Colorado Baronies

The Colorado Baronies are a loose collective of settlements on the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains in what was once Wyoming, Colorado and Nebraska. The largest and most advanced of these (both technologically and magically) is the Barony of Hope. The other major Baronies are Testament, Charity, and Wilmington, with several smaller independent settlements scattered about who claim no allegiance to the baronies above.
While the Colorado Baronies enjoy a semblance of a mutual defense agreement, the Baronies are very much independent and share no common governance.

Structure

The Colorado Baronies are organized around Feudal lines. The Barons being the lords of their domain, their seats being in their respective, fortified, capital cities. The other cities in the baronies are actually just collected settlements within close proximity to to fortresses. Like any feudal society, there is typically posturing and some minor in-fighting among the vassals. This is the reason there are four baronies instead of just one; since Testament, Wilmington and Charity were all once under the Barony of Hope.

Assets

Each Barony has its own "Logo," which is the Rifts Earth equivalent of a 'coat of arms.' The leaders of the vassal cities also use their own logos. The end result is units of soldiers identified by the colors they wear and the logos they display.

	Barony of Hope is the first, largest, and most advanced Barony.
	Barony of Testament is a barony run by ranchers. Their stubborn independence and rugged determination enable them to succeed raising traditional cattle and all manner of livestock.
	The Wilmington Barony is formed in the fertile valleys of the Platte River. Primarily focused on farming and agriculture, this Barony has been hardened by defending against constant and repeated Simvan attacks.
	Barony of Charity does not quite live up to its name. Run by teamsters, it sits on one of the most traversable passes across the Rocky Mountains.

Technological Level

If one wanted to describe the technology of the Colorado Baronies today, the simplest descriptor would be Steam Punk with Magic. Technowizardy is common, so fantastical inventions abound. There are no relics from the Golden Age of Man, however, so all the scientific advances have been homegrown over the past three hundred years. This technology has been aided by discoveries of unearthed knowledge from the Golden Age of Man, but without the actual physical infrastructure, that knowledge still far outstrips man's ability to build it.
Even something as simple as a vacuum chamber was recently heralded as a groundbreaking achievement, making possible things like electric light bulbs for instance.
But man is catching up. And with the infusion of technowizardry and the assistance of psionic and arcane practitioners, the Colorado Baronies are advancing in leaps and bounds.
Aside from this, the Colorado Baronies are also awash in imported goods of high technology. Things such as advanced megadamage weaponry, armor, vehicles and medical kits are available; as are batteries and battery-powered gadgets and games.

Type

Political, Confederation

Currency

The presence of the Denver Mint has allowed the Colorado Baronies the ability to stamp their own currency. It took several generations of tinkerers and Technowizards to get the old mint up and running again and it is completely unrecognizable anymore, but its purpose remains the same: Stamp coins and print money.
The Colorado Baronies have their own currency called the Dollar. The dollar exists in both paper and hard coinage. The paper money is backed by gold and silver held by Baron Joseph Midgard in the Barony of Hope's treasury.
Because of this, they will only print as much money as they have reserves to back it. And because of this, bartering and exchange are still common means of conducting trade and commerce.
The four Baronies together determine how much money to place into the treasury reserve and how to divvy up the money. It is done in a monthly meeting of their respective finance advisors.

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Subsidiary Organizations

• Barony of Charity
• Barony of Hope
• Barony of Testament
• The Wilmington Barony

Neighboring Nations

• Pawnee