Discovery Gaming Community

Hello !

So I've been thinking about making up a glossary/dictionary of terms and expressions you may often come across when interacting with/reading up on the MRG and generally all things Gallic. In it, you'll find elements relating to the faction, its RP, its relationships and assorted pointless trivia. For instance, it contains the names of the caps we use and what they mean, so you can fully appreciate the rather typically smugness behind many of them.

Hope you find it useful and/or fun, preferably both. I intend to edit this post as I go along and add new stuff to it. Feel free to reply with the usual demented praise or grievous insults, or to request stuff to be added to this list.
I was tempted to place this in tutorials, but then I would have needed to make it super serious and professional. This isn't... Entirely that. Read along !

PS : some of this stuff is laden with irony. Just thought I'd make it clear for reasons obvious to anyone who's spent two minutes on Disco.

LEGEND : Person of interest / Group or association / Concept / Location

A -

Abdication : what happens when a King decides not to be king any more. Unheard of in Gallia.
Also : a fatuous way to demand cargo from lowly peasant miners. For ex : Abdicate that gold ore in the name of Charles, you unwashed brute !

Aoi : weaponised Nomads. A clear sign of Gallic superior psychological warfare techniques.

Auvergne : a very rural French region with tons of volcanoes, among the best mountaineous landscapes in Europe, and arguably the best charcuterie you can dream of.
Also a very rural Gallic system that happens to be strikingly beautiful... And tragically irrelevant.
Also a dreaded warship owned by MrNentendo.

Aurochs : a lovely freighter that no one ever uses. Because it's a freighter.

AuTauroute : literally, Tau highway. Connects Languedoc to Leeds, and soon to London.

Algérie : a former French colony in North Africa. Famous for their mint tea and couscous.
Also the very pompous (just check out its lights) flagship of Everett Fontaine (Conman), chambellan of the MRG.

Arch (Ze) : an old deity, revered by some Gallic citizens. Popularised by members of the Gallic Mining Service long ago.

Archos (Nathan) : the King of Edge. Has dreadlocks and armaments protruding from his back. Exsudes masculinity. See "Core (the)".

B -

Blackburn (Michael) : who ?

Bonne naissance : good birth. A Gallic nobility obsession.

Bourgogne (Burgundy in peasant dialect) : central region in France, north of Lyon. Home to the best (and most expensive) wines in the world, historically produced by monks who swore an oath of poverty. They've been supplanted by ultrarich farmers in contemporary times.

Bordeaux : lovely city on the Atlantic coast. Largest producer of wine in France. Ranges from acceptable to excellent by French standards. LIkely what you've been drinking if you've ever tried French reds. Americans find it universally "amaziiiiiiiiiing" even if it's donkey's blood, so we only send them the bad stuff. Tee-hee.

Bordeleaux : Bordeaux but in the Warhammer universe. Also an RP-crazed franco-japanese member of the MRG who will bring Gallia into acceptable levels of likeability.

Bordel, sometimes Bordel de merde : inelegant swearing which I can't translate here. Look it up. Generally used as exclamation. For ex : "Bordel ! The CR have shown up with 48756468487 caps again !"

Bretonia : stubborn fellows who fail to see the greatness in fermented milk and meat NOT soaked in horrendous mint sauce. They will be reasoned with, in due course. They use a queen, somehow, and thus are at least somewhat respected. Strangely mired in endless bureaucracy and formalities and, as such, have completely missed the point of monarchies. Have been on the losing side of bitter warfare for the past two decades and still hang on to their ruins. Admirable if irritating people.

Brigands : what happens when peasants find guns and ships and decide that they'd rather harvest booty rather than carrots. Unreasonable types, poor hygiene. Thankfully disorganised.

C -

Capitalism : what happens when peasants get exploited by bourgeoisie instead of nobility. Less regulations and stronger emphasis on such simple-minded matters as profit. Gallic workers are generally well treated and provided for, as they contribute to their House's GREATNESS and SOPHISTICATION rather than merely some fat ill-mannered commoner's pockets. See "Liberty".

Capitulation : when a nation chooses to relinquish sovereignty. Unheard of in Gallia.
Also : when a nation chooses Charles XI as its sovereign. Applies to every nation, House, organisation, association, club, band and group in the sector.
Also : another pompous way to demand cargo. For ex : You will capitulate your unlawfully-acquired gold, you unscrupulous ruffian !

Charles XI : current King of Gallia. Impossibly evil-looking. Bald, except in popular Gallic cartoons.

Chevalier (knight) : first order of nobility in Gallia. Classy and gets to use funny titles. Some are born into it : the rest earn it through merit (see CORE GALLIC VALUES). Chevaliers are meant to uphold the values of chevalerie (chivalry). See "Gallantry".

Citoyen (citizen) : current or future subject of the Gallic crown. Applies to all living things, artificial included.

Coalition (the) : the ancient enemy. Not too kind with prisonerssss and carrying strange political notions. Hellbent on finishing what they started. Will be introduced to the wonders of feudalism. See "Communism".

Collective (the) : Curious robotic lifeforms. Not particularly unfriendly and of a more pleasant company than most Sirians. Have been declared to be robot citizens. See "Citoyen".

Coucou : hello. Also a cuckoo bird, that happens to say "Coucou". This is getting technical, yes ?

Communism : what happens when peasants overthrow their masters and decide to rule by themselves. This rule generally involves an all-powerful ruling caste. Not so different from monarchies, except without a King, nor room for meritorous elevation.

Core (The) : our friendly backwater-space-dwelling partners. Its leader bears the title of King of Edge, secretly coveted by Charles.

Core (in CORE GALLIC VALUES) : *hyperventilation*
Also : everything that makes Gallia the absolute peerless best House. There are a number of CORE GALLIC VALUES, namely : honour, virtue, elegance, education, fraternity, self-sacrifice, merit, justice, self-confidence, respect... CORE GALLIC VALUES seperate Man from Peasant.

Corsair (Empire) : dangerous hairy barbarians but also our cousins in the Great Injustice. As such, potential partners who will be introduced to sophisticated notions such as agricultural self-sufficiency, showers and social etiquette, in ascending order of importance.

Corsicans : Descendants of old France's Corsica (Corse in French, Corsu in Corsican). Suave, reserved and hot-tempered types. Represented in the Unione Corse syndicate, which is also suave, reserved and hot-tempered. Deals with every economic aspect of Gallia. If you need something, they have it. But they'll also have you.

Council (the ; Conseil ; the Conseillards) : what happens when peasants decide that a powerful, benevolent, caring and ambitious state is not good enough for them. Eager for more political rights, which, in Conseillard linguo, stands for "we'd like to be able to CHOOSE whether to royally screw everything up BY OURSELVES, thank you very much".

Crayterian Republic : notorious rogue state that tries to punch far above its weight. Should get jobs instead. Will be reasoned with and finally put to good use.

Custodi : see "Corsairs". Less hairy, more stuffed vine leaves and feta.

D -

De (particle) : attached to a name, means you're dealing with nobility. Behave and try to look at least somewhat educated. You are being judged.

De Chanteloup (Isabelle Montlaville) : the current chief of staff of the MRG. She'll listen to what you have to say, but she's not your friend. She's no one's friend. She's sometimes a little lonely.

De France : the royal family's name. You will sometimes see it spelled DeFrance : a hideous mistake. NEVER fall for it. If the De is a particle, it needs a space before the name. And if it is NOT a particle, it doesn't need a capital at the beginning of the name. Same with Le and La.
Examples : De Lattre is a nobleman's name. Delattre is the same thing but for a dirty commoner. DeLattre is a horrendous bastardisation that mixes commoners and nobles and will not be entertained ! I've seen many LeBlanc and such in America, and I cannot begin to understand how this came to pass. It's either Le Blanc or Leblanc. Whatever. A nation that popularised putting heavy cream in croissants has already demonstrated it gave no ****s. But I digress.

De Justéton (Jean-Yves Patrice) : the Canonnier of the MRG. In charge of managing all the Valeurs that go about crushing your hopes and dreams. His company beats that of a very elegantly decorated and exquisitely sculpted marble statue, but not by much. Is a bitter rival to the more flamboyant Pierre Vincent Dupetit-Thouars.

DESTRUCTION (Docteur) : One of the most notorious villains in Gallic fiction. A cruel mastermind of evil who betrayed his King and left his wife and 18 children behind on a quest for galactic domination. Formerly known as Pierre Laflamme.

Diamant (pointe du) : the tip of the diamond. A term used to designate old France's Rafale tactical role, meaning a small spearhead able to rapidly cause untold damage anywhere it's needed. A tactic popular with MRG, which involves rapid concentration of pressure on one part of the enemy line.

DISCIPLINE (necessarily in caps) : One of the four holy words of the MRG. Without it, nothing significant can be achieved. It demands selflessness, trust, courage and faith. Also part of the CORE GALLIC VALUES.

Dupetit-Thouars (Pierre Vincent) : a huffing and puffing oversized sample of pure Gallic nobility. Radiates with pomp and self-satisfaction. A bitter rival of the more reserved Jean-Yves Patrice de Justéton.

Dunkerque (AND NOT DUNKIRK) : Capital city of the Pas-de-Calais region in old France, situated at the top North of the country, in spitting distance of Dover. The theatre of the well-known Operation Dynamo, where the French military sacrificed a significant portion of its forces to enable the British army to evacuate back to England. Some parts of the French army were permitted to embark, the rest fought to the last bullet.
Somehow, also the name of the Bretonian battleship class.
Also Félix Lacroix's battlecruiser. May it remind the Bretonians of who bled for whom in the streets of Dunkerque.


E -

EFL Oil & Machinery (Pétrole et machinerie) : the Oil wizards of Gallia, who also researched and built the tradelane/jump gate technology in Gallia SOMEHOW. Very closely watched and controlled by the Crown. Good lads, save for some blatant treasonous behaviour displayed by their former boss.
Modelled after the French oil giant Elf, which was bought and absorbed by another, bigger French oil giant, Total. Back then, people thought Elf was actually an acronym, which lead to various interpretations. It was revealed not to be the case, and is certainly not the case with EFL either. Don't ask. Elf is just that, a name. So is (probably) EFL, or Efl as it should be.

Etat-Major : headquarters. Literally, the Major State. It's not messing around and probably knows what you're doing RIGHT NOW.

Education : one of the primary CORE GALLIC VALUES. Education brings worth and enables elevation and achievement. Bretonia is respected for its well-known universities, while Liberty is utterly despised for its lack of interest in it, as displayed by the perplexing illiteracy in the ranks of its military.

Empire : generally aggressive states with strong leaders. Not as attached to pomp as monarchies but still worthy of respect. France made it cool.
A possible path for Gallia.

Espérance : one of two ways to say "hope" in French, the other being "espoir". Espérance is a stronger term, not dissimilar to religious belief.
Also the name of Sabine de Bordeleaux's 5G gunboat. "Hope" as in "I hope you've got a lot of gold ore in that big cargo hold of yours".

F -

Fauconneau : Falconet. Also a notorious warship that has or will kill you.

Favager d'Astier (Jean-Paul) : an MRG officer for whom the term "gentle giant" was invented. A colossal golden-hearted commander with a marked weakness for strong women and guillotine chokeholds. Loyal to a fault. Probably in love with his chief of staff. He WILL awkwardly flirt you up OR pulverise you with a finger's push.

Feudalism : When peasants are ruled by lords, themselves ruled by a King. Has its uses, but too many middle-men. Good old absolutism takes care of that.

Fontaine (Everett) : The Chambellan of the Marine Royale Gauloise. The Chambellan acts as a mix between political commissar, ambassador and advisor. His job is to ensure that CORE GALLIC VALUES are well understood by Gallia's soldiers, enforced and upheld at every corner. Everett Fontaine is a semi-mythical figure, who has been known to enthuse entire battlegroups with the sole power of POMP and RADIANCE, with significant effects on battle performance. Does NOT tolerate illiterate peasantry, uncooperative miners and disloyalty. Is more elegant than you.

Future : necessarily Gallic.

G -

Gaians : gentle souls that would probably be happier tending to their gardens instead of shooting law enforcement. In short, what happens when peasants decide that farming is bad for philosophical reasons. Not particularly pleased with Gallia, despite it being an ecological powerhouse, having only moderately polluted entire planets over eight centuries of massive unrestrained industrialisation.

Gallant Gallic Gunboat Gobbler Group (5G) : the MRG's commerce raiding unit. They WILL find you and steal all your stuff or detonate everything if plan A fails. A natural nemesis to the BAF Merchant navy.

Gallantry (Galanterie) : typically Gallic concept, see "Chevalier". Gallantry is a mix of elegance, reservation, politeness, culture and education. Demanded of every Gallic officer, expected of all Gallic citizens. An important CORE GALLIC VALUE.

Gendarmerie Nationale (GN) : The MRG's internal security branch, modelled after old France's namesake. Military police, in short, also comparable to Italy's carabinieri or the Spanish Guardia Civil. It neutralises rebellions before they even start. It also watches over GRP units to ensure their loyalty and adherence to operational standards. They WILL want to see your papers.

Gloire (Glory) : the measure of one's fame, achieved with personal victories and successes. Glory, being a strictly individual trait, should not be sought at any cost, but merely contemplated as a side effect for righteous conduct and exceptional display of VALEUR. Glory seekers are dangerous self-obsessed madmen : the true glorious are the selfless heroes who risked it all for the greater good. See "TRIOMPHE".

Governments : bodies built to support a country's leader. Needed by inferior nations. Entertained in Gallia because the King has more important things to worry about than rules and regulations.

Guerre (war) : what is it good for ? Nothing.
Except obtaining just reparations from those who sacrificed you willingly to ensure their future and who honestly would have preferred to see you dead.

Guillory (Nicodème) : a grumpy commoner who found himself at one of the highest functions in the MRG. Living proof that merit is the one way up in Gallia. Works harder than you.

Garonne : an important river in old France that ends in the Atlantic. It crosses Bordeaux (see "Bordeaux").
Also Patrice Roux's VALEUR. It WILL ferment you into passable wine.

H -

HONNEUR (necessarily in caps) : One of the four holy words of the MRG. It demands strict adherence to etiquette, class, fairness and dedication. HONNEUR cannot be asked, granted, or bought. It can only be ACHIEVED or RESTORED through merit and VALEUR. One of the CORE GALLIC VALUES.

I -

Independent Miners Guild : friendly rock-peasants. Guests in Gallic territory. Usually obedient and useful enough to be kept around. The real extend of their loyalty is being tested.

J -

Junkers : what happens when peasants turn to scrap metal instead of cabbages. Of little concern to Gallia, who moves them aside gently when they get in the way. Harmless. Have fallen in with a bad crowd. Will generally not be entertained.
Once existed in Gallic flavour. Moved aside when they outlived their usefulness.

K -

Kusari (House) : Xenophobic technology-obsessed isolationists, which have been forced to the wonders of curiosity and open-mindedness by the Gallic military. Have lost every conflict they ever got into and should probably consider quitting it for good. Have gone through a teenage rebellious phase and have now reformed under a new Empire. Goals and alignments remain obscure. They have their uses and provide Gallia with much-needed economic support. There is a significant overlap between CORE KUSARIAN VALUES and CORE GALLIC VALUES, namely in regards to sophistication, respect and merit. Also food. Well-liked by the Gallic people, but tensions and mutual wariness remain between both governments.

L -

League of Einsteinian Transitors (The) : charming frontiersmen with unclear occupations, deep pockets and fluid diplomacy. Considered harmless, if unpredictable. Currently courted by Gallia.

Liberty (House) : The archnemesis of Gallia. It opposes all that Gallia represents. Deregulated exploitation of the underclass, ludicrously high importance attached to material goods, no sense of hierarchy or social order, critical absence of culture and education, lawlessness and governments built on the falsehood that citizens have any control over their nation. At least Gallia doesn't pretend. Tales of CORE LIBERTONIAN VALUES are used to make unruly Gallic kids behave at night.

Lolwuts (sic) : a sad byproduct of Libertonian disregard for education.

Loyola, de (Enma) : the political equivalent of a one-night-stand, complete with the fun-shame-regrets cycle. Personally interrogated (AND NOTHING ELSE) by then-commandant de Chanteloup.

M -

Maltese (the ; Maltese Menace ; Outcasts) : a very dangerous group of drug farmers with a superiority complex and hell-bent on dominating Sirius. As such, natural competitors to Gallia. Very elegant and with strong ideas about community. Doomed to consume their own poison for the rest of their lives and clearly intent on sharing that burden with the rest of the known world. What happens when peasants find that their cabbage is in fact a highly potent, body and mind-enhancing drug with immediate and uncounterable addictivity.

Maquis (the Maquisards) : what happens when peasants decide that murdering other peasants will help in any way. Extremely dangerous. Even the Conseillards frown at them.

Merchant Navy : juicy preys.

Mollys : Bretonian seperatists who should get along well with Gallia but don't, somehow. Or not all of them, at least. They'll be entertained, for now. Gold purveyors. Bad accents.

Monarchy : what happens when peasants have a ruler they can turn to for guidance and happiness.

N

Natio Octavarium : an elusive bunch of tinkerers and snobs who have crossed paths with Gallia on some occasions. Probably nice, harmless guys deep down but still high on the watchlist. Will be reasoned with when the time comes. Personal interest from Amiral de Chanteloup.

Noblesse oblige : nobility obliges. Means that being a noble is all well and good, you got priviledges, but you also have responsibilities to uphold towards society. Your conduct must match your social status. If it does not, you bring shame to your name, your house and your order of nobility ; a surefire way to lose HONNEUR. See "Kusari".

O -

Obstination : same as in English. The will to go through with an idea, no matter the cost, the hardships, the losses. A nuanced trait, but also one that gets decisive results.
Also, what should have been the name of the Gallic battlecruiser. Obstinate is an adjective, obstination is a value, much like TRIOMPHE and VALEUR.

P -

PATRIE (necessarily in caps) : one of the four holy words of MRG. It means fatherland and implies selfless service and eternal respect to it and all that it represents : the soil itself, but also the culture, the food, the wealth, the technology, the people. PATRIE is everything and everything is PATRIE.

Q -

R -

Republic : synonym for "inefficiency" and "pointless debate". A dear and close fantasm to the Conseillards, who are likely to get over it VERY QUICKLY if they ever try and rule an actual state with it.

Revolutions : things that should generally be stopped before they happen. See "Gendarmerie".

Rheinland (House) : Gallia's Germanic cousins. Have been in dire straits for the past century and is starting to look for salvation outside of its territory (see "Kusari"). Very good at warfare, education and industry, not so good at economics, food and social peace. The principal victim of Liberty's constant abuse and manipulation and as such, enjoys sympathy from the Gallic government. Future relations are uncertain but continued neutrality is a given.

Richard (Michael) : seriously, who ? Actually, the current dictator of the Crayterian rogue state. Both a shamelessly fascist hardliner and a bloody-minded brute. Would commit genocide in a heartbeat if given the chance, provided it meant "saving" the 72 people that make up the Crayterian population. And three dogs. Wait, two ; they made a kebab of the fattest one. The polar opposite of the refined and noble Gallic chevalier. Is a soldier, and is eager to remind everyone that he is at every turn, that and something about people being left behind. Probable daddy issues. Should get a job.

Robots : why not ?

ROI (THE) : What is this ? Are you still reading ?! Avert your eyes and kneel, peasant !

S -

Separatists (from Liberty) : understandably dissatisfied Libertonians with various territorial claims and political stances. Can be divided between several categories. Gallic intelligence has thus far identified the "NO YOU" and the "EDGEFIRE". Given Liberty's atrocious and continued disdain towards its own population, more are likely to surface. Separatism is a very alien notion to the IMPOSSIBLY LOYAL Gallic people.

Silver (Agent) : a cold-hearted killing machine once made a hero of the Gallic people for exceptional services rendered. Could be at the heart of a far-reaching conspiracy.

Steiner (family) : a worryingly common name in Bretonian society, particularly in positions of power. Deeply troubling, especially in light of the strictly Rheinlandic origin of the name and the generally male-only representation of the family. Theories surrounding the Steiner clan-horde abound.
Several Gallic intelligence analysts hold that the Steiners actually form a powerful shadow cabal that has effectively infiltrated every Bretonian office to serve their own nefarious interests.
Conspiracy theorists believe that the Steiners are actually a Rheinlandic plot to overthrow the Bretonian monarchy and replace it with a Rheinland-controlled Steiner dynasty.
Extremists think that the Steiners are both a shadow cabal AND a plot to infiltrate the Gallic monarchy through marriage and wait until Gallia is done conquering Sirius to overthrow the King and usurp his throne, thus becoming the undisputed masters of the universe.
The amount of truth in either of these stances remains to be determined.

SUPERDUPONT : the titular character of a very unsubtle propaganda cartoon aimed primarily at young audiences but which has found an unexpected cult among older watchers. SUPERDUPONT was designed as a vessel of CORE GALLIC VALUES and a dramatised expression of Gallia's foreign relations policy and cultural supremacy, among other things.

T -

Taus : a rather desolate region sadly essential to Gallia. See "AuTauroute". Crowded. Strange neighbourhood.

Technopeasants : a cult of some description. Strange ideas about investment priorities. Shadowy. Routinely harvested for their inferior yet curious technology. What happens when peasants decide that the plough and pitchfork are not good enough for them and turn to creating ludicrously devastating weapons.

TRIOMPHE : extreme levels of dopamine received at the height of a grandiose victory (see "Glory"). A very beautiful word for a delicious notion. Unlike glory, TRIOMPHE is benevolent for the collective, not only the individual. As such, it should be sought by all Gallic men and women of good heart.

U -

U-boot : a pale Rheinlandic copy of the 5G unit.

V -

Valdez (Eliza) : the reason why we need a stronger version of the phrase "bad decisions". Blackmailed by Gallia. Can still be redeemed. Clearly the better half of the Loyola-Valdez... Thing.

VALEUR (necessarily in caps) : one of the four holy words of the MRG. It is the sum of one's worth. To show VALEUR is to show courage, skill and endurance in all times and all places. One of the CORE GALLIC VALUES.
Also the name of the most powerful, dangerous and elegant warship in time and space.

Vertiga (Ezrael) (and associates) : a mysterious, suave adventurer with a blatant taste for hot sex and experimental armaments. Elusive and shadowy. Has worked with the MRG in the past to great effect. Appears to like robots very much, though whether this is in regards to hot sex or experimental armaments has not yet been determined by intelligence analysts.

X -

Y -

Z -