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Old 10-15-2011, 01:36 PM   #51
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Originally Posted by Malenfant View Post
Sorry. I've seen a lot of really vile and completely unjustifiable hatred directed towards the French from Americans in recent years. I don't find it particularly funny.
It's the resault of two trends. A) more Americans finding out what French intellectuals say about them, and B) the fact that France doesn't create as much fun stuff as they used to. For the first, read Sarte on the USA. For the second, ask yourself, where's the 20th century Jules Verne? If the French attack American films so often, why don't they make fun/exciting films of their own? I mean beating the recent US crop wouldn't be hard.

However, American Anti-French feeling is wide but rarely deep.
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Old 10-15-2011, 01:42 PM   #52
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Wigs and tight pants might very well be fashionable on some worlds under the protection of the Third Imperium.
Given that the power structure of the Third Imperium is topped by the Courts and the Millitary, male clothing is very likely to be more flamboyant.

It's when the power in Europe switched from courts to bankers that frock coats and body concealing suits replaced the more form fitting and dramatic clothing of earlier times. Compare Regency fashions to the Victorians. Men had to comform to the desk jockies in the Victorian period. That's not nescessarily true of the 3I.
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Old 10-15-2011, 03:15 PM   #53
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Default Re: 'Imperial Culture' (non-canonista)

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Given that the power structure of the Third Imperium is topped by the Courts and the Millitary, male clothing is very likely to be more flamboyant.

It's when the power in Europe switched from courts to bankers that frock coats and body concealing suits replaced the more form fitting and dramatic clothing of earlier times. Compare Regency fashions to the Victorians. Men had to comform to the desk jockies in the Victorian period. That's not nescessarily true of the 3I.
Heck, we should go back to the 18th Century or earlier, as far as I am concerned.

Here is a quick fashion sketch-
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...asion001-1.jpg

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Old 10-15-2011, 03:27 PM   #54
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My artistic skill are obviously pretty limited, but the fashion sketch above may serve as an example of how I see Imperial fashions. Of course, The Imperium dominates a vast area of space, with trillions of 'citizens.' There are a lot of cultural influences at work.


IMC, the austere 'crystal towers and togas' look was in a couple of hundred years ago, a sort of recycled neo-Classicism mixed with early 20th Century sci-fi coolness. Now a more complex, strongly gendered, naturalistic fashion has come into favor. Synthetics are out, natural fibers and leather are in. Handcrafted clothing, holsters, etc are the mark of good taste and money. Some of trend is reaching back not so much to the 18th & early 19th Centuries AD of Terra, as to the mode when Arbelletara was Empress. The rising tide of Authenticism has impacted court fashions, as well.
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Old 10-15-2011, 04:31 PM   #55
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Default Re: 'Imperial Culture' (non-canonista)

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Were those borrowed from the Grey Masks in GF?
Nope.

They were part of a campaign I ran about 25 years ago. The PCs stumbled into one of their ops and were "encouraged" to help the Grey Hat team - 4 troops - evade a local constabulary for two days. (One of the Grey Hats worked the ships' computer to show that they had been aboard when the ship landed.) The PCs never encountered the Grey Hats again, although a promise of help was made...

I've kept the Grey Hats around, in various forms, ever since.
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Old 10-16-2011, 09:29 AM   #56
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This delves yet further into very MTU customizations, but anyway:

------------------------------------

There are a variety of special titles in the Imperium, and they are associated with special jobs the Emperor assigns to select individuals. Some of these titles may only be possessed by one sophont at a time, while others may be assigned to multiple sophonts at the same time.

The main Imperial Special Titles are Ambassador of the Empire, Grand Admiral, Imperial Champion, Special Imperial Advisor, Strategist of the Empire, and Viceroy.

Ambassador of the Empire: A title granted to the Imperium’s greatest diplomats, whether those born of natural events and circumstances who have come to the job by whatever path life has led them through, or to those who have risen up through the ranks of the MoS. Specifically, they are granted override power to conduct negotiations with foreign nations and Member Worlds, power over and above those of any other Imperial Noble. They may negotiate and sign treaties for the Imperium in the Emperor's name.

Grand Admiral: See Imperial Navy, Ranks, Grand Admiral. While a Grand Admiral does carry Imperial Authority, and technically outranks a Viceroy, the directive and mandate of a Grand Admiral is to lead the Navy, not waste time on regular governance issues. They are granted superiority to Viceroys only because Grand Admirals are frequently created to deal with military situations that have become a problem in the Imperium at large, and they need the authority to cut through any possible barrier short of an Imperial Warrant bearer. There may be as many Grand Admirals as the Emperor chooses to appoint, though in practice there has never been more than one per Domain, and there have been periods in Imperial history when no Grand Admirals were appointed anywhere.

Imperial Champion: On occasion, an individual sophont is of such value of service to the Emperor personally that they are granted this title. It is typically granted to a military or combat specialist who is also a close friend of the Emperor. The Champion is an automatic bearer of a Named Imperial Warrant, and frequently functions as the Emperor’s force majeure to help solve problems and otherwise knock down roadblocks to Imperial Governance. Tradition holds that there is only one Champion extant at any one time. This Special Title is never given for life, and each recipient knows that it may be removed (and possibly given to another) at any time. It is often granted for specific periods from the beginning. Any time spent appointed as Imperial Champion is considered a high honor. The position comes with a 10 MCr per year stipend from the Emperor, an automatic Knighthood in the Order of the Champions (the most exclusive Order of Knights in the Imperium, as only the Emperor and Imperial Champions are admitted), a land grant on Capital/Core, one thousand shares in the Imperial Family holding company, a permanent residence and permanent office in the Imperial Palace (both of which outlast the appointment as Champion), and on-demand access to the Emperor’s presence. The use of this title has effectively replaced the use of Viceroy, although both remain rare.

Special Imperial Advisor: Beyond the Imperial Advisory Council, and the heads of the various Ministries, there are many who surround the Emperor who possess valuable opinions and thoughts, usually friends of the Emperor or those found otherwise indispensable. These individuals, those the Emperor chooses to listen to on a regular basis, are appointed as Special Imperial Advisors. There is an automatic grant of Count rank (Service) that goes with the Title, as well as high priority access to the Imperial Palace and the Emperor. There is an automatic stipend of 1 MCr per year from the Emperor.

Strategist of the Empire: This position has been, historically, filled by the Emperor’s most trusted confidant on the subject of grand military strategy. The Strategist of the Empire meets with the Emperor daily at the morning security briefing, and at least once a week individually, to discuss the current position and status of the Imperium’s military forces. The Strategist of the Empire has a personal office and staff located directly in the Imperial Palace, plus ancillary staff and offices located in the Imperial Naval Operations Command Center. In many cases, the Emperor has treated the Strategist of the Empire as an informal Deputy Supreme Commander of the military forces of the Imperium, making it a highly sought after position. The minimum Noble rank is Count. The title grants automatic Knighthoods in the Order of the Crown and Stars and the Order of Sylea, grants land on Ion/Core and Capital/Core, comes with a 10 MCr per year stipend, and carries the right of on-demand access to the Emperor’s presence.

Viceroy: When the Emperor wishes to designate an individual as having Imperial Authority, that individual is granted this title. This special title is the oldest, dating from the time of Artemsus I. Its quality of Imperial Authority is technically less than that of a Grand Admiral or an individual possessing an Imperial Warrant, but as the title of Grand Admiral is clearly an established part of the military, and an Imperial Warrant is bearer-presentable and therefore an element unknowable to the public in advance, it can be advantageous to grant Imperial Authority directly via a publicly announced and obviously non-transferable title. Since the end of the Imperial Civil War, the title has been out of vogue, used only three times in five centuries. When it was appointed, it almost always came with regional restrictions in order to help prevent the possibility of rebellion.
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Old 10-16-2011, 09:50 AM   #57
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Default Re: 'Imperial Culture' (non-canonista)

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Originally Posted by combatmedic View Post
Heck, we should go back to the 18th Century or earlier, as far as I am concerned.

Here is a quick fashion sketch-
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...asion001-1.jpg
It's too bad there can't be more of this type of thing.
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Old 10-16-2011, 10:06 AM   #58
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A large part of the Core sector of the Imperium was, long ago, the Sylean Federation, a nation with well over seven hundred years of history to itself before the founding of the Third Imperium, and then millennia of history prior to that under the First Imperium. It has been the central seat of the Third Imperium for over 1100 years.

The amount of travel, trade, high-level enterprise commerce and industry, communications, ongoing development, and most importantly the issue of the movement and resettlement of large numbers of emigrants moving out of overcrowded High Population worlds as the centuries continued on, has remade many worlds in the area (to one degree or another) in the image of Capital/Core and its sister worlds. Some of these worlds are the personal fiefs of the Emperor who retains control of these worlds as part and parcel of maintaining the status and position of the Imperial Family or of major Imperial Nobles. In any event, while not precisely in lock-step with every Imperial whim, these worlds share general culture and philosophical ideals with each other (they’re known as Sylean Class Worlds). The Sylean Class Worlds in Core sector itself are invariably High Population worlds, and are also highly terraformed Rich worlds (engineered Atmosphere of 6 or 8, and Hydrographics of 5-8). Most are also Industrial (with Atmospheric Engineering or Advanced Recycling to protect against taints).

This string of worlds, the effective center of Sylean/Imperial culture in the Imperium, is called the Cosmopolitan Main (including Capital/Core itself).

[Author’s Note: In order to create the Cosmopolitan Main, it is my intent to alter the UWPs of several Core sector worlds to reflect the huge amount of development and population movement during 1100 years of Imperial history. The average TL of a world on the Cosmopolitan Main is TL-14 (none fall below TL-13). The Cosmopolitan Main itself is the center of high technology, fashion, politics and intrigue, science, and literature/media in the Imperium. If trade is the lifeblood of Imperial financial matters, then the Cosmopolitan Main is the lifeblood of thoughts and ideas in the Imperium (and Capital/Core is the pumping heart that drives it all).]

[Further Note: It has been my intent to do the above alterations for around nine years now and I still haven't gotten around to it. Oops.]
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Old 10-16-2011, 02:07 PM   #59
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A blatant theft from British culture:

Imperial Laureate

On some occasions, an individual becomes so skilled in their chosen craft, so widely known and applauded for their works, that they come to the Emperor’s attention. The Emperor may choose to bestow upon them the title of Imperial Laureate, an official recognition from the Emperor as to the individual’s outstanding character, skill, and even fame within the Imperium. Typically, the title is usually granted only to commoners, as the nobility is expected to do well in life as a matter of course, and are generally looked down upon by their peers if they do not excel at something (although the triviality of some noble skills may boggle the mind). Such individuals are favored invites to parties and functions around the Imperium.

Last edited by RainOfSteel; 10-16-2011 at 02:07 PM. Reason: deleted a word
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Old 10-16-2011, 03:04 PM   #60
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The Clarsach
Although the word Clarsach is the ancient Irish word for a harp, in the 3I a Clarsach is a form of Harp Guitar. The Imperial clarsach has the same loudness and practicality of tunning as a Guitar, and all the grace and subtlety of a harp or lute. The Clarsach has the same cultural position in the 3I that the violin or piano had on 19th century Earth, or the Harp had for the ancient Irish or Egyptians, or the Lute had in the Medieval European courts. The clarsach is the instrument that serious musicians compose for first. It is the instrument which refined people learn to play as a social grace and proof of refinement and worth.

In many ways the Clarsach is the symbol of the noblity. Clarsachs are a commonplace symbol of both the nobility as a group/order and nobility as a moral trait in the artworks of the 3I. There are times when the very act of playing a clarsach is seen as symbol of patriotism (much like the scene in the film Casablanca where the singing of the Marseillaise is a radical anti-Nazi act). Conversely, the act of playing a clarsach in a crude of vulgar way, or smashing a clarsach, is seen as an anti-imperial act.

The Solomani often broadcast images of young Rockers playing wild Music on Clarsachs as a critique of what they see as the corrupt and stagnant Imperial Culture. The Aslan and the Vargr often have their Clarsach virtuosos demonstrait their skill as a way to sneer at Imperial pretentions. Many Anti-Imperial terroists love to post images of idiot savants playing Clarsachs as an anti-aristocratic symbol. Many aristocrats will attack, or at least challege to a duel, anyone who either attacks, degrades, or plays improper music, on a clarsach.

Thus a common musical instrument can get the party hunted like dogs.

More later.
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