Sheng-Ji Yin/Yang? - Or, Faction Dualism by Play Style

[RubricousMidget]

Well, we all know the Alpha Centauri factions and their ideologies pretty well by now. However, I came to think of one thing I hadn't considered before: The different factions can play out different de facto ideologies based on how they are played. So, using the AI play style as a template, at what two extremes can each faction be placed, and how would those societies work out socially and politically, not to mention diplomatically? For instance, Sheng-Ji can either be 1984's Big Bro' or a benevolent dictator who is a kind of father substitute for his people.
Also, what faction do you usually use, and how do you play it ideology-wise?

I play the University. In my hands, the University becomes a sort of semi-benign Lal/Zakharov hybrid which puts science in the high seat, but still regards ethics as important.

 

[Cuivienen]

Okay.

The Gaians can range from a democratic society that simply has green leanings and generally bows to the authority of Lady Deirdre to ecoterrorists who actively attack human settlements that do not conform to their idea of ecological harmony.

The Hive can range from a patronly benevolent and philosophically inclined dictatorship reminiscent of the Five Good Emperors of Rome to an oppressive regime that exploits its large population as essentially slave labor.

The University can range from a benevolent technocracy run much like a real university that focuses on the education of its populous and the peaceful advancement of science to an ethically corrupt oligarchy that uses its people for experiments in an effort to further their scientific knowledge and provide benefits for themselves.

The Morganites probably have the least range, but they can be anything from a laissez faire capitalist society reminiscent of the United States in the 1920s that glosses over its darker aspects with lavish decoration and individual spending to a hedonistic oligarchy headed by CEO Morgan that brutally surpresses its population for industrial output and economic power.

The Spartans can range from an almost anarchic society that only loosely owes allegiance to Col. Santiago and mostly consists of small city-states governed by direct democracy on the Athenian model to a strongly centralized warrior society owing lock-step obediance to Santiago that kills its weak and maimed and is extraordinarily hostile and suspicious of its neighbors and probably constantly at war.

The Believers can range from a philosophical society that embraces humanism and the importance of individual morals and understanding of spirituality to a cold and intolerant heirarchy reminiscent of the medieval Papacy with hedonistic non-believers at the top that use religion as a guise to keep the masses under their thumb.

The Peacekeepers can range from essentially a modern democracy, probably one of many political parties that cooperate, much like Switzerland (in the sense of cooperating political parties), to a bureaucratic nightmare in which nothing is ever accomplished (reminiscent of any Chinese dynasty late in its history), and democracy is merely a sham used to disguise the power of a small number of individuals, who either rig elections or are the only people standing for office.

 

[RubricousMidget]

I disagree on two: I think the Believers, at best, can range from a Knight-Templar-like "honor & glory" warrior-path society to a totally ruthless dictatorship run by Sister Miriam Zedong that will do anything to convert or kill anybody opposed.

And I think Morgan can go a little further into the bright zone: A meritocratic democracy where skill and cunning are the main virtues, and where the ones who fall through are given symbolic jobs by companies that want to focus on humanitarianism for PR-reasons which allow them to live, but not much more.

 

[ArneHD]

I disagree on two: I think the Believers, at best, can range from a Knight-Templar-like "honor & glory" warrior-path society to a totally ruthless dictatorship run by Sister Miriam Zedong that will do anything to convert or kill anybody opposed.

And I think Morgan can go a little further into the bright zone: A meritocratic democracy where skill and cunning are the main virtues, and where the ones who fall through are given symbolic jobs by companies that want to focus on humanitarianism for PR-reasons which allow them to live, but not much more.

While I agree with your Morganite extention, I disagree on your Beliver extention. Certain quotes from Miriam suggest that she is more philosophic than most suspect. Among them "We must dissent", "They miss a greater conundrum, why would a perfect god create a universe, at all?" stand out. She is capable of questioning her own faith and I think she is capable of being peacefull if it becomes necceary.

 

[Thorvald of Lym]

Here's one for those who have Alien Crossfire:

The Cult of Planet can range from an extremely ecology-minded society determined to grow and develop in perfect harmony with Planet, to a crowd of cultists who bow before the random babblings of their insane leader, the so-called 'prophet' Cha'Dawn.

The Cybernetic Consciousness can range from a society focused on peaceful research, artistic creation and harmonious habitation, to a twisted and perverted shell of humanity that have nothing beyond analytical emotion, and will obey whatever order their comrades give without thought or question.

The Data Angels can range from a civilization of tech-savvy Web-surfers who acquire and share their information without price (free-flow, if you will), stimulating vast technological developments, to an organization of computer hackers intent on creating Net-wide havoc, stealing technology for personal abuse.

The Free Drones can range from the perfect model of industrial socialism, to the gathering ghetto of the anarchic and rebellious workers who refuse to take orders or accept their position in life.

The Nautilus Pirates can range from a nation of prudent oceanographers with expert knowledge of these alien oceans and the creatures within, to... well, pirates.

The Manifold Caretakers can range from a race of ecologists with the most comprehensive knowledge of Planetlife, to misguided perfectionists who will exterminate anything and everything to keep Planet in its pristine condition.

The Manifold Usurpers can range from a star-spanning empire similar to imperial Rome, unifying its holdings under a near-invincible curtain of military security, to oppressive overlords, interested only in warfare and destruction, who bleed whatever lands are unlucky enough to receive them dry, no matter the cost.

Man, Cuivienen explains these things so much better than I...