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| {{Navbox Lore}} | | {{Template:Navbox Corporations}} |
| {{Navbox Human Lore}} | | {{Infobox Corporation |
| | | |headercolor = #336699 <!--Can be left blank for grey header--> |
| <center>[[File:Mendell pixel.png]]</center> | | |textcolor = white <!--Can be left blank for black text--> |
| [[File:BieselSolOldFlag.png|thumb|Biesel's flag prior to independence, still sporting the Solarian insignia. The circle in the middle represents Valkyrie, which had not been recognised by the Sol Alliance as a "separate colony or entity", only gaining such after the Republic's declaration. ]]
| | |name = Stellar Corporate Conglomerate |
| '''Biesel''', or [[Tau Ceti]] III, is the capital planet of the [[Republic of Biesel]] and the seat of its power. It was one of the first habitable exoplanets discovered by humanity, seventeen years after the [[Timeline#The Discovery of Warp|development of the Warp Drive]]. As a result of its sustained terraforming effort and colonization, Biesel has become one of the most wealthy and influential planets in human space.
| | |logo = SCC_logo |
| | | |headquarters = Unknown |
| Following the aftermath of the economic collapse of the [[Sol Alliance|Alliance of Sovereign Solarian Nations]], the Federal Republic of Biesel and the Tau Ceti System achieved independence in 2452. Its independence was heavily assisted by [[NanoTrasen]], and Biesel continues to be the main base of operations for the [[Stellar Corporate Conglomerate]] in the aftermath of the establishment of the Solarian Corporate Authority, which saw NanoTrasen expelled from Sol territories entirely.
| | |slogan = The unbreakable chainlink, holding the Spur together. |
| | | |languages = Tau Ceti Basic, Sol Common, Tradeband |
| {{TOC Hidden}}
| | |ceo = [[The Trasens#Miranda Trasen|Miranda Trasen]] |
| ==History==
| | |colors = <span style="color:#336699">Navy blue (#336699),</span> <span style="color:#81d9ee">cyan |
| | | (#81d9ee),</span> <span style="color:#f1b61c">gold (#f1b61c)</span> |
| Tau Ceti had long been suspected by astronomers to be a home to super-Earths; Earth-like planets with a larger mass that boasted a similar climate. In 2140, this suspicion was confirmed with the first clear views of Tau Ceti III. The central government of the Sol Alliance, in the wake of energy shortages and the need for helium-3, began construction on a massive colony ship, the SAEV Ulysses, with the intent to build a fully self-sufficient colony on Tau Ceti III. Owing to the expense of helium-3 at the time, the Alliance knew that the journey would be a one-way trip.
| | |founded = 2458 (unofficially), 2462 (officially) |
| | | |founder = |
| The construction of the Ulysses was completed in 2152. The Alliance appointed six researchers and brilliant minds to lead the expedition and colonisation efforts of the ship; former German military pilot and astrophysicist Peter Diezel, Congolese medical researcher Pascalline Kete, Soviet-Canadian engineer Nataliya Kerenkova, American chief of security Kellen Carver, Vietnamese botanist Le Hsung Tran, and American geologist Lester Grant. The rest of the population of the colony ship was selected from carefully vetted volunteers of all variety of professions, from architects, miners, chefs, and farmers.
| | <br> |
| | * [[Nanotrasen Corporation]] |
| | * [[Idris Incorporated]] |
| | * [[Hephaestus Industries]] |
| | * [[Zavodskoi Interstellar]] |
| | * [[Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals]] |
| | * [[Private Military Contracting Group|Eridani Private Military Contractors]] |
| | |regions = |
| | <br> |
| | * [[Republic of Biesel]] |
| | * [[Coalition of Colonies]] |
| | * [[Sol Alliance]] |
| | * [[Empire of Dominia]] |
| | * [[Nralakk Federation]] |
| | * [[People's Republic of Adhomai]] |
| | * [[New Kingdom of Adhomai]] |
| | * [[Izweski Hegemony]] |
| | * [[Republic of Elyra]] |
| | |}} |
| | <!-- <center>''Each point of the chainlink represents the five megacorporations, with the sixth - protruding arrowhead point - being the Conglomerate, overseeing them all.''</center> --> |
| | '''This is the page for the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate, the organization the players work for. This contains very important setting information.''' |
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| Much of the Ulysses' year-long journey was spent with the crew in cryosleep. It was on October 24th, 2147, that the ship touched down on Biesel for the first time in the area that would become Mendell City. Colonisation and construction efforts went underway, as the researchers gradually began to map out the lay of the planet's surface, weather, and its precious minerals.
| | '''Formerly, the players worked for solely NanoTrasen - while this is technically true to an extent, still, this sentence is an open request to all wiki readers to report inconsistencies in this matter, to wiki/lore development for gameplay pages/lore pages respectively.''' |
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| Biesel's name comes from the early months of 2148, as the colonists were beginning to settle in; chief of security Carver, who had dyslexia and was known among the crew for his spelling errors, wrote a notice to Dr. Diezel in which his surname was misspelt "Biesel". The moniker became an inside joke amongst the colony's leaders for years until it was time to rechristen Tau Ceti III.
| | Formed at the height of corporate power in the galaxy, the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate — unofficially known as the “Chainlink” due to its emblem —is a group exercising undisputed economic dominance over the Orion Spur. The Chainlink was founded to secure privately owned assets within Tau Ceti owned by the various megacorporations during the Solarian incursion by Grand Admiral Raymond Özdemir, who commanded the 35th Fleet of the Solarian Navy during its siege of the [[Republic of Biesel]]. |
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| === Recent Events ===
| | The Chainlink has essentially forced the largest economic influences into a corporation, with which the [[The Trasens|Trasen family]] holds an unsteady authority over. Though cooperation has been deemed “essential” at this point in time, the shaky peace still finds itself littered with cut-throat, espionage-ridden affairs as each megacorporation attempts to place itself on top. Though, their unlikely alliance comes as a result of [[Einstein Engines]]’ threat to their economic prowess, where the first trans-stellar corporation has maintained dominance within some of more influential sovereign states such as the [[Nralakk Federation]] and the [[Sol Alliance|Solarian Alliance]]. |
| Biesel has been the subject of many recent happenings within the Orion Spur, primarily due to it's position as the richest system, and the domination of NT over the Republic. The following events are in chronological order.
| | {{TOC_Hidden}} |
| | ==Noteworthy members== |
| | * '''Titanius Aeson,''' Hephaestus CEO |
| | * '''Alex Mason,''' Idris CEO |
| | * '''Liqin Hsiao-Li,''' Zeng-Hu CEO |
| | * '''Lyudmila Zavodskoi,''' Zavodskoi CEO |
| | * '''Kubra Mobolaji,''' PMCG CEO |
| | * '''Chin-hae Hong,''' Orion Express CEO |
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| * Something x, y, z
| | ==Corporate Affairs== |
| | === History === |
| | Though once shrouded in secrecy, the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate has become a staple of the Orion Spur, essentially acting as the puppet masters of the interstellar economy. With the earliest dated supply shipments being traced to 2458 – it appears that the constituent megacorporations within the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate have sought to cooperate with one another to ensure their economic dominance since the First Solarian Invasion of the [[Republic of Biesel]]; though within the shadows. Almost every element of the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate had been hidden and concealed from the greater public, and more so from the scrutiny of those uncovering secrets that the most powerful individuals in the Orion Spur preferred to not yet be revealed. |
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| == Environment ==
| | However, following the Second Solarian Invasion of the Republic of Biesel in 2462, the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate revealed themselves to the interstellar community at large; proclaiming their goal was to protect the financial livelihood of all their corporate clients and assets, and to ensure their facilities across the Republic of Biesel would not be diminished as a result of “rogue actors” – similar in circumstances to their original founding, after Admiral Michael Frost’s incursion into their profits. |
| [[File:BieselV3.png|400px|thumb|right|A labeled map depicting Biesel.]]
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| Biesel is a planet slightly larger than [[Earth]], with a more temperate climate that ranges from oceanic to tropical. It takes thirty-five days for the planet to make a full orbit around its star, and its rotational period is twenty-two hours. Its icecaps on its poles are far smaller than that of [[Persepolis]], another Earth-like exoplanet, and it has very limited deserts at its equator. Snow is rare on Biesel, with its winter seasons being marked by cold rains. As such, most coastal cities on Biesel are fortified to reduce infrastructural damage from flooding, particularly in the aftermath of the Craterview Flood in 2396. Despite flood risks, there is very little risk of tsunamis on Biesel because of almost non-existent tectonic activity. In the summer, tropical storms form with a similar frequency to Earth, but because of the smaller land area, the tropical storms can be much stronger. Many coastal cities have detection systems that sound an alarm if the correct atmospheric conditions are met.
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| The planet has a rich resource base, attributed to a collision with a large celestial body early in its development. From the time Biesel was colonized, geologists have been studying Peterdiezel Crater closely. According to theories, the crater was created by the collision of a moon with the planet. This collision not only brought Biesel's moon, Valkyrie, into existence, but also created a wealth of resources. A part of Valkyrie is thought to be Biesel, while the other is thought to be the celestial body responsible for creating Peterdiezel Crater.
| | Since its reveal, the Chainlink has gone on to ensure its dominance through several masterful techniques – mostly centring around the [[Corporate Reconstruction Zone]]; or the annexed Solarian territories by the [[Republic of Biesel]]. Pouring countless resources into stabilizing the region so as to further exploit it, the Chainlink has all but managed to prop the annexation as a legal undertaking of colonies abandoned by the [[Sol Alliance|Solarian Alliance]] during the Collapse. Though, their efforts have not gone without resistance, in particular, the Republic of [[Mictlan]] has proven to be rather ungrateful for the Chainlink’s efforts to uplift them. Sponsoring the Peacekeeper Mandate - a Biesellite military operation that aims to enforce their annexation, regardless of what the local inhabitants think - the Chainlink has managed to quell the majority of the Republic of Mictlan’s more unsavoury elements, though there still exists significant unrest across the eastern hemisphere of the planet. |
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| ===Florae and Faunae===
| | [[The Trasens|Miranda Trasen]] maintains her dominance of the Orion Spur through her manoeuvring into the Director of the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate; using her position to propel [[Nanotrasen|NanoTrasen]] interests to the dismay of the other constituent megacorporations. However, will this be the unravelling of the economic, and political entity that has so far been successful in their subjugation of the interstellar community, has not yet been revealed, but perhaps events in the future may change this. |
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| In the years after the initial touchdown of the SAEV Ulysses, a number of Earth-originating species were introduced to Biesel's biosphere in the 2160s. Many of the species introduced to Biesel were endangered in their native environment on Earth; prior to the independence of Biesel, the colony had a "wildlife exchange agreement" with the government of Earth, in which species that had exploded in population on Biesel would have some of their number trapped and sent back to Earth as the planet's biosphere gradually recovered.
| | === Influence === |
| | The sheer size of the co-operating corporation’s influence, now tightly bound by their public front of allegiance to one another, is enough to sway many of the powers on the interstellar stage – while some of the larger political entities retain some measure of independence, they still ultimately rely on the constituent members of the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate for their respective niches within the interstellar economy. Despite attempts by the Solarian Alliance to keep megacorporations in check; they’ve merely facilitated a deal with the devil, exchanging their reliance on the Chainlink instead for Einstein Engines. |
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| As Biesel's general clime was similar to the Pacific Northwest of North America, many of its Earth-born species originate from there. The grey wolf, reindeer, and bald eagle's introduction to Biesel, while allowing the species to flourish, contributed to the rapid endangerment of the native white-breasted lakesurfer, an avian similar to a loon, and the barker, a large rodent. While the lakesurfer was placed under protection and preserved in several wildlife reserves in the early 2200s, the barker gained no such protection. Many biologists attribute this to the annoyance posed by barkers in the early days of colonisation, when it was common to have equipment burrowed into and wires chewed by barkers.
| | The Chainlink, through its member companies and their cooperation, has domination of several economies within the Orion Spur. From banks to manufacturers, only a sliver of economic productivity in the Spur is controlled by others, the main threat to the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate being Einstein Engines. Despite the power of the Chainlink, Einstein has managed to remain competitive against them through tight ties with the Solarian Alliance and Nrralakk Federation, both the largest economies to exploit. As one of the eldest megacorporations, Einstein Engines has maintained a constant throughout humanity's journey to the stars, the consequences it wrought. |
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| Other notable species that have thrived on Biesel are the Kermode bear and the North Atlantic and North Pacific salmon. The Kermode bear, popularly known as the spirit bear, was at risk of losing its habitat in the Pacific Northwest due to declining numbers of salmon. The bear and the fish were initially introduced to northern Eos, around Griff's Lake and Lonely Lake, and reached sustainable population levels over the course of three decades, to the delight of biologists and fishers alike. The development of the town of Lakeside into Top of the World has led to concerns from locals about the Kermode bear's habitat and its disruption, and pollutants from the underwater fusion reactor that may harm the development of spawning salmon.
| | However, as the alliance grows older, it can be seen that the constituent megacorporations seek their own power; desiring to diminish [[Nanotrasen|NanoTrasen]]’s domination of influence over their affairs, so far. Conducting themselves in a manner to not directly oppose [[Nanotrasen|NanoTrasen]], the various other megacorporations have begun leveraging their economic influence on nations; in particular, as seen with [[Hephaestus Industries]]’ planned expansion across [[Moghes]]. Yet another example is [[Idris Incorporated]]’s leveraging credit provided to [[NanoTrasen]] during its attempt to recapture control of Phoenixport. |
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| <div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
| | === Agendas and Advertising === |
| ==== Notable Native Florae and Faunae ==== | |
| <div class="mw-collapsible-content">
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| * '''White-breasted lakesurfer''' (''Haliolaevus seleni''): The official bird of Biesel, and one of its most iconic animals. The lakesurfer is an aquatic bird that primarily inhabits the content of Selene and Lake Tricord. It is a broad, black and white bird with a distinctive blue stripe along a short head crest or "mohawk". Prior to their protection, they were typically preyed on by bald eagles introduced to the Biesel biosphere.
| | It is without a doubt that each and every constituent megacorporation has their own agendas with how the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate should operate, and most definitively to their own benefit. Though employees may find themselves “employed” by the Conglomerate, in reality they find themselves on long-term contracting agreements, still maintaining some ties to their original megacorporation, such as a Research Director from Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals would still remain employed by the megacorporation, even if technically they are contracted to the Conglomerate. |
| * '''Common barker''' (''Ulosmarmota vulgaris''): A rodent-like animal with a long tail, similar in size to a muskrat. They have brown, shaggy fur, long incisors, and a distinctive danger cry or "bark" that earned them their name. Barkers are an endangered species on Biesel, and are rare to find outside of the forests and mountainous regions of the continents.
| | ==== [[Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals]] ==== |
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| | Zeng-Hu seeks to combine the innovation of the megacorporations to its own benefit, creating technology that many play off as being fantastical. Though with the inception of the Conglomerate, the megacorporation has certainly benefitted from the shared technological ties to certain industries, it still seeks to ensure its technological edge through careful manipulation of its patents and intellectual property: ensuring it stakes its claim before anyone else when it comes to discovery and innovation. |
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| === Continents === | | ==== [[NanoTrasen]] ==== |
| ====Astraeus====
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| Astraeus is the most affluent of Biesel's three continents and is home to the capital, Mendell City. Even today, it remains the most heavily populated area in Biesel, largely due to the availability of natural resources and the low-lying plains that were easily colonized by early settlers. Many of their homesteads soon turned into cities, dotting the landscape around the two mountain ranges in the north, the Grattle, and in the south, the Uratines. In its long history, the Grattle range has evolved from a mining zone to a destination recognized for its top-performing ski resort that can lure visitors from the furthest reaches of Orion Spur.
| | NanoTrasen seeks to maintain the status quo of them being the dominant megacorporation, subverting the influence held by the combined might of the megacorporations to its own benefit, and will go to great lengths to ensure they remain on top – even so far as to diminish the Conglomerate’s influence to ensure their own is maintained. The Trasen’s openly claim that NanoTrasen will remain the most influential megacorporation, with Miranda clinging to her position as Acting Director to maintain the illusion that the corporation shall forever remain in the spotlight. Though the phoronics industry seems to be dwindling, the corporation seeks to expand its foothold in other industries that it enjoys sizeable market domination within. |
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| Astraeus' major population centres are '''Mendell City''' and '''Cape City'''.
| | ==== [[Private Military Contracting Group]] ==== |
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| ==== Selene ====
| | Conflict pays, and it pays well. The Private Military Contracting Group knows such very well. Ensuring a strong hand through amassing military-grade technology and fleets capable of assisting even the strongest actors on the interstellar stage is merely one element of their agenda, the other being reliance on the Conglomerate – indirectly the Private Military Contracting Group – to maintain stability within their borders, and even outside of them. Mercenary work is one of the oldest careers and simply one of the most profitable. The Group maintains the Conglomerate should broaden its capabilities to fight, routinely citing the need for such when referring to the Second Solarian Incursion of Biesel. |
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| The second-largest continent of Biesel, Selene, is situated north of Astraeus. In spite of its size, Selene is the continent with the lowest population density of the three, with almost all of its inhabitants living in coastal towns. Those not biding their time on the coasts are usually tending the inland plains that often are lined with farmsteads. The Greatkrag range that runs across Selene has come to symbolize the Biesel Escarpment, an area consisting of steep slopes that transition into arctic plateaus, which entice those seeking to escape civilization.
| | ==== [[Orion Express]] ==== |
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| Selene's major population centres are '''Phoenixport''', '''Ashton''', and '''Belle Côte'''.
| | Though not so obvious as the other megacorporations, the Orion Express sees the future of the economy relying on its ability to provide delivery, both with goods and with the services it would offer to nations – in particular, growing the reliance of these nations to the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate to ensure that their removal would be too costly, with far too many drawbacks to the interstellar economy, so that a similar body to the Solarian Corporate Authority could not deny their vitality. By any means necessary, Orion Express attempts to leverage influence within the Republic of Biesel, even where it means causing drifts with the other megacorporations who rely on it to supply them with much-needed resources and equipment, which it knows keenly. |
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| ==== Eos ==== | | ==== [[Hephaestus Industries]] ==== |
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| The largest continent of the three, Eos resides mostly within the eastern hemisphere of Biesel and is the most industrialized. The large amount of coastal flatlands, supplied by rugged inlands, rich with minerals and resources of all varieties has led to most of the cities doting Eos to form along with the two major mountain ranges. They are the northern Latra range, which is heavily mined for its abundance of copper and iron, and the southern Sevul range, mined for its large quantities of heavy metals. Eos is also known for its sports fanatics, who host regular tournaments between the major population centres on Biesel.
| | Hephaestus Industries, the manufacturing giant of the Spur, wishes to merely expand its foothold within its existing industries – terraforming, spacecraft construction, integrated positronic chassis manufacturing, resource extraction and lastly engine development. Similarly to Zeng-Hu, it seeks to combine the brightest minds within the Conglomerate to get a technological advantage, but with particular application to help its existing monopolies as opposed to Zeng-Hu’s broader wishes. The future resides within the furnaces of Hephaestus Industries, and Titanius Aeson seeks to ensure the interstellar stage knows it. Even with the damage wrought by the Solarian Corporate Authority, Hephaestus Industries seeks to ensure they remain in steady competition with Einstein Engines, and that the Conglomerate can only truly reach its potential when its bankrupted. |
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| Eos' major population centres are '''Ports-Ville''', '''Scottsdan''', '''New Marfa''' and the recently-developed community '''Top of the World''' and its sister town, '''Lakeside'''.
| | ==== [[Zavodskoi Interstellar]] ==== |
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| ==Economy==
| | Though the Solarian Corporate Authority saw it fit to revoke some of the megacorporation’s presence within the Solarian Alliance, Zavodskoi Interstellar still seeks to maintain strong ties. Majority of their footholds, outside of Dominia, flourish within the now NanoTrasen-free Solarian Alliance and are likely to keep growing if the megacorporation can maintain an amiable relationship with the nation. Though Zavodskoi Interstellar agrees with the Private Military Contracting Group’s own agenda, and sometimes even contributes to its growth within the Conglomerate, it ultimately believes that the Conglomerate should remain “neutral” in the face of interstellar conflict, and profit from the lucrative opportunities that arise from playing both sides. |
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| Biesel's economy is primarily centred around its potential as a breadbasket. Fresh produce grown on Biesel is shipped all around the [[Tau Ceti]] system, and sometimes is shipped as far as the [[Republic of Elyra]] and the [[Coalition of Colonies]]. In its early days as a colony, fresh water from lakes and ponds was drained and shipped back to the [[Sol Alliance]] after climate disasters had rendered a great deal of [[Earth]]'s water supply unpotable; today, Getmore still markets water from Biesel's lakes as "the freshest in the [[Orion Spur]]".
| | ==== [[Idris Incorporated]] ==== |
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| Most of the [[megacorporations]] have a full branch in District One of Mendell City, and perform many operations on the planet. While every one of the "Big Five" has a stake in Biesel somewhere, the ones most influential locally are NanoTrasen, Idris Incorporated, and Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals. NanoTrasen and Idris account for the vast majority of corporate-run restaurants, hotels, and bars on the planet; even independent businesses likely cooperate or share their stocks in part with the two. While Biesel's healthcare system is ostensibly state-run, in practice many hospitals and clinics loan equipment from NanoTrasen and Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals. Almost all research into phoronics, genetics, and robotics is connected or funded by NanoTrasen or the keiretsu's subsidiaries.
| | Money ensures the cogs of the machines are well-oiled, and who better to oversee the economic affairs of the Spur than Idris Incorporated and its CEO, Alex Mason. Leveraging the corporation’s extensive ties and financial resources, Idris Incorporated seeks to in-debt the entirety of the Spur with its profitable foresight – extending loans, and ensuring a healthy supply of Idris Reclamation Units into the market to ensure liability is kept to a minimum. Though it enjoys a sizeable foothold within the service industry, Idris Incorporated’s true agenda lies wherever the money leads. |
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| The major trade port that is Biesel is propped up by the shipping efforts of [[Hephaestus Industries]] and more recently, [[Orion Express]]. [[Zavodskoi Interstellar]] also assists in the purchase and transport of weapons brought to the Republic's capital, usually manufactured in the [[Empire of Dominia]] or on [[New Suez]]. Extraction of Biesel's rich deposits of helium-3 is also managed by Hephaestus Industries, and sold all across the Spur-- even to the Sol Alliance.
| | == Corporate Oversight == |
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| == Culture and Demographics ==
| | Though the “cooperation” of the megacorporations has proven to be beneficial, it is still common practice to poach workers from one another, and leak more classified information during these employee transfers, an attempt to combat these methods, the Chainlink has formalised a third-party oversight agency that acts independently of the other megacorporations. Commonly referred to as the Chainlink’s enforcers, the '''Stellar Corporate Conglomerate Internal Affairs Agency''' has become notorious for its handling of those against the megacorporate agenda. Agents have widespread authority to disable any potential threats to the corporations through the soul-crushing bureaucracy, in particular through their knowledge of corporate regulations and laws that act as a powerful weapon against any that stand in their way. |
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| Biesel is the birthplace for much of [[Biesellite Culture and Society|Tau Cetian culture]]. For the most part Biesellites tend to be amenable towards the heavy corporate involvement in their government, or even desensitized to it; the [[Stellar Corporate Conglomerate]]'s role in social safety nets, well-paying jobs, and entertainment, reinforcing the image of their necessity and the overall pro-corporate sentiment among Biesellites. As a general rule, pro-corporate sentiment tends to lessen the farther one is away from Mendell City; Lakeside, in particular, has protested against the massive developments in their area to build the community of Top of the World.
| | However, outside of the '''Stellar Corporate Conglomerate Internal Affairs Agency''', much of the existing corporate oversight from the various constituent megacorporations has remained untouched, remaining as it was prior to the Chainlink’s formation. Despite this some agencies have been incorporated into the greater Stellar Corporate Conglomerate, operating as Human Resources. The '''Stellar Corporate Conglomerate Internal Affairs Agency''' are the corporate oversight, however, '''Human Resources''' are their legitimate investigative force in dealing with civil and criminal problems that might erupt across the various facilities within the Conglomerate. |
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| A strong sense of individualism and duty permeate Biesel culture; many citizens have a positive view of the [[Tau Ceti Armed Forces]], even after the controversies surrounding the Peacekeeper Mandate. Some citizens regarded the Tau Ceti Foreign Legion as a better example of Biesellite duty and strength, and have taken the view that the expansion of the Armed Forces means the Republic is moving in a more war-like, jingoistic direction. Despite the popularity of the Armed Forces, however, the [[Hasta La Victoria Siempre Arc|2465 protests]] in Zhèngfǔ District have shown that support may be dwindling for Biesel's involvement in the [[Corporate Reconstruction Zone]].
| | == Executives and Branches == |
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| === Aliens on Biesel ===
| | The Chainlink is headed by the '''League of Chief Directors''', from which ultimate authority is delegated to respective corporations. This League of Chief Directors is responsible for oversight of the entire Chainlink. Though, most of the lesser positions find themselves comprising mostly of former NanoTrasen employees, retained for their display of excellence during Miranda Trasen’s reign as Chief Executive Officer of NanoTrasen – though they have slowly become replaced through corporate restructuring, supported by all except NanoTrasen. |
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| ''See also: [[Skrell Abroad#Skrell in the Republic of Biesel|Skrell in the Republic of Biesel]], [[Unathi_Abroad#Unathi_in_the_Republic_of_Biesel|Unathi in the Republic of Biesel]], [[Little Adhomai]], [[Zo'ra in the Republic of Biesel]], [[Minor_Dionae_Factions#The_Biesellian_Choir|The Biesellian Choir]]'' | | The '''Corporate Committee of Affairs''' – having only been founded in 2465 during the new financial year, though rather dull-sounding in name, attempts to off-set this imbalance by comprising of representatives placed by the other megacorporations; even vested with the power to determine the funding of the Chainlink, and ultimately veto the League of Chief Directors in a simple majority vote. Matters pertaining to the Chainlink’s operations are often overseen by direct subordinates of the League itself, who operate above the corporate employees and consist of major shareholders or high-ranking internal affairs. |
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| The Republic, and particularly Biesel itself, has among the most diverse and widespread populations of non-human species in the entire Orion Spur. Biesellite humans are no stranger to aliens in their streets, though ignorance, speciesism, and xenophobia are still common from humans to aliens, aliens to humans, and aliens to other aliens. As the Republic gains an identity away from the Alliance, alien influence has begun to permeate Biesel's culture more and more, to the chagrin of some and the acceptance of others.
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| === Synthetics on Biesel ===
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| ''See also: [[IPCs in Biesel]]''
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| Though Biesel is a beacon of hope and relative safety for synthetics, their position in society still remains a precarious one, both from a financial and a security standpoint. Freedom, and even citizenship, for integrated positronic chassis has firmly been established and is something the Republic takes pride in. Either through labour, negotiations, the goodwill of their owners or other occasions, IPCs may find themselves free from ownership, able to pursue their own destiny as independent individuals. Unfortunately for many, such destiny usually involves a hard and at times, short existence.
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| Free IPCs are afforded few actual opportunities to improve their lives, existing in a grey area between the relative stability of corporate owned assets, and the solidified protection of the state for citizens. With the recent introduction of the Synthetic Residence Card by the government, free synthetics are able to more clearly and safely navigate through the process of staying in Tau Ceti, finding employment, owning property, and more. While free IPCs were previously allowed to own property without a card, they have been grandfathered in.
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| For many free IPCs, citizenship is viewed as the ultimate goal in integrating into society. Citizenship entitles an IPC to increased legal protections, almost, if not on par with that of a natural-born human citizen, including complete protection as well as legal representation from being owned ever again. NanoTrasen and its subsidiaries are also obligated to pay IPC citizens working for it an equal wage as compared to humans. This compensation typically comes in the form of increased benefits such as repairs, insurance, and a pension, as opposed to a simple wage increase however. They also pay the same tax rate as regular citizens and no longer have to maintain the residency fee.
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| === Entertainment ===
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|
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| *'''Peterdiezel Boat Racing''' is an annual competition that begins in Craterview. The race is a three-day excursion and is usually recorded through observation drones following the individual boats racing against the clock. There are several routes all across Peterdiezel Crater, some more dangerous than others. While anyone can participate, most of the competitors are city teams such as the Mendell City Boat Club or the Cape Cods.
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| *'''Eos Sporting Tournaments''' are an annually held, international series of sporting events in which megacorporation-sponsored athletes participate in competitions involving human and alien sports. Every team or participant will represent a corporation during the competitions. Due to the corporate nature of the event, every participant must be employed in the megacorporation they represent. It is common for corporations to offer better salaries and benefits to notorious athletes in an attempt to poach them from their original employers. Games are usually hosted in any of Eos' cities except New Marfa.
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|
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| *'''Belle Cote Fashion Show''' is a series of designer presentations held annually in Belle Cote. Sponsored by Idris, a variety of venues are used throughout the city to display the best-performing styles and themes of the year. Both Chief Executive Officers of Caishen Jewellers and Le Soleil Royal are regular hosts of the show, their fashion lines the staple of the event.
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| === Festivals and Celebrations ===
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| *'''Republic Day''' (also known to some as Xavier’s Gala) is a holiday which commemorates the declaration of independence of Tau Ceti from the Solarian Alliance. The crippling economic recession experienced by the Solarian Alliance allowed the Republic of Biesel to leverage their independence, and ultimately be awarded it. It is hosted on May 5th of each year, and usually involves total rejection of both Solarians and Megacorporations. Fireworks, parades, fairs and concerts are often commonly associated with Republic Day.
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|
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| *'''Tribuisti de Colonis''', or Festival of the Settlers, is a massive Carnival celebration marking Biesel’s colonization. The festivities usually begin on the third Friday of October, through to the Sunday. Mendell City has become the most well-known celebrator of the festival, parading through the streets of the various districts with eccentric clothing and massive floats (usually of the planet’s native species). Other popular cities include Craterview, which celebrates the festival with dazzling fireworks and displays of lights, and Belle Cote, which throws its annual fashion show over the weekend the festival takes place.
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|
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| *'''Heritage Day''' is a holiday that recognizes and celebrates the cultural wealth of the Republic of Biesel. Celebrations differ from person to person and usually depends on their cultural heritage and the remembrance of such. Some believe the wearing of cultural garments is enough, while others may partake in cultural festivities hosted across Tau Ceti. It is usually held every September 24th.
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| ===Crime===
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| ==Mendell City==
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| '''Mendell City''' is the capital of Biesel, and one of the most affluent cities in the [[Orion Spur]]. It is a massive city, home to billions of sophonts, and stretches out for roughly thirty-thousand square kilometres. Each of the [[megacorporations]] have headquarters in District One, and the [[Stellar Corporate Conglomerate]] is based in Mendell City. The city itself contains a mix of structures, ranging from kilometer high skyscrapers covering a dozen city blocks to almost serene suburbs, all wrapped into the city’s urban sprawl.
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|
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| Mendell City is the hub of trade throughout the Republic, with trillions of credits flowing through the electronic stock markets in the business sector - whether in private transactions or on the trade floor. While few in Mendell live in abject poverty and the city's social safety network is largely supported by the megacorporations, the cost of living can grow exponentially, and low-income neighbourhoods are most commonly populated by non-humans. Higher education, in particular, is expensive and difficult to pay for unless one earns a scholarship from one of the corporations on the condition the student in question works for the corporation in question.
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|
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| Mendell City is divided into fifteen administrative districts:
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|
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| <div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
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| === District 1-4 ===
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| <div class="mw-collapsible-content">
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| '''District 1'''
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| '''Zhèngfǔ District:''' The centre of Mendell, District 1 is home to the Mendell City Hall and the headquarters of most major megacorporations. NanoTrasen's Biesel headquarters sit adjacent to City Hall, with the towering two-hundred story skyscraper among the tallest buildings in the city. At the centre of the City Hall square, the Xavier Trasen memorial statue marks not only one of Biesel's greatest innovators, but also the original touchdown site of the SAEV Ulysses.
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| '''District 2'''
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| '''Phoenix Park:''' One of the most wealthy and affluent areas in Mendell City, Phoenix Park is a large commercial district, home to several malls, retail outlets, and department stores. The district is bordered by a massive nature reserve (also called Phoenix Park), holding some of the few remaining original species of Biesel. High-ranking corporate executives typically hold apartments here.
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| '''District 3'''
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| '''Xinghua Prefecture:''' A small district that makes extremely efficient use of its space, this district is almost solely populated by large apartment and condominium complexes with some limited space designated for office complexes. Many corporations have employee housing in this district, due to the inexpensive cost of maintaining an apartment building in Xinghua. As of the Republic's most recent census in 2460, Xinghua is the most populous area of Mendell City. Anybody can be found here, though the vast majority of the population is human.
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| '''District 4'''
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| '''Abaster Fields:''' A gated suburb to the west of the city, largely home to various estate properties and mansions of the affluent. Due to exorbitant costs associated with moving into Abaster Fields, the district isn't heavily populated, but remains an influential district due to its wealth. Many high-ranking corporate and diplomatic officials can be found here, often living in expensive mansions designed to show off their wealth to the Republic's citizenry.
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| </div></div>
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| <div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
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| === District 5-9 ===
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| <div class="mw-collapsible-content">
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| '''District 5'''
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| '''Homewood:''' A large suburb on the eastern side of the city, with an artificial river built coming in from Severson's Rift. Home to the medium-upper and upper class families, this district is considered to be "almost as good as" Abaster Fields by its residents. Those with the wealth to live in Abaster Fields do not share the same opinion. Homewood's residents are often the middle echelon of corporate facilities, typically the leaders of a department that are rich enough to move out of the city itself, but not rich enough to move into Abaster Fields.
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| '''District 6'''
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| '''Imperial Plaza or [[Little Adhomai]]:''' The Imperial Plaza, nicknamed "Little Adhomai" due to its primarily [[Tajara|Tajaran]] population, has one of the highest crime rates in Mendell City. Gang violence, domestic disturbances, and drug trafficking are prevalent, and the district is not widely trafficked by those who reside outside of it. It has become a well-established centre of Tajaran culture in Tau Ceti.
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| '''District 7'''
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| '''Vega de Rosa:''' Vega de Rosa is an entertainment district home to casinos, nightclubs, bars, and theatres. At the centre of the district are its most expensive and elite clubs - with the Eridanian-operated Sa Majesté Musa regarded as the peak of Vega de Rosa. Reputed quality decreases as one heads out from the centre, with the lowest-quality venues barely scraping by on the outskirts of Vega de Rosa. This district shares a border with District Six, and the Vega de Rosa side of the border features a significant amount of Tajara-run casinos known for their quality and low cost.
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| '''District 8'''
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| '''Lekan District or [[Starlight Zone]]:''' Named after the City Commissioner Lekan Mugabe, who commissioned the development of the district, Lekan is an industrial centre housing the bulk of fusion power plants and water treatment plants of the city. This district is located on the shores of Severson's Rift, with multiple ports operating there. The district also houses massive recycling centres that neatly and efficiently sort through the thousands of tons of trash generated by the city. In recent years, the district now finds themselves at the middle of a [[Skrell]] refugee crisis.
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| '''District 9'''
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| '''[[Flagsdale]]:''' Also known as Vaur’xoer (‘The City Upside-down’), Flagsdale holds the largest concentration of Vaurcae in Mendell. Originally an unpopulated industrial slum, it has been largely repurposed by Vaurcae and mainly the Zo’ra Hive. The lack of streetlights and maze-like streets, many with debris or abandoned cars blocking them, make it hard for Mendell City Police to navigate and keep order. This, alongside the famine conditions, stranded Queenless Vaurcae, and illegal k’ois pits have made it largely a growing ground for disease, poverty and crime.
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| </div></div>
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| <div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
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| === District 10-15 ===
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| <div class="mw-collapsible-content">
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| '''District 10'''
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| '''Republic's Landing:''' A large commercial district taking advantage of the multiple civilian shuttleports in the area. It has two amusement parks, ports for orbital cruise ships, various museums and other tourist attractions, and the world's largest hotel, the Crimson Heights. It has a direct maglev link to Districts five and three. A significant amount of Republic's Landing is zoned for residential development, with those that can afford or (or need the convenience) living here to avoid most of the commute to its shuttleports. District 10 is home to a significant Th'akh Unathi population, as it is home to the exiled monks of the [[Unathi_Abroad#Mendell_City_-_The_Akhanzi_Exiles|Akhanzi Order]].
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| '''District 11'''
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| '''Eleven:''' The result of urban sprawl and low-income housing, this district is regarded as the worst district in Mendell aside from districts nine. Along with district six, "Eleven" claims the dubious honor of possessing one of Mendell City's highest rates of violent crime. Gangs and criminal enterprise rule the abandoned streets, and many of the buildings are derelict structures. Attempts to revitalize this forgotten district have fallen flat, with legislation dedicated to revitalization and those dedicated to reforming the district not lasting long in Mendell City's municipal government. [[NanoTrasen]] often recruits entry-level staff from this district and houses them on the Odin in a mutually beneficial move; the new employee is "rescued" by their corporate benefactors, and NanoTrasen gets a fanatically loyal employee. [[Dionae_Clusters#The_Biesellian_Choir|A large community of Dionae live within District 11]], alongside the Eternal Temple. District 11 is also home to several [[Unathi]] criminal organizations, with the Aut'akh [[Aut'akh#The_Razortail_Enclave,_"the_Ruffians"|Razortail Enclave]] and the gang known as the [[Unathi_Abroad#Mendell_City_-_The_Bastard_Hatchlings|Bastard Hatchlings]] being the two most notable.
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| '''District 12'''
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| '''Xavier District:''' District 12 is one of the largest gathering of intellectual properties in human space. This single district has over twenty-five universities, fifteen colleges, thirty high schools, four training centers, and three NanoTrasen research facilities, as well as other corporate research laboratories. Xavier District is officially classed as a residential district, a measure proposed by NanoTrasen's liaison on City Council. Some suspect the lower property taxes in residential zones was perhaps the reason behind this. Formerly known as the Think Tank, this district was renamed in remembrance of Xavier Trasen shortly after the corporation firmly entrenched itself in the system.
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| '''District 13'''
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| '''Bullard Avenue:''' Although this northern district is much larger than the single avenue it is named for, Bullard Avenue is the economic centre of Mendell City. This district home to large banking centres, the Mendell City Stock market, and other finance institutions that help drive the commerce of one of the Orion Spur's wealthiest systems. Although the majority of the district is designated commercial properties, there are some residential complexes to be found here that are typically rented to those who work within the district. Many of the apartment buildings here are populated by Idris Incorporated employees and the IPCs that follow them everywhere, with service-model shells being a common sight.
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| '''District 14'''
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| '''New Detroit or The Scrapheap:''' An industrial district that houses a large portion of automated factories. Due to the recent embargo by the [[Sol Alliance]], the district has fallen on hard times as material shortages have reduced industrial output as the City attempts to stimulate growth through subsidizing domestic material production of plasteel through NanoTrasen to replace the other materials. The area has a large IPC community within it which is heavily discriminated against. The Trinary Perfection, a synthetic-centric religion, has a major presence here.
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| '''District 15'''
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| '''Jie District:''' The district where the majority of the city's low-income housing is located, this district is located on the outskirts of Mendell City but is not designated a suburb like D4 or D5. Before it was turned into subsidized housing, this area of the city was a location where displaced refugees of the First Interstellar War resided. This district was formerly known as the Suo District, named after the Sol Alliance admiral Wen Suo, however, this district was renamed after the Republic Navy Admiral Zheng Jie who grew up in this district following independence. Despite its patriotic name pro-Solarian sentiment is high the Jie District, which often feels abandoned by the Republic of Biesel in general.
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| </div></div>
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| ==Other Major Cities==
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| '''Cape City:''' Otherwise known as the “City of Splendor” by many Biesellites, is a city focused heavily on entertainment, production of holovids, and exorbitant tourist attractions. Situated around and on the side of Mount Nevermeet in the midst of the Cape Sea, the entertainment centre sits comfortably by scenic vistas, large themed resorts, and studios for filming and recording. However, due to unique labor laws, it has gained a bad reputation among non-humans for being exploitative and predatory in their practices. Any xenos looking to gain entry into fields like animation, studio production, acting, and the like face harsh stereotypes and discrimination, poorer qualities of living, and shop and drop contracts (hiring someone, forcing them to work an unusually high amount of hours a week, then “dropping” them if they protest or request different hours after a short period contract expires). Nonetheless, Cape City is on the up-and-up, and only time will tell its rise to the intergalactic stage as a media giant or not.
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| '''Phoenixport:''' In a similar way to Mendell City, Selene's capital, Phoenixport, is located along the inner coast of its continent along Severson's Rift. After rebranding as a "successor" to Mendell City, the city gained prominence and briefly achieved its goal. Phoenixport was briefly successful, but fell off the radar and eventually became a breeding ground for nefarious behaviour. In another effort to revive interest in the city, government officials introduced replicas of various ancient architectural wonders. Examples include the Eiffel Tower and the Parthenon. Overall, the construction scheme did improve the quality of the city and even attracted large numbers of tourists eager to see the wonders rebuilt far from the dire conditions on Earth. [[KING_OF_THE_WORLD#LANDMARK_COURT_DECISION_SEES_EINSTEIN_ENGINES_DEFEAT_NANOTRASEN!|In late 2462]], Phoenixport was acquired by [[Einstein Engines]] in a landmark auction. [[NanoTrasen]], however, did not take the transfer of ownership idly - any NanoTrasen employees within Phoenixport were given until March of 2463 to relocate or be summarily fired. After an appeal by NanoTrasen in 2464, which proved that Einstein Engines had illegally acquired assets within Phoenixport, much of the corporate assets found themselves up for grabs yet again. Despite assistance from [[Idris Incorporated]], NanoTrasen failed to secure a majority holding within Phoenixport, with Einstein Engines continuing its hegemony over the city. Subsequently, the discrimination faced by those in Phoenixport by local law enforcement has decreased significantly, as well as the "random" searches of Phoenixport-flagged spacecraft. Some of those forced from their homes during the original dispute have since begun to slowly return.
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| '''Belle Cote:''' Situated at the southernmost edge of the Pandeia Penisula, hedged in by the Greatkrag ranges, Belle Cote is considered Biesel’s centre of finance, fashion and arts. The Selenian Moth, an insect that produces a resilient fibre that is common in textile manufacturing, was discovered by colonists early on in the development of the colony. A result of this discovery was the rapid decline of fishing and the emergence of the fashion industry. With an annual show, Belle Cote pushed the boundaries of fashion vogue and still does so to this day. Those living in Belle Cote are often considered to be a bit stuck up, looking down on others who don't keep up to date with their trendy outlandish trends. Even the poorest dress themselves in their eccentric styles. It is a popular honeymoon and wedding destination, which the artisanal community has begun franchising upon.
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| '''Ashton:''' In the heart of Selene, Ashton sits among miles of rolling farmlands that are home to dozens of different species of flora, including some that are native to Biesel. Due to its dominant agricultural industry, the community's economy has become centred on agriculture, as illustrated by its bimonthly Ashton farmer's market, which draws residents from surrounding cities alike and has become a cornerstone of the community's economy. As a whole, Ashtons are noted for being incredibly welcoming and cheerful. In recent years, Ashton has become home to [[Unathi_Abroad#Ashton_-_The_Escapees|a significant Unathi diaspora]], as many refugees from [[the Wasteland]] of [[Moghes]] were resettled there.
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| '''Scottsdan:''' The continental capital of Eos and the industrial giant of Biesel. Its abundance of raw resources, provided by the Sevul Range, and the refinery processing capabilities has resulted in megacorporations expanding their operations within the city. There is a growing robotics industry, with Hephaestus Industries, Confiance Technologies and Terranius Diagnostics locked in a perpetual war of dominance. Most of the goods produced within Scottsdan are transported via monorails designed to carry freight to Ports-Ville, the closest port to both Mendell City and Phoenixport on Eos. Citizens of Scottsdan are remarkably hard-working according to the megacorporations, however, some prefer to call them stuck up doormats due to their snooty, sycophant tendencies.
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| '''Top of the World:''' Previously a sleepy town, Lakeside has now shot to prominence after Miranda Trasen herself funded the borough. Several acreages along the coast of Griff's Lake were cleared to construct a gated community floating along the lake, with many of the original residents of Lakeside offered contracts to move to Ashton, New Marfa, or Mendell to make room for roads, parking lots, and bridges to the community.
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| Now, Top of the World is uniquely populated by those who are gifted access by Miranda Trasen herself, or those able to afford the ridiculously expensive “warranty”. Only the highest of echelons exist within the man-made island. Beneath its surface exists an experimental fusion reactor of unprecedented scale that some residents have accused of being dangerously radioactive, though authorities assure residents there is no danger found in its proximity to Lakeside.
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| Prior to 2463, an entire community of positronics was manufactured by NanoTrasen that existed purely to maintain Top of the World. After 2463, these IPCs have been made obsolete after the introduction of a triumvirate of artificial intelligences; Exteriores, Interiorem and Centrum. They coordinate with an array of bound drones, completing the tasks previously assigned to hundreds of independent positronic bodies, a cost-saving measure compared to aging IPCs. Said IPCs were quickly placed into other jobs or positions within NanoTrasen, typically far more dangerous than the previous maintenance and janitorial duties.
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| The quality of life between Top of the World and Lakeside is stark. Poverty grips the majority of the population nestled within the backwater town. Dilapidated houses are a common sight within Lakeside, even entire houses sunken into the growing marsh.
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| '''Ports-Ville:''' Ports-Ville was originally established as a fishing and shipbuilding hub when Biesel was originally settled. For decades, the city was prosperous, supplying the planet with massive cargo ships to traverse its great blue oceans. After Biesel’s independence from the Alliance, however, Solarian subsidies for the industry disappeared and NanoTrasen found that shipbuilding was now cost-inefficient due to the continuing decrease of shipping goods by shuttle or spacecraft. The company withdrew most of its investment in the city’s heavy industry nearly overnight, causing the local economy to recede and the city itself to gradually decay into a patchwork of run-down apartment blocks, abandoned shipyards, and fishing ports in desperate need of maintenance.
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| Recently, however, [[Hephaestus Industries]] has brought up much of these abandoned facilities with hopes of retooling the city into a spaceship production centre on Biesel. This has also coincided with the megacorporation inviting many Martian refugees fleeing from the [[Mars#The Violet Dawn Explosion|Violet Dawn disaster]] to resettle in the city to work at these new facilities. Ports-Ville itself is unprepared for this great migration of people and is in the middle of a severe housing shortage, with many new arrivals finding themselves living in makeshift tent-town camps as a result. It is yet to be seen if this new investment by Hephaestus Industries will pay off and revitalise the city once more, as the influx of Martian refugees has so far only continued to strain the city’s already declining economy.
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| '''New Marfa:''' Established along the eastern coastline of Eos, New Marfa is one of few cities on Biesel without megacorporate dominance, which is largely attributed to its status as a hub for [[Republic of Elyra|Elyran]] migrants; half if not most of the citizens are either Elyran immigrants and expatriates or directly descended from one. Elyran culture is dominant in the city, to the point that at a glance, it has become nearly indistinguishable from a city in Persepolis. Elyran megacorporations retain a minority over the market with the SCC megacorporations, and the competition has led to a flourishing synthetic development sector. With a thriving glass refining industry and healthy technology sector, New Marfa’s advancements in the fields of robotics are said to be at least a year ahead of everything else on Biesel.
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| '''Craterview:''' Craterview has managed to become the vacation and resort city of the Republic of Biesel, with large [[Idris Incorporated|Idris]] Hotels lining the interior perimeter of the beaches and small family-run motels dotting the plots of land surrounding the beaches. Crime rates soar the farther one strays from the city centre, as locals defraud and steal from tourists drawn to their slice of Biesel. Other than the tourism industry, the fishing industry also does well, leading to a growing presence of local seafood hibachi restaurants. In addition to year-round sunshine and tropical climate, Craterview is occasionally interrupted by tropical storms. It is no wonder that boat races have become an attraction, even becoming an event for betting. In the rich suburbs, marinas line beachfront estates where [[Eridani Federation Military|Eridani Private Military Contractors]] are often spotted. It is well known that residents of Craterview are both competitive and sceptical of the wealthy.
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| {{Navbox Human Lore}}
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| {{Navbox Lore}} | | {{Navbox Lore}} |
| | | [[Category:Corporations]] |
| [[Category:Pages]] | | [[Category:Pages]] |
| [[Category:Planets and Systems]]
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| [[Category:Humanity]]
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| Stellar Corporate Conglomerate
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| Slogan |
The unbreakable chainlink, holding the Spur together.
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| Headquarters |
Unknown
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| Chief Executive Officer |
Miranda Trasen
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| Official Languages |
Tau Ceti Basic, Sol Common, Tradeband
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| Official Colours |
Navy blue (#336699), cyan
(#81d9ee), gold (#f1b61c)
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| Founded |
2458 (unofficially), 2462 (officially)
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| Founder |
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| Operating Region |
|
This is the page for the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate, the organization the players work for. This contains very important setting information.
Formerly, the players worked for solely NanoTrasen - while this is technically true to an extent, still, this sentence is an open request to all wiki readers to report inconsistencies in this matter, to wiki/lore development for gameplay pages/lore pages respectively.
Formed at the height of corporate power in the galaxy, the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate — unofficially known as the “Chainlink” due to its emblem —is a group exercising undisputed economic dominance over the Orion Spur. The Chainlink was founded to secure privately owned assets within Tau Ceti owned by the various megacorporations during the Solarian incursion by Grand Admiral Raymond Özdemir, who commanded the 35th Fleet of the Solarian Navy during its siege of the Republic of Biesel.
The Chainlink has essentially forced the largest economic influences into a corporation, with which the Trasen family holds an unsteady authority over. Though cooperation has been deemed “essential” at this point in time, the shaky peace still finds itself littered with cut-throat, espionage-ridden affairs as each megacorporation attempts to place itself on top. Though, their unlikely alliance comes as a result of Einstein Engines’ threat to their economic prowess, where the first trans-stellar corporation has maintained dominance within some of more influential sovereign states such as the Nralakk Federation and the Solarian Alliance.
Noteworthy members
- Titanius Aeson, Hephaestus CEO
- Alex Mason, Idris CEO
- Liqin Hsiao-Li, Zeng-Hu CEO
- Lyudmila Zavodskoi, Zavodskoi CEO
- Kubra Mobolaji, PMCG CEO
- Chin-hae Hong, Orion Express CEO
Corporate Affairs
History
Though once shrouded in secrecy, the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate has become a staple of the Orion Spur, essentially acting as the puppet masters of the interstellar economy. With the earliest dated supply shipments being traced to 2458 – it appears that the constituent megacorporations within the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate have sought to cooperate with one another to ensure their economic dominance since the First Solarian Invasion of the Republic of Biesel; though within the shadows. Almost every element of the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate had been hidden and concealed from the greater public, and more so from the scrutiny of those uncovering secrets that the most powerful individuals in the Orion Spur preferred to not yet be revealed.
However, following the Second Solarian Invasion of the Republic of Biesel in 2462, the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate revealed themselves to the interstellar community at large; proclaiming their goal was to protect the financial livelihood of all their corporate clients and assets, and to ensure their facilities across the Republic of Biesel would not be diminished as a result of “rogue actors” – similar in circumstances to their original founding, after Admiral Michael Frost’s incursion into their profits.
Since its reveal, the Chainlink has gone on to ensure its dominance through several masterful techniques – mostly centring around the Corporate Reconstruction Zone; or the annexed Solarian territories by the Republic of Biesel. Pouring countless resources into stabilizing the region so as to further exploit it, the Chainlink has all but managed to prop the annexation as a legal undertaking of colonies abandoned by the Solarian Alliance during the Collapse. Though, their efforts have not gone without resistance, in particular, the Republic of Mictlan has proven to be rather ungrateful for the Chainlink’s efforts to uplift them. Sponsoring the Peacekeeper Mandate - a Biesellite military operation that aims to enforce their annexation, regardless of what the local inhabitants think - the Chainlink has managed to quell the majority of the Republic of Mictlan’s more unsavoury elements, though there still exists significant unrest across the eastern hemisphere of the planet.
Miranda Trasen maintains her dominance of the Orion Spur through her manoeuvring into the Director of the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate; using her position to propel NanoTrasen interests to the dismay of the other constituent megacorporations. However, will this be the unravelling of the economic, and political entity that has so far been successful in their subjugation of the interstellar community, has not yet been revealed, but perhaps events in the future may change this.
Influence
The sheer size of the co-operating corporation’s influence, now tightly bound by their public front of allegiance to one another, is enough to sway many of the powers on the interstellar stage – while some of the larger political entities retain some measure of independence, they still ultimately rely on the constituent members of the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate for their respective niches within the interstellar economy. Despite attempts by the Solarian Alliance to keep megacorporations in check; they’ve merely facilitated a deal with the devil, exchanging their reliance on the Chainlink instead for Einstein Engines.
The Chainlink, through its member companies and their cooperation, has domination of several economies within the Orion Spur. From banks to manufacturers, only a sliver of economic productivity in the Spur is controlled by others, the main threat to the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate being Einstein Engines. Despite the power of the Chainlink, Einstein has managed to remain competitive against them through tight ties with the Solarian Alliance and Nrralakk Federation, both the largest economies to exploit. As one of the eldest megacorporations, Einstein Engines has maintained a constant throughout humanity's journey to the stars, the consequences it wrought.
However, as the alliance grows older, it can be seen that the constituent megacorporations seek their own power; desiring to diminish NanoTrasen’s domination of influence over their affairs, so far. Conducting themselves in a manner to not directly oppose NanoTrasen, the various other megacorporations have begun leveraging their economic influence on nations; in particular, as seen with Hephaestus Industries’ planned expansion across Moghes. Yet another example is Idris Incorporated’s leveraging credit provided to NanoTrasen during its attempt to recapture control of Phoenixport.
Agendas and Advertising
It is without a doubt that each and every constituent megacorporation has their own agendas with how the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate should operate, and most definitively to their own benefit. Though employees may find themselves “employed” by the Conglomerate, in reality they find themselves on long-term contracting agreements, still maintaining some ties to their original megacorporation, such as a Research Director from Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals would still remain employed by the megacorporation, even if technically they are contracted to the Conglomerate.
Zeng-Hu seeks to combine the innovation of the megacorporations to its own benefit, creating technology that many play off as being fantastical. Though with the inception of the Conglomerate, the megacorporation has certainly benefitted from the shared technological ties to certain industries, it still seeks to ensure its technological edge through careful manipulation of its patents and intellectual property: ensuring it stakes its claim before anyone else when it comes to discovery and innovation.
NanoTrasen seeks to maintain the status quo of them being the dominant megacorporation, subverting the influence held by the combined might of the megacorporations to its own benefit, and will go to great lengths to ensure they remain on top – even so far as to diminish the Conglomerate’s influence to ensure their own is maintained. The Trasen’s openly claim that NanoTrasen will remain the most influential megacorporation, with Miranda clinging to her position as Acting Director to maintain the illusion that the corporation shall forever remain in the spotlight. Though the phoronics industry seems to be dwindling, the corporation seeks to expand its foothold in other industries that it enjoys sizeable market domination within.
Conflict pays, and it pays well. The Private Military Contracting Group knows such very well. Ensuring a strong hand through amassing military-grade technology and fleets capable of assisting even the strongest actors on the interstellar stage is merely one element of their agenda, the other being reliance on the Conglomerate – indirectly the Private Military Contracting Group – to maintain stability within their borders, and even outside of them. Mercenary work is one of the oldest careers and simply one of the most profitable. The Group maintains the Conglomerate should broaden its capabilities to fight, routinely citing the need for such when referring to the Second Solarian Incursion of Biesel.
Though not so obvious as the other megacorporations, the Orion Express sees the future of the economy relying on its ability to provide delivery, both with goods and with the services it would offer to nations – in particular, growing the reliance of these nations to the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate to ensure that their removal would be too costly, with far too many drawbacks to the interstellar economy, so that a similar body to the Solarian Corporate Authority could not deny their vitality. By any means necessary, Orion Express attempts to leverage influence within the Republic of Biesel, even where it means causing drifts with the other megacorporations who rely on it to supply them with much-needed resources and equipment, which it knows keenly.
Hephaestus Industries, the manufacturing giant of the Spur, wishes to merely expand its foothold within its existing industries – terraforming, spacecraft construction, integrated positronic chassis manufacturing, resource extraction and lastly engine development. Similarly to Zeng-Hu, it seeks to combine the brightest minds within the Conglomerate to get a technological advantage, but with particular application to help its existing monopolies as opposed to Zeng-Hu’s broader wishes. The future resides within the furnaces of Hephaestus Industries, and Titanius Aeson seeks to ensure the interstellar stage knows it. Even with the damage wrought by the Solarian Corporate Authority, Hephaestus Industries seeks to ensure they remain in steady competition with Einstein Engines, and that the Conglomerate can only truly reach its potential when its bankrupted.
Though the Solarian Corporate Authority saw it fit to revoke some of the megacorporation’s presence within the Solarian Alliance, Zavodskoi Interstellar still seeks to maintain strong ties. Majority of their footholds, outside of Dominia, flourish within the now NanoTrasen-free Solarian Alliance and are likely to keep growing if the megacorporation can maintain an amiable relationship with the nation. Though Zavodskoi Interstellar agrees with the Private Military Contracting Group’s own agenda, and sometimes even contributes to its growth within the Conglomerate, it ultimately believes that the Conglomerate should remain “neutral” in the face of interstellar conflict, and profit from the lucrative opportunities that arise from playing both sides.
Money ensures the cogs of the machines are well-oiled, and who better to oversee the economic affairs of the Spur than Idris Incorporated and its CEO, Alex Mason. Leveraging the corporation’s extensive ties and financial resources, Idris Incorporated seeks to in-debt the entirety of the Spur with its profitable foresight – extending loans, and ensuring a healthy supply of Idris Reclamation Units into the market to ensure liability is kept to a minimum. Though it enjoys a sizeable foothold within the service industry, Idris Incorporated’s true agenda lies wherever the money leads.
Corporate Oversight
Though the “cooperation” of the megacorporations has proven to be beneficial, it is still common practice to poach workers from one another, and leak more classified information during these employee transfers, an attempt to combat these methods, the Chainlink has formalised a third-party oversight agency that acts independently of the other megacorporations. Commonly referred to as the Chainlink’s enforcers, the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate Internal Affairs Agency has become notorious for its handling of those against the megacorporate agenda. Agents have widespread authority to disable any potential threats to the corporations through the soul-crushing bureaucracy, in particular through their knowledge of corporate regulations and laws that act as a powerful weapon against any that stand in their way.
However, outside of the Stellar Corporate Conglomerate Internal Affairs Agency, much of the existing corporate oversight from the various constituent megacorporations has remained untouched, remaining as it was prior to the Chainlink’s formation. Despite this some agencies have been incorporated into the greater Stellar Corporate Conglomerate, operating as Human Resources. The Stellar Corporate Conglomerate Internal Affairs Agency are the corporate oversight, however, Human Resources are their legitimate investigative force in dealing with civil and criminal problems that might erupt across the various facilities within the Conglomerate.
Executives and Branches
The Chainlink is headed by the League of Chief Directors, from which ultimate authority is delegated to respective corporations. This League of Chief Directors is responsible for oversight of the entire Chainlink. Though, most of the lesser positions find themselves comprising mostly of former NanoTrasen employees, retained for their display of excellence during Miranda Trasen’s reign as Chief Executive Officer of NanoTrasen – though they have slowly become replaced through corporate restructuring, supported by all except NanoTrasen.
The Corporate Committee of Affairs – having only been founded in 2465 during the new financial year, though rather dull-sounding in name, attempts to off-set this imbalance by comprising of representatives placed by the other megacorporations; even vested with the power to determine the funding of the Chainlink, and ultimately veto the League of Chief Directors in a simple majority vote. Matters pertaining to the Chainlink’s operations are often overseen by direct subordinates of the League itself, who operate above the corporate employees and consist of major shareholders or high-ranking internal affairs.
