Major Worlds of the Confederate Vanguard Union
"A map may mark our territory but our soldiers define it."
— Union military saying
The Confederate Vanguard Union is the largest military power in the Core. Ruled by House Hawkins from Starhold, the Union values discipline, service, duty, and collective strength above individual ambition.
Its citizens are taught that civilization survives only because someone is willing to defend it. Military service is respected throughout society, and many of the Union's institutions are organized around principles of merit, discipline, and public duty.
The Union fields the largest military force among the Great Houses and is widely regarded as the most dangerous conventional military power in human space.
Overview
| World | Population | Primary Role |
|---|---|---|
| Starhold | 2.9 Billion | Capital / Military Command |
| Fortuna | 3.6 Billion | Industry |
| Hammerfall | 0.8 Billion | Weapons Manufacturing |
| Galvin's Forge | 0.5 Billion | Heavy Industry |
| New Ramos | 1.9 Billion | Agriculture |
| Daxton's Dominion | 1.8 Billion | Recruitment & Training |
| Freedom | 0.3 Billion | Penal Colony |
| Mercer's Gate | 0.6 Billion | Border Fortress World |
| Liberty's End | 2.4 Billion | Autonomous Technology Hub |
Total Population: 14.8 Billion
Military Strength: 346,000 Mechs
Battlestars
- Indomitable
- Wrath Bringer
- Justice
Starhold
Population: 2.9 Billion
Capital of the Confederate Vanguard Union and seat of House Hawkins.
Starhold is the political, military, and administrative center of the Union. Vast government complexes, military headquarters, strategic command centers, and research facilities are spread across the planet, coordinating operations that reach every corner of Union space.
The world is dominated by immense arid deserts that stretch across much of its surface. Over the centuries, the Union has transformed these harsh landscapes into some of the most heavily fortified territory in the Core. Massive military installations, hardened command bunkers, orbital defense networks, and sprawling training grounds make Starhold one of the most secure worlds in human space.
Virtually every major military campaign undertaken by the Union is planned, coordinated, or supported from Starhold. The planet also serves as a center for military research and strategic development, ensuring the Union remains prepared for threats both within and beyond its borders.
To its citizens, Starhold represents the ideals upon which the Union was built: duty, discipline, service, and strength. Throughout the Core, it stands as the enduring symbol of Union power.
Fortuna
Population: 3.6 Billion
The wealthiest and most prosperous world in the Union, Fortuna is often regarded as the crown jewel of Union space.
Its great cities are sprawling centers of commerce, industry, and culture, defined by towering arcologies, modern infrastructure, and a standard of living unmatched on most Union worlds. Prosperity is visible throughout the planet, from its thriving commercial districts to its extensive public works and industrial centers.
Much of Fortuna's wealth originates from its abundant natural resources and powerful industrial base. Vast mining operations extract strategic minerals from across the planet, while advanced manufacturing complexes transform those resources into everything from consumer goods and industrial equipment to military hardware. Together, these industries form one of the largest economic engines in the Union.
Despite its reputation for wealth and luxury, Fortuna remains firmly aligned with Union values. Its citizens often view prosperity not as a reward for privilege, but as the result of discipline, productivity, and service to society.
Throughout the Union, Fortuna stands as both a symbol of what the nation has achieved and a reminder of what its leaders believe can be accomplished through unity, hard work, and collective purpose.
Hammerfall
Population: 800 Million
One of the Union's most renowned military worlds and home to one of its two elite training academies.
Hammerfall is a harsh and unforgiving planet where scorching deserts, jagged mountain ranges, violent storms, and barren wastelands test the limits of human endurance. Life on the world is difficult even for civilians, a fact the Union has long viewed as an advantage rather than a hardship.
The planet's military academies are among the most demanding in Union space. Recruits from across the Union travel to Hammerfall to undergo rigorous physical, mental, and tactical training designed to identify those capable of thriving under extreme pressure. Attrition rates are high, and many candidates fail to complete the program.
Graduates of Hammerfall earn considerable prestige within the Union military. The world has developed a reputation for producing disciplined soldiers, capable officers, and battlefield leaders who remain effective even in the most adverse conditions.
While Galvin's Forge is known for teaching survival and self-reliance, Hammerfall is respected for forging discipline, determination, and unwavering commitment to duty. Among Union soldiers, assignment to Hammerfall is often regarded as both an honor and an ordeal.
Galvin's Forge
Population: 500 Million
A remote and unforgiving world that serves as one of the Union's most prestigious military training centers.
The planet is renowned for its harsh terrain, extreme weather, and inhospitable wilderness. Mountain ranges, frozen wastelands, rocky deserts, and violent seasonal storms create an environment where survival is never guaranteed and mistakes are often fatal.
The Union has long viewed these conditions as ideal for preparing soldiers for the realities of warfare. Vast training complexes, combat academies, and field exercises are spread across the planet, attracting recruits, officers, and specialists from throughout Union space.
Galvin's Forge is particularly respected for its emphasis on endurance, discipline, and self-reliance. Those who complete its most demanding training programs earn a reputation for resilience and determination, qualities highly valued throughout the Union military.
Among soldiers, it is often said that Galvin's Forge does not teach people how to fight—it teaches them how to survive.
New Ramos
Population: 1.9 Billion
One of the most prosperous and economically diverse worlds in the Confederate Vanguard Union.
Unlike many Union worlds that specialize in a single industry, New Ramos supports a broad range of economic activity. Advanced manufacturing centers, technology firms, agricultural regions, mining operations, and commercial hubs all contribute to the planet's thriving economy. This diversity has made New Ramos one of the most stable and self-sufficient worlds in Union space.
The planet is particularly renowned for its exports. Luxury consumer goods, advanced technologies, precision-manufactured products, and exotic agricultural specialties from New Ramos can be found throughout the Core. Many of the Union's wealthiest merchants and industrialists maintain significant interests on the world.
New Ramos is also known for its vibrant cultural landscape. Trade, migration, and economic opportunity have attracted people from across Union territory, creating a society that is often viewed as more cosmopolitan than many of the Union's traditionally military-focused worlds.
Though prosperity defines modern New Ramos, its citizens remain fiercely loyal to the Union, viewing economic strength and industrial achievement as vital contributions to the Union's continued success.
Daxton's Dominion
Population: 1.8 Billion
Daxton's Dominion was once ruled by the legendary and charismatic ruler named Daxton before coming under the thumb of the Union. Today, Daxton's Dominion serves as one of the Union's most important military-industrial worlds. Vast factories, orbital shipyards, and weapons production facilities operate around the clock, supplying the Union's armed forces with everything from ammunition and armored vehicles to warships and military infrastructure.
The planet's industrial output and strategic location have made it a cornerstone of Union military power. While much of its former independence has faded, the Dominion's citizens continue to take pride in their reputation for hard work, discipline, and unwavering support of the Union war effort.
Throughout the Union, Daxton's Dominion is regarded as a world where history, industry, and military service remain closely intertwined.
Freedom
→ See: Freedom (full article)
Population: 300 Million
A harsh penal world where the Union sends its most dangerous criminals, insurgents, deserters, failed officials, and political dissidents.
Sentencing to Freedom is permanent. Those exiled there forfeit their citizenship, titles, inheritance, and legal ties to their former lives. Once transferred to Freedom, an individual belongs to the world for life and serves the Union through one of two paths: labor or military service.
Life on Freedom is deliberately unforgiving. Vast penal settlements, labor camps, military compounds, and fortified detention zones dominate much of the planet's habitable regions. Beyond the walls lies a hostile wilderness filled with dangerous native fauna and environmental hazards that make escape nearly impossible.
Freedom is also one of the Union's most valuable resource worlds. Its mines produce vast quantities of strategic minerals and industrial materials under brutal conditions that claim countless lives each year. Those not assigned to the mines serve within the Freedom Corps, a harsh military organization recruited from the planet's exile population.
Though often dismissed by regular military personnel as little more than criminals in uniform, the Freedom Corps has earned a reputation for fanatic discipline, extreme casualty tolerance, and unwavering loyalty. Deployed primarily along the frontier, its soldiers are expected to endure hardships and losses that would break most conventional units. Throughout Union history, a handful of Freedom Corps commanders have risen from exile to become celebrated heroes of the Union.
The Union maintains Freedom not merely as a prison, but as a warning. Throughout Union space, the threat of exile to Freedom serves as a powerful deterrent against rebellion, sedition, desertion, and serious crime.
Mercer's Gate
Population: 600 Million
One of the most heavily fortified worlds in Union territory.
Strategically positioned along critical border regions, Mercer's Gate serves as a defensive bulwark against external threats and internal unrest. Massive fortress complexes, military bases, orbital defense platforms, and hardened command centers cover much of the planet.
The world also houses major weapons factories, military training facilities, and logistics infrastructure that support Union military operations across nearby sectors.
Mercer's Gate is often described by Union strategists as the shield of the Union—a world built for war and prepared to withstand siege.
Liberty's End
Population: 2.4 Billion
One of the most prosperous and independent worlds within the Confederate Vanguard Union.
Known for its sprawling metropolitan centers, advanced infrastructure, and thriving technological sector, Liberty's End enjoys a level of local autonomy uncommon within the highly centralized Union. Its citizens take pride in their traditions of self-governance and civic independence while remaining loyal members of the Union.
The planet's universities, research institutions, and technology firms contribute significantly to Union economic and military development. Many advanced systems used throughout Union space originated on Liberty's End.
Though culturally distinct from many of the Union's more militarized worlds, Liberty's End remains a valuable and influential member of the Union, providing both innovation and resources to support Union strength.
The Union Character
The worlds of the Confederate Vanguard Union are united by a belief that strength creates stability.
Its citizens view military service as a responsibility rather than a burden. Public institutions emphasize merit, discipline, and collective achievement.
To critics, the Union can appear rigid and militaristic.
To its supporters, it represents humanity's best defense against chaos.
The Union does not apologize for its military power.
Its leaders believe peace is maintained not through hope or diplomacy, but through the certainty that aggression will be met with overwhelming force.