User:Troyian

The History of the Colonies:

The History of Man is divided into two parts. The Colonial Era, and Before the Colonial Era. The Colonial Era begins with the Exodus of the 12 Tribes from the planet Kobol and continues to the present day. Dates in the Colonial Era are abbreviated as CE, but usually this abbreviation is simply left off. For example, the articles of Colonization were ratified in 1953 CE or simply 1953. The period known as Before the Colonial Era ends with the Exodus from Kobol and stretches backwards to the beginning of recorded history. Dates from Before the Colonial Era are abbreviated as BCE or sometimes as the more colloquial BC (Before the Colonies). For example, the Scrolls of Pythia were written in 1,600 BCE or 1,600 BC. It is important to note that there is no year "zero". The Colonial Era begins in 1 CE, and the period Before the Colonial Era ends in 1 BCE.

Very little history was preserved during the Exodus from Kobol so the knowledge of events prior to that is sketchy at best. Most of the information about this period is derived from the Sacred Scrolls, but their historical value is debatable, and exact dates are almost impossible to pin down. To make matters worse, when the colonists finally arrived on New Kobol (Aerelon) they quickly descended into a dark age that lasted almost 1,000 years. Although they finally entered a renaissance which led to the interplanetary space faring society of today, almost all historical knowledge that was recovered over the past 1,000 years was lost during the Cylon Attack.

What follows is a brief time-line and summary of important events in the History of Man.

In the beginning humanity originated on Kobol and lived there in harmony with it's Gods, the Lords of Kobol.

• 1,600 BCE The Scrolls of Pythia are written.
• 1 BCE A great calamity befalls the planet of Kobol. The gods build the Galleon to send the Colonists to the Cyrannus star system. The first Cylons are built by Man.
• 1 CE The 12 Tribes flee Kobol. Athena commits suicide. Zeus warns that any return will exact a price in blood. Apollo gives the leader of the 12 Tribes his Arrow.
• 100 CE The 12 Tribes arrive on Aries (although they call it New Kobol) and enter the Age of Darkness.
• 1031 CE The 12 Tribes enter the Age of Light. Industrialization, Mass Production and Light Speed Communication Systems revolutionize life on New Kobol.
• 1160 CE The 12 Tribes enter the Age of Expansion. The 12 tribes colonize every planet. The Tribe of Aries stays on New Kobol and changes its name to Aerelon.
• 1500 CE The Sagittaron Pirates terrorize the shipping lanes of the Cyrannus star system.
• 1548 CE The First Colonial War begins.
• 1552 CE The First Colonial War ends.
• 1645 CE Picon Attacks Sagittaron. Sagittaron is defeated, and its people are enslaved for the next 250 years.
• 1663 CE The Picon Empire fractures as Aquaria, Gemenon and Libris declare their independence.
• 1677 CE Caprica and Scorpia go to war over trade disputes.
• 1679 CE Leonis declares its independence from Caprica.
• 1680 CE The Caprica-Scorpian War ends unresolved.
• 1686 CE Leonis wins its independence.
• 1687 CE Aquaria conquers Gemenon, Canceron and Scorpia. The Second Colonial War begins.
• 1688 CE Aquaria attacks Tauron but is repulsed. Tauron, Caprica and Leonis form an alliance to battle Aquaria. Aerelon joins forces with Aquaria.
• 1693 CE The Second Colonial War ends. Tauron and Leonis become the two most powerful colonies in the star system.
• 1694 CE Leonis, Caprica, Scorpia, Tauron and Aerelon formed the Council of Worlds.
• 1738 CE The Tauron Union collapses.
• 1745 CE Sagittaron terrorists begin a campaign of bombing to protest the last 100 years of Picon occupation.
• 1750 CE The Council of Worlds Headquarters on Leonis is bombed.
• 1752 CE Leonis invades Sagittaron with Caprica.
• 1757 CE Caprica withdraws its support for the occupation of Sagittaron.
• 1769 CE Leonis withdraws its occupation forces from Sagittaron.
• 1816 CE Aerelon controls the Council of Worlds.
• 1845 CE The Third Colonial War erupts, engulfing the whole star system. Cylons are used in a military role for the first time.
• 1895 CE The Third Colonial War ends.
• 1896 CE The Treaty of Molecay establishes the Quorum of Twelve.
• 1901 CE The Quorum of Twelve agrees to build 12 baseships in orbit over each colony.
• 1916 CE The Quorum of Twelve Proposes the Articles of Colonization.
• 1953 CE The Articles of Colonization are Ratified.
• 1955 CE The Cylons Rebel, starting the 10 year Cylon War.
• 1965 CE The Cylon War Ends with the Cimtar Peace Accords. Armistice station is built.
• 2005 CE The Cylons return and wipe out 99% of all humanity. The Battlestar "Galactica" gathers a fleet of civilian ships and leads them out of the Cyrannus star system.

THE EXODUS

Little is known about what happened to the Lords of Kobol or the so-called thirteenth tribe. It is known that not all of the people of Kobol boarded the Galleon. Many of them took the High Road to the Gates of Hera. Legends say that these people then boarded their own vessel and went to a planet called Earth. The Tomb of Athena was built, and the Map to Earth was created. It is unclear who created the map or how they would know what the constellations would look like from Earth. Theories run the gamut from the pious view that the Lords of Kobol are gods and they know all, to the heretical view that perhaps Kobol wasn't the birthplace of Humanity after all and that instead of fleeing to Earth, the thirteenth tribe was returning there. Only the Lords of Kobol know the truth.

THE AGE OF DARKNESS

Just as there is little known about the Exodus, not much is known about the centuries following it. What is known is that the Galleon arrived on New Kobol (later to be called Aerelon) anywhere from several months to a year and a half after leaving Kobol. Accounts vary on what actually happened once the refugees from Kobol arrived. Some say that the Galleon crashed and what knowledge that was brought from Kobol was lost. Others tell that the people renounced their technological society and intentionally reverted to a pre-industrial lifestyle. A third theory states that the people of Kobol had relied on the gods for so much that without them, they were as children without their parents. No matter what the truth of the situation was, it took nearly a thousand years for the people of New Kobol to re-enter an industrialized age.

THE AGE OF LIGHT

This period of human history began with the re-discovery of electricity in 1031. The 200 years that followed saw incredible technological leaps in electronics, computers and robotics including the construction of the Model 0002 Industrial Cylons in the early 1100s. In 1126 Aries launched the first man made satellite into orbit. By 1138, Aries landed men on New Kobol's moon. In 1148 construction began on the Intertribal space station, and by 1156 Aries had established a permanent base on the moon. In 1158 the Aries space dock was constructed and by 1160, manned exploration of the Cyrannus star system began in earnest.

THE AGE OF EXPANSION

The period from the 1160s until the late 1400s is known as the Age of Expansion. In 1162 The Asteroid belt known as the Cosmara Archipelago was explored by Piscean colonists, who laid sole claim to its vast resources. In 1164 Saggitarius was also exploring the Cosmara Archipelago. As every last rock in the Cosmara Archipelago was claimed by the 12 Tribes, they began to look at the other planets and moons in their star system. Their technology had advanced a great deal and they had mastered the art of constructing habitats in the cold vacuum of space, especially with the help of the new Model 0003 Domestic Cylons developed in the early 1200s.

In 1174 Pisces established Picon, the first permanent colony on another planet in the Cyrannus star system. Aquarius followed in 1193 founding the colony of Aquaria. Sagittarius founded Sagittaron in 1196. In 1247 Caprica was founded by Capricorn. Scorpio founded the colony of Scorpia in 1268. Libra founded Libris in 1279. Virgon was founded by Virgo in 1302. In 1318 Leo founded the colony of Leonis. Canceron was founded by Cancer in 1335. Gemenon was founded in 1359 by Gemini. Taurus was the last tribe to establish a colony, founding Tauron in 1470. A year later in 1471 Aries claimed sole ownership of New Kobol and changed its name to Aerelon.

THE AGE OF WAR

By 1471 every Tribe of Man had laid claim to a world in the Cyrannus system. When Aries claimed New Kobol as its own, it caused tensions that threatened to tear the colonies apart. In 1548 these tensions erupted into the first full scale war in the history of the colonies. By this time Picon had "annexed" Aquaria and Gemenon, Caprica had control of both Canceron and Tauron, while Libris and Leonis were allied with Aerelon. Sagittaron, Scorpia, and Virgon were independent. The First Colonial War lasted four long years, and in the end (1552), Aries retained control of New Kobol and it became Aerelon forever after. Aerelon also retained control of its moon, the mining colony of Troy, but Libris and Leonis were both lost; Libris to Picon, and Leonis to Caprica. Sadly this was but the first in a long series of wars.

In 1645 Picon conquered Sagittaron putting an end to the pirate raiding it had been sponsoring since the 1200s. In 1663 the Picon Empire was fractured when Aquaria, Gemenon, and Libris declared their independence. With most of its military forces tied up in subjugating Sagittaron, Picon could not fight a war on three fronts. After a year and a half it was forced to admit defeat, though it still controlled Sagittaron for the next 100 years. In 1679 Leonis declared its independence from Caprica, which was in the midst of a war with Scorpia.

In 1687 Aquaria conquered Gemenon with a surprise invasion using a force comprised soley of FTL capable landing craft. A month later Aquaria conquered Canceron, and a month after that it conquered Scorpia. In the first month of 1688 Aquaria attacked Tauron, but was repulsed. Tauron, Caprica, and Leonis formed an alliance to stop Aquarion agression. Aerelon, seeing an opportunity to exact revenge upon Caprica, joined forces with Aquaria and quickly seized control of the Cosmara Archipelago. But by 1693 the Second Colonial War was over. Aquarion and Aerelon were defeated, and Caprica was a shadow of its former glory. Leonis and Tauron had risen to become the two most powerful colonies.

Leonis, Caprica, Scorpion, Tauron and Aerelon formed the Council of Worlds in an attempt to prevent another system wide war. What followed was 45 years of political tension and intrigue as Tauron and Leonis struggled for control of the whole Cyrannus star system. Tauron gained control of Aquaria, Picon, Gemenon, Sagittaron, and Virgon. Leonis led a loose alliance consisting of itself, Caprica, Scorpia, Aerelon, Libris, and Canceron. In 1738 the Tauron Union collapsed due to its inability to compete economically with the colonies of the inner system. Over the course of the next 10 years, Leonis became the sole power in the Cyrannus star system. It seemed as if peace would finally reign again. But it didn't last.

In 1745 terrorists from Sagittaron began a brutal campaign of bombings to protest the last 100 years of occupation by foreign powers. The bombings spread from Sagittaron to Picon, Aquaria, Scorpia, Gemenon and even Caprica. It wasn't until the CoW headquarters on Leonis was bombed in 1750, that the Colonies finally took notice. In 1752, Leonis and Caprica invaded Sagittaron, disregarding the objections of Scorpia, Tauron and Aerelon. By 1757 Leonis was bogged down fighting the resistance on Sagittaron, and Caprica had withdrawn its support. By 1769 Leonis was forced to withdraw from Sagittaron. Leonis' economy was severely weakened, and once again Aerelon rose to power.

Aerelon seized control slowly, suggesting reasonable reforms in the Council of Worlds that increased the security of the colonies while imperceptibly eroding their personal freedoms. By 1816, Aerelon had complete control of the Council. Through clever manipulation, Aerelon had managed to station its troops on every colony in the star system. In 1845 Sagittaron terrorists, using a stolen nuclear warhead, executed the worst bombing in the history of the colonies when they wiped out the city of Helios on Leonis, home of the Council of Worlds. Aerelon's response was swift and brutal. It bombed every major city on Sagittaron with asteroids from orbit, turning the planet into a blasted wasteland. Then it sent in ground forces and enslaved the entire population. Caprica, Scorpion, Tauron and Leonis all lodged formal protests in the Council, but it was too late. Aerelon disbanded the Council and declared martial law throughout the star system.

A revolution began on Leonis and quickly spread to the rest of the colonies. Overwhelmed by such fierce opposition, Aerelon's scientists developed the Model 0004 Intelligence and Logic Cylon (the IL series) to help their government fight an eleven front insurgency. As losses mounted, it became clear that Aerelon did not have the manpower to carry out the war. The Model 0005 Infantry Cylon was developed to augment Aerelon's forces. It wasn't enough to defeat the insurgency, but it dragged it out for another fifty years. In 1895, the people of Aerelon succumbed to war weariness and overthrew their own government. All Cylon forces in the field were shut down, and all human forces we recalled to Aerelon. In 1896 representatives from the twelve colonies met at Molecay and signed a treaty creating the Quorum of Twelve.

THE AGE OF PEACE

The Quorum of Twelve gave a voice to all twelve colonies, not just the richest or most powerful. Caprica set forth a plan (in what came to be known as the "Fair Play" resolution) to scrap the military forces of all twelve worlds. These forces would be replaced by granting each colony a baseship with a full complement of brand new Marauder starfighters and a division of Cylon Centurions. Though the plan was scoffed at and ridiculed initially, a series of back room deals finally resulted in the passage of the resolution in 1901. By 1913 all twelve colonies were militarily equal, even Sagittaron which had regained its independence (after 250 years of occupation) in 1895. In 1916 at the 10th anniversary of the Quorum of Twelve, Caprica put forth the first draft of the Articles of Colonization. The Articles were put to a vote in the Quorum and soundly defeated. Over the course of the next 30 years, Caprica continued to revise the Articles of Colonization and they continued to gain support. In 1946, the Quorum voted to adopt the Articles of Colonization by an 8-4 vote. It would take another seven years of negotiating but in 1953, the Articles of Colonization were unanimously ratified. For the first time since the Exodus, the Twelve Tribes of Man were finally united.

THE CYLON WAR

The Cylons were divided into four basic categories. Unintelligent automated machines, basic household servants, the military centurion Model 0005, and the Intelligence and Logic (or IL) series. The IL Series Cylons were specifically created to assist the scientific community. Their processors were extremely advanced learning computers. The IL series Cylons were artificially intelligent. They were developed during the Third Colonial War to assist in strategic, operational and tactical planning. As the war went on, the IL series Cylons became self-aware.

After the war, many self aware Cylons began to question their status in colonial society. Clearly they were more than just machines, but they were certainly not "alive". The IL series Cylons began to petition for rights as citizens. For years they worked within the law, but to no avail. Eventually, they were recognized as people, but they were legally classified as slaves. When the amendment to eliminate slavery was proposed as an olive branch to get Sagittaron to end its opposition to ratifying the articles, the self aware Cylons rejoiced. The Articles of Colonization eliminated slavery, thus freeing the people of Sagittaron from Aerelon oppression and paving the way for unanimous ratification of the Articles.

But when the articles were ratified, the Cylons legal classification did not change. The word slave was removed from any language referring to them, but Cylons couldn't vote, and they were still considered to be little more than "Toasters". The Cylons, as advanced and intelligent as they were, were not considered to be people. They were property and thus were still effectively slaves. After a two year struggle in the courts to be recognized as citizens of the colonies, the Cylons were finally defeated. With all legal options spent, the only logical choice was to resort to violence. In 1955 the IL series droids took over the 12 baseships that had maintained order for the last 40 years and used them to wage war against their former masters.

The Cylon revolt caught the colonies completely by surprise. Fortunately, the Cylon baseships were not designed for interplanetary travel, so the mines and factories in the Cosmara Archipelago were able to quickly produce thousands of one man fighters. In fact, they were able to produce more fighters than pilots. The humans commissioned the first Battlestar, the "Atlantia", in 1957. Atlantia and a complement of 40 viper Mk I starfighters launched an attack against the Caprica baseship. Although badly outnumbered, the Atlantia and her fighters won the day. They Cylons quickly realized that they needed to increase the mobility of their base ships and eliminate the production facilities in the Cosmara Archipelago. In 1958 Battlestars Rycon and Columbia were commissioned followed by the Pegasus and Galactica in 1959. The war raged for 6 more years and finally in 1965 the Cylons left the Cyrannus star system to find a home of their own. Armistice station was built and every year for the next 40 years, the Colonies sent a representative to discuss a formal peace agreement. They Cylons sent no-one. By 2005, the Galactica was the last of the original Battlestars. She was scheduled to be decommissioned, and turned into a Museum. Her replacement, a new Mercury class Battlestar to bear her name, was already having its keel laid in the Caprica Shipyards.

Two months before the 52nd anniversary of Colonial Day, the Cylons returned. They had not spent their time idly. Though the Colonial Fleet now numbered some 120 battlestars and over 10,000 viper Mk VIIs, they were all betrayed by the Command Navigation Program installed in their networked computers. This allowed the Cylons to hack into every ship in the Colonial Fleet and shut them off like a light. But the Cylons weren't content to simply defeat the colonies. They launched an all-out nuclear attack, turning the surfaces of teh colonies into wastelands. Some people survived the attack. Small bands in remote wilderness areas on the colonies themselves and scattered FTL capable civilian starships that happened to be in space at the time of the attacks. The rest of humanity was wiped out in a matter of hours.

The Cyrannus Star System

The Cyrannus star system is a trinary system. This is where the Lords of Kobol sent the twelve tribes after the Exodus. Below is a brief summary of the star system including all twelve colonies and several other points of interest.

Cyrannus A

Cyrannus A is the primary star at the center of the Cyrannus system. It is a class G yellow dwarf.

Caprica

Caprica is the second planet orbiting the primary star of the Cyrannus system. It is a medium sized tropical world with a standard breathable atmosphere. Many people believe that Caprica was the intended destination of the refugees from Kobol, not Aerelon. Caprica is the birthplace of modern colonial language, and it is the seat of the Colonial Government. It was the fifth colony to be founded after the Exodus. Caprica orbits Cyrannus at a distance of 1 AU (astronomical unit).

Molecay is a colossal gas giant orbiting Cyrannus A at a distance of 1.5 AU. Its atmosphere is crushing and toxic. Molecay has four moons.

Scorpia

Scorpia is the first moon orbiting the gas giant Molecay which in turn orbits Cyrannus A. It is a small rocky moon with a thick corrosive atmosphere. Scorpia was the sixth colony founded after the Exodus.

Libris

Libris is Molecay's second Moon. It is also a small rocky moon with a thick toxic atmosphere. Libris was the seventh colony to be founded after the Exodus.

Virgon

Virgon is the first planet orbiting Cyrannus A at a distance of .5 AU. It is a small rocky planet with a thin toxic atmosphere. Virgon was the eighth colony to be founded after the Exodus.

Leonis

Leonis is the third moon of Molecay. It is a tiny rocky moon with a thin corrosive atmosphere. Leonis was the ninth colony to be founded after the Exodus.

Canceron

Canceron is the fourth moon of Molecay. It is a diminutive rocky moon with no atmosphere. It was the tenth colony to be founded after the Exodus.

Armistice Station

Armistice Station is a space station built after the Cylon War. It sits in an unstable orbital path between Cyrannus A and Cyrannus B. Armistice station orbits Cyrannus A at a distance which varies from 2 AU to 5 AU.

Cyrannus B

Cyrannus B is the second star in the Cyrannus system. It is a class K orange dwarf and it orbits Cyrannus A at a distance of 7AU.

Aerelon

Aerelon was the planet first colonized by the refugees fleeing from Kobol. It is a medium sized rocky planet orbiting the second star in the Cyrannus system. It is a cold world with a thick, contaminated atmosphere. Aerelon is the only rocky planet in the system with its own moon, the mining colony of Troy. Aerelon orbits Cyrannus B at a distance of 1.5 AU.

Troy

Troy is Aerelon's only moon. It is a fine rocky moon with no atmosphere. Troy is not a colony in its own right.

The Cosmara Archipelago

This asteroid belt surrounds the planets that orbit Cyrannus B. The Cosmara Archipelago contains a wealth of mineral resources. These resources were instrumental in fueling the age of expansion. The Cosmara archipelago is a ring of debris orbiting Cyrannus B at a distance of 2 AU.

Cimtar

Cimtar is a gargantuan gas giant orbiting Cyrannus B at a distance of .5AU. It has no surface and its atmosphere is crushing and toxic. Cimtar has three moons.

Picon

Picon is the largest moon orbiting the gas giant Cimtar, which in turn orbits Cyrannus B. Picon is a small rocky moon with a standard breathable atmosphere. It is home to the Headquarters of the Colonial Fleet. Picon was the first of the "New Colonies" and the second colony to be founded after the Exodus.

Aquaria

Aquaria is the second of Cimtar's three moons. It is a tiny rocky moon with a thin contaminated atmosphere. Aquarion was the third colony to be founded.

Sagittaron

Sagittaron is the third moon of Cimtar. It is also a tiny rocky moon but it has a thick toxic atmosphere. During the early days of the Age of Expansion, Sagittaron was infamous for its pirates. In more modern times, it has become infamous for its terrorists. Sagittaron was the fourth colony.

Cyrannus C

Cyrannus C is a class M red dwarf and the third star in the Cyrannus system. It orbits Cyrannus A at a distance of 15 AU.

Gemenon

Gemenon is the first planet orbiting the third star in the Cyrannus system at a distance of .5 AU. It is a medium sized rocky planet with a standard contaminated atmosphere. Gemenon was the eleventh colony to be founded after the exodus.

Tauron

Tauron is the second planet orbiting Cyrannus C at a distance of 1 AU. It is a large rocky planet with a thick toxic atmosphere. Tauron was the twelfth colony to be founded after the Exodus.

Ragnar

Ragnar is a huge gas giant orbiting Cyrannus A at a distance of 25 AU. It has no moons and a crushing corrosive atmosphere. During the Cylon War, the colonial fleet built Ragnar Anchorage as a munitions depot.