Difference between revisions of "History of the Galactic Empire"

Revision as of 17:23, 31 January 2012

In the Beginning...

Very little is known about the Empire before the time of Emperor Drayson, and so widely he is considered to be the first serving Emperor in the faction's history. Previously an Admiral of the Old Republic Navy, his rise to power remains a mystery. What is known however is that during a short civil war, one of his officers, Captain Vodo Bonias destroys Drayson's Fleet in the final naval battle of the campaign. The then young Dark Acolyte of the Obsidian Order annexes Drayson's remaining followers and declared himself Emperor of the Galactic Empire. Broken and beaten, Drayson is forced to flee the Empire, vowing that he would return again someday, stronger than ever. Many months later, Vodo steps down and takes the title of Moff for unknown reasons. His successor, another servant of the Dark Side, is Navy Commanding Officer Suntzu. The new Emperor is only on the throne a short while when a new civil war erupts, this time between the Army and Navy. General Balsaraph, the leader of the Army accuses Moff Vodo of encouraging Suntzu to instate policies which favor the Imperial Navy over the Army. Balsaraph's forces are overwhelmed by the Moff's forces and run, stealing a small number of Star Destroyers in the process. The General soon allies himself with former Emperor Drayson and creates the Order of Darkness, though in time the new faction's power collapses as its support draws thin, allowing the Empire to recover its stolen ships. The group believes that Suntzu had in fact only been a puppet for Vodo, though the truth is never discovered, because shortly after the incident, Vodo forces Suntzu to step down, placing one of his many apprentices, Spytek, on the throne in his place.

The Rise of Piett

Under Spytek, the Empire enjoys a brief period of peace and prosperity, until the ambitions of a rising officer, Admiral Piett, upsets the balance of power once again. Angry over the many weaknesses and mistakes of Emperor Spytek, Piett leads his followers in the Imperial Navy to overthrow the young Emperor. The revolt is successful and short, and in the end the Sith Lord Piett takes the throne. Piett, a much stronger Emperor than Spytek, is able to remain somewhat independent of his former Master and teacher's will. Piett's strong will keeps the Empire prosperous, as the new Emperor establishes and maintains policies which lead the government into a new age of conservatism. During his reign, few advancements or changes occur in the structure or policies of the Galactic Empire. Eventually, the betrayed Sith Master Vodo takes his revenge on his old apprentice by inciting a new revolt. The voices of reform in the Empire, for a long time silenced by Piett, now seek his removal under the leadership of Vodo. The revolution is unsuccessful and Piett has many of the ring leaders rounded up and tried for treason. Grand Admiral Veynom, Admiral Gunther von Esling, and Surface Marshall Trey Connel are captured and accused of treason, but they are later pardoned by the Emperor himself. Sith Master Vodo Bonias escapes with the help of Captain Machkhit and Fleet Admiral Simms. Piett is unable to identify the many others who are working secretly for Vodo; eventually he succumbs to paranoia. Fearing further revolts, and choosing to flee from the Empire, Piett abdicates and settles into a peaceful retirement in the Outer Rim.

The Great Break and the Core

The Emperor and Dark Lord of the Sith, Piett, is gone. For nearly a year he led the Galactic Empire through one of its most prosperous ages. In his wake, the Empire is left without an apparent heir, and civil war quickly erupts as the few remaining Sith followers slip into the shadows, following their leader, Vodo. Two candidates emerge during this conflict, Grand Admiral Veynom, leader of the Imperial Navy, and Executor Trey Connel, leader of the Imperial Government. The fighting is brutal, lasting for weeks, and the Empire is very nearly torn apart. However, in the end, Connel arises victorious. Veynom, his forces vanquished and his fleet broken and battered, retreats with his followers, which include much of the Imperial High Command, into the core of the galaxy. In a last ditch gamble, the Grand Admiral takes a personal ship and leaves to the very edges of the galaxy, to the vast unexplored part of space known as the Unknown Regions, seeking ancient secrets and allies that might one day restore the Empire's former glory. In his absence, he leaves Fleet Admiral Simms in command of the fleet with the instructions to seek out a suitable system where they might build a fortress and regroup, from which they might strike back at their enemies. After a great many weeks of searching, the small fleet of Star Destroyers comes across a small, uninhabited system which appears to be uncharted. The location is deemed ideal, and the fleet immediately secures the area, and sets up a large basecamp on a temperate planet in the system. In the passing months, the fleet explores many nearby systems while establishing several small, fortified cities on the planet's surface. Deciding that they do not wish to be associated with Connel's Empire, the group chooses to call itself the 'Imperial Core', in the belief that they are the Core of the once mighty Galactic Empire. The Core then names their new home Bastion, to symbolize their strong determination in restoring the Empire's glory.

Benefiting from anarchy rising during the Empire's civil war, the Rebel Alliance, a group wishing to establish a 'New Republic' as the galactic government, grows strong by rallying many former Imperial Systems to their cause. The now diminished forces of the Galactic Empire are unable to enforce their rule over such a vast territory.

The Rise of Charon

Over the course of the next half year, the Imperial Core draws support from many pro-Imperial Systems which have been discarded by Emperor Connel, becoming a sizable government in their own right. Connel is unable to either stabilize the Empire, or stem the tide of the growing support for both the Rebel Alliance and Imperial Core. Shortly afterwards, Connel prepares to abdicate the throne at the behest of his advisors, while giving his support for Mccarthur to be the new Emperor. Shortly before he can make his abdication public, however, Connel is killed (presumably) when his shuttle explodes while en-route to the Imperial Palace, although his body is never recovered. Unfortunately, Mccarthur is able to accomplish little more than his predecessor. His designated heir, Charon, then ascends to the Imperial Throne.

A New Threat

About this time, the galaxy is further shaken when a broken transmission is relayed to the holonet from the Outer Rim. The sender, none other than Grand Admiral Veynom, reports that he has discovered an old secret in the Unknown Regions, and is trying to make contact with his followers. Instead, his message is intercepted by rogue agents and is made public. Unable to properly secure his message because of the many relay points, the Admiral appears to have encoded it with a series of puzzles and clues. The decoded meaning of the message is further disrupted by a series of faulty holonet receivers that wipes out many lines of text. Ultimately, his old followers in the Imperial Core completely decipher the meaning of the message, which reveals the location of an old Death Star weapon that lies derelict in an unexplored region of the Outer Rim. The group quickly tracks down the weapon, intending to take command of it for use against their enemies. Unfortunately for them, the weapon itself proves to be incomplete and irreparable, though the operation is still of great value to the Core, since they are able to recover a veritable treasure trove of lost information and data from much older times. Additionally, the speed with which they decipher the Admiral's message, as well as the myriad of recovered information, grants them a great deal of prestige in the galaxy. More systems and individuals flock to the banner of the Imperial Core. During this time, Fleet Admiral Simms is revealed to be force sensitive, and Jennifer Dreighton is then chosen to act as Interim steward for the government, so that Admiral Simms can spend time focusing on developing his force abilities.

Return of the Sith

Some months later, the Sith returned to the limelight under the leadership of the Sith Master and former Galactic Emperor, Warlord Vodo Bonias. The Warlord quickly joined his Sith followers with the Imperial Core, forming a new faction, the Dark Empire, now the third largest faction in the Galaxy. Fleet Admiral Simms returned as well, serving as the new Emperor's second in command and newly named Dark Lord of Sith. It was roughly a year later when the two Lords mysteriously arranged the return of the Dark Empire to the Galactic Empire. An action which sparked a ferocious debate and uncouth riots within the Galactic Empire, although no known cases of disobedience or disloyalty were recorded in the Dark Empire as a result of this event. Charon, ever distrustful of Vodo and his followers agreed to the merger reluctantly, but was allowed to remain on the throne. Count Uebles, an Imperial aristocrat and member of the Dark Empire was chosen as the compromise for Executor. Many Dark Empire officers and leaders were hereafter integrated into the Galactic Empire in a variety of positions; Warlord Vodo in turn formed a secretive fleet outside the chain of command that incorporated many loyal and high ranking officers as well as several Dark Jedi. Later this sect would become known as the Order of the Dark Hand. Vodo also managed to preserve the secretive MJ-12 intelligence branch which had been essential in the Dark Empire's success.

The Hidden Dark Lord

Charon's hate and distrust ran deep, in time his paranoia grew to exaggerated proportions and often he and his officers lashed out at Vodo and his followers. Around this time, the often used terms “Charonist” and “Vodoist” arose to describe those who remained loyal to Charon, and those who supported Vodo in his bid for the Imperial Throne. The final straw came several months after the merger, Charon ordered the ISB General Byden to arrest Vice Admiral Dreighton, CO of the Dark Hand Fleet and to seize the fleet's assets in the middle of a combat operation. The Fleet was brought back to Coruscant where it was initially dissolved. These actions constituted such an outrage that eventually Vodo's supporters rose up against Charon, Count Uebles revealing himself to be a powerful Dark Lord of the Sith seized the opportunity and ascended the throne, while out of kindness offering the former Emperor a position in the Imperial High Command. Instead, Charon incited many Imperials loyal to him into defection while not actually defecting himself, the former Emperor disappeared leaving the Empire in a state of chaos, many officers and enlisted throughout the many branches of the Empire left, still a vast majority of the Imperial population remained, many of the defectors themselves vanished or took shelter within a variety of pirate and service factions that were already unfriendly to the Empire. In the wake of this catastrophic event, Emperor Uebles reorganized the government of the Empire, appointing new Moffs and other leaders. Other branches underwent similar reforms over the next year as the Empire attempted to pull itself back together and ultimately Uebles' reign was marked as a period of major reform though he was unable to achieve much success in reviving the Empire. When he finally stepped down, Executor Vodo once again assumed the mantle of Emperor. During Uebles reign, many victories on the battlefield were afforded to the Empire despite its internal problems, these include Operation Beta*, Operation Tenax, Uvena, Alderaan, and Tatooine. It was also during the reign of Uebles that Admiral Zerk came into prominence.

Operation Beta was a historic campaign against the Falleen Federation which resulted in the cleansing of the planet Falleen, the deaths of many prominent Falleen Leaders, and the submission of the faction to the Galactic Empire.

The Second Reign of Vodo

The Dark Lord Vodo took the Imperial Throne at a time when the Empire was still suffering through internal problems brought about by the cowardice of Charon. Immediately he introduced reforms for all the branches. He brought Imperial Intelligence under the charge of COMPNOR and placed Grand Vizier Bach as the branch leader. He then promoted Zerk and put him in charge of the Imperial Navy while changing the old Navy structure and modifying it with many improvements. Under Vodo, the academy system was revised, restructured, and reinstituted. Many such changes were brought about by the new Emperor, and by the time of his 1st Anniversary as leader of the Galactic Empire, the faction was once again a strong and thriving community. His rule was off to a great start and he didn't appear to be slowing down. A few months into his reign, the Empire declared victory in two more major campaigns, at Allied Tion*, and the Bacta Wars*, further boosting Imperial morale and power. It was near the end of his first six months however that problems first started arising in Admiral Zerk's Navy, conflicting management styles between Zerk and his officers is perhaps the best way to describe these problems. And, within a short while, many dissenting officers signed a petition to the Emperor, requesting Zerk's removal from the Navy. The change was reluctantly made, and Vice Admiral Goth, Zerk's XO, was placed in charge of the Navy while Zerk was promoted to Grand Moff of the Imperial Government. Despite this change, the Grand Moff maintained a major influence over Naval Structure and Policies, and he continued to clash with many ranking Naval Officers. After only a few months in the saddle, Vice Admiral Goth retired his commission in the Imperial Navy without formally stating his reasons for doing so. Under normal conditions, Goth's XO would have succeeded him directly, but the Grand Moff decided to go a different route, he chose to push for a series of reforms. For almost a month, the Admiralty and other senior Navy officers debated possible changes for the new reform, Rear Admirals Crog and Slicer were the main voices in the debate, and when the dust settled they were granted a temporary joint leadership of the Navy while the reorganization took place. When the designated time was up, both were promoted to full Admiral; Crog was selected as the new NCO, and Slicer as his XO.

Allied Tion was a successful campaign against the New Anzat Order in the Allied Tion Sector which resulted in a civil war within the NAO at the end of which control of the faction was given to the Empire.

The Bacta Wars was a campaign that decided who would control the galaxy's supply of Bacta which resulted in an Imperial monopoly of the product.

A New Revolution

In the months following the radical changes to the Navy developed by the Admiralty in co-operation with Grand Moff Zerk, renewed arguments take center stage as old Charonists grew enraged with more pieces of their old dynasty now crumbling. Using Zerk as a rallying point, former Charon supporters incite a number of enlisted and officers into open revolt under false pretenses. The Charonists dismiss Emperor Vodo in peaceful negotiations, launching their own plans shortly after. Within mere days following these events, Admiral Slicer and Captain Pangborn rallied a majority of the movements' supporters around a Vodo friendly platform and signed a new peace treaty with the Emperor leaving the new rebellion devastated and crippled. A week later, a number of Charonists and former Imperials were arrested and executed for treason against the throne as what was left of the New Imperial Order propped itself up with funding from several pirate groups. Forced into hiding among the many empty regions of space, the group lives with little money, few ships, and a deep hatred for everything the Galactic Empire stands for.

Growth of an Empire

After quelling the dissent within its ranks, the Empire progressed at a rapid pace under the continued leadership of Emperor Vodo; its membership continued to grow while achieving victories against its many enemies throughout the galaxy including the Eidola Pirates, Trade Federation, SoroSuub Corporation, and the Kathol Republic. The vanguard of this progess is the passing of the City-State Accords has brought approximately 65% under the direct influence of the Galactic Empire, the 12 Colonies, and Mandalore. Many consider this to be a new Golden Age for the faction, a time of successful reform with the help of experienced leaders, a time when once again the Empire is the clear forerunner in all fields: military, scientific, economic, and political.

The First Imperial Union

In a historic move to bring about order and peace to the galaxy, Emperor Vodo signed a mutual-defense accord with King Jessy James of the Hapes Consortium. Designed to counter the threat from the Rebel Alliance, Falleen Federation, and SoroSuub Corporation, the treaty brought the economies of the two largest governments in the game, as well as defense forces, in order to bring about joint growth. The First Imperial Union allows eventual paths for City-State Allies to join the Union. The Imperial Union has united more people in the galaxy since the Old Republic. The future of the galaxy looks extremely bright for all those who believe in the New Order.

The Second Imperial Union

Since the inception of the Imperial Union, the Trade Federation and Mandalore have joined forces with the Imperial Union. The fruits of the Second Imperial Union continue to benefit all of the peoples of the galaxy.

The GE/NIO Merger

In Year 10, after long negotiation talks, the Empire is reunified and Cherokee becomes the Executor of the Galactic Empire under Emperor Bonias. He serves the Empire and is the heir to the Imperial Throne. Although the Emperor indicates he is going to abdicate, when the time came Vodo Bonias reneges and does not yield the Throne to his Executor. Cherokee remaines in the Empire though for the benefit of all Imperials, effectively leading the Empire in the stead of a largely absent Emperor clinging to power. During his time as Executor of the Galactic Empire, Cherokee oversees the the establishment of the Ministry of Industry and the renewed supply distribution to all branches. ISB is established as the rule of law within the Empire. Imperial Intelligence once again becomes a powerful and effective branch. Recruitment numbers once again began to rise under his leadership. The stalwart Navy begins reorganization that would make them a formidable force when matched against any opponent. It is an exciting time as the Empire once again gains renewed vision and purpose under his leadership.

A Bloodless Coup

In year 11, Grand Moff Orphaea Imperium takes control of most of the Empire's assets and demands Vodo Bonias' abdication. Bonias yields the Throne to Thomas Cherokee as Interim Emperor, so Imperium would return the stolen assets and be lured back into the Empire; however, Bonias does so for Cherokee to hand the Throne back to him after the Imperial holdings are secured. After giving his actions thorough consideration, Cherokee declines to return control of the Empire to Bonias and remains Emperor. Citing the need for a dedicated and involved Emperor to lead the Empire back to its former glory, Cherokee permanently ascends to the Throne and is heralded by all branches as the new galactic ruler. The former Emperor Vodo disappears from the stage of galactic politics, a broken and powerless man and a far cry from the all-controlling tyrant he had once been. With the change in rulership, Emperor Cherokee holds a summit of Imperial Union member states to legitimize his regime and reiterate the Union's goals, to bring peace, order, and the rule of law to the Galaxy by any means necessary. This historic summit, known as 'Operation: Dread Lord' among Naval circles, marks the affirmation of Emperor Cherokee as the new Galactic ruler in the hearts and minds of the rulers of Hapes, Mandalore, the Trade Federation, and the Union's newest member, the Tion Hegemony, which becomes a full member on this day as well. Thus strengthened, the Imperial Union's growing power and influence convinces the Empire's enemies in the New Republic and the Falleen Federation to look beyond their own differences and establish the retaliatory 'Galactic Alliance', which never comes close to matching the ever-growing power and influence of the IU.

New Horizons

On the 327th Day of the 12th Year of the New Order, having ruled for a little over a standard galactic year, Emperor Cherokee abdicates the Imperial Throne, nominating his long-time Executor and confidant, Guinar Ndengin, as his successor. On this historic day, he also proclaims Seele, the Lord General and Commanding Officer of the Imperial Army, as the new Executor and Head of Government, leading to the formation of the Imperial Throne as it exists today. In hindsight, the reign of Thomas Cherokee is been lauded as the beginning chapter of a new golden age for the Galactic Empire, having strengthened the Empire's friendship with its allies in Mandalore, the Trade Federation, and the Hapes Consortium, while also introducing new member states into the multi-faction alliance, namely, the Tion Hegemony and the Aurodium Legion, which joins the Union under the reign of Emperor Ndengin. Also, former enemies of the New Order would, under Cherokee's reign, resume diplomatic relations with the Galactic Empire (most notably in the form of the Anzatan Commonwealth), an event which simply could not have happened during his predecessor's regime.