Phalanx / PHLX

Unity

Over three thousand years ago, on Earth, ancient warfighters in Greece favored a battle formation, called a phalanx. In this formation, men stood so close together that their shields would overlap – allowing each man to protect his brothers on his left and right, and with them form a near impenetrable wall. Courage, discipline and unity were the mortar that gave the phalanx shield-wall the strength to stand against any foe that sought to overwhelm and defeat it.

This unity is the first of the central tenets of our Organization. The men and women fighting on either side of you are your brothers and sisters. You carry each others honor and hold each others lives in your hands.

Purpose

In all the universe, there is no greater source of chaos than human hubris.

Historically, we humans always seek to run before we can walk, to walk before we can crawl, and far too often, our stumbling leaves thousands or millions of bodies in our wake. In more recent times, one of us thought himself capable of ruling the stars, and his hunger for power resulted in xenocide. Now, those who have come after him are so self-righteous and proud they believe a few token gestures to those we have wronged will buy us their forgiveness and goodwill. The Vanduul will undoubtedly view our overtures as weakness – as an invitation to attack. Meanwhile the burden of those overatures weigh our people down like millstones and stir up strife between us. The ‘Verse is filled with pirates, smugglers, alien menaces and all manner of creatures who would do us harm. Chaos abounds.

From that chaos the second of our central tenets emerges: purpose. Our purpose is to be the wall that repels any threat to humanity and its allies. From that wall will fly our banners of courage and discipline, proclaiming safety and security for all mankind.

Strength

Standing together as singular, stalwart unit, dedicated to each other and the purpose before us, we will find strength – of the body, of the mind and of spirit. When other beings cower in the shadow of chaos and death, we will be a beacon of order shining from one end of the universe to the other, and fortune will favor our strength.

Preamble

In order to secure a peaceful and prosperous future for mankind, throughout the galaxy, to provide a beacon of unity and strength for others to follow in this endeavor, and to promote the general welfare of our members and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and those who come after, we do ordain and establish this Charter for the paramilitary organization, Phalanx

Article I – The Legislative Branch

Section 1 – Legius

All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Legius which shall consist of a Tribunal and a Consularium.

Section 2 – Tribunal

One Tribunal member, or Dekatos, will be elected for every 10 Phalanx members, but be no less than 5 members. Elections will be held annually, or in the event of abdication on the last day of the month following abdication. Qualified Tribunal candidates will have obtained a minimum rank in the Organization, to be determined later.

Tribunal members will may organize as they see fit, but must elect a Speaker who will present Policy Initiatives to the Consularium.

The Tribunal shall have the following Powers:

• To set and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defense and general Welfare of the Organization; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the Organization
• To borrow money on the credit of Phalanx.
• To regulate both intra- and inter-Organizational Commerce.
• To declare War.
• To provide and maintain Armed Forces and make Rules for the Government and Regulation thereof.
• To make all Policies which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Charter in the Government of Phalanx, or in any Department or Officer thereof.

No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Policy; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.

Section 3 – Consularium

The Consularium will be comprised of officers, called Consuls, appointed by the Phalanx Triarch.

With a unanimous vote, the Consularium may override a veto from the Triarch.

The Consularium shall have the power to convene temporary courts and appoint judges to adjudicate conflicts, as necessary. Said court(s) shall be disbanded after judgment is rendered.

Each Branch of Phalanx will be represented by two Consuls.

The Triarch will appoint a Vicarius to preside over the Consularium and act as a deciding vote, when necessary.

Section 4 – Policy Process

All Initiatives for raising Revenue shall originate in the Tribunal; but the Consularium may propose or concur with Amendments as on other Initiatives.

Every Initiative which shall have passed the Tribunal and the Consularium, shall, before it become a Policy, be presented to the Triarch of Phalanx; If he approves he shall sign it, but if not he shall either veto the portions he finds objectionable or else return it, with his Objections to that House in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the Objections at large on their Journal, and proceed to reconsider it. In all such Cases the Votes of both Houses shall be determined by Yeas and Nays, and the Names of the Persons voting for and against the Initiative shall be entered on the Journal of each House respectively. If any Initiative shall not be returned by the Triarch within ten Days after it shall have been presented to him, the Same shall be a Policy, in like Manner as if he had signed it.

Article II – The Executive Branch

Section 1 – Triarch

All Executive authority will be vested in a Triarch of Phalanx. The Triarch is thus named as this office is meant to embody and protect the Foundational Principles of “Unity. Purpose. Strength.” The Triarch will hold this Office in perpetuity, or until abdication. If a Triarch abdicates without naming a new successor, the Consularium may nominate a new Triarch with a three-fifths majority vote, and their nominee must to be ratified by a Fifty-One Percent Majority vote in the Tribunal before the new Triarch can be installed. The nominee will serve as acting Triarch until either ratified or replaced with a ratified nominee.

Section 2 – Executive Authority

The Triarch shall be the Commander-in-Chief of the Phalanx Armed Forces, and he shall have Power to Grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against Phalanx.

He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Consularium, to make Alliances, provided a majority of the Consularium concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Consularium, shall appoint Ambassadors and other public Ministers.

He shall have the power to veto any portion or portions of Initiatives presented by the Legius without affecting the other portions of the Initiative presented for signature.

Section 3 – State of the Organization

The Triarch shall from time to time give to the Legius Information of the State of the Organization, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary Occasions, convene both the Tribunal and Consularium, or either of them, and in Case of Disagreement between them, with Respect to the Time of Adjournment, he may adjourn them to such Time as he shall think proper; he shall receive Ambassadors and other public Ministers; he shall take Care that the Policies be faithfully executed, and shall Commission all the Officers of the Phalanx Armed Forces.

Article III – The Branches

All Phalanx members shall belong to a particular branch of the Organization. The Branches shall be:

• Armed Forces
• Trade
• Mining
• Expeditionary

The members of each Branch will elect a number of Dekatoi in proportion to the total population of the Branch.

Members may move freely between Branches, changing their Branch membership to suit their tastes; however, for the purposes of determining the number of Dekatoi, the population of the branch shall be its average in the three months prior to an election.

Each Branch may determine its own form of government or organization, but is responsible for supporting the Organization and following the laws passed by the Legius.

All powers and authority not explicit in this Charter are reserved to the Branches and the Branch Members.

Article IV – Amendment Process

The Legius, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Charter, or, on the Application of three fourths of the Branches, shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes, as part of this Charter, when ratified by three fourths of the Branches, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Legius.

Additionally, the Triarch may convene the Legius for the purpose of providing general or specific amendments to the Charter.