An advanced species that has possessed starfaring capability since the twenty-first century, the Mon'dabi long ago realized they could not, by them selves, stand against the violently aggressive Ackalians - and neither could any of their neighbors, all of whom were potential slave races for the Acka lians. Seeking protection from a powerful enemy, as well as expanded trade, the Mondabi Union (their homeworld, Monda, plus several Mon'dabi, colonies) negotiated with 42 other species, worlds, and governments. After three standard years of diplomatic exchanges, they all joined together in the Mon'dabi Federation in 2205.
Although Federation politics can become highly contentious, no dispute has ever reached the point of violent conflict or secession (which the Compact of Federation allows). The economic, military, and scientific benefits accruing to each member species remain too great for any minor disagreement to sever the Federation. Federation members range from individual nations on Mon'da (which has never had a unified world government), to numerous unified worlds, to the Rim League (which controls two dozen star systems). Long ago the Federation established limits on membership, so potential members must place themselves under the control of one of the original 42 member states.
Under the Compact of Federation, the Federation has relatively little control over the actions of any given member. The Compact concerns itself more with mutual matters of trade and defense. In most cases federal law cannot override local planetary law. Member worlds cannot unilaterally declare war, but can conduct covert campaigns of destabilization and economic warfare against non-Federation entities.
To govern the Federation as a whole, the Compact establishes a Federation Parliament. Each member state sends one Delegate to the Parliament, and the Delegates elect from among their number a President (as of 2640, Krodel Stenur) who fulfills the executive function. The Parliament also establishes and appoints personnel to various branches of the government, such as the Department of Trade, Department of Internal Relations, Department of Military Affairs, and Department of Justice.
Although personally often aggressive, the Moridabi as a species have little desire to rule over aliens. They have never conquered anyone, and the many non-Moridabi members of the Federation all joined willingly. But they and many other Federation members like to expand through colonization, and often compete (in a more or less friendly fashion) among themselves to see who can find and colonize a planet first. (The Federation has established extensive and elaborate regulations on this subject to prevent disputes.)
As aggressive traders as they are explorers, the Moridabi do a lot of business in Terran space. Always looking for new markets and sources of supply, they prefer to secure a monopoly in the areas where they trade. The less scrupulous among them may use threats of force, arranged "accidents;' and "random pirate attacks" to achieve commercial dominance in a region, though of course they don't try those tactics in Terran space.
The Moridabi Federation and the Terran Empire maintain strong relations thanks to their alliance during the Galactic War, their mutual interest in opposing the Ackalian Empire, and extensive trade ties.
Under the terms of the Compact, Federation member states cannot operate military forces except during times of war as declared by the Federation Parliament. To patrol the entire Federation and react to external threats, Parliament established the Federated Command. Each member species or world contributes funds to maintain the Federated Command, which the Department of Military Affairs allocates as it sees fit.
Federated Command favors cruisers and other light, long-range starships. Primarily tasked with piracy suppression, border patrol, search-and-rescue, and exploration, these ships often accompany trade missions as "escorts'- which gives the Moridabi crews experience at operations beyond Federation space and lets them scout out other governments' defenses. Within Moridabi space, one also encounters ships of the member states, typically short-range heavy combat units or police patrol vessels
Federated Command has a spaceborne army unit analogous to the Imperial Marines - the Sheh'kar Vylyr, or "Starborn Warriors." Equipped with sophisticated battlesuits and powerful plasma weapons, they're a match for any elite force in the Galaxy.
For centuries the Moridabi Federation resisted organizing a centralized intelligence-gathering agency, preferring to leave espionage and covert operations
to the spy agencies of the member states. During the Galactic War the inefficiency and confusion of multiple agencies sometimes working at cross-purposes finally convinced the Federation to change course. Federation members still operate their own counter-espionage services, but Federated Intelligence controls all intelligence-gathering and officially-sanctioned covert operations. FI agents work closely with Moridabi business interests in a mutually profitable partnership - FI passes along trade secrets and economic data to businesses, and in exchange traders file reports with III and agents about things they learn while conducting business.
Some of the more important or interesting of the 42 members of the Moridabi Federation include:
The smallest member of the Federation is the Republic of Anfdona, a nation of 80 million on Mon'da. Despite its size, Andona ranks among the richest of member states thanks to its relentlessly probusiness laws and policies. Nearly all the Federations large interstellar corporations have their headquarters in Andona, and the republic aggressively supports economic expansion in all directions.
Andona's government consists of a single Chieftain and a legislature known as the Board of Governance. All of these officials gain their posi tions by purchase; essentially, Andona eliminates corruption by institutionalizing it. Corporations and political syndicates raise vast sums every eight years to make the winning bids, and the money goes into the national treasury, thus keeping taxes low.
A large Earthlike world once controlled by the Xenovores, Kdathar joined the Federation about a century ago. The Kadathari, a humanoid species descended from pack felines, have become valued members of the Federation due to their adventurous spirit and willingness to work with others. Many of them join the Federated Command or participate in exploratory or colonization missions.
The Nine Worlds Kingdom, a hereditary monarchy spanning three densely-settled star systems, has the greatest population of any Federa tion member. Although located near the heart of Mondabi space, the Nine Worlds lag behind other members economically, thanks partly to the social needs of the populace and partly to government policies. The King, an isolationist, wants to restrict trade beyond the Federation's borders.
The largest member state in size as of 2640, the Rim League includes 26 star systems on the rimward side of the Federation with a total of 49 settled planets. It has five different sentient species within its sphere of influence. A republic governed by an elected President who appoints legislators for life, the League has a vigorous economy and continues to create new colonies in key rimward systems. The current President, Hugagli Ttegha val ni Chdac of the Hlaboth species, favors stronger ties and greater cooperation with the Terran Empire.
The Union of An'barna, a group of relatively young Mondabi colonies, spans 11 star systems on the coreward side of Mon'dabi space. The most militarily aggressive member of the Federation due to its proximity to the Ackalian Empire, Arfbarna contributes large sums of money to the Federated Command and requires all citizens ages 16-24 to serve in its planetary military (one of the largest in the Federation).
The Imperial Destiny Party, a group that believes the Mon'dabi should emulate the Ackalians and Terrans in conquering other species and estab lishing an empire, rules Arfbarna. It has numerous intelligence operatives active in Terran space, despite the efforts of both the TSS and Federated Intelligence.