Lads, the Barbarian must be firm about this: Flashpoints, such as the Raumen War, will not extend into eternity. Mega-scale choices will be just as common, and will advance the timeline considerably until the next Flashpoint. Like he said before, the game is not truly open ended.
***
Pax Codexiana
It was a long road back from ruin. The aftermath of the Raumen War was devastating. Millions of industrial workers were turned over to the general workforce during the de-mobilization – and promptly found themselves unemployed, and without the means to support their families properly. Funding dried up for the defence forces and military R&D in particular, as a variety of embryonic projects were shelved or outright discarded. Services and social welfare were slashed, to cover the gaping hole in the government’s finances. Those were hard times. The brutal conflagration of years previous had simply drained the government’s purse, the public’s confidence and the economy’s lifeblood. It would take years to recover, and to explain why it had all been worthwhile. All available resources were expended on hastening this process.
Colonization was encouraged and subsidized in an effort to funnel and ‘up-skill’ the vast reservoir of redundant soldiers and labourers. Major infrastructural projects were begun, in order to provide baseline paid work for millions. Small business loans and micro-finance was guaranteed for those eligible, in the hope that they would forge their own way ahead. Slowly, bit by bit, and year by painful fiscal year, the tide turned. Meagre economic growth was recorded in 157AU. By 160AU it was up to 6.5%. For many thousands, however, it proved to be too little, and too late. They struck out on privately funded surveying and colonization missions, hoping to escape government control and, of course, taxation. Many were lost to the void. In other cases, the government was forced to put down public resistance – mostly in the hardest hit areas of Codexia itself.
Yet by 165AU the troubles were thankfully subsiding. Trade between Codexia and the Confederacy flourished and, though the Raumeni proved to be cutthroat merchants of the highest (some would say lowest) order, the volume of goods crossing the agreed boundary lines ultimately benefited both parties. Time passed. Codexia’s colonies grew and developed by both natural means and the exertions of the central government. In 182AU, the Codexian government was finally afforded the opportunity to learn of their other galactic neighbours (at least, those the Raumeni maintained contact with or knew about), as Codexianity’s sphere expanded to over four hundred lightyears, and began approaching the territories of the races in question.
Though the rulers of the Codexian state were unhappy about the reticence of the Raumeni to reveal this information for over three decades, the Raumeni ambassador waved away their protests by claiming that they had only been protecting the young power from its own aggressive tendencies. The existence of three other regional powers was revealed. Firstly, there were the Turanei; a race of powerful, winged reptilians who exhibited intensely xenophobic tendencies, coupled with an unfortunate predisposition toward emotional instability. Secondly, there were the Phyr; vaguely ursine, six-limbed creatures possessed of primitive technology, but vast in number and ambition. Lastly, the Amoneth: enigmatic, crystalline creatures controlling an indeterminate area of space.
Knowledge of this frightening alien menagerie gave rise to the obvious question: what will Codexia do with this information?
Do you...
A. Expand in the direction of the Turanei with a view toward making contact.
B. Expand in the direction of the Phyr with a view toward making contact.
C. Expand in the direction of the Amoneth, with a view toward making contact.
D. Expand elsewhere, purposefully avoiding contact with these new races.
E. As above (D), but also begin disengaging from the Raumen, whose merchants are establishing monopolies in your markets and making money off the backs of your citizens. Filthy insects.
