The Silver Corp

Full Item Description

The Silver Corp

In a binary star system circled by four dead, scared planets, a shell of asteroids, and one of the largest intrastellar dust clouds on this side of the quadrant the Silvers are one of the strangest and most enigmatic groups not quite known. Their two giant, red, dying suns leave the system cold and foreboding. They accept no strangers, much to the chastisement of those miners lusting after the rich deposits that span the system. Those few who ignore the shrieking klaxons of the warning beacons meet sleek, silver ships, and then; Oblivion.

Of the little known about this reclusive group a few details are assured, they were founded by some insanely rich (and perhaps insane) personage in ages long past, their ships are feared and envied by nearly every spacer alive, and they are the best mercenaries money can buy, provided you can actually afford them.

The silvers were founded by a brilliant, and incredibly wealthy, man of high stature sometime during the third millennia (Sol standard years). They were originally guards, peacekeepers, and law-givers for a large mining and technician group sent as sleepers in those dark, pre FTL (faster-than-light) years. Even at maximum speed it would take forty-three years to reach their destination. And they would have to travel through the lawless expanse of deep space, and all its terrors of pirates, unknown phenomena, and the unspeakable. But for all that mans brilliance he made one terrible and obvious oversight; even with constant age regression treatments and a personal army of medical professionals he would not be alive to see the results of his lucrative business deal, buying an entire untouched solar system, for he was already well into his second century, and medicine can only do so much. Nor could he foresee his death at the hands of a plasma bomb, an event that, with the death of all but a few of the governors of the Terran Consulate, sparked the Sol wars.

All this passed unknown to that brave group of veterans, struggling across space towards their new home, those first years were good to the travelers, what strife there was only served to more tightly knit the disparate band. A command structure beyond that which was assigned to them formed, and as a new brotherhood they first gazed upon their new home, a lush dwarf planet skirting the modest system. The Sleepers were revived, homes built, families raised, and so almost 200 years to the day they left they arrived back at Earth with the first load of processed ore in tow. They were met by an irradiated rock instead. The radiant sapphire and emerald jewel that had been Terra was gone, its oceans evaporated and the land pitted, a milky orb like that of a man gone blind. So they turned around, most not mourning the loss of what, to them, was only a fanciful tale of their forbearers, and began their long journey, Home.

The Sol wars would not have lasted as long as they did, had it not been for the invention of the FTL drive. For nearly three centuries the various clans and cults fought, a new emperor was crowned every day or three, and villainy abounded. Then came the Age of Heroes, the courageous individuals who hunted down the corrupt and restored order to the known regions of space.

It was some time later, after the New Order had formed and trade once again began to flow that the Silvers resurfaced, though not by choice, an unscrupulous bandit with credits, influence, and his own private army of former pirates, conscription rejects, and prison scum wandered across the little planet. He didnt take kindly to being told to go play with your sycophants (though he had no clue what the word meant), so after laying siege to the colony he went to plunder his rich new system, in that cluster of asteroids he learned, first-hand, why not to mess with the Silvers. A few ships escaped the massacre and limped back to Earth with mad tales of thousands of ships attacking the convoy out of nowhere

When the truth finally came out the Silvers were declared a sovereign entity apart from the new government. Today there is a thriving trade of goods and materiel through countless closed mouthed and elusive middlemen, but no ship has ever entered that unnamed system, nor has any of those incredible craft ever fallen into the hands of an Outsider.
The Silver Corp welcomes trade at the dwarf planet circling their system. And while their own name for their system is unknown, System 4881 is now marked as the Sylvan system, for the ability of the Silvers to vanish into their homes, like the elves of myth. Suns 3472/3473 have yet to be named, but most consider the Twins to be a fitting title.
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These ships are listed in ascending order according to weight

Silver Dart

Also known as the Arrowhead this 7-ton reconnaissance scout is rarely seen, and never sees combat, except for at a distance. Rumor has it that assignment on an Arrowhead is greatly unfavorable, and usually given to younger pilots To teach them how to handle spacecraft, and a little patience. The plethora of surveillance and scanning technology stuffed onto the tiny ship leaves little personal space, and the two-hour shifts with the constant beeps and whines of equipment are usually uneventful and enough to bore you to tears. It has little armor and no weapons, not counting the standard scuttle trigger. The vessels main defense is its high speed, it can outrun most enemy ships. There is talk about a robotic version, but nothing confirmed.

Silver Falcon

This 12-ton all around light fighter is one of the Corps mainstays, and as good as its name. Built on a modified delta form it is standardized down to the circuit, but like most of the Corps ships it has modular components for easy modification and repair. It has a composite hull contained within a carbon nanotube geodesic shell, plated with advanced ceramics and coated with a polarized film to help diffuse beam weapons. It is fitted with a customized electro-static field generator and magnetic field projector, and employs rapid fire multi-guns capable of acting as a gauss gun, plasma cannon, missile launcher, and for occasional mine deployment. They are fixed, but the incredible maneuverability and speed of the Falcon make up for the lack of target-tracking turrets. Like its namesake the Falcon is fast and deadly. It is deployed mainly as a patrol vessel, but sees combat in formation and will often escort larger vessels.

Paladin

The Paladin heavy fighter is a four-crew 30-ton multi-gun fighter-killer. A newer development built as protection against the lightly armored single gunned swarms they were recently hired to guard against. Employing only medium armor and rail guns its dual wing-and-fin design is unique among the Silvers fleet.

Predator

This 408-ton stealth killer shows the darker side of the Corp, few ships survive a solitary encounter with one. In fact, only one has ever done so, and only because their bounty was called off. The Predator is an assassin, outfitted with variable frequency laser cannon, heavy rail gun turret, auto tracking particle accelerators, and a full missile array, with multiple redundant hulls and EMP pulse generator. The two crew ship, while less agile than other ships of its size, is self sufficient with all the basic amenities, albeit less than luxurious ones.

Warlord Destroyer

Only remotely recognizable as a destroyer the Warlord has a compound delta frame, superconductor cooled ion cannon with beam splitters, multiple automated defense turrets, full banks of heavy rail guns, and large missile compliments. The computational systems had to be specially enhanced to accommodate the tactical and telemetry programming. It is sluggish, but like a bunker on wheels. Its armor takes up almost half of its 4000-ton weight.

Dreadnought

The Dreadnought is a behemoth, the terror of space, only a few exist, but only a few need to. It serves as spacecraft hangar, repair platform, mobile HQ, and devastating anchorship in any company. Its composite scale hull leaves viewers with the impression of a great viper, ready to strike. In addition to the numerous batteries of every type of weapon imaginable, the opening formed by the coiled frame doubles as a massive rail gun, capable of catapulting entire asteroids.