The Blackstar Marauders [INTG] - Organizations

History

The Blackstar Marauders was founded in 2946 as a small group of hearty space-farers. It was founded by three brothers and one cousin. They are believed to be collateral descendants of Archibald Hurston, sharing a common Anglo-Scottish ancestry. Despite this, they share no love for the “family of dictators” and despise the United Empire of Earth (UEE) for selling off planets to corporate interests. While they participate in smuggling and piracy, they follow a code of honor. Their modus operandi is to take fare only from the wealthy who benefit from the property rights bestowed by the UEE.

The Blackstar Marauders seek a new frontier where they can base their operations and form an organized militia in defense of the encroaching corporations and Empire. Their ultimate goal is to establish a democratic confederacy that heavily relies on the resources of the black market, with little to no regulations. Their inner circle is said to be shrouded in esoterism and superstition. This inner circle has a great affinity for exploring derelict sites, recovering ancient alien artifacts, and discovering remnants of alien civilizations.

Overall, they value camaraderie, glory, and altruism. Any riches or spoils that are acquired are divided amongst the group for the betterment of each individual member. Philanthropic pursuits are regarded with honor and are used as a way to bring people into the fold. It is implied that when an outsider is in distress, they will rush to their aid. They do not force nor expect people to join their cause, it is simply an offer of goodwill.

Manifesto

Preface

The Blackstar Marauders, an intergalactic association of humanitarians, which could of course be only a secret one, under conditions obtaining at the time, commissioned us, the undersigned, at the Congress held in Hurston in May 2946, to write for publication a detailed theoretical and practical program for the organization. Such was the origin of the following manifesto, the manuscript of which travelled to Hurston to be printed.

Preamble

A specter is haunting Stanton — the specter of benevolence. All the powers of old Stanton have entered into a holy alliance to exorcise this specter: Imperator and Sole Proprietor.

Where is the party in opposition that has not been decried as treasonous by its opponents in power? Where is the opposition that has not hurled back the branding reproach of our organization, against the more advanced opposition parties, as well as against its reactionary adversaries?

Two things result from this fact:

I. The Blackstar Marauders is already acknowledged by all powers to be itself a power.

II. It is high time that The Blackstar Marauders should openly, in the face of the whole world, publish their views, their aims, their tendencies, and meet this nursery tale of the specter of benevolence with a manifesto itself.

To this end, we have assembled in Hurston to sketch the following manifesto, to be printed in English, Banu, Xi’an, and Vanduul.

The Oppressors and the Oppressed

The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of dominance.

Freeman and slave, patrician and plebeian, lord and serf, guild-master and journeyman, in a word, oppressor and oppressed, stood in constant opposition to one another, carried on an uninterrupted, now hidden, now open fight, a fight that each time ended, either in a revolutionary reconstitution of society at large, or in the common ruin of the contending classes.

Our epoch, the epoch of the oppressor, possesses, however, this distinct feature: it has simplified class antagonisms. Society as a whole is more and more splitting up into two great hostile camps, into two great classes directly facing each other — Oppressor and Oppressed.

The development of modern industry, therefore, cuts from under its feet the very foundation on which the oppressors produce and appropriates products. What the oppressors therefore produces, above all, are its own grave-diggers. Its fall and the victory of the downtrodden are equally inevitable.

The time is nigh to obliterate these dynamics by a forceful appropriation to the downtrodden; to undercut the clans of wealth which have been built on sand. A new dawn is breaking in which the once-feeble will be remade with sinew of stone and stand armored with a new collective of resolute opposition.

Charter

Articles of Agreement

I. Every man has a vote in affairs of moment; has equal title to the spoils at any time seized, and may use them at pleasure, unless a scarcity (not an uncommon thing among them) makes it necessary, for the good of all, to vote a retrenchment.

II. Keep ships and armaments clean and fit for service.

III. To desert the ship or quarters in battle, is to punished by marooning with one morsel, one bottle of water, and a sidearm.

IV. No striking or bickering at one another on board, but every man’s quarrels may be handled at docking.

V. All members of a crew are to spread their spoils, or the value thereof (If a prize is unable to split), equally amongst the crew.

VI. If any man may encounter the misfortune of losing a limb or suffering a near fatal injury in time of engagement, funds shall be appropriated for replacement or treatment.

VII. Quarters and provisions shall be given to any man who craves them.

VIII. He that shall be guilty of disorderly conduct in time of engagement shall stand trial against the crew members and they will provide a punishment based on a majority vote.

IX. No firing of guns aboard is permitted unless the vessel has been boarded by adversaries.

X. Taking fare from any but the affluent is to be punished with immediate disassociation.

XI. A crew must elect a captain to man a vessel and enforce the Articles of Agreement with a simple majority of votes.

XII. When a bystander is in need, it is the responsibility of the crew members to aid them and offer them a place aboard (exempting those who may be deemed a threat).