Too bad, as it is one of the more interesting periods of the OTU to play in. In fact, I prefer an evolved Hard Times background (without the Virus) over the vanilla TNE background.
I might Hard-Times-ize the Solomani Rim sector sometimes in the future, as part of the Unity of Gaia concept. The concept was, originally, TNE with the Virus toned down; I think it'll fit even better an 1140 era with no Virus.
The Zhodani are stuck with their own internal problems; The spinward Marches have exploded in a wave of revolts and petty wars (see the earlier CT adventures for the messy situation in the Marches, think of it as Eastern Europe in the early 1990's, central authority is dead, Norris fails to consolidate power, everybody is at everybody else's throat trying to finish off old rivals); Lucan's "Third Imperium" is a sector-wide totalitarian state centered on Capital, facing insurrections left and right; forces of revolution and counter-revolution clash in Illelish; Vargr corsairs rampage across the Corridor; and the Solomani Confederacy has split along Party-faction lines, from the pan-sophonists (who've allied themselves with the formerly-illegal Solidariti party to form the Unity of Gaia) to the right-wing hardliner purists.
An Appropriate Quote:
"The giants have left the playground, but they've left their guns behind"
- Captain John Sheridan, Babylon 5
Little centralization, minimal law-enforcement (outside the grasp of the few totalitarian polities, that is
