Fel Empire (SWAU)

The Fel Empire, known officially as the Galactic Empire and sometimes informally known as the Fel Imperium, the New Order, or the Second Empire, was the Imperial regime that was declared after the Second Galactic Civil War and the crowning of Kylo Fel as the Galactic Emperor. The Empire had incorporated most of the former territories of the First Order in a policy of reconciliation with those the Emperor saw as misguided Imperials. Although not anywhere near the size and power as its predecessor, the new Galactic Empire has partially recovered its former prestige and is one of the most stable and influential governments in the post-Galactic Civic War period. It became a member of the Galactic Triumvirate alongside the Federation and the Jedi Order.

Palpatine's Empire and Fel's Empire share several characteristics, most notably the emphasis on centralized rule, law and order, a strong military and a force-sensitive Emperor. Though unlike Palpatine, the quasi-xenophobic nature of the regime was quelled tremendously with the outlaw of slavery, and the Fels encouraged the proliferation of light-side Force-users who formed a Jedi Order analogue known as the Knights of Fel. The Fel Empire decided to resurrect the Imperial Senate, now known as the Imperial Parliament, which was stripped of all powers and became a forum of negotiation and debate, rather than a legislature.

Etymology
Officially, the Fel Empire is known as the Galactic Empire, the direct continuation of the New Order's doctrines safeguarded by the Moff Council and passed down to Artorias Fel and later his son upon his ascension to the throne. Unofficially however, the Fel dynasty's vision for the Empire is different enough to their predecessor's, and the politics surrounding the fall of the Empire and governance of the Imperial Remnant, that there is a near-consensus among scholars that the Fels now rule a 'Second Empire', a brand new political entity that uses the old Empire's foundation but modifies it into something wholly new.

Government and politics
The Fel Empire, much like the Empire of old, was characterized by the rule of an Imperial sovereign for life. A big difference between the new Empire and the old one is the presence of an Imperial family, and a line of succession that follows absolute primogeniture. The Emperor's rule is absolute in the sense that he has the final say on all major decisions affecting the Empire as a whole. There were two main subsidiary bodies that advised the Emperor: the Fel Council and the Moff High Council. The Fel Council consists of the twelve most senior members of the Knights of Fel, and the Moff High Council consists of twelve of the most senior Moffs of the Imperial military. Each council consists of people who are hand-picked by the Emperor, and both councils hold a fair amount of power in their own spheres (the Fel Council being the Knights of Fel, and the Moff High Council being the Imperial military and the Imperial sectors that they govern). However, each council is accountable to the Emperor should their actions be against the Empire's interests and he has every right to correct the actions of the Knights or Moffs to serve the greater good.

Emperor Fel rejected the Tarkin Doctrine, the rule of the Empire through fear, and instead did his best to inspire loyalty and pride in his subjects towards the Empire. It largely worked, and the Empire became populated with a true Imperial populace, rather than a majority of subjects that merely tolerated Imperial rule or were scared into adherence like the old Empire. This has been unofficially dubbed the "Fel Doctrine" among Imperials. Although the Fel dynasty rules far less tyrannically, they are not above being tough in order to make sure those under them respect their authority, and as such, it is fair to say the Empire is still authoritarian.

Guidance Council
The Guidance Council consists of the twelve Knight-Captains of the Order of the Imperial Knights and is the most important advisory body for the Emperor.

Ministry of Intelligence
The Ministry of Intelligence is the department responsible for coordinating the intelligence agencies of the Empire. It has several organizations under its command, but the largest are Imperial Military Intelligence (IMI) and the Imperial Secret Service (ISS).

Imperial citizenry
The Fel Empire differed greatly from not just the old Empire, but also the New Republic and subsequent Galactic Federation, in that the people that comprised the Empire were mostly loyal Imperial citizens that truly believed in the New Order, as opposed to Palpatine's Empire being made up of mostly unwilling subjects and the Federation's population being more concerned with their own planets and sectors than the Federation as a whole. The Imperial population was also considerably smaller compared to the Federation, however its united citizenry allowed the Imperial military might to rival any of the other galactic powers, and the Imperial people support the Imperial government as a whole far more than those in the Federation support the central government.

The Imperial people were generally convinced of the Empire's cause and showed an immense loyalty to the Fel dynasty. The reasons for this were twofold: firstly, Imperials saw the New Republic and the subsequent Federation as nothing more than an inefficient, chaotic and bloated bureaucracy consisting of a populace devoid of culture, and who were supportive of their own agendas ahead of that of the union as a whole. Secondly, the Fel dynasty's founder, Kylo Fel (as well as his father), was seen as a hero to the galaxy for his role in defeating the First Order in the Second Galactic Civil War, so Imperials had a great amount of admiration for the Imperial family, and by extension, the Empire as a whole.

Imperial family
One of the greatest differences between Palpatine's Empire and the Fel Dynasty is the presence of a true royal, or Imperial, family. Palpatine had never married nor had any children, as he strived to unlock the secrets of the dark side that would allow him to achieve immortality, and as a backup he tasked his top scientists to attempt to create force-sensitive clones that he could transfer his spirit to; neither venture succeeded. The Imperial family represents not only a stable line of succession that would prevent a succession crisis on the sudden passing of an Emperor before choosing an heir (the heir is always the firstborn son of the Emperor, which is enshrined in law) as well as giving the Imperial populace the idea of a 'model Imperial family'. The Imperial family is involved in many aspects of society including heading charitable organizations, serving in the military, sponsoring artistic and cultural endeavours, and more.

Arts and media
The Fel dynasty treated the arts as integral to Imperial culture, and believed that the arts should not only be a source of cultural or personal expression, but also as a way to teach proper values. This was, in essence, a similar view that Palpatine's Empire held, yet the execution was much different. Whereas Palpatine heavily suppressed undesirable content and pushed propaganda to force a heavily unitary and militaristic culture based on lies, the Fel dynasty used their own funds to encourage the arts among the Imperial populace who believed in the New Order. Although art and media that were mildly critical of the regime were tolerated, pieces that were actively inciting rebellion against the state was suppressed in order to keep the peace.

There was no propaganda bureau or ministry of propaganda like the old Empire, and any cultural concerns of the government was assigned to the Ministry of Culture.

Military
The Imperial Military was the primary armed forces of the Empire, and consisted of three branches; the Imperial Army, Imperial Navy, and Stormtrooper Corps. They were tasked with a multitude of duties, including enforcing law and order, crushing rebellions, carrying out military operations, and maintaining the peace. Parts of the military, specifically the Imperial Engineers, were used as nation-builders by pacifying worlds of threats and ensuring the growth of local settlements in order to boost loyalty to the Empire and ensure a growing population.

Although the Imperial population is substantially smaller than that of the New Republic, its military prowess matched their rival's due to a much higher percentage of their citizenry opting for military service, which is owing to multiple factors: firstly, mandatory civil service exists for all Imperial citizens who surpass their age of maturity (which differs depending on the species), and although encompassing a wide variety of civil service options, is satisfied by a plurality of Imperial citizens through military service; secondly, the citizenry's relative homogeneity in cultural values regarding the New Order makes it more likely for the Empire's mission, which relies heavily on the military, to be put into effect; and finally, the regime has many incentives in pushing Imperials into military service like educational opportunities, good pay, early retirement, fantastic benefits, and much more.

Astrography
The Fel Empire's territory is known by most as "Imperial Space," and is based mostly in the northern quadrant in the galaxy, primarily centered around the Pentastar Alignment and its surrounding territory, with a few sectors being controlled in the Mid Rim. The Fel Empire's territory at its inception was agreed upon following the Second Galactic Civil War, which saw Imperial territory swell from eight "backwater" sectors to almost the size the remnant was during the apex of Admiral Palleon's Orinda Campaign.