The Bounty Hunters Guild Core

[Bounty Hunters Guild Council]

Tag: BHG|Core-<name>|<rank> and BHG|Core-<name> for capital ships and callsigns.

[Guildmasters]

Max DeVirgo (Exalted Guildmaster)

Jack Daniels (Guildmaster of the Core)

[History]

The Guild Core was formed not long after the Bounty Hunters Guild began exploring the Omicron systems, the exact date is unknown, as all Core records have recently either been erased, or locked away in the Core'€™s archives under direct orders from Guildmaster Varrus. The Core was founded as an elite group of Bounty Hunters, tasked with hunting Corsair leaders in the Edge worlds, to collect some of the biggest bounties in Sirius. The creation of an elite wing was felt necessary by the Guild Council due to the fact that the Corsairs were widely famed as some of the best pilots in Sirius, and were at the leading edge of technological advancement when it came to ship and weapon systems. Regular Hunters simply couldn'€™t compete with foes such as these, and were losing the Guild far more money in lost ships and pilots than they were making in bounties. The Guild began recruiting the finest and most talented pilots under it'€™s command, along with a few outsiders, to form their new wing. The Core was given the finest ships and weapons the Guild had available, and sent first to the system of Omicron Theta, from where they were to base attacks upon high ranking Corsair officers, and scout the surrounding systems for potential staging points.

After a couple of years, it became evident that the the Core were not having the immediate success the Guild Council had hoped for, the Corsairs were far better equipped and far more skilled than they had at first assumed. However, with the increasing Corsair attacks on Rheinland and Bretonia, the profits only became larger, so the Guild Council decided to pour even more resources into the Core. Up until this point, the Core had been based on Freeport 9, but with the heavy Corsair presence on the station and in the system, it was felt that with all the new resources the Guild Council was willing to allocate to them , they should look to building their own station, to use as a more effective staging point.

Around this time, the Houses were in uproar, and on the verge of destroying each other, in events that would later become known as the '€˜Nomad War'€™, this gave rise to another opportunity, as a dangerous, and immediately heavily bountied group known as the Order sprung up. Rumours had abounded about Order activity in the Omicrons, in systems as yet unexplored by the Guild, which instantly made exploring the surrounding systems the Guild'€™s first priority. As exploration parties began fanning out through the outer Omicron systems, inevitably, contact was made with the Order. This first contact was made in a system later dubbed Omicron Delta, between an Order wing in pursuit of unknown ships and a Core exploration wing, who immediately engaged the Order ships, in the hope of claiming the huge bounties they had on their heads. While they were routed by the vastly superior Order ships, within days, legions of Core ships, along with a newly built mobile command centre had moved into Omicron Delta, and it was decided then and there that a station must be constructed in one of the system'€™s nebulae.

By the time the base was complete and fully operational, the Nomad War had been over for several years, and the Order had had time to recuperate from their losses in the war, and present a harsh foe for the Core to face, along with the ever-expanding Corsair Empire. The new base, however, was heavily defended and hidden enough so that the Corsairs and Order couldn'€™t force the Core from their new home. The issue was still present of the Core facing Corsair fleets and Order battlegroups that generally had capital ship support, and were generally able to overcome the Core, who did not. This led to the construction of the very first Destroyer class ship, built under a contract with DSE in Baltimore Shipyards. The addition of capital ships to Core forces was a huge boost, and suddenly the Core began wining battles against the Order, and even some against the Corsairs, leading to a huge expansion of the fleets and the organisation in general.

The Core quickly became a force to be reckoned with, after learning the lessons of the early failures against the Corsairs and Order, and drawing in huge numbers of recruits, along with constructing a formidable fleet, the Core were left on almost even terms with the Order, and while still not able to match the Corsairs, they were able to win many victories against them due to superior organisation and tactical maneuvering. During this expansion, and the subsequent battles with the Order, the Nomads resurfaced, leading to several crushing defeats for both the Core and the Order, who were unprepared for such an onslaught. However, given their new-found power and ambition, the Core decided that instead of trying to destroy the Nomads, which would be nigh impossible, they would begin staging attacks against them not to destroy them, but to try and capture as much information and materials as possible, in the hope of replicating the immensely advanced alien technology they wielded.

By this point, the Core had become a major part of the Guild as a whole, and had been restructured to resemble a House navy, making it much more organised and orderly, given the vast numbers of recruits joining it'€™s ranks. While the Core was now predominantly focused on capturing any and all Nomad materials, it still waged a slightly limited war on the Corsairs, and others who ended up with very large bounties on their heads.

This expansion also created a problem for the Core, the Liberty shipyards that had built the first few Destroyer class ships, were corporate shipyards, and as such could not facilitate the building of entire fleets, along with being ruinously expensive. As such, with the recent discovery and claiming of the Omega 56 system, AP Manufacturing, the company that had supplied all of the Guild'€™s ships and weapons, began construction of an entire military shipyard to supply the Core with the necessary capital ships.

However, with the Core'€™s attention now mainly focused on the Nomads and the Order, whom they generally had to fight through to gain access to the Nomads as the Order didn'€™t want the Core, or anyone else, getting their hands on dangerous technology, the Core began to exert less pressure on the Corsairs. This proved a catastrophic mistake, as in 817 AS, the Corsairs decided to attempt to exterminate the Core before it could grow any further, and without the Core presenting a large opposing force, the Corsairs fleets completely cut off the Core'€™s supply lines, and crushed huge swathes of Core ships in the Omicron Delta system. This gave the Order, who at the time were still in a military alliance with the Corsairs, a chance to push the Core back from their ever-advancing positions, causing heavy casualties, and the loss of most of the Core'€™s territorial gains. However, the Order and the Corsairs were not able to destroy the Core entirely, and were soon forced to abandon their combined campaign due to the breakdown of their alliance, and rising tensions between the groups. This eventually lead to the signing of a non-aggression pact between the Core and the Corsairs.

With large parts of the Core'€™s fleet now in ruins, and their supply lines completely cut off by the piratical Corsairs, who regularly attacked supply ships not carrying Core identification, the Core were left isolated, and no longer able to crush the Order as comprehensively as they had been previously able to.

The Core was now surrounded by exponentially expanding Nomad forces, as well as the constant Order foes, and with the Corsairs continuing to act more and more aggressively, they stood hugely outnumbered by alien, Order and pirate forces, facing a losing battle. The Core'€™s command structure began to break down, as commanders realised that they were trapped, incapable of victory, and prevented from large scale escape. This gave rise to a new movement within the Core, suddenly given a figurehead in the form of recently appointed Guildmaster Luther Varrus, a movement that replaced the emphasis on discipline and strategy with an emphasis on sheer hatred and almost religious fanaticism for their new-found cause; The protection of Humanity from the alien, terrorist and degenerate foes that filled the Edge Worlds. Many of the demoralised Core soldiers were voluntarily indoctrinated into this new order, training themselves to show no mercy, no fear, and no relent, they became zealous to the point of almost suicidal fervor. Eventually, the war began to turn back into the Core'€™s favour, as they began a slow, grinding march through the Order positions, presenting an almost insane lust for the destruction of their enemies, that even some Corsairs were appalled by, and as the diminished Core forces advanced, so the influence of the new order grew.

The rest of the Guild had had minimal contact with the Core in almost a year, as not many ships had ventured through Corsair territory and survived, so when a large, heavily guarded APM convoy reached Omicron Delta to re-open the supply and communication routes, they found the Core had radically changed. It had gone from something resembling a private army, to a force resembling a religious-military order, it had become extremely xenophobic, and with the legions of re-enforcements that poured into the re-assembled Core, an almighty purge was begun in Omicron Delta. The Core no longer wanted to merely capture and study Nomad materials, it wanted to destroy the aliens, and crush the Order and Corsairs, who it saw as sub-humans bent on destroying civilisation.

The new incarnation of the Core was focused on conquest and extermination, with little thought for anything else. It was arrogant and reckless in its approach to warfare, sending thousands to their deaths in order to drive the enemy back, and overwhelm their lines. This strategy proved successful against the Order, who could not match the Core's numbers or resources, and were eventually overcome by the sheer scale and unrelenting force of the Core's attacks. The campaign against the Order culminated in the Battle of Omicron Minor, where the Core hoped to finally overcome the Order.

Initially, the Core's strategy of overwhelming attack had the same effect on the Order defenders as it had always done, they were unable to hold back the tide of Core ships that flooded into Toledo's orbit. Before long, the Core had begun landing it's infantry on the surface of the planet by the thousands. The laboratories, stations and surface to space batteries were defended by a small number of elite Order marines, who put up a vicious and determined fight, but, as elsewhere, were slowly overwhelmed and then exterminated. As it became clear that the Order was not going to be able to hold the planet, they begun trying to evacuate what they could, while the Core gloated to themselves about their triumph, confident that none could oppose them now. However, the Core's victory was not to last, as suddenly and without warning, a vast Nomad force appeared to the Core's rear. The Nomad massively outnumbered and outgunned the Core forces, who, not knowing any other way, turned their ships about and charged head-long into oblivion.

The loss of such a large percentage of its forces came as a drastic shock to the Core, who immediately began reorganising their forces to compensate for the loss. The Guildmaster was interrogated by the Guild council, who demanded the Core change their grand strategy to compensate for the huge loss of manpower and resources, as well as the countless trillions of credits wasted in what had been a pointless campaign.

As catastrophic as the defeat in Omicron Minor was, the Core still had large holdings in Omicrons Delta, which they had already begun colonising, and the rich, largely untouched space in the Omicrons began drawing large numbers of people from the houses, who came in search of fortune and adventure, as well as new land to call their own. Previously, the Core had been secretive, and had tried to keep outsiders away from their bases and holdings, now however, the Core welcomes newcomers, who are encouraged to come to the Omicrons as associates of the Guild, who are free to pursue whatever line of work they desire, but who are called upon to fill Guild militias when their home is in danger in return for being under the protection of the Guild.

The Core has abandoned arrogant reckless conquest, while it will still mount assaults against its enemies, they are done with more precision and planning than in the past. It also has now turned to the lands already under its control as a means for profit. It has begun colonising Planet Nauru in Omicron Delta, and has begun Iridium mining operations in the cloud surrounding Dabadoru, and is looking to expand it's civilian population and controlled lands in order to further this new economic plan.

Meanwhile, the military of the Core has been drastically reorganised. Most fighting against small-scale raids and other hostile forces is done by Guild militias and mercenaries, who are versed in guerilla warfare, and fight on familiar ground, with the aim of harassing and slowing the enemy forces while the single, grand fleet can be mustered to obliterate them. This grand fleet has replaced the multitude of smaller assault fleets that the Core previously fielded, it is comprised of all of the forces that existed before the battle of Omicron Minor, along with auxiliaries, mercenaries and various other soldiers who have been amalgamated into it.

This new, very defensive military organisation, along with the very defensive new strategy, has marked a stark change in the philosophy of the Core. No longer is lightning conquest and extermination its focus, but slower, more defensive campaigns, more meticulously planned and executed. And while it still focuses on the destruction of it's three main enemies, profit, power and stability have become more important short-term goals. The Core still continues to conduct all manner of research into alien technology, as the scientific divisions were not involved in the Battle of Minor, and as such were not harmed or changed, though they have been further concealed in order to protect the Guild's reputation.

[Goals]

• Destroying the Guild's enemies the Omicrons, namely the Order, the Nomads and the Corsairs.
  
• Collecting all available Nomad materials and information.
  
• Conducting research into various fields of application for Nomad based technology, such as advanced weaponry and advanced bio-mechanical engineering.
  
• Instituting Core rule throughout the Omicrons, and the eventual creation of an empire spanning the entire eastern edge of Sirius, under complete, totalitarian control of the Guild.
  

[Modus Operandi]

• Defensive combat based around militia brigades designed to harass any invading force while the grand fleet can be assembled.
  
• Offensive campaigns run at a slower pace than before, with meticulous planning and execution.
  
• On both accounts, utilising a standardised attack plan of weakening any enemy by striking hard and fast with full force against its weak points, then retreating before losing significant forces.
  

[Ranks]

Guildmaster (Access to: All ships)

Ship insignia: BHG|Core-<name>|GM

The Guildmaster is the highest authority within the Core. He oversees all operations undertaken by the Core, and is ultimately responsible for all outcomes. He wields supreme authority within the Core, and may assume command of any Core force when necessary. He is expected to be versed in all manner of battlefield tactics, and must ensure that his forces are victorious, lest risk his position, or even his life.

Guildkeeper (Access to: Mako, Bullhead, Thresher, Orca, Bottlenose, Bombers, Fighters)

Ship insignia: BHG|Core-<name>|GK

The Guildkeepers are the Guildmaster's lieutenants and immediate subordinates. They are the Core's highest ranking officers and are expected to provide inspiring leadership and steadfast courage on the battlefield. While not possessing the same authority as the Guildmaster, they do not accept the same responsibility, and do not risk such severe consequences for failure.

Guildsman (Access to: Thresher, Orca, Bottlenose, Bombers, Fighters)

Ship insignia: BHG|Core-<name>|G

Guildsmen are the direct employees of the Guild, they comprise the professional heart of the Core's forces, and make up the ranks of its grand fleet, among other positions. They are expected to be proficient soldiers, capable of taking command of certain situations when necessary in order to ensure victory.

Associate (Access to: Bombers, Fighters)

Ship insignia: BHG|Core-<name>|A

Associate is the general term for anyone who has come to the Omicrons with an agreement with the Guild to provide limited militia service in defence of their homes in return for the protection of the Guild. They are men of all professions, from prospectors looking for their fortune to mercenaries looking for adventure to colonists simply looking for a piece of Sirius to call their own. When levied into militias, they provide capable yet ill-disciplined forces, generally adept at guerilla warfare, but not usually fit for the heat of great battles.

[Available Technology]

Weaponry

• All Bounty Hunter weapons
  
• All civilian weapons (Flashpoints and Debilitators)
  
• All prototype weaponry (Codenames)
  
• All generic equipment (Mines, Missiles, Torpedoes)
  

Ships

Sea Serpent



With crime on the rise, there has been resurgence in the Bounty Hunter trade. To hunt down a criminal one must think like a criminal -- and be armed like one too. The Sea Serpent delivers expertly on this note, providing every bit of the firepower and armor needed for the job. The added cargo space for transport and delivery of captured escape pods rounds out its generous appointments.

Hammerhead



Desperate times call for desperate measures, in this case desperate designs. The Hammerhead is the result of years of work by the Bounty Hunters Guild to improve upon the traditional AP line. Its armor and power ratings have been elevated to peak levels to deliver a greater advantage to Bounty Hunters in the field.

Manta



In rare situations when Hammerheads are outgunned and outclassed, Manta comes in handy. Further improving AP line of Bounty Hunter fighters, this ship features increased power and cargo capacity as well as significantly stronger hull. However, very few bounty hunters can afford Manta due to its high price.

Bounty Hunter Bomber



More and more pirate groups in Sirius gain access to capital ships. To counter them, Bounty Hunters Guild has developed a new bomber of AP ship series. The Bounty Hunter Bomber is a mighty and agile ship capable of mounting more fighter weaponry than any of its counterparts. Reinforced hull, increased power output, and double torpedo slots add to the value of this ship, making it a formidable opponent against larger targets.

Bottlenose



Compact and efficient, this ship was the first gunboat-class warship developed by the Bounty Hunters Guild. In recent decades, most ships of this type have been replaced by the heavier and more efficient Orca Gunboat. However, the Gunship is still used in some Guild missions, including escorting convoys through areas where strong anti-fighter defense is crucial for surviving.

Orca



The Orca is a recent development of the Bounty Hunters Guild. Replacing an outdated Gunship model, this gunboat was specially developed to act as an anti-fighter warship for operations that the Guild undertakes in remote and dangerous systems. Usually accompanied by several Hammerheads and Mantas, the Orca is a force to be reckoned with, feared even by the most experienced pilots of BHG's most hated enemies, the Outcasts and the Corsairs.

Thresher



The first capital ships of the Guild Core, the Thresher class destroyers were first constructed under contract by Deep Space Engineering in their Liberty shipyards. However, once the Core established their own construction facilities, production of these ships is exclusive to Core shipyards, hidden deep within the Omega and Omicron systems. Though the Thresher class destroyers have undergone numerous refits and modifications since they were first produced, they remain in service as agile and flexible support ships, a role at which they excel.

Bullhead



The Bullhead class battlecruiser was the first ship designed and built exclusively by the Guild Core. It was originally intended to make up for the Thresher class destroyer's lack of firepower, which often left early Core fleets out-gunned. As such, it focuses entirely on providing extreme offensive firepower, and when left unchecked on the battlefield will cause havoc among enemy capital ships.

Mako



The Mako is a recent addition to the Core's fleets, introduced less than a decade ago, it has already proved to be a powerful and reliable ship, capable of holding it's own in any battle, and providing the backbone of the Core's grand fleet. It combines significant firepower with compact agility in an extremely versatile warship.

[Diplomacy]

After the Battle of Minor, the Core's attitude to outsiders underwent a massive shift, as it became more open to house corporations and colonists, whom it actively invites to come to the Omicrons for business and settlement. It still remains somewhat cautious of house militaries though, and openly hostile to the various criminal and terrorist forces in its vicinity.

Allied

• The Bounty Hunter's Guild
  

Friendly

• All House corporations
  
• All civilians, House or otherwise
  

Neutral

• All House military forces
  
• Zoners
  

Unfriendly

• All House pirate groups
  

Hostile

• Corsairs
  
• Outcasts
  
• Nomads
  
• Das Wilde and Aoi Iseijin
  
• The Order
  
• The SCRA
  
• Red Hessians
  

---

- Data Base
- Information Page
#deletecore
#makediscoverygreatagain