Factions - Chaotic Age Zero

Major Factions:
Neo Backdraft Group | New Helic Republic | Zoid Battle Commission

Minor Factions:
Blackdust Mercenary Group | Eastern Continental Alliance | Zi International Coalition

Mini Factions:
None yet!

Subarticles:
International Law | Skirmishing

Factions

Introduction: The term "Factions", in the world of Zoids: Chaotic Age Zero, means any of the powers that be: governments that claim soveriegn rights anywhere in the world. It's likely that at some point in time, a pilot might want to say... "join up" or "enlist" and fight for what he or she believes in. This section details the overarching policies of CAZ regarding the faction system, as well as a more in-depth look at the skirmishing system. The above-linked subsections also contain more specific information on each of the Factions of Zi.

The Three Ms: The words "major", "minor", and "mini" refer to relative economic, military, and political power. While there is no strict definition of each, the major factions can be thought of as the world superpowers, each having enormous sway over the world scene and massive amounts of resources at their disposal. The minor factions are lesser nations, but still have the monopoly on governmental authority within their territory. Their armed forces might not be as large, or their economies as strong, but each is still a forced to be reckoned with. The invasion of even a minor faction by a major one is a large campaign, and will likely require a large commitment of resources and troops. A "mini" faction refers to non-nation or an extremely small one, possibly created by a player-character, that has somehow cropped up in these troubled times. While existant, these "mini" factions are even less powerful than minor factions, and major factions can swat them aside like a horse swatting a fly. (Note that random organizations that pop up do not constitute a mini faction -- your 10-man bandit group probably doesn't even reach that qualification.)

Meet the Contestants: Currently locked in the power struggle for the control of Zi are six large factions, three major factions and three minor factions. Each of these has its own history and a unique flavor to its governmental policies and armed force compositions, which can be found in the on the appropriate subpage. In brief, here's the who's who of who's blown up what. The Zoid Battle Commission possesses the largest armed force, and currently occupies large parts of Delphoi, the Central Continent, and Loramere, the Eastern Continent. The ZBC (as its abbreviated) its currently in open war with the Neo Backdraft, which also has a presence in both Delphoi and Loramere, and the Eastern Continental Alliance which holds parts of Loramere. The Neo Backdraft, in addition to a sizable armed force, possesses an extensive guerilla network throughout Delphoi and Loramere. They are at war with only the Zoid Battle Commission, their sworn enemies.

The New Helic Republic controls the entirety of the Western Continent of Europa (aka "The Europe Continent"), and are currently not at war with anyone. Though they have the smallest land-based armed force of any major faction, they boast a sizable navy that keeps their homeland safe. The Eastern Continental Alliance, already mentioned above, lays claim to most of northern Loramere, and has the largest army of any minor faction. However, the majority of this force is comprised of militia and is largely unprofessional. More impressive is the ECA infamous and feared intelligence, which has often proved to be more important than hard power. The Eastern Continental Alliance is currently at war with the Zoid Battle Commission.

The other two minor factions, the Zi International Coalition and the Blackdust Mercenary Group have been racing to recruit the best Zoid pilots for the last few years -- a race that many would say the BDMG won. However, this means the two have something in common: small, well-trained, professional armed forces. The Zi International Coalition (or ZIC) are not currently at war with anyone, but consider themselves to be international peacekeepers and have debated military action in the past. However, most of the ZIC's actual power is "soft power": the ability to bring sociopoliticaleconomic pressure to bear. While the ZIC does have some island bases, their troops and embassies are spread throughout the world. The Blackdust Mercenary Group is, to contrast, very much centralized. All of the BDMG's forces lie in the Northeastern Territory of Nyx, where they stand unopposed. While the BDMG is not currently at war, they have officially announced their intention to sell their support to the highest bidder.

Enlistment: Every faction has its own method of recruitment and enlistment, and they may share few or no common elements. However, a generalization can be made: major factions tend to recruit. That means that you can find the appropriate thread, read and follow the enlistment instructions for that faction, and then you'll be a member. However, this is where similarities end. The specifics of those instructions may vary wildly from faction to faction. One faction may welcome all pilots with open arms, whereas another might require you to undergo some type of training, whereas another might only accept pilots with so much experience. Enlistment policy is almost completely up to the faction leader. Note that it's highly probably that pilots will only be able to freely join the major factions. The minor factions are almost certainly off-limits, except in the cases of specific invitation or similar mechanisms. Major faction recruiting may also be closed if one faction gets too many members -- others need a chance to catch up.

I Think You're a Nazi: As as RP goes, insult each other as much as you'd like. The Neo Backdraft soldier might yell at a Commissioner all of the perceived injustices of his government, while the Commissioner might yell Commission propaganda back. However, beware two things: 1) keep it Zian, and 2) keep it RP. By the first, I mean don't make any references to Earth. It's pointless calling Vega Obscura "the new Hitler", because no one on Zi has ever heard of Hitler before. Note that the ideas behind philosophies have endured, so people know what facism and communism is (be careful not to mix up "commie" as in communist and "commie" as in "commissioner"). The other thing is mentioned is probably the more important one: keep it RP. By that, I mean, don't IM someone and tell him how much of a Nazi he is for joining the Backdraft. It's just a game, okay.

The Chain of Command: Alright, you've enlisted. There is an appointed head of your faction, and possibly other higher-ups appointed by the administration to start as officers. They start high up, you don't. It doesn't matter what your background information says, or what you think you should be. Everyone starts out as a private (or the equivalent rank) in whatever faction and (if you get the choice) whatever branch of the service you picked. This, obviously, is for fairness reasons. That being said, you can slowly climb the ladder, gaining ranks. How do you do that? You come to the attention of your high command, somehow. Proving yourself to be a good soldier, just being able to fight well, is only one of many ways to be promoted. Activity, a good attitude, and other such traits can also get you a higher rank. It's up to your officers to decide whether or not to promote you (which, I might add, can only occur after at least one battle.) Note that if you attempt to "show an aptitude for command" and try to take control of a situation where you are not the ranking officer, it may not be viewed favorably.

Rank has its privileges and various boons, which may vary from faction to faction. It universally comes with authority over those of a lower rank. Respect the chain of command. However, rank is not the only incentive to fight for your faction. There is decoration, as well... By decoration, I mean medals, ribbons, citations, and all that jazz. Medals specifically refer to an award given for individual achievements, such as "valor in the line of fire" or "going above and beyond the call of duty". A campaign ribbon may be given to all soldiers who participated in a certain series of battles. A unit citation may be given to an entire unit, for its overall outstanding work. Decoration may also be accompanied by certain benefits, and are usually given along with a spiel by a higher-up about why it was given.

Skirmishing: "Skirmishing" is a term used specifically to refer to battles (they, by the way, need not be Zoid Battles) between factions. If you're not familiar with unsanctioned battles or battling rules in general, please take a moment to look at the Battling page. It is highly recommended by the administration that skirmishes be fought blind, for the reason that war is usually full of tricks and stunts never seen in sanctioned Zoid Battling, it often becomes unfair for the guy who goes first if his perfect strategy was ruined because the guy who went second knew what was coming. Also, during combat, the judge reserves the right to withhold information from both combatants or one combatant that might be important to the battle but is yet undiscovered (ie: "there are buried landmines all around the battlefield", "there's an artillery strike on its way", "there are two stealthed Helcats on the battlefield, being held in reserve"). In these scenarios, it is actually recommended by the judge that he or she only give the synopsys of what happened, and wait until the battle is over and the transcipt is being posted to show the moves of both combatants.

Also, note that while many battles in war are small, (a chance encounter between two enemy patrols, a small, precise strike against a convoy) and might involve only a few people, others are not. Some skirmishes can be massive, involved dozens of Zoids on either side, and few actual PCs among the pilots. These battles should always be fought in the Coliseum (to preserve the sanity of the judge), and may have maps or other visual aids included. They can take place (in real-life time) over the course of weeks or even months. However, most importantly, each side will have a "commanding officer", who isn't actually participating with a Zoid or character, but is directing a side's armed forces. Similarly, judgements from judges surrounding NPCs during a battle of this size should be much briefer than usual, and far more general. (It would be a bit tedious if the judge had to write about the damages and positions for each individual Shield Liger in the column of twelve of them.)

The Zoids: As far as Zoids go within factions, they can fall into four separate categories. The first is just a "normal" Zoid; this a Zoid that can be found twice the world over, and everyone has copies of it. "Normal" Zoids are all of those that can be found on the standard Zoids page (and are available for sanctioned Zoid Battling) and do not fall under the category of "Factional Zoids". Factional Zoids are very similar to "normal" Zoids except for one difference: for some reason, one faction is better at producing them. Members of a faction that have a given Zoid as a "factional" Zoid can make that Zoid available to their soldiers at 75% of the normal price charged to their budget. (That means that in the context of your faction-owned Zoid which you use exclusively as a soldier, the Zoid is cheaper. For purchasing Zoids in the "sanctioned Zoid Battling" context, you still pay full price.) "Factional" Zoids are available to other factions at the normal price, its just that one or more factions can make it for cheaper.

The other two classifications of Zoids with respect to a faction aren't given to Zoids that are universally available, and are called "customs". "Factional Customs" are Zoids that are available only to certain factions. These are mass production (or at least non-unique) Zoids that can be purchased by the soldiers of the faction with their budget -- but not by anyone else. Also, these Zoids need not fit into the standard ZBC level-ranking system and may have unique costs. The next step up is even more exclusive: the "Personal Customs" (aka "War Customs"). These are unique machines - gifted to a single individual from anything ranging from skill to rank to accomplishments. Personal Customs are usually vastly modified and improved versions of some standard Zoid, often with parts and enhancements not available via normal modifications. They tend to be more powerful than even a Level 5 Zoid, though aren't always up to par with Zoid Xs. (That being said, there can be Personal Custom Zoid Xs as well.)

There are also military modifications, which are available only to soldiers and soldiers' Zoids. They plain and simply fall into two categories: they're either available to everyone, or they're available to one or more select factions. No discounts, just availability.

Note that your faction covers repair costs for you character's faction-owned Zoid, and that all repairs on faction-owned Zoids are assumed to be free. They are not, however, instant, and follow normal repair time guidelines.

Faction NPCs: Factional NPCs, or non-player characters, are characters that you create in addition to your main pilot to enlist in the armed forces. They cannot participate in sanctioned Zoid Battling, but they have rank and their own faction-owned Zoids and can skirmish. They are, in effect, in every way like any other soldier except that they don't have the dual soldier/civilian existence. There's a second restriction: they all have to be in the same faction as your main character. (Otherwise, I would have to give you access to multiple private faction forums, and you would have access to valuable intelligence and information from multiple sides.) You can have a maximum of two such factional NPCs. How do you create them? Send a message to your factional leader with the NPC's name, factional Zoid, and maybe a brief bio or something or that nature. Be it noted that you have to list their respective names, ranks, and Zoids in your signature along with your own.