"Mining is one of humanity's most long-standing activities, from the caveman splitting rocks for flint to the crews of gargantuan Hegemons harvesting ore from asteroids. It has shaped and continues to shape civilization across the sector. The history of mining is rich with stories of technological progress and endurance, but also of cruelty and greed. On Earth, miners were subjected to the will of their superiors, be they an employer or a slavemaster. Over time, the conditions of the miners improved with significant reforms that transformed the industry. These reforms reached their peak shortly before the outbreak of the war that sundered all Sol.
The founding of the Sirian Houses brought new reserves of riches for this ancient industry to exploit, and thus the Houses sold us a vision of previously unimaginable scale. They promised prosperity for all — but as we can see, that was a lie. Sirius is full of this lie’s victims, the human leftovers of galactic-scale exploitation. From the terrorists populating the now-depleted Silverton Field to our fellow men suffocating on Graves and the Hessians stalking the Walker Nebula, this evil’s fallout is felt by working people all over Sirius. We reject this exploitation!
We stand united to ensure the future of miners, the right to fair working hours and the right to unionize! Let it be known that today the Independent Miners’ Guild is founded, and like the guilds of old, it shall provide for its members!"
—Professor George Pelham, on the date of the IMG’s founding.
Brief Description:
The Independent Miners Guild is a confederation of unaffiliated miners who banded together to find strength in numbers to better mine the rich systems of the Border and Edge Worlds without suffering under the yoke of a corporation. The IMG differs from House corporations in that its profits do not go to the coffers of investors or any government, but to the workers themselves. While there is a general lack of formal ranking structure within the IMG, the Board of Guildmasters is the highest body within the Guild.
These worker-focused policies have driven the Guild since its founding in 654 AS, and to this date, the IMG draws from those who have been laid off or grown disgruntled with the big corps’ treatment of their employees. The Guild strives to provide a means for each member to employ themselves, either in asteroid mining, planet- or planetoid mining, or in the smelters refining raw resources. This has put the IMG on relatively good terms with many laborer-revolutionary factions such as Red Hessians, Mollys, and even the Xenos.
The Guild has a long-standing partnership with ALG and Gateway Shipping, forming the “Triumvirate”. This alliance leverages the unique skillset of its constituent organizations to compete with the House corporations on more equal footing.
The fact that the IMG does not have a house navy to fall back on, combined with the pervasive pirate activity in the Guild's primary zones of operation in the Tau and Omega borderworlds, have forced it to develop ships and weapons of its own to safeguard its members and their claims from attack. The IMG operates trade ships with up to gunboat escorts all throughout Sirius, although they rarely venture into the Sigma or Omicron clusters.
Due to the Gallic War and the subsequent Åland incident, the IMG has mostly coalesced into two distinct subgroups based on their location — one group in the Tau cluster, and the other in the Omega systems.
We, the free miners of the Sirius Sector, hereby unite to form the Independent Miners’ Guild. Our goals are simple: to share the rewards of our labor fairly, to govern ourselves ethically, and to protect our rights as honest workers. Our Guild shall forever stand for cooperation, mutual aid, and the wellbeing of its members.
¤-¤-¤-¤Article I: Name¤-¤-¤-¤ •This Guild shall be known as the Independent Miners’ Guild, or IMG for short.
¤-¤-¤-¤Article II: Purpose and Goals¤-¤-¤-¤ • Collective Ownership:To run our mining operations as a cooperative, where every member shares equally in the profits decisions and work. • Democratic Governance: To make decisions together, with each member having an equal say. • Fair Labor: To ensure safe, fair working conditions and that profits are shared justly. • Solidarity: To support each other and stand with other worker-owned groups across the sector.
¤-¤-¤-¤¤-¤-¤-¤Article III: Membership¤-¤-¤-¤ • Eligibility: Anyone can join the guild , no matter where they're from. • Rights:Every member has a vote, a share in profits, and access to Guild resources. • Responsibilities:Members must contribute work and respect fellow members. • New Members:New members join by a majority vote after a trial period. • Guild funded ships:All members have the right to request one Shishapangma transport and two mining vessels that will be acquired by the Guild.
¤-¤-¤-¤Article IV: Governance¤-¤-¤-¤ • Guild Assembly:The Guild is governed by the Guild Assembly and it's members together, with the Board of Guild Masters act as the main decision-making body. • Board of Guild Masters:Elected from the members to handle daily operations and carry out the Assembly’s decisions. Guildmasters are elected annually and can be recalled by a majority vote. • Decision-Making:We aim for consensus. If not possible, decisions are made by majority vote.
¤-¤-¤-¤Article V: Meetings¤-¤-¤-¤ • Regular Meetings:The General Assembly meets quarterly to discuss and decide on Guild matters. • Emergency Meetings:Can be called by a Guildmaster or a third of the members for urgent issues. • Transparency:Meetings are open, and records are available to all.
¤-¤-¤-¤Article VI: Finances¤-¤-¤-¤ • Profit Sharing:Profits are divided according to the amount of work provided by the members based on a formula we all agree on. • Reserves:We set aside funds for future needs and emergencies. • Funding:A guild member may request additional funding for a project. The decision to support the project will be voted by the General Assembly.
¤-¤-¤-¤Article VIII:Code of Conduct¤-¤-¤-¤ • Respect: All members treat each other with respect. Discrimination and harassment are not tolerated. • Safety: We prioritize the safety and health of every member. • Solidarity: We support each other and other worker-oriented groups in times of need. • Primacy of the Guild: The members of the Guild must prioritize the well being of the whole guild and its members.
¤-¤-¤-¤Article IX: Amendments¤-¤-¤-¤ •This Charter can be changed by a two-thirds vote, with notice given ahead of time.
¤-¤-¤-¤Article X: Dissolution¤-¤-¤-¤ •If the Guild is dissolved, assets are distributed as the Assembly decides, with a focus on supporting members and other worker-owned efforts.
▪ ALG Waste Disposal– As a part of the Triumvirate, ALG has been a loyal friend of the Guild through thick and thin. They’ve shown it countless times as we have fought and bled together against many foes, even facing off against a House for us. Such loyalty is rare and valued.
▪ Gateway Shipping–Gateway, the other member of our Triumvirate, continues to be a highly-valued partner—without them, we would struggle to export our products.
▪ Mollys–The Mollys are our fellow miners from Bretonia. We had a stable partnership with them aboard the Hood. In spite of its destruction, the Guild has grown closer to them than ever before, while the Bretonian authorities remain none the wiser.
▪ Bounty Hunters Guild–The Bounty Hunters are useful against our piratical enemies and are willing to fight with us so long as the pay is good. Fortunately we’re able to give them their due.
▪ Red Hessians–Our allies in the Omegas have a more practical goal than just the revolution these days. Nevertheless they have shown willingness to support us against our common enemies, and we in the Guild value their friendship.
▪ The Order – We have cooperated with them from time to time. While we share an enemy in the maskers, rumors of their cooperation with the Corsairs have kept us from working too closely with them.
▪ Zoners – We value the Zoners’ strong will and fierce independence—in this regard, we have much in common. We’ve cooperated on several occasions, and we plan to continue this regardless of whether they take up arms or not.
▪ Xenos– A group whose struggle we understand. They’ve shown support for us from time to time, and while we could never associate with them openly, we certainly have no cause for conflict.
▪ Technocracy of Auxo– A strange group of tech enthusiasts that has worked with the Guild in recent years. They have the means to produce augments and equipment that the Guild needs, and we’d much rather deal with fellow independent actors than Ageira or Kishiro.
▪ Sirius Coalition– An authoritarian military-state that seems to have some good ideas that have been terribly executed. We overlook their flaws due to how they despise the Corsairs and our former corporate oppressors alike. In the deep Omegas, they are valuable friends to have.
▪ Bundschuh Party–A group of Rheinland-based revolutionaries that have maintained their lofty ideals of a better future. While we cannot take up arms alongside them, we long for the same.
▪ Union Corse–An unexpected friend. Our shared hatred of the Outcasts has united many of our efforts in the Taus.
▪ Kishiro Technologies– This keiretsu has been an occasional partner in previous endeavours, but no hypercorp will ever be our close friend.
▪ Bristol Constructions– An upstart company structured similarly to us. They understand the evils of the House corporations, and they know the value of independence and treating workers well.
▪ Lane Hackers–Unfortunately shackled to the Orange Nightmare, the Lane Hackers have somehow managed to keep themselves from fully being consumed by it. As they’re much more ”intellectually-inclined” than other pirates, occasionally we find a way to subtly help each other, even if it’s just looking the other way.
▪ Gallic Union–While their predecessors were genocidal maniacs, this new government respects our boundaries better than some… for now, at least.
▪ Gaians– They’re a strange group, but they hate BMM more than they hate us. The Guild avoids conflict with them, as we see it as pointless, but some of them don’t share that perspective. Stay on your guard.
▪ Kingdom of Bretonia–We exist only because they failed to ensure and protect our predecessors’ rights. Since then, they’ve repeatedly demonstrated a desire to strip our hard-earned freedoms from us. Their monarchs claim they act "for the greater good" — we know they act only for the good of the nobles and the rich.
▪ Gallic Royalists–Mentally unstable veterans still fighting a lost war. All their problems are of their own making.
▪ Crayter Republic–We will never forget how we once fought side by side, nor will we ever forget the Betrayal at Åland. Only worth tolerating because of the greater threat posed by the Outcasts.
▪ Samura Heavy Industries–They don’t belong in the Taus. Be sure to remind them of it.
▪ Border Worlds Exports–A shared problem for both Gateway and us.
▪ Gallic Metal Service–They had plenty of chances to leech the riches of Tau during the Gallic occupation. Those times are over. This is our home, and they’re unwelcome guests.
▪ Outcasts–Maskers spread their orange nightmare across the sector. They forced us to be humanity’s first line of defense against their plague, so we shall act accordingly. The Slave Revolt was only the first step of many; more shall follow.
▪ Bretonia Mining & Manufacturing–Corporate slavedrivers who put profit above human life. So long as House enforces aren’t around, treat them as they deserve; just like the slaving Outcasts.
▪ Daumann Heavy Construction–Rheinland's version of BMM. While more competent than their Bretonian counterparts, they deserve the same treatment.
▪ Kruger Minerals–The sick man of Rheinland. We should put him to rest.
▪ Cardamine smugglers–No better than their overlords.
▪ Corsairs–We remember the Hood, and those lives lost onboard. We will not allow such a thing to happen again.
▪ Pirates–Leeches after our hard-wrought goods. Show them that the Guild bites back.
▪ Nomads–Living crystals that don’t take kindly to miners. Avoid at all costs. You never know how many there really are.
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Charter