Touring the Stars with Bertram Habeas
We began on Terra, millions of years ago. Today, mankind stretches out among the
stars of the Milky Way, touching thousands of worlds, as far from our home as Clan
space, more than 2,000 light-years distant. Yet who are we, really? What have we
become in our relentless push outward and onward? I’m Bertram Habeas, and tonight,
let’s find the answers to these and many other fascinating questions together, as we
tour the stars!
Volume XXXVII: Legacies of the League II—Oriente and Andurien
Fact Sheet: Oriente Protectorate
Founding Year: 3086 (2241 as Federation of Oriente)
Capital (City, World): Amur, Oriente
National Symbol: a silver eagle before a purple-and-black disc
Location (Terra relative): Rimward of Terra, antispinward of Capellan
Confederation, central.
Total (Inhabited) Systems: 29
Estimated Population (3130): 85,500,000,000
Government: Representative Commonality (currently operating under military rule)
Ruler: Captain-General Jessica Marik
Dominant Language(s): English and Greek (both official), Chinese
Dominant Religion(s): Christianity (Orthodox), Islam
Unit of Currency: Drachma (1 drachma = 0.31 C-Bills)
The Oriente Protectorate, initially founded in 2241 as the Federation of Oriente (later
known as the Duchy of Oriente for much of its history), is the third of the founding
member-states of the Free Worlds League, and the second largest today. Like its
fellow founding states, Oriente was a populous and prosperous realm, its founders
blessed with a flair for politics and diplomacy. This diplomacy, however, did not often
protect them from raiders and invaders from the neighboring Capellan territories. It
was an Orientian who first proposed the formation of the Free Worlds League, in fact,
seeking a stronger alliance as a check against the resurgence of Terra and the ongoing
hostilities on the Capellan front.
With the ascent of House Marik, Oriente became known as the “loyal opposition.”
Their ever-pragmatic leadership has broadly supported the office of the Captain-
General throughout the years, but has also often provided the tempering voice in
Parliament, a check against Marik excesses. At the same time, Oriente has been a
focal point for commerce and technology. During the relative peace on the Capellan
front that followed the formation of the Federated Commonwealth, the people of
Oriente knew an age of economic and industrial prosperity, while Oriente merchants
exported their products and technical expertise throughout the Inner Sphere.
In the chaos following the League’s collapse, the forces of Regulus moved against
many of that nation’s neighbors, including Oriente, primarily because the Halas family
gave refuge to the false Thomas Marik. Forced to fight a defensive war against
suddenly hostile neighbors, the Duchy of Oriente united under the joint rule of Thomas
Marik’s impostor and his wife, Sherryl Halas, after the death of Duke Christopher
Halas in 3080. To signify his willingness to surrender a claim to the Free Worlds’
throne, the false Thomas dropped his assumed name in favor of his wife’s, but the
change did not appease the Regulans, who felt the imposter and his host realm
deserved severe punishment for decades of deception.
For a time, the Regulans were beaten back, but in 3084 they returned their attention to
Oriente when they were unable to overcome the forces of the Marik-Stewart
Commonwealth. Fighting like this continued throughout the remainder of the century,
and raged until as recently as the 3120s, with all three former League founders vying
for dominance and the right to reestablish their fractured realm. During that time,
Oriente was forced to annex the Protectorate and unite with the Duchy of Orloff,
absorbing the two smaller League republics in an effort to check Regulan ambitions
and better defend against Capellan aggression.
Politically, Oriente’s position remains precarious even today. Jessica Marik, daughter
of the false Thomas Marik (Halas), has herself been at the heart of the latest conflicts
since assuming the Marik name that most consider to be ill-gotten. Her argument in
claiming the name was that she did so to honor the man she claims should have been
the true Captain-General of the League, citing that the real Thomas Marik was a
madman who deserves no honor under a new League. Yet most see such maneuvering
as naked ambition to reestablish a Marik dynasty over all of the fractured League
states.
Fact Sheet: The Duchy of Andurien
Founding Year: 2791
Capital (City, World): Jojoken, Andurien
National Symbol: a silver eagle, perched atop a purple castle, set against a black field
Location (Terra relative): Rimward of Terra, antispinward of Capellan
Confederation, exterior.
Total (Inhabited) Systems: 25
Estimated Population (3130): 71,200,000,000
Government: Hereditary Oligarchy
Ruler: Duke Ari Humphreys
Dominant Language(s): English (official), Italian, Mandarin
Dominant Religion(s): Catholicism, Confucianism, Agnostic
Unit of Currency: Andurien dollar (1 dollar = 0.47 C-Bills)
Andurien has long been a battleground, frequently fought over by the armies of the
Free Worlds League and the Capellan Confederation, even before the Duchy was first
founded in 2791. For that reason, many Anduriens are understandably wary of
foreigners, and are especially contemptuous of those who would seek to dominate
them. Throughout their time as members of the League, the people of Andurien chafed
under what they considered to be nothing less than an occupation. Their leaders
became known as easily the most vocal opponents of the Captains-General outside of
the founding nations, and secessionist sentiments always ran deep.
In the 3030s, Dame Catherine Humphreys finally acted on this trend by announcing
the secession of the Duchy and allied her realm with the Magistracy of Canopus in a
war against House Liao’s Capellan Confederation. The Andurien Crisis created the
greatest challenge for the Free Worlds League in the thirty-first century after the
Marik Civil War, forcing the League to send in troops to reclaim the renegade
province. A terrorist’s bomb placed in a Marik family planning session, however,
opened the door for a sinister plan by the old ComStar regime to replace Thomas
Marik, heir to the Captain-Generalcy, with a double. The false Thomas Marik led a
successful campaign to reintegrate Andurien after its doomed invasion of the
Confederation ended.
Yet, even in defeat, with their military stripped away, the Anduriens never surrendered
their desire for independence, and seized upon the opportunity when it came about in
the closing years of the Jihad. Unlike many of its fellow League provinces, the
Anduriens never sought to reclaim the League; instead striking out on their own,
absorbing many neighboring worlds, including the Mosiro Archipelago, one of the
League’s smaller provinces, in order to secure a buffer against the Capellans and the
Oriente Protectorate.
The typical Andurien retains this fiercely independent will to the present day, and most
believe that the trinity of the Marik-Stewart Commonwealth, Regulan Fiefs, and
Oriente Protectorate, must be prevented from ever reforming the Free Worlds League,
much as the Capellans and Canopians must ever be opposed. Nothing is to come
between these people and their freedom, and from the Duke himself to the lowliest
factory worker, all are willing to resort to any means to retain their hard-won
independence.
In our final segment, the legacy of the League extends outward from Terra with the
Duchy of Tamarind-Abbey and the Rim Collection! Won’t you join us as we examine
these nations more closely? I’m Bertram Habeas.
stars of the Milky Way, touching thousands of worlds, as far from our home as Clan
space, more than 2,000 light-years distant. Yet who are we, really? What have we
become in our relentless push outward and onward? I’m Bertram Habeas, and tonight,
let’s find the answers to these and many other fascinating questions together, as we
tour the stars!
Volume XXXVII: Legacies of the League II—Oriente and Andurien
Fact Sheet: Oriente Protectorate
Founding Year: 3086 (2241 as Federation of Oriente)
Capital (City, World): Amur, Oriente
National Symbol: a silver eagle before a purple-and-black disc
Location (Terra relative): Rimward of Terra, antispinward of Capellan
Confederation, central.
Total (Inhabited) Systems: 29
Estimated Population (3130): 85,500,000,000
Government: Representative Commonality (currently operating under military rule)
Ruler: Captain-General Jessica Marik
Dominant Language(s): English and Greek (both official), Chinese
Dominant Religion(s): Christianity (Orthodox), Islam
Unit of Currency: Drachma (1 drachma = 0.31 C-Bills)
- Amur, capital city of Oriente and the Oriente Protectorate, is a city of
remarkable beauty that seems to transcend time itself. Virtually carved out of
the woods surrounding the base of the Amuraelius mountain chain—and, in
some cases, actually crawling up the side of the snow-capped range—the city
features some striking examples of modern neo-Classical architecture, styled
along the lines of Terra’s ancient Greece. Even the city’s skyscrapers, whose
upper floors reflect and scatter the rays of the planet’s giant yellow-white sun,
feature majestic columns and other pseudo-Grecian design features closer to
street level. Amur is a commercial megalopolis, its population of five million
gathered almost exclusively for the business of trade. Traffic rarely slows
down on the streets here, with businessmen, tourists, off-world traders, and
government leaders alike constantly on the move to their next appointments.
The Oriente Protectorate, initially founded in 2241 as the Federation of Oriente (later
known as the Duchy of Oriente for much of its history), is the third of the founding
member-states of the Free Worlds League, and the second largest today. Like its
fellow founding states, Oriente was a populous and prosperous realm, its founders
blessed with a flair for politics and diplomacy. This diplomacy, however, did not often
protect them from raiders and invaders from the neighboring Capellan territories. It
was an Orientian who first proposed the formation of the Free Worlds League, in fact,
seeking a stronger alliance as a check against the resurgence of Terra and the ongoing
hostilities on the Capellan front.
With the ascent of House Marik, Oriente became known as the “loyal opposition.”
Their ever-pragmatic leadership has broadly supported the office of the Captain-
General throughout the years, but has also often provided the tempering voice in
Parliament, a check against Marik excesses. At the same time, Oriente has been a
focal point for commerce and technology. During the relative peace on the Capellan
front that followed the formation of the Federated Commonwealth, the people of
Oriente knew an age of economic and industrial prosperity, while Oriente merchants
exported their products and technical expertise throughout the Inner Sphere.
In the chaos following the League’s collapse, the forces of Regulus moved against
many of that nation’s neighbors, including Oriente, primarily because the Halas family
gave refuge to the false Thomas Marik. Forced to fight a defensive war against
suddenly hostile neighbors, the Duchy of Oriente united under the joint rule of Thomas
Marik’s impostor and his wife, Sherryl Halas, after the death of Duke Christopher
Halas in 3080. To signify his willingness to surrender a claim to the Free Worlds’
throne, the false Thomas dropped his assumed name in favor of his wife’s, but the
change did not appease the Regulans, who felt the imposter and his host realm
deserved severe punishment for decades of deception.
For a time, the Regulans were beaten back, but in 3084 they returned their attention to
Oriente when they were unable to overcome the forces of the Marik-Stewart
Commonwealth. Fighting like this continued throughout the remainder of the century,
and raged until as recently as the 3120s, with all three former League founders vying
for dominance and the right to reestablish their fractured realm. During that time,
Oriente was forced to annex the Protectorate and unite with the Duchy of Orloff,
absorbing the two smaller League republics in an effort to check Regulan ambitions
and better defend against Capellan aggression.
Politically, Oriente’s position remains precarious even today. Jessica Marik, daughter
of the false Thomas Marik (Halas), has herself been at the heart of the latest conflicts
since assuming the Marik name that most consider to be ill-gotten. Her argument in
claiming the name was that she did so to honor the man she claims should have been
the true Captain-General of the League, citing that the real Thomas Marik was a
madman who deserves no honor under a new League. Yet most see such maneuvering
as naked ambition to reestablish a Marik dynasty over all of the fractured League
states.
Fact Sheet: The Duchy of Andurien
Founding Year: 2791
Capital (City, World): Jojoken, Andurien
National Symbol: a silver eagle, perched atop a purple castle, set against a black field
Location (Terra relative): Rimward of Terra, antispinward of Capellan
Confederation, exterior.
Total (Inhabited) Systems: 25
Estimated Population (3130): 71,200,000,000
Government: Hereditary Oligarchy
Ruler: Duke Ari Humphreys
Dominant Language(s): English (official), Italian, Mandarin
Dominant Religion(s): Catholicism, Confucianism, Agnostic
Unit of Currency: Andurien dollar (1 dollar = 0.47 C-Bills)
- Breathtaking with the striking colors of over a thousand exotic species of flora,
the botanical gardens of Jojoken are the pride of this capital city, not only of
the terrestrial planet of Andurien, but of the entire Duchy of Andurien. The
gardens of Jojoken offer visitors a glimpse of beauty and serenity not easily
found on the streets of the city itself, which are crowded by monolithic
buildings and chronically choked with heavy traffic. Like its counterparts on
the former League’s founding worlds, the capital of Andurien is a busy
metropolis, home to some six million people, who make their home a hub for
trade and government. Yet, in stark contrast to the hustle and bustle of the
crowded city, on the far side of the gardens rises the palace of the Humphreys,
hereditary rulers of Andurien—and, by extension, all of their Duchy.
Andurien has long been a battleground, frequently fought over by the armies of the
Free Worlds League and the Capellan Confederation, even before the Duchy was first
founded in 2791. For that reason, many Anduriens are understandably wary of
foreigners, and are especially contemptuous of those who would seek to dominate
them. Throughout their time as members of the League, the people of Andurien chafed
under what they considered to be nothing less than an occupation. Their leaders
became known as easily the most vocal opponents of the Captains-General outside of
the founding nations, and secessionist sentiments always ran deep.
In the 3030s, Dame Catherine Humphreys finally acted on this trend by announcing
the secession of the Duchy and allied her realm with the Magistracy of Canopus in a
war against House Liao’s Capellan Confederation. The Andurien Crisis created the
greatest challenge for the Free Worlds League in the thirty-first century after the
Marik Civil War, forcing the League to send in troops to reclaim the renegade
province. A terrorist’s bomb placed in a Marik family planning session, however,
opened the door for a sinister plan by the old ComStar regime to replace Thomas
Marik, heir to the Captain-Generalcy, with a double. The false Thomas Marik led a
successful campaign to reintegrate Andurien after its doomed invasion of the
Confederation ended.
Yet, even in defeat, with their military stripped away, the Anduriens never surrendered
their desire for independence, and seized upon the opportunity when it came about in
the closing years of the Jihad. Unlike many of its fellow League provinces, the
Anduriens never sought to reclaim the League; instead striking out on their own,
absorbing many neighboring worlds, including the Mosiro Archipelago, one of the
League’s smaller provinces, in order to secure a buffer against the Capellans and the
Oriente Protectorate.
The typical Andurien retains this fiercely independent will to the present day, and most
believe that the trinity of the Marik-Stewart Commonwealth, Regulan Fiefs, and
Oriente Protectorate, must be prevented from ever reforming the Free Worlds League,
much as the Capellans and Canopians must ever be opposed. Nothing is to come
between these people and their freedom, and from the Duke himself to the lowliest
factory worker, all are willing to resort to any means to retain their hard-won
independence.
In our final segment, the legacy of the League extends outward from Terra with the
Duchy of Tamarind-Abbey and the Rim Collection! Won’t you join us as we examine
these nations more closely? I’m Bertram Habeas.
