Star Fleet Universe
The
Star Fleet Universe (SFU) is the variant of the
Star Trek fictional universe detailed in the series of tactical and strategic interstellar
wargames from
Amarillo Design Bureau Inc. and used as reference for the
Star Fleet Command series of
computer games. It draws from the material from the original and animated series of
Star Trek as well as from other sources, such as
The Star Trek Star Fleet Technical Manual, and includes a substantial amount of new races and technologies, such as the
Hydran Kingdom, the
Interstellar Concordium and the
Andromedans.
Games set in this universe include the wargames
Star Fleet Battles,
Federation and Empire, and
Federation Commander; the
card game Star Fleet Battle Force; the
role-playing game Prime Directive in editions for the
GURPS and
D20 game systems, as well as the future
General War strategic game system. Also, ADB produces
Captain's Log, a non-periodical journal that generally comes out semi-annually with additional SFU background material, starship information and reports from various game events and tournaments.
The
Star Fleet Command games draw on this universe considerably, yet maintain a number of elements not found in the original Star Fleet Universe, such as movie-era ships and the
Meskeen race for the
ISC.
|
| A diagram map of the Milky Way Galaxy in the Star Fleet Universe. |
In the Star Fleet Universe, the
Milky Way Galaxy is divided up into 24 sectors named for the letters of the
greek alphabet along the rim, and extending inwards to where star density and radiation problems cause
ion storms which preclude travel. There are five 'void' sectors (Epsilon, Iota, Pi, Upsilon and Omega), where star and planet density is low, and tend to generate large ion storms and radiation clouds, also restricting travel from one set of sectors to another. This leads to the sectors in between to be grouped together in (generally) sets of three, termed 'octants', as three sectors are one eighth of the rim of the galaxy, and which are sometimes inaccurately referred to as 'sectors' themselves.
The Storm Zone is unoccupied, as even bases cannot exist there due to the severity of the storms, and ships cannot penetrate the Radiation Zone. The Core of the galaxy has never been explored.
The five areas that the Voids separate the inhabitable portions of the galaxy up into are the Alpha Octant, the Sargasso Octant, the Xorkaelian Empire, the Sigma Octant, and the Omega Octant.
Alpha Octant
The Alpha Octant is named for the Alpha Sector, which borders on a void, and stretches through the Delta sector. This is technically four sectors, not three, but Delta is largely unexplored and lightly settled, containing the Hydran Lost Colonies and Lyran Far Stars. It is by far the best known of all the locales in the Star Fleet Universe, being home to the Federation and all the other familiar races of
The Original Series.
Alpha contains (roughly) the ISC, Romulan Star Empire, and Gorn Confederation. Beta contains the Federation, and Tholian Holdfast. Gamma contains the Klingon Empire, Kzinti Hegemony, Hydran Kingdom, and Lyran Star Empire.
Earth,
Vulcan,
Andoria and
Rigel are at the centre of the Federation, in the Primary Member Zone. This is located in the central hex of the Federation as shown on the
Federation and Empire map (which corresponds to the blue area of the galaxy map), below.
|
| The Alpha Octant, home to the UFP, Klingons, Romulans and neighboring races. |
The various governments or factions inside the Alpha Octant are:
*;
United Federation of Planets : In many ways, still the same idealistic explorers depicted in
canon Star Trek. The Federation is also the economic powerhouse of the sector, which has been the cause of most of the tension with its neighbors. While the Federation is not a military powerhouse, its economy is capable of supporting a massive buildup in states of emergency.(Blue area in map center.)
*;
Klingon Empire : The "smooth forehead" version from
The Original Series, they tend to act less like the samuraish Klingons of the
Next Generation and more with the "do what needs to be done" attitude displayed in the
Original Series. It should also be noted that the Star Fleet Universe Klingons make extensive use of "Subject Races" who are effectively second class citizens in the Empire. (Grey area to the left (West) of the Federation.)
*;
Romulan Star Empire : The Romulans of the Star Fleet Universe are much the same as those most non-SFU fans know. They are allied with the Klingons who helped them gain an equal technological footing with their neighbors. The Romulans truly believe it is their destiny to rule the galaxy. (Red area on the bottom right.)
*;
Kzinti Hegemony : Based on the
Kzin seen in an episode of the
Animated Series written by
Larry Niven, the Kzintis are an aggressive race who have had wars with all of their neighbors, especially the other feline race, the Lyrans. By the time of the
General War, the Kzintis are allies with the Federation, but this is more an alliance of convinence against the Klingons than any true friendship. Due to licensing concerns,
Star Fleet Command altered the Kzinti into the more canine
Mirak. (Maroon area north of the Klingons.)
*;
Gorn Confederation : After a brief war with the Federation involving mistakes with the first contact, the Gorn are Federation allies who have been in near constant wars with the Romulans. (White area north of the Romulans.)
*;
Tholian Holdfast : A crystalline race at the edge of the galaxy (located where the Federation, Romulan, and Klingon borders come together). They are isolationists, and the last remnant of an empire that once spanned a (different) galaxy. Lacking much fundamental equipment, they pride themselves on a "Let's you and him fight" philosophy. (Tan area at bottom center.)
*;
Orion Pirates : While Orion, and the alien race native to the planet, are officially part of the Federation, the Orion pirates are a menace across the sector, though some are an unofficial arm of the Orion government. Many Orion Pirates are not ethnic Orions, but come from nearly every race in the known galaxy. (The Orion Enclave is the aqua area inside the Federation where Orion itself is. Pirates operate in every known part of the Octant save the Tholian Holdfast.)
*;
Hydran Kingdom : A race of short, three legged, two mouthed aliens with three tentacles for arms. The Hydrans live on the far side of the Klingon Empire from the Federation, and had been conquered by Klingons and Lyrans twice before fighting their way out of their far colonies. (Green area at the far bottom left. LHC on the galaxy map refers to the Lost Colonies, the springboard for two liberation campaigns by the Hydran Guilds.)
*;
Lyran Star Empire : Distantly related to the Kzinti, the Bobcatish Lyrans border the Klingons, Hydrans and Kzinti. While they fought a few early wars with the Klingons, most of their fighting has been with the Kzinti in a conflict of mutual hatred. (Dark yellow area at the far upper left. FS on the galaxy map refer to the Lyran Far Stars, the furthest frontier of the Lyran Empire.)
*; : The WYN Cluster is located at the meeting point of the Lyran, Kzinti and Klingon Empires, surviving due to the fact that the cluster is surrounded by a zone of radiation so intense that any invader's ship would be disabled long enough for the WYN defense forces to overwhelm it. The Cluster was founded by a Kzinti who attempted to overthrow the reigning Patriarch and his followers, who all initially thought they were committing mass suicide. (One hex area at the Lyran/Klingon/Kzinti border.)
*;
Interstellar Concordium (ISC) : A multi-racial union from space just beyond the Gorns and Romulans, the ISC believed the warring nations of the
General War needed to be given a chance to find peace, and launched a massive pacification campaign (read invasion) of the rest of Alpha Octant to give it to them. (Yellow area at the far right.)
|
Lyran Democratic Republic |
*;
Lyran Democratic Republic : The LDR is a province of the Lyran Empire that rebelled against its ruling count and stood as a semi-independent neutral state for fifty years. This came to an end when the Andromedans saw their space as an easy target. (Brownish area at the bottom right corner of the Lyran Empire.)
*;
Vudar Enclave : A subject race of the Klingons who come from a world near the galactic barrier, and carved out a state of their own near the end of the General War. (Covers the bottom left corner of the Klingon Empire and the bottom right corner of the Hydran Kingdoms as shown on the above map.)
*;
Carnivons : A race of canine derived warriors, they appear to have a genetic link to both the Kzinti and Lyrans. The only thing that any of the three races ever agreed on was that the universe was not big enough for more than one of them. The Carnivons were eventually pushed out of known space by the other two. (Originally between Lyrans and Kzintis, may still exist in Delta Sector and Sargasso Octant.)
*;
Paravian Raiders : A birdlike race who came from the same genetic ancestors as the Gorn, the Parvarions waged a quasi religious war on that race until they were finally defeated and forcibly isolated to their own homeworld. This world was later destroyed when a monster caused its sun to
nova. (Formerly north of the Gorn, including on-map territory. Also possess a small enclave within the Omega Octant, established after the loss of their homeworld.)
Omega Octant
The Omega Octant runs from the Void in the Omega Sector through Phi Sector, and is detailed in a series of
Star Fleet Battles modules. However, Phi Sector is mostly the home of the Zosman Mauraders who have not yet been published in any product.
Other Milky Way Factions and Octants
|
Much of the rest of the Milky Way Galaxy remains to be explored in the Star Fleet Universe... |
*;
The Xorkaelian Empire : The Xorkaelians control six Sectors, from Kappa to Omicron on the far side of the galaxy from the Alpha Octant. It is known that they have sent occasional raids to the Alpha Octant for some time, and invaded the Alpha races sometime after the
Andromedan War, but nothing has been published about these events as of yet. Their ships are reported to have a modular design, but little of this race has been revealed as of yet.
*;
The Jindarians : The Jindarians have been in space for longer than Homo sapiens have been on Earth. They use hollow asteroids for their ships and travel in unrelated caravans. They care little about borders, governments, and wars and just travel from system to system, mining asteroid belts. They push aside any competition using their warp augmented railguns to fire thousands of cubic meters of gravel and rock at opponent vessels. They are known to be found throughout the Alpha and Omega Octants, with two caravans extant in the SMC.
Sargasso Storm Octant
The Sargasso Octant contains Zeta, Eta, and Theta Sectors. It has not been covered by any product but is known to experience periods of truly massive ion storms that make interstellar travel impossible for decades at a time throughout the octant. It is believed to be home to some 20 races who live in protected enclaves and come out between storms to claim available resources.
Sigma Octant
The Sigma Octant contains Tau, Sigma and Rho Sectors. It has not been covered by any product at this time.
Andromeda Galaxy
|
M31, home of the Andromedan Invaders. |
So far, only one race has been revealed as originating from M31, but it has made quite an impact on the Star Fleet Universe...
|
The insignia for the Andromedan Invaders. |
*;
The Andromedan Invaders : The Andromedans (who were backtracked to a galaxy visible in the
Andromeda constellation from
Earth) were first contacted in the Alpha Octant in Y166 - though they had already made their presence felt in the Lesser Magellanic Cloud - but in Y188 they launched an all out
attack on the Milky Way Galaxy. They utilise technology unlike any in the Milky Way or the LMC, such as Power Absorbers instead of shields which allow them to use incoming attacks to help power their ships.
|
The Lesser Magellanic Cloud - home to the first victims of the Andromedan War. |
Before the Andromedans invaded the Milky Way Galaxy, they conquered the
Small Magellanic Cloud satellite galaxy, as an advanced base of operations. The races there could not resist fighting each other, but when the Invaders arrived they swore to set aside their own wars in a desperate bid for survival. These races are:
*
The Baduvai Imperium *
The Eneen Protectorates *
The Maghadim Hives*
The Uthiki Harmony*
The Jumokian League*
The Chomak Community*
The Yrol Septs*
The Neutral WorldsM81 Galaxy
|
M81, home of the (former) Tholian Will and the Seltorian Tribunal. |
The original location of the Tholian Will was
M81, or Bode's Galaxy, outside the
local group. Before the Seltorian revolt, it was controlled completely by the Tholians. In addition, this galaxy was once home to the Bolosco, later found in the Omega Octant.
|
The insignia for the Seltorian Tribunal. |
*;
The Seltorian Tribunal : After their successful revolt, the Seltorians kept the same basic political structure as the Tholian Will in place, just with themselves in charge. Fearful of an eventual Tholian return, they have sent out large nest ships as mobile bases of operation against any remnants of the Tholians they locate. It is unknown just how many expeditions were sent out, but it is known that one did go to the
Andromeda Galaxy (and presumably did not fare well), as well as to the Milky Way.
The Iridani Cluster
|
M3, An example of a globular cluster in orbit of the Milky Way - the kind of place the Iridani call home. |
Adjacent to the Omega Octant of the Milky Way Galaxy, the Iridani Cluster is home to one rather advanturous space-faring race...
*; The Iridani Questers :
Otter-like party goers, the Iridani frequently travel to neighbouring galaxies, such as the Milky Way (most notably among the Omega races) and the Small Magellanic Cloud, in single ships (or sometimes in ssquadrons) performing "Knightly" quests. Their Cluster was conquered by the
Andromedans in the Y190s, but there were so many Iridani in the Milky Way that their fleet was able to band together for the greatest Quest of all: the liberation of their home worlds.
Triangulum Galaxy
|
M33, the third major galaxy of the Local Group to be examined in the Star Fleet Universe. |
Module E2 is a playtest pack for
Star Fleet Battles that details the natives of the nearby (in galactic terms)
Triangulum Galaxy.
*; The Arachnid Worlds of Union : The Arachnids are hive-minded parasites who took over other species and formed them into the Worlds of Unions.
*; The Hellgardian Protectorate : Strangers from another dimension, the Helgardians gave up trying to get home after 300 years and began forging a new Empire. Long-lived and slow to adopt new ways, they never dreamed that the warp engines they traded away could be reverse-engineered so quickly.
*; The Mallaran Empire : The Mallarans climbed into space on Helgardian warp engines and carved out their own niche in the galaxy.
*; The Imperium : This is the largest territory of the Triangulum Galaxy and includes the Ninev Commercial Guild, Virax, Atlar, Edurian Theocracy, Darquay and Joquam.
*; The Demony Alliance :
*; The Human Republic :
*; The Star League : This territory includes the Gorthang and Quegan Matriarchy.
*; The Yvrin :
*; The Azary :
*; The Xyll :
*; The Sunfire Khanate :
*; Unicorp :
*; The Wega'an :
*; The Khartax Free Zone :
*; The Valorean Coalition :
*; The Confederation : This territory includes the Ussite Pack, Loth Pact and O.U.T.
*; The Frigian Kingdom :
*; Tragg's Realm : This is the remnants of the Aloola, an empire devastated by the Arachnids.
*; The Atrean Directorate :
Official Star Fleet Universe chronology uses an Earth-based calendar (June, August, 365 days, etc.), with dates given in "Y-years". These are written as (for instance) Y168, or August Y168, and are dated to the year Earth first made contact with the
Vulcans. A direct conversion to familiar
Anno Domini dating is (purposefully) not given, however the
Federation and Empire rules state that Y0 is should be somewhere between AD 2020 and AD 2090, while the
Federation Commander rules arbitrarily set it as AD 2400 and consistently use 'AD' dates derived from that rather than use 'Y-year' nomenclature. In both cases, it is stated that the actual date cannot be precisely known.
As this chronology was created completely separately of anything done for
Star Trek after the
Original Series (which at the time also avoided any hard date for when it happened), it cannot (and should not) be reconciled directly with current Star Trek
canon. As an example of the incompatibilities arising from the separate evolution of the two visions of Star Trek history, the SFU defines the "five year mission" of the original
Star Trek series as being from Y155 to Y160, which by
Paramount's chronology would put Y0 at AD 2108; while if one accepts the definition of Y0, it should be the year of the movie
Star Trek: First Contact, AD 2063.
The timeline for the Star Fleet Universe in the Alpha Octant is commonly broken into several eras:
The
Early Years, Y78 to Y140,
the
Middle Years, Y126 to Y165,
the
Four Powers War, from Y158 to Y162,
the
General War, from Y168 to Y185,
the
ISC War of Pacification, from Y186 to Y188,
the
Andromedan invasion, from Y188 to Y202,
and the as-yet unpublished
Trade Wars and
Xorkaelian War era, from Y205-Y225 (the War reputedly begins in Y210).
*
Ship Classes of the Star Fleet Universe*
Capital Weapons of the Star Fleet Universe* GURPS Prime Directive, 4th Edition.
* The Milky Way Galaxy, Captain's Log #27, (ADB, 2003)
