The United Empire

Imperial Flag of Tepress

**The United Empire** is an autocratic interstellar empire ruled by Emperor Julius Hunter, and is one of the many galactic powers. It was founded for the express purpose of uniting the entire universe under one banner, so that all war will cease once and for all.

## Culture

### Lifestyle

#### Work

All citizens are required to serve in the Imperial military for a period of twenty years once they reach the age of seventeen.

The government is the biggest employer in the empire. Most jobs require little manual labor and instead involve the use of technology to perform labor. Overseeing the automated factories is one of the most ubiquitous jobs throughout the nation. In case of mechanical or software failure, all employees are given the training required to perform the labor and tasks themselves.

While most citizens are allowed to choose their jobs, sometimes a job will be assigned to an individual based on the need for said job.

Researchers and technological developers are some of the best jobs that one can have, for they are considered some of the most important and those who have these jobs are respected by all.

#### Recreation

A sport known as **Breakdown** is the empire's main sport, due to its participants love for displaying the strength and determination of the Tepressian people. Two contestants will fight with nothing but their bodies and using the environment of the match to their advantage. The match will be over once one of the contestants is unconscious or is simply too injured to continue fighting. Champions will be challenged by wild animals during a match in order to decrease their chances of winning.

Structures known as Wonder Halls allow individuals to create and experience virtual worlds to their liking. With infinite possibilities within these structures, citizens will never truly become bored. Individuals can upload media, such as video games, films, cartoons and literature, into the Wonder Halls so as to experience those fictional realms for themselves.

Video games, walks in the park, going to the beach, hanging with friends, and touring worlds within the empire are experiences enjoyed by all.

#### Values

Bonds between individuals are considered sacred. Rarely will you ever hear of someone who had betrayed their friends or their family.

Keeping an open mind is considered very important by the populace. They believe in embracing every species they encounter in the universe.

Honor, respect, and loyalty are considered important character traits that all citizens should strive for.

### Customs

#### Clothing

* Black and red military slacks are a very common sight among the public. It isn't mandatory, but it does give the wearers a sense of patriotic pride.
* Wearing whatever one wants is less common, but it is not forbidden.

#### Gestures

* Using one's index finger to point at someone or something is the norm. Pointing is not considered rude.
* Running one's hands through one's hair is a gesture that communicates that the individual is in deep thought.
* Raising one eyebrow communicates that the individual is on the verge of becoming angry.
* Rubbing one's chin while maintaining eye contact with the target tells the target that the individual wishes to speak with them.

### Calendar and Symbols

A Tepressian Day is equal to 28 hour. There are 32 days in one Tepressian Month, 15 months in one Tepressian Year, and 480 days in one year.

#### Seasons

There are only three seasons: Winter, the longest season, which lasts 13 months; Summer, one of the shortest seasons, which lasts 1 month; and Spring, the other shortest month, which also lasts 1 month.

#### Holidays

* Unification Day: On the 3rd day of Winter, citizens celebrate the unification of Tepress. Heavy drinking, fireworks, and partying indoors and in the streets are normal and expected.
* Empire Day: On the 1st day of Summer, citizens celebrate the founding of their empire. Heavy drinking, fireworks, partying, and military parades are expected. Ships of war, fighters, tanks, soldiers and battle mechs will swarm the skies and the streets of Metron City on Tepress and every other planet, to show respect to the empire and instill pride into the heart of every citizen.
* Tepressian New Year: On the last day of Summer and the first day of Winter, citizens celebrate the dawn of the New Year. Festivals, fireworks and a State of the Empire speech will be given by the ruling monarch, thanking the citizens for everything and wishing everyone a good year.

## Politics

### Military

The Tepressian military is divided into three branches: the Imperial Army; the Imperial Air Force, which is a subdivision of the Imperial Navy; the Imperial Navy; and the Imperial Special Service, which includes the Red Nines, the Frostbite Squad and the Imperial Guard as subdivisions. The highest ranking officer in the military is High Admiral of the Imperial Navy Qarl Deonitz, who oversees the operations of all branches and reports directly to the Emperor or Empress.

#### Imperial Army

The Imperial Army is the face of the empire and the most heavily populated of the three branches. The army is composed of personnel from all over the empire, who wish to see the empire continue expanding into infinity, and would not hesitate to give their lives to ensure the prosperity and stability of their nation.

Every recruit endures an extremely rigorous four-week training regiments. Whenever a soldier displays exceptional bravery and heroism, they may be offered a place in the Red Nine special forces group. High Marshall Horatio Briggs is the highest ranking officer in the Imperial Army and reports directly to Qarl Deonitz, the High Admiral of the Imperial Navy.

#### Imperial Navy

The Imperial Navy is the first and sometimes best line of defense that the empire has to offer. It is the most heavily equipped and polished of all the three branches. The average Imperial armada consists of thousands of warships, all of them capable of devastating entire star systems.

All Imperial armadas have at least twenty Metron-class carriers, with each carrier having a maximum capacity of 500 Talon-class fighter-bombers. Each armada would therefore carry 10,000 Talon-class vessels, to be deployed whenever fast attack craft are necessary.

##### **Ship Classes**

* Metron-class carrier.
* Talon-class fighter-bomber.
* Theron-class heavy cruiser.
* Archimedes-class Dreadnought.
* Blackout-class Frigate.
* Renegade-class Corvette.

#### Imperial Special Service

The Imperial Special Service is comprised of the finest soldiers that the empire can muster.

There are four subdivisions that make up the ISS. They are the Red Nines, the Frostbite Squad, the Imperial Guard, and the Imperial Marines.

##### **Red Nines**

The Red Nines are specialized infantry who are equipped and trained to excel in combat in almost every environment, climate and battlefield. Their training is twice that of the Imperial Army, requiring all recruits to complete eight-week training regiments. Some speculate that the Red Nine group have been assigned their own private fleet of heavily armed warships to command, apparently under the orders of Emperor Maximus himself. It has been said by the enemies of the empire that a battle can never truly be won unless all Red Nines lay dead. Commander Jakkson Stax leads the group and reports directly to the Emperor or Empress.

##### **Frostbite Squad**

While the Red Nines excel in almost everything, they can never match the arctic training of the Frostbite Squad. The training that recruits receive includes surviving the endless and unforgiving blizzards of the mountains of Tepress. Trainees must survive in those conditions by scavenging for sustenance and finding shelter, without the comfort of supplies or heavy coats. Those who survive the eight-week survival test will be rewarded with immediate food and medical supplies, along with a congratulations from their training instructor. After they recover, they will receive winter-based stealth training. Recruits will become full-members once they complete their stealth training. The enemies who cross paths with a member of the Frostbite Squad will never live long to react in time. Commander [REDACTED] leads the Frostbite Squad.