History of the Interstellar Age

Table of Contents

Interplanetary Period

Beginning in the mid-21st Century, the various nation-states of Earth started establishing outposts and resource-extraction facilities throughout the Solar System. By the mid 22nd Century, large-scale mining and manufacturing was taking place in space, and several hundred thousand humans lived and worked exclusively in space, with some going their entire lives without setting foot on the Earth's surface. During this time, there was no unified human government, and the United Leagues of Earth's precursor, the United Nations, proved unable to maintain peace throughout the solar system. Armed conflicts became increasingly common in space throughout the late 22nd century, as nation-states, corporations, and non-government organisations vied for control of resources away from the oversight and civilian populations of Earth. This drove space colonisation further, as governments and organisations invested in space forces and related infrastructure to protect their increasingly important spaceborne assets.   While the exploitation of space resources generally improved the material wealth of the people of Earth, it also had unforseen effects on the global geopolitical order, causing new nations to rise to prominence, and giving rise to new international Leagues. These Leagues were somewhere between military alliances and supranational unions, and acted as power blocs in a new, multipolar cold war.

Early Interstellar Period

Initial Expansion

In 2198, scientists from the Pacific League successfully deployed a prototype jump drive, transporting an interplanetary vessel in orbit of Neptune seven light months into deep space, and successfully returning it to the outskirts of the solar system. Two years later, a specially-designed exploration vessel and its crew of 11 reached Alpha Centauri AB, spending several months in the triple star system and deploying numerous probes before returning to the Solar System. With these events proving the viability of the jump drive, every League on Earth began investing in its own FTL programs, and before long, human expeditions began regularly reaching distant stars.   During the early 23rd Century, the rivalries between Earth's various Leagues spilled into the new star systems they had begun to colonise. For several decades the competition remained relatively peaceful, with distant colonial disputes generally being resolved without escalating into open war on Earth. By the late 2230s, humanity had spread out across dozens of star systems, reaching as far as Zeta Tucanae. Humanity also encountered its first signs of intelligent alien life in 2236, when scientists from the Eurasian League discovered a ruined Cetian wormhole gateway in the Tau Ceti system.

The War of the Leagues

In 2238, a regional conflict in the Balkans on Earth escalated into an interstellar war. Initially fought only between the European Union and Eurasian League, the conflict quickly drew in Earth's other Leagues, resulting in the most destructive war in human history, known as the War of the Leagues. The war lasted until 2242, ending in a limited nuclear exchange started by a desperate Eurasian League, and saw many millions of deaths and untold destruction.   A tentative peace was established following a ceasefire, and diplomatic efforts to prevent a resumption of hostilities began. Smaller regional conflicts, famines, disease outbreaks, refugee crises, and general instability plagued Earth and its colonies throughout the 2240s and 2250s. The United Leagues of Earth was established in 2248 to coordinate relief efforts and reduce the risk of global war breaking out again, and over the following decades would evolve into a united human government.   The devastation of many regions of Earth saw extraterrestrial and extrasolar colonies gain new importance, as many had been entirely untouched by the war, and were thus positioned to facilitate humanity's recovery. Millions of people had been displaced from their homes during the war, amny of whom sought to rebuild their lives on new worlds. This resulted in large-scale interstellar migration, and also gave rise to the first groups of Stellar Nomads, who would come to be known as the Nanmin Nomads.

Union Period

ULE Expansion

By the 2280s, the nations of Earth had effectively ceded their sovereignty to the United Leagues, beginning what is known as the Union Period, where humanity was at its most united in history. The United Leagues oversaw the exploration and colonisation of many new star systems and planets, and continued to reign in its constituent member states.   The successful reverse-engineering of Cetian Wormhole Gateways in 2339 proved to be a pivotal moment in humanity's interstellar history. Interstellar travel was made an order of magnitude easier, as interstellar ships no longer needed to be equipped with jump drives. Colonists flocked to the now much more easily accessible extrasolar colonies, while interstellar trade reached all-time heights. By the end of the 24th Century, every star system under the jurisdiction of the United Leagues possessed an operable gateway, and it was possible to reach any of the 200 star systems in ULE space from Earth in under two months.

Stagnation

Humanity's expansion outpaced that of the United Leagues', however. The Nanmin nomads had continued to grow and expand during this time, but another group also began to form in the mid 24th Century. These new nomads, commonly called the Lutera, were initially comprised primarily of pirates and outlaws, and would become a thorn in the ULE's side for centuries, particularly once they pushed many of the Nanmin flotillas deeper into uncharted space, and began to encircle ULE space.   The 25th Century saw the ULE's expansion slow, as most easily accessible systems were now inhabited by Nanmin or Lutera nomads. The region of space known as the Outer Systems, however, possessed an abnormally high number of habitable worlds - many likely terraformed by the Cetians millennia prior - and so became the focus of humanity's colonisation efforts within ULE space.

The Antimatter Crisis

Beginning in the late 25th Century, many experts began expressing concern over the ULE's reliance on wormhole gateways powered by antimatter, claiming that even minor supply issues could result in a cascade of logistical failures that would be extremely difficult to recover from. In 2509, their fears were realised, as compounding antimatter shortages resulted in the beginning of the Antimatter Crisis. Commerce and security broke down across ULE space as gateways could no longer be powered, resulting in supply shortages, famines, and nomad raids. The ULE withdrew much of its navy from the, at the time, relatively safe Outer Systems to defend its Inner Systems from increasing Lutera aggression in 2513.   The economic and humanitarian crisis did not improve, however, and while the ULE was successfully able to defend the Inner Systems, large groups of nomads descended upon the Outer Systems and overwhelmed the defences of most of the region. In 2515, the ULE granted the Outer Systems League increased autonomy in the hope that it would then be able to manage the crisis on its own, marking the end of the Union Period.   The crisis came to an end in most of ULE space in 2520, but the Outer Systems continued to experience issues for another decade, until around 2230. While most of the states of the Outer Systems survived the crisis in one form or another, the Outer Systems League was reduced to a merely nominal status, and many systems were permanently disconnected from the gateway network, becoming known as the The Lost Systems.

Post-Antimatter Crisis

Reorganisation and Cold War

Following the Antimatter Crisis, the ULE's authority within much of human space had significantly diminished. The constituent states of the Outer Systems League had effectively become independent, and nomad groups had become emboldened to make incursions into settled space.   In response to this new reality, the ULE began implementing a new diplomatic strategy beginning in the 2540s. Earth started to use allied states and organisations to project its influence into regions where it had lost authority in the Antimatter Crisis, notably making the Federal Republic of Zeta Tucanae its foremost partner in the Outer Systems. In nomad space, the ULE established a tributary system, whereby resources, technology, and trade concessions were granted to several nomad groups in exchange for an end to raids, and assistance in dealing with hostile nomads and pirate groups.   In the Outer Systems, a three-way cold war between Zeta Tucanae, the Congressional Republic of Orizont, and the State of Tavastia began after the Antimatter Crisis. The three powers competed with each other for influence over the other states in the region, though were generally without large-scale violent conflict. 2552 saw war nearly break out over control of the Luax System, but the ULE was able to broker a peaceful settlement.   In 2575, the ULE and Zeta Tucanae invaded Tavastia in response to reported atrocities, allegations of Tavastia constructing a superweapon, and economic concerns. The invasion was over in mere months, and a new democratic Tavastian government was established in 2576. However, FRZT peacekeepers were unable to maintain order following the ULE's sudden withdrawl in 2577, and Tavastia quickly descended into civil war.

The Tavastian War

By 2580, a new government of Entropist extremists had taken control of Tavastia and its surviving military assets, with the support of Entropist nomads. The new Tavastian regime spent the next five years preparing for war, before launching an interstellar campaign of conquest in 2585.   Tavastia's three-pronged campaign reached as far as Mutenia, Ashford, and Sanctuary at its furthest extent, occupying numerous star systems and habitable worlds. The invasions were ultimately defeated by forces belonging to Orizont, Zeta Tucanae, and the ULE, respectively, and a coalition of Outer Systems states managed to push back Tavastia's fleets. By 2589, Tavastia Prime itself was invaded, and a coup d'etat brought down the Tavastian regime, and brought an end to the war.

Second Cold War

Tavastia was occupied primarily by forces belonging to Zeta Tucanae and Orizont, who remained major powers in the region following the downfall of Tavastia. Despite their brief cooperation in the war, the two states have remained rivals since, continuing to vie for dominance over the Outer Systems League.   In 2601, a civilian prospecting vessel from the Judicate of Nuragia encountered an unknown vessel in unclaimed space. This was humanity's first contact with the Mperi the first and only living sapient aliens humanity has ever encountered. Formal relations have since been established between the ULE and the central Mperi government, but the full consequences of contact with intelligent alien life have yet to be determined.