Reserved Area for Proposed "Frontier Space"

[Floodwaters]

While I'm still in the preliminary stages of development and have nothing concrete to submit as of yet, I'd like to propose reserving 12 star systems on the northern edge of the map for future development of a new "pseudo-faction" of lower-tech frontier worlds. These colonies will form a very loose confederation of independent backwater worlds that have been settled for some time but have as yet not made official contact with the Imperial core.

These systems would not form a cohesive faction in the typical sense, and would be technologically inferior to places like Nepleslia and Yamatai. Their lack of cooperation and coordination (as well as occasional hostilities) would hamper effective law enforcement and thus increase the demand for independently contracted mercenaries and privateers, providing a good setting for independent plots and characters.

Also, because of their remote location and relative disorganization, the worlds would likely not pose any real threat to more developed interstellar empires in the rest of the SARPiverse.

The stars I'm proposing to be reserved are marked by a yellow and white box in the picture below.

 

[Wes]

Have you considered the area south of the Hanako Cluster? Yamatai's southern frontier is already very sparsely populated and we could make Urtullan part of the frontier sector that way.

 

[Fred]

There are things I like about this idea... but I think a major caveat for this is the proximity to the Iroma. That race has been portrayed as quite appart, remote and Yamatai (preferably) still has no idea of where they are actually located. That distance and inscrutableness has been one of the major elements protecting them from other nations.

Frontier worlds being that close to them allows for a lot by the way of word of mouth to eventually reveal that.

Other than that, I've no objections. If there would be frontier worlds north of the Claw Nebula, it would allow the Xudathi (a race newly introduced in the Byakuren plot; an humanoid-rodentia species with a culture based on merchanting/salvaging) someplace they could've played traders/salvagers while lacking 'in-your-face' visibility to the more powerful factions (though they probably were also overlooked as a visible minority of 'nepleslian mutants')

 

[Floodwaters]

I had in fact considered the southern section of the map first, Wes, but I elected to look elsewhere for a few reasons:

1. Many of the southern systems are former NMX territories, and several of them still (to my knowledge) have Mishhu cells still present. If I introduced settled worlds there, a lot of questions could potentially be raised as to why the NMX never took notice of them and/or bothered to overrun their settlements for their own benefits
2. Yamatai is still conductng military patrols and surveys in that area of space, so it wouldnt' seem likely to me that they would have never come in contact with them even once.
3. Their proximity to Nashoba's Hidden Sun Clan space might also pose a retconning problem with his faction's established history

Of course, if none of the above are problems for anyone, I don't have any objection to using that area of space. If incorporating Urtullan is the primary reason for doing so, however, I'll note that I intend to revisit that system again in my plot sometime in the future, and by extension further develop it as a setting, independently of what I'm proposing.

As for the proximity to the Astral Cluster, Fred, I don't think it's noted anywhere exactly how far away it is. It could be another 200 light years off the map for all I know (of course, please correct me if I'm mistaken). I think explaining that away would be easier than trying to muscle over the potential hurdles listed above.

These are just my thoughts, however - my heart is not set on that exact location, I just figured it would be the most painless place to introduce new settled worlds given the scope I have in mind. I'm certainly open to suggestions either way.

 

[Floodwaters]

Addendum for Fred: I do like the idea of incorporating some of your plot's aspects into this area in terms of trade and what have you.

 

[Nashoba]

FW , the proximity to the HSC is not an issue. They have ben around the sector for 755 years, they know of lots of inhabited systems they just chose to avoid contact. Making contact is a new step.

 

[Floodwaters]

Are there any extended thoughts on the location of the Astral Cluster? Namely, am I correct in assuming that its location is significantly far enough off the map so as not to be a proximity issue for these systems?

Also, Wes/Nashoba, would you prefer the new location to be in the southern sectors?

 

[Yoshi]

You'd see a Lot of Azorean Traffic up there...

 

[Floodwaters]

I'm going to propose a secondary location in lieu of the original area, moving the new systems' location to the west of the map and increasing the number of stars to 19:

((Image removed due to conflict with Nepleslian expansion plans))

 

[Nashoba]

Might need to check with Nepleslia, last image I saw they were claiming that northern territory.

If you are wanting frontier, north and west of the core is probably best.

 

[Floodwaters]

So the second option, then? The location highlighted in the post immediately prior to yours, @Nashoba?

 

[Nashoba]

Actually as I have said I'm open. But South West you have the KMZ, Yoshi is looking to add a couple of Azorean worlds near that, and then you have the HSC. So there is going to be a lot of traffic down there.

The problem is Nepleslia has already declared that they want all of that territory. So we need to get them involved in this discussion.
https://stararmy.com/roleplay-forum/index.php?threads/nepleslia-faction-planning.4356/page-13

 

[Floodwaters]

@Sigma, @Koenig808 - If Nepleslia already has designs on the western part of the map, I don't want to step on anyone's toes. I can keep my focus on the northern fringes, although I'd like to expand the claim from 12 stars to closer to 20.

If I do that, I suppose the question that still needs to be clarified is whether or not the Astral Cluster is actually anywhere remotely near the map. If not, then I should be okay with plopping down the new independent worlds out there.

Or, as an alternative, could I put new stars down on the "not yet mapped" northeastern quadrant?

 

[Floodwaters]

I am also still open to using the area far south of the Hanako cluster, as Wes suggested, since Nashoba has no qualms with that.

 

[Floodwaters]

How about this area? @Wes, this would include Urtullan in the group, as well as provide me a reason to give some backstory to HX-11 in keeping with what little is already established.


((Image removed in favor of new suggestion))

 

[Nashoba]

I have no problem with this territory being frontier, I can use it for the HSC to visit and keep an eye on.

 

[Floodwaters]

After further discussion with my players and Nashoba, as well as a heaping dash of XX indecisiveness P), here's the agreed-upon proposed setting:



I think this area would serve my purpose nicely, and avoid crowding anyone.

 

[Wes]

How about this area? @Wes, this would include Urtullan in the group, as well as provide me a reason to give some backstory to HX-11 in keeping with what little is already established.

I liked this one better. The NMX mainly was centered in what is now HSC territory and was concentrated on the north of there (Yamatai) not in the full area, so there would likely be Mishhu history on the Northern worlds in this area like Urtullan and HX-11. I like that it's near enough for the Star Army to bother visiting but not close enough to bother colonizing (especially since Yamatai has avoided inhabited worlds since YE 30 or so). More importantly, it's connected to existing RP areas so characters from any major faction could easily wind up there.

 

[Floodwaters]

I hear your reasoning, Wes, and I'm not entirely disagreeing. Here are the reasons I have for picking that cluster in particular:

1. It's remote enough to call a true "frontier" in comparison to the Imperial core
2. It's along the route that the original human colonists fled from the Black Claw Empire millenia ago (if my patched-together SARP history is correct), and some colony ships malfunctioning along the way, forcing their inhabitants to settle for whatever worlds were in range at the time would explain how these worlds came to be settled in the first place
3. It's far enough from any other more powerful faction so as not to crowd them or invite territorial aggression
4. It's far enough to explain the technological disparity between all but the richest of its various worlds and the central empires

As I said earlier, I still intend to revisit Urtullan at some point in my plot, so I hope to take a crack at further developing that setting regardless of whether or not I include it in this area. The earlier group of systems just looked kind of squashed up next to a much more advanced neighbor (the HSC) and, even with the light years of separation, it seemed to me a bit odd that a rabble of independent worlds would be squabbling amongst each other when there was a much stronger empire nearby. If these worlds were fully aware of Yamatai and the HSC, it's more likely that they would band together to protect themselves, going against the initial scope I have in mind.

That isn't to say that at some point in the kind-of-far-off future they wouldn't do such a thing, of course, I'd just like them to start out as a balkanized section of space with only the loosest of alliances and trade agreements in place, with each world being sovereign.

 

[Nashoba]

Regardless of where they were if an HSC vessel were to go into the territory it would probably be in pursuit of a pirate vessel. Beyond that they would watch and observe just to keep an eye on the group. They aren't interested in conquest.