The party

[mbrinkhues]

is always right as any good Solomanie knows. Now the question is: What does the official party uniform look like?

From the TNE novels I seem to remember Black with Silver rank tabs. Is there anything canon anywhere?

 

[kafka47]

Quasi-canon from Rats and Cats reveals this image but like everything else it would be modeled on futurist clothing. In the late 70s & 80s, this meant Neru shirts, tight and form fitting. T20 & GT seem to more lax and opt for a military fatigues or safari look.

I think there is a demand for a clothing catalogue...so if you want to rally a dozen or so artists to give us some choices. I would buy it! Best format would probably be OCR PDF so that I could replace the "face" with another face.

 

[mbrinkhues]

I don't even know a dozend artists :=). Okay, I could get 2.5 together if I try. But they do mostly Fantasy/Animee stuff.

 

[kafka47]

And, those 2.5 people tell another 2.5 people, and so on...(for those who don't remember this was a very popular commerical in the 70s) We might build up enough artists to do a catalogue.

Even fantasy artists can contribute Barbarian characters, one of my favorite Science Fiction short stories (The cold equations : & other stories / by Tom Godwin) dealt with a bunch of intellectuals who were dumped on an inhospitale planet by aliens who invaded Earth. They decended to TL 2-3 but kept the memory of the workings of high technology. And, slowly with determination they waited for the aliens to return with the passing of generations activated a beacon, overwhelmed them and took to the stars. It had a great cover that could easily have passed for fantasy, save it was pretty Hard SF.

Well, in terms of anime...like what they can do to vehicles but people is just plain freaky...although, some might say the same of me, when I like photo manipulations. Putting Mark Hamil in Imperial Navy outfits is just plain fun.

 

[Black Globe Generator]

IMTU black, high-peaked wheel cap and black full-length overcoat over a black uniform and boots, with the Solomani symbol prominantly displayed on the cap badge and shoulder brassard.

The Solomani Party: putting the jack-boots in "jack-booted thug"...

 

[mbrinkhues]

Originally posted by Black Globe Generator:
IMTU black, high-peaked wheel cap and black full-length overcoat over a black uniform and boots, with the Solomani symbol prominantly displayed on the cap badge and shoulder brassard.

The Solomani Party: putting the jack-boots in "jack-booted thug"...

Na, the black overcoats are reserved for the secret police. Got to stay true to history

 

[Black Globe Generator]

Originally posted by Michael Brinkhues:
Na, the black overcoats are reserved for the secret police. Got to stay true to history

Ah, see for me, the Secret Police are invisible: the janitor who repositions a potted plant with fiber-optic video cameras to get a better view of your ship, the waiter who places a candle with a DNA sampler at your table, the customs inspector who locates irregularities in your visas while the maintenance crew downloads your ship's log...

The Secret Police: putting the banal in "banality of evil"...

 

[Golan2072]

AM8: Solomani has two Solomani operatives printed on its cover - do you think that they were Party members, SolSec operatives, or soldiers?

 

[kafka47]

I always figured they were Scouts but out of your list, soldiers would probably be closest.

 

[far-trader]

Ah, but no Sollie Scouts per AM6 kafka

I had them pegged as mustered (PC) SolSec and/or Party agents making a clandestine drop. That'd be the launch from the courier in the background, and oops, snafu again, time to call in some laser ortillery from the courier on high guard

"...repeat, drop is hot mother, lase our 12 at half a klick!"

 

[Golan2072]

I've always imagined the SolParty members themselves - as opposed to SolSec or SolMil (Solomani Military) - as dressed in the ancient traditional Terran clothes for politicians and bureaucratcs, that is, a 5631AD variant on the customary suit-and-tie (black suit, white undershirt, black tie, large SolSymbol pin on the tie). Faceless, Impersonal, Professional Official-Looking.

SolMil, on the other hand, dresses in utilitarian uniforms, usually black and sleek (and yes, with silver shoulder-mounted rank insignias). Combat uniforms are (for TL13+ forces) battledresses; otherwise they are sturdier version of the basic uniform, with a black flack jacket worn over it. SolNavy uniforms are high-tech vacc suits, light, comfortable and durable, unto which an helmet could be attached quickly when required.

Its really the "overt" elements of SolSec (as opposed to covert agents and sleeper-monitors) that has that Jack-Booted Thugs feel, just like Black Globe Generator has described.

 

[kafka47]

Originally posted by Employee 2-4601:
I've always imagined the SolParty members themselves - as opposed to SolSec or SolMil (Solomani Military) - as dressed in the ancient traditional Terran clothes for politicians and bureaucratcs, that is, a 5631AD variant on the customary suit-and-tie (black suit, white undershirt, black tie, large SolSymbol pin on the tie). Faceless, Impersonal, Professional Official-Looking.
has described. [/b]

Agreed, there would be nothing sinister about the Party member. He could have any number of appearances just blending in with the local culture of the world. If anyone ever saw the backcover of Tariq Ali's Clash of Fundamentalisms with the photo of Osama in the garb of the President of the United States, it sums up beautifully.

I would disagree with the image of Navy, I still see them as a combination browncoats and what we saw in Interstellar Wars. A sort of baggy functional webbing.

FT, thx, it has been a while, since I looked at AM6. Ok, my comment still stands they would be Army calling in the Space Strike.

 

[Andrew Boulton]

IMTU:

Party - no uniform, other than a lapel pin. They are always well-dressed (suit & tie or equivalent), with big smiles and firm handshakes.

SolSec - dark green uniform, but most wear smart civilian dress.

Navy - tailored vac suit (light grey for enlisted, mid-grey for jr officers, dark grey for snr officers, black for flag officers - standard joke: "Since the higher the rank the less work you do, at the end of the day everyone ends up the same colour.")

Marines - black, all ranks (standard joke: "The lowest Marine Private is equal to a Navy Admiral")

 

[aramis]

Party Aparatschik IMTU:
Black suit-coat, double breasted, 6 silvered buttons with 4 in use; black trousers, white mandarin collar shirt; some form of bolo tie, kerchief, cravat, or neck brooch. Black socks, black low-quarters. Solomani Party insignia (combined rank/affiliation badge) worn on both coat sleeve cuffs and coat collar (both sides). Shirt sleeves use cufflinks; cufflinks may be rank and affiliation insignia miniatures.

Buttons on jacket bear party symbol. If kerchief worn, the binder will bear the rank and affiliation insignia, and kerchief back will have solomani party insignia. If Bolo Tie worn, clip may be rank and affiliation insignia. Neck Broaches usually personal, but may be rank and affiliation insignia. Cravats/dickies usually for warm weather; no formal standards.

Brassard with party insignia worn only when in public on official party business. Worn on left sleeve.

Party Commissars wear appropriate military uniform, replacing branch insignia with party rank and affiliation insignia. Courtesy rank for hosting service will be worn on uniform.

Party Enforcers will wear single-breasted jacket, with sam brown, otherwise identical to aparatschik uniform. Insignia will be embroidered, rather than pins.

The AM6 cover is the Marines or Army.