This information is provided for the edification of potential players. Blatant mistakes in continuity are all Johanna's fault and she asks that you bear with her. The History of Steincorp Maxwell Stein was born on Earth in 2206, the second son of the wealthy industrialist, Heinrich Stein. Within a very short time, Maxwell demonstrated that he had inherited his father’s business acumen, and much more ambition.  Steincorp’s first incarnation was as Martian Ores, Inc – founded in 2228. Mr. Stein was one of hundreds optimists who pioneered the mining of the asteroid belt in the early 2030’s. However, only a few of those optimists became rich doing so, and Maxwell was near the top of that short list. He credited a specialization in rare metals – high overhead, but higher profit – rather than blast and strip-mining for iron and tin, which quickly glutted the market.  Mr. Stein quickly leveraged the wealth from Martian Ores into Steincorp, Inc. The company was incorporated on the planet Soraith – a member of the League of Unaligned Worlds – in the year 2240. Mr. Stein has been stubbornly reticent as to his reasons for that particular maneuver. Soraith is known for having a notoriously flexible revenue service and that has been widely accredited as to why Steincorp has its HQ there, rather than on Maxwell Stein’s native Earth.  Steincorp grew quickly, winning concessions on several Terran colonies and uninhabited planets belonging to several governments, as well as continuing the practice of mining roving asteroids. In the past five years, the rate has decreased, but the quarterly earning figures continue to inspire confidence in investors.  Steincorp’s most notable upset occurred just four years ago when the company tried to establish itself as a manufacturer of metal goods – a natural extension of its mining and refining operations. Unfortunately, Maxwell Stein proved to have very little grasp on popular style and, combined with fierce competition from several established firms, Stein Metal Products quietly closed shop during its sixth quarter of operations.  Any public gloating about the failure of SMP was overshadowed by the simultaneous purchase of the former Centaurii planet, Meraii, which orbits Orion Seven. Despite a toxic atmosphere, the Centauri government had long held high-hopes for mining Meraii for the rich resources satellite recons determined were present. However, mining in such harsh conditions is a particularly expensive enterprise and, following the Narn Uprising, the Centauri government reluctantly conceded that they could not afford to proceed. Steincorp purchased rights to the entire planet – something almost unheard of – effectively making it his personal property. But with an atmosphere of methane and a surface temperature of 140 degrees Fahrenheit, it’s not as if he’s going to be establishing a personal kingdom there at any time.  Utilizing experience already hard-won on half a dozen hostile worlds, Steincorp invested a significant amount of capital into durable equipment and hiring the best mining veterans he could find. In order to minimize expenses, raw ores are taken from the surface of Meraii to an orbital space station – also Steincorp property – and refined there. Even the cost of a fleet of ore-carriers and a dedicated space-station would be less, over the long run, than maintaining a refinery on or beneath the surface of Meraii. As evinced by the disaster of BHP’s refinery on Venus, underground operations carry their own, unique hazards.   The investment paid off. Meraii has proven rich in much-needed materials, including mercury, uranium, thorium (needed for nuclear power), Germanium (for superconductors and chemotherapy) as well as several other rare gases and compounds. Mr. Stein is certain there are significant natural gas and oil deposits beneath the surface of Meraii, but the easy availability of such things on other planets makes the cost of drilling prohibitive.  Currently, Steincorp is a publicly traded company, with a market cap of five billion credits and a liquidity of three hundred million credits. It employs over fifty thousand beings, scattered across the galaxy. Politics - Occupying a Gray Area. Steincorp Station is private property – not the property of some government. All non-Steincorp employees are on the station by permission of Maxwell Stein. That permission may be revoked at any time. Just eight months ago, Mr. Stein summarily told the representative of the League of Non-aligned Worlds that her assistant was no longer welcome on the station. Mr. Stein is the soul of discretion and wouldn’t divulge the reasons but rumor has it that the dismissed administrator had been caught hacking into Steincorp’s database. Earth Alliance has enthusiastically embraced Steincorp’s offer to fulfill the ongoing need for a relatively neutral meeting ground. In return for Maxwell Stein’s hospitality, the Earth Alliance has taken over the onerous task of providing security for the station – which is of a much higher standard than is found on other Steincorp facilities – and several other aspects of station operations. A squadron of Star Furies has also been placed aboard the station, although they have not been used for anything beyond routine patrols and the occasional rescue of a ship in distress. A tentative balance exists between Steincorp and the Earth Alliance. The Earth government needs to appear sincerely dedicated to the idea of peace and peaceful negotiation, so it makes use of Steincorp’s offer – despite the resulting implications about the stability of the Babylon Project. They are careful to not tread on Steincorp’s administrative toes, but some overlapping has been impossible to avoid. Officially, Steincorp can ask the Earth Alliance to leave at any time, but that would leave him with having to handle the extremely complex security and environmental requirements of the resident Representatives. The departure of the Earth Alliance would almost certainly result in all Representatives leaving the Station, as they are reluctant to entrust their security to a private corporation – and the departure of the Earth Alliance would effectively remove the EA’s (unofficial) seal of approval of this entire venture. Maxwell Stein has agreed to adhere to certain political conventions – primarily because his guests wouldn’t function without them. Each race which chooses to send an Ambassador is allowed a dedicated area of the station, which is considered sovereign territory and treaty as a regular embassy would be. Ambassadors are allowed to bring their own security force to keep within their embassy, and a ‘ceremonial guard’ for their entry/exit points. The sovereignty of these embassies has never been challenged. Orion Seven and Surrounding Space One of the most remote of the Centaurii Republic’s possessions, Meraii is a planet that would have languished in anonymity if not for its mineral wealth. The aging yellow primary of the system – Orion Seven itself - is given to fits of solar pique, manifesting in flares and photonic outbursts that are a source of delight for astronomers and deep-seated paranoia for any pilot trying to navigate through the system. A jumpgate has been installed, but it has been recognized risky to use. Soon after installation, it was discovered that nearly a third of all ship using the gate would suffer structural damage upon re-entering normal space. That damage could range for merely vexing to outright fatal. Maxwell Stein faced censure by his own employees when an incoming company freighter almost totally disintegrated upon emerging from the dedicated jumpgate, killing all thirty crewmen. Astronomical engineers are still trying to pin down the exact cause, but the prime suspect is Orion Seven’s proximity and the sheer frequency of its fluctuations. Regardless of the cause, gating to this system is considered very risky. Most people coming to the station – including Maxwell Stein himself, prefer to ‘gate to Proxima and travel through conventional space. Typically, this can take up to three days, as Orion Seven’s system is banded by several diffuse asteroid belts which make entering the system a little trickier than a routine flight. Steincorp has established dozens of navigation buoys, but all pilots know not to depend on someone else’s data – well, the ones who live to be old space pilots think that way. Three other planets orbit Orion Seven. They are all cold gas giants – similar to Neptune – all orbiting more than 500 million miles beyond the system’s primary star. Meraii and Steincorp Station orbit Orion Seven at 170 million miles There is a planetoid, dubbed “The Rock” by Steincorp locals, which orbits Orion Seven at a scant 40 million miles (closer than Mercury is to the Sun). It is a blasted, airless rock, barely 2,000 miles in diameter. Astronomers like to observe this planet, as the abuse it endures from its primary will tear it apart within 200 years, and astronomers love that sort of thing. Maxwell Stein, meanwhile, isn’t quite so phlegmatic about the situation, although he’s not going to start worrying about it just yet. Return to Game Description