Re: Geopolitics in Jon's Universe

Alfredo Lorente wrote:
> 

> Ok.  So the LLAR is an extra-solar Power.  Why is it a Power at all?
> Number of colonies?  Size of the Space Fleet (a la Spain circa 1800 -
> big ass fleet but not as good as the Brit's)? Monopoly on goods
> and/or services?  Latin Lovers swaying the rest of the world (sorry,
> couldn't help it...)?
OK, so maybe it isn't a Power, just a power. The reason that I said it
like that is that LLAR mercenaries play an important role in the
beginning of the Mercenary War, 30 years after the LLAR loses its Earth
territories. So maybe they aren't big, but they are still out there. And
with the UNSC out there to prevent war in the Core systems, it looks
like they'll never get their Earth territories back, by force of arms
anyway.
> The other, perhaps more significant question, still remains -
> 
> > > Who's an ally of whom in the GZG world?  Would the LLAR buy
> > > weapons from the ESU?  The New Israeli's?  The Arabs?  Who
> > > produces their own weapons, who licenses them?
> 
> This is important because if you are going to have a supplement for
> DS2 or SG2, its probably going to have to be Orders of Battle - think
> about it, the generic rules are already out.	Since there is little
> chance the next supplement will be Games Workshop universe in DS2
> terms, and we (apparently) all want OoB's and Vehicle's and such for
> pick up games, we need to figure out who's trading with whom (Perhaps
> not how many metric tonnes, but at least who's in talking terms with
> whom...).
One thing that would be nice for the Fleet Book would be a map of Earth,
with all the political divisions shown. Then a simple sketch of how all
the interstellar empires are divided, along with a more detailed essay
of "how all this came to be" Whaddaya say guys? Please please please
please? 
> > My big question is what territories became part of the NAC, which
> > part of Free Cal-Tex, and which are quasi "independant" countries.
> 
> Bud, I wish I could help you...  I'll tell you one thing, South of
> the Rio Grande, the NAC's got one hell of a Pacification job.  I
> don't foresee the NAC holding onto such large territory, with such
> high level of hostility, for very long.  For that matter, how do you
> integrate it into the Crown?	Spanish-Speaking for the most part,
> with a good chunk speaking Portuguese and yet more people of
> French and Dutch descent, it seems you are going to have to have
> military garrisons in every major city (and some of the major cities
> of the world ARE in Central and South America), and patrols out there
> in what's left of the Amozonian and Central American jungles and
> Mountains of the Andes.  I'm not a military expert, but those Guhrkas
> we had a thread on earlier might come in handy right about now...
In the case of at least Central America the NAC has held it since the
end of the War of the Americas, in 2072. So any pacification efforts
there have had 100 years or more to work, unless those countries tried
to break away with Free Cal-Tex. As for South America, it doesn't strike
me as being that hard to hold on to, as long as you were willing to pit
the various nationalities against each other. If you didn't want to do
all the hard work of empire maintenance you could always let them have
their "freedom", as independant nations, but with restrictions, like
Japan after WWII. 
> Another question - Piracy.  People have Merc fleets, but is there
> such a thing in this Universe as Raiders in B5 or just plain old
> Pirates?  How about Letters of Marquee (sp?)...
> 
Given the large area of human space, it wouldn't suprise me that at
least some gov'ts give aid and comfort to groups that prey on the
shipping of their enemies.