Self-Enslavement

On the heels of the repeal of the UGC's ban on enslavement came a wave of what the 'victims' called "self-enslavement," in which a person chooses to be enslaved; Tamarar HATCH v. Council, et el established the precedent that is was in fact a thing, as Mz. HATCH chose her Master.

Tamarar, a street orphan with no known surname, sold herself into slavery to Jerhemiah HATCH for the sum of 20 credits plus perpetual berthing and messing. Her contract was "for life, with the extension to any issue of HATCH." In short, she was his, forever. When Redton Police learned of this, they arrested HATCH on kidnapping and slavery charges (illegal on Clalifer at the time) and took Tamarar into protective custody. She charged them with 2 counts of kidnapping "and other related crimes" and during the trial even accused them of the non-existent crime of "cock blocking." HATCH was released on bail 24 hours later, but his criminal case kept moving up the system until it appeared in front of the UCG Courts-Supreme on President's Point. At that point, while the Courts dismissed the counter case of kidnapping and "cock blocking," the Courts also dismissed the case against HATCH and issued a written opinion that whenever a "victim" declares themselves not as such before the arresting officers, and no imminent threat to life presents, the arresting officers should use "good judgment" in whether to arrest or not.

UGC Gun Laws;

The UGC as a whole is not a Mandatory Carry state, but some within are; Other states have attempted at times to restrict or control weapons; As the UGC Charter is supreme, these laws have been consistently struck down as illegal.

What the UGC has banned is explosive weapons, machineguns, and assault weapons; These aren't semantic terms, either, but very specific. Over 1,000 legal experts, weapons engineers, authors, historians, and archivists spent 5 years (during the nascent IPA era) to carefully study the definition of these terms.

"Explosive Weapons": This took about 3½ of the 5 years, since a PBC isn't necessarily "explosive" in and of itself, but is significantly powerful by any definition. In the end, the definition used was "any weapon or instrument that, by design alone, is intended or most probable to cause explosion upon range termination." This covered explosive rounds for other weapons as well, as was specifically covered under a subsection.

"Assault Weapons": This was a bit difficult, as the various sub-factions making up the Terran faction sought to expand the definition, while the majority of the Terran and other IPA factions fought to contract it. In the end, the definition finally accepted (WITHOUT the unified Terran vote) was "Any detachable magazine fed automatic ^and/or burst fire capable weapon." The Terrans had about 80 different representatives, of which 45 voted for this definition; Of the other 2,000 delegates, around 1,900 voted this same way. Of great influence to those factions were the Terran delegates who fought for this definition, insisting that allowing "lesser designs" to be the definition opened the flood gates to increasing restrictive definitions until even muzzle loading black powder could be included in the definition (a design so old, some of the other world's had forgotten of their existence).

"Machineguns": This was the easiest part, in fact it only took 6 months, most of the time quibbling over the difference between different types of electricity-based weapons. In the end, the definition selected was "Any continuous feed weapon."

Only these three categories are "banned" in that they are restricted (requiring special licensure), all others are open. The delegates at the Conference On Inter-Planetary Alliance felt it critical to ensure that ONE law would prevail over all others, to avoid needless confusion.

In this respect, the Terran 'pro-gun' sub-factions "pulled a fast one" on the 'anti-gun' sub-factions, by getting them to agree at the outset that UGC law needed to be "paramount" without discussing WHY they felt so strongly of the issue.

Project Galactique.

The United Galaxies Council greatest fear is a collapse of the global government; This has happened before, and always with disastrous effect. A classic case study is the collapse of the Promellian and Menthar Empires; Their mutually annihilative war created the Lysians and Satarran Empires (two pieces of the Promellian Empire, with a smaller piece of the Menthar Empire tacked onto the Satarran Empire).

Case Study: Promellian And Menthar Collapse
To Lysians/Satarrans War (Atran Galaxy).

The Lysians and Satarrans are star faring species that have been at war for centuries; Ever since the two empires formed in the ashes of the Promellian and Menthar collapse. Because the vast majority of their technology came from the exact same source, the Lysian/Satarrans War has been utterly stalemated for decades; The Lysians had the very modest advantage of a Menthar Spacestation (apparently a TYPE 21 "Kilo" [best translation]).

The Satarrans developed a unique device which allowed them to wipe the collective memory of a starship's crew AND databanks. At some point, the Satarrans tried to use this technology to trick a third party into destroying the Lysian Central Command with her crew of 15,311 armed with 4 laser cannons and 39 cobalt fusion warheads with magnetic propulsion, and basic deflector shields. This plot failed, but exemplies what could happen.

In to this conundrum came Project Galactique, a plan that FORCES the various states of the UGC to remain with the global empire.

This is accomplished first by controlling the economy and the judiciary (as Padishah Emperor Faykan I put it, "Control the coins and the courts; Leave the rest to the rabble"), but another CRITICAL component is the control of Spacefold technology; Even if an entire galaxy rose up, they couldn't leave their home galaxy, or at least not very many times, before they were effectively self-imprisoned. In fact, it's best if a full galaxy up rises, since a partial uprising means they "could" use short-range star drives to get from UGC aligned systems, then to a spacefold capable ship.

The full details of Project Galactique are STRICTLY classified, but one detail that is not is that any spacefold drive, anywhere, can be remotely "terminated" by the REF Spacy and Patrol; A spacefold capable ship then be rescued by another dropping in and folding her out.

A field test of Project Galactique was conducted on FBX 21555320; It was described by investigations committee as "one of the few not so dark spots in a very dark page of the UGC." That's not to say it was a success, however; Millions in property lost and damaged, homes, farms and factories lost, and entire family fortunes wiped out meant too much loss for the Council (in fact, it was the first time in recorded history that the Council had to dip into the rainy day funds outside of interstellar war, and the only time they had to in a domestic matter), but there were so few civilian lives lost as to be "statistically anomalous," and none left behind, even when under at times heavy fire. A fully successful evacuation.

GM Info: "Should" Project Galactique ever be implemented, the plan is to evacuate civilians and "as much of their property as pragmatically possible," destroy whatever remains behind (not done on FBX to prevent that detail from being revealed), then shut down all spacefold capable ships in the effected galaxy, restoring them individually after transferring them to a different galaxy.

In the case of a smaller-scale event, such as FBX or the fall of a single system, the plan is fundamentally identical, except that the scorched earth policies won't be implemented; If a galaxy falls, no one will be left behind to tell the tale (those who ARE left behind won't be able to tell anyone, will they?), but the planet or system will be placed in an interdicted status until either the crisis is resolved or Hell freezes over, whichever is "most applicable."

A. Size:

B. History:

C. Level Of Technological Sophistication:

D. General Attitude/Culture:

The UGC is massive; Currently they control, directly or by proxy, 1 million galaxies. One of the 'carrots' of a sort the UGC continues to use to encourage membership is- Intimidation. The breadth of their empire is such that it indimidates even ancient, established, militarily and economically powerful empires. The argument is, "We did all this in only 300 years (actually closer to 250 of "real" building, but another 250 before that of very limited expansion), there's sure to be a much more powerful empire out there- And they will simply invade you, take what they want, and make you virtual if not literal slaves." And that argument- WORKS. It works real good.

Newcomer and splinter of older civilization- Two, in fact. The Haydonite Empire collapsed eons ago, leading to a collection of smaller states. Two of these, the Tiresian Merchantile and Atorian Empires, gained massive footprints, only to eventually be broken in turn. A third much shorter lived empire, the Invid Empire, fell directly to the progenitor of the UGC.

The UGC is actually the FOURTH empire in a row, although these were all the same 'old' empire that just renamed itself. As the old empire expanded beyond the theory of its original construct, the government simply rebuilt itself.

An amazing civilization; The UGC is, currently, the only one known to possess practical intergalactic travel due to their stranglehold of power on Reflex and Fold technology. This has ensured heir control of both their territories and their markets.

Enlightened and "MOSTLY" peaceful expansionists, with some degree of factionalization.

As a new state enters the UGC, their assets, physical and intellectual, are absorbed into the UGC. Their ruling body then adds to the UGC's ruling body, but once inside the Halls they tend to form into one of the overall factions or another. (Fortunately, the centrist Thermidorian Party has managed to hold enough of a majority of the Halls that the other parties, the liberal Solar Party and conservative Galactic Party, have generally been unable to get much done- but the parties do have to co-operate to get much.)

E: Racial Composition:

F. Government:

G. Administrative Control:

I. External Trade:

Existing and Known Species (Terran, T'sentraedi, Wolfen, Fljt, etc.), variants of known species, and many new species. The Terran-T'sentraedi coalition is still one of the strongest, some critics even call them the same species, and the last of the "True" Tiresians melted into the Terran society (with the minor and easily missed detail that Tiresians prefer their toga-like garments), but all the "humans" combined couldn't really do much to any other species even when the Earth Forces were the strongest single militry without help- Help they studiously wished to not have.

A bureaucratic, democratic republic, with elements of aristocracy (the upper echelons tend to be filled with the decedents of the founders and early leaders; the current President of the Court Supreme is a direct decedent of 3 of the first Justices Supreme). However, with the empire having grown to the degree that it has, it's pretty much inevitable that the current aristocracy will eventually wane- A fate they themselves don't much care about.

Restrictive---The government runs a tight ship with multiple agencies, frequent inspections and tests, and periodic audits of itself. Penalties for breaking the law are hard, and for government employees not doing their duty, severe.

Trade---The star kingdom maintains a large mercantile fleet that wheels and deals across the cosmos, trading in various goods, and the kingdom's planets themselves can serve as trading hubs or waystations.

Luxury Goods---There are certain things available in the kingdom that are not necessities of life, but which nevertheless command high prices from the right buyers outside the star kingdom. However, dependence on this sort of goods is risky; luxury trends can prove fickle.

Manufacturing---The kingdom provides quality finished goods that are in demand elsewhere.

H. Status Rating:

I. Commodities (Import/Export):

Boom; The star kingdom is just starting out and is expanding its territory and influence at an intense level of activity. It is powerful and vigorous, but hasn't reached its full potential.

The UGC sells a little bit of everything. Consumer goods of all kinds, plant and animal biotech, spacecraft/starships, pharmaceuticals (but not recreational drugs), nanotechnology, and high tech materials. They mostly import raw materials, new technologies and manpower. 99% of UGC trade, however, is INTERNAL