Organization of the Solarian Empire

## Imperial Government

The Imperial government of the Empire is the Monarch and his or her Ministers, who oversee all, with a Minister responsible for a different task. No Minister has position or status over another Minister and the Ministers answer only to the Monarch, or an appointed Chief of Staff. Every Ministry has numerous Offices and Departments that fall into their jurisdiction.

### Ministers

* Defense Minister: Deals with appointment of high ranking Officers in specific positions, as well as approving military budgeting and major changes. Also deals with the exploration of space.
* Finance Minister: Deals with taxation of all Imperial planets, based on their economic and governmental status. Also manages the overall budget and finances of the Empire, as well as establishing trade routes.
* Law Minister: Deals with all legal issues in the Empire, as well as heads the Imperial Court, the highest court in the Empire.
* Interior Minister: Deals with any matters brought forth by various local governments, as well as handles the establishment of colonies funded by the government. Deals with the Imperial Senate and manages corruption. Handles both AIRI and SIS.
* Education Minister: Deals with the spread of information, as well as the establishment of Institutes of Higher Learning. Manages the curriculum of public schools. Imperial Department of Communications is the largest subordinate to this Minister.
* Foreign Minister: Handles diplomacy and First Contact situations with foreign governments as well as assigns ambassadors.

## Solarian Directives

The Government delegates certain powers to local governmental bodies, but there are directives that apply to all planetary governments in the Empire.

* Unrestricted trade: Single planets may not impose shipping fees on freighters that travel through their space. This does not apply to docking fees on a station belonging to the planet. ~~Local governments that control an entire star system may only impose fees on shipping that passes through as a layover.~~ This directive does not apply to Trade Gates. Tariffs are illegal in the Solarian Empire.
* Sovereign territory: No government/group/individual may impose laws that modify the sovereign territory of any celestial object, natural or otherwise. Sovereign territory includes the area of space up to one light-second max from the object, based on size or situation. An order from the Imperial Court is the only exception to this directive, following due process.
* Real Estate: No government/group/individual may sell a star/planet/moon/asteroid/station/ship that rightfully belongs to another, barring legitimate, justified legal proceedings. No government may sell an area of empty space under any circumstance, nor may any government/group/individual own an area of empty space. The Solarian Empire does not recognize the idea of eminent domain and as such, the Imperial Government cannot seize territory, barring temporary emergencies.
* Slavery: No government/group/individual may buy or sell humans as property or extort unpaid labor. No Government/group/individual can legalize this act. This is a Capital Crime
* Rape: No government/group/individual can force another to perform or receive sexual acts without consent of all involved parties. No Government/group/individual can legalize this act. This is a Capital Crime.
* Terrorism: No government/group/individual can participate, nor sponsor, nor condone, any acts of terrorism. This is a Capital Crime.
* Piracy: No government/group/individual may attack and steal property from any vessel traveling from one point to another.
* ~~Privateering: A planetary or system government not part of the Empire may issue a Privateer’s license to the owner and master of an armed vessel, to raid the commerce of a specific and publicly declared enemy government. A blank license is considered Piracy. Attacking another vessel belonging to a group or government not listed is an act of piracy. Privateering is still Piracy when the target is a Solarian-flagged vessel from a Core or Shell world.~~ As of the full takeover of the Verge, Priveteering is illegal.
* Free information: No government/group/individual may restrict the flow of public information to and from any location.
* Education: No government/group/individual may restrict an individual from any form of education, nor can a government/group/individual outlaw any form of reasonable education.
* Prospector’s Rights: No government/group/individual may take a valuable resource, planet, or moon from the government/group/individual that discovered it. Artifacts of alien sapient life are the sole exception, should they be found and compensation is always provided.
* Ownership: No government/group/individual may settle on a planet, moon, or asteroid that belongs to another government/group/individual without written permission or a bill of sale. Ownership of an object extends to all orbiting bodies. The Solarian Empire does not recognize ownership of Stars or areas of Open Space that do not contain celestial objects.

## Organization of Solarian Space

The Empire is organized into three layers, with the epicenter being the Sol System. As the Empire expands, so does the area of each layer.

* The Core Systems: Extending for 50,000 square light years, the Core Systems contain the oldest inhabited worlds, including Earth herself, many of which have governments a thousand years old and are considered the safest places to live. The Core Systems have been almost completely explored and claimed, through the government controls a small handful of habitable worlds, for new colonies, refugees, or any other special purpose. The Core Systems are protected by 1st and 2nd Fleets of the Solarian Navy. In the Sigma Draconis system, a navigational hazard known as the Badlands resides. The Navy advises all non-Naval ships to avoid the area.
	+ The Fortress Cluster: A region of space inside the Core, 1,200 light-years across, centered on Earth. The Fortress Cluster contains a large portion of the mobile units of 1st and 2nd Fleets, with the ability to be anywhere in two minutes, providing additional support to handle pirates, enemies, or natural disasters. Due to the incredible amount of Naval firepower, the Fortress Cluster only sees piracy from very brave Rogues...or very stupid independent pirates. Also found in the Fortress Cluster are multiple Navigation and Security Stations, as well as weapons platforms and other defensive structures. The Fortress Cluster is designed to be able to stand on it's own even if the rest of the Empire falls.
* The Shell: Stretching for 15,000 LY from the edge of the Core Systems is The Shell, which contains the largest variety of human colonies. Protected by 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th Fleets, the Shell has rather high pirate activity, though the edges are rather safer. Cardamine, an illegal narcotic, is hard to control in the Shell, due to the high amount of shipping that moves through it.
* The Verge: The final layer of the literal sphere of influence is the Verge, which is actually larger than the Shell in area, though going on for a narrower 10,000 LY. The entire region was recently brought under the full control of the Imperial government, but the entire area is rather chaotic. You’re as likely to find yourself in the middle of a war than be nabbed by a pirate. Few large merchant companies send freighters through the area without an escort from 3rd, 4th, 5th, or 6th Fleet. The Navy has stepped up it's presence in its efforts to bring the entire area under control, so more units in the Verge are part of various Task forces and the Numbered Fleets are cooperating and crossing AO boundaries to assist one another. Most of the colonies are less than 500 years old and, due to the distance from Sol, a few have even intentionally violated Imperial Directives in the past, though few were ever reported. The Verge has been compared to the Ancient American West, considered by many people to be the frontier of the Empire.
* Mysteria: The Queendom of Mysteria voluntarily became part of the Empire. As such, all Mysterians are considered part of the Empire in rights and responsibilities. Mysteria is considered a region of space, no longer a separate entity. Mysterian worlds have Senators that are sent to Earth for the Imperial Senate.
* Cresia: When the Cresian Empire of the Stars was voluntarily absorbed by the Empire, all territory that used to be Cresian space was redesignated into the Cresia Province. Cresia is the most far flung Solarian territory, requiring the Cresian Navy to retain operational status for system defense, until the Trade Gate between the Main Empire and Cresia is built.

Exploration outside Solarian Space is common, either directed by the Government, or funded by an adventurous company. The Government has stated that anyone outside Solarian space runs the risk of having no one to rescue them, as the Navy is unable to operate in unexplored space without a directive from the Defense Minister to explore the area. Many outlaws have taken to unexplored space to hide, but few return, as there's many dangers outside the Solarian border

## Major Laws to Know

**~~State of Emergency Act~~**~~: In the event that a crisis comes up that threatens the Empire or humanity as a whole, the Solarian Navy and Solarian Army can take control of any autonomous system in their territory they deem necessary to defend the Empire. All military and civilian resources come under the command of the Solarian Navy senior officer present. Upon the end of the crisis, the system is returned to the government and the Navy and Army exit the system as soon as humanly possible.~~ As of the full takeover of the Verge, there are no more autonomous systems left in the Solarian Empire and this law is null. However, it remains on the books in the event of a future autonomous region.

**Big Four**: Rape, Slavery, Terrorism, and Treason. A conviction of any of these four results in execution. If the individual cannot be taken to a court for trial, and the senior Naval or Army Officer present has proof, a summary execution is authorized. ~~If a planetary or system government is a supporter of these crimes, the Solarian Navy and Solarian Army are dispatched to dispose of that government.~~

**Smuggling**: Smuggling of any contraband, aside from ~~Cardamine and~~ slaves, results in confiscation of the vessel used and a fine, based on the contents. ~~Transporting Cardamine results in fines, confiscation, and prison time~~. Contraband is considered any stolen goods, or unregistered/illegal private warships/weapons.