The Systems Alliance is the representative body of Earth and all human colonies in Citadel space. Backed by Earth's most powerful nations, the Alliance has become humanity's military, exploratory and economic spearhead. While the Alliance is relatively new to the galactic community, it has already made a name for itself, gaining humans an embassy in the Presidium. The Alliance is governed by a parliament based at Arcturus Station.
History
In 2148, a mining team on Mars made perhaps humanity's greatest discovery. After investigating the 'Bermuda Triangle'-like reputation of the southern pole, the team unearthed the subterranean ruins of an ancient alien research station, revealing incontrovertible proof of the existence of alien life. Humanity was no longer alone in the universe.
The impact was profound in all areas of human culture, but nowhere more so than religion. New beliefs sprang up overnight such as the Interventionary Evolutionists, who zealously proclaimed the discovery as proof that all human history had been directed and controlled by alien forces. Even established religions struggled to explain extraterrestrial life. Some tried to incorporate this newfound knowledge into their dogma, while a few tried to stubbornly deny the evidence found on Mars.
The news of the discovery dominated the media and raised questions not only about the existence and purpose of man, but questions about the aliens themselves. Foremost, were they still out there? While these questions had served to fracture most religions they had a unifying effect in politics. Rather than nations fighting each other over their differences, it was now 'us vs. them' and the foundations of a united human front were laid.
Within a year of the discovery, Earth's eighteen largest nations had drafted and ratified the Systems Alliance charter, establishing a representative political body to expand and defend human territory. Shortly thereafter, the various nations of Earth pooled their military resources to create the Systems Alliance Military. The same year, 2156, the Alliance discovered the Sol system's mass relay orbiting Pluto, previously thought to be a moon, Charon. The Charon Relay propelled them into space and the reach of humanity grew quickly.
The Alliance began a rapid campaign of expansion, establishing numerous colonies and constructing a large military fleet, even though it had yet to encounter another species. Maintaining this expansion policy, the Alliance activated all the mass relays it could find. Eight years later, humanity made first contact. A scout fleet consisting of three frigates and two cargo vessels, trying to activate a mass relay, encountered a turian patrol fleet. Only one of the human ships made it back to Shanxi. The resulting First Contact War was relatively short and bloodless, lasting only months and costing 623 human lives (with a slightly higher number of turian casualties). The Citadel Council intervened and negotiated a peace. With the discovery of the Citadel and the greater community, humanity leapt onto the galactic stage.
Since then, the Alliance has continued its expansion, coming into conflict with the batarians as both species rushed to settle the Skyllian Verge, and maintaining a careful truce with the turians. The Alliance has also been granted an Embassy on the Citadel. It has been speculated that, given humanity's remarkably fast rise in terms of military, political, and economic power, that the Systems Alliance may soon be invited to join the Citadel Council. This has been a source of some concern to several other species.
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“This mission just got a lot more complicated.” — Spoilers for Mass Effect follow. |
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In one possible ending of Mass Effect, the Systems Alliance is judged to have shown itself worthy and receives a Council seat. However, in one of the Renegade endings, the destruction of most of the Citadel Fleet during the attack on the Citadel puts the Systems Alliance in a position of unexpected military superiority, which they use to gain full command of the Citadel species.
Timeline
- 2149 CE - The Systems Alliance charter is signed.
- 2157 CE - The First Contact War begins - a peace is soon negotiated by the Citadel Council.
- 2163 CE - C-Sec accepts its first Alliance officers.
- 2165 CE - The Alliance is granted an embassy on the Citadel. Anita Goyle is elected as ambassador. Later this year, the Alliance is censured for conducting illegal AI research at Sidon.
- 2178 CE - A decisive victory over the batarians at Torfan frees the Alliance to expand in the Skyllian Verge.
- 2183 CE - As a gesture of reconciliation, the Alliance and the turians co-operate to build a prototype frigate, the SSV Normandy. Commander Shepard becomes the first human Spectre.
Military
The Alliance military is respected by the Citadel races for its novel tactics and technology (and not least for the fact the First Contact War had more turian than human casualties). Their strength lies in fire support, flexibility, and speed. The Council regards the Alliance as a "sleeping giant" as only 3% of humans volunteer for military service. They make up for low numbers with sophisticated technical support (VIs, drones, artillery, electronic warfare) and emphasis on mobility and individual initiative. Their military doctrine is not based on absorbing and dishing out heavy shocks like the turians and krogans. Rather, they bypass enemy strong points and launch deep into their rear, cutting supply lines and logistics, destroying headquarters and support units, leaving enemies to 'wither on the vine'.
On defense, the Alliance military lives by Sun Tzu's maxim "He who tries to defend everything defends nothing" keeping only a small garrisons on their colonies. Garrisons are intended for scouting rather than combat, avoiding engagement to observe and report on invaders using drones. However the Alliance stations powerful fleets at phase gate nexuses so that in the event of a attack they respond with overwhelming force. The Hahne-Kedar company and Aldrin Labs are key suppliers of the military. All soldiers receive genetic enhancements for improved strength and stamina. The Alliance also recruits biotics, who are trained using techniques developed at BAaT (originally run by Conatix Industries). The new L3 biotic implants are considered a significant step forward in biotic amplification.
The Alliance maintains an impressive navy, though it is only entitled to a small number of dreadnoughts, partly due to the Treaty of Farixen limiting their number of them, compared to the turians or the asari. Arcturus Station, as a key installation with several mass relays leading to human territory, is heavily defended.
Military Ranks
- Main article: Systems Alliance Military Ranks
The Systems Alliance uses a modified version of the ranking system that has been used for hundreds of years. Soldiers are classified into rank-and-file enlisted personnel, experienced non-commissioned officers (NCOs), and specially trained officers.
The divide between naval personnel and ground forces (‘marines’) is small. Ground forces are a specialized branch of the fleet, just as fighter squadrons are. This unity of command is imposed by the futility of fighting without control of orbit; without the navy, any army is pointless. The marines, as a matter of pride, maintain some of their traditional rank titles; for example, marines have Privates and Corporals instead of Servicemen.
See also: Notable Alliance personnel.
Economy
The Alliance has quickly become a key player in the galactic economy, with several large corporations taking their market share:
- Sirta Foundation - inventors of medi-gel who also found cures for many human genetic diseases
- Rosenkov Materials - one of the premier armor manufacturers in Citadel space
- Kassa Fabrication - known for making excellent but expensive body armor
- ExoGeni Corporation - specialists in adapting and redeveloping alien technologies (often founding colonies like Feros, on the condition that the colonists then 'treasure-hunt' for artifacts)
- Ariake Technologies - an electronics developer best known for their high grade omni-tools.
Alliance designers were responsible for many of the Normandy's innovations, including her impressive Tantalus Drive Core. The Alliance is now also a trade partner of the turians. Although humans have claimed many systems in the Attican Traverse and the Skyllian Verge, many of them contain rich resources which have not been fully surveyed, so the Alliance Geological Service (AGeS) offers bounties to those willing to explore these frontiers. The Alliance's various national treasuries are linked to the Citadel's credit network.
Known member worlds and installations
- Amaterasu - is an Alliance world named after the Japanese sun goddess.
- Arcturus - the massive and well-defended Alliance space station, at the convergence of three mass relays
- Chasca - tidally locked world with a habitable band near the terminator
- Earth - home planet/capital (currently governed by President Huerta)
- Eden Prime - the Alliance's first and most successful colony
- Elysium - the largest Alliance colony in the Skyllian Verge
- Feros - a new colony founded on a ruined Prothean metropolis
- Gagarin Station - also known as Jump Zero, a remote research facility
- Mindoir - an agricultural colony in the Attican Traverse
- Proteus - ocean world with an underwater colony
- Shanxi - a colony near turian space
- Sidon - small Alliance research facility in the Skyllian Verge
- Terra Nova - a successful industrial planet and the Alliance's second major colony
- Therum - industrial world in the Artemis Tau Cluster