jeriendhal | Starship Sierra Madre: Worldbuilding

History:

Mid-22nd century: A seven hundred meter in diameter asteroid discovered with unusual metallic properties. The Heinzman-Chang asteroid is investigated and found to be composed of elements not normally found in the solar system. Investigators theorize that the asteroid is an extra-terrestrial capture from another star. Upon investigation, they discover that the HC metal has several unusual properties that allow it to manipulate, ignore or create gravitons. This groundbreaking discovery soon leads to the creation of powerful cheap reactionless drives, artificial gravity and tractor-pressor beams. The true conquest of the solar system begins.

Early 23rd Century: The Stardrive is invented. It allows a ship to enter hyperspace and transit at a rate of one to five lightyears in two weeks. In theory at least. In practical terms the changing and chaotic nature of hyperspace only allows for ½ lightyear of travel a week.

Late 23rd Century: The worlds are identified as friendly to Earth life and are settled by eager colonists. Arguments to preserve the natural ecosystems of these planets are largely ignored. In order to maintain some control over the situation, the UN forms an Off Planet Development Council, the early name of the Human Confederation. There are many surveys done of nearby star systems’ asteroid belts to search for more elusive HC asteroids, but none are found.

24th Century: Peaceful first contact is made with several sentient alien races. After many decades of puzzling out each others’ languages, breakthroughs are made in areas of artificial intelligence and biotech, allowing for the creation sentient “Bioroids”. Unfortunately some of the wilder promises of nanotechnology remain stubbornly out of reach. In particular, AI’s increase the efficiency of starship travel by an order of magnitude,

Mid-late 24th Century: Planners, noting the disturbing rate of depletion of HC metal, restrict its use in starship production to ones either operated outright or leased from the Human Confederation. Humanity’s population on Earth stabilizes at around eight billion, with perhaps another two billion scattered among two dozen widely scattered colony worlds.

25th century: Increasing demand for HC metal strains the Human Confederation’s coherence. Several starships manned by colonial personnel openly defy the Confederation, forming their own navies, aided by their ships’ reprogrammed AI’s.

The Starship War begins. The Human Confederation’s ability to prosecute the war, despite its numeric advantage over other colonies, is hampered by the fact that the supply of HC metal is finally running out. Going by which side’s histories are quoted, the war either ends with a decisive victory by the colonies as they gain their independence, or a stalemate as Earth decides to hoard its supply of now irreplaceable starships.

25th to 31st centuries: The Slide. Starships, the rarest of commodities, gradually wear out. Their drives are hoarded and placed in new ships when possible. But every starship lost is a starship that will never be replaced. Communications between some independent colonies become sporadic.

NOW: The Sol system, home of mother Earth, remains wealthy but insulated, breaking contact with its rebellious colonies. The closest thing to a real military power outside of Earth’s system is the League of Worlds, a pocket empire of three star system, maintaining communications with carefully cared for ships.