I generally expand like a madman early on, abusing Migrant Fleet whatevers (Build Fusion Plant -> Fleet -> Colonize -> Repeat), but things didn't exactly go according to plan, given that I started so close to Pinkratio. I built up a scrap fleet and took a few Pinkratio planets and declared victory, then moved to bum-rush the recently-discovered Greensho. I then realized that I hadn't finished off the Pinkratio when they sent a fleet to my capitol. The resulting two-front war was long and bloody (taking place before I had access to Invasion modules
), but Pilgrim forces eventually emerged victorious.
A long peace followed, during which the Pilgrims made great advances in technology. The peace was not to last, however, as the Cravers began an aggressive campaign of expansion along my "eastern" border. At the time, the "eastern frontier" consisted solely of Kurhah, Micre, and Lacerta, with the Cravers expanding up to and including Talitha -> Galtur. Obviously, their expansion needed to be curbed.
Towards this end, Pilgrim High Command commissioned eight grand fleets, all fitted with the latest and greatest equipment. Intel is sketchy, but post-war investigations concluded that the Cravers fielded around 20 fleets, all equipped with technology inferior to that of the Pilgrim fleets. Even so, all but three Pilgrim fleets were completely destroyed as a result of the fighting, the most decorated of which being the Eighth Fleet, which single-handedly captured 30 Craver planets, including their homeworld.
Meanwhile, the Sheredyn fought their own wars against the Cyansho, as well as the remnants of the Sowers, who had been all but wiped out by Craver incursions.
At the moment, four factions remain, with one hanging on by only a thread. For all intents and purposes, the galaxy is split between the Sheredyn, Horatio, and Pilgrims. The Horatio have been perpetually neutral since the dawn of time and enjoy good relations with both superpowers. The Pilgrims and Sheredyn are roughly equal in size, though the Pilgrims stand far above the Sheredyn in all other areas. This screenshot captures the end of the first year of the End War, started by the Pilgrims against the Sheredyn. Thirty Pilgrim fleets were commissioned leading up to this war, including the retrofitting of the Honored Eighth Fleet (seen here, invading the Taurus system). In this first year, eight Sheredyn fleets were destroyed, and significant progress has been made by Pilgrim forces, with three Sheredyn systems due to fall within the next year. So marks the beginning of the end.
+ signs mark faction homeworlds, while the star indicates the (soon-to-be) Galactic Capitol, Imex.
