Galactic Empire
From Star Wars: Exodus Visual Encyclopedia
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| Galactic Empire | |
| Political Information | |
|---|---|
| Type of Government |
Authoritarian Empire |
| Founding Document | |
| Constitution | |
| Head of State |
|
| Head of Government |
Regent |
| Commander-in-Chief |
Supreme Commander |
| Executive Branch |
Imperial Inner Circle |
| Legislative Branch |
Council of Moffs |
| Judicial Branch |
Procurator of Justice |
| Societal Information | |
| Capital | |
| Official Language | |
| Currency | |
| National Holiday | |
| Anthem |
Imperial March |
| Historical Information | |
| Formed From | |
| Date of Establishment | |
| Date of Fragmentation | |
| Date of Reorganization | |
| Policy Information | |
| Allies | |
| Enemies | |
| Exodus Information | |
| Lead Roleplayer | |
- "Under the Empire's New Order, our most cherished beliefs will be safeguarded. We will defend our ideals by force of arms. We will give no ground to our enemies and will stand together against attacks from within or without. Let the enemies of the Empire take heed: those who challenge Imperial resolve will be crushed."
- — Excerpt taken from the Declaration of a New Order
The Galactic Empire of the Exodus Boards is currently the largest and most powerful regime in the galaxy. Following the Battle of Corellia, the Empire managed to end its long stalemate with the New Republic and become the dominant power. The two governments have since formed an uneasy truce to deal with the Xen’Chi threat.
The Empire has essentially followed the same path as it has in canon, at least up until the Battle of Endor. From there the Empire’s history has differed quite a bit. Even after the loss of several regents, fluctuating borders with the New Republic, and suffering through political infighting, the Empire has always managed to hold on to a significant portion of the known galaxy.
Only with the rise of Emperor Damascus and then the regentship of Grand Admiral Thrawn has the Empire come so close to reclaiming its former glory. Although weakened from the aftermath of Corellia and the war with the Xen’Chi, the will of its people has never been stronger.
Contents |
[edit] Government
The Galactic Empire is ruled with absolute power by the Emperor or a Regent. Imperial rule tends to be very totalitarian. Freedom of speech is always second to official government propaganda and dissidents are very rarely tolerated.
The Empire is actually more decentralized than the Galactic Republic. Systems are grouped in sectors and sectors in turn into oversectors. These are controlled by the Moffs and Grand Moffs, who exercise power throughout their regions of the galaxy. This is in contrast to the structure of the Galactic Republic, which placed senators in control of their respective sectors. The planets of the Empire have no say in the government and are kept in line through force or fear of force.
[edit] Head of State
There are two types of positions for Heads of State in the Empire: the Emperor or the Regent.
[edit] Emperor
The emperor of the Galactic Empire has the final say in all matters concerning the vast government. Whoever assumes the mantle of this position becomes the most powerful person in the Empire. While giving one person so much authority vastly cuts down on the time needed to make decisions concerning the government, it is a double-edged sword as the death of an emperor, without a clear line of succession, can throw the Empire into chaos and civil war.
Only two men have successfully declared themselves emperor:
[edit] Regent
A lesser, yet no less important position, is the Regent of the Empire. Regents have the same amount of authority as an emperor but are generally military commanders. Regents only run the government until they either declare themselves Emperor or a new Emperor that is supported by the vast majority of the Empire emerges.
The Empire has seen numerous Regents, all to varying degrees of success:
- Grand Admiral James Ardin
- Admiral Maxwell Gandel & Admiral Raken Ferval (together)
- Admiral Kyle Marion
- Grand Admiral Thrawn
[edit] Commander-in-Chief
[edit] Supreme Commander / Military Executor
The Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial military is a rank known by many names, but most commonly referred to as the Supreme Commander or Military Executor. It is an extremely powerful position, answerable only to the Emperor or the Imperial Regent, and grants those who achieve this lofty position overall control of all aspects concerning the mighty Imperial military.
Due to the considerable influence they wield, many Supreme Commanders have ended up assuming the position of Regent in the years following Palpatine’s death.
[edit] Executive
The Executive Branch of the Empire is overseen by the Imperial Inner Circle, but the real power below the Inner Circle is in the hands of the Grand Moffs and the regional governors who have direct control of their territories. The Inner Circle rarely interferes with the Moffs unless needed.
This exercise of power is backed up by the use of state terrorism in the form of the Tarkin Doctrine, named for Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin. The Doctrine threatens force rather than the use of force to control dissent. The justification for the Tarkin Doctrine comes from the excessive cost and impracticality of the use of pure terror in the form of billions upon billions of troops and spaceships to maintain order. This policy reached its zenith with the construction of the first Death Star, but the Imperial military still remains an effective deterrent to civilian conflict.
[edit] Imperial Inner Circle
The Imperial Inner Circle is, for the most part, made up of the closest advisors to the Emperor or Regent. The size and influence of the Imperial Inner Circle can vary depending on who is running the Empire, but they are most commonly the ones who oversee the more day-to-day concerns of the Empire.
[edit] Legislative
After the formation of Galactic Empire, the Galactic Senate was reorganized into the Imperial Senate. But unlike the Galactic Senate, which had held both legislative and executive power, the Imperial Senate held only legislative power (and even with much of that held by the Galactic Senate now in the hands of the Emperor) by orders of the Senate Constitution.
The Senate could advise the Emperor and work on the Imperial budget. However, the Emperor could both introduce and veto Senate legislation, and both called and dismissed the Senate to meeting, so the Senate was practically powerless and was dissolved by Emperor Palpatine to remove the last constitutional limit to his power.
It was succeeded as the Imperial legislature by the Council of Moffs.
[edit] Council of Moffs
The majority of the legislation that helps govern the Empire is handled by the Council of Moffs, although the council is still subservient to the will of the Emperor or Regent. Traditionally, the council is composed of high-ranking moffs from each sector of the Empire which meet to discuss matters of great importance. Each moff is allowed one vote and majority rules when it comes to determining the outcome. The Supreme Commander is also allowed to sit on the council and vote.
[edit] Judicial
Due to the centralization of government power into the executive branch under the Galactic Empire, the Supreme Court and other Regional Courts were disbanded before the Senate's dissolution in 0 BBY. From this point onward, the Imperial criminal justice system has been headed by the Procurator of Justice.
[edit] Procurator of Justice
Only one person is in charge of the Imperial justice system and is usually kept anonymous due to the dangerous nature of holding the office. Aside from the Emperor or Regent, the Procurator of Justice has the final word on any legal matters that may crop up in the Empire. The power of the office is such that the Procurator can pass judgment on entire worlds if need be.
[edit] Intelligence
The Empire of Exodus has four powerful intelligence agencies serving it to ensure its safety and security. Each can wield considerable resources and fills a vital role to make sure that the Empire is secure internally as well as externally.
[edit] Imperial Intelligence
Imperial Intelligence is technically a branch of the Imperial military and is dedicated to collecting information, secret and otherwise, for the government. It is often viewed as the internal rival to the larger Imperial Security Bureau.
Imperial Intelligence is broken down into eleven key divisions: Ubiqtorate, Adjustments, Internal Organization Bureau, Analysis Bureau, Crisis Branch, Bureau of Operations, Inquisitorius, Intelligence, Special Intelligence, Sector Plexus, and System Cell. The Ubiqtorate is the highest level of command within Imperial Intelligence and oversees all of the activities of the other branches.
[edit] Imperial Security Bureau
The Imperial Security Bureau is considered a civilian organization and part of the Committee for the Preservation of the New Order (COMPNOR), and therefore is not part of the Imperial military. It was formed from the Internal Security Bureau that was established in the wake of the Clone Wars. The ISB is charged with keeping the Emperor or Regent apprised of political events, and is often viewed as an internal rival to the Imperial Intelligence agency.
Being a more public agency than Intelligence, the ISB is designed to help keep the darker doings of the Empire out of the public eye. It is also more of a policing agency than the Ubiqtorate, and often the simple fact that an individual is a member of the ISB is enough to put a stop to criminal activity. The ISB is broken down into seven key divisions: Interrogation, Investigations, Surveillance, Enforcement, Re-Education, Internal Affairs, and the Commission of Operations. The Commission of Operations oversees the activities of the various Sector Offices of the ISB, each of which mirror the divisional breakdown of the ISB itself.
Many within the Imperial military infrastructure believe that the ISB had been established by Palpatine himself, as a way to exert a measure of control over the regular military, thereby ensuring that none of its leaders could grow strong enough to challenge him for control of the Empire.
[edit] Imperial Special Service
Created in 9 ABY by Admiral Maxwell Gandel to help consolidate his power as Regent, the Imperial Special Service, better known simply as the ISS, are a secret police force that were initially beholden only to the Regent or Emperor and worked strictly undercover to ferret out disloyal behavior. With the authority of the Empire’s leader behind them, the ISS quickly became a force to be reckoned with.
Upon Emperor Damascus’ ascension to the throne, the ISS became even more powerful as Damascus used them to take out his political enemies, many times without even a pretense to back it up. By the time of his death at the Battle of Corellia, the ISS had become very pervasive in all aspects of the Empire.
This would change after Dolomar Daktren was given the task by the new Regent, Grand Admiral Thrawn, to deal with the unchecked power of the ISS. Even though it was thought by some to be an impossible task, Daktren was able to dismantle the ISS and recreate it as a means to fight the rampant corruption throughout the government.
[edit] Oremin
An organization so large and extensive that it qualifies as a small government in itself, Oremin was first started by Grand Admiral Reng Kasr in 3 BBY. Although Oremin’s goal is to preserve and endorse the more noble ideals of the Empire, namely the ways it has improved on the rotting Galactic Republic, it operates independently of the Empire and is not controlled by anyone in the government.
Oremin operates largely in secret although it has become better known following the Xen’Chi Invasion; few, however, have any true idea of the immense scope of Oremin’s undercover operations. This is done to keep anyone in the Empire from abusing the resources Oremin has at its disposal and to prevent those who would want to destroy it from knowing where to strike.
[edit] Imperial Military
The Imperial Military is responsible for carrying out military operations throughout the galaxy, as well as maintaining order on Imperial member worlds, governorships, colonies, and protectorates. Since the Empire's New Order is based on fear of force, the Imperial Military forms a very important part of the Imperial government. Even so, the fleet can prove somewhat insubordinate, and a tension between the government and the fleet admirals has been known to exist, creating the need for the ISB to install political officers throughout the military as minders.
During the early years of the Empire, most stormtroopers were clones from the Clone Wars. However, as the Empire has become more established, most stormtroopers tend to be recruited Humans. This is a cost cutting and time saving measure, as clones require time and money to grow. Those recruited are trained mainly at Carida and are subject to the most rigorous training that the Empire can offer.
[edit] Imperial Craft
[edit] Navy
- "Service. Fealty. Fidelity."
- — The Credo of the Imperial Navy
Formed from the naval divisions of the Grand Army of the Republic, in the wake of the Clone Wars, the Imperial Navy helps secure the safety of the Galactic Empire. The huge shapes of Star Destroyers and the simple shapes of TIE Fighters have became the identities of the Imperial Navy, which control planets, systems, and sectors through fear of attack as much as sheer numbers.
The Imperial Navy is broken down into four key branches: the Line Branch handles strategy and administration, the Flight Branch handles combat vessel flight operations, the Fleet Support Branch handles vessel maintenance and repair, and the Service Support Branch handles the supplies and services that allow naval personnel to carry out their jobs.
[edit] Army
The Imperial Army is a branch of the Imperial Military whose primary responsibility is the prosecution of ground-side military operations, under the oversight of Army Command. It was formed by re-organizing the Grand Army of the Republic and kept its previous command structure. One of the army's most common duties is the maintenance of planetary garrisons throughout the galaxy, as well as waging war on the enemies of the Empire.
The Army utilizes a wide range of equipment and vehicles in support of its infantry. Army units are often reinforced by stormtroopers, although the command structure for the two organizations remains separate. On garrisoned worlds, the Army operates in conjunction with the Imperial Navy, stormtroopers, and the local constabulary to maintain order and security.
[edit] Ranks
[edit] Naval
- Grand Admiral
- High Admiral
- Fleet Admiral
- Admiral
- Vice Admiral
- Rear Admiral
- Commodore
- Line Captain
- Captain
- Commander
- Lieutenant Commander
- First Lieutenant
- Second Lieutenant
- Midshipman/Ensign
- Officer Cadet
[edit] Starfighter
- Grand Marshal
- High Marshal
- Space Marshal
- Marshal
- Vice Marshal
- Flight General
- Flight Colonel
- Flight Major
- Group Captain
- Wing Commander
- Flight Captain
- Flight Lieutenant
- Flight Lieutenant JG
- Junior Officer
- Officer Cadet
[edit] Army
- Grand General
- High General
- Surface General
- General
- Lieutenant General
- Major General
- Brigadier General
- Colonel
- Lieutenant Colonel
- Major
- Captain
- First Lieutenant
- Second Lieutenant
- Warrant Officer
- Officer Cadet
[edit] History
From the bloated carcass of the Galactic Republic, an ambitious politician named Palpatine carved the Galactic Empire, a New Order of government meant to sweep away the injustices and inefficiencies of its predecessor.
[edit] A New Order
The galaxy has known empires in the past: systems and fiefdoms of space controlled by ambitious autocrats. All pale in comparison to the New Order that Palpatine built from the Republic's rotted foundations. During his ascent, some spoke of the remembered glories of empires past, of the Kitel Phard Dynasty that united the Atrisian system ages ago, or of Empress Teta's unification of the Koros system. These wistful recollections never foretold the despotic turn the Empire took.
To ensure control over the populace, the Empire dismantled the galaxy-spanning HoloNet. With this public forum of information exchange now in the hands of the military, the Emperor was able to funnel the immense taxation revenue required to keep the HoloNet active into building his war machine. Furthermore, Imperial control of free information ensured that only the New Order agenda propagated throughout the galaxy, and dissenting voices were all but silenced.
Immense corporations aided and abetted the Empire's rise, in exchange for unprecedented freedom of operation. Many of these companies were nationalized -- Imperialized -- in the process, resulting in a huge influx of capital resources for the Empire.
Palpatine disbanded the senate during the Galactic Civil War, citing the Rebellion as an emergency situation that required direct intervention. He formally handed over power to regional governors and sector moffs -- roles these power-hungry officials had already been enjoying for years under his rule.
The results of the military buildup soon became apparent, as the first Imperial-class Star Destroyers lumbered out of the Kuat Drive Yards. This was just the start, as new and more potent weapons of war and subjugation were developed by the Emperor's cronies. Upon suggestion of Grand Moff Tarkin, a ruthless governor, the Empire adopted its "doctrine of fear." Rather than expend the resources required to subjugate every planet in the galaxy, the Empire would instead make visible its power in one potent display that could be targeted towards any treasonous world. Fear would keep the systems in line, posited Tarkin. The outcome of his vision was a terrifying era of superweapon development, the first of which was the Death Star project.
The Empire's structure was a bewildering array of crossed authorities, all ultimately answerable to Palpatine himself. This ensured that only Palpatine could speak with absolute authority, while his underlings carefully watched their words and actions. The Imperial advisors and COMPNOR (the Coalition for the Preservation of the New Order) effectively controlled the massive Imperial bureaucracy. The Imperial moffs and grand moffs wielded authority over their sectors and regions, including control of the military in their various areas of influence. The local systems governors reported directly to their moffs, and had control of all Imperial forces garrisoned within their system. Imperial Intelligence reported directly to the Emperor, as well as to specific sector moffs.
The Emperor had devised his perfect vision of government with himself as Supreme Ruler of the galaxy. However, he also designed a system that could not function effectively without him. Through the Force, his dark will drove the Imperial starfleet, unifying it in combat, and through his political machinations, he created a system that left no obvious heir to the Empire. As a result, the Empire splintered after the Battle of Endor, breaking apart into smaller groups that warred amongst themselves in bids for power.
[edit] Civil Wars
The New Republic was quick to take advantage of the Imperial infighting after Endor, taking territory from a military force that struggled to function without Palpatine’s will to drive and guide it. However, the Empire was still able to secure some major victories, such as destroying the military might of the Red Star Alliance, which had been a thorn in its side.
The pressure to find a new leader eventually became too much as the massive government fell into all-out civil war and split into three sides. The main war was fought between Intelligence Director Esran Croft and Anasara Bansari, but many old guard Imperials also banded under the leadership of James Ardin.
Ardin took the middle ground, holding the moderate faction in check and letting Croft and Bansari destroy one another. He put the Empire back together under his leadership and reluctantly, only after the behest of the Moffs, created the title of Regent and became the de-facto head of the Empire and Supreme Commander of the Navy. Ardin then took the battle back to the New Republic, which had opportunistically continued to steal territory from the warring Empire.
The fighting was fierce with the New Republic forced to declare martial law and seek new allies to deal with the renewed Imperial offensive. The war became a virtual stalemate, with systems trading hands frequently. Only when the New Republic was able to take Coruscant from Ysanne Isard was a truce declared between the two superpowers. With a semblance of peace settling over the galaxy again, Ardin took on the title of Grand Admiral and then unexpectedly disappeared.
Admirals Maxwell Gandel and Raken Ferval stepped up to fill the power vacuum, deciding to jointly rule the Empire and resume the war with the New Republic. The renewed offensive was brief but devastating with the new Regents resorting to chemical and biological attacks to achieve their goals. Ferval was eventually assumed killed in battle and Gandel would end up going insane before disappearing with his prized headquarters, Pandora Station.
Once again without leaders, the scattered Empire was all but defenseless as the New Republic once again pressed forward and acquired more territory. Other groups also took advantage of the chaos within the Empire, most notable among them a terrorist by the name of Tainer. The terrorist was eventually captured by Banner Ton and put on trial for his crimes against the galaxy, but an even more remarkable event was the return of James Ardin to the Empire, spurred by the capture of Tainer.
Things appeared to shaping up for the Empire with the return of Ardin, but tragedy struck during the trial with Tainer and Ardin being assassinated. The Empire was again thrown into civil war and although Admiral Kyle Marion stepped up to assume the regency, he lacked the force of leadership to bring together the disparate Imperials.
Recognizing that the Empire would never be able to win the war with the New Republic as it stood, Marion sought to forge a peace treaty with the other government. The deal would have ceded the entire core to the New Republic, but also promised to establish a lasting peace. On the eve of the signing, Marion was assassinated through the machinations of Intelligence Director Damascus, who then declared himself emperor.
[edit] Unified Once More
Damascus was able to succeed where the previous leaders of the post-Endor Empire had failed, reuniting the majority of the Empire under his leadership. With a force of will not seen since Palpatine, and a sharp increase in military might, including the construction of a third Death Star, the Empire was able to take back the worlds it had lost in the core, including Coruscant, and push the New Republic to the brink of destruction.
The war would come to a head at the epic Battle of Corellia as Damascus sought to eliminate the New Republic and its allies once and for all. Although the battle still ended up becoming a decisive victory for the Empire, the price paid for it was high, mainly due to the interference of an entity known as GAIT. The fierce fighting saw the Imperial Navy lose many of its ships as well as the third Death Star. Damascus himself was also killed during the battle by Delth Ardin and a clone of James Ardin.
With the threat of GAIT looming on the horizon, Grand Admiral Thrawn assumed command of the Empire and declared himself regent. Thrawn then negotiated a truce with new Chief of State Leia Organa Solo shortly before the outbreak of the Xen’Chi Invasion.
With a new enemy ruthlessly attacking the galaxy, and the Empire still weak from its war with the New Republic, the Imperial forces had no choice but to follow Thrawn in order to survive. Despite the strategic deployment of the Empire’s remaining forces, the Xen’Chi quickly spread throughout the galaxy and were only stopped from toppling the Empire at Coruscant by Thrawn himself.
In need of allies, the Empire found it from a previously unknown source, former Grand Admiral Reng Kasr, who had been thought to be dead since before the Battle of Yavin, but was in fact quite alive and in charge of a powerful organization known as Oremin. Kasr offered to lend Oremin’s resources to help in the Empire’s struggle, bringing with him not only valuable war materiel, but new technology as well. This would culminate in the creation of the Rogue Fleet, which would take the lead in the counterattack against the Xen’Chi.
The Empire also found other allies, its former enemy, the New Republic, and a mighty Outer Rim government known as the Black Star Confederacy…
