Enlightened

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The architects of the Dystopian Age, the Covenant of the Enlightened wield their formidable intellects to sweep aside those ignorant or deluded who stand in the way of Scientific Progress. These masters of technology covet knowledge above all things and believe that it is only they who can steer humanity on a path to enlightenment. With their wondrous war-engines, the Covenant of the Enlightened take every opportunity to demonstrate their technological supremacy. The discoveries that were intended to herald a new era for humanity are instead used to punish those who would misuse them. Only when the Covenant are lauded as the rightful leaders of the Earth, can the world be brought into a new dawn of achievement and prosperity.

A flagship of the Enlightened fleet, Vault ships were conceived as massive floating platforms to deploy their larger engineering and scientific marvels. In this manner, the Archimedes class is usually fitted with either a Callimachus Chrono-Lathe or Diophantus Chaos-Orb, both so intricate and sophisticated in their crafting that like much that is not understood in the Dystopian Age, they are considered magical by the uneducated..

Other fleets are centered around the graceful, and superbly equipped Nansen Explorer. Designed for long voyages far from friendly ports, with extensive laboratories, training facilities and cartographic equipment. The Nansen class is in many ways the ultimate expression of Covenant naval ambitions.

When negotiations between the Factions of the Dystopian Age break down or when only conflict will settle a dispute fleets clash. This can happen anywhere across the globe and in the heat of battle many a Captain has been caught out by a sandbank or tidal Island. Some larger islands even have modest fortresses and gun emplacements built on them to add protection to the secrets and supplies that lie within.

The first Hypatia Class vessel produced was the prototype named The Prometheus. This ship was stolen by the Commonwealth Agent Helsinki Markov. Despite a desperate hunt, The Prometheus was never recovered. Despite this setback, Hypatia Class Generator ships were already in production by that point and the first production ship of the class, The Hypatia, was fitted out ready for service. Now several years on from the Markov scandal, the Hypatia class has established itself as one of the most versatile ships available to the Enlightened. Not only does it carry significant firepower but the ultra-efficient engines and superconductors allow it to also operate three specially overcharged generators. This gives the Generator Ship and its fleet a huge amount of options. The support ships that escort Hypatia Class vessels and other large ships fill some often more specialist roles. The Plinius Support Carrier carries dozens of Scythe Drones and can launch them from hydraulic ramps. This allows the Plinius to partially submerge when the ramps are closed making it very difficult to see and target. Built around the same hull as the Plinius are a number of other Cruisers. The Quintilian bombardment cruiser mounts heavy rockets that it can launch at distant targets before returning below the waves. The Tacitus Assault Cruiser favours two hardpoints for turrets, most often Particle Beamers. The Claudius Merchantman is designed with extra hull space and is the backbone of Enlightened logistics, the ingenious engineers still managing to squeeze in a number of torpedo launchers to protect them from pirates and other hostiles. While these Cruisers are able to lurk just below the surface the Diogenese and Praxilla Class Submarines are able to operate at significant depths. These large Automata operate under a number of pre-pro2med subroutines and are effective at hunting down and destroying enemy vessels.

The Covenant of the Enlightened see themselves as both pioneers and the leading authority in the spheres of science and engineering. Uninterested in mere nationhood, this globe-spanning organisation considers the whole world to be their purview. Dismissing petty politics and squabbles they instead focus on the purity of developing anything they can for the greater uplifting of humanity. Discoveries in bionics have enabled peers in that field to influence the behaviour of a number of intelligent animals such as apes, birds, whales and dolphins. The creation of Physeter constructs from sperm whales is by far the largest of these undertakings. Usually they are employed as scouts or observers, bringing advanced warning of approaching enemies. Alternatively, once suitably equipped with a variety of weaponry they can be encouraged to make coordinated ambushes against agreed targets. During a battle, the Physeter Constructs are maintained and deployed from Control Ships such as the Descartes Class. These large, battleship-sized vessels boast advanced weaponry and are crewed by dedicated nautical engineers to further the cause of science. Even with the Physeter Constructs and batteries of Particle Beamers, the Descartes still need the support of smaller, faster ships. The Enlightened most commonly deploy Lovelace Class cruisers, but also outfit a number of different specifications. The Antarctica Class Superiority Cruiser, not only has a pair of Particle Beamers but also a devastating Heavy Particle Cannon. The Chatelet Class and the Ulysses Class are equipped with a small number of Scythe class fighters for reconnaissance and support, while the Stiletto Class relies on speed to get them in and out of engagements fast. The armed forces of the Covenant of the Enlightened are entirely composed of paid volunteers and are therefore few in number. The technological superiority of the Enlightened makes up for this with automation. Many of the smaller vessels in the Enlightened fleet are virtually crewless automatons loaded with sophisticated routines and reactions. This significantly cuts down on the crew needed for the navy as a whole. The Germain Class Zebek and Merian Class Frigate are two such vessels that are seen in squadrons alongside the larger vessels.

After Helsinki Markov's treachery stole the Prometheus away from its creators there has been a bitter rivalry between the Covenant of the Enlightened and the Commonwealth. Certain Peers of the Enlightened have decided to make an example of the Commonwealth for such an audacious heist and show that they have as much military influence as any of the Great Powers. As for the Okhrana, the Commonwealth Intelligence Service, they hope for more secrets of the age to be unlocked by luring the various automata and advanced enemy vessels into engagements that they can't hope to escape from. With the plan of dissecting any captured inventions for reverse engineering.

With the help of Mongolian offshore platforms and a web of false leads, the Okhrana have orchestrated for an Enlightened battlefleet to be in place for an ambush. The Commonwealth now has engineering marvels of their own in the shape of Vitruvian Colossi. Will the Enlightened fall for the trap or have the Commonwealth bitten off more than they can chew?

The architects of the Dystopian Age, the Covenant of the Enlightened wield their formidable intellects to sweep aside those ignorant or deluded who stand in the way of Scientific Progress. These masters of technology covet knowledge above all things and believe that it is only they who can steer humanity on a path to enlightenment. With their wondrous war-engines, the Covenant of the Enlightened take every opportunity to demonstrate their technological supremacy. The discoveries that were intended to herald a new era for humanity are instead used to punish those who would misuse them. Only when the Covenant are lauded as the rightful leaders of the Earth in this new Dystopian Age can the world be brought into a new dawn of achievement and prosperity.

The support ships that escort the Flagship vessels of the Enlightened Fleets fill some very specialist roles. The Plinius Support Carrier carries dozens of Scythe Drones and can launch them from hydraulic ramps. This allows the Plinius to partially submerge when the ramps are closed making it very difficult to see and target. Built around the same hull as the Plinius are a number of other Cruisers. The Quintilian bombardment cruiser mounts heavy rockets that it can launch at distant targets before returning below the waves. The Tacitus Assault Cruiser favours two hardpoints for turrets, most often Particle Beamers. The Claudius Merchantman is designed with extra hull space and is the backbone of Enlightened logistics, the ingenious engineers still managing to squeeze in a number of torpedo launchers to protect them from pirates and other hostiles.

While these Cruisers are able to lurk just below the surface the Diogenese and Praxilla Class Submarines are able to operate at significant depths. These large Automata operate under a number of pre-programmed subroutines and are effective at hunting down and destroying enemy vessels.