Federation (TradeWars 2002)

The Federation is the galactic governing body in the fictional TradeWars 2002 universe. Its headquarters is the Federal Space Police HQ located at Stardock. The Federation controls FedSpace and regulates the Major Space Lanes. It also enforces restrictions on StarShip ownership, taxes good-aligned players, and posts bounties on evildoers.

Federals
The three Federals, Captain Zyrain, Admiral Clausewitz, and Fleet Admiral Nelson, patrol the galaxy and destroy any illegally-possessed Imperial StarShips they comes across. They pilot a specialized version of the Imperial StarShip that carries 75,000 fighters and has the capability to fire photon missiles in the midst of battle, shutting down the attacker's weapons systems before they have a chance to do any harm. For this reason, none of the Federals can be defeated; any assault on their ships results in the attacker's destruction.

FedSpace
FedSpace is a small area protected by the Federation. It consists of sectors 1-10, as well as the sector that the Stardock is in. Strict FedLaws apply to this region:
 * No Ferrengi allowed.
 * No attacking any neutral or good-aligned trader, unless they have 1000 or more experience points.
 * No deploying fighters or mines.
 * No staying overnight with more than 100 fighters.
 * No launching marker beacons.
 * No citadels can be constructed on planets.
 * No littering.

Captain Zyrain plays the most active role in enforcing FedLaw. He will frequently warp into FedSpace to punish a lawbreaker by destroying his fighters, mines, or holds. Federals may also tow a player out of FedSpace overnight for violating armaments limits.

Blockades
Some players try to block other players' access to FedSpace, especially the sector containing the Stardock. Cutting off access to Stardock eliminates opponents' ability to:
 * Get a Federal Commission
 * Place bounties on other players
 * Buy, sell, and trade ships
 * Purchase equipment for their ship
 * Place money in the bank

Once other players have acquired a Federal commission and a transwarp capable ship (in a default setting game, Imperial StarShip, Corporate Flagship, or Havoc GunStar) blockades of FedSpace are less useful, since a commissioned player can bypass the blockade by TransWarping directly into FedSpace.

Major Space Lanes
The Major Space Lanes, or MSLs, are sectors subject to armament regulations. These sectors are more loosely regulated than FedSpace. The MSLs run from:
 * Sol (sector one) to Stardock and back.
 * Stardock to Rylos and back.
 * Stardock to Alpha Centauri and back.
 * Rylos To Alpha Centauri and back.

Also, Rylos and Alpha Centauri are themselves part of the MSLs.

Any fighters or mines left in the MSLs overnight will be cleared by the Federation. Any Citadels will be reduced to Level 2.

Reference

 * The TradeWars 2002 Bible