The Asset Identification Protocol: How a Galactic Empire Keeps Track of Its Toys
Everything you didn't know you needed to know about how stellar objects are tracked in Stellar Empire.
When you’re managing an empire that spans half the known galaxy, the can’t afford to lose track of your stuff. Especially that super expensive, floating, weaponized kind that took bipartisan support and extensive political favors to get built.
From orbital habitats to deep-space supply depots (as seen in Born of Ash and Iron), every asset has a role to play, and without a naming system to keep everything in order, even the mightiest star-spanning regime is one missed ping away from chaos.
That’s where an Asset Identification Protocol (AIP) comes in.
It’s not the most glamorous topic, and its definitely not something most citizens spend a lot of time thinking about, but if you’ve ever wondered how a wing of tin cans know exactly which station to resupply at before the next patrol into deep space, or, maybe you wonder how Naval Command avoids accidentally sending two fleets to the same orbital platform.
The answer is buried in the precision of the Galactic Asset Registry (GAR).
The GAR is the official, internationally maintained, database of all stellar objects using the same AIP, as originally developed by the Rhyno Confederation.
Speaking of the Rhyno Confederation, lets take a peek inside their meticulous record-keeping and pragmatic approach to system governance that spawned the AIP in the first place:
A Code for Every Star
The Rhyno Confederation uses a tightly regimented system to designate celestial bodies and their associated artificial structures. Every star system with a significant population gets a unique two-letter designation, think of it as a shorthand callsign. For example, the Sintar system is assigned ST.
From there, the naming scheme drills down;
[Two-letter Designation][Stellar Object Number].[Sub-stellar Roman Numeral]_[Orbital Code]
Two-letter Designation: This is the core system tag (e.g.,
STfor Sintar).Stellar Object Number: The numerical order of the planet or planetoid from its star. Skywatch, the fifth planet in Sintar, would be
5.Sub-stellar Roman Numeral (Optional): Used when something orbits a moon rather than a planet. For instance,
ifor Teh-hey, Skywatch’s moon.Orbital Code: A short, function-based code that denotes the type of asset or station.
Example: ST5.i_ostat
This refers to a habited orbital station (ostat) orbiting Teh-hey (i), the moon of Skywatch (5), in the Sintar system (ST).
Orbital Codes: Shorthand for Function
Each orbital asset has a prefix and a function code:
oboss: Primary flight boss for system traffic
omrkt: Multi-use Staton, with taxable commerce zones
ostat: Habited station, with non-taxable commerce zones (predominantly used for refinery stations, orbital hydroponics, or other industries)
oweap: Weapon station or platform
oship: Shipyard; repair, refit, and resupply only
ocont: Construction yard, ship or component fabrication.
osply: Supply depot
All orbital codes start with an o prefix, denoting "orbital," and are followed by an abbreviated purpose.
This isn’t just a system of order, it’s a view into how the Confederation sees the galaxy. It’s a language unto itself for describing the galaxy in layers; stars, planets, moons, infrastructure/purpose.
Its how the Confederation sees territory, an object without sentiment, an eerie sort of precision.
Culture vs. Code
Of course, not everything is cold and clinical. While the codes are used for official documentation, the citizens of the Confederation (and its military) still refer to key installations in their vernacular by nicknames. Skywatch’s main station, ST5.omrkt, was known as “The Cradle” during the empire’s height. Post fall it’s known as “Old Ring” but still maintains the unchanging designation of ST5.omrkt.
The dual naming system, code and colloquial, is part of what makes the galaxy feel lived in. It’s a tension between bureaucracy and identity. Control and culture.
You cannot stop people from naming the things … you can only make sure your logistics officer can still find them.
Why did we develop this?
Or, I could phrase this, why does this matter for Stellar Empire? Why does a card game need this level of detail.
Beyond the obvious, this is what I do with everything… I dive into deep-cut lore. I strive for details that are obvious or overlooked in our real world, and I give them a place in our universe.
I feel like that’s the kind of detail that gives the universe a lived in feel. It’s the kind of things I notice in games and design (or even peoples license plates and screen names) and I try to decide why and what those acronyms mean.
When you see a planet’s identification code on a card, you can deduce what it means, or look up something like this article or the wiki to learn more about it.
Players, writers, and world builders get to feel like they’re in with the code, and they are given a toolset to build their own lore, set their own little place amongst the chaos of the stars.
So, wither you’re naming a newly claimed system in Stellar Empire: Skirmish, or writing your own novella about a smuggler finding an abandoned station to operate his group from (oh, that’s a cool idea…), the Asset Identification Protocol gives you a framework.
You know where you are.
You know what its called.
…and you know if its got a name like NV3.ii_oweap, you better keep those shields up!
Stellar Empire is a new sci-fi IP that we’ve been developing, and Andrew previously Kickstarted a card game in this universe; Stellar Empire: Skirmish!
I love that this all came about because I wanted to know where a scene was happening in Born of Ash and Iron before the scene even started. 😂 (LORE MONDAYS FTW!)