History DarthWiki / RisingPowers

* FutureImperfect: Historians are somewhat... fuzzy... when it comes to pre-Imperial history. That said, [[SubvertedTrope they do get most things right]], they just can't find proper sourcing for most of the data, leaving them forced to add 'possibly mythical' qualifiers and the like to most things they say. That, and they avoid details as much as possible. To put it another way, [[GenreSavvy they are aware of this trope, know they would almost certainly fall under it, and take steps to avert it as much as is reasonably possible]].

Rising Powers is planned to be a [[GameMod universe conversion]] for [[EscapeVelocity Escape Velocity Nova]]. Being made by [[TheContributors some random guy calling himself LordInsane]], ''Rising Powers'' promises a mostly StandardSciFiSetting, with a few [[SubvertedTrope subversions]] and [[AvertedTrope aversions]] thrown in... generally stock ones, of course.

[[TheFuture A hundred thousand years later, humanity invents the Hyperdrive]]. For [[HumansAreSpecial some reason]], humanity somehow ended up developing the 'drive comparatively early in their technological development, leading to an initial burst of expansion (later called 'the First Expansion') followed by a period categorised more by the steady growth of the already established colonies than of further colonisation. That, and the establishment of the Terran Empire, a [[TheFederation federal constitutional parliamentary monarchy]]. Relatively soon after the Empire's establishment, [[HumansAreSpecial humans are special again]], and invent the [[PortalNetwork Slipstream Gate]]. A Second Expansion begins, humanity spreads farther out, and for three millenia the Empire stands as the safeguard of peace, prosperity and good governance. Then it breaks down in a slow, drawn-out [[EndOfAnAge Imperial Fall]], with the Empire's descent into being a VestigialEmpire mirrored by a descent into being, well, TheEmpire, as increasingly harsher methods are resorted to in increasingly desperate attempts to bring the wayward governors and outlying regions and the warring factions under control. In the end, the Emperors are forced to flee from Earth, a [[AlternateCalendar new calendar]], dating from that 'Imperial Flight' becomes widespread, Earth's [[SingleBiomePlanet ecumenopolis]] is gradually scavenged into a number of scattered 'mere' megacities, and the dominant state of government is the planet-state. But nothing lasts forever, for soon polities begin to consolidate, and as the [[TheEmpire Terran Unity]] arises to the East, in what was once Forerunner space, the South begins to gather together, becoming dominated by five great Powers, and the Core Worlds begin to wonder if maybe it would be a good idea to get together, after all. The Last Emperor manages to exploit his nominal status into forming a republican [[TheFederation Commonwealth]] of the more unification-enthusiastic Core Worlds, in exchange for abdicating, which leads to other Core Worlds falling under increased pressure to join (because a) the Commonwealth was good at hunting pirates, and b) pirates therefore raided systems not part of the Commonwealth more often). The Southern powers [[AlternateCharacterInterpretation interprets]] that as a first step towards recreating TheEmpire, and the five greatest Powers lead the formation of a [[TheAlliance League]], becoming the dominant Council Powers thereof. As the game begins, the year is 327, half a century after the Commonwealth's establishment, and the unstable balance of power between these [[TitleDrop Rising Powers]] is about to break down...

The backstory begins sometime in the past. Two great species, later called the {{Precursors}} and the [[{{Precursors}} Forerunners]], arise, spread their influence for millenia after inventing the [[FTLTravel Hyperdrive]]... and then they meet each other.
[[ItGotWorse They couldn't stand each other]]. War soon ravaged Local Space, ending in a mutually destructive exchange when the Forerunners deploys a weapon that warps space-time and the remnants of the Precursors respond by a species-wide TakingYouWithMe and unleashes a pathogen that kills off the Forerunners and the last Precursors, leaving only a few scattered ruins (thinnest around Earth, as the main front of the war went in that general region) and wierd... [[BuffySpeak ship-pod-thingies]] in the West.

[[TheFuture A hundred thousand years later, humanity invents the Hyperdrive]]. For [[HumansAreSpecial some reason]], humanity somehow ended up developing the 'drive comparatively early in their technological development, leading to an initial burst of expansion (later called 'the First Expansion') followed by a period categorised more by the steady growth of the already established colonies than of further colonisation. That, and the establishment of the Terran Empire, a [[TheFederation federal constitutional parliamentary monarchy]]. Relatively soon after the Empire's establishment, [[HumansAreSpecial humans are special again]], and invent the [[PortalNetwork Slipstream Gate]]. A Second Expansion begins, humanity spreads farther out, and for three millenia the Empire stands as the safeguard of peace, prosperity and good governance. Then it breaks down in a slow, drawn-out [[{{Gotterdammerung}} Imperial Fall]], with the Empire's descent into being a VestigialEmpire mirrored by a descent into being, well, TheEmpire, as increasingly harsher methods are resorted to in increasingly desperate attempts to bring the wayward governors and outlying regions and the warring factions under control. In the end, the Emperors are forced to flee from Earth, a [[AlternateCalendar new calendar]], dating from that 'Imperial Flight' becomes widespread, Earth's [[SingleBiomePlanet ecumenopolis]] is gradually scavenged into a number of scattered 'mere' megacities, and the dominant state of government is the planet-state. But nothing lasts forever, for soon polities begin to consolidate, and as the [[TheEmpire Terran Unity]] arises to the East, in what was once Forerunner space, the South begins to gather together, becoming dominated by five great Powers, and the Core Worlds begin to wonder if maybe it would be a good idea to get together, after all. The Last Emperor manages to exploit his nominal status into forming a republican [[TheFederation Commonwealth]] of the more unification-enthusiastic Core Worlds, in exchange for abdicating, which leads to other Core Worlds falling under increased pressure to join (because a) the Commonwealth was good at hunting pirates, and b) pirates therefore raided systems not part of the Commonwealth more often). The Southern powers [[AlternateCharacterInterpretation interprets]] that as a first step towards recreating TheEmpire, and the five greatest Powers lead the formation of a [[TheAlliance League]], becoming the dominant Council Powers thereof. As the game begins, the year is 327, half a century after the Commonwealth's establishment, and the unstable balance of power between these [[TitleDrop Rising Powers]] is about to break down...

* UnitedSpaceOfAmerica: The Commonwealth is a democratic federal bicameral republic with a President, where the two chambers of the parliament represents the People and the constituent Worlds, respectively. [[SubvertedTrope Then again, it is also a parliamentary state with a nearly powerless President, a fairly important Prime Minister, and the balance of power of the two Chambers of Parliament being very much in favour of the Popular Assembly over the Council of Worlds]]. [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Also, the CAF never names its ships and vessels after persons or places]].