Kingdom of Mizert

Created by: Jay P Hailey and refined a LOT by Garry Stahl. 
Appearance: Starbase 600 game
Number of Members: Hundreds of Millions of Zarians, total.
Nature of Members: Zarians, with a small sprinkling of others.
Organization: Monarchy. The King is chosen from among the noble families based primarily on his accomplishments in terms of science and industry. It is fairly frank and brutal process. the King's own children are eligible, but not favored, at least not officially.
The Kingdom of Mizert is one of the Kogari Powers. Originally a Zarian frontier colony, it was taken over by expatriate Zarian nobles. It claims to be the only legitimate heir to the Zarian Empire
Mizert owns two heavily populated worlds and a few colonies. Noted for technological innovation, they are the armory of The Five Kingdoms.
Bureaucracy is so thick you are kicking them out of your way all the time. Customs is the guild of Band Majors. Public Health has its Mad Doctor uniform. Every ministry has a uniform and rank structure. Who gets to do what is a frequent argument. Often the most senior personnel are arguing while the flunkies are doing the real work. 
*Mizert Department of Customs -- Control of port of entry seeing that contraband doesn't get in the world unless the proper bribes are paid. The Department of Hotel Bellhops going on the uniforms.
*Mizert Department of Engineering Standards These people are serious about it. Engineering is the bread and butter of the Kingdom.They wear tailored to the nines engineer coveralls.
*Mizert DiLithium Guild -- Tthe Royal Monopoly that controls all diLithium trade. they want to get diSodium and would make the person that gets them some very wealthy indeed.
*Mizert Department of Health & Hygiene -- They dress the paort of the "Evil" Ear, Nose, & Throat doctors. They have the veyr real and serious job is seeing that some ship does not drop TeNGO on the unsuspecting population.
*Mizert Royal Brokerage -- The guild of band majors. They broker all off world trade, import or export, skimming a cut of the King in the process.
Culture: Mizert is a "Man's World", Patriarchal and male dominated. This does not go so far as women being expected to go barefoot and pregnant, but for a woman to make it in a man's profession, she has to twice as good to be considered half as good. They try to not project this onto other cultures, they are dealing in arms here, and sell to the highest bidder, tits or no tits. But it is difficult to not be what you are. They have zero women in the military. A real hard division of labor. Women care for the hearth and home, Men go forth and bravely fight. Conversely, while a woman would be sent home that wanted to play with the military, a man that wanted to stay home is emasculated in the eyes of others. Chains bind at both ends.
''
Knowledge is King. The king is expected to be a scientist or technologist and preferably both. Technology is the edge on which Mizert rides and the culture reflects this. Higher learning, basic research, innovation, these are respected at the institutional level. Those that show them and practice them are the Kingdom's heroes.
Game Role: A small power to be courted diplomatically, but whose aims are self centered and possibly quite ruthless.
World Role: One of the Kogari Powers
Relative Influence: Moderate. 
Public or Secret?Public 
Publicly Stated Goal: To Reclaim the Zarian Throne, and return the Zarian Empire to Ascendancy. But first to over come usurpers and pretenders to the throne.
Relative Wealth: Compared to other Kogari Powers: Moderate - they are about equal to the other Kogari Powers in this area. Compared to the United Federation of Planets: Miniscule.
Group advantages: Slightly Higher technology than their neighbors. In SFB terms they can build early Generation 1 X-Ships. TOS Constitution class Starships are generation 0 technology. With effort they could duplicate the TMP Enterprise. They were making this effort when the Balmoran Federation Merged with the United Federation of Planets. By Comparison the 2364 Enterprise-D is Generation 4 X-Technology. the Dolphin class is Generation 5 X-Technology
Special Abilities: Mizerti Culture prizes technological innovation, and rewards advancement. In SFB ships, Mizerti ships are all assumed to have Special Sensors, and can act as fleet scouts, or conduct electronic warfare as a scout.
Group disadvantages: Living the Monkey barrel
'Special disadvantages: The Klingon Empire has Gen 4 X-Technology.
Those who favor them: Depends upon context. If in conflict with a power outside the Kogari Region, then all Kogari powers will rally around. Confusingly - the Federation is considered the chief exo-Kogari power, and so is the chief spark for intra-kogari cooperation. But the Empire of [[[Mongo]], a Kogari Power recently joined the Federation. So the Federation adopted the stance of Mongo. The Federation, in accordance with explicit treaty and implicit practice considers itself a Kogari power, and will rally to aid Mizert if the are in danger of being conquered by another power.
So in the context of facing off against the Federation, everyone, even the Federation, favors the Kingdom of Mizert.
In the context of threatened conquest by the Klingons or the Orions, Mizert and the rest of the Kogari power would join together and fight in concert.
In the context of intra-Kogari politics, Mizert if considered an evil pretender to the Zarian Throne and a ruthless practical rival. So within the Kogari, no other power favors the Mizerti.
Area of Operation: The Kogari Region - bordered by the BUFP to Coreward, the Klingon Empire to Rimward, the 5 Orion worlds to Anti-Spinward, and a Vargr flavored frontier to Spinward.
Headquarters Location: The City of Mizert-Prime on the Planet Mizert.
Public Face: Imagine the nobles of renaissance Italy, leaning towards Michelangelo.
Notable Members: Editor's Note: I am going to have to archive binge on PPlay to dig up mentioned people among the Mizerti.
History of the Organization: Founded by the Zarian Empire in about 2050.
Taken over by fleeing Zarian Nobles about 2200 or so.
Contact with the Vargr in about 2345 or so
Continually in coflict with other Kogari powers and especially the Balmoran Feeration until 2375, when contact between the Balmoran Federation and the main UFP destabilized the situation.
Politics of the Kogari Region: It is very clear that Mizert is dicing a fine line in not only contending with its neighbors but being a major technological source in the process. You are selling disruptor canons to Foo and claiming worthless rock 32 from them all on the same day. You can't seem weak, but you can't bully anyone or they will all gang up on you. But no one wants Mizert in the hands of anyone else.
Historically the B-UFP has been the empire everyone played off of as the Big Bad. Now even bigger and has taken Mongo as well. While the polices of the UFP have changed, the perception within the Kogari Game has not. It's still the Big Bad, and no one wants to be seen catering to them or looking too friendly. The UFP is the over arching foe and Mizert is the football. A football that also plays itself.
It is politics of empire at it's most brutal because they is so little actually at stake. The Evil Big Bad has turned into Clifford the Big Red Dog who just wants to play with everyone. Somehow that makes it worse. Federation Diplomats can feel the confusion as they step out of their appointed role as Menacing Evil Empire to shed and slobber all over everyone. Into this mess the Romulans would actually be welcome. "Finally, someone we understand."
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