Hello. This entry is a dedication to a deep dive into Vader's Empire in 'Dark Lord: Bride of Vader'. As of the time of writing, I have not fully explained or explored any of the inner politics, economics, and political landscape of Vader's New Galactic Empire in the DC universe. I may have put in some vague detail here and there, but I have not dedicated a portion of time to explaining so. This entry will be just that. This is not an actual chapter of the main story, so I apologize if you are disappointed.
To explain Darth Vader's Galactic Empire, we will need to look into the character himself, as the NGE, New Galactic Empire, is based on his views of how the Universe works and should work. Sidious's Empire's power structure is solely centered around himself. Yes, there were the Moffs, military officers, and advisors that had their pseudo-cliques, and by the time Palpatine died on Endor, those cliques became rivaling remnants ruled by Warlords. There isn't a line of succession in Palpatine's Empire, maybe Vader if you want to consider his rank as Supreme Commander, but Palpatine created the First Galactic Empire in the vision that he would live forever.
Vader has the same notion, though they did not have the Sith knowledge of the time to do such a thing, at least not yet by the time I write this. Maxima can answer the succession problem since they are married, and a child could be made when Vaader gets his body repaired. Until then, it's Vader who will rule the NGE, with Maxima in the mix, and there are no current accommodations to succeed his rule yet.
If I can make an analogy, Vader's NGE is like a car–a well-oiled machine– much like how Vader is one, which parallels his cold thinking. The car has different systems and components that make it up and have their own purposes and responsibilities, so the whole car can operate correctly. The Gas tank holds the fuel; the crankshaft delivers power to the transmission; the tires are there to make sure that the vehicle can traverse and move through the terrain; the steering wheel helps the driver maneuver the car in whatever way is possible; and of course, the driver drives the vehicle to whatever destination he pleases with the car limited on how much the car has fuel in it and the type of terrain it is in.
This is Vader's Empire, just like how Anakin Skywalker creates machines, droids, and pod-racers alike, Vader created an invention he knows how to use, fix, troubleshoot, and handle. All of this is through central control, His control. In mechanics, there is no 'Democracy', yes, you can ask a fellow technician/mechanic for advice on a problem. Still, no committees have stopped the mechanics because of budget cuts. There is no judicial branch that makes sure that your work is legal to whatever constitution, and no Senate vetoes your proposal on a solution to fix the problem. I know that there are safety regulations to stop accidents, but I believe I made my point. With his experience, the mechanic is responsible for maintaining the vehicle in any way he sees fit, legally or otherwise.
"The shifter broke. Life seems so simpler when you're fixing things. I'm good at fixing things, always was…" - Jedi Padawan Anakin Skywalker to Padme Amidala in Episode II
In Anakin/Vader's mind, life would be simple if one with sufficient strength, power, and knowledge made the hard decisions for the rest of the group. This is why Anakin, in the final days of the Republic, wasn't against Palpatine seizing more power that went against the constitution. He believes that if Palpatine had made the right and hard decisions that the bumbling senate couldn't, the war would have ended faster, and the Galaxy would have been in a better position. Vader believes this too, though with the Sith philosophy shading it and the events of Episode III somewhat making him bitter about everything.
Anakin/Vader was in control and power not for the sake of it, unlike Palpatine, but because he genuinely thought that the galaxy would be a peaceful place if he, and, to a lesser extent, Palpatine, controlled the Galaxy for the better. Yes, maybe with a veil of selfishness, and Palpatine does have the same idea that the Sith could only bring peace and order to the Galaxy. They have the same goals, though they go in different directions; Vader wants to control the galaxy because it needs order and stability, and believes so, and Palpatine wants to control the galaxy out of his need to feed his ego of becoming the first Sith to rule the galaxy in its entirety.
We view the Galactic Empire in Star Wars, Legends and New Canon as fascist through books, movies, comics, games, and other media. We are giving examples of how it operates, controls the population, regulates and designs its economy and manufacturing apparatus, and its propaganda efforts draw parallels to the fascist regimes of the 1930s and '40s of our world. But, it is never really explained which ideology and system it gains inspiration from. Public perception of the First Galactic Empire is that it's just a copy of Adolf Hitler's National Socialist Germany from 1933 to 1945. There are one-to-one comparisons, but I want to expand that, precisely what ideology and system Vader would use in his Galactic Empire in DC.
To make this essay digestible, I will break it into parts: Culture, government, Economy, and so forth.
Culture
Of course, Vader is married to Maxima of Almerac and, therefore, inherits her rule and whatever territories Almerac controls. Through the fanfic, at least by the time I am writing this, Almeracians make up the bulk of the New Galactic Empire. In any DC continuity, Almeracian culture is never explored, unlike the other races, so I made up my own Almeracian culture and language to even it out. In the fanfic, I've mentioned some planets that Almeracians are on; names have a Germanic/Finnish inspiration, and the language is loosely based on the Crimean Gothic language.
Now, after Vader declared the New Order and Imperial reorganization began, the whole government, currency, and military components of the NGE have used the Almerac system of government, currency, and military as a base. So, let's say that whatever currency Almerac used before the NGE was called the Almeracian Marc and used a sort of precious metal to base its currency, so like a gold standard. After the Imperial reorg, the Almeracian Marc is now the Imperial Kred, but both currencies had the same price during the early days.
Most of the NGE military personnel are Almeracian; the official state language is Almeracian, while not entirely, Imperial colonists settling into a new planet taken over are Almeracian. When glancing, some people in the universe might just see the New Galactic Empire as just a rebranding of an Almaracian Empire.
I do not think, at least officially, that Vader loves racism against other aliens, but I do not believe he cares, either. I think he only cares when it becomes a problem. When we see the First Galactic Empire, even though it claims that Palpatine will treat everyone equally, the usage of alien slaves, genocide, and the overall priority of humans says otherwise. Obviously, slavery is a must-go for Vader. Still, the genocide and oppression of certain groups is something he isn't opposed to using either. We all know that Vader isn't fond of species like the Hutts, Tusken Raiders, Zygerrians and other races that might seem more like scum than civilized. Vader in the DC universe will see that certain groups/races are just incompatible with his New Galactic Order and are inherently untrustworthy.
Neimodians and Muuns, who center their culture on wealth procurement, can be somewhat blamed for causing the Clone Wars, the Hutts can be blamed for a good portion of the galaxy's slavery and crime problem, and other races are just barbaric by their simple nature were any foresight will show you that these races will not change their way of life to stop their problematic influences in the galactic scale. Vader will see the same thing in the DC universe, at least in the Milky Way. He will see races like the Gordanians, Khnudians, and when I get to it, the Reach, as nothing more than barbaric races that need to yield their uncivilized ways or else. He will not be dismayed to use options of deportation, cultural assimilation, and possible mass killings to civilize these races and others. Extermination would be the final solution if they are trouble more than they are worth. Yeah, so expect war crimes to happen when war with these groups inevitably occurs.
Not that Vader will be pleased, but in Legends, a flesh-eating virus broke out of an Imperial facility in one of the cities on Falleen and started an outbreak. Vader ordered the city to be destroyed to contain it. This causes Prince Xizor to hold a grudge against Vader because his family was killed along with the 200,000 Falleen citizens of the city. I believe Vader did regret it, but saw it as necessary to stop the spread. I remember reading one comic where a group of Fallenn ambushed him for revenge, and Vader did show a moment of slight regret. Still, I can tell in his mind that it was either letting the virus spread and kill more innocents or destroy the city with its residents so the rest of the planet can be spared. He did not do it out of racial biases or that matter, but out of trying to contain the situation from becoming worse.
If anything, I can see things like genocide, an action Vader will not shy from, but the context needs to be justifiable. Peace and order will not prevail and grow if he keeps genociding races left and right. It is also a "humane" option for ending an undesirable race rather than using them as slaves. To Anakin/Vader, killing them outright is a better and humane way of disposing of a race than utilizing them as a slave labor force. That way, he doesn't ruin his somewhat slanted moral view and gathers forced labor from somewhere else, which we will also discuss.
If I can make another analogy, Vader is to the Almeracians like how Stalin is to the Russian population of the Soviet Union.
Neither are they from their host population, but the people who make up their states are incredibly fond of them and make up their armies/loyal forces. While the Soviet Union was made up of countries other than Russia, the primary language was Russian; the population was primarily Russian; the currency, the ruble, was a holdover from the Russian Empire; city names and policies were named in Russian. Yes, officially, everyone in the Union was to be treated equally, but it might not seem that way.
For example, when the Soviets took over the Baltics in 1940, the Baltic people did not agree with the Marxist-Leninist view of the Union. So millions of Lithuanians, Latvians, and Estonians were deported to Siberia by the Stalinist regime in the 1940-1941 period and continued after their "Liberation" in the post-war period. This happened with many Soviet citizens, primarily Russian, immigrating to the Baltics as a sort of pseudo-replacement. It was not that the Soviet government intentionally put Russians in the Baltics, but in a happy coincidence, the Soviets moving to those countries were Russian and loyal to the state. This also happened to hundreds of thousands of Causian peoples like Georgians, Kalmykians, and other groups like Ethnic germans, to be displaced by the Stalin government during the war as the state saw some of them as "Nazi Collaborators" even though very few of them did so.
The same could happen in Vader's Galactic regime, but in different ways and contexts. Almeracian would be the most used and learned language after a territory has been taken. I can see businesses, traders, and other workers in the economy/commerce sector that are non-Almeracian having to learn Almeracian as the regime would use it more often than not. If a culture is seen as problematic or uncivilized, agencies like COMPNOR will put in the effort to try to reform the alien culture to be more "educated". I have explored the Almeracian aspect of conquering a planet and either destroying its race or fully assimilating it. The Imperial way of taking multiple cultures will be a less violent approach.
Regardless, racism is not condoned, yet not stopped in Vader's Empire, IF it becomes a problem. The Almeracian bloc of the NGE is large, they give the most manpower and support to Vader, and view themselves as racially superior to other races. Vader will gladly take advantage of this and use it in his policies. I have teased in the chapter of Vader meeting with the Thanagarians for the first time about how he plans to integrate them into the Galactic Empire somehow. Thanagarians are warlike, more so than Almeracians, they have a strong military to back it up, and for some time, as I am writing this story, they will view Vader as a powerful individual that they could potentially let lead them. That will take time, of course, but it could happen in the future, and the Imperial introduction to the Thanagarian-Gordanian War will be a crucible for it.
When that day comes, when Thanagar gets absorbed into the New Galactic Empire, the Empire will go from an Almeracian majority to a state where Thanagarians and Almeracians share a good part of the fighting population. In that case, it will hark back to the populations of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. Where Austrians and Hungarians had two separate kingdoms under one crown with minorities spread around, the same can happen with Almeracians and Thanagarians under Vader when this "personal union" comes into reality.
While Almeracians would and will hate other races in the NGE, their superiority complex doesn't play a whole part in it. When an alien population is taken under Imperial control, large portions view the NGE as an occupier and Almeracians as their overlords. And because of their unpopular view, the Almeracians, who are proud to be Imperial, will see this as a betrayal. In their minds: why should they be friendly to a race where their fellow Imperials [Almeracian] died "liberating" a planet filled with a bunch of ungrateful aliens? Racism from Almeracians toward other races is more based on feelings of betrayal from the aliens' lack of loyalty and unwillingness to conform to Imperial society. To them, they are carrying the work and the overall burden of the fighting, and very few alien populations care.
Just like the word 'Soviet' was almost synonymous for Russian, the word 'Imperial' can be synonymous for Almeracian.
But despite its Almeracian-dominated culture, there are still alien groups that view themselves as Imperial and discrimination from the Almeracians is minimal. Places like Warworld where the previous regime was even more oppressive and unpopular among the population, loved Vader and the NGE because their standard of living significantly improved. While not a location or a single race, formerly slaves now free from the NGE also have good opinions on Vader, the NGE, and other Imperials [Almeracians] and view them as liberators. Almeracians view these aliens that support them as fellow Imperials and comrades.
Though this doen't mean that every alien group under Imperial control hates the state nor does it mean every single Almeracian has a good view of Vader's regime.
To finish this section off, if you're an alien and have a non-Almeracian culture that is seen as fine under the New Galactic Order, then you will receive no backlash from the government. If your culture doesn't align with the principles of the New Galactic society, then you better learn some Almeracia,n buddy.
"All are equal, but some are more equal than others." - A quote from 'Animal Farm' thats edited to be more generalized
Government
Vader had the idea of becoming Emperor since more or less day one of its founding. He admits to this on Mustafar to Padme, then later to Obi-Wan. Again, returning to his experiences, Anakin/Vader believes 'might makes right' and men with power that isn't held back by 'corrupt senators' and obstructive ethics can do what needs to be done. Anakin believed Chancellor Palpatine was the man for the job, and Vader believes himself and to a lesser extent Emperor Palpatine for the same thing.
Now with his Empire, albeit built from the ground up, Vader can achieve his dream.
We all know that Vader is not as politically savvy as Chancellor Palpatine or as manipulative as Emperor Palpatine. But I'm sure he knows enough from observing on the way side and coming to his own ideas and conclusions.
There is no Imperial Senate because the Senate was a holdover from the Old Republic era. The Emperor doesn't need the Senate's approval or opinion since he has the power and authority he needs. The senate's only purpose was to be a sort of imaginary parliamentary committee for the false narrative that the Galactic Empire is a democracy overseen by a monarch. After its dissolution, the senate's duties somewhat went to COMPNOR and the regional governors overseeing the sectors.
Let's say that Vader's way is blunt like this, and he more or less copies the Imperial system shown in 'A New Hope'.
Going back to Vader's political skill, or lack thereof, he knows very well about it and is very dedicated to military operations rather than trying to make sure inflation doesn't go high or worrying about factory output. That's why he has an Imperial Chancellor to do this.
Now, since I'm using Sazu, as seen in the Superman cartoon, very little of her character is shown in the episode she only appears in. But I can make a few safe guesses. One, she's worried about the conditions and stability of Almerac, more so than Maxima. Two, she is willing to coup Maxima just because Maxima isn't exactly doing a good job. Three, she doesn't have the warrior-esque mentality Maxima has and seems 'rational' and 'liberal'.
So we have a character that is an advisor to Maxima for some time, is dedicated to her work, and knows what she is doing, except for the coup part where she sucks at it.
Vader values people with skill, and was shown that every time he kills someone who they failed him, and somewhat 'takes care' of the people under him that does a good job. Shortly after Vader appoints Sazu as chancellor, he learns about her betrayal of Maxima. Even when it's justified and Vader partly could agree with it, Sazu is on thin ice and she very well knows that.
To summarize the position, the Imperial Chancellor has the responsibilities and power within the civilian/economic sector of the NGE to ensure that its military is fully manned, equipped, and fed. That is the whole point of being Chancellor in Vader's eyes, to give the Armies and fleets their needs and wants without Vader getting his hands dirty.
The entire point of the New Galactic Empire's civilian/economic system is to feed its war machine. "The State serves the military." If you're a 'Hearts of Iron 4' fan, you'll know what I mean by that.
Going back to her role as chancellor, on a technicality, she has all the power within the civilian government to do whatever she wants. In reality, she can only do so much.
She's not micromanaging the entire economic sector. Instead, she is arranging different types of policies, programs, and projects to maximize the Imperial manufacturing industry to its highest level to provide for the military while giving the citizens some level of comfort.
Let's say that 60% to 70% of industrial manufacturing is dedicated to producing military hardware and services. The rest is used to produce consumer goods for the rest of the populace.
Under Chancellor Saz, there is a series of advisors, administrators, bureaucrats, and other officials helping her manage the Empire's situation, economically, socially, and politically. Planetary/system governors are plainly military officers just like in Sidious' empire, with a few exceptions. They are in charge of protecting their assigned territories while maintaining peace and order. However, regarding market management, instituting local economic laws, policies, and other measures for industry, civilian central planners and officials under the Chancellor's office control everything else. The governors are just there to ensure that imports, exports, and other materials are protected and that order is maintained in their territory.
Returning to Sazu's responsibilities, she technically has the power, but could only do so little. Let's say, in an analogy, Sazu's situation is like if she were on a leash and Vader is holding it. It's a long leash so she could go around for a distance. But at the end, Vader is still holding onto the leash, and her range of movement is still limited. If Vader wants to go in a specific direction, Sazu and, to a greater extent, The New Galactic Empire have to go in that direction.
If Vader wants more production in the agriculture sector for an upcoming campaign, then Sazu has to go out of her way to ensure that agri-worlds are getting the proper equipment and manpower they need. If Vader wants a new location for a shipyard, Sazu has to find a planet or region of space that will be suitable for ship production while relatively close to ship lanes.
What Sazu does is based on Vader's needs being fulfilled.
There are other government agencies like the ISB, COMPNOR, Imperial Bureau of Standards, etc. Everything that Vader isn't primarily concerned about is under Sazu's control. But Sazu has to use the power that she wields carefully. The collar that her leash is connected to is rather tight.
Economy
As I have said many times, Vader is not totally disinterested in economic matters, but he knows that he isn't good at them. That is why he entrusted Sazu to manage them for him so that military concerns would be his main focus.
Sidious' Empire', despite being totalitarian, had a mixed economy. It had a hand in many markets and lacked presence in a few others. It nationalized corporations that aligned with the CIS and the Rebel Alliance, while some corporate entities were either left alone or forced to sell to the Empire primarily. Not every system was centrally planned, so a good portion of economies and markets were left alone.
The same cannot be primarily said about Vader's Empire.
Yes, Vader copied many government institutions from Sidious' model over his Empire, but Vader especially has control over the economy.
We can easily say that Anakin's experiences greatly affected Vader's point of view and the actions that reflect them overall. He clearly has a loathing view and disdain for the Republic in its last years and views its economic policies as one of the factors that lead to it.
While the Republic isn't entirely 'Laissez-faire' as it had regulations and taxes which fed the notion for the senate to create Free Trade Zones for corporations to do whatever they want with near impunity. Corporations like the Trade Federation gained a lot of power in these zones and were a major monopoly. That causes the Republic to tax the zones, the Trade Federation gets angry, which leads to the company blockading Naboo out of protest and the rest is history.
Vader doesn't want the same thing to happen to his government so a lot of control was put over the economy, trade, and labor.
Let's start with the corporations.
Almerac in DC lore, or the majority of material involving space, has no such entities, so let's just make one up. Let's go with 'Almerak-metall works,' which was the major manufacturer for Almerac, and for banking, let's go with 'Tae-Tamrak Banking,' which was Almerac's central bank before the Imperial reorganization.
After the Imperial reorganization, companies like Almerak-metall works have been nationalized by the Vader-Sazu economy. The Imperial government owned a lot of stock in the company while forcing the executives to be COMPNOR members or replacing them with already loyal COMPNOR followers. Tae-Tamarak saw the same thing and is a state-owned entity under the new Imperial Treasury.
Just like the original, Vader's COMPNOR has multiple sub-agencies, under the 'Coalition of Progress', sub-branches like art, trade, system education, and other stuff are there to make sure citizens and groups are aligned to the New Order's ideology. I'll make a new sub-branch and call it 'Labor', which ensures the loyalty of the workers, both employees and employers, of the New Galactic Empire are loyal to the regime. Under this sub-branch, there is a sort of state-controlled labor union called 'The League of Imperial Workers'.
Every business owner in the New Empire has to be a member of this labor front and to a greater extent, COMPNOR. From a CEO of an intersystem trading conglomerate down to the simple pottery trader in a small, local market. If they are not, the business owner can be subjected to heavy fines and taxes for 'breaching the unity of the community'. At worst, the business owner's entire franchise can be taken by the government. Afterward, the government can decide whether to liquidate the assets or give the franchise to a loyal Imperial firm/business owner. For businesses located on planets or systems that have been acquired by the NGE, forcibly or otherwise, COMPNOR's Labor branch decide whether the business is suitable for the New Order agenda or shuts it down and distributes the assets.
This process ensures that business owners are under the watch of the ISB as they monitor businesses' sales and operations. If any firm does business with a rival power or insurgent group, the ISB can detect it. The level of control is also seen toward the consumer. This happened to the Republic when corporations aligned themselves with the Separatist movement and sympathetic companies secretly armed the Rebel Alliance. Vadeer wants to prevent this, so controlling the companies is his aim.
The Imperial Chain code from the New canon is a good idea, and I think Vader would use it to its fullest. Just like the Sidious' New Order, Vader's regime ensures that every consumer purchase is locked behind a chain code. Any purchase the simple citizen makes, a database keeps track of their orders, and the Imperial Bureau of Standards, with the ISB, keeps records from the most straightforward purchase for bread and drink in a farmers market to large-scale procurement of land property. Speaking of land property, by Vader's decree, any land under all Imperial territories can be seized by the government for any reason.
Going into the workforce, under the new government agency, the Imperial Bureau of Labor, not to be confused with the COMPNOR labor branch, takes care of the workforce on multiple planets and concerns itself with job creation by working with other departments. Some services give the homeless jobs and housing, while programs are dedicated to relocating manpower to much-needed industries and infrastructure projects.
In one of these services is a department that provides freed slaves who swore themselves to the New Order. It's not to be seen as welfare but more of giving a free sentient, now an Imperial, a job, a place to live in a government-created apartment, and maybe some currency. Vader might "feel bad" for them as they were slaves, but he isn't entirely that generous. If you're willing to work, then the New Galactic won't see you as a problem, refuse to work, or be complacent to find a job and you'll be given one pretty quick, permanently.
Going into currency, there is no known currency that Almerac uses, so let's say they used the Almeracian Marc. Let's also go a step further and say that a precious metal backs up this currency. When the New Order was established, the Almeracian Marc became the Imperial Kredit.
Because of the enormous demands for remilitarization during the early months, expansion afterward, and implementing its rule in territories, Vader and the begrudgingly Sazu had to switch the economy from a gold standard to a Fiat system. This was so that currency could be easily created and distributed throughout the markets and especially into the military-industrial complex.
But despite how I describe Vader's Empire, this is one of its bad features. Of course, the totalitarian system is already bad, but the economy is extremely fragile. Let me explain.
I've written in one of the beginning chapters when Vader is discussing with Sazu about the situation of the Empire. At the very beginning, Vader decreed that trade, imports, and exports that come in and out of Imperial territory are to be halted and told Sazu that a state of autarky will be implemented. Trade between planets are only allowed. Sazu found this problematic but cannot say anything against and does her best to minimize the damage. Because of Vader's closed economy, the fiat system being built, and the absorbent amount of government spending on projects, especially the rear moments, the Imperial Kredit has been steadily inflated.
The Imperial economy can be best described as a bubble. Currency is funneled through the bubble and trapped inside without any way to deflate it. In time, the bubble is going to get bigger and bigger until it cannot contain anything anymore, burst at the seams, and explode into a depression.
The great economist Sazu has been doing damage control as best she could, like creating wage and price controls on consumer goods. These were short answers that slowed down the rising inflation bubble, but that itself was a problem.
When the price controls on particular consumer products like foodstuffs and fuel started, Imperial citizens began to buy the more affordable products in mass quantities than they needed. A basic understanding of supply and demand: supply will go down when demand rises, and supply will really go down when the markets have limited options of resupply. Eventually, businesses and markets cannot keep up with the demand, and the price controls imposed on them will create a shortage of these goods.
Vader saw that and told Sazu that a law would be passed decreeing that the Imperials could only buy so much based on their needs for living. He implemented a rationing system.
So, for example, if an average, unmarried Almeracian male who works as a teamster at a repulsor-lift transportation company on Tae-Tamarac wanted to buy beer and animal fat for himself in the market. He would either have to buy one serving of beer and animal fat for that one day or purchase up to a week's worth of personal servings. Afterward, a waiting period will be imposed on his right to buy the products again which is dependent on how much of a serving he bought.
So if he bought one serving of beer and one serving of animal fat, he will need to wait until tomorrow for the buying embargo to be lifted, and he will be able to buy a beer and some animal fat for himself and only for himself. This is the same for him if he bought a week's worth of personal servings of beer and animal fat; an equal amount of time will be imposed on his ability to purchase the products. So a week of servings equals a weeks worth of embargoed time before he will be able to buy them again.
For another example, we have a Talokite female who lives on Imperial-held Warworld and works as a housemaid. She is married to a man who works at a munitions factory and has five young children. If she wants to go to the market and buy vegetables to cook for her family, she could buy one day's worth of servings for seven people or up to a week's worth of groceries and wait a week to buy them again.
Of course, this is an example; the New Galactic Empire is not at that stage to start rationing beer and vegetables. But, before and during the invasion of Rimbor, rationing was a thing and limited the citizenry's ability to buy products. Ration restrictions will be placed and lifted time and time again.
If a consumer attempts the product that is embargoed on their chain code account, they will be fine; at worst, they will have to do community labor for weeks. This not only extends to high-demand foodstuffs but also fuel, complex tools, and a few other materials where the market could not easily replace them.
I don't know why I spent the last three paragraphs explaining rationing, but I guess you can blame that on my 'tism.'
With the economy being bloated by government expenditures, there is, however, a silver lining that keeps the Imperial economy from utterly popping. This whole shortage crisis happened during the Rimbor takeover. If you remember correctly, Vader wanted to take Rimbor because it threatened nearby Talcyion Omega that he actually wanted. Talcyion was a world with vast amounts of land that can be turned into farmland and Vader wanted it because of just that, and how the NGE is struggling to feed itself with the autarky system.
When Rimbor was taken, the Galactic Empire took a lot of wealth that the pirates and slavers kept along with their ships. The taken riches were absorbed into the Imperial treasury and somewhat stabilized the inflating economy. After a while, inflation started back up again, but more and more planets and systems were being taken, with their assets absorbed into the NGE's coffers and the economy was stabilzes again.
In simplicity, the economy in Vader's Galactic Empire is an economy of conquest, almost vampiric. It is in an cycle of being inflated by massive state spending, conquering new systems, absorbing assets and the economy deflating only for a time before inflating kicks back up again. While it can survive on its own for a time, but because Vader cautions trade with the outside galaxy, it is a self-contained bubble that has no other option to find outside resources and material. Conquering neighboring systems is the NGE's only way of expanding its economy and bringing in new markets—a pseudo way of trade in a violent form.
When Vader's Empire expands, when more diverse planets are taken in with their markets and resources, the Imperial economy will become more stable and eventually self-sufficient. But until then, it's a struggling mess trying to keep up with military demands.
At the time I am writing this, Vader allied with Thanagar, not only is it in a military pact,but they will be trading their refined Nth metal for Star Destroyers and other vessels. Nth metal wouldn't be the only thing that the Thanagarian Empire would be trading with the New Galactic Empire. Thangar is so desperate to end the war with the Gordanians that they are willing to destroy Earth for that victory. In that case, I like to think that Thanagar also needs war material, other than starships, like rations, equipment, and so forth. One could only imagine what a generational war could look like and be impactful between the Thanagarians and the Gordanians as it was described by Talak in the 'Starcrossed ' episode.
Being allies now, the New Galactic Empire would be inclined to supply the Thanagarians with food, munitions, weapons, and other material to help them keep the fight going on the Thanagarian-Gordanian front. This would keep the Gordanian forces occupied while the Imperial Navy and ground forces prepare for the inevitable invasion of the Gordanians' flank in their galactic east. This support for the Thanagarians will be another burden the Imperial economy will have to deal with, especially the civilian population.
We can move on to individual planets and their respective roles in the Imperial economy.
I will not describe every single planet, I will just give you examples of their economies. Most planets of the New Galactic Empire have specialized roles within the Imperial war machine. A recently acquired planet is reviewed by the Imperial Industrial and Agricultural Management Administration, IIAMA, under the Chancellor's Officer and its population, land size, climate, and mineral deposits and resources are decided upon by the administration on which specialization it will take.
Already owned worlds are not spared by this either. If a planet designated as an agri-world has failed to reach its goal in crop yields and meat production, then its specialization might change to something more valuable and practical to serve the needs of the state. This decision isn't likely to be taken, it is not as if an agri-world fails in crop production, then it immediately turns into a penal colony and convicts are shipped there to do hard labor. But if a world fails it's assigned specialization task, or multiple if it has other roles, then a more suitable role will be given.
For example, like Warworld. This is the DCAU version of Warworld, so it's just a planet with multiple cities on it, not the gargantuan artificial world we think of in the comics. Before Imperial control, Mongul did a terrible job of managing his resources, and the multicultural Warworld suffered for it. In the episode it's shown in, there is talk of a lack of food, medicine, and shelter. The people didn't simply revolt against Mongul because he placed a considerable amount of money in the arena games to entertain them and distract them from their hardships. Why he didn't just be a good leader and give those people what they needed,not what they wanted,is beyond me,as it might've been cost-effective to do so.
After Imperial control, Vader utilized Warworld's already built urban infrastructure to convert it into a factory world. Governmental housing was created by using penal labor and construction jobs created for the homeless on the planet. A more reliable supply chain was created to feed Warworld, and starvation was kept to a minimum.
The vast amounts of factories, workshops, alloy foundries, industrial yards, recycling plants, and other manufacturing facilities made after the Imperial takeover created a surplus of jobs that nearly ended unemployment. But then again, you either find a job on your own terms or the state will give you a job, regardless of how you feel. Warworld became a go-to location for the Imperial Bureau of Labor to relocate newly freed slaves after their liberation and needed an outlet for their servitude skills. This increases the multi-alien population of Warlord as more and more citizens, freed slaves or not, are sent to Warworld. The planet's Naval Yards are also equally important.
Going back to corporations, as Vader was almost hostile to such entities, Sazu could be seen as practically begging him to ease restrictions on companies and free up the market between planets, as competition between companies can be seen as beneficial for the economy. Vader would be hesitant but somewhat convinced that some breathing room can be made, but not total freedom.
At least 40% of the factories of Warworld are directly owned and run by the state. The state owns 10% to 20% of facilities but leases them to a manufacturer. The rest of the percentages are factories owned by a manufacturing company. Yet, just like the companies before and after Imperial reorganization, newly formed companies are just as 'private' as you can get in a totalitarian state where the regime is fixed on control over everything, down to personal information.
The state expects a company to have a high COMPNOR membership in its ranks. The foreman and executives have no other choice. Safety regulations are enforced, and good treatment of the workforce is also required. On the other hand, high quotas are demanded, and good quality products down to the simplest specifications are only accepted. Almerak-Metall works would be the largest manufacturer besides state-owned facilities. Smaller firms that operate only on Warworld fill the rest of the production.
80% to 90% of the production on Warworld is dedicated to military hardware. The most significant products that come out of the assembly lines on Warworld are blasters, speeders, Walkers, Repulsor vehicles, and TIE starfighters. Warworld's moon, Warmoon, is a solely dedicated location for droid production, mainly battle droids and droid-piloted vehicles. The rest of the percentage is based on consumer goods that are sold not only on Warworld, because of the planet's high demand for it, but across the New Galactic Empire.
Let's go to another planet.
Enter Havania. Bleez's homeworld. The only times when Havania has been explored were in comics 'Blackest Night: Tales of The Corps Volume 1 issue #2' out of 2009 'Red Lanterns Volume 1 Issue #3' out of 2012, and we only get brief looks and descriptions. Being a maniac, I can maybe come up with a few details and how the New Galactic Empire might utilize the world.
Havania is described as one of the most beautiful planets in the galaxy, second to Odym. Its indigenous population is a near-human species—Havanians—with blue skin, black hair, and black wings on their backs. Very similar to humans and Thanagarians, though it is not clear if they are just as robust as humans or Thanagarians, probably the former. There is another sentient species that is more amphibian/reptile-like that is seen as servants to the Havanians. No name is given to them, and it is not specified if they are indigenous to the planet or not.
The ruling government seems to be a monarchal one, as it's seen that Bleez herself is a princess within a royal family. It is also seen that there are other noble houses, though possibly lesser. There is no mention of the economy, trading markets, exports and imports, and other industrial matters. The only objective evidence we see on the planet is a gentlemen's club with Havanian strippers going on and about with their skippy jobs. In the New 52 continuity, in a flashback, it is hown that two suitors that Bleez rejected wanted revenge, so they meet up with a yellow lantern in the strip club and plan some "payback" against Princess Bleez.
Okay, so since we have some information about Havania, let's brainstorm some ideas.
With nobles willing to be shady, and the planet having a beautiful climate and women, let's go with the fact that most of Havania's economy is based on tourism, gambling, and legalized prostitution and pleasure business.
*Some guy enters my room* "Oh, so like Las Vegas or Thailand in space?"
*I look over with a serious face* "Yes, like Las Vegas or Thailand, though a lot less crackheads and ladyboys. *I turn back to the conversation*
Anyway, the noble families own establishments and businesses that are dedicated to these practices. The lower classes and reptile servants either work in these places, or if you're a beautiful Havanian young woman, you ARE the attraction and product in demand. I can imagine the customers being tourists, passing by traders and ship crew, and primarily pirates and criminals. A nearby trade route could be close to Havania, but the Havanians capitalized on the individuals and groups within the lanes, not trading power itself. I can also see that they may bribe or pay off pirates to do their dirty work.
Thus, I can see Havania getting wealthy and living comfortably in their relationship with the outer galaxy. Then…the Empire attacked!
In one of my chapters, I briefly mentioned that Vader sent a task force of Star Destroyers to Havania. Unlike the warrior and martial culture of their avian cousins—the Thanagarians—Havanians are not a militaristic group, and living lavishly for many generations has taken its toll on the population.
Straight to the point, when the noble families saw a formation of dagger-shaped Star Destroyers in the atmosphere and received a transmission telling the planet to surrender, the ruling classes capitulated, and the world was in Imperial hands without even a single shot fired.
With Imperial forces not having to lift a single finger to attack, the Havanian willingness, or submission rather, to the New Order, and possibly Vader's relationship with Bleez—Darth Angelicus, it could be suggested that Havania can be 'rewarded' for its submission and be placed as an Imperial Protectorate.
This is a segue to Imperial puppet/satellite governments.
In Legends, there are no sources, at least not what I can find, about puppet or collaborator governments under the Galactic Empire. In Canon, specifically in the book 'Star Wars: Lords of the Sith', it is mentioned that Ryloth is an Imperial Protectorate, so technically, at least on paper, it has some sort of autonomy. In reality, it's another Imperial world for slavery and mineral extraction.
Ryloth is free only in name. The same can be said of Havania in Vader's Galactic Empire. While there are other Imperial Protectorates within NGE, those planets/systems are different on a case-by-case basis.
One protectorate could be another run-of-the-mill Imperial world with a few exceptions to local law. Another protectorate could have authentic autonomy where their original rulers are somewhat in control, with Imperial Governors only having oversight authority. Some protectorates could have their entire industries and economies nationalized with the Imperial economy, while others have some sovereignty on economic policies within their territories. Some protectorates might only have a police force and have to rely on the Imperial military for protection, while others could have their PDFs though limited and overseen by Imperial command, and have to obeythe Emperor and Empress' command when given.
I won't name all of them; these are just examples. Despite the diversity of the different types of protectorates, compared to the number of planets directly under Imperial control and systems that are protectorates, the protectorates are a small fraction that can be passed off as being faint in number.
Regardless, the Imperial Protectorate of Havania or the 'Free World of Havania' still has its ruling classes established, whether with a monarchy or a noble council. However, they have significantly less power now. Slavery was abolished, the military is now heavily regulated, any corporate entities that the nobles owned have been partially nationalized, and therefore there is direct control over native businesses. The nobles also saw hefty taxes put on them, and the local currency became worthless as more Imperial Kreds were being prioritized and funneled into the planetary economy.
What's worse for the Havanians, especially the nobility class, when the Imperial Navy swept up that region of space, trade and especially pirate activity ceased. Either bandits were killed, captured by the NGE and now penal laborers, or fled the area. With the economy partly in control of the New Galactic Empire, Havanian coffers being drained by Imperial taxation and seizure, and their primary customers gone, Havania saw a depression that gripped the planet heavily, which caused it to become more dependent on Imperial Almerac for the most basic needs. The pompous Havanian aristocracy now was requesting help from their Imperial [Almeracian] overlords.
The IIAMA and Sazu thought upon the economic crisis in Havania and decided that with Havania's unique culture, economy, and environment, the Chancellery created a new planet specialization and named Havania a 'paradise world'.
The nobility had some of their business ownerships and freedoms restored with the addition of tax breaks. Hotels, restaurants, resorts, brothels, and a few other places of recreation were handed back to their noble owners. Prostitution and gambling were made legal, though still heavily overseen by Imperial labor laws and betting limits. The ration restriction on alcohol was lifted with the legalization of a few recreational drugs, too. No industrialization plans were made, nor were projects for deforestation for an urbanization project planned. Once more, preventative pollution laws were enacted to ensure that the beautiful Havanian lands would not be sullied, as air traffic was controlled in certain areas.
All of these measures and regulations were to ensure Havania is guaranteed to be a beautiful paradise—a vacation destination for Imperial citizens and military personnel alike, and to relax. Havania recovered from the depression, but never truly returned to its wealthy prestige; it had serious cash flow but not the mountains of wealth the nobility possessed.
Those are examples of planetary economies and a little exploration of Imperial Protectorates. Why I spent a considerable amount of time in the protectorate government in the economy section and not in the government is beyond me.
Conclusion
Again, this format isn't as engaging or interesting as it is blunt to the information, while I could have included these details in the main story. I will eventually, but let this be a guide for anyone curious.
In conclusion, Vader's regime in the DC universe may seem "better" in dealing with practices like slavery, at least they may seem "better" compared to Sidious' regime. Yet, Vader is still the bad guy, yes, he hated Slavery, but was more or less complacent about the Galactic Empire's activities in slave labor and markets. He might feel better to ban slavery in his Galactic Empire and force criminals, pirates, and political dissidents to do the dirty work. Yet a political dissident can be someone who outright says they don't like the Vader government. Guess what, it's still slavery just under a different name.
One thing I noticed in fanfic stories where the OC or a character makes an empire, their usual first actions are to ban slavery. Another thing I've noticed is that when an OC is meant to be a "dark, badass, brooding" character that kills they apparently find racism ans slavery disgusting and draw the line at that—very Reddit of them.
New flash, people, Vader isn't a good guy. Yes, we feel bad for him and celebrate when he redeems himself in ROTJ. So somehow people get the idea that when Vader is on his own, he somehow becomes good even though it almost took Luke to be cooked alive by Palpatine's force lightning, and Vader is somehow struggling on which side he should go.
Vader hates slavery yet was complacent about the Empire's efforts into it. Vader, from what I can gather, didn't support the Galactic Empire's policies on Xenophobia and species discrimination, yet wasn't entirely bothered by it either. Vader conducted multiple massacres, including doing nothing when Alderaan was destroyed. I think there was some specific material that he argued with Grand Moff Tarkin about destroying the planet, but that led to nowhere. The Homeworld of Princess Leia was atomized with Vader not putting up a fight.
If a 'true' hero were in Vader's boots, they would've done anything they could to stop slavery, even in the shadows; they could have done something. If they were Vader on the Death Star when Alderaan was about to be blown away, they would have done everything they could to stop its destruction, even if it meant sacrificing their life.
Vader did not do that, yet somehow, he's the "good guy" in other fanfics.
I didn't want to spend the last portion of this essay ranting, but I felt it was necessary given how the New Galactic Empire is based around Vader's worldview. Obviously, I know that Vader has a broken heart and mind and that he often justifies his actions to the greater good of peace and order. This isn't bashing Vader; I love Vader; that's why I made an entire fanfiction of him to begin with.
I want everyone to know that just because Vader banned slavery in this fanfic doesn't make him the good guy either. Vader's regime is still oppressive, controlling, discriminatory, and, last of all, murderous. The only difference is that Vader did all the things that Palpatine should have done, and even then, it's mainly out of military considerations. Vader might not outright feed off the suffering of a population unlike Palpatine, rather he'll just kill them to be done with it.
While you could say Vader's actions can be justified by his dedication for peace and order. In the future of this fanfic, by the time I am writing this, after he repairs his body, he admits to himself that he has an attachment to Maxima, and that attachment leads to unexpected "pregnant" consequences. Those consequences are gonna change his entire reasoning for the New Galactic Empire and how he justifies his actions and crimes.