History: The Liberty Free Republic, LFR or Free Republic for short was born in 771 A.S, with the disruption of Liberty's plans to terraform Planet Atka in Hudson. Progress was brought to a grinding halt after the successful destruction of a Planetform vessel by disaffected xenophobes within the system. These Xenos, as they were commonly called began planning for the formation of a Liberty Free Republic to be based in the system.
It is presumed that the movement acted on these plans for two decades and up until the Hudson campaign of 792, an event that the Rio Grande would become closely associated with. After the failure to defend itself from Liberty's efforts to resume the terraforming process, the movement was presumed to have collapsed and faded into obscurity. Known only to the future Xenos that would take up residence in the system on Barrow.
Resurgence: As with any cause tied to freedom over oppression, the Free Republic's failure did not destroy it, but rather prompted a reevaluation of the strategy used. The once overt effort at curbing Liberty's corruption and ousting foreign influence evolved into a series of underground networks which in turn maintained contact with their local terrorist cells. With the rapidly growing political movement of the Xenos among prisoners, the Free Republic's symbolism and ideals began to grow in popularity as knowledge of it spread through historical recollection.
While it was commonly agreed that foreigners needed to be ejected by way of the particle cannon, it was quickly realized that the Xenos would need more than just sheer courage and perseverance to hold their own within the most well-armed House in Sirius. And with thickening blue and red lines between the societal elite and poor at the grassroots, the movement began to soar in popularity among the less fortunate.
The combination of simple politics advocated for by the Xenos and the idea of a new and better Liberty that cared for its fellow working men resonated quite deeply with those disgruntled by rapidly worsening living standards on planets such as Pittsburgh. The LFR is exceedingly popular with the working class of Liberty, most of whom occupy the lowest rungs in society.
It was not uncommon for the Commonwealth to be criticized by the LFR's advocates, whom cited little difference between the fledgling breakaway state and its former master - Liberty. Both of whom quickly compromised on their fellow countrymen, bowing instead to the immigrants and corporations. Continuing a vicious cycle of inadequacy that the LFR believes only a strong, self-reliant and Free Liberty can solve. With the Commonwealth rendered defunct, the Free Republic has reclaimed what it believes to be its rightful place as the heart of a working man's rebellion in the heartland.
Current events: Acting as a provisional militia for the rapidly reconstituting Free Republic, the Xeno Alliance has popularized both the ideas and dreams tied to it. Going so far as to adopt a version of the flag minus Atka's silhouette as its own banner for showing allegiance upon ship hulls. Bitter masses are once again determined to wage what they perceive as a war of independence in order to carve out a Home for themselves and people of a like mind. Ensnared in every possible position by rivals or fundamental enemies, the cause struggles to equate practicality with its radical brand of idealism and finds itself fighting to survive rather than making grand declarations as other separatist movements in Liberty had.
For all this tribulation, the Free Republic flag that is fashioned much the same as its parent House, is displayed with clipped wings instead of stripes and a stylistic representation of Atka closing off the Lonestar. It is a symbol of reverence, with the white standing for bravery; red for sacrifice. Though a previous iteration featured a broken star inverted in distress, this was soon phased out after a vote that determined more symbolically appropriate iconography was necessary.
Future Prospects: The Free Republic's total and exclusive association with the Xenos lend it a bitter reputation among the more wealthy and influential, who typically feel threatened by the surging popularity that brutality and corporate slavery have been unable to stop. Much of the material supplies that the Xenos rely on come from its civilian networks who consider themselves affiliates of the movement, primarily sourced on the planets of Pittsburgh, Houston and a minority on Denver. This network is only likely to expand given Liberty's present trend of nationalism and paranoia, and extend into a cause for independence of the otherwise indentured and repeatedly imprisoned social classes of Liberty driven to the economic fringe.
The likelihood of insiders on the "right" side of the law also pose barriers to a proper culling of not only the ideology, but also the Xenos themselves. With the latter benefiting quite substantially and growing to be among, if not the most, numerous criminal group in Liberty. Continuing to rely on its simple politics and clever demagogues, the LFR is expected to continue growing in size and popularity. And the rate of vandalism and plastering of propaganda continues to be a worsening problem on the movement's mainstay of Pittsburgh.
At some point along the period of increasing dissidence focused around the systems of Hudson and Bering, Alliance leadership seemed to push quite heavily in the direction of recruitment efforts for a militia that could hold onto the territorial claims of the fledgling Republic. The formations of such groups are often herculean in terms of difficulty, with supplies being irregular and the cultures of its soldiers being extremely varied between brigades.
(A poster calling for the enlistment of Liberty's disaffected population)
Despite the humble working class backgrounds from which the militia draws most of its support from, marines of the LFRM undergo rigorous training, competent officers and expert advisors ensure that the final product is a well drilled and disciplined soldier, rather than a dissident with a gun. The Alliance therefore adequately represents its ambitions to be more than mere criminals and rebels through the formation of such a body, and by being prepared to wrestle with all the encumbrances of statehood. There is more than its fair share of controversy from external entities claiming outsider involvement, given the highly uncharacteristic nature of professionalism and commitment represented by these men and women, however the Alliance seems to dispute this vehemently, alongside its disputes with the sector at large. Every brigade is further attached to a wing of fighter pilots within the Alliance, both to diversify strike capabilities and also to ensure cooperation between branches.
Brigades:
1st Brigade ("Knights of the Lonestar")
- 1st Battalion, Companies A-D
- 2nd Battalion, Companies A-D
- 3rd Battalion, Companies A-D
Strength: 2,500 men and women. Specialties: Entrenchment and counter-offensives. Brief history and description: The first of those to depart Camp Gore and declared with the hard earned status of being trained soldiers. By virtue of being the first among many to come, the brigade occupies an auspicious position, widely hailed as the most refined exemplification of Free Republic values. They are soldiers first and foremost, intended to turn a tide and then carry it. The people responsible for the brigade's training and selections were likely military officers of great pedigree, as cultures of honor and loyalty pervade the ranks of every battalion and company. Dutiful, and with ornate pauldrons and helmets to denote officers and various accolades, they are a prestigious entity among the LFRM's rank and file.
2nd Brigade ("Torchbearers")
- 1st Battalion, Companies A-D
- 2nd Battalion, Companies A-D
- 3rd Battalion, Companies A-D
Strength: 2,500 men and women. Specialties: Shock and awe. Brief history and description: Dour and reclusive, the second brigade is a mirror image of its preceding counterpart. Their entire modus operandi revolves around breaking opposition without hesitation and being extremely thorough. There exists a tradition to offer the enemy only one chance to surrender prior to any engagement, following which there are no terms and there will be no quarter given. Their weapons are crude and savage, their armor dull and without any distinction between the soldiers beyond what is absolutely necessary. They see their every deployment as a failure, for the LFR must have surely failed and become desperate enough to need men of their nature. As a rule of thumb, the first and second are never deployed together, as they would fundamentally undermine each other's methods.
8th Brigade ("Atkan Rangers")
- 1st Battalion, Companies A-C
- 2nd Battalion, Companies A-C
Strength: 1,300 men and women. Specialties: Environmental specialists. Brief history and description: Arguably Camp Gore's most resilient breed of soldiers, their reputation for self sufficiency rivalled only by their skill as marksmen and snipers. Some confusion exists as to why the Camp's second brigade was dubbed the eighth, but the convenient jump in the numbers is a ploy to delude enemies into thinking that the Free Republic Militia is more numerous than it actually is. Within their ranks exists a culture of trophy collecting, whenever a target is put down, the soldier responsible usually keeps a memento of their first kill. With their operational flexibility and ability to evade ambushes, personnel from the brigade see frequent deployment to Atka as forward reconnaissance units. No doubt reminding Planetform who the world truly belongs to.
![[Image: Lc48rCo.png]](https://i.imgur.com/Lc48rCo.png)
![[Image: XA_sig_u2.png]](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/656420047144747018/856968148208844810/XA_sig_u2.png)
![[Image: cIjrVID.png?1]](https://i.imgur.com/cIjrVID.png?1)
![[Image: bgbvCzg.jpg?2]](https://i.imgur.com/bgbvCzg.jpg?2)
![[Image: dsmVTKw.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/dsmVTKw.jpg)
![[Image: UMP6zqf.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/UMP6zqf.jpg)