TFL/Celestial Dragon Empire

# Celestial Dragon Empire (CDE)

* Most Common races: Primarily humans, but with a significant SAI and alien presence.
* Government: An authoritarian aristocracy led by a hereditary emperor, advised by immortal SAIs. Entry into the aristocracy is by highly competitive exam.
* Systems controlled: tbd
* Total population: 12 billion
* Notable trade policies: Cargo and freight entering or leaving the CDE must be carried on CDE flagged hulls. Individual systems may charge excessive tariffs.
* Other notable quirks: None.

The CDE shares a border with the Confederated Stars of Ursa, and the two are rivals for the most influential human nation in the Fringe. The current Emperor, Tennohanei, seeks to restore the CDE to the lead through aggressive expansion, but the CDE's military buildup has yet to overmatch its neighbors enough to make war feasible.

## Politics and Government

### History

The Celestial Dragon Empire was originally settled by wealthy entrepreneurs and business tycoons looking to escape confiscatory tax polices on Earth. They set up enclaves on different planets, with each entrepreneur mostly independent from his allies. The sudden expansion of the Vrazskla-z Authority into their territory caused them to deepen their alliance, but also become more authoritarian. Eventually, a series of civil wars resulted in the creation of the modern Celestial Dragon Empire. The pseudo-Confuscist and Japanese-Chinese fusion obsessions of the early Emperors set the tone for the highest levels of Imperial society, but the average man on the street is more likely to be of relatively pureblooded sub-Saharan African descent with a name like "Christopher Khaemba" than to be of the stereotypical Asian descent with a name like "Min Liu."

### Structure

The Emperor rules over the daimyos, shoguns, emirs, and kings that have authority over the individual system, supported by aristocracy that also forms the efficient bureaucracy. No position in the Empire is strictly hereditary and anyone can apply to take the highly competitive tests to win a title, even the title of Emperor. In practice, the aristocratic and royal families are very good at teaching their heirs how to take the test, and while an aristocrat or royal can't guarantee that their favored heir will inherit the title, it is rare for a title to leave the family entirely.

In addition to the normal aristocracy, the Emperor and other royals are advised by the Honored Immortals, a collection of Ellison AIs and Gibson mind emulations who provide enormous continuity of government.

### Foreign Affairs

The current Emperor would very much like to take control of some CSU star systems or even free some human colonies like Korsigar from the Authority, a policy that is a more firm continuation of his predecessors. The CDE Expeditionary Fleet has been building up for decades, but the Authority Armada remains larger and the CSU fleet has matched the build-up enough that the CDE does not yet feel confident in launching invasions. It does tend to menace the CSU and the independent systems to the northwest, and a lot of political observers worried that the CDE's brinkmanship will bring about a general war before the end of the decade.

## Laws and Culture

The individual worlds of the CDE each have their own laws, though Imperial law is supreme. Slavery is technically illegal, but debt-peonage is not, and since debts are fully inheritable and only discharged through payment, many subjects of the Empire have to live within a few dozen miles of the grandson of the person who loaned their grandparent a great deal of money.

There are some places with sumptuary laws and differing levels of arms restriction and legal privilege based on social status.

Citizenship can be purchased or inherited but is not (automatically) granted to the offspring of travelers who deliver while in system.

Taxes are generally low and dramatically favor domestic businesses.

High status luxuries exist here in more abundance than many other places. This is true both of production and consumption. For example, most of the most extravagant yachts in the Fringe are manufactured in the CDE at shipyards that compete on decadence and prestige. Feudal patronage of artists attracts some very accomplished savants to the various courts of the CDE. Several CDE worlds have artisans dedicated to high end hand crafting, as well as advanced nanofabrication techniques. If a custom item needs to be made to exacting detail and price is no object, the CDE is a good place to go.

Honor and face are important, and violent duels using melee weapons or unarmed combat are a way to resolve slights, especially among aristocrat. The duelling code forbids deliberately lethal strikes, and excellent medical means that deaths in duels are very rare. Some exceptional duelists have become ‘millenials’, winning more than one thousand duels.