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[Ryxsen1421]

Hi guys,

I'll admit, I'm pretty shy about this but my curiosity is killing me. So, here I go!

I was wondering if there's a place that I can comfortably go to and read about the lore of the game whenever I need to revision some ideas with? I've been wanting to finally integrate my faction to the universe it found itself into but.. I held myself back for years due to several reasons. One, I'm not quite ready to write proper lore yet, I think its a pretty daring and hard task as I'm not a writer but an artist, I tell my stories by drawing the images outta my head rather than writing them down. Second, the game itself is still work-in-progress right? So that means the story may change at any time and de-canonize some bits here and there potentially.

I'd also like to apologize for my ignorance if there's any regarding the vanilla Starsector, I have been so focused and tunnel visioned on my own mod that I've been oblivious to anything that goes on in both vanilla and modiverse. I would often rely on friends and players to ask questions all the time because of this.

Other than that,

If the developers ever notice this. I'd like to ask them several serious questions because it will determine my actions in the future whether to continue or not.

I'd like to formally ask your blessing so that I can comfortably write some story about how my faction ended up being in the Persean Sector. I'm talking about things such missions, quests, and interactions with the vanilla factions and characters. This is something similar to the vanilla campaign in terms of length and project scope but this time, you'll be travelling around the Sector on behalf of a curious character whose curious about the strange new world around her.

Secondly - related to the first question above, should I wait for the full version of Starsector where the lore will finally be fixed and established instead? I have this weird anxiety that I don't wanna mess with the vanilla and wish to respect its world settings. I don't intend to endlessly stay and continue the development forever, so I kinda wanna make sure to not screw up the one shot I have in story telling. I learned the hard way that some first impressions do stick forever and hard to convince otherwise later on.

--

Thank you for your time on reading this, I look forward to read some replies from everyone.

With regards,
CY

[robepriority]

In terms of hard details, it would be best to just read the direct quotes from the historian, planet descriptions, ect.
In terms of fitting thematically, below blog post has related readings.

https://fractalsoftworks.com/2015/03/12/a-starsector-reading-list/

The general fiction primer is
https://fractalsoftworks.com/2017/08/16/a-true-and-accurate-history-of-the-persean-sector/

It's theoretically free to retcon however.

[SCC]

There is no Starsector bible to my knowledge.

[David]

FWIW I only consider the contents of the current public version of the game canonical.

I'm willing to answer questions about some particulars - just post a question, I'll probably give *an* answer - though I think it is often best to leave things undefined so that players/modders have lots of room for imagination(/projection). I do like @robepriority's suggestion to look at thematic readings; that's a really good way to get the correct 'feel' for the setting.

(There's also some stuff I have cooking, so to speak, and giving an answer about it would be a spoiler or would be interpreted as a promise about future game content, and I don't want to ruin anything. So asking about the meaning of Omega will get you reported to COMSEC.)

[Killer of Fate]

@David
do horses, cats, dogs, pet rats, etc. Exist in the Persean Sector?

Is medicine a big deal in the Persean Sector? What kind of healthcare system does the Hegemony use for example? I assume Tri-Tachyon has privatised healthcare obviously. But what about Persean League, Hegemony or even the Sindrian Diktat?

Is food retrieved from ancient stations that has infinite shelf life that much worse than fresh produce in taste and nutritional value?

Is fishing popular on Eochu Bres?

Are there are other kinds of mobile devices than the TriPad? Is there a Domain's equivalent of Linux?

Is the Domain the only real major human political entity or are there are other hiding in the dark whispered about? Ones that succeeded in defeating the Domain and aren't just occupying unwanted backwaters? (this might be a spoiler, though I guess it won't matter, why would they ever come to the Persean Sector).

[mr. domain]

Were there ever any high-tech XIV modified ships, before the long journey to the Persean Sector?

[David]

@David
do horses, cats, dogs, pet rats, etc. Exist in the Persean Sector?

I haven't found a need to answer this. Consider it an unknown that you can project into.

Is medicine a big deal in the Persean Sector? What kind of healthcare system does the Hegemony use for example? I assume Tri-Tachyon has privatised healthcare obviously. But what about Persean League, Hegemony or even the Sindrian Diktat?

Regarding details, see above answer.

Nonetheless, I would imagine them as extensions of the core themes & aesthetics of the faction. This is not to say that all doctors in Hegemony space are militarized - each faction draws the line of purview of its state / military-acting-like-a-state at a different place. Beyond that, the civic structures of planets within the Persean League and Hegemony can vary quite a bit between worlds, so I wouldn't say there is a standard answer - unless we're talking specifically about military hospitals, which would be standardized in each, and especially in the Hegemony.

The Diktat is smaller and more extreme than either, but medical administration isn't at any point a key aspect of Andradan ideology (beside some weird and not medically valid talk about idealizing 'strength/purity' and the like), so I would think they would inherit and adapt a combination of civilian structures that existed before the Diktat as well as a modified Hegemony structure on the military side.

"Doctor" Cydonia might have some thoughts on all of this, of course.

Is food retrieved from ancient stations that has infinite shelf life that much worse than fresh produce in taste and nutritional value?

I would not imagine it's better than the fresh stuff, no. Then again, your common spacer likely doesn't have much experience with good, fresh food.

Is fishing popular on Eochu Bres?

I have no idea.

Are there are other kinds of mobile devices than the TriPad? Is there a Domain's equivalent of Linux?

I've mentioned the existence of an "off-brand datapad" here and there, so there are others. All the cool kids have TriPads though.

Is the Domain the only real major human political entity or are there are other hiding in the dark whispered about? Ones that succeeded in defeating the Domain and aren't just occupying unwanted backwaters? (this might be a spoiler, though I guess it won't matter, why would they ever come to the Persean Sector).

All we know is what the Domain said, and they said they were #1 so I guess that's your answer

Were there ever any high-tech XIV modified ships, before the long journey to the Persean Sector?

If it's not in the game, we don't know if it existed or not.

[Scorpixel]

@David
do horses, cats, dogs, pet rats, etc. Exist in the Persean Sector?

Is medicine a big deal in the Persean Sector? What kind of healthcare system does the Hegemony use for example? I assume Tri-Tachyon has privatised healthcare obviously. But what about Persean League, Hegemony or even the Sindrian Diktat?

Is food retrieved from ancient stations that has infinite shelf life that much worse than fresh produce in taste and nutritional value?

Is fishing popular on Eochu Bres?

Are there are other kinds of mobile devices than the TriPad? Is there a Domain's equivalent of Linux?

Is the Domain the only real major human political entity or are there are other hiding in the dark whispered about? Ones that succeeded in defeating the Domain and aren't just occupying unwanted backwaters? (this might be a spoiler, though I guess it won't matter, why would they ever come to the Persean Sector).

Regarding fauna, the only references i can think of are the mudskipper's flavour text referencing "bovids" and the lobsters.
The terraforming process repeated across the sector most likely involved creating a Tabula Rasa then importing the desired animals, be production, pets, entertainment/hunting, and creating a working local cosystem within pre-established areas.

We know medicine is pretty good for people to survive suboptimal conditions, spacers are noted to often have radiation burns, life expectancy seems very high for those who are at least middle-class (like the Historian), although i wouldn't bet on the average subsistence factory worker from Chico to have the greatest dental plan. The sector's way of life does seem very stratified no matter which major faction we're talking about.

What do you mean you don't want the space soilent green cooked to perfection during 200 years of pulsar roasting?

Probably looks like Finland at best but hey, gotta do something when you're rich and bored of golf.

Other corporations are mentioned, but TT seems to have the broadest range of products amongst all of them, at least on this side of the gates.

We've had at best vague nameless minor frontier rebellious worlds mentioned from the Explorarium drone descriptions, but from what i recall Alex&co stated that the Domain is/was all that mattered. No secret superpower with thirty thousand star destroyers hidden under a starless moon along their crews and non-existent logistics chain Rise of Skywalker style.

[FooF]

With the Persean Sector being a frontier location, I've always wondered if the XIV Battlegroup (that ultimately founded the Hegemony) wasn't exactly the Domain's "best and brightest." I'm in the military: I know that assignments that don't see a lot of action or are in "undesirable" locations aren't usually offered to the crack units but rather the auxiliaries and reserve components. I'm picturing the XIV Battlegroup more as National Guard or Reserves rather than full-time Army, if you catch my meaning. Thus, the main body trying to keep law and order and maintain the doctrines of the Domain in the Sector were more like the B-team. Granted, after 200 years, it became its own institution, but I've always had in my head that the Hegemony was founded by the "part-timers" of the Domain Navy. I don't know if this is insinuated in the histories but despite the pomp and decorum, they're still trying to escape an inferiority complex.

Likewise, trying to piece together what the Domain was like through the lens of the Hegemony is like judging a given country's culture and history through it's military branches. That is to say, an impossible task because the military is its own culture, regardless of the background of the citizens who serve in it. If any of you tried to use my unit to paint a picture of "American Culture", oh boy, you'd get Salvador Dali instead of Norman Rockwell! So, again, the fact the Sector is shaped somewhat in the image of its military forebears tells me that, of course, it's quite messy. The Sindrian Diktat is this phenomenon dialed up to 11, along with a cult of personality  that very much exists with charismatic commanders ("The horror! The horror!").

All head-canon of course but it makes sense to me...

[Gris]

@ Good day David!

Is the 14th Battlegroup (The Hegemony) really the weakest Battlegroup of all the Domain Legion before they got weakened in two [REDACTED] wars?
If this is true that would be very funny if they are only militia reserves and at the same time quite terrifying since they are still a force to be reckoned with after two cycles and two [REDACTED] wars.

John/Jane Starsector got it lucky and easy by fighting them in a weakened form not in pristine condition after their arrival in the Persean Sector Frontier.

That is all and thank you!

[David]

Moved the topic to Lore discussion.

@ Good day David!

Is the 14th Battlegroup (The Hegemony) really the weakest Battlegroup of all the Domain Legion before they got weakened in two [REDACTED] wars?
If this is true that would be very funny if they are only militia reserves and at the same time quite terrifying since they are still a force to be reckoned with after two cycles and two [REDACTED] wars.

I don't think I've given any indication about the relative strength of the XIV relative to others pre-Collapse (and it's not an answer that has much impact on the Persean Sector anyway).

FWIW: the battlegroup was part of the "Domain Armada" not the Legion. I view the Legion as ground forces (hinted at in text during 'Princess of Persea'), while the Armada is the navy. The Hegemony does not call its navy the Armada because it presumes the rest of the Armada is still out there.

Regarding fauna, the only references i can think of are the mudskipper's flavour text referencing "bovids" and the lobsters.
The terraforming process repeated across the sector most likely involved creating a Tabula Rasa then importing the desired animals, be production, pets, entertainment/hunting, and creating a working local cosystem within pre-established areas.

This is a good pull!

I would view the sporeships/seedships as carrying the building blocks for Terran ecosystems, though these elements are by no means unmodified organisms. X-thousands of cycles of selective breeding and genetic modification to fit a variety of environments and applications leaves us with the potential for plants & animals very different from those we know - but there are probably also similarities. A "bovid" could be a cow, or something that isn't a cow rebuilt to serve as a cow, or maybe it's a cow modified for different conditions.

(One point of inspiration: Iain M. Banks is subtle with this stuff; things will show up on alien worlds called "hounds" and "mounts" and they're definitely not dogs and horses - but you the reader know what role they serve based on those descriptors.)

[basileus]

Londo Mollari:
But this…this, this, this is like… being nibbled to death by, uh…Pah! What are those Earth creatures called? Feathers, long bill, webbed feet…go "quack".

Vir Cotto:
Cats.

Londo:
Cats! I'm being nibbled to death by cats.

[Killer of Fate]

@David
thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions. This is very much appreciated.

[jerri]

Paper books and written records are mentioned several times, for example, the Knights of Ludd are said to keep paper records. How far does this go? Is it possible the Church protects vast libraries of written knowledge - perhaps sacred - that hasn't been digitised? Does the Galatia Academy keep written records, or is everything on data cores?

The main reason I ask this is because I wonder if a scenario where a "raid for knowledge" is required. If all data is kept on some server somewhere it seems trivial to pay a talented hacker to get a hold of it. However, ink on paper? That's more difficult, more involved. That's something that requires a solid plan and a silver tongue to get a hold of. Possibly.

[David]

Paper books and written records are mentioned several times, for example, the Knights of Ludd are said to keep paper records. How far does this go? Is it possible the Church protects vast libraries of written knowledge - perhaps sacred - that hasn't been digitised?

One thing I will say about the next patch is that the player will have the chance to experience a scene set in a library of the Church.

(I do like your idea of the necessity of to physically acquiring certain data in analog form - that's very fun.)