During the feudal and colonial times in India, hunting was regarded as a regal sport in the numerous princely states, and it was practiced by as many maharajas and nawabs, as well as British officers, In order to help them maintained a corps of big-game hunters were formed. They were native professional hunters and were known as the Shikari.
Mughal period 1556-1857 AD
Shikar (hunting for sport) was introduced in India by Mughals who ruled the country for more than three hundred years (1526-1857). The Shikari were the premier huntsman used by the Emperors of the Mughal Dynasty, securing and cordoning off prey for the Emperor and his high ranking officials. Their association with the Mughals began to decline in 1729 and began to operate with the other princely states that emerged with the weakening of the Mughals. The East India Company also from time to time used their services, although a few members acted as agents on their behalf.
During the period 1830-1848 the Shikari's were used as as agents by the Governor General, William Bentinck, to hunt down the Thugee cult. The Thuggee or the Thugs, were an organized gang of professional assassins and robbers who waylaid travelers and rob them of their belongings after killing them.The shikaris were commissioned by a Civil servant William Henry Sleeman, who was the superintendent of the 'Thuggee and Dacoity Dept.' in 1835, and later its Commissioner in 1839. They along with the East Indian Company sepoys hunted down the Thuggee cult. The Thuggees were seemingly destroyed by this effort although it is rumored that they merely went underground.
The Sepoy Mutiny of 1857
In 1857 The sepoys of the East India company mutinied against their masters. The Princely states eager to regain their freedom from their colonial masters, joined the sepoys. The sepoys rallied to the Red Fort located in old Delhi and chose the last Mughal Emperor Bahadhur Shah Zafar as their commander in Chief.
The Revolt was crushed mercilessly by the East India Company, backed by the troops from the British Empire. With it The Mughal dynasty ended, and power passed from the East India Company to the British Empire.
The Shikari's during this time, often acted as double agents and spies for both sides.
British Empire 1857-1947 AD
The Shikari's were often used by the British Viceroys and the Puppet Princely Indian state Rulers as trackers and huntsmen. Hunting had always been regarded as a regal sport and Big game, such as Bengal tigers, might be hunted from the back of an elephant. The Shikari's during this time began to interact with the western world, often importing weapons, and trading with animal trophies with interested candidates. This increased their network of clients whereby they could procure commodities which wouldn't be otherwise available to them.
There exists some footage about the British hunts during this period.
Extracting from archive >>>>>>
1947 - 2000 AD
In August 15th 1947 India gained its independence from Britain. Along with it the SHIKARI gained new found freedom like it never had before. Trade of animal hides and parts flourished and the SHIKARI soon became wealthy through this. The increasing wealth of the SHIKARI soon made the ruling Elite nervous and wary of their wealth. Indira Gandhi the Prime Minister of India in 1972 passed the Wildlife Protection Act, seeking in the background to curb the Shikari.
The Shikari in order to stay in the business they resorted to Poaching. They soon realized the immense profit in poaching was too large for them to expand, and soon began taking in other nationalities into their ranks. This move ensured that their influence spread globally. They operated not only as hunters but also as smugglers and lawbreakers. Their business especially with China and South East Asia, soon lead to them being involved in drug trafficking.
On October 30 1995 Bill Tucker, British fugitive and the Mir Shikar of the Shikari, was assassinated in Hong Kong.
It is believed that their ancient enemy the Thuggee had emerged from the shadows and was stalking them. The period from 1995 till 2000 the Shikari and the Thuggees engaged in a series of often fatal skirmishes. In August 20 2000 the Mir Shikar Abdul Hassan, along with the rest of the Shikari went underground. The Thugees followed suit.
From 2000 to the Great War there exist no records of the Shikari, though rumors have surfaced here and there.
300 AS to 800 AS
The history of the Shikari during this period is sketchy, but they as a group was scattered. There was no Centralization of Power. The ranks of the Shikari were spread and contact between them were non existent. They did operate as smugglers and occasionally resorted to piracy. Their organization if at all it did exist was chaotic, without any semblance of any authority. The Discovery of the Nomads during the Nomad wars was the key factor in bringing the Shikari in contact with each other. Slowly they started reaching out to each other, forming small bands and hunting the Nomads for sport.
The Shikari slowly reformed and got some semblance of order, with Torsten Hummels at the helm as Mir Shikar. The Shikari during this time was primarily a hunting Club who hunted Nomads for sport. They sometimes resorted to smuggling.
817 AS
The Arrival of Gallia threw the Shikari into turmoil as it did with the rest of Sirrius. One Shikari smuggler Rafael Mazarella was attacked by Gallic Brigand Fighters in Tau 23. He managed to destroy one ship and chase away the rest. In the wreckage he found a a box with some ancient relics in them. Among them a Medallion caught his attention. The medallion had the ancient markings which was undescipherable.
Rafael took the Medallion to the Mir Shikar, Torsten Hummels. He was perplexed. The Historian of the Shikari, Prof.Richard Lamb had been out of contact for many years. He sent his scouts to search for the Proffessor and finally managed to locate him in Amnes Research station in Kepler. Prof. Richard Lamb examined the medallion often cross referring with the his data discs and the data discs of ancient earth.
The markings on the Medallion were indicative that an ancient enemy had resurfaced.
Torsten Hummels against the wishes of many shikari especially the Qarawul, Thomas Aquinas chose to remain underground. He directed his Nisanbaj and Traikara to continue looking for further information on the Thuggee.
Torsten Hummels started collecting a percentage of revenue from the other Shikaris, to build up the armaments of the Shikari. He also initiated reorganizing the Shikari from a hunting club to a paramilitary organization.
818 AS
Qurawul Thomas Aquinas formerly a bounty hunter, now worked as a supplier to his former colleagues. He often brought hard to get commodities for the bounty hunters.He got word from a fellow Bounty Hunter Julio Santana about a possible Thuggee agent in Sigma 19. He passed the information to Torsten Hummels, who along with a number of Traikaras proceeded to investigate. It was a trap and Julio Santana was in fact the Thuggee agent, who worked a deal with the Independent Outcasts and ambushed Torsten Hummels and killed him.
The Mantle of the Mir Shikar fell upon Thomas Aquinas. He was uncertain about the strength of the Thuggee and for the time being chose to remain underground.
819 to 821 AS
Prior to 819 AS the only demand for Nomad Remains was from the odd researcher. With the invention of the Cloaking Device, the demand of Nomad remains skyrocketed. The sale of these remains to interested parties increased the Shikari coffers.
Thomas Aquinas contacted some of his former colleagues to track down Julio Santana. They managed to hunt him down and capture him alive.
After hours of interrogation, they had an idea of where the Thuggees were based from. Gallia. Their numerical strength was hard to ascertain but they found out that the Thuggees had a Gallic Aristocrat secretly at the helm. Pascal Diomede.
Thomas Aquinas devoted most of his time and energy into bolstering the Shikari arsenal, resources and manpower. In 821 he decided to come overground, and recruit openly.
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Primary Goals: To conduct Shikar(hunt) on the Nomads.
To do business in Nomad Remains.
To hunt down individuals wanted by the law and to collect their bounty
To accumulate weapons and resources,anticipating the return of the Thuggees.
ID:
BHG Core
Diplomacy:
Prey: Nomads
Hostile:
The Nomad infected
The Order
Corsairs
Outcasts
Unfriendly:
Other unlawfuls
Neutral:
AI
Zoners
Gallia (includes both armed forces and Corps)
House Corporations
Friendly:
House Militaries
House law enforcers
Allied:
Bounty Hunters
Zone of Influence
As listed in the BHGcore ID
Ranks. Mir Shikar :Head of the Hunt/hunters:
Qarawul: Huntsman:- Allowed ships upto Battlecruisers.Permission required for battleships from Mir Shikar
Nisanbaj:Marksman:- Allowed Ships upto Gunboats/Gunship. Permission for Battlecruisers and Destroyers required from Mir Shikar
Traikara: Tracker:- Allowed ships: Fighters and Bombers. Permission for Gunboat/Gunship required from Mir Shikar
All members are required to maintain at least one fighter/bomber.
//Feedback please
//I have tried to merge History with the Freelancer lore and it is still a work in progress. Expect extra additions to it
//EDIT 1: Changed Date of Fall of Toledo.
//EDIT 2: Added extra content. 300 AS to 821 AS. Removed previous one
//EDIT 3: Removed Info on Thuggee section, shortening Ancient History
Interesting....cannot say I have seen a faction based on India. Though I will have to look it up, but I thought India was part of the Coalition in Sol. Ill be back...
Edit: So there could be a problem:
Primary Members: Russian Commonwealth; Peoples Republic of China; Middle-Eastern Confederacy.
Secondary Members: Pakistani-Indian Empire; South American Alliance; United Eastern European Front.
Though do not get me wrong I am interested in this faction and look forward to your Rp
(07-02-2014, 07:30 PM)Vulkhard Muller Wrote: Interesting....cannot say I have seen a faction based on India. Though I will have to look it up, but I thought India was part of the Coalition in Sol. Ill be back...
India was part of Coalition AFAIK. but if you read further Other nationalities have joined their ranks
(07-02-2014, 07:30 PM)Vulkhard Muller Wrote: Interesting....cannot say I have seen a faction based on India. Though I will have to look it up, but I thought India was part of the Coalition in Sol. Ill be back...
India was part of Coalition AFAIK. but if you read further Other nationalities have joined their ranks
After the Fall of Toledo in 816 AS, in 821 AS Shikari resurfaced under the leadership of the new Mir Shikar, Thomas Aquinas, who was formerly a bounty hunter before he joined and rose in the ranks of the Shikari. Thomas Aquinas now concentrates on rebuilding the Shikari, arsenal and resources. The sudden arrival of the Shikari can mean only one thing. The Thuggees are not too far behind.
Toledo fell in 818 AS via the BHGC (which was fully destroyed and never recovered this fleet) and the nomads (via a superdupermagicfleet). So your telling me in less then 3 years then a whole faction re-surfed after what happened in Omicron Minor? Because as it goes, not even the Prim faction had recovered a portion of what was lost in that battle
Nice write-up, I suggest shortening the history a bit and then get in game and show the community what you're made of. Get involved with the Omicron pews and demonstrate the RP that you are offering.
Other than that awesome, I'm interested in joining.
After the Fall of Toledo in 816 AS, in 821 AS Shikari resurfaced under the leadership of the new Mir Shikar, Thomas Aquinas, who was formerly a bounty hunter before he joined and rose in the ranks of the Shikari. Thomas Aquinas now concentrates on rebuilding the Shikari, arsenal and resources. The sudden arrival of the Shikari can mean only one thing. The Thuggees are not too far behind.
Toledo fell in 818 AS via the BHGC (which was fully destroyed and never recovered this fleet) and the nomads (via a superdupermagicfleet). So your telling me in less then 3 years then a whole faction re-surfed after what happened in Omicron Minor? Because as it goes, not even the Prim faction had recovered a portion of what was lost in that battle
Well the Shikari's never did take part in the Fall of Toledo.As for the date i have to cross check it.
Quote:In 818 AS, the Nomads launched a full scale invasion while The Order were under attack by Guild Core forces. Their objective was, it seems, the destruction of The Order. Against all odds, they fought the invaders with bravery. During the Battle, Nomad bombardments overwhelmed the Isis and destroyed ground-based attack batteries. The strikes were directed at fault lines along the planet's surface. The bombardment destroyed the thin crust at those lines, letting the latent magma flow through multiple fissures in the crust. The process was repeated all along the planet, and became mostly covered by lava flows. It would appear the Order had neither enough time nor the resources to stage an evacuation. So it is believed that most of the population died in the underground bunkers - either due to the bombardments, or the lava flows that followed. It is estimated that close to one million people perished.
Quote:In 818 AS, the Nomads launched a full scale invasion while The Order were under attack by Guild Core forces. Their objective was, it seems, the destruction of The Order. Against all odds, they fought the invaders with bravery. During the Battle, Nomad bombardments overwhelmed the Isis and destroyed ground-based attack batteries. The strikes were directed at fault lines along the planet's surface. The bombardment destroyed the thin crust at those lines, letting the latent magma flow through multiple fissures in the crust. The process was repeated all along the planet, and became mostly covered by lava flows. It would appear the Order had neither enough time nor the resources to stage an evacuation. So it is believed that most of the population died in the underground bunkers - either due to the bombardments, or the lava flows that followed. It is estimated that close to one million people perished.