Star Trek: Odyssey_The Orion/Ferengi Alliance

[ghosty]

I've worked out a bit of background for the Orion/Ferengi Alliance.

After the Replicator Invasion, the AQ/BQ was devastated. Many key industrial worlds had not only fallen but were destroyed. Others barely had enough food to keep going. So enter the Ferengi, plenty of profits to be made.

Before they knew it the Ferengi and their merchant vessels became a major player in interstellar trade. While Ferengi are good businessmen, they are lousy warriors and there are plenty of big bad races out there eager to plunder their trading vessels. So enter the Orions. The Syndicate had the strong arm specialists that the Ferengi need to protect their trade and a mutually beneficial relationship was born. The Syndicate would provide the guards and ships to protect Ferengi trade and the Ferengi cut them in on the action.

The Alliance solidified and soon became a major player in the AQ/BQ. Most of the smaller merchants and independents soon joined up with the Alliance to gain the benefit of the Alliance's defence force.

The Alliance soon signed agreements with most of the big powers, the Alliance would allow trade to flow and in exchange the big powers kept out of Alliance business. It is in the "Free Worlds" that the Alliance holds the most power. Many "Free Worlds" are not self-sustaining and trade is their lifeblood and most try to maintain good relations with the Alliance. Anyone can join the Alliance, all you have to do is buy shares in the Alliance and you're in. Membership ranges from entire planets and races to individual merchants.

Membership as they say has their privileges. The Alliance is a trading concern so any shareholder is entitled to their share of the profits in the form of the yearly dividends. Although since the Orions and Ferengi control 80% of the shares, most of the profits go to them. The Alliance will also use its military to defend their members from any threat.

The Alliance is run by a Board of Directors. About 40% of the Board are Ferengi, 40% are Orion and the remaining 20% are elected from the remaining shareholders. The Board appoints the individual Factors who run Alliance business on all major planets.

The Alliance Fleet is divided into 2. The bulk of the ships are merchant vessels, mainly of Ferengi design, who do most of the hauling and trading from one end of the AQ/BQ to the other. They are the most recognisable face of the Alliance. The remaining ships form the Alliance Defence Force, who spend their time protecting trade routes from pirates, raiders and any other threats to the lifeblood of trade.

The Alliance is in many ways similar to the British East India Company of the 17th and 18th centuries. A major trading concern that controls its own armies. The are fairly benevolent, wars are bad for business and strong arming your potential customers is even worst but in the end its the bottom line that matters to them.

[Balok]

As depicted on DS9, the Ferengi are the worst sort of predatory capitalists. Caveat emptor is the watchword when dealing with them. The Orion Syndicate is a criminal organization. The fusion of these two is unlikely to produce anything benevolent.

Your depiction seems a little softer than I would imagine such an organization would be. Did something happen to soften them up? Or do you have a different outlook from me on the Ferengi and/or the Orions.

Near the end of DS9, Rom was the Nagus. He was said to be instituting reforms. What's your take on that? Did the Replicator Invasion wipe all those out? Or did someone murder Rom early in his tenure and install a more traditional sort of Ferengi as Nagus? (Personally, I don't think Rom would have lasted very long attempting to institute reforms, but that's just me...)

[ghosty]

Originally posted by Fesarius
As depicted on DS9, the Ferengi are the worst sort of predatory capitalists. Caveat emptor is the watchword when dealing with them. The Orion Syndicate is a criminal organization. The fusion of these two is unlikely to produce anything benevolent.

Your depiction seems a little softer than I would imagine such an organization would be. Did something happen to soften them up? Or do you have a different outlook from me on the Ferengi and/or the Orions.

Near the end of DS9, Rom was the Nagus. He was said to be instituting reforms. What's your take on that? Did the Replicator Invasion wipe all those out? Or did someone murder Rom early in his tenure and install a more traditional sort of Ferengi as Nagus? (Personally, I don't think Rom would have lasted very long attempting to institute reforms, but that's just me...)

The idea is that the Ferengi were softened by Rom's reforms making them less predatory although still capitalistic. He just made them more "socially conscious" about making money. Successive Grand Nagi (?) have continued the trend.

The Orions well like the Mafia, they decided that they should go legit as it may be easier to make money. Initially it was about using the alliance to cover their criminal activities but over the years, they found they could make more money legitimately than by piracy, drug smuggling etc. They still control the night clubs etc. but in a sense they've turned against pirates and smugglers who are bad for their business.

Its important to note that we're looking 500 years in the future after an apocalyptic event, an almost total revision of the socio-political dynamic of the AQ/BQ so expect things to change.

The whole point of my new campaign is to take away the familiar crutches and pre-conceptions that the PCs and see how they deal with it. Most players are used to seeing Ferengi as money grubbing low lives and Orions as criminals. So lets see how they deal with a Daimon who's out to make a buck but can be altuistic as well. Go figure...