Who are we?
Lavigny's Legion is a group committed to promoting Senator Arissa Lavigny-Duval's right to the Imperial throne. We are calling upon loyalists to the Empire to join us in one of our number of squadrons actively pursuing our cause. Traders, bounty hunters, mercenaries, miners and even pirates will all find a place as a legionnaire in our organisation, provided your loyalty is to the will of Her Imperial Majesty. Jump on board, we're open to all, from new citizens of the Empire to long-time veterans of the game. We're also open to any pro-Lavigny groups or wings of commanders that wish to co-ordinate with other loyalists; you'll be inducted as a full squadron of Lavigny's Legion and will be allocated a seat on our Council, where you'll be able to influence the decisions and actions of the main pro-Lavigny group in the game.
Why Arissa Lavigny-Duval?
- Because she is the rightful heir of the throne. The Emperor has decreed it and as loyalists to the Empire, we should respect his wishes.
- Because her claim is the strongest, even without the marriage of Florence Lavigny to His Imperial Majesty, according to Imperial law.
- Because the alternatives include a callous Senator that plunders the economies of entire nations and has an ambitious streak that will only jeopardise the Empire, a lunatic and playboy that is not only ill-suited to rule but also wants to destroy the Empire's safety net and a party girl (who just happens to be the daughter of the lunatic), that uses the media to hide her true image.
- Because she is the only one committed to values of the Empire such as justice (her investigation into the Emperor's attempted assassination) and solidarity (solidarity with the suffering of the refugees of Persephone) .
- Because she is the most prepared to rule, having spent most of her life at court under the wing of His Imperial Majesty, whilst showing solidarity with the lowest in Imperial society.
- Because only she stands for the preservation of traditions that have seen this Empire last for centuries.
- Because the Empire is full of corruption and injustice; Senator Lavigny-Duval is the only one standing up against it.
So what do you offer?
- The infrastructure for supporters of Senator Lavigny-Duval to pursue our mutual cause as legionnaires.
- Organisation in regards to pursuing community goals and power plays on her behalf.
- A group that you can play within Elite: Dangerous and have a great deal of fun with.
- Strength in numbers, for we actively recruiting individuals to become legionnaires and wings to become squadrons.
- A chance to influence the future of the Galaxy.
- The opportunity to bring justice to the Empire.
Do you have some stupidly long background story that is tl;dr?
Of course we do.
Part 1: A Crisis Begins The Empire of Achenar was once the beacon of peace, stability and order, a proud state that citizens took pride in and barbarians looked upon with envy. Now it stands at crossroad in history, a crossroad where the wrong path taken will only lead to conflict, malfeasance and injustice. The Empire is a shadow of the one that defeated the Federation against all odds - no true Son of Achenar would ever lower themselves to the standard of a common Federation politician and plot treachery as Emperor Henghist's twilight dawns upon. Yet we have sycophants who lick the boots of traitorous Senators and pretenders, prevaricators that slander the health of our Emperor in preparation for their ascent to power and callous manipulators who care little for the consequences of their treachery and idealism.
On the 19th December 3300, His Imperial Majesty issued a decree declaring Prince Harold Duval to 'not be of sound mine', effectively illegitimating both Harold himself and his descendants from the Imperial succession. It was a necessary act, for we all know that Harold and his daughter Aisling were ill-suited to take the throne – the playboy and her little bunny, both out of touch with the issues plaguing Imperial society and totally incapable of taking the throne. They are adversaries to the institutions that has kept this Empire together for centuries. And is a lunatic like Caligula really what the Empire needs, or the daughter he has raised? The matter of Imperial succession would be resolved as the following day, Senator Arissa Lavigny, seemingly the daughter of the late Prince Aristide Lavigny (one of the Emperor's most trusted advisers), was discovered to actually be the illegitimate daughter of His Imperial Majesty and Florence Lavigny, a status which, by Imperial law, puts her claim ahead of Princess Aisling Duval, as her illegitimacy stems from the Emperor himself rather than a disinherited heir. Despite a solution seemingly presenting itself, the Empire was to discover that it's greatest enemies weren't in Sol, but on Achenar itself; Patreus declared that succession was not a matter of blood, for, as the most powerful Sentor, he knew that he had a chance to secure the throne for himself, whilst Princess Aisling was quick to defend her father, claiming that taking away his right to the throne was a 'spiteful' act, rather than a unfortunate necessity to protect the Empire from falling under the rule of a mad man. Reassurances of his health were twisted and slandered to appear to be fabrications by the ever-dutiful Chancellor Blaine, an act which savoured their lust for power. However, they were mora than mere court intrigues; in fact, they would lead our Empire to the darkest of days.
It was unfortunate that the marriage between His Imperial Majesty and Florence Lavigny was postponed indefinitely due to the Emperor falling into a coma, as this debate would be well and truly over. Princess Aisling was only too happy that her obstructionist measure in the Marriage Council to prevent it from happening stalled the preparations long enough to catch His Imperial Majesty at his weakest. It allowed Patreus was quick to raise a motion in the Senate to call for a review in the Imperial succession, despite a successor presenting itself in the form of Arissa Lavigny-Duval. For the next few months, Patreus and Princess Aisling continued to devise their plays for power, with Patreus executing his political machinations via the Senate and Aisling using her media team to turn black into white. Few questioned the team behind the pretender Aisling, whom an anonymous source revealed on the 31st January to be 'shady individuals after the power of the throne', or Patreus' jingoistic 'debt collections to enrichen his own treasury by plundering the economies of entire systems .
Then someone tried to kill the Emperor.
Part 2: The part where stuff goes down
And out of all those clamouring to seize the Empire for themselves, not a single one opened their eyes and committed their extensive resources to finding the truth behind the attempted assassination. Maybe it was because they would all benefit if the Emperor's inevitable death was hastened, or because a certain rival would have issues regarding her legitimacy if her mother didn't marry the Emperor? Only Princess Arissa Lavigny-Duval enlisted the support of the loyal Imperial nobility and commanders of the Pilot's Federation to investigate the matter, along side the creation a fleet of Imperial Clippers to embody justice within the Empire. Whilst she was at work, our two favourite schemers conveniently realised that they had so much in common with them both trying to take the Imperial throne, so they started dating. Such an act showed Patreus' short-sightedness and deceitful nature, as he threw aside the support of the traditionalist Torval for that of a romanticising abolitionist. Back in reality, Lavigny-Duval's investigation lead to a rogue branch of Emperor's Grace under the authority of Senator Patreus was discovered to have organised . Their leadership was imprisoned and Arissa prepared to issue evidence before the Senate, an act which Patreus was vocal in opposing.
Senator Patreus may have done great services to the Empire in the past, but his ambition knows no bounds now. If he secured the throne, Patreus would tear down the foundations of the Empire and forge a new galaxy in his image, one that would not serve neither citizen not foreigner, but Patreus and Patreus only. Should put our lives at stake in conflict because Patreus' avarice knows no bounds?
Aisling Duval has won the hearts and minds of people across the Empire, from the deluded humanists who foolishly wishes to see the abolition of regulated slavery (an act which will push many into poverty with no hope of support from the uncaring power elite that exists today) to the commoners who see her as having a tender heart. But before her free ticket to the throne expired, did she truly care? Her media team has done a good job in reinventing her image, but at the end of the day, Princess Aisling is a playboy bunny who has a father for a madman - the same man that was meant to tutor her to greatness. It is fashionable to oppose regulated slavery, but this is just one of many matters that Aisling has no coherent understanding of .
Then there's the question of the attempted assassination; Patreus seems willing enough to protect the apparent perpetrators and has the character to order such a disgraceful act - does he have something to hide? Or could we be seeing the dark side of Aisling Duval, one that shows her willingness to frame her lover and betray the love of her grandfather?
Part 3: The Legion Rises
Our group should have no need to exist, but in a galaxy where people are happy to see years of traditions torn down and power hungry fools take the throne from the rightful heir, Lavigny's Legion is more than necessary. We are a group of Pilot's Federation commanders who have rallied behind the cause of Arissa-Lavigny Duval, the Hammer of Justice. Arissa is not only the most capable (she spent most of her life in the court of the Emperor under his wing), but she has consistently proven herself to embody the virtues of a true Imperial through her relentless pursuit of justice to bring order to a degenerated Empire, where backstabbing and corruption is the norm of the day, and by using her resources to champion the cause of those oppressed by the strong, those unable to stand up for themselves and those victimised by the acts of a greedy, self-serving Senators. In contrast to the other claimants to the throne, her morality holds the highest standards, for she does not flaunt or oppose the laws and traditions that keeps this Empire together.
And most importantly, it is the Emperor's will that Arissa succeeds him. In the past, succession had been a simple case of the oldest son coming to the throne, a son that would have been versed in the art of ruling. But even Imperial law can not predict that the successor to the Empire under this system would had been a mad man that was disobedient to his father and wishes to this very day to tear down the basic structures of Imperial society. The Empire of Achenar has been inspired by the greatest earthbound empire to have existed, the Roman Empire. We are, after all, the greatest intersteller empire to have ever existed and our institutions like the Senate, institutions which both Rome and Achenar share, only act as testimony to this. In the day of Rome, succession to the throne was not a question of blood, but a question of the Emperor's will; the Emperor would be trusted to prepare a successor to lead after him, although the successor would usually be someone within his immediate family. The Emperor is a great ruler and we should respect his desire, not that of a corrupt Senate or of ambitious power-hungry individuals - he knows who the best ruler for the Empire is, for only he has ruled with dignity. To him, that is Senator Lavigny-Duval; not Patreus, arguably the most powerful man in the Empire, nor Aisling or Harold, who were once the Emperor's own legitimate kin. We Lavigny's Legion, are proud to call ourselves executors of the Emperor's will - will you do the same, or fight for the people that will destroy the Empire?
