New Draconian Technocracy
The New Draconian Technocracy, commonly known as The Technocracy, is an oligarchical, technocratic, scientific directorate neighboring the Black March, Greater Prospect and the United Terran Federation. The entirety of the faction consists of just under 4 billion individuals spanning over 4 systems, making it the second-smallest country by system count and population. The most populous colony and political capital of the country is Arkas, though its economic capital is informally considered to be Fenrir.
The Technocracy started life as a minor rebel force based in the outskirts of the Inception prefecture on Arkas in the early 12230s. Illija Tykas' arrival in 12242 formalised the Technocracy's collective identity and under her command, the Technocracy began to seize and informally annex large portions of Arkas. By 12244, the Technocracy became the single largest rebel force to the Eldership of the Drak, and by 12251, would have taken over the two formerly neutral planetary colonies of Panlong and Fenrir. Despite its gains, the Technocracy was only recognised abroad as a terrorist cell, with seized territory being viewed as illegally annexed.
The highly destructive civil war that ensued caused tens of millions of deaths, and displaced millions more. The Technocracy was poised to eradicate the Eldership government until the Fire in the Skies Incident in 12252 caused a temporary foreign intervention from the International Federation of 3 to enforce a de-facto ceasefire. During this time, the Technocracy were able to reconsolidate the troops on Arkas and establish a solid manufacturing base on Fenrir. At the same time, with dwindling support and a devastated economy, the Eldership was barely capable of mounting a capable resistance.
By 12271, the last remaining IF3 peacekeepers quietly withdrew from Arkas prompting a Technocracy assault on the remaining Eldership-held areas on Arkas. The Eldership capitulated within months and its dissolution finally forced foreign states to recognise the Technocracy as a legitimate power. Shortly after the seizure, the new Technocracy government pursued a suite of aggressive economic reforms to rebuild damaged Arkasian infrastructure and to accelerate economic growth. Though hampered by occassional attack by those still loyal to the former Eldership regime, the Technocracy witness an unprecedented post-war boom which catapulted the Technocracy into the position of a prominent regional power.
The New Draconian Technocracy is a regional power and developed economy. Its economy is ranked seventh-largest by nominal GDP, and rated "very high" on the development index. It has one of the smallest militaries, and has experienced social instability and terrorist attacks from Eldership loyalists as a result. It has the highest literacy rate of any country, and is a global leader in science and technology. The culture of the Technocracy is gaining traction, and the native Tau Principlist movement/religion has practitioners from around the galaxy.
History
Formation of Rebellion
Main Article: Draconian Civil War
The earliest forms of the Technocracy coalesced as early as 12242, at the same time as the 4th stage of the Draconian Enlightenment. Computers and internet were being introduced to dragonkind. A disenchanted Illija Tykas, having just graduated from Serpens Fork Political University, sought to capitalize on the dispersion of internet. Tykas used a large number of web forums to distribute a self-written manifesto about the merits of a meritocratic government, as well as encouraging discontent citizens to target government officials and buildings. Tykas' theoretical government grew popular among the increasingly educated Draconian middle-class and the Technocracy rebellion began to grow in prominence. Aggressive counterterrorism measures enacted by the Eldership, combined with the communication lag due to Tykas' physical distance to Arkas caused the rebellion's ability to conduct subversive operations to rapidly plateau in the latter months of 12242.
In the first half of 12243, Illija Tykas herself, along with a number of loyal military tacticians, smuggled themselves into Arkas. Tykas directed these tacticians to corral and lead the disorganized revolutionaries. The meritocratic appointment of qualified personnel in the movement, and the subsequent military successes on the Arkasian planet-side, would cement the Technocracy's political power and subsequent successes positively affirmed the style of leadership. Public success often drew the attention of other breakaways, who often peaceably merged with Technocracy movement. By 12244, most of the opposition movements on Arkas had amalgamated with Tykas' Technocracy. The unification of the disparate rebellion groups alarmed then-incumbent Elder Odhenglong, who declared a martial law and began to deploy the Imperial Dragoons across Tatsu Park. The dragoons were able to repel further advances by the Technocracy rebellion and casualties began to steadily climb. Tykas would go missing at around this time, with rumors circulating about her possible assassination. Tykas' disappearance and the deployment of the Eldership's elite troops undermined the rebellion's morale. In 12246, revolutionaries occupying both the Bastion prefectures surrendered after the assassination of archon quaternary Zexh'be. The remaining 9,458 of the regiment were captured, most of which were later tried and executed for treason. This would proceed to be the largest defeat and loss in Technocracy history. News of the Eldership's ruthless executions began to circulate and the knowledge that surrender would likely lead to certain death ironically improved Technocracy troop morale. Attrition began to wear away at the ground-based troops and caused both sides to come to a stalemate for the next several standard cycles.
In 12249, a contingent of 3 unknown corvettes claiming to be part of the Technocracy exited jump over the orbit of Panlong. One 'Commodore Ishioka' then contacted the planetary administration and demanded that they pledge allegiance to the Technocracy or the colony would be subject to a saturation bombing. Panlong's administrators complied, and freighters bearing Conglomerate registrations would later seize any military materiel from the impoverished colony. The corvettes were later identified as an import model of the UTF's Foxhound-class corvette, which were not commonly used by the Conglomerate. Neither the Technocracy nor the Conglomerate have claimed responsibility for the racketeering, and both factions deny any involvement in the incident. 'Commodore Ishioka' was never found and was most certainly a pseudonym. Despite the severity of the incident, the Panlong administration today continues to consider itself as a part of the Technocracy since the incident.
Tykas would finally reappear in the public light in 12251, when she negotiated the entrance of the then-independent colony of Fenrir into the Technocracy. The process was more formal and peaceful, having been mediated by Black March ambassador Hans Bluewing. The appearance of a Black March official in negotiations with what was officially considered an insurrectionist force outraged the United Terran Federation. UTF diplomats argued that Fenrir's productive capacity could now be weaponized by the Technocracy, prolonging the civil conflict that the IF3 had been trying to stifle. Bluewing's appearance at the negotiations would mark the beginning of a divergence in the IF3's members' proposals in handling the civil conflict.
Escalation of the Draconian Civil War
The Eldership was shocked at Fenrir's sudden shift away from independence to join the Technocracy. In retaliation to Fenrir's perceived betrayal of neutrality, Elder Odhenglong ordered one of the Eldership's only two Bastion-class cruisers to form an orbital blockade over Fenrir. The cruiser would later be intercepted in outer Zenith system, by a fleet of approximately 6-12 unknown corvettes. This was the first appearance of the Technocracy's Stormhawk-class corvettes, and would mark the first time that a civil war was conducted in space. The Technocracy military administration were forced to deliberately obfuscate battle reports in order to continue keeping the existence of the corvettes a secret.
In the morning of the 10th of January, 12252, a shuttle claiming to be carrying three Technocracy diplomats docked with the Black March Delegation Base of Operations. Several minutes later, a series of explosions ripped across the starbase killing all 1,044 staff aboard, mainly Black March representatives. In response, the Black March actioned the Draconian Civil Intervention Initiative several months later, sending dropships to orbitally-drop 4 regiments of peacekeepers hailing from all three IF3 factions. The initiative forced a white peace upon both factions, with offenders disturbing the peace being arrested and extradited to face prosecution offworld. Furthermore, Arkas effectively became a puppet government for the IF3, who ordered the seizure of all armaments whilst also lifting martial law and withdrawing Imperial Dragoons.
Initially, the Draconian Civil Intervention Initiative was highly successful, with reported casualties plummeting in the first standard cycle. By the second standard cycle however, political rifts began to appear within the peacekeeping regiments, who began to increasingly view the intervention as an unjust occupation and began to defect. Though few defections had actually occurred, the later political unpopularity of the Initiative compelled the Black March to reneg on the initiative, and withdraw their two peacekeeper regiments. By 12259, the third standard cycle after the DCII, the worsening geopolitical situation between the NFI and the FLF would also compel the other two IF3 members to withdraw their peacekeeping forces. These forces were replaced with an undisclosed number of Coalition contractors, who were later bribed by both the Technocracy and Eldership to leave Arkas. Realizing their error, the UTF reassigned two peacekeeper regiments to Elijah's Landing, but by this point, fighting between the two factions had resumed in full. In addition, the IF3 space-naval blockade enforced by the UTF Auxiliary Fleet was lifted, allowing arms to be freely transported to Arkas and further exacerbating the severity of casulties on Arkas.
Eldership forces were not prepared to face Technocracy troops, who at this point became capable of fielding an array of VTOLs and armored vehicles to enhance their fighting ability, and by 12262, the capital of Arkas was the only area that remained unoccupied by Technocracy revolutionaries. Though the peacekeeper presence on Arkas was limited to just Elijah's Landing, the Technocracy's experience under the Draconian Civil Intervention Initiative made them fearful of another, potentially more damaging, reprisal from the UTF. As a result, the Technocracy withheld from seizing the capital, instead focusing on rebuilding destroyed infrastructure, and improving relations with the Black March.
Seizure of Power
On the morning of the 29th of April 12271, the United Terran Federation peacekeepers in Elijah's Landing quietly withdrew from the metropolis in order to respond to a rapidly devolving situation on Sekhmet. This Intel was passed on by an observer and later reached the Technocracy's military administration 11 hours later. In the early hours of the next day, 12 Stormhawk-class corvettes and 11 frigate-sized transports arrived in orbit over Arkas, with all transponder signs indicating Technocracy ownership. All transports jettisoned their cargo towards the Arkasian surface. In 3 minutes, over 100 regiments of Draconian orbital shock troopers, codenamed 'Seraphs', made landfall in Elijah's Landing. Despite the surprise advantage, Eldership forces were dug in, and it took 3 months longer than anticipated to liberate the city. By the 31st of August that same year, the last of Eldership presence was extinguished.
The coup was specifically launched at the same time that the Canid-Feli War worsened, with Tykas hoping that the larger conflict would draw the Federation's attention enough to allow her time to enact the coup. Tykas' predictions were correct, and despite the Eldership taking three months longer than previously estimated to capitulate, the IF3 did not diplomatically respond with embargoes until 12272.
Current Issues
Immediately after Tykas’ seizure of power, she reformed the administration to ensure the meritocratic process and eliminate bureaucratic inefficiencies. A large portion of low-priority low-security government processes were automated, most notably the introduction of the Adjudicator AI, with precepts to monitor transaction data in order to assist economic policymakers and law enforcement. The Aurum was also completely digitized to assist in this process, causing much controversy amongst the public. The new administration also directed Arkasian law enforcement to conduct mass arrests of political dissidents. Most would later be released, but those suspected of being Eldership loyalists would be prosecuted under new ‘social stability’ laws, and later sentenced to death. This would spark widespread condemnation from the galactic community and the Technocracy would face UTF sanctions the following year.
Naomi Silver was appointed head of the socio-economic administration in late 12271. Under her administration, the Technocracy instituted a number of substantial economic reforms to help the country recover from the civil war. The government provided large interest-free loans to businesses in order to fund reconstruction efforts on Arkas. Universal healthcare, welfare systems and free education were extended from Fenrir and established on Arkas and Panlong. Subsidies were provided to Fenrir’s businesses, in order to stimulate domestic trade. In 12272, the Technocracy signed a unilateral free trade agreement with the Coalition, in order to offset the impacts of the UTF sanctions. By the end of 12274, the Technocracy economy grew by almost 30%, with an estimated 450 million lifted out of poverty, and a homeless rate of <5%.
In early 12275, Eldership loyalists detonated 3 thermonuclear devices in major population centers on Fenrir, killing approximately 5-7 million people. In response, the socio-economic and military administration enacted martial law, with the former additionally ordering a crackdown on dissident activity. Social stability remains tenuous to this day, and emigration has sharply risen, raising concerns about capital flight and the Technocracy’s open-border policy.
Government and Politics
The New Draconian Technocracy is a technocracy, wherein technocrats (‘Administrators’), who possess specialized knowledge, are elected by certified specialists within the same field. These elected administrators wield executive power that gives legal recognition to the decision of the Council.
The Technocracy’s legislative organ is the Draconian Administrative Council. It comprises four divisions: the political division, military division, socio-economic division and scientific division. These divisions are then further divided into specialized subdivisions. It is these subdivisions that inspect and legislate upon the affairs of state that are relevant to that subdivision’ field of expertise (for instance, the agricultural subdivision would be concerned about passing legislation of farming subsidies). The right to vote, or be nominated for an administrator position, is restricted to individuals who have obtained a certified tertiary education in their specialized field. They are then only permitted to vote for administrators within their certified subdivision through preferential voting (e.g. a masters in physics would only be able to vote in the physics subdivision; scientific division). Those without tertiary education are forbidden from voting altogether. Because a division can technically legitimize its own legislation, newly passed laws are often colloquially referred to as decrees or diktats.
The judiciary is administered by the Draconian Court, who are appointed by the socio-economic administration. The Technocracy’s legal system is heavily influenced, and thus largely based upon, the Black March’s and United Terran Federation’s civil law systems. The Draconian constitution was promulgated in 12271, with no amendments forwarded since, making it the youngest constitution among the major factional powers.
Restrictions on the right to vote have been met with caution by its democratic neighbors. Particularly, Black March officials voice concerns about the “pragmatic and utilitarian nature of the government”, wherein minority rights of (particularly Reptilia) emigrants may be inadvertently subverted. However, despite a lack of universal suffrage and suffering from sporadic terrorism, the separation of powers between the administration and the judiciary has been sufficient to maintain functional stability.
Colonies and Prefectures
Main Article: Draconian Colonies and Draconian Prefectures
The Technocracy controls 3 colonies, within 4 star systems. Each colony is divided into a number of prefectures and each prefecture is overseen by a regional administrator.
Foreign Relations
The New Draconian Technocracy has not pledged allegiance to any major alliance. It does maintain positive relationships with both the Peace and Trade Coalition and the International Federation of 3, conducting trade with the former and maintaining open diplomatic channels with the latter. Thus, the Technocracy is widely internationally recognised as non-aligned. Additionally, the Technocracy has neither denounced nor supported either side of the Canid-Feli War. However, Eliza Kalizerad has openly speculated that the Technocracy implicitly supports the Feli Liberation Force.
The Technocracy historically and currently has close relations with the Black March, with which it maintains bilateral trade, immigration and foreign investment treaties. As of 12276, the Black March is the biggest market for Draconian imports, and likewise the Technocracy is a major importer of the Black March products. The Black March’s positive relations with the Technocracy have been a point of contention within the IF3, as the other two member states only partially acknowledge the Technocracy’s sovereignty over the former Eldership’s. Further, the UTF has cited that official recognition of the Technocracy rebellion could encourage more insurrection movements in other, already unstable countries. As such, the UTF imposed limited sanctions on the Technocracy in 12272.
The Technocracy also continues to extensively trade with members of the Peace and Trade Coalition, particularly with Greater Prospect. Trade with Greater Prospect predates the Technocracy’s seizure of power, and it is likely that Greater Prospect was responsible for the sale of most of the armaments used in the Draconian Civil War. Both countries continue to deny that such sales have ever occurred. Despite substantial trade volumes, friction stemming from perceived sentient right violations, such as religious supression and capital punishment, has strained relations in recent years.
Sociopolitical Issues and Sentient Rights
The Technocracy is one of few countries to continue issuing the death penalty as a punishment for severe crimes. In 12275, 152,183 executions were carried out, making the Technocracy the country with the most executions in the known galaxy. Summary executions, such as those carried out during the 12272 Arkasian riots, are also legalized albeit to a more limited degree. Greater Prospect and the Black March have criticized the use of capital punishment. Illija Tykas has stated her administration’s intentions to abolish capital punishment. In 12276, a bill has been drafted, but not yet passed.
Religious suppression is purportedly only conducted on practitioners of Anachronistic Animism, however there have been reported isolated incidents involving practitioners of other faiths. The Technocracy has denied suppressing any other faith than Anachronistic Animism, stating that anti-religious sentiment is a more likely a secondary effect of the initial bans. Nonetheless, UTF spokesperson Adrian Mugabe classified the religious suppression as a component of genocide, and it would later be cited as the main impetus for UTF sanctions in 12272.
Forced resettlements as a part of the 3-part economic reforms have also drawn criticism. The United Terran Federation considers it a civil rights violation and has used the Draconian resettlements as further justification for its sanctions. Conversely, Naomi Silver has stated that such resettlements were “necessary to shoring up the labor pool of a devastated Arkas”.
It has been argued by IF3 that the integration of artificial intelligence, and the complete digitisation of the Aurum by the Draconian government constitutes espionage against its own citizens. The Technocracy’s economic subdivision have continuously asserted that such surveillance is justified as it does not overreach into the personal lives of its citizens.
Military
Main Article: Draconian Defence Force
The Draconian Defence Force comprise the two divisions - the Draconian Space Force and Draconian Planetary Force, the former of which is further subdivided into the Ground Force Subdivision, the Air Force Subdivision and the Naval Force Subdivision, and total 80,000,000 regulars, making it the smallest military by personnel. The Draconian Defense Force is administered by the military administration, currently headed by Lazarus Ksou.
In 12275, in response to the Fenrir Bombing, the socio-economic administration re-assessed the threat posed by Eldership terrorists and raised the defense budget 16-fold to 3.2% of GDP, making it one of the largest defence budgets by percentage of GDP. The Technocracy is also partially involved in peacekeeping missions to the Canid-Feli War.
Domestic Law Enforcement
Domestic law enforcement is provided by the localised nation-state police, under the oversight of their respective planetary Civilian Overwatch and Protection Agency (COPA). The COPA itself is overseen by the socio-economic administration. The Adjudicator AI conducts surveillance for financial crime, in conjunction with specialized law enforcement officers. The Draconian Spaceport Authority strictly monitors imports and exports for trafficking of illegal goods and person(s).
Despite its post-war economic prosperity, the Technocracy continues to struggle with surging incidences in violent crime, primarily due to the lack of funding for police, factionalism induced by open-borders immigration and political aftershocks from the Draconian Civil War. After the Fenrir Bombing in 12275, the socio-economic and the military adminstration agreed upon, and co-announced a declaration of martial law across all Draconian space. Media broadcasts, such as that from the 0-P Channel, have also urged for Draconian contractors to voluntarily recall to Technocracy space to assist authorities.
Economy
According to the socio-economic administration’s estimates, the Technocracy’s nominal GDP is M̱117.9 billion, making it the third-smallest economy. From 12271 to 12276, the nominal annual GDP growth for the past 5 years has been a staggering 8.9%, the highest recorded rate of GDP country growth in the galaxy. As of 12276, the country also has a labor force approximating 1.75 billion. The Draconian Aurum is the national currency, one of few currencies still attached to a gold standard.
The Draconian government debt, is currently 191% of the country’s GDP, which mostly comprise of the debt package the socio-economic administration undertook as part of the 12271 economic reforms. The country’s government currently operates at a net surplus, and is expected to become debt free by two standard cycles. Despite the net surplus and generally positive economic outlook, the Technocracy credit rating has been severely damaged due to terrorist threat posed by the Eldership.
Furthermore, the Technocracy’s enormous investments in education have eradicated illiteracy and counteract the technological stagnancy under the Eldership government. The vast majority of the workforce is highly specialized, which has helped the Technocracy since become one of the most technologically advanced countries in the known galaxy. International trade makes up a large portion of the Draconian economy, with 6.1 trillion in imports and 7 trillion in exports being recorded in 12275.
Infrastructure
Technocracy infrastructure exhibits numerous points of redundancy to ensure citizens still have vital services in the case of an emergency. This was developed primarily in response to continuous Eldership attacks which have persisted long after their desposition. Such measures have proven successful, particularly in the Fenrir Bombings, where civilians were still able to emergency medical services and telecommunications. Despite demonstrable successes, excess resource diverted to redundant infrastructure, paired with sanctions imposed by the United Terran Federation have caused infrastructure to severely lag behind explosive population growth. This is particularly prevalent in rural settlements such as New Ishioka, where a total lack of basic infrastructure such as roads, telecommunications and running water is common.
Science and Technology
The country has made substantial scientific progress and has readily been adopting post-contemporary technology, even coming to the point of surpassing the IF3, despite its political and scientific conditions under Eldership rule just 23 Standard Cycles ago. Despite the lack of a universal metric, several prestigious Coalition and Federation index trackers have unanimously agreed the Technocracy as the current galactic leader in scientific research. The rate of innovation has recently been increasing, with more Draconian-centred post-contemporary products becoming commercially available.The economic administration dedicates 32.3% of the national budget towards R&D and education, making it the country with the highest percentage of budget dedicated towards both research & development and education.
Technocracy scientists have been responsible for many of the recent, notable advances in the fields of astronomy, engineering and artificial intelligence. The Technocracy was the sixth country to utilise advanced artificial intelligence in the bureaucratic process, and the first to have completely automated its census process. Draconian scientists were also instrumental in the manufacture of the first microscopic black holes at the Orbital Hadron Collider.
The Draconian space industry has experienced dramatic growth since the Technocracy’s reforms. As a part of the Fenrir Economic Development Plan, and the Arkasian Redevelopment Program, a number of orbital installations have been constructed around the capital and the burgeoning world of Fenrir. However, most of the Draconian space industry remains domestic, with all spacecraft (including starbases) still government owned. Further, the export of any whole spacecraft or any spacecraft parts are strictly forbidden, in order to conserve resources while under sanctions and constant threat of Eldership attack.
Demographics
According to the Adjudicator AI census precepts, the last Draconian population count numbers at 3,501,511,758 individuals, with an estimated additional 500 million unregistered individuals based on growth projections, resource drain and velocity of the Aurum.
After the end of the Draconian Civil War, the Technocracy has since experienced a population boom, exhibiting a birth rate within the range of 3-4, among the galaxy’s highest. This exponential population increase has notable economic consequences. In particular, the substantial increase in demand for goods and services have outstripped supply, which has caused severe localized shortages.
Ethnic Groups
According to Adjudicator AI census precepts, the last Draconian ethnic count numbers at 3,192,158,138 draco, 266,475,139 lacerta, 28,835,593 cattus and a total 14,042,888 other species. The AI was not permitted to make further projections on unregistered individuals in order to preserve resources.
The vastly outsized ethnic minority of lacerta is largely attributed to the open borders that were imposed on the former Eldership during and after the Draconian Enlightenment. This gave many reptilia staff, who were working on the Draconian Enlightenment, the option to stay - an option that most ended up taking. The ethnicity of the Draconian population began to skew more strongly during the beginning of the Draconian Civil War, whereupon a large dragon exodus occurred at the same time as a large inflow of politically-sympathetic reptilia. This flux began to steady by 12271, by the end of the civil war. To this day, the Technocracy has vowed to maintain open borders. Due to this policy, several millions of refugees fleeing the Canid-Feli War have settled in Draconian space, creating a notable ethnic minority of Feli and Canidae.
Language
The official language of the Technocracy is Draconian. In recent years, it has incorporated a significant number of loanwords from Reptilia-Choir. The Draconian writing system is indigenous, created approximately 25,000-50,000 standard cycles ago by a predominant Draconian nation-state. Traditional archival practices has meant the written syllabary system has changed little and has only been recently adapted to accommodate loanwords.
Spoken and written Draconian is relatively homogeneous and regional dialects differ only marginally from the standard dialect known as Tatsu dialect. Linguists identify two other major dialects, 'Fenbark' and 'Pansong', originating from the Fenrir and Panlong colonies respectively.
Religion
Religion continues to be a major point of contention within the Technocracy. The Technocracy continues to enforce is ban on Anachronistic Animism with harsh penalties, due to its lasting association with the former Eldership. This blanket ban has had the secondary effect of artificially creating a stigma around the practice of all religions, whether or not they are associated with Anachronistic Animism. Such bans have drawn criticism with the intergalactic community with regards to freedom of religion within the Technocracy.
In recent years, Fenrir has witnessed a fledgling semi-religious ideology known as Tau Principlism spawn within some major population centres. The emergence of Tau Principalism has been central to shaping the Draconian zeitgeist in the post-contemporary era. Though largely a creative movement, Tau Principalism espouses several tenets of cosmic pragmatism which can be interpreted as being religious in nature. Nonetheless, it must also be noted that several strands of Principalism are underscored by mathematical principles, which Draconians believe is inherently undivine. Further, notable practitioners such as Naomi Silver, cite that Tau Principalism is more akin to an artistic movement as there are no formalised patterns of worship, or any deified entities. Rather, it is argued, that Tau Principalism is framed primarily by products influenced by itself. This obfuscated identity between cultural movement and religious faith also allows it to flout Draconian cultural stigmas around the practice of faith.
Little else is known about the practice of religion under the Technocracy, as Overseer census precept does not capture such data. A study from an IF3 12272 estimate predict that roughly 1% of the population still practices Anachronistic Animism, despite the bans. Scholars also posit that the influx of Canidae refugees fleeing to Fenrir after the Canid-Felin War will increase plurality towards Lupaism.
Education
As a part of its post-seizure reforms, the Technocracy has mandated compulsory primary and secondary education for whelplings 2 Standard Cycles or older. Typical compulsory schooling takes 5 Standard Cycles to complete. Tertiary and vocational education is not compulsory, however it is a necessary pre-requisite for participation in Draconian politics. As a result, the vast majority of citizens within the Technocracy enrol for further education, with approximately 90% of the population holding a tertiary education degree or vocational training certiication. Tertiary education under the Technocracy is extensive, with all Arkasian universities legally required to offer courses in every field of academia.
The diversity of course offerings has made the Technocracy a lucrative location for international students. As of 12276, the Technocracy boasts the largest number of international students enrolled within its universities. International education therefore represents the Technocracy’s largest and most profitable export, being almost twice as profitable as its second-largest export of electronic and mechanical goods. The broad course offerings has drawn significant criticism from the Economic Administration, who cite that the diversity of ideas is drumming up political dissidence and driving away young, prospective specialists.
As a government dependent on field specialists in order to operate bureaucratic functions, the Technocracy prioritises education above all other functions when constructing the national budget. Combined, R&D and education spending take up 45% of the Technocracy’s government expenditures budget. Education along with research & development are overseen by a special, executive branch of government supervised by a central Scientific Administrator. The Technocracy’s extensive funding and supervision over the curriculum has made it the country with the highest literacy rate, which borders on 100%.
Health
Health care is provided by the healthcare subdivision and overseen by the socio-economic division. Health care is accessible with only a nominal fee under universal coverage, making it widely accessible to all Technocracy citizens. However, the quality of care has since declined due to the pharmaceutical shortages. The Technocracy have blamed these shortages on UTF sanctions, labeling them as a major factor in these shortages. The UTF has responded to these allegations, instead blaming the economic administration's inability to shift quickly enough in response to a rapidly growing population.
The Technocracy spends approximately 20% of its GDP on healthcare. Life expectancy is estimated to be 22.3 SC, marginally beneath the galactic average. The Technocracy also has one of the lowest infant mortality deaths (1 in 1000 live births). Since 12271, the principal cause of death in the Technocracy was suicide, potentially due to a mental illness epidemic as an aftermath of the civil war and subsequent terrorism. However, the Technocracy have also eradicated a number of preventable diseases such as cholera, after administering extensive inoculation campaigns and repairing damaged sanitation infrastructure.
Culture
Post-contemporary Draconian culture mainly draws influence from the United Terran Federation and the Black March. A recent ingress of Feli and Canidae refugees have also introduced the martial practices of their respective countries. The influence of traditional Draconian culture has been largely diminished in recent years, due to the outlaw of many traditional practices by legislature aimed at reducing Eldership indoctrination. Even still, the unique combination of influential cultures and the emergence of a ‘neo-draconian culture’ has resulted in a distinctive Draconian culture.
Arts & Architecture
Draconian post-contemporary cultural history is marred with competition between native aesthetics and imported ideas. This conflict between local and foreign has been instrumental to the definition of a unique Draconian identity. For example, the import of consumer goods exhibiting minimalist design cues, which influenced the development of Tau Principlism.
This competition with imported ideas is less pronounced in post-contemporary Draconian architecture, which draws heavy inspiration from Reptilia-neofuturism. In some areas of Arkas, the exotic mixture of the using of traditional Draconian materials with cues from post-contemporary minimalism creates cities that blend, rather than juxtapose, between new and old. This is particularly the case in some Arkasian cities where remaining pre-Eldership buildings still stand, espousing a resplendent and traditional form of Draconian expressionism would normally sharply contrast with the more ascetic form of a Reptilia neofuturist construction.
Media & Literature
Main Article: Draconian literature and Draconian media
Draconian literature is stepped in the practice of archival, which itself emphasises the importance of record-keeping. Therefore many ancient Draconian texts primarily consist of historiographical texts such as recounts, indices and holy texts of various folk faiths. Some critical texts include Descendence which served as the progenitor for Anachronistic Animism. Poetry features very sporadically throughout Draconian history, and examples of the first poetry only appear in prominence in the Feudal Period. Notable examples include War of the Three Kingdoms and Mountain.
During the Draconian Enlightenment, the vastly increasing accessibility afforded by the proliferation of technology altered the written word to cater to this new audience. For instance, the works of Mordigan gained substantial popularity amongst the Draconian general public, thus popularizing the visual novel genre. The Draconian public at this time also became increasingly fascinated with their apparent benefactors. Political and culturally-important texts from human and reptilian authors became particularly popular in this time, which reinforced the political divisions precipitating the Draconian Civil War. Pornographic consumption also skyrocketed in the latter stages of the Enlightenment, due to its ubiquitous presence across the March and Federation’s internets. By the advent of the final coup, Draconian culture had largely separated away from Reptilia and Human influences, and a more independent Draconian identity began to emerge, marked by prolific writers such as Naomi Silver and Vergil Hoseki. The tradition of archival also saw a mass revival as its historical and practical importance became more widely recognised.
Modern forms of media such as cinema and video-gaming did not become widely available until the post-12271, when the Technocracy economic reforms made consumer electronics more widely available. The first Draconian film, Let’s Go, Technocrat was released in 12275 to a mixed reception. Broadcasted media is more popular within the Technocracy. As such broadcasts are the main medium in which most of the country’s political discourse takes place, it draws a lot of controversy and thus viewship.
Cuisine
Draconian cuisine is predominantly based on protein-rich meats and fungi, historically due to a lack of suitable arable land on Arkas. The introduction of foreign cuisine and newly-developed vertical farming techniques have recently diversified the Draconian diet.
As Fenrir is the only colony with substantial surface water, it is the only colony which extensively integrates seafood into the local diet. Otherwise, the Draconian staple food is general poultry, with most traditional and modern dishes incorporating local and imported poultry in various different methods. Dishes containing red meat, such as Draconian curry or sở-phò-n, have gained traction as economic and industrial advances make what was otherwise a rare delicacy more accessible.
Alcohol consumption is frowned upon in Draconian society, but nonetheless has witnessed explosive popularity throughout the Technocracy. A commonly consumed variant is ‘mushroom water’ which is distilled from fermented fungus native to Arkas. Imported alcohol is also widely popular, and are among one of the Technocracy’s biggest imports.
Sports
Motorsports have become among the most popular sports within the Technocracy, having enmeshed itself with the rising public appreciation for ‘hard’ sciences (particularly engineering). Automative manufacturers, while few and far between in the Technocracy, are renowned across the galaxy and are seen as peers to NFI engineers. Autosports are thus considered to be the Technocracy’s unofficial national sport. In 12272, the Technocracy was the second foreign country to compete in the Black March Grand Prix. The Technocracy hosted its own first major race, the Fenrir 250, in 12274.
Spaceracing has also become popular within the Technocracy. Premier spacecraft manufacturer Angelwing Spaceworks has won numerous accolades abroad. The Technocracy hosts the Kira Cup in Arkasian orbit. In 12274, Draconian spaceracer Mei Xyx briefly held the record for the fastest time for the Kessler Run.
Competition shooting is another highly popular sport across the Technocracy. Traditional Draconian martial arts such as scrin-fighting and wing-sparring have also seen a limited resurgence in recent years. Sports from the UTF, such as Zero-G sports, have seen some spread within the Technocracy.
"Hic Sunt Dracones"
New Draconian Technocracy
(Draco Sapiens)
(Lacerta Sapiens)
(Cattus Sapiens)
- Political Administrator
- Military Administrator
- Socio-economic Administrator
- Scientific Administrator
Separation from the Eldership of the Drak
- Illija's Declaration
- Constitution
- Overseer Precept (12276)
- Precept Estimate (12276)
- Total
- Per Capita
- Total
- Per Capita
very high
