The Balmoran Federation
Name: The Balmorian Federation
Created By: Jay P. Hailey
Short Summary: A Distorted Mirror of the UFP
The Balmorian Federation is a coalition of Many races. The Zarian/Balmorians themselves are human to all appearances.
Appearance: ST-OM the Balmoran Federation
Location: The Balmorian Federation is at the very edge of explored space where a ship on a deep space probe may hear their subspace transmissions and be drawn to them to investigate.
Headquarters: Balmoria, a beautiful class "M" world, formerly one of the oldest and most well developed colonies of the Zarian Empire, they became the center of a new "United Federation of Planets.
Population: 360 billion.
Languages: The Official Language of the Balmorian Federation is a modification of Federation Standard. They started with Federation Standard as of approximately 2200, and have developed their version independently from there.
Government: The Balmorian Federation is a multi-planet Union with institutions and departments modeled faithfully on the UFP as of 2200, and then independently developed. The Balmorian Federation is technically run by a Federation Council, but this council often takes a back seat to the President of the Federation, who often sees his will carried out.
The president is elected by a vote of the Federation Council, and traditionally in the Balmorian Federation is a High ranking and well respected commander of the Balmorian Starfleet. Candidates may announce from any source, but usually Council Members and senior Admirals supported by the Joint chiefs of Staff are the only ones taken seriously. Rarely a councilor or an outsider with strong public support can win the Presidency but he'd best keep a good relationship with the Balmorian Starfleet if he hopes to accomplish much.
Economy: The Economy in the Balmorian Federation is strong and robust. The Economy of the Balmorian Federation is based on interplanetary trade, manufacturing and strong (Some might say overbearing) trade relations with their smaller neighbors. Wealth is more openly owned and displayed in the Balmorian Federation although there is the public perception that along with great wealth comes great social responsibility.
Military: The Arm of the Balmorian Federation Military is the Balmorian Federation's Starfleet. They use ranks, signage and procedures obviously cribbed from the UFP, but with a more militaristic bent. While the Balmorian Federation's Starfleet pays lip service to the concept of exploration and peace, and even has an anemic Galaxy Exploration Command, a Brief examination will show that the Balmorian Starfleet is a military force and not shy about showing itself to be so.
The heavy units of the Balmorian Starfleet are battle cruisers and dreadnoughts which typically patrol with an entourage of escorts and support vessels.
The Balmorian Starfleet uses heavy cruisers as mobile patrol and enforcement units with only the slimmest accommodation for exploration and science.
The Balmorians often use older ships as exploration vessels, feeling it a poor risk to take with larger and more capable units. The Balmorians have a very large and competent Marine force and land armies.
Technologically Balmorian Ships develop from the USS Canberra and the Federation technology base of the time. There will be disturbing echoes of Federation technology in the Balmorian Starfleet. This resemblance only gets more disturbing close up as the signage and symbology become clear.
History: In approximately 2190 the Daedalus class starship USS Canberra on a routine patrol suffered a serious engine malfunction and was thrown into deep, unknown space. Sort of a pre-TOS voyager thing. However the Canberra wound up in much worse trouble. The accident killed a lot of the Canberra's engineering and navigational staff. The damaged Navigational Computers crashed, and the Canberra was utterly lost. Even when partially restored their relatively primitive navigational techniques were overwhelmed by the distance.
Captain Lee and his crew bravely pressed forward anyway and had a long series of adventures.
In 2200 the Canberra, now much the worse for wear encountered the remains of the Zarian Empire in the process of being destroyed by the Bykaler, a race of warriors rebelling and destroying all humans in their path. The Zarian Empire was in a state of collapse reeling from a string of defeats and massacres.
Captain Lee and the Canberra crew rallied the tattered Zarian Military. With newly recruited allies and the technology of the Federation the new Alliance repelled the Bykalers. Impressed the surviving Zarian hierarchy decided to join the Federation.
The fact that they didn't know where it was was only a temporary impediment. Until it was discovered, they'd simply recreate it for themselves.
Captain Lee then became President Lee of the new United Federation of Planets. The position made him uncomfortable, but it was undeniable. Under Lee's leadership, the new Federation coalesced into a solid, coherent entity, reinvigorated, and proceeded to defeat the Bykalers, hurling them back to their own home world.
Eventually Lee and his old crew turned the reigns of power over to Native officers and politicians.
When Lee was age 90, he asked his crew to join him on the Canberra in hibernation to await contact with the Terran branch of the United Federation of Planets. most of them agreed (A few didn't they had lives and families to pursue on Balmoria.)
Lee has been awakened three times since then to assist with political or constitutional crises. After a brief period he always returns to Hibernation.
In due course the Bykaler Empire was defeated, conquered and absorbed into the
Balmorian Federation. The Balmorian federation has no such thing as a Prime
Directive. Due to their success in the war, the Balmorian Federation rationalized
that it was indeed a superior form of economic and social grouping and under
took to create a rating or relative merit compared to themselves .
The Bykalers were declared "Savages" and "Barbarians" and taken into the Balmorian Federation as second class citizens "for their own good". The Balmorian Federation then proceed to expand, absorbing worlds and neighbors. They also encountered new enemies and built up to fight them.
The Balmorian Federation took it's time expanding, preferring to make sure colonies are well developed and self sustaining before committing to more.
In the last 20 years, the Balmorian Federation has run into a competing culture, the Vargr. Although continuously pressed by the Vargr the Federation remains vibrant and growing, the largest empire in known space.
Currently the Balmorian Federation is arranged in opposition to the Vargr and the Kogari Region, a grouping of squabbling city states which manage to band together when ever threatened by the Balmorian Federation.
Culture: The Balmorian Federation is by and large earnest, if somewhat arrogant about their relative place in the galaxy. The average Balmorian will be happy to see representatives of the UFP. They generally see the UFP as an idealized version of their own government and nation. It is important to note that the average citizen sees the Balmorian Federation and the UFP as two wings of the same organization.
The Average Citizen of the Balmorian Federation has not been acculturated to revere other cultures and other truths the way a citizen of the UFP has and so will consider the idea of respecting other cultures nice if a bit too academic for everyday life.
Many of the more militaristic or culturally arrogant people of the Balmorian Federation will see the UFP as too "liberal" and too politically correct. They will react harshly to any suggestion that their interpretation of the Federation isn't superior,
The powers that rule the Balmorian Federation are the epitome of the ends justifying the means. They'll follow the good guys code for just as long at it's convenient or makes good PR, otherwise watch your back. These are the guys who'll have ultra violent super spies. These are the guys who'll have stealth ships and assassination squads. These are the guys who'll have Section 31. They'll expect a similar cabal in charge of the main UFP and will be unpleasantly surprised to find this is not the case. Afterwards, they'll see the main UFP as a definite threat to their power. This is why the Balmorian UFP is so hesitant about exploration. They fear discovering a power that can threaten their power.
Relations:
The Vargr:
The Vargr are Canine Humanoids. The typical Vargr is about 1.6 metres tall and
weighs approximately 60 kilograms. They are upright bipedal carnivores, with
rear limbs digitigrade and hands very similar in size and appearance to those
of a human, although with significant internal differences. They have approximately
the same physical parameters as humans and are able to use the same equipment
without modification or additional instruction.
The Vargr have no centralised government. Inded, there is no government which can be said to be "typically Vargr". Every conceivable form of governmental organisation can be found somewhere in the Vargr Extents - often more than one exists on the same world. The only cohesive force in the Extents is a fierce racial pride, which can cause a slight tendency towards racial cooperation. Vargr have long suffered from an inability to organise themselves (to any degree or for any length of time) beyond the star system level, and their empires rise and fall with unsurprising regularity.
Although gregarious, the group behavior of Vargr is characterized by a constant struggle for dominance within the group. The ability to exert personal authority over others derives from an individual's prestige and force of personality. The Vargr have various words to describe this important personal characteristic, but humans call it charisma. Individuals with high charisma are likely to become leaders of groups, even if they do not have real leadership skills. Charisma and the struggle for dominance play a crucial role in Vargr society.
When the Vargr and the Federation met, Cultural Misunderstandings led to hostilities. The Federation has defeated every Vargr nation to make war with it in the conventional sense but the continued defeats antagonize Vargr pride. Individuals, small groups and fleets occasionally under take to redress this insult to Vargr racial Pride.
For years the Balmorian Federation misunderstood the nature of these attacks and raids, considering it an assault by the Vargr as a whole. Indiscriminate retribution simply widened the hostilities.
Although the Balmorian Federation understands the Vargr a little better these day, many are not willing to follow through with this understand, and so the Vargr are still perceived as a cohesive, dangerous threat by many, intent on wiping out the virtuous Federation Way of Life.
The Kogari Region:
Another sizable enemy of the Balmorian Federation is the Kogari Region. This
is a balkanized region of pocket empires, single planet nations and experimental
governments. They have a large variety of peoples, rulers and cultures. Many
of the nations trace their roots back to Zarian Dissidents, or Bykaler refugees,
or members of other races overwhelmed by the Balmorian Federation.
The nations of the Kogari Region are often at war with each other and are known to fight bitterly and harbor long rivalries. But even the most hated of Kogari region enemies will band together to fight their mutual enemy the Balmorian Federation.
Advantages: The Balmorian Federation is a relatively advanced and militarily
powerful state.
Weaknesses: They are vulnerable to their own PR and changes in public perception, they are tied to an idealized conception of the UFP which doesn't mean much until there is a UFP around with strong ideas.
Special: The USS Canberra is still in orbit around Balmor, with a handful of her original crew aged but optimistic, in hibernation now a national monument. What Captain Lee and crew would think of the Balmorian Federation or the Modern UFP is left as an exercise for the GM/Author
Campaign Role: The role of the Balmorian Federation is to hold up a Dark Mirror of the Federation to the PCs and to make them question their own notions of what is right and wrong. A ruthless, goal-driven PC may well find the more militaristic version of the Federation to their liking. An Exploration and Diplomacy driven PC may feel the responsible to establish good relations not only with the Balmorian Federation but with it's Antagonized neighbors. A sentimentalist or Moralist PC may feel it incumbent upon them to try to ameliorate the damage done by Captain Lee's interference.
Either way, the actions of the Federation PCs making contact with the Balmorian Federation will be watched far and wide in the region and the other players will react in character.
The UFP has it's work cut out to establish any meaningful relationship with the states of the Kogari Region. They have been the victims of skillful manipulation by the Balmorian Federation and are watchful.
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Disclaimer: Paramount owns all things Trek. I claim original characters and situations in this material for me.