Magna
Roma
Created
by: Gene L. Coon, Gene
Roddenberry, Garry
Stahl, with a nod to Joe Manno.
Appearance:
"Bread & Circuses"
No appearance
in Epiphany Trek yet.
Number of Members:
3 billion
Nature of Members:
Humans to ten places.
Organization:
Single World Empire
Game Role:
People to pitch a fuss over.
World Role:
Be themselves
Relative Influence:
Minor, a single world state with its
technology artificially raised to warp drive level.
Public or Secret?:
Hard to hide a planet.
Publicly Stated Goal:
Rome is the the greatest thing that
has ever happened, and don't you forget it.
Relative Wealth:
Minor on the Galactic scale. A single
planet.
Group advantages:
A high opinion of themselves and
willingness to endure what must be endured to make a stronger Roma.
Special Abilities:
None
Group disadvantages:
A high opinion of themselves
combined with 22nd century warp ships and a 21st century information
infrastructure on a 19th century industrial base.
Those who favor them:
Themselves, Several Orion families
rich off the trade. The LUW, for now.
Those opposed to them:
The Federation, anyone opposed to
being conquered, anyone against slave holding.
Area of Operation:
40 light years antispinward of El Nanth.
Headquarters Location:
Magna Roma
Public Face:
The Roman Empire with Warp Drives
Notable Members:
First Emperor Cassius
Caesar: The
former commander of the Pompeii military garrison. Legate Cassius
Salaco had the most support (people with swords) when it came to
choosing the new ruler.
Senator
Marcus Horulanus,
later Emperor
Marcus
XIII: Founder of the law of
succession.
Emperor
Flavian XXIV:
Founder of the warp drive project. He did not live to see it completed.
Emperor
Cassius XXXVII:
Current Emperor and architect of the Empire. He hopes within his own
lifetime to see another world added to the conquest of Roma.
History of the
Organization: Magna Roma is a
Preserver
transplant. That much is understood. The point of transplant can even
be extrapolated back to the Vesuvian eruption of 79 AD by the study of
genetic drift.
Citizens
of Herculaneum,
Pompeii and the surrounding area that would have died in the cataclysm
found themselves waking from a drugged stupor in a replica of their
cities and villages on a world far away.
Exploration
soon proved that
all roads no longer lead to Rome, indeed they ended shortly outside the
immediate area. Imperial officials forestalling panic consulted quickly
with priests and announced that the gods had saved them from death, and
the city would henceforth be called Roma. After a brief period of
political push and shove an Imperial official (with the most military
support) was declared the New Emperor.
With
a few thousand Humans on
the whole planet the progress of Empire was greatly slowed. In the
course of years slaves revolted and fled into the wilderness. The
civilized area of Rome grew slowly at first and later with speed. They
encountered the barbarian nations of their own making, and reconquered
them.
In
the 5th century after the
transplant, and after the third bloody change in power of the year,
Senator Marcus Horulanus proposed a new method of selecting the
Emperor. They should vote on it as did the Athenians. No longer would
the position be hereditary, but the vacancy should be filled from the
members of the Senate, by vote of the Senators. After much debate and
the threat of a military revolt, the resolution was passed and an oath
taken by all to abide by it.
With
time and new stability
the world was slowly covered with Rome. New inventions slowly turned
Rome into a technological society. Electrical power, mass
communication, fast transportation, all these came into being.
Then
came the USS Beagle.
Proconsul Claudus Marcus attempted to keep the secret to himself, but
Emperor Flavian XXIV has his own spies. After the USS
Enterprise made
it's brief visit Claudius Marcus met a slow, but informative end at the
hands of Flavian's inquisitors.
The
Federation placed Magna
Roma under Prime Directive quarantine. A quarantine that the Orions
broke as soon as they learned about it. At first the Orions thought
they had found kindred souls. Rome looks and acts ever so much like
Botchok.
However
they are wrong. The
monkeys in this barrel while they will contend with each other have a
greater goal, the supremacy of Rome. They tease, bribe, buy, and steal
from the Orions, never giving as much as the Orions want, always taking
all they can. Within 60 years of the Enterprise
leaving Magna
Roma has warp drives of local manufacture.
The
Romans are a little put
off, but not terribly surprised to learn they are the small dogs on the
block. They knew the Orions and the Federation were out there, but not
how big they really were.
In
part as a reaction, and
more as a cover, Magna Roma joined the League of Unaligned Worlds.
While they believe this organization, if it can be called that, is
pointless. After all if the Federation is a worthy Empire they will
squash the League flat as is their right of might. No rabble of whiners
will stop it. And you have to admire that even if you are getting
squashed. However, for a minimum investment they get the maximum
distraction from their real goal, which is to assimilate the other
members.
This
is a work of fiction. All characters, places, and
situations are fictional. Any resemblance to persons, places, or
situations living or dead is coincidental.
©
Garry Stahl: 1997-2006 unless other Copyrights
apply. All rights reserved, re-print only with permission.
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