KFC: The K'kreer Freedom Coalition.
Some folks have asked what the K'kree might be up to in The New
Era. Here's my idea. I don't own Path of Tears, so I don't know
the RC time line very well, but this'll get the idea across in a
nutshell.
The Hive Confederation fell to the Virus in the 1130s. The K'Kree
2000 worlds fell soon afterward, but their destruction was more
swift. The Hivers were more capable of resistence against the
Virus than the less electronically adept K'Kree.
K'Kree electronics and robotics was far behind the Hivers and The
Imperium. At their height, the best K'Kree robots were TL13.
Oddly, their starships were totally dependent on robotics. All
K'Kree ships had robotic engineering crews just ripe for the Virus.
As such, the TL 16 Virus swept through the TL 13 K'Kree fleets like
wildfire.
Further, as the 2000 Worlds of the K'Kree empire were farther from
the site of release of the Virus, a greater proportion of the more
advanced breeds of the Virus struck the K'Kree. Also, as the
K'Kree ships did have robotic engineers, the K'Kree vampire ships
are now in far better shape than the vampires than Imperial ships
where robots were more rare and so have less access to
maintainence. (Just where have all the Imperial Vampires gotten
their annual maintenance done for the last 70 years?)
The K'Kree worlds are full of Vampire fleets. It is an incredibly
dangerous place to go.
The main worlds are in ruins. However, K'Kree claustrophobia paid
off handsomely for the Militant Vegitarian Centaurs. Nearly all of
their high population worlds were habitable without special life
support. Few K'Kree would settle on a world were they could not
roam freely on the plains. Indeed, any K'Kree who did settle in
shelters on inhospitable worlds was looked at as something of a
weirdo. Many of these worlds have survived despite the Vampire
ships raging overhead. Their technology has been blasted back to
the stone age in most cases, however, K'Kree with their out doors
culture and vegitarian appetites are in some ways better suited for
this than other species.
Still, this was the chance their ancient enemies had been waiting
for for centuries.
The Hivers, when they recovered from their fall, saw their chance.
The K'Kree are now utterly powerless. Immediately, the Hivers
dusted off their old manipulation-invasion plans, and took aim at
the K'Kree culture!
Traveller Historians may recall the first Hiver-K'Kree war. The
aggressive and militarily superior K'Kree backed off when the
Hivers unveiled their secret manipulations of a few of their
worlds. Hiver Master Manipulators had socially engineered events
to make a few K'Kree planets turn away from the monolithic backbone
of K'Kree culture. K'Kree were actually using *MEAT* to sauce
their vegitables! K'Kree were going into isolation for
*RECREATION*. These abominations against the K'Kree frightened
them so that they immediately sued for peace when the Hivers
threatened to launch their manipulation across the whole of the
K'Kree 2000 worlds! The K'Kree quietly nuked some of their own
planets to stop the abomination.
The Hivers have now contacted a few K'Kree worlds and have
manipulated their culture to conform with the ideals of the old
Hiver Confederation. However, you don't turn a species of fanatics
onto tolerence of other life in just a few years. These K'Kree are
the missionaries of the Hivers to the rest of their race. Just as
they have in the Imperium, the Hivers have given the K'Kree the
technology and mission to clean up their entire region of space.
They have formed the KFC: K'Kreer Freedom Coalition.
You thought RCES was bad with their Smash And Grab tactics? The
KFC's forces are happy to wipe out any K'Kree not of their herd who
might stand in their way. You want ground combat "Star Vikings"?
It's much easier to nuke a planet and clean it up with a nuclear
damper than it is to land troops anyway...
Why? The other K'Kree are intolerant! They have no regard for the
lives of aliens and other sentient life. Thus, they must be
converted or destroyed. [RL note: You may at some point in your
life have met up with some of the "Good" skinheads? The ones who
beat up the "Bad" skinheads? And the graffiti they spray over cars
is stuff like "JUST SAY NO!" or "BE KIND: REWIND!" Perhaps you've
met the people who attack anyone if they aren't perfectly PC? The
ones who think all the white males in the world should be lynched?
Picture those guys armed with Grav Tanks, Fusion Guns, Nukes and a
mission from GOD!]
No, the KFC does not eat meat. (Not usually anyway, as it's not
very good for a K'Kree's digestion) And no, they don't *usually*
enjoy isolation. Psychologically, they are just about the same as
they always were, but they are on a different mission now!
Possible Adventures:
KFC finds a Vampire base set up on a technologically crushed high
population planet in the old 2000 worlds. Well, it seems the
K'Kree inhabitants are helping the Virus. Hmm... Better nuke 'em
good, then convert the survivors.
Misjumped RCES meet up with misjumped KFC troops. Gotta cooperate
to get back to the Hive Confederation.
RCES members call in some KFC troops for a special mission. (They
trained together in the Hiver Technical Academy)
Scott 2G Kellogg
BTW, Most KFC ships, because of their difficult maintenance and
dome shape are referred to as "Buckets"
"Sir! There's a KFC Bucket closing in on us!" :-)