Renegades

## Overview

The Renegades are a nomadic faction of interstellar wanderers and scavengers, technically allegiant to none of the other major factions. Their origins gradually became lost to general knowledge over time, however, they are the descendants of Bandorian rebels in the Mystic star system and other systems in former Bandorian territory who refused to accept the rule of the Galactic Empire over former Bandorian territory. At one point, the Renegades controlled Vecrolla and many dwarf planets in the outer Mystic system. They never surrendered, despite many defeats and offers of amnesty from Lu Weng and his descendants. Around 2350 the Renegades managed to build several large ships capable of interstellar travel, and they all left the Mystic system on board these makeshift spacecraft. It was later revealed that this exodus was part of a deal arranged between the Empire and the Renegades, at the request of the Bandorian Protectorate. The Renegades have no formal leadership or command structure, and do not usually respond to comm requests from other human ships.

## Renegade spacecraft

At first, the Renegades lived in planetary settlements on Vecrolla, as well as colonies in the outer Mystic system, on space stations and habitat clusters on dwarf planets. They had only small spacecraft at first, but then decided to build larger spacecraft, especially scavenger ships (space trawlers/dredgers), designed to scavenge parts from destroyed ships. These parts were used to build several large spacecraft with warp drives, which were then used in their flight from Mystic in 2350. After their exodus from Mystic the Renegades lived in massive ships built up from scavenged parts, which also served as their means of transportation between star systems; all of these ships had two core parts: habitat sections and a propulsion system, otherwise, each ship is quite unique. Many Renegade ships have very few weapons, but some are heavily armed; most Renegade ships carry large numbers of subcapital fighters and scoutships, as well as many drones of various kinds and purposes, ranging from sensor drones and comm relay drones to attack drones. The exact number of Renegade ships is not known to the general public; however, data from the Bandorian Protectorate and its auxiliary organization the Santonian Order suggests that, at the time of the First Kroll War in the late 39th century, there were over 200 Renegade supercapital ships and several thousand smaller capital ships. Coordination between Renegade forces is minimal, and each supercapital ship generally has an armada, or convoy, of smaller capital ships which follow it. Each supercapital ship and its armada are under the control of a Renegade splinter group or clan, and it was estimated in a study done by Ivan Fiskov in 4086 that the total population of the Renegades was approximately 200,000 at that time. All Renegade capital and supercapital ships are built with warp capability, as for obvious reasons they are not permitted by most system authorities to use the jump gate network (while Bandorian governors generally permit Renegade ships to use their jump gates, the Renegades often choose not to use them, or their ships are too large to fit through the jump gate). Renegade capital and supercapital spacecraft types evolved over time, with ships at first being mainly designed as habitats, since the entire Renegade population needed to fit on them as they left the Mystic system. Later most of the ships were mainly designed as carriers for drones and subcapital ships, with a core habitat area. Renegade ships were generally built from salvaged parts, and constantly required repairs and new parts, which they mainly acquired from Bandorian free traders. This practice was greatly expanded after the Protectorate's transition to a moneyless society in 4650.

## Relations with other factions

The Renegades are not well-liked by some of the major factions; the Alliance of Independent Settlements tries to expel them from their systems whenever Renegade vessels are spotted, and sometimes even attacks them, as in the 3928 Teskalon incident. The Asgardian Alliance is also generally intolerant of Renegade ships in their space. The Protectorate unofficially often helps the Renegades, sending them parts and supplies whenever their ships enter an Bandorian system. The League of Asteroid Belt Settlements also maintains good relations with the Renegades, allowing them to use their facilities and dock at their bases-but only if there are no Asgardian or AIS ships in the vicinity. The Union of Human Workers maintains a neutral relationship with the Renegades, but will come to their assistance if one of their ships is nearby and sends out a distress call. The Renegades notably refused to assist the AIS and Asgardian naval forces during the First Kroll War, as the naval strategists from these factions requested sensor data from the Renegades' ships, supposedly to assist in locating Kroll forces, although most Renegade commanders suspected that these factions wanted the sensor data to give them more precise location data on Renegade ships, rather than any real help with the war effort. The Renegades also claimed that these two factions were unreasonably hostile towards the Kroll, and supported the Protectorate's position of attempting to negotiate with them. The Renegades maintain positive relations with the Duskhan League, and the Duskhan League is rumored to supply them with parts and other supplies.

## Relations with non-military contacts from other factions

The Renegades generally do not allow civilians to board their ships, except traders willing to give them parts or scrap metal. However, there have been exceptions, when they allow crews to come on board their ships to film documentaries; some of the Renegade splinter groups are more receptive or favorable to outside contact than others. Due to the nomadic nature of the Renegade convoys, it is difficult for civilians to coordinate with them, as they do not often stay in one star system for very long unless ships from the convoy need repairs that will take a long time, or cannot be performed in interstellar space for various reasons.