United Worlds of Warlock
Structure
The government of the United Worlds is the result of a fusion of three very different government systems.
The Elven Star Kingdom was a monarchy, controlled by the Elven High King and his Star Chamber, a group of advisors and ministers.
The Warlocks were ruled by a Sorcerers' College that was elected by a vote among all magicians in the coalition.
The Dwarven Guilds were a loose coalition of craftsmens guilds, each of which elected a representative at the Guildmasters' Council.
To accommodate all these governments, the Parliament of Worlds was formed. This ruling body included the full membership of the Star Chamber, the Sorcerers' College and the Guildmasters' Council. The Parliament also added two representatives from each member world. A Consul, roughly equivalent to a president, is elected by a majority vote in the Parliament. So far, the only Consul has been the Elven High King, Silverlight, who has been elected for the past one hundred elections! Silverlight's fairness, charisma and intelligence has made him stand heads and shoulders above all other candidates.
Each member world has to select two representatives. How this is done is left to the individual planet. Some worlds are run by monarchies, dictatorships or oligarchies who simply select the representatives. Others hold democratic elections.
The Elven Star Kingdom was a monarchy, controlled by the Elven High King and his Star Chamber, a group of advisors and ministers.
The Warlocks were ruled by a Sorcerers' College that was elected by a vote among all magicians in the coalition.
The Dwarven Guilds were a loose coalition of craftsmens guilds, each of which elected a representative at the Guildmasters' Council.
To accommodate all these governments, the Parliament of Worlds was formed. This ruling body included the full membership of the Star Chamber, the Sorcerers' College and the Guildmasters' Council. The Parliament also added two representatives from each member world. A Consul, roughly equivalent to a president, is elected by a majority vote in the Parliament. So far, the only Consul has been the Elven High King, Silverlight, who has been elected for the past one hundred elections! Silverlight's fairness, charisma and intelligence has made him stand heads and shoulders above all other candidates.
Each member world has to select two representatives. How this is done is left to the individual planet. Some worlds are run by monarchies, dictatorships or oligarchies who simply select the representatives. Others hold democratic elections.
History
The first civilization to use magic instead of technology to fly spaceships was controlled by elves from the Anvil Galaxy. These so-called "star elves" managed to open Rifts to distant planets. The elves never learned how to build true spaceships; instead, they opened Rifts from one planet to the next, never leaving the atmosphere. Soon their jeweled towers rose in several dozen worlds. Under High King Silverlight (who continues to rule, thousands of years later), the Star Kingdom became a powerful spacefaring culture. Shortly afterwards, they ran into the Warlocks.
The Warlocks were a coalition of techno-wizards, warlocks and ley line walkers of diverse races. They used techno-wizardry to combine high technology and magic to travel between worlds. One of their starships reached a world within the Star Kingdom's domain. To their surprise, they discovered a space-faring civilization that didn't know anything about spaceships! The Star Kingdom elves were amazed at seeing ships that could float in high orbit above them. They quickly realized the advantages an enemy who could control space would enjoy over them and resolved to build their own space fleet. Fortunately, the Warlocks were not interested in conquest. They had occupied a handful of uninhabited worlds, but their main interest was exploration. The Warlock Council and the Elven High King met shortly after the first contact and a treaty of cooperation and mutual assistance was signed. The elves exchanged their Rift creation magicks for techno-wizardry and technology. Elven explorers discovered that ley lines existed in space and that their Rift-drives (described in the vehicle section) were even more effective if they followed those ley lines. Within a decade all the cosmic ley line systems were mapped and used as spacelanes.
The alliance slowly grew. Soon they met other civilizations. To their misfortune, their first neighbor turned out to be a Splugorth dominion. The Splugorth and their minions did not waste any time. An Elven planet was attacked by surprise, its defenders overwhelmed and slaughtered. The planet's entire population was enslaved or killed. The Warlocks and the Elven Star Kingdom rallied their fleets, but they found themselves outnumbered and outgunned by the kittani fleets used by the Splugorth. Although the kittani were not experienced in fighting magic-wielders, their numbers were much greater and their technology roughly equal in power and capabilities. In desperation, the magicians sent pleas for help through the ley lines, hoping somebody out there would come to their rescue.
Somebody did.
In the middle of a major space battle, a planet-sized Rift opened above the combatants. Through the space distortion came a horde of crude starships made of riveted iron and steel, enchanted to resist the hardships of space. The newcomers poured mage-fire and lightning on the surprised Kittani starships. Some of the strange ships' weapons projected mini-Rifts among the enemy, tearing ships apart or transporting them to other dimensions. The elves and warlocks took the opportunity to tear into the Kittani's ranks. The Splugorth minions lost nine-tenths of their ships. The rescuers were dwarves from the other side of the Anvil galaxy. They had heard the call for help and responded. A hurried meeting and treaty soon followed, with the elves and warlocks promising to share their technology in return for a military alliance. The Dwarven Guildmasters agreed and a combined fleet counterattacked and ravaged the Splugorth-controlled worlds, liberating the slaves and running the Splugorth intelligence out of this dimension! In the process, they captured a great deal of new knowledge, including pyramid technology and stone magic (see Rifts Atlantis).
After that victory, the three civilizations and the liberated planets formed the United Worlds of Warlock (UWW). Many other planets have joined them, including a world ruled by True Atlanteans.
The Warlocks were a coalition of techno-wizards, warlocks and ley line walkers of diverse races. They used techno-wizardry to combine high technology and magic to travel between worlds. One of their starships reached a world within the Star Kingdom's domain. To their surprise, they discovered a space-faring civilization that didn't know anything about spaceships! The Star Kingdom elves were amazed at seeing ships that could float in high orbit above them. They quickly realized the advantages an enemy who could control space would enjoy over them and resolved to build their own space fleet. Fortunately, the Warlocks were not interested in conquest. They had occupied a handful of uninhabited worlds, but their main interest was exploration. The Warlock Council and the Elven High King met shortly after the first contact and a treaty of cooperation and mutual assistance was signed. The elves exchanged their Rift creation magicks for techno-wizardry and technology. Elven explorers discovered that ley lines existed in space and that their Rift-drives (described in the vehicle section) were even more effective if they followed those ley lines. Within a decade all the cosmic ley line systems were mapped and used as spacelanes.
The alliance slowly grew. Soon they met other civilizations. To their misfortune, their first neighbor turned out to be a Splugorth dominion. The Splugorth and their minions did not waste any time. An Elven planet was attacked by surprise, its defenders overwhelmed and slaughtered. The planet's entire population was enslaved or killed. The Warlocks and the Elven Star Kingdom rallied their fleets, but they found themselves outnumbered and outgunned by the kittani fleets used by the Splugorth. Although the kittani were not experienced in fighting magic-wielders, their numbers were much greater and their technology roughly equal in power and capabilities. In desperation, the magicians sent pleas for help through the ley lines, hoping somebody out there would come to their rescue.
Somebody did.
In the middle of a major space battle, a planet-sized Rift opened above the combatants. Through the space distortion came a horde of crude starships made of riveted iron and steel, enchanted to resist the hardships of space. The newcomers poured mage-fire and lightning on the surprised Kittani starships. Some of the strange ships' weapons projected mini-Rifts among the enemy, tearing ships apart or transporting them to other dimensions. The elves and warlocks took the opportunity to tear into the Kittani's ranks. The Splugorth minions lost nine-tenths of their ships. The rescuers were dwarves from the other side of the Anvil galaxy. They had heard the call for help and responded. A hurried meeting and treaty soon followed, with the elves and warlocks promising to share their technology in return for a military alliance. The Dwarven Guildmasters agreed and a combined fleet counterattacked and ravaged the Splugorth-controlled worlds, liberating the slaves and running the Splugorth intelligence out of this dimension! In the process, they captured a great deal of new knowledge, including pyramid technology and stone magic (see Rifts Atlantis).
After that victory, the three civilizations and the liberated planets formed the United Worlds of Warlock (UWW). Many other planets have joined them, including a world ruled by True Atlanteans.
Demography and Population
Population Breakdown: 500 billion (estimated)
Elves 20%
Humans 15%
Wulfen 15%
Dwarves 15%
Minotaurs 6%
Ratlings 6%
Others 23% (includes supernatural beings like demons and Elementals, as well as Faeries, dragons, and dozens of other races).
Elves 20%
Humans 15%
Wulfen 15%
Dwarves 15%
Minotaurs 6%
Ratlings 6%
Others 23% (includes supernatural beings like demons and Elementals, as well as Faeries, dragons, and dozens of other races).
Military
The only military force of the UWW is the Warlock Navy, a combined force supported and funded by all member worlds.The Navy is charged only with protecting member planets from outside threats, and with combating piracy and smuggling.
Type
Geopolitical, Magocracy
Alternative Names
UWW
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