Belters

The Belters of the Terran system are one of the most ancient spacefaring societies in the Human Sphere, notable both for their seclusion, and for their advanced technologies. Belters live in various habitats near Terra, typically in the Main Belt, Kuiper Belt, and Oort Cloud. The primary industry of most Belter habitats is asteroid mining, a trade which has proceeded largely uninterrupted since the twenty-first century.

Other asteroid-mining operations exist far from Terra. While these communities are sometimes referred to as "Belters", this article specifically deals with the Belters found near Terra.

History

“	But by far my most intriguing encounter came when I was poking around Luna’s Armstrong City. There, I bumped into a DropShip pilot at a bar, who made me realize there might be a few more fascinating stories left to tell. Apparently, there’s an entire region existing mostly below ComStar’s radar: Terra’s Asteroid Belt.	”
	— Pierre Kagame

Age of War

Around 2031, the United States of America, as part of the Western Alliance, settled on the asteroid Metis in the Main Belt. As the Terrans faced worries of resource shortages in the near future, the massive reserves of nickel-iron within Metis served as a beacon of hope. Quickly, more habitats were formed, and the Main Belt around Terra became the leading industrial center of humanity. In addition to massive asteroid mining operations, zero-G manufacturing allowed for the creation of smaller fusion engines. For a century, industry in the Main Belt remained lucrative and powerful.

However, the improvements and spread of more efficient fusion engines and K-F drives allowed mining and other industrial concerns to focus on exploiting other planets. Planets with gravity and atmospheres provided safer environments and proved to be cheaper, significantly reducing the demand for belt mining. This sent the Belt into a steep economic dive, which many Belters felt as a "rejection" by Terra. The response was increased isolationism, with the Belters becoming culturally distinct from the Terran population. During the 2200s, as many refugees fled the Terran Alliance, several (mostly those unable to afford trips via JumpShip) would attempt to move to the Belt; many of these refugees, preferring the system of nation-states on Terra, reinforced these feelings. For this reason, Belters are seen as "archaic" in the thirty-first century, and for a long time maintained a greater association with the ancient nation-states of Terra than the cosmopolitan Alliance.

Though the Belters did not associate with the Terran Hegemony in the Hegemony's early years, the 2330s saw the Belter habitats being appointed Hegemony governors. After a series of protests, the governors moved to a hands-off approach, leaving the Belters to their own affairs. In exchange, the Belters played the part, appearing to the rest of the Inner Sphere to be under Hegemony control.

Star League

During the age of the Star League, the Belters somewhat eased their sense of isolationism, with much Belter industry put towards constructing ships for the League, and many Belters seeking to serve on SLDF naval vessels.

In the twenty-eighth century, First Lord Simon Cameron would become aware of the Belt and its vast resources. Impressed by the opportunity to cut down on imported materials from other nations, Simon slowly began to once again expand belt mining around Terra. However, Simon's death at the hand of a mining robot while visiting the Rim Worlds Republic put paid to the thought of a full belt mining revival, with the incident forming a stark black spot on the industry's reputation. Conspiracy theories abounded regarding the exact cause of Simon's death, but many Belters at the time were convinced that it was a conspiracy by rival industrial interests to sabotage the public's view on belt mining.

During the Amaris Civil War, the Belters fell under the brutal rule of the Amaris Empire. Stefan Amaris had sent overseers to control the Belter habitats, ruling with an iron fist and meting out extreme punishments for even minor infractions. Caspar drone ships regularly assaulted Belter ships and even habitats. In 2776, as part of Operation LIBERATION, the SLDF would use the Belter habitat of Eris as a chance to probe the Reagan SDS. The brief clash was a resounding failure, resulting in the loss of an SLDF WarShip. Inviting further conflict to a Belter habitat would quickly sour Aleksandr Kerensky's reputation among many Belters, encouraging a further return to isolation.

Kerensky would later send forces to the Trojan asteroid cluster to liberate the Belters there and attempt to salvage the battered Trojan Shipyards. With many members of the SLDF Navy bearing ties to the Belters, the effort was seen as a necessary measure to maintain morale. With Amaris-loyal security forces taking the entire Metis habitat hostage, SLDF marines infiltrated the habitat and defeated the captors. The action cost the lives of five Belters, but saved roughly fifty thousand. However, with the battle over Eris still fresh in the minds of the Belter community, the Belter population was still skeptical of Kerensky, and regarded the SLDF not entirely differently than Amaris' forces. Kerensky would remove most of his troops from Belter territory by the end of 2777, leaving only a small naval contingent to hunt for the remaining Caspars; this naval force would in turn be withdrawn in 2780, with Kerensky recognizing the Belters as autonomous.

The Belters in charge of the Trojan Shipyards initially rejected contracts to refit many vessels from the SLDF Navy in preparation for Operation EXODUS, though Jerome Blake would later manage to negotiate for use of the shipyards.

As the Star League fell and the Belters experienced a brief period of true independence, many habitats formed elite militias and impressive aerospace defenses. Concerned about the potential of an armed conflict with the Belters, the fledgling ComStar chose a path even more hands-off than the former Hegemony governors. The result was the Branch of Terran Affairs (BOTA). The only mandate for the Belters imposed by BOTA was to restrict trade in the interest in keeping the Terran system sealed. The Belters agreed, and ceased all remaining interstellar export.

Succession Wars

Isolated from the rest of the Inner Sphere, the Belters did not face technological regression. In fact, the presence of intact Star League-era technology (particularly habitation and medical technology) left them as one of the most technologically-advanced societies within the Inner Sphere.

Clan Invasion

The Word of Blake chose to maintain ComStar's existing BOTA terms upon taking control of Terra.

Jihad

“	I’ve been spending time with the Belters for several weeks now, and their society is unlike anything I could have imagined. Their life is so different as to be almost alien. And by all accounts, their existence has barely changed under Blakist “occupation.”	”
	— Unknown Reporter, Solaris Broadcasting Corporation

In July of 3057, Stellar Geographic released an article on the Belters written by Pierre Kagame.

By 3078, Belter communities were actively supporting Stone's Coalition. Belter DropShips took coalition intelligence officers and members of the press on high-speed reconnaissance passes, while a squadron of Belter small craft crews from the Kuiper Belt volunteered to help scan the Titan Shipyards. After the liberation of Terra, the Belters began expanding their shipyards (excepting the destroyed O'Neill and Titan Shipyards), seeking to maximize JumpShip production capacity without the oversight of ComStar or the Word of Blake.

Dark Age

By 3145, many Belters began volunteering to produce Pocket WarShips for the Republic of the Sphere thanks to an appeal made by Devlin Stone. The War Academy of Mars' Spring of 3146 class was projected to have over 60% of its student body hail from Belter communities.

Technology

The interior of a typical Belter habitat.

Habitats

The Belters live in a variety of habitats, often built into asteroids. "Habitat" is used as the generic term for any structure that Belters inhabit. The smallest are "warrens", typically new habitats or habitats built by families, and usually lack grav decks. Speculative pioneering habitats, often called "homesteads" or "steads", form the heart of Belter economic expansion. The largest habitats are known as "townships" or "cities". Most large habitats will have grav decks (or mechanisms which make nearly the entire habitat a grav deck), as well as public transportation via trains.

JumpShips

The larger Belter shipyards can produce JumpShips. Belters, particularly those in the Oort cloud, often use JumpShips to perform intra-system jumps. In many areas, JumpShips are considered a key part of public transportation, with ships running routes according to a regular schedule.

Medical Technology

The most widely-regarded marvel of Belter technology is their medical technology. Belter clinics are able to quickly re-grow limbs and regenerate lost tissue. This excellent medical care leads many Belters to engage in dangerous acts, such as knife-fighting in public, with little fear of consequences. Belters also embrace genetic modifications, with several augmentation packages available. In addition to reinforced bones and other modifications to withstand prolonged periods in microgravity, Belters working with a habitat's militia or police (or with enough wealth) may be treated with augmentations making them stronger, faster, more durable, and other benefits. Belter miners and maintenance technicians often come with vacuum resistance augmentations that allow them to survive brief exposure to vacuum and other hazardous conditions. Some Belters use these augmentations for purely cosmetic purposes, often taking the form of animal-human hybrids (unlike other augmentations, these do carry a stigma even within the Belter community; Belters so augmented are sometimes colloquially known as "weird 'uns").

Rumors persist that the most advanced and most guarded aspects of Belter medical technology can create "Ancients", individuals able to live for hundreds of years if not longer.

Culture

Belters are often armed, and quick to draw weapons (though fights often result in admonishments and fines from the police). Settlers in the Main Belt are noted for their frequent use of firearms, though bladed weapons are more common in other settlements. Belters do not recognize noble titles, as the Belters' shift to isolationism predates Michael Cameron's revival of nobility. Belters recognize a wide variety of religions, mostly traditional Terran faiths, with Roman Catholicism being by far the most common.

Each habitat has its own government, though most Belters are beholden to one of the "Big Four", four regional governments controlled by each of the major cultural groups within the Terran system. The Big Four work loosely together to form the Metis Commission, the closest thing the Belters have to a central government. The Big Four are as follows:

American

Most settlers from the United States settled in the Main Belt, and dominate the region. American settlements usually live under democratic governments.

Brazilian

Brazilian settlers also claim a smaller stake in the Main Belt. Like the American settlers, most settlers of Brazilian descent enjoy democratic governments.

Chinese

Mandarin Chinese settlers inhabit the Spartan cluster, and are usually ruled by autocratic or limited-democratic governments ruled by station shareholders.

French

The French settlers mostly settled in the Trojan cluster, and share the station shareholder system used in the Spartans.

Bibliography

• Field Manual: 3145
• Historical: Liberation of Terra II
• Interstellar Operations: Alternate Eras
• Jihad Conspiracies: Interstellar Players 2
• Jihad Hot Spots: Terra