Serpentum Imperium
Introduction
The Serpentum Imperium (Formally referred to as the Third Imperium or the Tribunal Imperium) is the continuation of the Varanus state after the rediscovery and gradual recolonization of New Serpentum and the previously lost worlds of the northern rim of the galaxy. Seeking to restore their lost glory and acting as a beacon of civilization in an otherwise barren part of the galaxy while wrestling with their lost legacies and ensuring the relevance and authority of the Varanus and the Serpentites or citizen species of the empire.Culture
While dominated by the culture of the draconic reptilian Varanus the Imperium very much contrasts it's previous iterations through the gradual assimilation of other species, most notably those of Terran and Rhacodan creating a cultural mix that defines the communal identity of 'Imperials/Serpentites'.
The culture of contemporary citizens within the Imperium is largely shaped by intersections of each citizen species own particular cultural norms primarily shaped within the Varanus context of understanding creating a mix values that works in harmony through the efforts of the Imperium's promotion of a collective memory. For example Human/Terran values often have a mix of liberal and conservative principles but more often then not does support an idea of individual liberty, the Varanus on the other hand also support the idea of liberty but one that has to be earned rather then guaranteed, the contemporary Imperium in this regard provides a path based on the ruling Varanus principle through the 'Ushar' (Voice) system where individuals earn the right to speak their mind to the authorities without fear of reprisal after a period of service for the state. This example is one of many where other species within the state has their cultural values shaped to fit the dominant Varanus principles.
Public Agenda
The Imperium is founded on the principle of the Sa'stan, a ideological concept of the Varanus that holds the responsibility that mandates the venerable Varanus and their civilization act as a guide to other species and enforce a unified peace under the policies of the Imperium. The means of which to achieve this ideology however changes based on the approach and understanding of the ruling party. Under the Emperor the Sa'stan applied only to the Varanus, enforcing the will of the royal crown and maintaining a isolationist stance in galactic affairs, under the Viscount the principle was extended to the ruined Northern galaxy and it's species, progressing outsider species like Humans into positions of power as they were integrated fully into the star-nation.
Today the Sa'stan is broken into two interpretations by the Tribunal, the military council wishes to expand the power and reach of the empire to regain it's lost glory and to ensure that they will always have a hand in the affairs and defense of the galaxy as a whole, the Clerical powers on Drakenhelm however believe that it's the responsibility of the Imperium to heal what was lost, particularly during the extinction and the clerics openly research and study the glow in an attempt to restore the lost forms of the Varanus species such as the Winged Kah of old. In addition the Keeper maintains cooperation between these two factions but also expands this peacemaking attitude throughout the state itself, the Imperium while a significant military power loathes wielding it and much of the Imperium's efforts lie in maintaining a peaceful status quo, the so called 'Keepers Peace' that aims to end the cycle of conflict that the Varanus found themselves in.
The Species and State faced near extinction with the Acheron Crisis and to counteract the threat of the Varanus facing extinction at least from a material level is through the strategy of Shar'Groi "or Layered Expansion where the colonies of the Imperium are considered and settled based on the defensive capabilities it provides to the core worlds and the nearby systems, colonial settlers are often ex-military members or those of the Halor (citizen militias) and most settlements are constructed around military forts meant to both deter attack and act as the beachhead for further military expansions. This strategy aims to make the the colonies a web of defenses meant to wear down any conventional invasion of the wider Imperium. The military elite greatly support this strategy to further expand both the Imperium's population and it's defense against existential threats.
The Varanus are notable diplomats and the Imperium often acts as a intermediary alongside Concord to maintain their Keepers Peace outside of their actual borders, the Imperium also maintains a network of agents, spies and mercenaries that allow the state to eliminate problematic elements that endanger the Keepers Peace and to prevent the deployment of the Imperium's military in avoidable conflicts.
History
The Elders recount that long before the Varanus reached the Milky Way the clans and houses were united by the singular banner and authority of the Imperium even from it's days of being ruled under the Imperos functionally a aristocratic monarchy barely kept together by the Viscount after the Imperos was lost in the Helix War. History would see the Imperium functionally end with the Cataclysm only to return years later at the hands of the last surviving vestige of the Varanus state, the first and last legion of the old empire. This vestige recolonized the lost worlds, rebuilt the lost cities and under the guidance of the Keeper and his Tribunal the Imperium was reborn in name and function but forever changed. No longer bound to the aristocratic high houses, no longer bound by caste or by an Imperos but instead by the promise of a brighter future in the dark led by those who prove their loyalty and worth through service and sacrifice.
Since it's restoration the Imperium has slowly been restoring their domain, rediscovering their lost history and culture and keeping close vigil on their southern enclave in Drakenhelm, remaining isolated from the affairs of their neighbors.
Military
The contemporary Serpentum Imperium was formed by the surviving remnants of the 1st Legion and like it's predecessors retain a highly militarized society with the military having direct influence in shaping policy through the Kara in the Prime Tribunal and while the Imperial military is a shadow of itself and much smaller compared to the more populated GSU yet hold a edge in military technology and commanders with literal centuries of experience.
Previously the military was strictly Varanus with other species drafted as auxiliaries to be expended as seen fit by commanders yet at the end of the HELIX War the military officially designated new branches that integrated the other species yet segregated the forces between species for logistical purposes and to maintain Varanus control over military hierarchy, the challenges the military faces often revolve around how to utilize the segregated forces as a singular force often spearheaded by the Varanus towards a defined objective.
The human arm is the largest and only officially established non-Varanus military branch of the armed forces often fighting alongside the Barriks as an auxiliary force and form the divisions that man and deploy the various mechanized and armoured weaponry designed to augment the capabilities of human companies, often in the wake of a combined Varanus and human offensive it is the human arm that is given the responsibility of maintaining garrisons and occupations of captured territories. Unlike the Barriks and their reliance on their resilient power-armored legionaries the human arm emphasizes mobility and tactical adaptability to compliment the more specialized nature of Barrik units. The training and skills of regulatory troopers vary wildly from company to company with most trained to combat in a vast array of environments and having basic training comparable with Second Galactic Systems Union Marines.
The Orbitai are Barrik legionaries with specialized armor and training to engage in ship-to-ship boarding and combat, they alongside human marines within the Orbitai form the army forces of the Starfleet and stand as the first line of defense against threats in orbit that cannot be blasted away with the firepower of the starfleet. While drawn from the ranks of the army the Orbitai are subservient to the officers of the Starfleet and often remain attached to specific ships for extended tours of duty, often the members of this unit adapt the name of the ship into their nicknames and service numbers as a symbol of attachment after long periods of service.
The Navy of the Imperium consists of a vast armada of ships broken down into detachments responsible for safeguarding the systems and planets of the interstellar empire and trade therein as well as conducting space warfare and transporting Barriks to planetary fronts and providing assistance in the form of orbital and atmospheric control, each system contributes resources to bolster the fleet assigned to it as well as sending prospective pilots to be enrolled in the academy and employed in the fleet. The Imperium's doctrine of maintaining a strong naval presence in secure systems with the ability to mobilize to assist nearby systems in the case of attack requires a fair degree of autonomy to the admirals of such fleets who often work alongside governors directly to ensure the security of a system, the flow of trade and capability to mobilize in a moment's notice, in times of war the admiral of a defense fleet has the power to supersede planetary governors (except for the Tribunal systems of New Serpentum and Drakenhelm) with similar power as the legionary Barriks in declaring a dominion (emergency military government) however no such occurrence for the navy has happened since the Helix War.
Many ex-navy personnel often find themselves serving the trade fleet bringing resources and opportunity to worlds rather then brimstone and soldiers. An separate branch of the Starfleet exists named the Exploration Commission that conducts exploration efforts in uncharted regions and the survey duties for prospective colonial efforts. It's the Exploration Commission whose explorers push the boundries of Varanus space outwards as directed by the demands of the Tribunal Council.
Varanus space-craft is considered among the most sophisticated and advanced in active use by civilizations in the milky way, especially with their communications, subspace drives and ability to jump further and more accurately compared to existing Terran and magical alternatives in addition to highly powerful energy-based weaponry and shielding. However despite these advantages each ship carries the same principle that applies to the armies it often transports, it's a costly endevour to replace a fleet unlike those the Terrans field, since their return to the Northern Sector, the Varanus fleet has only now after 200 years begun to restore their numbers to pre-extinction numbers. As such the purpose of the Starfleet remains defensive and the deployment of an admiral's fleet against hostile powers often require the approval of the Tribunal Council.
The Executor is the civil and military police force of the Imperium formed from the remnant of the military police forces of the 1st Legion. The agents of the Executor hold the ability to execute the laws defined by the High Judges and legitimatized by the Tribunal Council. Given the broad degree of authority and challenges these agents face the branch consists of multiple divisions that specialize their agents in certain roles, some for civil disputes others to take down rogue military elements, some are culturally informed investigators while others are specialized undercover operatives. In times of war the Executor serve to provide security at home keeping vigilant watch for disruptive elements and often are deployed in occupied zones to assist the garrisons and to perform counter-insurgent operations. Compared to contemporary police forces the Executor can be considered a separate part of the wider Imperial military given their role in assisting in occupations as well as outside of civil policing their response to criminal elements can be quite heavy-handed when given authority by the judges.
The Zorstrata is an branch of the military consisting of unorthodox non-citizen and external auxiliaries ranging from mercenaries, bounty hunters, smugglers, and more that are commissioned through data couriers to serve the needs of the Imperium and the Tribunal in areas where the conventional and special forces lack, from ex-legionary Varanus mercenaries that are hired to bolster and train conventional forces with their experience to the cold-blooded assassins hired to conduct wetwork, the Zorstrata utilizes pragmatic use of external talent especially in times of conflict where the limited forces of the Imperium can make use of the many independent contractors of the galaxy. One recent example of the use of the Zorstrata was in deploying Varanus mercenaries to gather intelligence on Xarqiin forces without directly involving the Imperium.
The Halor regulatory is the citizen-conscripts of the Imperium, typically civilian forces with minimal combat training that serve in the armed forces in support roles to finish their term of service and gain citizenship and the right to voice themselves in the civil forum. Very few Halor take up direct arms in warfare with many often serving as medics, logistics, administration and other such specialized non-combat roles to free up fighting soldiers. The Halor Regulatory gives the Imperial military a significant support core often with every one soldier having four citizens dedicating to meeting their needs for combat. This allows the Imperium to have perhaps one of the most prepared and supplied armies in the galaxy.
The Barriks
The Barriks can be considered as the primary military arm of the Varanus species consisting of the various armies of the Kara serving as both the defense force of planets against external threats as well as the offensive arm of the Tribunal, the core of the Barrik are formed by the disciplined power-armor clad legionaries and the more numerous Zaher who have yet to earn their right to Dagbarium armour. Alongside being the military arm the Barrik upholds many of the ancient warrior rituals and traditions that predate the formation of their military unit and continues to be a living link to the warrior past of the martial Varanus. The Barriks rely on the use of squads of power-armored Varanus some more specialized then others to provide tactical options for wider military conflicts, unlike other forces such as the Human Regulatory the Barrik is a nearly infantry only force with varied models of Dagbarium combat power armor and larger mechanized combat suits to augment the Varanus capabilities in combat. Because of the decades long training of legionaries and long manufacturing period of Dagbarium the Barrik run the highest risks when faced with combat casualties, as a result of this doctrine involving the Barrik rely on rapid deployment, maneuver warfare and the occasional direct assault to disrupt and destroy enemies forces as quickly as possible and to avoid falling into a war of attrition which severely limits the capabilities of the force. To bolster the Barrik the Zaher (soldiers that have yet to complete their training and earn their armor) serve as auxiliaries and light infantry to compliment the heavy infantry of the Dagbarium clad legionaries.
Human Regulatory
Orbitai
The Starfleet
The Executor
Zorstrata
The Halor Regulatory
Technological Level
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Religion
With the clergy holding representative power in the Prime Tribunal it's not suprising that the faith of the Varanus is endorsed as an official state religion. The Vo'kum (or The Five) is a organized religion of five sects each representing a draconic deity that encapsulates certain qualities of existance, though since Drakenhelm discovery and that of the existance of other dragons besides the five legendary ones the tenants and understanding of the faith have undergone reforms that now understand dragonkind as an ascended existance of the Varanus and all dragon-blooded species. The Vo'Kum faith is strongest on Drakenhelm and New Serpentum with the former being home to vast temple complexes where the Vogala or High Clerics hold absolute power.
Varanus are expected to cling to the official religion yet the spread of the faith is not as encouraged among other species, as a result the Imperium is home to several other faiths brought by their other citizen species and client races, with Humans being the second largest population in Varanus space they have brought with them a myriad of religious followings from Abrahamic faiths such as Christianity, Islam and Judaism to Hinduism, Buddhism and many more obscure faiths with a signifigant portion of Humans being irreligious as a whole. The Imperium's cultural spirtuality encourages pursuits of faith and often draws pilgrims seeking greater meaning outside of more secular planetary states. The largest religion among Imperial Humans is Buddhism or neo-Buddhism that combines aspects of Varanus religious culture with traditional Buddhist teachings.
Despite their religious freedom the Varanus actively oppose any principle that worships machines, artificial intelligence and artificially made constructs. This opposition includes arrests of prospective preachers, exile and in some cases executions undertaken in secret black sites. Groups such as the The Intertwined while yet unknown by most of the Imperium would be seen as a threat to the social order and forbidden to exist upon Imperial planets.
Foreign Relations
Galactic Systems Union: The relationship between the ruling Varanus and the humans of the GSU stretches back to their cooperation during the Helix War and subsequent acknowledgement of the Imperium's authority and claims in the Northern Galaxy, while the Viscount maintained cordial relations with the GSU it was often distant and isolated from expanding beyond a mutual respect for each other's authority. The Acheron Crisis while ignored by the old empire was answered by the 1st Legion who were quick to support what they considered allies, as the current iteration of the Imperium has evolved from the 1st Legion it has inherited the same degree of cooperation with the humans of Terra, Chorus and Outreach. The Tribunal fear that any hostile conflict with the GSU might be too costly even if the Imperium succeeds in occupying the Concord Sector and by the Keeper's suggestion pursues an strategy of mutual prosperity and security to safeguard Drakenhelm from a potentially belligerent GSU from shared development projects to establish trade between the two powers to military co-development of new technologies all in the effort to further the relationship in the hopes to deter unnecessary warfare.
The Independent Monarchies: While never having directly met the Queens of Nightblood the Varanus diplomats had made cordial contact with the Vampire Counts through diplomatic dinners and the Werewolf Alpha through a hunt. Some trade agreements exist with the Monarchies but the insular nature of the highest authorities within the Monarchies make the establishment of higher relations difficult.
Agriculture & Industry
The Imperium is a major trade power in it's own right, while not actively engaged directly in the Southern Galactic Market, the Imperium maintains a massive internal Northern Galactic market, while the GSU retains itself as a commercial powerhouse the Imperium stands as a industrial superpower with access to a vast network of natural resources, the largest sector is that of the interstellar mining operations conducted in Imperial space, massive cargo barges part mining vessel and part prison deploy an army of indentured prisoners that mine the mineral rich asteroids that litter the Northern galaxy. While not as automated in terms of industrial output as the Second Galactic Systems Union the Imperium employs armies of craftsmen aided by drones in limited capacity to keep up with the requirements of a growing interstellar empire.
Most of the populated Imperial planets maintain a careful balance between urban and agricultural development with the aim of having each planet food independent to some degree, as a result the more agricultural planets have vast excess that is shipped across Imperial space and often to the South.
The exotic nature of the enclosed Northern Market has also allowed Drakenhelm to become a wealthy trade hub between North and South utilizing the Egress Gate to provide easy access between North and South at the cost of high trade tariffs. The few trusted traders that have access to Drakenhelm are among the richest independent traders in GSU space as they are often able to get not just exotic alien goods, but materials for industry at competitive prices.
From the dark the light shine
Founding Date
2696
Type
Geopolitical, Empire
Alternative Names
The Third Imperium, Tribunal Imperium
Demonym
Serpentite/Imperial
Head of State
Government System
Gerontocracy
Power Structure
Unitary state
Economic System
Mixed economy
Gazetteer
Currency
Dagbarium Coins (Formerly)
Galactic Credits (Currently)
Legislative Body
The Prime Tribunal Council and the Civil Council
Judicial Body
The High Judges of the clergy
Executive Body
The Tribunal Council
Official State Religion
Subsidiary Organizations
Official Languages
Controlled Territories
Notable Members
