Quarian Development Thread

Alright, after having a little brainstorm in the IRC about the development of the quarians, I figured it would be worthwhile to jot down a few ideas in the new board made specifically for it. So, without further ado:

Government
Following the aftermath of the reaper invasion, and the subsequent upheavals brought about with a significant amount of change for the former migrant fleet.

First and foremost would be the dissolution of the conclave; This isn't done out of any malice of lust for power insomuch as being obsoleted: The majority of the quarian populations being settled planetside along with the loss of a lot of captains have rendered it mostly moot. So far, the quarians are under de-facto and de-jure military dictatorship/junta, with the admirals the heads of state/government.

And this point, I haven't thought of any potential system to be installed, which is open to discussion (And there isn't any time limit to it either, as unlike SATAE, the admiralty isn't under any agreement to restore any particular form of government.

[More potentially to come]

Military
Militarily, the quarians have a lot of things working against them: War exhaustion from both the reaper invasion, and the evening war, a large amount off their fleet destroyed and their relative frailty.

In order to somewhat rectify their shortcomings in this regards, a few changes would likely be introduced in order to reinforce their backbone.

The main change would be the introduction of mandatory naval service. While the most apparent benefit of this is a much larger pool of manpower for their fleets, it does carry the potential to keep their famed starship expertise a reality (Could be phased better, but they would have an interest on keeping that skillset as high as it could be).

Another big change would be the division of the Migrant fleet marines into proper military and police institutions. This step is an important step in transitioning from a military state to a civilian one, along with greatly reducing the costs involved in standardising the army, and making themselves seem a fir bit less threatening. (Possible annendum: Police units function as light infantry/militia divisions. Still armed and trained for actual warfare but at a lesser degree to actual army units, functioning in a dual-purpose role of garrison and police.)

A smaller change would be the introduction of powered armour/armoured exosuits. Between the extra armour needed by the quarians (Due to the fact a single penetrating shot can potentially be lethal) and the relatively tiny pool of manpower with which they have means that every trooper counts. While likely infeasible to equip the entire army, a platoon-level unit would be attached to most infantry companies

[More potentially to come]

Economy
Economically, the quarians are a mixed bag, while they have relatively little industry, they also avoided the major debt problems of the other powers (Geth excepted). This means that it isn't a powerhouse by any means, it is somewhat financially stable.

One idea I had was the quarians capitalising on their experiences within the migrant fleet: Shipbuilding, Environment/Exosuits and the like, having dedicated a significant portion of their industrial power into those industries which used those skills, in order to get them up to standard within a reasonable timeframe.

Another possibility is partial state ownership. An explanation of it would be the admiralty owns a certain amount of shares in a company, in exchange for it being under partial government control it'd be exempt from taxes and the like. Most companies under this sort of agreement would still be subject to customs and inspections. (Most vital serveices would be considered fully under government control, and there's not much chance of that changing.)

[More potentially to come]

Politics

[More potentially to come]

For the purposes of this thread, the Conclave is assumed to still exist. Just to make that clear.

Going to have to be in disagreement here.

While the Admiralty Board wields immense influence and power, it has always been subject to consent to the will of the Conclave. The only time the Admiralty Board can override the Conclave results in the resignation of the current Admiralty Board by law.

Furthermore, captains have not been rendered moot by the recolonization of Rannoch. Crews would be likely to settle in roughly the same areas, and captains wield massive influence over their own crews. Most would likely become local leaders, and the Conclave could easily be adapted from ship-based representation to city/town/colony-based representation.

In addition, whatever credibility the Admiralty Board had has been shattered by the war. The majority voted in assent, and proceeded to have the Migrant Fleet be shattered when their plan fell apart. While they managed to cease-fire in the end and allow peace, not many will soon forget who voted for the war. Sure, you have admirals like Koris and Tali who were against the war, and they'll probably be remembered for that, but Gerrel, Raan, and Xen remaining around will be a problem to the credibility of the Admiralty Board.

Imagine yourself, for instance, a Civilian Fleet Captain finding him/herself settled post-war. You stay close to your crew, helping them rebuild, guiding them, looking forward to bring their concerns to the Conclave to ensure they remain represented as they always have been. Then you are told that your ability to do so has been removed, by the same people who sent you and your men into the most disastrous war your species waged in centuries, nearly being sent to the brink of extinction. And you are to trust these same men and women with solely running what remains of your species.

The result would not be pretty. Yes, the Admiralty Board remains the most experienced leaders the quarian race has. But their credibility is gone. Its a surprise the same people have remained in power this long, given the consequences of their actions.

EDIT: Sorry, put that under OOC remarks by mistake.

The Found Datapad board is meant for creative writing and such, I feel this thread would be more suited in the Virtual Lounge.

@Defiance: Well, after thoroughly reading your post, I have to say I concede that to you. Thank you for the criticism though, I do appreciate it.

Yeah, I've heard this before when discussing this with Mallard and it always made perfect sense IMO. Though I've gone out of the way a bit to avoid mentioning how the government works via Ragia since I didn't want to set anything in stone yet.