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The United Powers League or UPL, was a former police state on Earth. It was succeeded by the United Earth Directorate.[1]

History[]

The United Powers League was formed on November 22, 2229 following the decline of Western civilization and the seeming break down of society that started in the 22nd century. It succeeded the defunct United Nations and took on the mantle as the defender of humanity. The UPL police-state controlled almost the entire Earth, including close to 93% of the population, excluding a few volatile South American countries.[1]

The UPL sought to enforce conformity in the name of "enlightened socialism." Fascist tactics destroyed ethnic separation and racism. English was imposed as the primary language while other languages were banned. The Unitariate Commissions began, placing most major world religions under an official ban starting in 2231.[2][1]

The UPL successfully developed new advanced forms of technology, reopening many fields of science that had been largely ignored for centuries under the jurisdiction. The UPL developed warp drive and cryonic technologies, opening the frontiers of space; within forty years the UPL had founded colonies on moons and planets in the Solar system.[1]

Project Purification[]

While the UPL embraced the philosophy of "the divinity of mankind," scholars argued that genetic alteration, cyber technology and the use of psychoactive drugs led to the degeneration of the human species. Actions of hard-line members of the UPL resulted in law being enforced which led to launch of Project Purification, its goal to remove mutations and unnecessary cybernetic prosthetics from the human population. Rounding up dissidents, hackers, synthetics, the cybernetically enhanced, tech-pirates, and criminals of every kind; they were determined to ensure mankind's purity and survival as species in the wake of ever increasing cybernetic enhancements and mutations altering human gene pool; "Project Purification" was instituted: a campaign of mass genocide in which over 400 million people were eradicated. Courtesy of the state controlled media, the general populance remained ignorant of the true scope of the genocide being perpetrated. Project Purification lasted for nearly eighty years.[1]

The Long Sleep[]

During this period, a brilliant young scientist named Doran Routhe made plans to consolidate his power within the UPL. His passion lay in colonization of planets outside the Solar System. Thanks to his connections within UPL and some good luck, Routhe managed to get thousands of people captured by UPL as specimens for his project; they were brought in Routhe's secret laboratories with him planning to use them in his project to colonize the outlying world of Gantris VI.[1] These prisoners were deemed expendable.[3]

Routhe and his science team secretly prepared to put the thousands of prisoners in stasis for transport on supercarriers. The lead ship, Nagglfar, was loaded with ATLAS, an artificial intelligence, which processed the data on genetic and cybernetic changes in the prisoners.

ATLAS scanned the prisoners en route, and discovered something unusual about them; a small proportion (less than one percent of the prisoners) possessed a mutant strain which augmented psionic potential. While currently weak, it would manifest in only a few generations. This information was logged and sent back to Earth. Originally the voyage was supposed to last only one year, however, the guidance system of Nagglfar connected with ATLAS failed and all data regarding Gantris VI's and Earth's location were lost.[1]

Doran Routhe's experiments had become known by this time; his reputation was ruined when the ships traveled past Gantris VI. His many enemies chased him to the Centauri colonies.[4]

The ships spent nearly three decades in warp space, eventually emerging into the Koprulu sector[1] in 2259.[5] The involuntary colonists forged their own unique civilizations across the sector.[1]

Political Transformation[]

Although the terran settlers of the Koprulu sector were unaware of it, they were secretly monitored by those who had exiled them. At first the UPL were disinterested observers. They had little interest or incentive in involving themselves with the wayward colonials and the societies established there.

This state of affairs changed when the terrans in the Koprulu sector came into conflict with the protoss and the zerg. The UPL, having never encountered intelligent extraterrestrial life before, and the likeliness of the two powerful alien races attacking Earth and their colonies, resulted in widespread panic.

Recognizing the threat, the few nations that had resisted domination by the UPL now joined in the interests of protection. The resulting changes eventually led to the reformation of the UPL as the United Earth Directorate.[6]

Territories[]

Star Systems/Regions[]

Worlds[]

Notes[]

  • In earlier drafts of StarCraft, the UPL were named the United Earth Government (UEG), and their purification of their enemies was named The Great Purification instead of Project Purification, with more of an aim at social malcontents rather than humanity's purity. In addition, the reason for sending the prisoners into space was the detection of a pulsating energy source at the edge of the galactic rim, and secretly sending prisoners to found civilizations near it.[7]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Underwood, Peter, Bill Roper, Chris Metzen and Jeffrey Vaughn. StarCraft (Manual). Irvine, Calif.: Blizzard Entertainment, 1998.
  2. Hickman, Tracy (May 21, 2002). StarCraft: Speed of Darkness. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). ISBN 0-671-04150-9.
  3. Race: Terran, Blizzard Entertainment. Accessed on 2010-12-05.
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 Chris Metzen, StarCraft Legacy staff. 2009-04-03. SC:L Metzen Interview - Lore Exclusive. StarCraft Legacy. Accessed 2009-05-18.
  5. April 6, 2010. "Timeline." StarCraft II: Heaven's Devils. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). pp. 311 - 323. ISBN 978-1416-55084-6.
  6. Underwood, Peter, Chris Metzen and Bill Roper. StarCraft: Brood War (Manual). Irvine, Calif.: Blizzard Entertainment, 1998.
  7. Chris Metzen, StarCraft Legacy staff. 1998. The Roots of Intergalactic Conflict. GameInformer. Accessed 2022-08-05.
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