Luddic Caliphate

The Luddic Caliphate is a hierarchical theocratic-oligarchy, that peaches against perceived corruption, depravity, hedonism, and transhuman abomination, and advocates for a more agrarian and humanistic ideal, and promoting violence against technological alienation of body and mind. 
The martyrdom of a figure known ‘Ludd’, better called God by the population as to not say the lord’s name in vain, is the sole deity and the predecessor of the religious sect founded on Rust. It has been decades ever since the death of Ludd and her records have been rewritten, reimagined, and reforged so many times over the years, that no one really knows the real truth of Ludd and her history, only the Luddic Church can tell the story as it wishes - for they are the prime religious authority, and anything else is labeled as heretic texts. As for Ludd, she is portrayed as a motherly god, one very well-endowed and plump (more or less due to certain revisions in text by certain people in high-power in the past decade or so), who died for the sins of humanity and their crimes of technological hedonism and alienation. A story familiar with other religious sects of past eons ago back on Earth. 
In the realm of realpolitik, the Luddic Caliphate is a noticeable powerplayer in Rust, bolstering a large population and industrial base that the Luddic government can cull from. Given the nature of the Luddic Caliphate and their views of technology and AI, almost everyone on Rust is at odds with the Caliphate - often annoyed or angered by the tenacity of the fanatics trying to enforce their Technological Correctness and AI-inspection expeditions, which has sparked many war and conflicts of the past with the various powers that exist on Rust. 
== Food and Culture ==
 The harsh and arid nature of Rust does not give way to anyform of large-scale agri-production on its own. Massive greenhouses and plantations are used by the Luddic Caliphate, and really anyone else that wishes to have food on Rust, to grow the majority of all foodstuffs found on the scrap-planet. By law, it is illegal to grow anything else but the approved crops set by the Ministry of Agriculture, which are rice, wheat, and potatoes (plus minor green stuffs like leaks, scallions, etc on a limited scale). The main reason for such regulations and oversight is to ensure that bulk-staple-foodstuffs are always in supply to feed the masses, or be at risk of starvation. Although such regulations are rarely broken because all food production is state-owned under the management of the Agricultural Ministry. 
Not surprising, dietary diversity is very limited. On any given day, you’ll eat various cooked meals from the same three crops - bread, rice-bread, potato-bread, baked potatoes with rice, and many other combinations. Spice, meat, and anything else that one might have commonly on hand is a rarity in the Luddic Caliphate. A burger would be seen as a luxury meal and so would steak, and many other foods. That is not to say that Luddic citizens eat boring meals. Food is the most important thing to everyone, and most will find ways to spice up their cooking with just basic salt and pepper.  It is just that Luddic citizens are extremely limited in their ingredients. The general population makes due with what they have in the kitchen, using their ingredients to the best of their ability. That mentality can also be applied to the wider culture of the nation as well. 
The vast wastes of scrap and desert out in Rust is an unforgiving landscape that has forged the general population of Ludd into a resilient batch, both psychological and physically. The hardship and troubles that the common person meets everyday is often met with stubbornness, a will to overcome the hells of life on Rust. A fierce comradery among people, especially the lowest classes, are very common with the necessity of needing to support one and other, or die alone in the god forsaken landscape that the Luddic people call home. Luddic citizens will, and more often than not, will make the best out of any situation that they land in. A more optimistic view point, if you will. Pessimism is frowned upon as life is hard as is, and Luddic citizens don’t want downers. Oftentimes, people think of religious folk as quiet and soft-spoken, but the opposite is true here in Ludd. People speak loudly, directly, and are very straightforward people. Of course, that is not true for everyone. Some are soft-spoken, some sky, some more loud, etc, etc. Just depends on the person. 
Like any culture, there is nuance and subtle details within everything. This is more or less just a general guideline then a set-in stone rules for Luddic culture. 
== Standard of Living  ==
The sufare of Rust itself is not good for any living human, and most inhabitants that live on the desert planet have to wear filtration masks and eye protection to avoid long-term lung and eye damage (among other dangers). So, it is not hard to imagine that Luddic citizens do spend a lot of things indoors for most of their life. That is not accounting for job differences as such for miners, soldiers, etc. For the masses of the lower class, apartments are normally not that rommy, with a very small space to hold beds, a kitchen, and other room commodities. At minimum, air-cooling and air-filtration units are installed in almost all Luddic houses/apartments, necessary to both comfort and health, given the heat and air-quantity. For those higher in power and class, conditions are much better than the lower masses; a known prestige within almost all known societies for one reason or another. 
The majority of Luddic citizens, who occupied the lower socio-economic class, do not enjoy too much free time within their normal schedule. Working hours are long, normally 9 to 12 hours, depending on occupation, with pay that is not really worthwhile for those hours - but only enough to sustain oneself or family on the wage. Educationally, the Luddic public schooling system does provide free primary and higher education for all its citizens, allowing many citizens to graduate with various degrees. Althrought, a lot of those graduated students, who have bachelors in different disciplines, occupy working class status. The advent and growth of the public schooling system in Ludd have made the skills of the students so commonplace that the various private firms can offer lower wages as replacements are common with the same skill set. The practice of wage-slavery is very common in the Luddic Caliphate, especially for those in the working class and even people in the middle class.  
Medical care, for the most part, is privatized with most Luddic citizens needing to sign onto some form of insurance (be it private or public) to afford any form of medical care. So, a lot of Luddic citizens are a bit more health conscious than most, as to avoid landing in medical debt. For recreation and entertainment, online gaming/socializing is the largest sector (and yes, there is an internet-system known as the Hypernet in Rust), with sports being the second largest. Sport centers/areas are common and do attract a lot of people, if those people do have the free time to go. Quality of those sports centers are decent enough for most, but it also depends on where you are and your overall socio-economic class. Hypernet speeds are average, so you can download or watch anything without too much wait time. For domestic goods, another important amenity, they are of below-average quality.    
== Government (WIP) ==
The Luddic Caliphate is a hierarchical theocratic-oligarchy, with immersive political and economic power in the hands of a few very high ranking clergy men and women known as Husalls, and the politico-religious leader itself (the Caliph). These clery-people (and the Caliph) are at the top of the bureaucracy, overseeing and managing national affairs, and ensuring the smooth operations of state and resources while also holding onto their power - which can conflict with each other at times, as a lot of ineffectiveness has been grown out of the Husall’s need to clasp power. Below the Husalls are the Suosalls, high to middle ranking bureaucrats in charge of ministries, departments, sub-departments, etc, who commit themselves to running the vast and complex system of Luddic bureaucracy. Suosalls have command over large bodies of clerks and pencil-pushers (known as the Ukouis) that do the day-to-day operations of bureaucratic duties. The Ukouis are the low-ranking and minor functionaries that make up the massive bureaucratic army of Ludd. 
Relationships are vital to the Luddic government, as a good amount of nepotism and corruption does run in the bureaucracy. For the lowest working class, one can actually get into the government based on their education and skill (as a Ukouis). For those more favourable, your mother and father could be Suosalls, who can easily give you a good position in the bureaucracy. Either one way on how you get into the government, one must quickly be able to form their social-connections and contacts for those will be very vital to getting higher in the system, and to maintain your current seat. You need good clout and good relations with others to get anywhere. If you are actually skilled at your desk job then that could also be a massive boon to your chances in social mobility in the Luddic bureaucracy. 
There is a limit to your mobility though. At the very top of the government, where the Husalls are, only the Umar Family can pick who gets into the highest administration seats (which are normally members of the Umar Family).  
== Economy & Infrastructure (WIP) ==
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== Military (WIP) ==
The Armed Forces of the Luddic Caliphate (AFLC) is divided up into two main branches, the Grand Army of Ludd, Luddic Air Force, and Luddic Navy. At the beginning of its origins, the AFLC was ineffective in its operations as a military force. The political influence and oversight by the central government, especially by the Usrord family, hamstrung the Luddic military. Fears of military coups and elsewise, major threats to the power of the Usrord family and the Husalls, was the main driving force beyond this decision to overwatch the AFLC at the time. Not surprising, the first wars that the Luddic Caliphate was involved in, did not swing in the favor for the nation-state - often losing many battles, along with soldiers and war materials. With the threat of collapse by its own military failures, the Usrord family had no choice but to lift its overly controlling nature, and allow commanders and war-planners to properly control their soldiers without having to be authorized for every-single decision made. In somewhat quick fashion, the AFLC began to recover from its failures and started to represent the standing professional army that it was supposed to be. Category:Broken Space