Star*Drive Saturday: Union of Sol

Last week it was the patriotic Thuldan Empire, now it is the:

UNION OF SOL

If you have pride of being from the birthplace of humanity, the diplomatic and trade center of the galaxy, and a preserver of ancient Earth culture, then you might be a Solar.

• Population: 1.8 Trillion Sentients
• Founding Year: 2312
• GW2 Alliance: Profit Confederation
• Capital World: Earth
• Dominant Faith: Old Earth faiths
• Notable Locations: Luculus System (Verge system, once a penal colony for the Solars, now gained independence. Allowed to base there as long as the Union recognizes their independence.)

The Union of Sol rests at the core of humanity. It remains the center for trade, diplomacy, and interstellar pursuits. Their history is the history of mankind. Until the 22nd century the history of man is the history of Earth. Even as mankind expanded and people were born and died outside of the Sol system everything fell under Earth's control. But as expansion went many more desired independence, so by 2250 the Terran Empire was formed, and practiced its might to regain control of the outlying settlers. They put down several rebellious colonies and their grip tightened. The Thuldan Empire was the first to claim independence in 2298 and fought back, sparking the First Galactic War. As the Terran Empire fought harder the separated, but united in cause, stellar nations fought back and eventually ended the war. It would have been sooner if the nations were more united but they were too busy bickering and infighting. But after 12 years the war ended with the Treaty of Earth, and the Terran Empires dissolution, being replace by the Union of Sol. During the Second Galactic War the Union decided to remain neutral to the conflicts between nations. But the Thuldan Empire was aggressively expanding and Solars knew Earth was next. They were forced to join the Profit Confederation for protection.

Solar economy is still healthy despite the 2 wars. Earth's location at the center of the stellar ring makes it a popular hub for trade and diplomacy, and they have adopted open-door policies to allow the free trade and international gatherings. The desire to serve as the galaxie's diplomats has made Solar relationship with the Galactic Concord difficult. They view the Treaty of Concord unnecessary. After all, the Union at the center of the stellar ring is perfectly capable of handling Concord's charter. This new upstart Concord they consider a subtle insult, and they rarely miss a chance to upstage a Concordan on issues of charity, policy, and governance.

With nearly 60 billion sentients on Earth alone, Solars are accustomed to overcrowded urban lifestyles. As the caretakers of Earth, Solars are surrounded by history, and only Solars truly appreciate their ties to the past. As a result they have aggressive and radical environmental goals, with strict nature preserves. The Solars themselves protect Earth's cultures. Many adopt lifestyles and fashions of lost ages, such as precolonial Aztecs, imperial Japan, independent Athens, or 17th century France. Since most Solars take part to some degree, almost every culture that ever was finds representation in the Union

Paraphrased from: David Eckleberry, and Richard Baker. Star*Drive Campaign Setting. Wizards of the Coast, Inc. P.O. Box 707 Renton, WA. 98057-0707: Wizards of the Coast / TSR, 1998.

Rogue Space Character Ideas
The richly diverse and well-developed Solar people benefit from a culture full of talented citizens unweakened by extreme specialization. This represents the diversity of the Solar people. A player may choose to be a Solar for his/her race (human only) during character creation. They gain an additional +1 to their chosen Background.

Historical Figures
One of the fun things about playing a Solar is their desire to represent ancient Earth cultures. This allows a player, no matter what career or background chosen, to dress and act like their favorite Earth culture or people. Some of the other stellar nations may find the notion of a modern warrior dressed in a kimono with a sword a little ridiculous, but the Solar knows the importance of following not only the style and function, but customs of his/her adopted people.. Here are only a few examples to glean from. You can still be knowledgeable with modern language and technology, but your outward aesthetic and mannerism can still replicate an Earth historical figure.

• Napoleonic Ship Captain
• Japanese Samurai Warrior
• Apache Indian Tracker
• Victorian Socialite
• Ancient Roman Soldier
• American Cowboy Trader
• Medieval Feudal Knight
• Taoist Monk
• African Tribal Shaman
• Viking Raider

I would be interested in seeing some other ideas you guys may have for future space player characters modeled after Earth historical figures.