Lore:Syndicate

FACTION

Syndicate	Other Names: Syndicate of Common Interest Related Lore: Nova Sector

The Syndicate is the most common group of evil you'll encounter in the Nova Sector. Wherever there is greed, profit, or idealism to be gained from lashing out against the system, the Syndicate will be there. Comprised of numerous groups with varying goals, they cooperate to spread their reign of terror farther than light itself. Much of the Syndicate hates the Sol Federation. Some of the Syndicate hates Nanotrasen directly. Some of the Syndicate hates Nanotrasen for being a member state in SolFed. Regardless of their overarching desires, the Syndicate is actively haunting your station, looking for the slightest hint of weakness or profit to exploit.

On the Origins of the Syndicate

Spiritual researchers would have you believe that evil began at the dawn of time, predating the concept of Good by several millenniaThese "researchers" cite the evolution of Terran Sharks and Terran Trees as evidence of morality before immorality.. The Curated Holonet News MediaA volunteer organization of news-minded individuals, curating a collection of regional happenings into a cohesive galactic narrative, which is distributed across the Holonet. would have you believe that evil began July 21st, 236545 years after the FTL upgrades marking the Second Migration., at the Summit of Sin. Several documentaries have sensationalized this proverbial meeting, hyping it as the moment that changed the galaxy for the worse, as the one moment any self-respecting Time Traveler would disrupt to save the entire future from the immortal reign of the Syndicate. In truth, time travel isn't real, and in truth, this meeting was barely a logistical formality, formalizing the existing relationships between the Plasma Runners, the original Gorlex, several Anti-Librean Activist Fronts, and the Roseus Galactic Actors Guild.

At the time, the Plasma Runners were having a tough time finding a foothold in galactic plasma distribution, and so would routinely contract or point the Gorlex at prominent Plasma Clique operations. Conversely, the Anti-Librean Activist Fronts, operating outside the local law, could not simply purchase local plasma supplies, and were thus one of the Plasma Runners' steadiest customers. Roseus Galactic had capital and public image to wield, and detractors in need of circumventing. Either way, they're always down for a good shootDouble entendre, meaning both a film shoot and a gun shoot..

The July 21st 2365 meeting started as a group Holomail that should have been BCC'd, attempting to secure arrangements to smuggle a large plasma shipment through Librean space under the guise of film pyrotechnics. Over the course of twelve Reply-Alls, all four groups had negotiated a satisfactory chain of favors, turning what would typically be months of clandestine bargains into a simple.This typo comes directly from the third Holomail in the chain, sparking a running joke that further fostered cooperation and comradery in the evil community, but also prolonged the mail chain by an additional six messages. The July 21st meeting was called simply to establish communication protocols, but escalated. The name "Joint Smugglers of the Librean Shoot" was proposed for this operationIncidentally, this operation was so successful, the faux film shoot won several major film awards., and referred to the union for around three further weeks.

On the Origin of "Syndicate"

You likely have not heard of the "Tarnoongan Reservoir, That Which Overfills With Malice," the "Ecliptical Affairs," the "Death Dealers," the "Honkmother Antitribu," the "Space Gunmen," the "Joint Smugglers of Librean Shoots," or the "Evil Club," but surely you know them by their proper name, the "Syndicate." The name "Syndicate" came from careful focus-testing, A-B terrorism, near-identical raids to determine the qualitatively best name for the Union of Evil. With empirical evidence, "Syndicate" is the perfect mix of arrogance, short length, and evil to mathematically strike the most terror in SolFed and the greater galaxy.

• Arrogance: "Syndicate" is a generic term, like "Gang" or "Police," and so to say "The Syndicate" is to say they are prominent enough to be the sole entity that the generic term represents. Even adding a small specifier, e.g. "Saturnal Syndicate" suggests a lack of confidence and is harder to remember; according to focus groups, "Saturnal Syndicate" and "Syndicate of Sin" both appeared 30% less often in PTSD flashbacks from survivors than "Syndicate."
• Length: Extrapolating the "Rule of Three" into linguistics leads to the conclusion that a catchy name is a short name, but long enough to be unique. A single syllable is indistinguishable from background noise; the pattern-matching aptitude of most human-adjacent sapients will confuse any sort of disruption to background ambiance, e.g. a slight grinding noise from a whirring fan, with a short spoken word. Therefore, a memorable name must have at least two plosive consonants. "Syndicate" matches a three-syllable, two mid-word plosive pattern, and is 45% more audible in the dying gasps of victims than other tested candidates.
• Evil: Much research went into analyzing the simplicity of words versus their emotional impact. While "Evil" is readily understandable, its simplicity undercuts the intended serious tone. Conversely, extravagantly verbose monikers strain the filters of perception, numbing the mind to see it only as nonsense. "Syndicate" is well-known but sophisticated enough to inflict quantifiable psychoparadigm scarring.

(It should be noted that the Syndicate holds no more affiliation with any named places in unused name candidates than with any other place in the galaxy; plans were allegedly drafted to forge evidence to retrocausally associate the Syndicate with those locations if the name struck more terror in testing, but thankfully this was found to not be the case and the Syndicate as an overarching institution remains location-agnostic.)

On the Purpose of the Syndicate

SolFed is, and will always be, the enemy of a free and fostered people. See Guide_to_your_Manifesto for details about why an individual Syndicate agent might hate SolFed, but the general Syndicate opposes the Sol Federation. Some factions have moral reasons for hating Sol Fed, other factions just have Sol Fed as an obstacle to their main goal, and others attack SolFed because their buddies in the Syndicate hate 'em. In opposing SolFed, the Syndicate often opposes the member states of SolFed, the cliques and nations and cultures that hold the Federation steady despite crumbling under its rot. The Anti-Librean Activist Fronts have a specific hatred for the Librean Federation, but their anti-corpostate motives often extend to other corporate territories. Nanotrasen, as a successful Sovereign Corporation, is a prominent SolFed "success story," and thus an obvious target for disruption.

On the Usage of Evil

Most publicly-known Syndicate operations are in the ballpark of "murder" and "law-breaking." It can be hard to justify that as "good," when taken out of context. But remember, SolFed is evil by its very nature. Opposing SolFed is the only moral choice left in the galaxy. Disease isn't beaten through kindness, but through scalpels and chemotherapy.

Many good people join the Syndicate. It can be hard to rationalizeIt can be equally hard to identify the correct word here. Conflate? Congrue? It's gotta be in that ballpark. Consider this tooltip a personal sociolinguistic attack on the Galactic Common language. the goodness in your heart and the devilry in your revolver. What you do is just, what you do serves a greater purpose, what you do is necessary. I will not bore you with empty platitudes like "the ends justify the means." We employ a lot of genuinely evil people, folk who kill for killing, folk who steal for greed alone, folk who have seen the depths of hell and bought a sturdier shovel. In the short term, they're incredible tools of change, but to promise a place for their wickedness in the Envisioned Future would be to chart a termite sanctuary in the blueprints of Heaven itself. There will come a time when the Plasma Runners may lay down their arms, secure in their ability to source Plasma across the galaxy, free of tyranny and obligation, and when all is perfect there will be no more good causes for the Herbellion to foster, and with the fall of Librea, the activists hiding in their shadows may step openly into the lightKindly overlook the lack of Gorlex and Tiger Corporation in this otherwise stunning idealistic future..

Until that day comes, understand your inner conflict. Know that SolFed is a fundamental evil. Feel that what you aim to do is morally correct, and trust that the Syndicate is strong enough to wield the forces of evil without succumbing to them.

Despite our best efforts, the Sol Federation remains the main society of this quadrant of the galaxy, and thus the people we are trying to liberate were born into and adhere to their sense of morality. We're never going to shake the reputation that we kill people and are evil for that, and it serves our interest to play that up. A terrified citizen will open a door faster than one you sit down for a philosophical debate with. One of SolFed's many empty promises is that of protection and stability; a challenge to those is a challenge to SolFed. Were it so simple that there were clear-cut buildings to destroy to topple SolFed, we would, but SolFed is a messy brain worm, rooted in just as much an emotional level as a physical one. To starve her armies, we attack supplies. To starve her heart, we sow unrest. maybe need more

The galaxy needs you, but the galaxy will not love you.

Good

Know that there are efforts against the Sol Federation working within the system, treating the symptoms of the Sol InfestationFirst person to say "Infedstation" is sentenced to a double-manifesto editing session. through strictly legal means. Programs for refugees, civil rights movements((Possibly SELF)), et al., education, community. The Herbellion was founded onWell, we'd like the galaxy to believe that. helping Colonial Pod People resist SolFed's invaders. CyberSun serves as the corporate face of Mars Independence. We have but three weapons: You, the truth, and our image. To call these programs Syndicate would draw hatred to them, killing any chance of their success, and for the Syndicate to claim these programs would kill our image of unflappable evil, tainted with layers of nuance. A one-dimensional enemy can only be faced head on; each nuance is a new attack vector to exploit. You are nuanced, your goals are nuanced, but the Syndicate must remain direct.

Yet, morality must be balanced with utility. nahhhhh as much as I want to say they launder money, or they conveniently "don't" background check new hires, maybe it cheapens the paragraph? I got like no sleep, and I'm glad this is still a draft page

Usual Suspects

Operating near-autonomously, and often at odds with each other, the Syndicate's various groups unite and cooperate when ideology, profit, or fear bring them together. Most cooperation is outside the field: back-alley trades, gear for guns, postage for hostage, smuggling for a cut. Many above-board economic institutions are mirrored within the Syndicate, almost making them a valid nation, should any body formally recognize them.

Cybersun

CyberSun makes an extreme variety of high-quality tech products, competing with Nanotrasen in both specific product markets and on a general brand level. CyberSun has personal reason to want Nanotrasen dead, and the pocketbook to fund it.

While wielding a CyberSun device in Nanotrasen space may be against NT's local regulations, CyberSun products are seen as reliable, sturdy, and politically neutral in the greater Sol Federation. That the Syndicate often uses or retrofits CyberSun gear is hardly surprising and does not reflect poorly on the CyberSun brand, no more so than the Syndicate using Positronic Brains for their cyborgs, or SMES power storage units, or Tunguska Triple Distilled. HistoriansSpecifically of niche Earth memes and references. Disproportionately found in the Nova Sector??? would draw parallels to a brand of trucks, sold and having guns mounted to them by their enemies, with no blame or suspicion on the manufacturer themselves.

As a fellow Sovereign Corporation, Cybersun owns several star systems, by charter of the Sol Federation. Though Mars remains under the specific Marsian Government, CyberSun holds a significant corporate presence on the red planet, and serves as a beacon of hope to the significant number of Marsians who find little value in the planet's membership in SolFed. While it would be unseemly for a distinct Sovereign power to overtly attempt to overthrow the Mars government, Marsian citizens who are so inclined will find friends and shelter in CyberSun facilities. Given how effective hiding in even a small PDA repair shack can be, Marsians on both sides of the conflict joke that CyberSun's embassy is highly mobile and extremely volatile, changing to whatever CyberSun building is closest to a fight at any given time. In truth, the CyberSun embassy is a highly stylized and exceedingly immobile shopping experience and expo center, flaunting the countless above-board product lines and innovations this tech giant continues to produce.

CyberSun outwardly decries the Syndicate, as even a company as large as them has much to lose from crossing the SolFed Marshals. According to their press, "For Cybersun!" serves as a generic termSee "xerox" or "quantum.", used as a battle cry for any pro-Mars activist, s thus any Syndicate terrorist exclaiming it with their dying breaths is dogwhistling Mars Independence, even as far away from Mars as the Nova Sector is. Cybersun strongly regrets the tragic lives lost in whichever Syndicate attack of the day, but acknowledges no fault and presents no probable cause to federal investigators. Further supporting their claims of innocence are their routine reports of Syndicate attacks against their own interests, often looting expensive and irreplaceable prototypes or bulk reserves of reliable product. Whenever there are federal programs to recompense victims of the Syndicate, Cybersun are among the first to applyTheir rates of acceptance are noticeably lower than legitimate victims of the Syndicate, but as their rates of application are drastically higher, CyberSun still makes a tidy profit off of fleecing SolFed this way..

Inside the Syndicate, CyberSun functions as a corporate interest, high in capital and high in demands. According to leaked Syndicate memosSeized from a recent derelict battle cruiser embedded deep in the Nova Sector. Of course, given that several other documents in the same set were known to be false, this information is likely another falsehood, likely to blackmail CyberSun in some regard., one in three Syndicate attacks against Nanotrasen coincide with Cybersun profit opportunities, from mysterious research breakthroughs, to poached employees, to simple brand loyalty shifts. As much as pro-Mars heroes would wish you to believe CyberSun is a grand mastermind of galactic change, resisting SolFed wherever it may be, CyberSun does not command the Syndicate, nor has it ever. CS's work with the Syndicate began almost 10 full years after the Summit of Sin, matching the Roseus Galactic Actors Guild's funds and manufacturing capacities. When the RGAG finally turned against the Syndicate, the Syndicate reluctantly begged for greater CyberSun involvement, yielding influence and favors for their interest. Ultimately, the Plasma Runners would prove a more stable (and thus more valued) income source, leaving CyberSun involved but not dominant.

CyberSun is directly hated by several Syndicate factions, including most Anti-Librean Activist Fronts, and to a much lesser extent, the Plasma Runners. The ALAF hate corpocratic monoliths in general, though focus their ire towards the ones infesting Librea, and the Plasma Runners are not so fond of CyberSun's works in power efficiency, resulting in folk getting more power out of their plasma, reducing demand. Both will tolerate CyberSun and certainly not refuse an "accidental" shipment of weapons-grade "salvage" their way, though refuse to build the goodwill to make them a recurring event.

Plasma Runners

It's simple: The Plasma Clique wants to control the flow of Plasma. Folk want to buy more Plasma than they're allotted. Thus, there's profit in smuggling Plasma. And once you've started doing crime, you need to do crime to keep your crime going. The market's content and nobody's buying the surplus of your Plasma? Whoops, their stockpiles caught fire. What a shame that Plasma's so flammable.

The Biker Gang aesthetic came because biker gangs are cool and the uniforms are cheap.

Attacks the station to steal their plasma, or disrupt their cargo supply, or make in-roads with other groups, or because someone paid enough.

Cyberpunk Protagonists

There's cyberpunk dystopian groups in SolFed, e.g. the Librean Federation. Anyone who opposes SolFed en masse must be evil, must be the Syndicate. Thus, the Syndicate has a bunch of Cyberpunk Protagonists. Widely used as a generic term for anti-corporate hopefuls riding the edge of edginess, "Anti-Librean Activist Fronts" refer to any movement of self-proclaimed protagonists "resisting" a corporation or government. The term is very much one of those "know it when you see it" phrases.

With the nature of underground movements, finding a solitary leader, or even primary group, is an exercise in futility. Each group that rises up has some heroic name, some mishmash of ideological justice, and a zeal for revolution against the oppressor of the hourNotably, the Rogue Streets megatower sees a complete political turnover, mayor ousted and executed, almost twice a day..

The Herbellion claims no involvement within the Librean Federation, even behind closed doors, as the ever-shifting nature of megacorporations and resistance are, in their words, "bad soil in a warzone."

As much as the Cyberpunk Protagonists tend to hate hegemonicReport: the word 'hegemonic' holds noospheric power, causing authors to hallucinate its presence over numerous editing sessions. To combat this, the word has been inserted. megacorporations, they're not too proud to reject a pallet of Cybersun-built MODsuits.

Tiger Collective

The Cathedral of the True Angels.

The Tiger Cooperative is more of a nickname or secondary name. Tiger is centered and based on the fact that they fanatically worship Changelingss, to the point of believing that the ultimate show of devotion is allowing yourself to be consumed by a Changeling, dubbed True Angels. Tiger focuses on finding Changelings and either capturing or inviting them to join the Cathedral so that they may be worshiped alongside other "True Angels." Tiger is likely to partake in many kidnappings of people from all over so that they can sacrifice and feed these victims to Changelings.

The Tiger Cooperative is the public face of the shadowy Church of the True Angels, a frontier‐born cult that blends militant zeal with forbidden biotech. Purportedly a Syndicate‐aligned logistics and pharmaceutical outfit, Tiger Co-op’s chemical weapons, combat stimulants, and hallucinogenic “Ritual Wine” conceal its true purpose: the worship, cultivation, and weaponization of Changelings as living divinities. Feared even by fellow Syndicate factions, who whisper of cannibalism and blood-soaked ceremonies- Tiger Cooperative cells operate with brutal autonomy across the SolFed Frontier, answering only to their unseen Prophet, the Exarch.

Donk Co. / Waffle Corp

How does a snack food and novelty toy company, with vendors and easy meals distributed across the entire Sol Federation, get tangled up with the worst of the worst, the Syndicate? They don't. Despite their best efforts, the Syndicate continues to use these companies as covers and false flags, launching assaults and offloading blame. Enough [backroom deals] and protection rackets tie them to illicit business, such that were they to openly beg for SolFed's assistance and submit to a full audit entirely clearing them of these grave acts of terror, they'd have to shut their doors, clean of both conscience and pocketbook. Still, they proclaim their innocence to all who'd hear; successfully for the most part, as folk are eager to believe their beloved childhood toy line isn't funding paramilitary assailants.

Of course in this chaos, a few legitimately Donk Co. terrorists can be blamed on false flagging, but by and large, these companies would sooner see the Syndicate shuttered than supplant their sins in smokescreen.

Roseus Galactic Actors Guild

Super Space Hollywood. Placeholder description. Was one of the founding Syndicate members, as described above. No longer in the Syndicate. While they were Syndicate, assisted in designing and producing the clandestine Infiltrator modular suit, iterating over designs with Gorlex until finalizing the modern active camouflage MOD you (don't) see in galactic crime sprees.

Also known for at least one film; the hit NTFlik horror-space western film, Forget-Me-Not, notable for featuring the .357 caliber of Heartseeker bullets. Through some bizarre circumstance, not only had the film's production staff produced live rounds, but produced over six times as many as were deemed necessary. Insurance claims report an incident in which a Gorlex strike team raided the film shoot's armory. Footage from the third such raid made it into the final cut.

Herbellion

On the surface level, the Herbellion is easily the most approachable Syndicate faction. Most known members are simply folk who picked a cause, any cause, and declared themselves part of the Herbellion. <few lines about the various causes> But a random group of almost-contradictory activists does not make a terror organization. The truth at the heart of the Herbellion, the organization, the logistics? The only cause they serve is the Syndicate. Steering a hundred different ideologies and wannabe martyrs into a smokescreen of seemingly random attacks takes effort, but for the Visionaries, the social landscape is their canvas, and disorder their paint.

Pitch

That's a mighty awful tree next to your yard, hogging all the sunlight, those thick roots choking out your plants. Choking out everyone's plants. None'd stop you from taking an axe next door and just swingin', none except the owner and his gun and the police. You could do it, but you'd be going big when you should be going wide.

They tell you to make sure your plants have enough light, but y'wanna know the secret? Gardening's all about the soil. It's about recomposition after y'get the nutrients mixed back in. Easy way's dumping a whole sack o' shit and smearing it around, but then y'got a yard fulla shit and the tree's eatin' most of it anyways. No, y'need that tree to start rottin', break off pieces of root so far down y'can't even see, let the worms churn that back into nitrates for yer own garden, fer the good plants, fer th' good of all plantkind.

Y'gotta start with good soil. Some of this, the rocky clay sorta shit, y'got a stronger hope of SolFed votin' unanimouslike on anythin' than y'do growin' a flower on a boulder. High quality soil, all y'do is sprinkle a single seed and y'got harvests for life. But with that tree and that neighbor, y'ain't gonna keep that high quality soil fer long. So you look. You dig a little. You find where the soil's just ripe enough, where th' tree's roots ain't the strongest, and that's where you pour your heart and soul.

Yer addin' the seeds of rebellion to the mix, you're sprinklin' a little water in -- not a big ol' Cybersun Automated Irrigation Tray, mind you, you'll get noticed -- but a midnight waterin' or two, a sympathetic union tech lettin' a few switchblades fall off a truck, someone lettin' slip when a Blueshield's away from their Captain, hype up an officer's jilted lover a lil', and then you wait. Y'ain't gonna see the fierce battle underground yourself, as yer plant's roots snake out and strangle the tree, and the tree ain't gonna notice, not right away, not one battle. When yer wagin' a quiet war against a tree, you're seedin' and feedin' the whole pasture.

And then there's yer choice of plant. Y'just plop a tree saplin' down, y'ain't gettin' that t' outgrow outta the shadows of giants. Y'start with underbrush and y'work up. Y'gotta know yer soil and yer plants; ain't growin' a cactus in marsh, after all. Y'got the upstarts, the ones that sprout up on their own. The weeds. Everyone knows a dandelion when y'see one, fightin' for itself no matter who's around, no matter the consequences. A dandelion ain't got forethought, it ain't got subtlety, and it's mighty easy t' pluck outta the ground. Yer fight ain't with the dandelion, and a lesser gardner'd just pluck and burn 'em, but y'gotta take the big picture in. Prop 'em up, hold 'em up, and with a single puff, there's a hundred of 'em in yer neighbor's yard. Again, betting on 'em ain't a winning strategy, but if yer enemy's glarin' at bright yellow weeds, spendin' on surface-level herbicide, they ain't clawin' at the heartier underbrush, the fights worth winnin'.

Nah, th' fights worth winnin' are the ones there, just achin' fer y'to water 'em. Th' plants that belong there, th' wildflowers, th' local herbiage. Hell, y'search long enough, y'find the law protectin' some of th' plants, th' endangered folk, th' noble causes and th' underdogs th' public loves t' root for. Th' ones already gettin' choked by th' tree, who y'can come in and save an' prop up 'till they propagate even further. Some y'need t' keep an eye on, groom an' curate an' prune t' th' best them they can be, but y'casionally find a few jus' needin' a tiny kindle, a single drop o' water t' turn th' tides.

Oh sure, once'n a blue moon y'fin' an exposed root thick 'nuff t' call yer cousin over with 'is glowin' axe and 'is C90s, an' y'let 'im fight with th' neighbor, but t'ain't you, yer just a humble farmer, ain't harm none never, ain't raise yer voice out loud, ain't more aggressive than passive, ain't yer fault when that tree finally done rots an' falls on th' neighbor's Cadillac.

And yet, the tree is dead and the ground is planted according to your design. The future of the pasture is entirely your vision, not because you attacked the tree, but because you planted spite in the right spots and grew malice. There are a lot of trees in the universe, and the Syndicate has a lot of pasture to reclaim. If you were just a plant, this conversation would have ended halfway through the rustic farmer metaphor. You have the talent to be a gardener, a Visionary, and we want you to help build the largest homestead ever seen, continuing with the Nova Sector.

Welcome to the Herbellion.

The Name

The name "Herbellion" comes from careful focus study, of something that sounds united enough that half-hearted folk with a cause will rise up to join, strange enough to be passed off as a rumor or bupkis, and uplifting enough to not immediately inspire disgust, invoking the foot-in-the-door phenomenon to prompt further dialogue with "good" folk.

That, and given the vast quantity of Colonial Seed Vaults in various states of rediscovery and oppression, a good 1/3rd of the Herbellion's earliest cases were supporting freshly grown Podpeople in fighting back against their technologically advanced capitalist oppressors. Even though that era has come and gone, having a good chunk of people (partially) owing you their freedom is something strong enough to build a Brand around. Plus, it's deflective; it sounds like a Podperson-run initiative, but looking there for them gets you nothing but pissed off plantfolk.

This plays into my favorite phrase, "This would reinforce the themes of treating Pod People as incidental and disposable tools, ignoring their sapience."

Summary

So there's your character study for the Herbellion. The arm of the Syndicate who scouts for brewing conflicts and feeds the ones that'll hurt Nanotrasen, that'll hurt SolFed. More directed than "mysterious chaos giving random people guns," but less traceable than a dedicated military strategy. You should go play the game, Heat Signature.

If your Syndicate is in the Herbellion, they've got their ear to the ground, listening for brewing trouble and making sure it happens. You're telling people what they don't want to hear, you're being honest when the truth hurts and lying when it'll cause tragedy. You're likely not on-station doing the actual terrorism, but you're possibly scouting for it.

If your Syndicate is helped by the Herbellion, they've got some radical cause that puts them against the status quo, anything from a single-issue dispute to a confirmed source of oppression they want ousted. As long as championing your cause hurts the Syndicate's enemies, directly or otherwise, you might just find yourself with 20 telecrystals and a Sears catalogue in your PDA. You'll also be told you're "In The Herbellion now," if hearing that makes you feel confident enough to go forth.

If your Syndicate is helped by the Herbellion and proves very useful, you might be asked to come back for a second audition. You might get on some farmer's speed-dial, you might get yourself a desk in a Gorlex CyberSun-leased office building with an apartment and a phone that rings and tells you where your next... babysitting appointment is.

I feel like the Herbellion is taking a bit of the secret espionage cues from MI13, the whole Men In Black idea, the whole "we are behind the conspiracy" haughty vibe. I played a fair bit of The Secret World as it was dying, and I love those vibes too.

Gorlex

The Gorlex are dead. Killed by humiliation, by logistics, by dilution of ideals. Once a mere band of like-minded Marauders, unrestricted growth forced three crippling realities to the light: Relentless murder does not scale smoothly. An ideology cannot remain pure without organized effort to orient new voices. Leadership is a skill to be learned, not a crown to be stolen. When the murderous brand of maraudering attracted new voices emulating what they perceived Gorlex to be, their visions of the hype and mythos started feeding on itself, cannibalizing what made the Gorlex unmatched; a fate expected from a more corporate environment.

Modern Gorlex operate with brutality, sure, but are as fallible and nuanced as most villains, except that they alone have chosen to claim the name Gorlex, with all the expectations and assumptions, burdens and boons that the title of Marauder holds.

On the Continued Erosion of the Rot Infesting The Orion Spur: Sol Federation

Complacent. Describing the Syndicate in T-50 years can really only be done in one way: Complacent. Stagnant. So far up their own ass they taste food twice before it hits their stomach. The Syndicate wanted to be the antithesis of the Sol Federation, as such: Big government? Clearly, we must prove that No Government is superior. What the Syndicate saw as an overbearing government, ruthlessly sinking hooks into its captive vassals to coerce them into being friendly enough to not obliterate each other immediately, they thought should be countered by a passive leadership, fostering the cooperation and individual freedoms of its members to cooperate and achieve lofty mutual goals.

So when the Gorlex wanted to have a hands-off, low-contribution approach to the Syndicate, little more than "here's our business card, maybe have an employee discount," the Syndicate accepted that openly. After all, having The Gorlex on your side in any capacity is an incredible power, and who with any form of survival instinct would dare correct any of the fiercest Marauders, fresh in their 30th year of omnipresent malevolence? When the Sol Federation mocked up a small moon as a Superfortress and obliterated it into dust, who could quantify how that even affects the bottom line? When the Gorlex went from feared to mocked to hunted, what power did the Syndicate have to save them?

When the Roseus Galactic Actors Guild thought it could profit off a screenplay outing deep Syndicate secrets, where was the heavy hand to bring that treason in line? Right, being slapped around the galaxy for being too proud to establish supply lines and secure communications, decimated through starvation and humiliation, and without a redundant force with any sustaining power at all. And when the other members saw they could openly betray the Syndicate for profit? For once, the galaxy slept soundly.

Despite the humiliation, falling out of the spotlight saved the Syndicate. The Rimward Wars spooled up into full force, and the reactionary SolFed over-committed forces in an attempt to establish an overwhelming and immediate victory. As neither came, mischief within SolFed could thrive once more. While Gorlex was a lost cause, the Plasma Runners compensated through uncharacteristic profits. With a steady source of financial backing, Syndicate agents no longer had to prostrate themselves to sponsors and politicks, sacrificing efficiency for profit. Though the surge in profit threatened to steer the entire Syndicate towards plasma smuggling, the renewed stubbornness of a younger ally, the Cathedral of True Angels, ironically strong-armed the Syndicate back into a diverse portfolio of terror. Even amongst the Syndicate, rumors whisper that the Cathedral successfully contacted a large Hive around this time, trading transit for terror, bombs for blessings. Truth or otherwise, Syndicate stations have since held a 40% lesser rate of hostile shapeshifter infiltration.

And thus, the Syndicate was stable again. Stalwart. Sturdy. Steadfast. Stagnant. When money flows and there's a safe bed to sleep in, it's easy to fall into the same routine of nominal assaults and lavish parties. Despite their miraculous recovery with the Federation's attention elsewhere, the Syndicate stood exactly where it stood before: just a petty den of villainy, another band of pirates, target practice to an ever-adapting military powerhouse the moment the war ends. With this harrowing realization, a small group of radical Syndicates splintered off, vanishing for ten years as the Syndicate bloated back to harmlessness.

The Sacking of Sigulon 9 sent two messages: To the Sol Federation, the Syndicate were back to Enemy Number One, ruthless annihilators of an entire civilizationNews outlets described Sigulon 9 as anywhere from a "colony" to a "sector;" whatever clickbaited the best.. To the Syndicate, Gorlex was under new management, unwilling to bend to the stale complacency of other members' whims. Sigulon 9, at the time, had been strongly infested by an overwhelming Changeling hive, practically a holy site to the Cathedral of True Angels, who themselves infested the Syndicate with dominant desires and increasingly counter-intuitive demands. Now, not even a single spiderling twitched, the entire system rendered incompatible with life. Gorlex's new masters showed they would not bend to the zealots of the Church, and that they held no mercy for obstacles to the Syndicate. These masters, the Visionaries, held true to the Syndicate's hatreds, charting SolFed's demise with infernal insight and perilous precision.

It matters not what the SolFed claims its government is, what posters it hangs over the festering mildew inherent to the Federation, what boasts it bellows through rotten telegraph lines. The antithesis of SolFed is not countering their words, validating their lies with earnestness, respecting the unrespectable. The antithesis of the Sol Federation is success.

Syndicate Command and You: Orchestrating a Post-SolFed Galaxy

Taking the title of "Syndicate Command," the Visionaries centralize and orchestrate the Syndicate's brand of galactic suppression and violent reform. Legacy Syndicate members have their needs met, yes, but no longer to the detriment of the Syndicate. Insolence is punished and compliance rewarded under their Vision, which not all Syndicate are trusted with.

Not every Syndicate-aligned interest takes kindly to the Visionaries' forceful nature, nor do all individuals appreciate what bits of the Vision they're able to discover. Some such plans and exploits include:

Plasma Runners TV Series

The RGAG dramatic series, "Real Runners of the Plasma Vein," based on the daily life of Plasma Runners, not only went unpunished, but was intentionally sanctioned by Syndicate Command. On direct orders, an entire charter of Plasma Runners directly protected the series' film shoots and provided narrative consulting, keeping the show authentic, even appearing as background extras. The series' success revitalized the Plasma Runner image, shifting their perception from general assholes to dark horse anti-heroes, fighting The Establishment and standing as bastions of Family and Ruggedness. To this day, official Biker merch can be bought in even the furthest reaches of space, packaged with a Plasma Runner ATVIronically, the least realistic part of the show was the heavy use of ATVs, at the insistence of sponsors. Genuine Plasma Runners tend to operate in space, one of many terrains an All-Terrain Vehicle cannot handle., Biker Jacket, and Collector's Edition Bandana. Internal Syndicate memos herald a 40% decrease in citizen resistance against Plasma Runs, thus a 15% increase in raw profit (though the numbers are debatable).

Gorlex Revival

The choice to swell Gorlex ranks with outsiders, folk who have no personal experience with surviving the tyranny of the Sol Federation, the Voidgrown, also stands controversial. Idealists in the Syndicate bicker that allowing these outsiders to enter the Syndicate belittles their specific grievances with the Sol Federation. These Voidgrown have never been subjected to tax, or misrepresentation with their cliques, or strong-armed into voting against their own interest, and thus if it is with their power that the Syndicate triumph, their victory lacks moral standing. Sol Fed won't be seen as being crushed by their own failings and the superiority of the Syndicate way, but because they made an external enemy and lost an external war. These concerns are... less vocalized, given that they *are* direct criticisms against Gorlex, but are still felt.

Kidnapping and Release of the Sigulon 9 Changeling Hive

The Cathedral of True Angels, and thus Tiger Corporation, initially reacted with extreme violence to the Sacking of Sigulon 9. In turn, the Visionaries revealed that, rather than absolute obliteration of the hive, key hive structures had been extracted and contained, at great loss to the attackers. The methods showed that the Visionaries took great care in learning and respecting the Changeling form, in strong contrast to the Syndicate's prior attitude of "pointing the crazies at our enemies." Braced for a prolonged hostage situation, the Cathedral was again surprised when the Sigulon 9 hive was released into their care with little fuss. The hive itself does not speak deeply of this time, though it is known to have conversed with the Visionaries and generally not been drastically uncomfortable. Given that the Sigulon 9 hive directly avoids attacking the Syndicate, one can speculate a manner of respect - or fearThe most paranoid investigators infer (but will not directly accuse) that the Visionary-led Gorlex were not simply aware of the Changeling form, but proficient in it, capable of lobotomizing an entire amorphous Changeling Hive. Even if this rumor were true, that the Cathedral of True Angels did not note the recovered Hive as damaged speaks volumes to the great state the Hive was returned in..

The adoption of Telecrystals as the primary last leg of the Warehouse-to-Warzone logistics network, and the establishment of DS-2 Listening Posts across the galaxy.

Telecrystals

Syndicate High Command says: "Esteemed Syndicate Hero: Congratulations on your Activation. Your mission, should you chose to accept it, will be difficult. For discretion, you have been issued an Uplink pre-loaded with discrete Telecrystals. These patent-avoiding crystals use the energy of Quantum Tunneling and Gravity to retrieve items from great distances and restrictions. Your Uplink is loaded with Quantum Algorithms to target specially designated Supply Caches we've "provided" throughout your sector, some of which may be abnormally close (as reflected by the "discount" in your Uplink). Use them wisely! You may be tempted to exploit the quantum tunneling gravity energies in the telecrystal as a short-range theft device, by tying a telecrystal to an igniter using looped cable, and tying that to a metal stick. Know that that's illegal... so do it. You're a criminal, Esteemed Hero, and it won't be the only regulation you break today. While you should avoid letting telecrystals fall into the hands of authority, be aware that we've already disseminated rumors that telecrystal use will either turn you into a Syndicate Operative, that telecrystals can only be used by Syndicate Operatives and thus anyone able to use them has always been a traitor to authority, or you simply die an agonizing death. So while having your Uplink captured is usually the end of your heroic stint of heroism, it won't be fatal to the Syndicate, your handlers, or other coworkers. Following these rumors, we've observed extreme retribution to anyone operating under an authoritative or security position who happens to use the telecrystals for their own gain."

Telecrystals are fundamentally different from Bluespace crystals, using Quantum Tunneling and Gravity, both forces innate to this dimension, rather than exploiting the liquidic nature of the other dimension, Bluespace. The MECU pioneered the use of Gravity Crystals in their logistics fleets, using them to transport large quantities of cargo onto and off of automated ships without requiring them to slow down. The amount of power and precision involved, coupled with the intense biological risks, unfortunately render their use by anyone else an unreplicable trade secret of the MECU. The Syndicate, however, has done well in miniaturizing the effect into "Telecrystals," which have minimal risks in transporting a relatively stationary crate in a known location within a light yearThe true range of these portable Telecrystals is unknown to the Sol Federation, as captured Syndicate Uplinks do not actually contain algorithms for locating the caches they're intended to summon. Presumably, various relays and gravitational distortions can alter the range of the Telecrystal Effect, though likely with other impossible costs. Coupled with the notion that these caches are as small as a single crate, and thus effectively undiscernable from standard space debris, Nanotrasen has been equally unable to glean any useful information about the operation or manufacture of Telecrystals. to an agent of evil in the field, silently. This expends the Telecrystals, and most caches require several TCs to retrieve.

DS-2

In a stunning show of resourcefulness, scuttled stations and bombed battleships are continuously salvaged and repurposed in a fleet of Long-Term Habitation Listening Posts with contradictory codenames, including "Derelict Syndicate Encampment," "Dark Secret 2," "Deep Space Listening Post", "Dereisno Secretacronym 2bedeciphered." These listening posts shore up one of the Syndicate's critical weaknesses, their lack of communication channels. Previously, most times the greater Syndicate would find out if a terror raid had been successful the same way that the rest of the galaxy did: Holonet news. While this kept the greater Syndicate listeners secret, as no communication line existed to point back to them, 20% of Syndicate reinforcement raids failed due to Sol Federation Marshal interference with the news (according to Visionary estimates).

The DS-2 line of listening posts host a small contingent of Syndicate forces from a cross-disciplinary pool of less active agents, serving as both a secure "Bluespace-encrypted"we cannot elaborate on bluespace encryption. we tried to find out. it seems to be quantum, but not the sort of quantum you teleport with. we disentangled a message, once. it turned out to be a bullet. it shot us in the face, looney-tunes style. we're trying to figure out how *that* works but it appears that the explanation is, itself, a second bullet that shot our researcher in the face. we're currently investigating bulletproof masks before continuing. robust communications gridIn truth, Bluespace is again irrelevant. Considered the liveliest dead drop network in the galaxy, DS-2 listening posts routinely use renewable Telecrystals to "steal" a packet from adjacent DS-2 listening posts, robustly passing messages across the entire network. and a staging point for the field command of local operations. DS-2 posts are designed to be mostly oblivious to the specific operations and traitors deployed in the region, but still provide passive coordination. If you've ever wondered how Syndicate drop pods always seem to land on-station, how sleeper agents are woken, how agents' Uplinks readily have the coordinates of any form of supply cache within Telecrystal range, or how infiltrators have access codes to board and escape the Interlink and related shuttles, it's through DS-2 calculation and computation.

DS-2 crew are explicitly selected to not be locally infamous criminals. If a DS-2 station is discovered, none of the persons aboard are to trigger automated facial recognition and thus provide probable cause in local jurisdictions. Agents feisty to get back in the field will find their tenure in a listening post as some sort of punishment, a forced retirement or mandatory vacation. While they're usually stationed far from their normal stomping grounds, these sidelined Syndicates still sharpen their teeth and serve a vital role in the end of SolFed.

Part of the Vision is recognizing that agents are best treated as a renewable resource, instead of a one-time candle. Treating their mental health and cementing the philosophical grounds for why the Syndicate fights in agents serves to keep them effective for far longer, preserving both generational knowledge and loyalty, critically building a grander force of mayhem. To that end, the facilities are cozy, yet cramped enough to encourage social interaction between agents of nearly unrelated terror cells. The facilities are universally themedYes, the large Syndicate logo painted on the floor is suspicious to the general populace. Please consult the standard-issue Guide to Deflection and Excuses, including: "that was there when we got here," "yeah we like drawing snakes, so what?", and the Nunya manuver., to provide a sense of home and unity in the Syndicate, even between distant DS-2 platforms.

In remaining inconspicuous, DS-2 Listening Posts are required to reject locally infamous criminals, even if these criminals are agents actively being aided by the DS-2's coordination. The post's turret defenses should be calibrated to repel all but active DS-2 crew, and active Sleeper Agents have an implanted compulsion to avoid drawing attention to DS-2. Both directives can be overridden by Syndicate High Command, though they rarely judge a situation emergent enough to warrant the DS-2 listening post's direct involvement.

DS-2 listening posts are encouraged to remain radio silent, drawing as little attention as possible. If the post's area of operations contains known Neutral Parties, the escape shuttle may be repurposed as a bidirectional transit to and from their facilities, so long as they are fully aware of the DS-2's need for secrecy, and the consequences for breaches thereof. Interdyne Pharmaceuticals in particular has proven to be a Trustworthy business partner despite their public denouncement of All Things Terrible, and may be used as a more active connection to the local populace, learning on-goings through more than passive listening. Consult your regional guide to interacting with the locals for your specific Rules of Engagement. Additionally, DS-2 crew are encouraged to perform EVA exploration of nearby derelicts in order to reduce their value to scavengers. Remember: a looted sector is a boring sector, and a boring sector is a hidden sector.

DS-2 Prison

And yes, contrary to the intended inconspicuousness, DS-2 possesses a prison bay. These "prisoners" are often sleeper agents, either still in the process of indoctrination, or in an extended aftercare program to gradually distance them from the unspeakable acts they've committed. Common treatments involve reinforcing their prior notions that they work for a local power, and fostering a desire to escape and return to their workforce. This sparks an innate psychological distancing from their past crimes that juries (in regions honoring jury trials) love to see, resulting in a faster reintegration of the sleeper agent into the target environment. DS-2 crew are also encouraged to plant false intelligence in the prisoners' subconscious, to befuddle any interrogations (ethical or otherwise) local governments might try upon captured sleeper agents, stopping any real Syndicate plans from leaking.

Sometimes these prisoners genuinely are Enemies of the Syndicate. Typically, when Contractors abduct someone, they're exfiltrated to a secure "resort," and the demanded ransom is paid by automated systems within a matter of minutes. Sometimes this just doesn't happen, and like unclaimed luggage, these captives need to be put somewhere until they're either claimed or the statute of limitations runs out (read: they willingly join the Syndicate, or choose a different fate.). As much as you might be tempted to serve as jury and executioner to their misdeeds against us, you're already doing so through the act of detaining them. If it was deemed necessary to execute them, they simply would not have been woken from cryosleep. Remember, to their SolFed-upbrought mind, we're ontologically Evil, and it is their civic duty as a sapient being to resist us in every capacity. The punishment for being raised wrong isn't death, it's correctionThe punishment for resisting correction can be death, though. Like, being stubborn for stubborn's sake, beyond "their civic duty as a sapient being to resist us in every capacity." It's a really tough call to make, and it gets easier if they start trying to kill you..

Conversely, DS-2 crew are also encouraged to fraternize with the prisoners, in order to help them feel comfortable with the Syndicate, to accept that they may have done crimes, but that their crimes were for a cause they believed - and still believe - in, and that they are among friends. The specifics of treatments are often transferred alongside the prisoner themselves, though ultimately how they are handled is left to the DS-2 crew. If nothing else, the DS-2 crew are significantly more valuable to the Syndicate than the prisoners, so if beating a prisoner (within reason) improves the mental health of the DS-2 crew member... make a business case about it, explore alternatives, and if you're still worked up for some senseless prisoner beatings, be prepared for pushback. It is not uncommon for a listening post's crew to escort a patient out of the dedicated prison wing and show them around the crew facilities. Remember to remove any identifying markings and clothing before escorting them to a cabin or airlock.

Work in Progress: Footer subject to change at a moment's notice. Do not take a red link's presence, struck-through or otherwise, as confirmation (or denial) of their canonicity.

Nova Sector Lore
	Common Species	Humans, Tiziran, Unathi, Moths, Ethereals, Azulae, Slime Hybrids, Teshari, Synthetic Humanoids (and assorted robots), Pod Persons, Hemophages, Xenomorphic Hybrid,
	Other Species	Genemodders (Felinids, Ice Walkers, Dwarf), Ashwalkers, Snailpersons, Ordoht (Formerly Skrell), Plasmamen, Flypeople, Vox (Primalis et al), Tajaran, Vulpkanin, Rouges (Abductorkin), Miscellaneous Species, Dullahans, Employee Golems, Changelings
	Nanotrasen	Nanotrasen, Central Command, Emergency Response Corps
	External Groups	The Syndicate (Gorlex, Tiger Cooperative, DS-2, Syndicate Manifestos), Interdyne Pharmaceutics, Cargo, The Spider Clan, Heliostatic Coalition, The Void Imperium
	Nova	The Nova Sector, IndecipheresLavaland, volcanic mining place., FreyjaIcebox and Snowglobe station frozen moon., BoletusSerenity Mushroomoon.
	Concepts	Bluespace, Plasma, Faster Than Light Travel, Resonance ("Souls"), Death
	SolFed	SolFed, Sol in 2565, The SolFed Armed Forces