Should the superpowers unite, due to the common threat?

[Arry]

Should the superpowers unite, due to the common threat, from the new aliens.

The Empire and Federation have been at war in one form or another for decades now, but with the Thargoid threat, should these powers, now put their differences behind them and pool their resources?

Or; should they continue their proxy wars over territory and deal with the Thargoids, in their own ways, in their own systems?

 

[danubezoe]

They sort of are, Aegis is a joint Alliance, Federal and Imperial undertaking.

 

[rrobes]

Typical Response by government to recent sightings:

Classified information, no need to worry, everything is under control, do not approach quarantined areas on pain of death,

Normal military exercise, planned for months,

The reports of unusual military activity and high casualties are unconfirmed,

Please be advised we are at DEFCON 1, all affected parties are to take necessary actions,

DEFCON 2 has been announced, imminent danger to life and property possible, shelter in place,

DEFCON 3, REPEAT, DEFCON 3, Alien fleet of unknown size has been detected dropping undetected out of hyperspace in the SOL system, immediate evacuation of that system has been ordered, martial law declared, all members of auxiliary navy are now ordered to place their vessels under the command of the closest naval unit,

All comms have been lost from the entire SOL system, including fleet units in the area, scout ships sent to recce have not returned or responded to hails.

The Superpowers agree to discuss joint action.

 

[Arry]

Typical Response by government to recent sightings:

Classified information, no need to worry, everything is under control, do not approach quarantined areas on pain of death,

Normal military exercise, planned for months,

The reports of unusual military activity and high casualties are unconfirmed,

Please be advised we are at DEFCON 1, all affected parties are to take necessary actions,

DEFCON 2 has been announced, imminent danger to life and property possible, shelter in place,

DEFCON 3, REPEAT, DEFCON 3, Alien fleet of unknown size has been detected dropping undetected out of hyperspace in the SOL system, immediate evacuation of that system has been ordered, martial law declared, all members of auxiliary navy are now ordered to place their vessels under the command of the closest naval unit,

All comms have been lost from the entire SOL system, including fleet units in the area, scout ships sent to recce have not returned or responded to hails.

The Superpowers agree to discuss joint action.

As an Empire supporter; I see Sol as an backwater run by the Feds, so let them get on with it.

 

[CMDR Zadian Lichtfrost]

Should the superpowers unite, due to the common threat, from the new aliens.
…

The three superpowers have united to face the Thargoid threat.
The Empire-Federation cold war is basically over (or put on hold). The Alliance works with the Federation and the Empire.

It's just the players who refuse to accept this.

The main difference between the superpowers has always been the lie, the illusion, they sold to their supporters. Freedom, democracy, grandeur. In the backrooms they have always been systems run by power-hungry juntas.
Those juntas now see their power in danger and are more than happy to work with the evil enemy.

Join Aegis now for the greater good of humanity!
Freedom!
Democracy!
Grandeur!

Or keep your little wars and disputes that are so perfect to keep you distracted. Work for your chosen junta for the illusion of being part of something bigger, something important.

 

[Arry]

The three superpowers have united to face the Thargoid threat.
The Empire-Federation cold war is basically over (or put on hold). The Alliance works with the Federation and the Empire.

It's just the players who refuse to accept this.

The main difference between the superpowers has always been the lie, the illusion, they sold to their supporters. Freedom, democracy, grandeur. In the backrooms they have always been systems run by power-hungry juntas.
Those juntas now see their power in danger and are more than happy to work with the evil enemy.

Join Aegis now for the greater good of humanity!
Freedom!
Democracy!
Grandeur!

Or keep your little wars and disputes that are so perfect to keep you distracted. Work for your chosen junta for the illusion of being part of something bigger, something important.

Or because I think she has a cute nose?

 

[CMDR Zadian Lichtfrost]

Or because I think she has a cute nose?

OK
Freedom!
Democracy!
Cute nose!

 

[Saool]

Should they unite from an in game point of view? Well if things properly kick off, and it is not just this fore play, then yes.

Should they unite from a 'its a game' point of view? Absolute not. That would make Elite a binary affair of Humans vs the Aliens. That's been done. A lot. It would be dull as dishwater.

 

[CMDR Zadian Lichtfrost]

Should they unite from an in game point of view? Well if things properly kick off, and it is not just this fore play, then yes.

Should they unite from a 'its a game' point of view? Absolute not. That would make Elite a binary affair of Humans vs the Aliens. That's been done. A lot. It would be dull as dishwater.

An external threat is usually a very strong incentive for a group of humans to unite. Most dictators use an (made up) external threat to keep populace united and under control.

Is using an external threat as a way to unite humanity against that threat in a story dull and boring? Maybe, probably, but it is the most plausible path.

Things get obviously more complicated the closer we look at it. Some players will probably like the whole "glorious humanity united against threat" trope, others would like a more anarchistic and dystopian development.

In the end it depends on how the story is told and how plausible the actions of the various protagonists and antagonists are.
A united humanity could still have a lot of internal struggles and conflicts.
A dystopian divided humanity facing extinction with everybody acting egoistical could result in an extremely linear and "samey" story arc.


I think a "united superpowers" story arc could offer much more interesting conflicts and side stories - simply because it adds an additional layer of possible conflicts of interests on top of the "superpowers working for their own goals" story.
Throw in the interests of the various mega-corporation and things could get interesting.

(Not sure if FD can make an interesting story based on the game assets)

 

[EuleDiamant]

The three superpowers have united to face the Thargoid threat.
The Empire-Federation cold war is basically over (or put on hold). The Alliance works with the Federation and the Empire.

It's just the players who refuse to accept this.

The main difference between the superpowers has always been the lie, the illusion, they sold to their supporters. Freedom, democracy, grandeur. In the backrooms they have always been systems run by power-hungry juntas.
Those juntas now see their power in danger and are more than happy to work with the evil enemy.

Join Aegis now for the greater good of humanity!
Freedom!
Democracy!
Grandeur!

Or keep your little wars and disputes that are so perfect to keep you distracted. Work for your chosen junta for the illusion of being part of something bigger, something important.

no! Aegis is not better then thargoids... they dont share important stuff... they playing with you cmdr.

 

[rrobes]

As an Empire supporter; I see Sol as an backwater run by the Feds, so let them get on with it.

I'm an independent, so it's all the same to me. I just picked SOL as the progenitor system for humans.

The problem is; will the Aliens be able to discriminate between the effete slavers and the greedy capitalists? They may just see bony meat-bags.

Trust your wing-mates, they are the ones who will die for you, others, not so much.