Centauri Imperium

Centauri Imperium
Colour Scheme	Red, Black, Grey

The Centauri Imperium is one of four of the NPC factions that can be seen around the galaxy in Career Mode.

Ships

The Centauri are inarguably the best military ship designers in the galaxy. Their ships are designed to first visually intimidate their enemies into submission and then, if that fails, to annihilate them with ruthless efficiency. Most Centauri ships are constructed "diagonally" relative to the galactic standard construction grid to maximize the available space for offensive firepower and minimize the profile presented to the enemy. They feature a balanced variety of weapons and defenses, making use of all available technologies depending on the combat role of the ship. (Notably, the Centauri are the only major faction to make common use of nukes.) Thanks to the vast wealth gained from the looting of the conquered territories, construction cost is typically not an issue for the Centauri. The main limiting factor is the number of crew; since only Centauri citizens can serve aboard military vessels, there are a limited number of sailors willing to serve in the all-volunteer Centauri starforce, and the military is stretched a little thin.

Aesthetically, Centauri ships are designed to scare the enemy into submission, with intimidating shapes and sharp angles. They are typically painted black, red, and dark gray colors.

Civilian Ships

Image	Name	Cost	Crew
	Albatross	528,934	64
	Auklet	90,800	8
	Cormorant	139,100	16
	Dovekie	90,900	8
	Fulmar	142,496	16
	Guillemot	205,700	20
	Murrelet	188,584	32
	Pelican	265,684	44
	Petrel	261,784	46
	Shearwater	610,784	52

Combat Ships

Image	Name	Cost	Crew
	Achaemenes	2,051,312	358
	Aethon	756,000	108
	Alexander	2,499,942	432
	Anzu	2,517,272	352
	Arokotka	304,460	52
	Asio	105,600	16
	Atropos	1,607,854	230
	Austral	121,804	24
	Avicida	92,152	14
	Bateleur	143,536	28
	Besra	799,881	172
	Black Knight	114,024	24
	Black Swan	506,628	56
	Buzzard	380,928	74
	Caladrius	933,425	136
	Caracara	304,232	50
	Cetan	499,819	72
	Condor	104,704	18
	Crane	821,686	142
	Cyrus	547,772	84
	Daedalus	1,527,404	294
	Elanine	92,344	16
	Elanus	1,348,112	234
	Erponis	75,000	8
	Falconet	59,200	4
	Fantail	61,000	4
	Fibril	142,226	32
	Gonolek	90,700	12
	Goshawk	413,650	72
	Greyskull	76,100	8
	Griffin	1,447,744	308
	Harrier	77,496	10
	Hercinia	77,496	10
	Ictinia	1,354,520	210
	Jackdaw	566,718	98
	Kestral	61,000	4
	Kingfisher	147,900	20
	Kiriyus	1,023,336	160
	Kite	115,572	20
	Lammergeier	507,384	74
	Lancea Libertatis	1,644,926	332
	Lanius	192,408	34
	Lanner	237,744	48
	Longspur	76,348	10
	Merlin	61,448	4
	Milvus	61,300	4
	Neophron	303,268	48
	Nighthawk	393,144	72
	Ninox	113,348	18
	Odysseus	3,108,113	464
	Osprey	76,882	6
	Ostrich	516,048	116
	Pandion	171,914	18
	Pardalote	89,300	10
	Peregrine	907,120	144
	Rufescent	1,001,226	172
	Serpent Eagle	90,600	12
	Shikra	229,848	52
	Shrike	1,622,734	182
	Sittella	230,000	36
	Skirath	142,850	16
	Sparrowhawk	75,900	8
	Spectre	186,996	38
	Strix	419,136	72
	Stygil	2,035,872	412
	Swift	60,900	4
	Taita	398,988	52
	Temujin	1,635,381	234
	Torgos	112,984	18
	Tyto	304,056	44
	Voluntas	3,173,459	652
	Vulture	145,952	22
	Xerxes	1,280,719	212
	Yuhina	74,948	8
	Zeno	1,564,086	304

Defense Ships

Image	Name	Cost	Crew
	Small Cannon Platform (Imperium)	60,496	8
	Small Disruptor Platform (Imperium)	60,200	6
	Small EMP Platform (Imperium)	75,210	8
	Small HE Missile Platform (Imperium)	78,032	12
	Small Ion Platform (Imperium)	70,450	8
	Small Laser Platform (Imperium)	57,800	8
	Small Nuke Platform (Imperium)	76,604	8
	Small Point Defense Platform (Imperium)	56,100	6

Stations

Image	Name	Cost	Crew
	Large Imperium Arms Depot	3,079,758	672
	Large Imperium Trade Station	2,447,312	200
	Medium Imperium Arms Depot	2,044,510	514
	Medium Imperium Trade Station	995,400	56
	Small Imperium Arms Depot	1,042,564	220
	Small Imperium Trade Station	1,293,300	72
	Tiny Imperium Arms Depot	406,936	92

Codex

The Centauri Imperium is a young but ruthlessly-ambitious military empire originating in the Centaurus Constellation.

The systems of the Centaurus Constellation were originally governed by the Terran Union headquartered on Earth, but with the destruction of the whole Sol system fifty years ago, the Centaurus Constellation found itself suddenly independent with a galactic power vacuum in need of filling. After a brief ideological civil war within the Centaurus Constellation, the new Centauri Imperium emerged triumphant and quickly expanded its domain into the surrounding systems by conquest and intimidation. In just fifty short years, the Centauri Imperium has become the most powerful military force in the galaxy, controlling nearly half of all known systems and poised to soon conquer the rest.

The Centauri Imperium is uniquely flat in its organizational structures, both civilian and military. As a true direct democracy, every citizen of the core Centaurus systems above the age of 12 EY is entitled to propose laws and vote on every piece of legislation, a process which is handled via faster-than-light communications and a distributed public blockchain. Even the most important decisions, such as whether to accept the terms of surrender of the latest conquered star system, can be made in minutes by instantly notifying the entire citizenry of an impending vote. As such, most Centauri citizens feel an extreme responsibility to stay informed of the various issues facing the Imperium, and civic engagement is very high. There is no single "head of state", and to the extent to which there is any concentration of power, it is in celebrities who are able to influence their followers to vote a particular way.

The Centauri military is only slightly more hierarchical than its civilian government. Because being able to make instant decisions during combat is critical, most ships do have a captain, but one that is elected by its crew and can be replaced by popular vote at any time. Each ship is an independent entity with the freedom to make its own tactical decisions, constrained only by the few rules of engagement mandated by the Imperium's citizens. (And those citizens have deemed that almost any means are acceptable as long as the ends bring further wealth and prosperity to the core Centaurus systems.) This decentralized "almost anything goes" approach makes the Imperium's military nimble and ruthless. Larger strategic objectives are coordinated using bounties authorized by the citizenry, such as a reward for forcing the surrender of a particular star system. In order to accomplish these larger strategic objectives, individual ships will often form ad-hoc fleets that will then disband once the objective is accomplished. In some cases, multiple fleets will form to compete for the same bounty, which is allowed and encouraged as a healthy aspect of the "military free market", though direct combat between Centauri ships or fleets is strictly forbidden and punishable by "death by destruction bounty". In cases where multiple ships or fleets lay claim to the same bounty, it is, as always, the Centauri citizenry who act as final arbiter.

Citizenship is only granted to those individuals who were either living within the core Centaurus systems when the Imperium was formed or are children whose parents are both Centauri citizens. The only exceptions must be approved by the whole citizenry, making naturalized citizens extremely rare. (Generally only individuals who have been of great service to the Imperium are given the honor.) As a result, the vast majority of subjects living outside the core systems are not Centauri citizens and thus do not enjoy any semblance of autonomy or self-governance. For all their talk of democracy and equality, the core systems impose a harsh double-standard on the conquered territories, ruling them with an iron fist.