Star Wars Ascendance

Star Wars Ascendance

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The Spinward Alliance

Brief History

The Spinward Alliance is a small interstellar federation in the Arkanis sector. Founded in 6750 ABY, the worlds of Obana, Geonosis, Tattooine and Vor Deo were the first worlds of the Federation.

Obana was founded by a small group of Alderaanian colonists in 4500 ABY. Fleeing the tyranny of the Skraelar and their Transcendant Hegemony, the small band was prepared to make it's last stand against the infoform creatures. However, the 3000 colonists were saved by what destroyed galatic civilization - the Hyperspace Collapse.

The Hyperspace Collapse No one knows what caused the Hyperspace Collapse, but in the course of 30 years, hyperlanes slowly became more and more treacherous, with ships disappearing into hyperspace, flying wildly off course, of exploding upon entry or exit. In what was their last known heroic action, thousands of Jedi Knights sacrificed themselves using their Force Sight to safely navigate refugee vessels through to safe worlds, while burning out their bodies and minds. Because the Obanan refugees had landed on their world not 2 years before the collapse began, they were prepared better than most for the Interregnum.

For 1000 years, hyperspace travel was nearly impossible, with trans-sector jumps absolutely out of the question. Vessels could barely enter hyperspace at all, and then only travel to worlds no farther than 5 parsecs away, with tremendous damage to their hyperdrives. Holonet and hypercom communications were completely cut off. With the Jedi extinguished in their act of self sacrifice, the Force was not even an avenue of consideration. As systems were sealed off, most of the galaxy fell into barbarism and despair, especually in the Core Worlds, whose specialized and focused economies could not feed immensely large planetary populations. The poetry of Dathomiri mystic Vella Vel Van tells of her crying while hearing in the Force the death throes of the galaxy. But even then, Force-based Farsight was also disrupted. While the Force could be used easily enough locally, seeing far off places or things outside of systems was now flatly impossible.

Professor Danro Kesh and the voyages of discovery

The Obana civilization, located on it's tropical chain of islands of the primarly water world, slowly grew into maturity. Derived from Alderaanian traditions, the ancient saga of the Journals of the Whills were considered the stuff of legendry. They conducted the slow, hard work of redeveloping arts, sciences and institutions based on the memories of old dead Alderaan and the Galactic Republic. As the world rose up from a feudal era into one of civilized city states, combustion engines, electricity and nuclear power had been rediscovered. While many Obanans had regarded interstellar travel as something from legend, there was a young man who created his own observatory, using old plans for interstellar sensors. He was content to map the beautiful stars, and to wonder what people lived there.

In his day job he was a physicist. He was tasked with developing clean fusion power sources, as the Obanan government wanted to preserve the pristine watery world they were lucky enough to live on. He had developed a solar sail vessel, and was working on building a 3-man prototype in his spare time, with the aim of using the vessel locally, to mine the local moon. He was told to forget about such nonsense, and to devote his energies to the rediscovery of the ancient fusion technologies that they had arrived with.

However, his observatory had detected a faint signal coming from a planet in the local sector, at the far northern edge. Using a quantum tunneling technology that bypassed hyperspace (that was in use for local system communications), he had picked up a binary code. It was relatively simple to decipher. It was a simple message -

May The Force Be With You.

Frantically, Kesh attempted to reply. He was able to only use simple binary code. He had begun a conversation with someone on a world known as Tattooine. The mysterious starborn stranger had explained that this was simply an old beacon. She named herself Janaya Montro, and explained, over painstaking yes/no communication, that she was part of a religious sect called Jedi. They were the caretakers of a gigantic vault of knowledge and compound on their desert world, which housed a quiet community of scholars and mystics.

Kesh continued his dialogue. While the bandwidth was enough to transmit crude flat images, it wasn't good for much else. Kesh felt that if his superiors knew, they'd be enraged. Sadly, these Jedi only maintained knowledge of things like history and art. They exchanged stories, shared their dreams. He had no idea what this person looked like, except that she was humanoid. However, Kesh was reluctantly falling in love with the person on the other end.

Kesh continued work on his vessel with his friends Baktoo, a Nemoid (who we now know are called 'Nemoidians') and an old Gamor scholar named Karko. The three developed a solar powered translight method of travel called lightrunning, that used heavy solar radiation to transition a vessel into a localized layer of hyperspace. The three hoped to use this for local, in-system travel. The infoform assisting them, an intelligence named Crystal Song, could easily compute to travel to other star systems, but it was felt that this was far too dangerous.

Kesh and his fellow's work were interrupted, as a tear appeared in space above Obana. The Valem mystics (Obana's small force using sect) screamed in pain, as the enslaved Vortex Adepts of Borga the Hutt opened a hole in space. The Hutt's gigantic battle barge began dropping troops. While maintaining a small military, the planet was in the process of being overrun.

Kesh ran to his small, golden-sailed flyer. His people desperately needed help. As he and his friends loaded on board, and as the graceful vessel made it's first flight past the enemy slaver fighters, he told Crystal Song -

"Engine the Lightrunner system. Set the coordinates for Tattooine."

Over the course of 7 weeks, the Hutt's forces laid systematic seige to Obana. Just as the Senate Citadel was about to fall, several hastily constructed gold-wing Lightrunner vessels appeared in orbit above Obana. Slipping in past the seige lines, torn golden wings collapse. As the ships skidded right into the Hutt seige lines, ramp doors opened, revealing cloaked figures. From his war throne, Borga demanded to know who these interlopers were.

In reply, bright blades of energy extended from hilts. Borga's drug-enslaved Vortex adepts, screamed, "No, no! The JEDI HAVE RETURNED."

The actual battle was still pitched over several days, as the Jedi mystics of Tattoine, who had preserved and practiced the old lore for so long, took from ancient vaults Lightsabers with names like Quel Droma and Windu and Skywalker. While untried in combat, ancient skills took the day, along with the military skill and finesse of the Obana militia. As the two linked up, The Hutt was driven off the world. What was strange that amongst the Jedi of Tattooine, there were those of his species, including a great Master, Maltooa the Kind.

Kesh and his compatriots had travelled to Tattooine, explained their plight. Without hesitation, the mystics bent all of their resources to hastily constructing Lightrunner ships. What was surprising was that Crystal Song had confirmed in her readings - the hyperspace routes were starting to clear. This partially explained the arrival of the Hutt and his armada.

As Tattoine and Obana made contact, the Obana Senate welcomed the Jedi Knights. As the planet recovered from the invasion, Mistress Janaya Montro urged both the Jedi Elders and the Obana senate to create a dedicated corps of explorers, to both share and restore knowledge of the long lost republic, and as well as to protect both worlds. As the ancient Jedi University of Tattooine shared knowledge with the academics of Obana, both peoples flourished, and hyperdrive has just been rediscovered. Danro Kesh was named the first Explorer Captain. He and his Jedi bride Mistress Montro began the first voyages of discovery and exploration, using the unique Obana Lightrunner ships to begin to reach out to the local systems.

The Mando War and the Jedi Wardens

100 years later, the newly formed Spinward Alliance had created a small but respectable space navy, and had included 20 systems. The Jedi Knights had determined to remain aloof from anything smacking of political leadership, instead lending their talents as advisors, diplomats and peace keepers. The old Jedi tradition of Watchman was reinstated, with a small group of Jedi being given a small ship and being set to maintain watch over a small group of systems. The Jedi were also careful to maintain the ancient Jedi Code, swiftly dealing with Dark Siders in their midst while allowing a reasonable interface with normal society.

This has resulted in something of a schism in the Jedi Tradition of Tattooine. First are the Templars, who do not marry and carry on in the manner of the ancient sagas and epics of the Knights of the Old Republic. Second are the Wardens, who establish families and clans and who pass down Force teaching from parent to child. As both tendencies exchanged students, this has yet to become an issue, with pride and arrogance in Padawans quickly quashed in both sides.

However, another threat would appear in 6900 ABY. The Mandalorian army of Shar Vakryn besieged the Jedi University of Tattooine. The Alliance fleet engaged the ancient Mandalorian battle cruisers in orbit above the Jedi Homeworld. As the warlord Shar Vakryn and Jedi Master Elim Noss faced each other atop the tower of wisdom, and asked a question.

"Before we die," asked Noss, facing the fierce Togruta warlord, "Why have you attacked us?"

Vakryn replied, "because I am my warriors seek the greatest, mightiest challenge! You Jedi are said to have the Force behind you. If we can conquer you, then we have proven ourselves the greatest of warriors."

Noss turned off his lightsaber. "There is a greater challenge. We're just physical beings, here. With your superior numbers and skills, you can probably kill us all. But, I wonder, can you defeat yourselves?"

Valkryn hissed, "what riddles are you babbling, old man?"

"You see," explained Noss, "We Jedi are challenged by our code. Due to your desire for warfare and challenge, I don't think your people are strong enough to engage in that challenge. I've heard of Mando discipline, but I'm not convinced."

Valkryn growled, "We are strong of will enough for any challenge, physical or mental! We could easily live as you do, you lazy mystics. I can prove it!"

Noss bowed. "Very well. A number of our people will live amongst you, and give you our code, in exchange for you teaching them to be strong Mandalorians. If those of you who can hear the Force can meet our challenge, we will stand aside, and you may do as you wish. Is this acceptable?" At that moment, all of the Jedi of the university turned their Lightsabers off.

Valkryn. "Well, you are brave. Very well. You will have 20 years. We can find other challenges in the mean time."

In that 20 years, Mandalorians who came to the ancient Jedi fortress of Tattoine took back to their people the Jedi Way. While many within the Jedi tradition questioned Master Noss, within 20 years the Warden clans emerged - Jedi families who also embraced certain of the Mandalorian traditions, and who knew how to fight and engage the Mando clans. This has resulted in a number of Mando clans becoming citizens of the Alliance, and has brought vigor and new knowledge to the Jedi of the Alliance. Warfare only in defense and tempered by Mando clan traditions has strengthened greatly the methods used to resist the Force's Dark Side. Of course, many more clans regard this as the Great Deception, but the Jedi Warden clans, who live in a tribal manner, serve to represent the Alliance and to protect the Alliance from the large Mando clans who seek to raid the Alliance worlds for wealth. Only a small minority of Mando clans hold Alliance citizenship, and they and the Jedi Warden clans are the vanguard against invading Mandalorian armies. But Master Noss' unorthodox solution has greatly strengthened Alliance culture and the Jedi tradition.

The most dangerous development in the past 50 years has been the violent clashes with the Palpatinist Autarchy to the galactic northwest. Occasionally sending forth patrols from their fortress world of Goroth, the Autarchy is in a cold war with the Spinward alliance. The economic and political freedoms offered against the feudal-capitalist worlds of the Autarchy infuriates their general and barons, who run a brutal state of ownership of everything by business elites and old nobility. Their cybernetic Eliminators have found their matched in fully trained Jedi Knights, and their armies are professional and precise. A nation of despots and torturers, the Autarchy reveres the great Emperor Palpatine, whom they regard as simply a powerful, visionary leader who commanded the galaxy at it's greatest height during the fabled Galactic Empire. The Jedi of Tattooine name Palpatine as a force user called Darth Sidious, but most regard these as ancient myths and faerie tales.

Politics

The Spinward Alliance senate includes senators from about 50 worlds. Back in the days of the old Galactic Republic, this would have been miniscule, but in the current interstellar scene.

The alliance is run by a First Minister, Who is normally the executive of the Alliance. Member worlds are allowed their own governance, so long as they abide by the Alliance constitution. The First Minister command the Alliance Navy, and is advised, but does not command, the Assembly of Wisdom.

Under it's control is the Diplomatic Section of the Explorer Corps. Alliance diplomats, often Senators, travel with Explorer Teams when making first contacts in the wake of the New Wave of Exploration.