Unioners

**ALLIES:**

Corsairs, Liberty Rogues

**ENEMIES:**

Bundschuh, Red Hessians, Xenos, Bounty Hunters, Republican Shipping, Rheinland Police, Rheinland Military, Liberty Police, Liberty Navy, Liberty Security Force

The Unioners are an outlaw group composed of dispossessed Rheinland shipyard workers who engage in brutal reprisals chiefly against Republican Shipping. Expansion into the Independent Worlds changed agenda of most Unioners from terrorism to piracy.

## Rumors

* The Alster Shipyards were home to the Unioner movement when we were still a legitimate, political entity. Alster was established in 412 AS by Rheinländische Großspedition to supply the Rheinland Empire with transport freighters, lifters, and repair ships. Rheinländische Großspedition became known as Republican Shipping after the 80-year war.

* We're running Alien Artifacts from our base in Munich into Liberty via Pacifica. This is a new route for us, but so far it's proven quite profitable. There is a strong demand for Artifacts in Liberty. Sure, it may annoy the Hessians a bit that we do this, but hey, the Junkers have done the same thing for years.

* The Unioners are a political organization fighting like many others throughout Sirius for the fair treatment of the working classes. For that we are branded criminals. And when you treat someone like a criminal, he eventually starts to think and act that way. So yea, we're pirates and smugglers now. That is what Rheinland, and Republican in particular, has made us into.

* When the 80-Years War came to an end the Union joined the Popular Revolt to overthrow the Imperial government. There were no more government contracts, and unemployment skyrocketed. The reformed Republican Shipping used this as an excuse to fire every known Unioner and replace them with workers brought in from New Berlin, breaking every agreement they ever made with us. The government didn't want to step in, despite us helping them in the Popular Revolution, so we took matters into our own hands. It was the right thing to do. It still is.

* The union that formed after the Alster Tragedy of 512 gained well-deserved benefits for the shipwrights and welders who built the transports that shipped goods throughout Sirius. In the decades that followed, the union grew stronger. When the 80-Years War broke out, we were sitting pretty on a mountain of government subsidies and contracts. The government broke those contracts and attempted to basically impose indentured servitude on us. We would have none of that.

* With our old union destroyed after the Popular Revolt, we reformed and called ourselves the Unioners. We were formed to make Republican Shipping pay for the wrongs it had committed against its workers. To this day we exact our vengeance, and we'll not stop until Republican recognizes the Union and restores the worker rights that our fathers and grandfathers fought so hard for.

* In 512 AS an explosion in the Alster Shipyards killed hundreds of workers. They formed a union and walked out on the Rheinländische Großspedition executives. It was then that Rheinländische Großspedition realized how valuable its workers were. Production ground to a stop, and they started losing millions of credits for each day production was halted. They tried to get the government to step in and declare martial law, but the conditions were so appalling that the government didn't step in. All Imperial could do was concede to our demands.

* This base is mainly used as a smuggling waypoint and small production facility for our weapons. We mostly control this system now - only the Xenos oppose us, and they are no match for us. The Liberty Navy doesn't go far from the only working Jump Gate left in this system, and the Rheinland Military has completely withdrawn. In other words, we're as safe here as we'll ever be.

* We run Synthetic Marijuana shipments from the Corsair base in Simga 13. We used to get them from the Junkers, but things have changed out there... Not an easy run through Hamburg and Frankfurt, but decent profit. We sell it on Freeport 2 for eventual sale to the Xenos and Rogues. Hopefully they won't find out they're getting high by making us rich.

* Our old boss Rheinländische Großspedition became Republican Shipping after the Popular Revolt. It was a dark time for the common laborer, and within months we lost all the rights we had been working to create for the past several decades. Republican Shipping really stuck it to the worker, using the weak economic situation to strong-arm the faltering union. In the end, it did them little good. They lost their most skilled workers, and with them, many construction contracts went abroad, to Kusari.

* We sell our smuggled Hessian Tears from Kreuzberg here. It's a dangerous journey through Hamburg, but well worth it. We've also got a new route, bringing in Alien Artifacts through Munich and Frankfurt. It's not healthy to get the two mixed up though.

* We would prefer to live in Rheinland, but Republican's influence is too strong. Now that the Jump Gates are blown, the Unioners in Bering are safe from the Rheinland Military. We've only got the Xenos and a few Bounty Hunters to worry about, and those we can deal with.

* The Alster Shipyards were home to the Unioner movement when we were still a legitimate, political entity. Alster was established in 412 AS by Rheinländische Großspedition to supply the Rheinland Empire with transport freighters, lifters, and repair ships. Rheinländische Großspedition became known as Republican Shipping after the 80-year war.

* We're running Alien Artifacts from our base in Munich into Liberty via Pacifica. This is a new route for us, but so far it's proven quite profitable. There is a strong demand for Artifacts in Liberty. Sure, it may annoy the Hessians a bit that we do this, but hey, the Junkers have done the same thing for years.

* The Unioners are a political organization fighting like many others throughout Sirius for the fair treatment of the working classes. For that we are branded criminals. And when you treat someone like a criminal, he eventually starts to think and act that way. So yea, we're pirates and smugglers now. That is what Rheinland, and Republican in particular, has made us into.

* When the 80-Years War came to an end the Union joined the Popular Revolt to overthrow the Imperial government. There were no more government contracts, and unemployment skyrocketed. The reformed Republican Shipping used this as an excuse to fire every known Unioner and replace them with workers brought in from New Berlin, breaking every agreement they ever made with us. The government didn't want to step in, despite us helping them in the Popular Revolution, so we took matters into our own hands. It was the right thing to do. It still is.

* The union that formed after the Alster Tragedy of 512 gained well-deserved benefits for the shipwrights and welders who built the transports that shipped goods throughout Sirius. In the decades that followed, the union grew stronger. When the 80-Years War broke out, we were sitting pretty on a mountain of government subsidies and contracts. The government broke those contracts and attempted to basically impose indentured servitude on us. We would have none of that.

* With our old union destroyed after the Popular Revolt, we reformed and called ourselves the Unioners. We were formed to make Republican Shipping pay for the wrongs it had committed against its workers. To this day we exact our vengeance, and we'll not stop until Republican recognizes the Union and restores the worker rights that our fathers and grandfathers fought so hard for.

* In 512 AS an explosion in the Alster Shipyards killed hundreds of workers. They formed a union and walked out on the Rheinländische Großspedition executives. It was then that Rheinländische Großspedition realized how valuable its workers were. Production ground to a stop, and they started losing millions of credits for each day production was halted. They tried to get the government to step in and declare martial law, but the conditions were so appalling that the government didn't step in. All Imperial could do was concede to our demands.

* This base is mainly used as a smuggling waypoint and small production facility for our weapons. We mostly control this system now - only the Xenos oppose us, and they are no match for us. The Liberty Navy doesn't go far from the only working Jump Gate left in this system, and the Rheinland Military has completely withdrawn. In other words, we're as safe here as we'll ever be.

* We run Synthetic Marijuana shipments from the Corsair base in Simga 13. We used to get them from the Junkers, but things have changed out there... Not an easy run through Hamburg and Frankfurt, but decent profit. We sell it on Freeport 2 for eventual sale to the Xenos and Rogues. Hopefully they won't find out they're getting high by making us rich.

* Our old boss Rheinländische Großspedition became Republican Shipping after the Popular Revolt. It was a dark time for the common laborer, and within months we lost all the rights we had been working to create for the past several decades. Republican Shipping really stuck it to the worker, using the weak economic situation to strong-arm the faltering union. In the end, it did them little good. They lost their most skilled workers, and with them, many construction contracts went abroad, to Kusari.

* We use this base to attack the Republican Shipping imperialists within New Berlin. It's also a convenient place to purchase proper Rheinland Side Arms at a good price. Most of our brothers in arms are in Hamburg, waiting in the asteroid fields for any opportunities that may present themselves.

* The Junkers have approached us with a proposal to smuggle Artifacts into Dawson. We have not accepted, although it would be very lucrative and give us much more money to buy ships and weapons. If the Unioners became smugglers like the Rogues, then we would deserve to be called common criminals. It's also a dangerous proposition to become indebted to the Corsairs, even if indirectly.

* Synth Foods blames us for the food shortages in Berlin. The truth is, most of their food is bound for the elites at Augsburg and Hawaii, where they can make much higher profits. Whether Rheinland starves or not is none of their concern.

* We make our living smuggling Diamonds and Tobacco from here to Pacifica. Unioners carry them all they way to Dawson, where they are sold to the Rogues, who smuggle them past the Xenos in Hudson and Texas and across the final stretch in New York.

* There's a raiding party leaving shortly for the Dortmund-Bonn Lane. Someone heard a Junker talking about a Synth Foods transport coming in from Frankfurt with Fertilizers. They don't guard them as well as the Food shipments, especially Luxury Foods.

* Cologne is a nice little fringe system with little danger to us. The ALG base next to Steinfurt also means we can get materials for our operations without too much Military presence around.

* We used to rely on the Hessians for finances, however after they betrayed us over Vierlande, we learned our lesson. Now we make our profit by intercepting their smugglers and doing some mining off the side. Though truth be told we have some plans in motion in Zurich too. That should help keep the Union stable.

* The media always try to marginalise our cause, but it's simply not working anymore. The Unioners are growing, as are the other revolutionary movements in Rheinland. Soon we will be far too large to be ignored, and then the corporate pigs and their governmental puppets will finally be unseated in favour of a true People's state.

*NOTE: Page generated on the 28/10/2023 at 17:59:48 UTC*