"Power ain’t about titles. It’s about who people listen to when the shooting starts." — Eliza Kane, Commonwealth Ranger

Introduction: Who Really Holds Power?

Perseverance is claimed by the Terran Commonwealth, but real power is contested. Beyond official rule, corporations, outlaws, and local strongmen shape the planet’s future. The Commonwealth’s reach only extends as far as its enforcers can push it, making law and order a fluid concept outside of Fallpoint.

This post explores the Commonwealth’s influence on Perseverance, including its government, military, and law enforcement, and the key figures who enforce – or exploit – its rule.

The Commonwealth Presence

The Governor

Governor Helena Durn stands at the precarious intersection of Commonwealth rule and Old Family interests. As a member of one of Perseverance’s oldest and most influential families, she upholds a long-standing, unwritten agreement: the Commonwealth appoints governors exclusively from Fallpoint’s elite families, ensuring a measure of local legitimacy. In return, these families remain loyal to the Commonwealth, maintaining a fragile balance of power.

Publicly, Governor Durn presents herself as a firm but fair leader, committed to law and order on Perseverance. She speaks of stability, progress, and the benefits of Commonwealth governance, portraying herself as the bridge between the off-world bureaucracy and the people of Perseverance.

Privately, however, she walks a fine line, forced to navigate the treacherous politics of both the Commonwealth and the Old Families. With corporate power growing and unrest brewing in the frontier, her authority is constantly tested. If tensions escalate into outright conflict, one question lingers: Will the Old Families stand with her, or will they turn against the Commonwealth to protect their own interests?

The Commonwealth Guard

The Perseverance Commonwealth Guard Regiment is the planet’s official military force, responsible for enforcing the Governor’s rule, defending Commonwealth interests, and keeping order—at least, where it benefits them.

Structure & Independence

The Commonwealth Guard Regiment is composed of ten companies, each structured to operate semi-independently, allowing for rapid deployment across Perseverance’s vast and rugged terrain. This decentralized structure enables the Guard to react swiftly to threats and disturbances, but it also breeds internal divisions and rivalries. Each company maintains its own command hierarchy, making them adaptable to local conditions but prone to power struggles and inconsistent leadership.

The regiment includes a mix of loyal professionals who uphold discipline and strategic oversight, ensuring that military order is maintained. However, not all officers share the same principles – some are corrupt, opportunistic, or dangerously ambitious, using their positions to advance personal wealth, political leverage, or sheer survival in an unstable environment. The resulting fractured command structure means that, when orders come down, they are just as likely to be ignored, twisted, or contested as they are to be followed.

Leadership & Personnel

At the head of the Commonwealth Guard is Colonel Dan Murray, a disgraced ex-Commonwealth Marine whose promising career was derailed, leading to his political exile on Perseverance. While he commands the regiment in name, his authority is constantly undermined by internal power struggles and external political maneuvering.

Second-in-command is Lieutenant Colonel Antonie de la Chapelle, a young, handsome, and brash noble officer. Many suspect that his appointment was not a mere coincidence but rather a deliberate move by the Commonwealth to keep an eye on Murray. As a member of old Commonwealth nobility, he is a rising star in elite circles, making him highly sought after by Fallpoint’s most powerful families as a match for their children.

Supporting them are three Majors, each overseeing multiple companies, ensuring the regiment functions – or at least, doesn’t completely collapse under its own inefficiencies. The regiment’s Adjutant, while technically in charge of administrative duties, wields significant influence, often acting as the true power behind the chain of command.

Beneath them, thirty company officers, including ten Captains, ten First Lieutenants, and ten Second Lieutenants, command the Guard’s forces. These officers are a mixed bag—some are professional and loyal, upholding Commonwealth discipline, while others are corrupt, opportunistic, or dangerously ambitious, each playing their own political games to secure influence and power within the regiment.

Equipment & Combat Capabilities

Despite its fractured chain of command, the Commonwealth Guard is well-equipped for frontier warfare. As an Aerobike Cavalry regiment, mobility is its greatest asset. The Guard’s troops rely on rugged aerobikes, specially reinforced to withstand the relentless dust storms and treacherous terrain of the frontier. These vehicles allow them to respond quickly to disturbances, enforcing order – or their own interests – before resistance has time to organize.

Standard troops are armed with blaster carbines and vibro-bayonets, weapons designed for durability and function over sophistication, ensuring they can operate even in the planet’s most extreme environments. Officers carry blaster handguns and vibro-sabers, both as symbols of rank and tools of intimidation. Each company is further reinforced by one heavy weapons team, equipped with heavy blasters and mortars, providing crucial fire support when engagements escalate.

Perhaps the most unique element of the Guard’s forces is its jetpack scouts—each company fields two specialized units of elite troopers trained for high-speed reconnaissance and aerial skirmishing. These scouts allow commanders to maintain an advantage over the often unpredictable threats of the frontier, from outlaw bands to separatist movements. However, their effectiveness depends entirely on the leadership guiding them, and as with much of the Guard, competence and loyalty are never guaranteed.

Strengths & Weaknesses

The Commonwealth Guard is a highly mobile force, capable of deploying rapidly across Perseverance’s vast and unforgiving terrain. Their aerobikes and jetpack scouts give them a distinct advantage in open environments, allowing them to cover ground quickly and respond to threats with speed and precision. Each company operates with a level of independence, making them adaptable to the ever-changing challenges of frontier warfare.

However, this flexibility comes at a cost. The regiment is riddled with divided loyalties and corrupt officers, leading to a chain of command that is often fractured or unreliable. While some commanders are professionals who uphold discipline, others prioritize personal gain, political maneuvering, or sheer survival. In times of crisis – whether facing rebellion, corporate intrigue, or planetary unrest—the real question remains: Will the Guard stand together, or will it fracture under pressure?

The Commonwealth Rangers

The Commonwealth Rangers are the law enforcement arm of the Commonwealth on Perseverance, responsible for upholding the law, capturing fugitives, protecting civilians, and handling prisoners. Unlike the Guard, they are not soldiers – they are lawmen, acting more like bounty hunters than military forces.

How They Operate

The Commonwealth Rangers are a force of lone enforcers, often working alone or in pairs, though they can deputize locals or even raise a posse when the situation demands it. Unlike soldiers, their primary duty is tracking and apprehending fugitives, not engaging in open combat. Their effectiveness comes not from overwhelming force, but from keen tracking skills, deep informant networks, and precise ambush tactics to bring their targets in alive – or dead.

In the larger settlements and cities, sheriffs and deputies maintain local law, but once outside those limits – into the badlands, mountains, and frozen expanses—the Rangers are often the only authority settlers will ever see. They work closely with Commonwealth judges, ensuring that those they capture stand trial and face proper sentencing, though on the frontier, justice is often swift and not always clean-cut.

Leadership & Notable Figures

At the head of the Commonwealth Rangers stands Captain Sloane Harker, a legend in her own right. With a cigar perpetually clenched between her teeth and a single, piercing eye that misses nothing, she commands both fear and respect. Known for her unyielding toughness and fierce loyalty, Harker treats her Rangers as her own kin, demanding absolute dedication while shielding them from political interference.

Among her most skilled Rangers is Eliza Kane, a sharpshooter with an unmatched reputation. Kane’s loyalty, however, is often questioned – not because she is untrustworthy, but because she stands at the crossroads of justice and politics. While others follow the letter of the law, Kane follows what she believes is right, a stance that has made her both admired and dangerous in the eyes of those who seek to control Perseverance.

Role & Conflicts

The Commonwealth Rangers walk a precarious path between heroism and subjugation. Some see them as noble enforcers of justice, the last line of defense between order and chaos. Others believe them to be nothing more than Commonwealth agents, enforcing the will of a distant government that cares little for the people of Perseverance.

Life as a Ranger is filled with hard choices. With scarce resources and little official support, Rangers must often rely on their wits, reputations, and uneasy alliances to maintain peace. Some are true lawmen, bound by a personal code of honor, while others have succumbed to the temptations of corruption, using their positions to serve personal interests or the highest bidder. In a world where the law is fluid and justice is a matter of interpretation, the real question remains—do the Rangers serve the Commonwealth, or do they serve the people?

What's Next?

The Commonwealth’s presence on Perseverance is only one piece of the puzzle. While its officials enforce the law and its soldiers maintain order, the real struggle for power happens elsewhere—in corporate boardrooms, trade syndicates, and the shadowy dealings of those who seek to control the planet’s wealth.

In the next post, we’ll explore the economic forces shaping Perseverance, from powerful mining corporations to ruthless trade cartels, and the tensions between industry, commerce, and those caught in between. Stay tuned! 🚀