Greetings
At the moment we already have several ways that different stations, systems and Minor factions are differentiated.
The Orbis and Ocellus Stations of the Major Factions have the Faction Logo and Faction Colours on them.
Federation Stations have a FPS number where as Imperial Stations have "Hail the Emperor Bask in His Glory" and Anarchies have "Rise up Now, Never Surrender"
There are Subtle Colour choices for the Coriolis stations depending on the faction the Coriolis belongs to.
For the Security Forces, there are Allied Police Forces, Federal Security Forces and Internal Security forces for the Alliance, Empire and Federation respectively, and Allied, Imperial And Federal Navy Vessels as well.
The Independent, Allied, Federal and Imperial Security Force ships also have their own unique Liveries.
To go forward from here I have some additional suggestions
Use Established In Game Mega Corps as Module Manufacturers :
In one of the GamesCom 2016 Live streams there was a Lakon Branded Module
Source: https://youtu.be/4n__hfgKygs?t=2860
Notice that the fragment Cannon is a 3B Fragment Cannon Lakon
Now this was just a mock up, but opens the possibility.
If we look about the Galaxy Map and Tourist Beacons there are many Mega Corporations mentioned that could be the manufacturers of Ships Equipment
List of system Descriptions can be found here
As a lot of the Corps have slogans, such as Consolidated Plasma Corp of NLTT 9949's "We fight fire with fire. Hotter fire" they could then be fodder for more star port Billboard (and more community competitions to design them)
Thus having Manufacturers that appear in the Descriptions in the Galaxy Map, on billboard at star ports showing off their wares, and then seen in outfitting.
System Authority vessels and System Defense Force ships
System Authority vessels
These ships have distinct livery and the Super Powers have their own designations and ATRs but independent systems have just the generic "System Authority vessel"
However they could be changed to be Government type dependent for more flavour
This giving the cue of having moved Jurisdictions, and making fleet engagements quite clear on who is who.
So you could be fleeing the Peoples' Security in a Communist system, jump system and arrive in a Independent Confederation and be scanned by System Marshall and be okay as you are in a different Jurisdiction. Just as it is already the chase when you cross the Board into one of the Major Power.
Added Bonus, helps explain why there are System Authority vessels in Anarchies lacking a Jurisdiction, such as the ones patrolling a star port; they're a Posse!
The four Advanced Tactical Response units maintain their own unique identities to supplement the above
System Defense forces
Again here we have the Super Power fleets, and then for Independents we have system defense force ships.
To help differentiate the independents we could also have a distinct name by government type.
And System Defense forces deserve their own livery, so when we see a fight in a Conflict zone between two factions, the Viper Mk.IIIs they both are fielding look distinct.
Thus
Alliance Navy Ships would draw from the Squadron Liveries, one fixed by minor faction (by procedural allocation), and have Green Engine and weapon detailing
This reflects each system providing a levy to the Alliance Navy, so each minor faction may have a different choice in the Squadron livery but overall it is a uniform for the Alliance
Imperial Navy Ships would all have the Tactical Ice Livery and and have Blue engine and weapon detailing
Federal Navy ships would all have the Tactical Graphite Livery and and have Red engine and weapon detailing
Each Independent faction would pick by procedural allocation one livery it always uses based on its government type
Anarchies, Feudals and Theocracies favouring the Bright colours of the Vibrant packs
Democracies, Cooperatives, Patronages & Confederacies favouring the Military packs
Corporations, Communists, Dictatorship & Prison Colonies favouring the Tactical Packs sans Graphite & Ice
Thus we could see an Independent Confederacy fighting off an Imperial Invasion with the Territorial Defense Fleet ships in Earth Red Livery fighting off the Imperial Protectorate in Tactical Ice and Blue weapons, for all ship classes involved
Just as we could see the Vibrant Orange Feudal Levy fighting the Peoples' Revolutionary Fleet in Tactical Olive
Making engagements visually distinct, especially when both sides are fielding similar ships
or a step further, if each ship ended up having Pirate, Predator, and Hunter liveries
Thus
Alliance Navy Ships would draw from the Squadron Liveries, one fixed by minor faction (by procedural allocation), and have Green Engine and weapon detailing
This reflects each system providing a levy to the Alliance Navy, so each minor faction may have a different choice in the Squadron livery but overall it is a uniform for the Alliance
Imperial Navy Ships would all have the Tactical Ice Livery and and have Blue engine and weapon detailing
Federal Navy ships would all have the Tactical Graphite Livery and and have Red engine and weapon detailing
Each Independent faction would pick by procedural allocation one livery it always uses based on its government type
Democracies, Cooperatives, favouring the Military packs
Patronages & Confederacies having Navies in Sharp Military Stripe Livery
Communists, Dictatorship & Prison Colonies favouring the Tactical Packs sans Graphite & Ice
Corporations sporting one of the clean lines and colours of the Hunter livery for their PMC
Anarchies picking one the various colourful Pirate livery for the Posse
Theocracies picking one of the vivid Predator liveries for their Crusaders
and Feudals having one of the Bold colours of the Vibrant livery for their Levies
At the moment we already have several ways that different stations, systems and Minor factions are differentiated.
The Orbis and Ocellus Stations of the Major Factions have the Faction Logo and Faction Colours on them.
Federation Stations have a FPS number where as Imperial Stations have "Hail the Emperor Bask in His Glory" and Anarchies have "Rise up Now, Never Surrender"
There are Subtle Colour choices for the Coriolis stations depending on the faction the Coriolis belongs to.
For the Security Forces, there are Allied Police Forces, Federal Security Forces and Internal Security forces for the Alliance, Empire and Federation respectively, and Allied, Imperial And Federal Navy Vessels as well.
The Independent, Allied, Federal and Imperial Security Force ships also have their own unique Liveries.
To go forward from here I have some additional suggestions
Use Established In Game Mega Corps as Module Manufacturers :
In one of the GamesCom 2016 Live streams there was a Lakon Branded Module
Notice that the fragment Cannon is a 3B Fragment Cannon Lakon
Now this was just a mock up, but opens the possibility.
If we look about the Galaxy Map and Tourist Beacons there are many Mega Corporations mentioned that could be the manufacturers of Ships Equipment
List of system Descriptions can be found here
| Module | Manufaturer | Notes |
| Weapons | ||
| Advanced Plasma Accelerator | Patreus | Power Play Tech |
| AX Missile Rack | Aegis Research | |
| AX Multi-cannon | Aegis Research | |
| Beam Laser | Beamer Pulsed Inc Corporation of Nang Ta-khian | |
| Burst Laser | Dead-Eye Defence Systems | |
| Cannon | Manticore Munitions from Cegreeth | Label on the Class two model |
| Cytoscrambler Burst Laser | Delaine | Power Play Tech |
| Fragment Cannon | Callaghan Firearms of LTT 911 | |
| Guardian Gauss Cannon | Ram Tah | |
| Guardian Plasma Charger | Ram Tah | |
| Guardian Shard Cannon | Ram Tah | |
| Imperial Hammer Rail Gun | Lavigny | Power Play Tech |
| Mine Launcher | Manticore Munitions from Cegreeth | |
| Mining Lance Beam Laser | Mastopolos Mining | |
| Mining Laser | Caine Massey | |
| Missile Rack | Manticore Munitions from Cegreeth | |
| Multi-cannon | Manticore Munitions from Cegreeth | |
| Pacifier Frag-cannon | Hudson | Power Play Tech |
| Pack-Hound Missile Rack | Sirius Govt | Power Play Tech |
| Plasma Accelerator | Consolidated Plasma Corp of NLTT 9949 | |
| Pulse Disruptor | Winters | Powerplay Tech |
| Pulse Laser | Beamer Pulsed Inc Corporation of Nang Ta-khian | |
| Rail Gun | Blitz Weapon Stores from Myrbat | |
| Remote Release Flak Launcher | Aegis Research | |
| Remote Release Flechette Launcher | Kinematic Armaments of Tau-1 Eridani | |
| Retributor Beam Laser | Mahon | Power Play Tech |
| Rocket Propelled FSD Disruptor | Grom | Power Play Tech |
| Seeker Missile Rack | Manticore Munitions from Cegreeth | |
| Shock Cannon | Consolidated Plasma Corp of NLTT 9949 | |
| Shock Mine Launcher | Defence Gizmos corporation of Aerial | |
| Torpedo Pylon | Manticore Munitions from Cegreeth | |
| Utilities | ||
| Chaff Launcher | Defence Gizmos corporation of Aerial | |
| Electronic Countermeasure | Depth Protection of PLX 695 | |
| Frame Shift Wake Scanner | Auger Vision corporation of Carcinus | |
| Heat Sink Launcher | Defence Gizmos corporation of Aerial | |
| Kill Warrant Scanner | Auger Vision corporation of Carcinus | |
| Manifest Scanner | Auger Vision corporation of Carcinus | |
| Point Defence | Depth Protection of PLX 695 | |
| Shield Booster | Depth Protection of PLX 695 | |
| Shutdown Field Neutraliser | Aegis Research | |
| Xeno Scanner | Prof Palin | |
| Bulkhead | ||
| Lightweight Alloy | [Ship Manufacturer] | |
| Reinforced Alloy | Devin Armour Specialists of Heget | |
| Military Grade Composite | Devin Armour Specialists of Heget | |
| Mirrored Surface Composite | Devin Armour Specialists of Heget | |
| Reactive Surface Composite | Devin Armour Specialists of Heget | |
| Core Internals | ||
| Enhanced Performance Thrusters | Drive Performance Specialists from Cockaigne | |
| Frame Shift Drive | Sirius Corp | |
| Fuel Tank | LURP Ship Systems of Psi Octantis | |
| Guardian Hybrid Power Distributor | Ram Tah | |
| Guardian Hybrid Power Plant | Ram Tah | |
| Life Support | Hazardous Filtration Modules of Wolf 1323 | |
| Power Distributor | Sirius Corp | |
| Power Plant | Sirius Corp | |
| Sensors | Auger Vision corporation of Carcinus | |
| Thrusters | Daftworks Incorporated of Epsilon Hydri | |
| Optional Internals | ||
| Advanced Discovery Scanner | RG Explorer Ventures corporation from Bolg | |
| Auto Field-Maintenance Unit | Forrester's Technical Services of Tamor | |
| Basic Discovery Scanner | Universal Cartographics | Standard issue on all new ships |
| Bi-Weave Shield Generator | Depth Protection of PLX 695 | |
| Business Class Passenger Cabin | Aurelius Space Tours from Wolf 1515 | |
| Cargo Rack | Vespine Transport Systems | Logisitcs company so the driving force behind the standardisation of cargo canisters and racks |
| Collector Limpet Controller | Manticore Munitions from Cegreeth | On the limpet Model |
| Corrosion Resistant Cargo Rack | Prof Palin | |
| Decontamination Limpet Controller | Aegis Research | |
| Detailed Surface Scanner | RG Explorer Ventures corporation from Bolg | |
| Economy Class Passenger Cabin | Aurelius Space Tours from Wolf 1515 | |
| Fighter Hangar | Pilots Federation | So to universally allow all SLF |
| First Class Passenger Cabin | WorldCraft | |
| Frame Shift Drive Interdictor | Sirius Corp | |
| Fuel Scoop | LURP Ship Systems of Psi Octantis | |
| Fuel Tank | LURP Ship Systems of Psi Octantis | |
| Fuel Transfer Limpet Controller | Colonial Drones corporation of Euryale | |
| Guardian FSD Booster | Ram Tah | |
| Guardian Hull Reinforcement | Ram Tah | |
| Guardian Module Reinforcement | Ram Tah | |
| Guardian Shield Reinforcement | Ram Tah | |
| Hatch Breaker Limpet Controller | Manticore Munitions from Cegreeth | |
| Hull Reinforcement Package | Devin Armour Specialists of Heget | |
| Intermediate Discovery Scanner | RG Explorer Ventures corporation from Bolg | |
| Luxury Class Passenger Cabin | Saud Kruger | Since only Saud Kruger ships can fit them |
| Meta Alloy Hull Reinforcement | Prof Palin | |
| Module Reinforcement Package | Devin Armour Specialists of Heget | |
| Planetary Approach Suite | Pilots Federation | Part of ships operating system |
| Planetary Vehicle Hangar | Vodel | Makers of the SRV |
| Prismatic Shield Generator | Duval | Power Play Tech |
| Prospector Limpet Controller | Mastopolos Mining | |
| Recon Limpet Controller | Colonial Drones corporation of Euryale | |
| Refinery | Caine Massey | |
| Repair Limpet Controller | Colonial Drones corporation of Euryale | |
| Research Limpet Controller | Aegis Research | |
| Shield Cell Bank | Kraken Shield Specialists of Vequess | |
| Shield Generator | Kraken Shield Specialists of Vequess | |
| Standard Docking Computer | Brewer Corp of Minerva | They make the Star ports |
As a lot of the Corps have slogans, such as Consolidated Plasma Corp of NLTT 9949's "We fight fire with fire. Hotter fire" they could then be fodder for more star port Billboard (and more community competitions to design them)
Thus having Manufacturers that appear in the Descriptions in the Galaxy Map, on billboard at star ports showing off their wares, and then seen in outfitting.
System Authority vessels and System Defense Force ships
System Authority vessels
These ships have distinct livery and the Super Powers have their own designations and ATRs but independent systems have just the generic "System Authority vessel"
However they could be changed to be Government type dependent for more flavour
| Government | System Security |
| Alliance | Allied Police Force |
| Empire | Internal Security Service |
| Federation | Federal Security Service |
| Anarchy | Authorised Posse |
| Democracy | System Peacekeeper |
| Corporate | System Security |
| Communism | Peoples' Security |
| Feudal | System Sheriff |
| Dictatorship | System Authority |
| Theocracy | Temple Guard |
| Cooperative | Peace Officer |
| Prison Colony | System Warden |
| Patronage | System Lector |
| Confederacy | System Marshall |
So you could be fleeing the Peoples' Security in a Communist system, jump system and arrive in a Independent Confederation and be scanned by System Marshall and be okay as you are in a different Jurisdiction. Just as it is already the chase when you cross the Board into one of the Major Power.
Added Bonus, helps explain why there are System Authority vessels in Anarchies lacking a Jurisdiction, such as the ones patrolling a star port; they're a Posse!
The four Advanced Tactical Response units maintain their own unique identities to supplement the above
System Defense forces
Again here we have the Super Power fleets, and then for Independents we have system defense force ships.
To help differentiate the independents we could also have a distinct name by government type.
And System Defense forces deserve their own livery, so when we see a fight in a Conflict zone between two factions, the Viper Mk.IIIs they both are fielding look distinct.
| Government | System Defense | Livery | Weapon/Engine Detailing |
| Alliance | Allied Defense Force | Squadron Livery | Green |
| Empire | Imperial Protectorate | Tactical Ice | Blue |
| Federation | Federal Defense Force | Tactical Graphite | Red |
| Anarchy | Volunteer Militia | Vibrant | |
| Democracy | System Defense Force | Military | |
| Corporate | Corporate Military Contractor | Tactical sans Graphite & Ice | |
| Communism | Peoples' Revolutionary Fleet | Tactical sans Graphite & Ice | |
| Feudal | Feudal Levy | Vibrant | |
| Dictatorship | Presidential Guard | Tactical sans Graphite & Ice | |
| Theocracy | Crusader | Vibrant | |
| Cooperative | System Gendarme | Military | |
| Prison Colony | System Carabinieri | Tactical sans Graphite & Ice | |
| Patronage | Condottieri | Military | |
| Confederacy | Territorial Defense Fleet | Military |
Thus
Alliance Navy Ships would draw from the Squadron Liveries, one fixed by minor faction (by procedural allocation), and have Green Engine and weapon detailing
This reflects each system providing a levy to the Alliance Navy, so each minor faction may have a different choice in the Squadron livery but overall it is a uniform for the Alliance
Imperial Navy Ships would all have the Tactical Ice Livery and and have Blue engine and weapon detailing
Federal Navy ships would all have the Tactical Graphite Livery and and have Red engine and weapon detailing
Each Independent faction would pick by procedural allocation one livery it always uses based on its government type
Anarchies, Feudals and Theocracies favouring the Bright colours of the Vibrant packs
Democracies, Cooperatives, Patronages & Confederacies favouring the Military packs
Corporations, Communists, Dictatorship & Prison Colonies favouring the Tactical Packs sans Graphite & Ice
Thus we could see an Independent Confederacy fighting off an Imperial Invasion with the Territorial Defense Fleet ships in Earth Red Livery fighting off the Imperial Protectorate in Tactical Ice and Blue weapons, for all ship classes involved
Just as we could see the Vibrant Orange Feudal Levy fighting the Peoples' Revolutionary Fleet in Tactical Olive
Making engagements visually distinct, especially when both sides are fielding similar ships
or a step further, if each ship ended up having Pirate, Predator, and Hunter liveries
| Government | System Defense | Livery | Weapon/Engine Detailing |
| Alliance | Allied Defense Force | Squadron Livery | Green |
| Empire | Imperial Protectorate | Tactical Ice | Blue |
| Federation | Federal Defense Force | Tactical Graphite | Red |
| Anarchy | Volunteer Militia | Pirate | |
| Democracy | System Defense Force | Military | |
| Corporate | Corporate Military Contractor | Hunter | |
| Communism | Peoples' Revolutionary Fleet | Tactical sans Graphite & Ice | |
| Feudal | Feudal Levy | Vibrant | |
| Dictatorship | Presidential Guard | Tactical sans Graphite & Ice | |
| Theocracy | Crusader | Predator | |
| Cooperative | System Gendarme | Military | |
| Prison Colony | System Carabinieri | Tactical sans Graphite & Ice | |
| Patronage | Condottieri | Military Stripe | |
| Confederacy | Territorial Defense Fleet | Military Stripe |
Thus
Alliance Navy Ships would draw from the Squadron Liveries, one fixed by minor faction (by procedural allocation), and have Green Engine and weapon detailing
This reflects each system providing a levy to the Alliance Navy, so each minor faction may have a different choice in the Squadron livery but overall it is a uniform for the Alliance
Imperial Navy Ships would all have the Tactical Ice Livery and and have Blue engine and weapon detailing
Federal Navy ships would all have the Tactical Graphite Livery and and have Red engine and weapon detailing
Each Independent faction would pick by procedural allocation one livery it always uses based on its government type
Democracies, Cooperatives, favouring the Military packs
Patronages & Confederacies having Navies in Sharp Military Stripe Livery
Communists, Dictatorship & Prison Colonies favouring the Tactical Packs sans Graphite & Ice
Corporations sporting one of the clean lines and colours of the Hunter livery for their PMC
Anarchies picking one the various colourful Pirate livery for the Posse
Theocracies picking one of the vivid Predator liveries for their Crusaders
and Feudals having one of the Bold colours of the Vibrant livery for their Levies
Last edited:
(nudge nudge FDev)