Corporate Players General Info

How it was...

The Ithacan Star League controlled the Outer Reaches, fought back pirates and Orks and created a set of laws that allowed civilisation to flourish in the aftermath of the Ork War. It was a government structure made up of the Ithacan Navy and The Corporations of Tantalus that form the Assembly Council of Tantalus combined with the various smaller outposts and independent colonies that signed into the protection of the Star League. It formed one of the The Powers of the Imperium Minoris in the post-war period between 4881 and 5011.    The Ithacan Star League was officially restructured into Imperial Ithaca following a military coup in 5011.  

The Second Ork Fleet

After the Truth March the Ithacan military forces declared Martial Law to regain control and prepare Tantalus to defend against the Second Ork Fleet. This dissolved the Assembly Council and gave total power to the Admiralty under Supreme Admiral Athena Graves. All civil laws were suspended in favour of military laws. This went well for a few weeks before the shortages started to hit hard as the military took as much as possible.   The very wealthy are insulated from this because of the sheer power they represent. While lesser corporations fell in the economic collapse that followed martial law, the corporate pillars of Tantalus remained and were able to exert enough power and influence to maintain control of their own assets and employees during this time of upheaval. Many smaller corporations were rescued by larger ones, preventing a lot of their employees from becoming unemployed.   To many the Corporations of Tantalus are seen as stability in a time of chaos. Around 80% of the civilian workforce is still employed by one of the Corporations. It's unknown how long the corporations can maintain this, as the economic collapse is accelerating.

The Pentagrammic Struggle

Presently within Tantalus there are five competing ideas of governance. None of them are powerful enough to gain complete control... yet. Each are presently circling each other trying to gain advantage. Most regular citizens have no idea what's going on, only those in positions of authority understand the very real war that's happening politely in negotiations and secretly via assassinations and espionage.  

• The Military: Numerically very small. Financially destitute. Officially the government and lawmakers. Actively and publicly working hard to keep Tantalus safe from the Ork fleet. Has the military advantage of 'boots on the ground' at Tantalus but the Navy is weeks of travel away. Can technically do anything they want in the name of Wartime Law.
• The Corporations: Numerically vast, employs around 80% of the civilian population. Economically immensely powerful. Lacking any way to enforce power legally and unwilling to risk censure to act illegally.
• The Aquillan/Sleastatt Nobles: Numerically small. Economically relatively powerful. Politically immensely powerful. The Sleastatt Fleet represents a massive bargaining chip.
• The Cartels: Numerically large, covers around 15% of the civilian population. Economically mediocre. Collectively the organised crime of Tantalus has rallied and carved out territories in every area where the government or corporations have relaxed control. Has the advantage and disadvantage of being able to ignore the law.
• Revolutionaries: Numerically unknown, presumed small. economically insignificant. Terrorists that are attempting to destabilise the current powerstructure in favour of various ideas. Has the advantage of being able to take any action they see fit in the name of their cause.

  Of these five, there are essentially three major ideals that various factions within the five powers are leaning towards:  

• Imperial Control: Tantalus will be an Imperial Society, ruled by the Noble Houses in a feudal structure.
• Corporate Control: Tantalus will be under the control of one or more corporations in a capitalist structure. This is comparable to how the Ithacan Star League operated prior to revolution.
• Revolution: A complete change in society, neither Imperial or Corporate.

A fourth option exists; Compromise. Some believe that a coalition or sharing of power is possible, although this is considered an extreme view that has no practical value.

Corporate Manoeuvring

Most major corporations have been devoting resources to making alliances and researching options for the future.   What the Corporations fear most is losing power - Most corporate executives feel they are beneficial for society, and they have over a century of progressive, effective development of Tantalus to back up the idea that Corporate leadership is the correct way to govern. To the majority of employees, who employs them doesn't matter too much and it's not uncommon for shifts in corporate power to see workforces migrated between corporations. To those in executive positions, the collapse of their department often means a quiet death in poverty.   It's an open secret that each major Corporation has contingency plans if Tantalus is lost. Aside from that, the Corporations are trying to figure out the best path forwards. Most corporations are pursuing one (or more) of the following strategies:  

• Integration: If Imperial takeover is assured, position to become vital parts of the new power structure.
• Assimilation: If Imperial takeover is assured, collapse assets and seek roles in the new society by buying position.
• Resistance: If Imperial takeover is not assured, resist and seek a better deal.
• Takeover: If Imperial takeover is not assured, integrate or assimilate Imperials into Corporate structure.
• Flee: If Ork takeover is assured, flee.

  Many corporations have also made significant investment in projects to defend against Ork invasion. Most of these have been integrated into the Fortress Programme under the Military, but there are just as many plans that have been conducted in secret... just in case.  

The Light and the Shadow (SECRETS)

Only those deeply embedded in the interplay of the Corporations have any idea of the complex and delicate activities that keep Corporations in power. It's considered unwise and deeply irresponsible to openly discuss any of this with anyone who isn't in the know - those that blather openly about secrets relating to the Corporations have been known to disappear mysteriously.   Those that do need to discuss the dark side of Corporate Governance have developed many methods to ensure they maintain secrecy.   All corporations have a legitimate face and a hidden face. The most powerful ones are the ones best able to use secret assets without anyone knowing about it.   NOTE: It's possible to describe the Assembly Council as being nothing more than the public face of the alliance between corporations - since in reality the majority of Assemly employees are either openly or secretly in the pay of a Corporation. This is deliberate, and it's all part of the Conventions.  

• Private conflicts - known as Silent Wars to those that dare talk of them - have been taking place between the Corporations since the earliest days of Tantalus.
• Every corporation has unlisted employees trained in espionage, stealth, and even wetwork.
• Silent Wars are governed by a set of unwritten rules known as the Conventions, the primary rule is that Silent Wars should never be conducted with open warfare or weapons of mass destruction. Silent Wars are clinical affairs, surgical strikes. Often a single Assassin or single spy is used in the attacks. Usually one stolen bit of data or a key rival employee having an 'accident' is enough to secure victory.
• Silent Wars are considered an art form and a necessary part of business. They are not about brutal murder or mindless violence.
• Often these Silent Wars take place off-Tantalus, in the Graveyard (where a lot of Corporations hide illegal activities) or in other secret facilities.
• Each corporation knows all the others do it, but no-one discusses it and it's the best kept secret of all the Corporations. Everyone knows that if any Corporation's dark secrets were revealed, it would bring down governmental oversight on everyone.
• Defending against attack from rivals in a Silent War is where most Corporations put a lot of investment. Security measures are extremely tight and as with the actual attacks, invisibly defending your assets is considered the correct way to do it.
• Generally most actions in Silent Wars are about planning and spying, trying to find the exact right spot to strike, the exact secret to steal that will bring down a rival.
• Most Silent Wars end with little or no visible difference to the outside observer. Generally there will be a slight shift of power, maybe small subsidiary companies will go bust or be bought out by rivals, or particular lines of credit will dry up, occasionally management will change and a new executive takes over. Internally to the Corporations this may be costing billions of bits and destroying decades of careful work.

When Secret Becomes Public

Corporations that are careless enough to allow a Silent War to spill over into the public eye are 'crashed'. All the other Corporations form a temporary alliance and use every measure to destroy the offending corporation while keeping the details secret, of course. They collectively employ a vast army of media and legal experts to make the fall of a Corporation look 'natural'. Only three major corporations have even been crashed in this way. The assets are broken up and swallowed in a feeding frenzy of rival corporations that can quite often cause even more Silent Wars for years to come. This is how the ultra-powerful corporations have maintained a power balance for the last century, and it's why the Assembly Council is so important, it's the public face of this uneasy alliance between the Corporations.  

Martial Law - The Ultimate Betrayal

The Ithacan Navy was originally an independent organisation with its own set of laws and rules designed to protect the Star League. It has, however, grown to be functionally a Corporation that operates outside of the Conventions. There has along been an unspoken understanding between the Admirals and the Corporate Executives - The Navy deals with external politics, the Corporations deal with Internal politics via the Assembly Council. When the military declared Martial Law and disbanded the Assembly Council, they were in reality tearing up this unspoken agreement - performing a hostile takeover, essentially. The Corporations were initially shocked by this betrayal and it took them and uncharacteristically long time to recover from that shock.  

Cast-out Corporations

It's well known to all Corporate executives that the criminal Cartels that have swiftly taken power in some parts of Tantalus are run by executives of corporations that have crashed or chosen to work entirely in the shadows. Therefore the Corporations generally view the Cartels as dangerous, unpredictable rivals rather than criminals. Cartels are dangerous because they don't feel they should stick to the Conventions of Silent Wars like the Corporations - they are essentially Dark Corporations.