This allows Krapp to remain relatively free of foreign tariffs, taxes, and ill advised strategic positions when a planetary government suddenly decides to nationalize their natural resources. Having a third party mine for them while splitting the profits 80/20 with Krapp allows the firm to focus on internal properties. Only when a particular resource is absolutely vital to the manufacture of arms will the armored might of a Luxen expedition be dispatched to the offending system to persuade the locals of their error in judgement. And that in itself is usually a last resort after trade negotiations have broken down to an irreparable state. Once the order is dispatched, Luxen ground forces will fight with the finest of Krapp weaponry to secure the resource. This often, tragically, results in unfortunate casualties and the breakdown of civil order on the planet, resulting in the commander of the expedition to take on the responsibilities of peacemaker. If no effective parties to negotiate a new trade deal can be found, it is standard Krapp policy to absorb all planetary assets as reparations for the expense of the “Security Expedition” and all ineffective “management” of the newly acquired “asset” are “liquidated”.
Luxen portrait of Krapp “security personnel” engaged in successful “peacekeeping measures” in Rambai City to secure plutonium deposits on the world of Xylon IV. The Xylonese are now happily employed in the “family” of Krapp Armaments.
That of course, is the rare exception to the general rule of the vast majority of worlds that happily trade with Krapp Armaments and purchase their quality products. Within the Grand Duchy, things are managed much more efficiently, with hundreds of factory worlds producing every conceivable weapon used in the known galaxy. Along with other, more peaceful, implements such as cookware, appliances, vehicles, even starships (though not on the level of the great shipbuilding firms GaelTech, and StarWays). Every person within the Grand Duchy is employed by the firm in some way or other. Even the children are technically employees in the making as their education is geared towards a future career in Krapp Armaments. The brighter, more promising students get the opportunity to further their education further up the chain of command within the factory world itself. With a very lucky few making their way up the corporate ladder to become “Planetary Executive Officers” or PEOs. If they have the pluck and tenacity to make it. The Von Krapp Dynasty encourages a healthy level of competition among the higher echelons of the firm to ensure only the most qualified are in charge.
Those that choose a more martial career enter into one of the three military schools for officer training. The Luxen Schlachtschule, based on Luxen itself on the outskirts of its capital city, Stahlburg. The Thyssendorf Military Academy, which was once in the heart of Thyssendorf’s old capital, Wotansburg, and after the siege during the Thysso-Luxen War now stands in the Karlskreig Mountains some fifty miles to the north. They also have the responsibility of training officers for the Luxen Ducal Navy. The third school is the Kurinia War College, outside of its capital, Lichtenhoff, has somewhat of a reputation as a school of hard knocks with something to prove, being that while the young graduates of the college called for war with Luxen during the Unification Wars, the Countess of Kurinia heeded her much wiser War Cabinet ministers and surrendered sovereignty to the advancing Luxen fleet heading for her planet. Ever since, the Kurinians have felt it a stain on their honor and each graduate of the war college vows to prove himself an unflinching warrior in the face of the enemy. Once again the Krapp belief in healthy competition is applied here as each military school vies for turning out the best and brightest tacticians for the Luxen military.
Illustration from a training manual of Luxen Schlactshule cadets being taught to march in formation. While pictcasts and digitized photos are the norm of almost every place in the galaxy, Luxendoom has an ancient tradition of older styles of artwork that they are very proud to keep up. This includes paintings and sketches of Luxen daily life.
Every member of the Von Krapp House is required by tradition to serve a term in both the civilian and military sectors of Luxen society. With the heir apparent usually in the much coveted command of the I Battalion of the Ducal Guards, the elite of the Luxen armies. Lesser children of the dynasty serve in other branches such as the Navy. And all are required to work in the upper echelons of one of the local factory worlds where the Grand Duke can teach them the secrets of the family business. The current Heir Apparent of the Krapp Dynasty is Prinz Freiderich Augustus Karl Von Krapp, known to the men under his command as “Fritz”.
Prinz Friederich in his Feldmarschall uniform.
Another important branch of the Luxen Security Forces (the official name, but many of the officers and old soldiers call it by its older traditional name, the Luxen Ducal Army, for though Krapp Armaments “employs” the soldaten, the warrior spirit and traditions of the past beat strongly in the heart of the native born Luxen junker.) is the General Staff. Known on paper as the “Board of Security Directors”, this is but a thinly veiled attempt to rename the war cabinet as something more civilian to slip under the nose of galactic bureaucracy to hide the aggressive nature of Krapp “acquisitions” and “mergers”. Made up of the junker class of old Luxen (all of whom are “employed” as “execs with lifetime benefits” within the Krapp firm), they are responsible for the planning of all major military actions undertaken by the Duchy. This is the heart of both the company and the Grand Duchy. For here is where the profit making decisions are made that decide the fate of worlds billions of miles away. Here also is where the betrayal of the old Zollernhoff dynasty occurred when Matthias Von Krapp bought off the junkers, including the “Iron Minister” Rudolph Von Starkheim. He was a “Realpolitik” junker who saw which way the wind of history was blowing and sided with Matthias and aided in the peaceful transition of power. His behind the scenes negotiating also helped lay the foundations of Krapp power by successfully arranging several “wars of acquisition”, as they were called in those days, to grab more land and resources for the new “factory world” concept that Matthias had engineered.
The Luxen General Staff during the reign of Duke Otto Von Zollernhoff, seen contemplating the next invasion during the Luxen Unification Wars.
The acclamation of Matthias as Grand Duke.
Rudolph the Iron Minister convincing Otto to step down as Grand Duke amidst the mutinied officers of the Luxen army. In truth, this scene is pure fantasy, as the real event was much more somber and behind closed doors. The mutinous soldaten were encamped on the palace grounds and guarding the outer halls nowhere to be seen. Luxen soldiers, even when rebelling, are a very disciplined lot.
Portrait of a soldat during the “Merger” on Karynthia. A three year campaign that cost the firm billions of Krappmarks, and the lives of many “security personnel”. A civil war bled dry of money prompted the General Staff to look into the feasibility of acquiring Karynthia because of valuable deposites of titanium, cobalt, silver, and a rare crystal used in the Sturmlaser design. Karynthia is now a mining world.
The present day Luxen General Staff, trusted advisors of Alfred Von Krapp.
Cutaway of the “Arminius” Pattern Kampfwagen Mk I, from the Saxen-Luxen War. The modern Mk IX variant has a vastly improved crew compartment with larger ordinance and a stronger power plant.
A rare picture of Naval officers at attention aboard the Krapp flagship, “Matthias”.
General Rolf Von Bugdorfer, commander of the III Luxen Battalion. A ruthless and competent commander who has urged the use of bio weapons many times. Krapp Armaments has a strict policy regarding the manufacture and use of such devastating weaponry. In that they are dead set against it. Not for humanitarian reasons as is publicly thought, but because a gene virus or plague bomb attack gone awry might threaten to destroy whole galactic sectors and cut heavily into profit margins and even threaten production capacity were such deadly weapons to spread to a factory world. Alfred Von Krapp has even gone so far in his standing as a member of the Galactic Economic Council to ensure the other members were persuaded (via generous amounts of Krappmarks) to outlaw the manufacture and use of bio weapons of all types.
Prinz Hans Albert George Von Krapp, the younger son of Alfred, in the uniform of the Thyssen VIII Grenadiers. Foppish but not foolish, Hans has a grasp on military defense and many of his personal designs for prefab fortifications have been put into production by his father’s firm.
The sharp witted founder of the Krapp family fortune, Matthias Von Krapp. In the uniform of a Luxen feldmarschall shortly after his accession to the Ducal throne in a rare pic image.
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