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Unmatched interstellar supremacy.

— Core Dynamics' slogan[1]

Core Dynamics is a Federal manufacturer of ships, skimmers, and ship modules based in Sol. It specializes in producing high-performance combat ships that utilize proprietary Core Dynamics Composites, and is the primary supplier of ships for the Federal Navy. Core Dynamics owns three subsidiaries: Imperial Dynamics, which sells rebranded Core Dynamics skimmers within the Empire, Vodel, which produces the Scarab SRV, and Core Enterprises, which was created to absorb the assets of the rogue corporate republic Jupiter Division. The secession of Jupiter Division from Core Dynamics in 3307, the culmination of years of planning by CEO Jupiter Rochester, threw the corporation into disarray. Owen McKenna, Rochester's successor as Core Dynamics CEO, oversaw the extensive restructuring process, and when Jupiter Division was defeated, he folded the breakaway department's remnants into Core Enterprises.

History[]

Shipwrights for the Federation[]

Core Dynamics has a long-running association with the Federation, having produced everything from the humble Eagle to the mighty Farragut-Class Battle Cruiser for the Federal Navy. On September 7, 3301, it debuted the Federal Gunship, a variant of the Federal Dropship designed for heavy combat.[2]

A mainstay product of Core Dynamics is the S4 Sentry. This is the most widely used skimmer in the vast semi-automated security and protection industry throughout the galaxy.[3]

Bolstering wartime production[]

On December 21, 3303, Core Dynamics announced a new construction initiative in response to the rapidly increasing tally of ship losses in battles against the Thargoids. The manufacturer sought to accelerate its production schedule to replace the losses and issued an open order to independent pilots for materials.[4] The campaign was a success, and Core Dynamics was able to immediately produce new ships for retail.[5] As a result, retailers throughout the Core Systems were able to lift Federal Navy Auxiliary rank requirements and offer a 17% discount on the Federal Dropship, Federal Assault Ship, and Federal Gunship for one week.[6]

Core Dynamics stock dropped 18% in July 3304 due to CEO Jupiter Rochester's familial ties to Federal Ambassador Jordan Rochester, whose engagement to Princess Aisling Duval had attracted considerable controversy. Jupiter Rochester came under fire from both shareholders and management, who were concerned that one of the Federation's bedrocks might be losing his integrity.[7]

Vodel acquisition[]

On April 19, 3305, Core Dynamics completed the purchase of Vodel, manufacturer of the Scarab SRV, after the latter company experienced a downturn in profits. CEO Rochester emphasized that Vodel's main team of designers and engineers would be preserved through the transition, and the Scarab's classic, dependable design would remain unchanged.[8]

Attempted Lakon acquisition[]

In an unexpected move, Core Dynamics made an official bid to acquire complete ownership of Lakon Spaceways on November 24, 3306. CEO Rochester confirmed that, as with the acquisition of Vodel, Lakon would retain all of its engineers and production facilities. Lakon did not immediately respond to the offer, but industry analysts speculated that the company may have been financially strained by investment in the Alliance Chieftain and its sister ships. Despite questions about the legality of inter-superpower corporate mergers, neither the Federal Commerce Authority nor the Independent Commission for Market Equality moved to reject the potential deal.[9] Lakon board of directors chairperson Naomi Landseer turned down Core Dynamics' proposal on December 1. The rejection came as a surprise to many, as rumours persisted that Lakon faced severe financial problems, and a number of Lakon's shareholders had voiced support for the merger and disapproval of Landseer's apparent favoritism toward Alliance contracts.[10]

CEO Rochester eventually decided to double down on the acquisition of Lakon. Core Dynamics announced on December 14 that it would apply a discount of 30% on the Eagle MkII and Vulture, and a discount of 20% on the Federal Assault Ship, Federal Dropship, and Federal Gunship through December 30. Profits generated from the sale would go towards funding a hostile takeover of Lakon. Rumours had already begun swirling that Lakon shareholders were being bribed to sell their shares or coerced into pressuring the Lakon board of directors to accept ownership by Core Dynamics.[11] On December 22, an emergency general meeting of Lakon investors was convened in which a majority of shareholders voted to remove several members of the board of directors who had opposed the Core Dynamics buyout, including Chairperson Landseer. The new members of the board affirmed that Core Dynamics' original bid would be reconsidered.[12]

Due to economic instability, the value of Lakon shares plunged to unprecedented lows on December 29, and the company stood on the brink of insolvency and dissolution. Chairperson Trent Delaney, the replacement for Landseer, was optimistic that Lakon would recover after its merger with Core Dynamics was complete, but the Independent Commission for Market Equality warned that irregularities had been observed in the recent transfer of Lakon shares to new owners, and some senior directors of Core Dynamics reportedly disagreed with CEO Rochester's push for the acquisition.[13]

Lakon's board of directors voted to accept the Core Dynamics takeover on January 5, 3307, paving the way for the acquisition to be formalized in two months' time. No change in Lakon's manufacturing schedule or business practices was expected before then. The transaction was approved by the Federal Commerce Authority, but the ICME delayed its own ruling while it continued investigating irregularities. Admiral Rachel Ziegler of the Council of Admirals also warned the Alliance Assembly that a foreign power producing Alliance ships would present major security issues for the Alliance Defence Force.[14] As the transfer proceeded, an anonymous Core Dynamics insider informed Vox Galactica on January 13 about how Jupiter Rochester appeared to be acting in his own interest, rather than the company's. For years, Rochester had been acquiring companies based outside the Federation such as Vodel and Lakon, managing them directly and staffing them with loyalists, possibly to diversify his family's personal holdings. Several Core Dynamics departments also operated under the label of "Jupiter Division", taking orders only from Rochester and working practically independently of the rest of the company. While some directors were displeased with Rochester's management, his extensive connections ensured Core Dynamics never lacked military contracts, making him too valuable to replace. Core Dynamics declined to comment on the story, but Naomi Landseer asked the ICME to investigate the claims.[15]

Secession of Jupiter Division and restructuring[]

Core Dynamics was implicated in the destruction of Starship One in 3301 during the trial of Fleet Admiral Lucas Vincent. On February 2, 3307, as the trial entered its second week, the prosecution recounted how the Federal Attorney's Office had reexamined the records of the original investigation into the disaster and found that Vincent and other naval officers had been receiving billions of credits from shell companies created by Core Dynamics. Press inquiries to Core Dynamics were ignored, but there were unverified reports of "large-scale activity" occurring at the corporation's main facilities.[16]

On February 5, after it emerged that Jupiter had apparently conspired with Vincent to arrange the Starship One disaster to assassinate then-President Jasmina Halsey, Jupiter Division assumed control of the HIP 54530 system and its departments began transporting ships and personnel there en masse.[17] By the time that the jury in Vincent's trial returned a verdict of guilty and sentenced him to life imprisonment on February 8, Rochester had already fled to HIP 54530, avoiding the Federal Intelligence Agency's sweep of Vincent and Rochester's co-conspirators in the Federal Navy and government. Industry analysts concluded that Jupiter Division's split had been in the works for some time, and the trial had forced those plans to advance.[18] In a message broadcast across all Federal media channels on February 9, Jupiter Rochester proclaimed himself Supreme Executive of Jupiter Division, and explained that the new faction was an independent corporate republic that would stand as a model of corporate governance for the rest of the Federation.[19]

As a result of the secession of Jupiter Division, Core Dynamics was thrown into disarray. This was compounded by the completion of the Independent Commission for Market Equality's investigation into the Lakon acquisition on February 10, which declared the merger illegal due to Jupiter Rochester's coercion of Lakon shareholders through use of bribes and blackmail. Core Dynamics promptly terminated the transaction, leaving Lakon independent, albeit still in a precarious financial position.[20] The revelation of the former CEO's extensive crimes committed in the pursuit of boosting the profits of Core Dynamics elicited a public outcry against corruption and corporate influence in the Federal government.[21] Jupiter Division was defeated by the Federal proxy Silver Legal Group on February 18, resulting in the arrest of Jupiter Rochester and thousands of his loyalists. Arrangements were made for the return of stolen Core Dynamics ships and resources.[22] By February 19, Federal news sources were reporting that the while the corporation was being investigated by the FIA over the Jupiter Division affair, it was also undergoing rapid restructuring.[23]

On February 25, 3307, Core Dynamics placed a 10% discount on all of its ships for three weeks to celebrate the first Galactic Summit. Gutamaya and Lakon Spaceways likewise applied identical discounts to their own inventories.[24]

By March 5, 3307, Core Dynamics had appointed Owen McKenna as its new CEO. McKenna oversaw the corporation's restructuring process, and vowed to purge it of all of Rochester's remaining loyalists.[25] Despite this pledge, Core Dynamics continued to see defections from its ranks to Jupiter Division's remnant over the following months.[26] McKenna allied with Silver Legal Group to confront Jupiter Division a second time in Ts'ao Tach on June 3, with the goal of permanently disbanding the rogue department and reclaiming Core Dynamics' remaining stolen assets.[27] Silver Legal Group won the battle handily and declared victory on June 10, ensuring Jupiter Division would not rise again and dealing a severe blow to the wider corporatist movement in the Federation. CEO McKenna informed the media that what was left of Jupiter Division would be folded into Core Enterprises, a Core Dynamics subsidiary.[28] The success of Core Dynamics in breaking up Jupiter Division effectively spelled the end of the Federation's corporatist movement, as its corporate sponsors withdrew their support for it before the dust had settled in Ts'ao Tach and no replacement figurehead was likely to materialise.[29]

Vodel debuted the Scorpion, a new two-seat SRV model that was designed for combat operations and troop support, on December 9, 3307. The Scorpion had been in development for two years, and was born from Vodel gaining access to its parent company's vast financial resources following the 3305 merger. The subsidiary held a launch event at Levinson Orbital in Bhattra that CEO McKenna attended. Speaking to reporters, McKenna called Vodel's acquisition one of the last good decisions that Jupiter Rochester had made as head of Core Dynamics.[30]

Products[]

Ships[]

Name Type Image
Eagle MkII Combat Eagle-mkII-ship-flying
F63 Condor Ship-Launched Fighter F63 Condor close-up
Farragut-Class Battle Cruiser Battlecruiser Farragut Battle Cruiser FNS Agamemnon
Federal Assault Ship Combat Federal Assault Ship 2
Federal Corvette Combat Fed corvette
Federal Dropship Heavy Multipurpose Federal-Dropship-Planetary-Ring
Federal Gunship Combat Federal Gunship 2
Vulture Combat Vulture-ship-flying-sideview

Skimmers[]

Name Type Image
S4 Sentry Security skimmer S4-Sentry-Skimmer-Close-Up
S5LM Guardian Defense skimmer S5LM-Guardian-Skimmer
S9 Goliath Heavy skimmer S9-Goliath-Skimmer

References[]

  1. Elite Dangerous Knowledge Base > Corporations > Core Dynamics
  2. GalNet: Core Dynamics Unveils New Gunship
  3. Newsletter #94 S4 Sentry
  4. GalNet: Community Goal: Core Dynamics Campaign
  5. GalNet: Galactic News: Core Dynamics Campaign Concludes
  6. Twitter: Frontier Help, 28 Dec 2017
  7. GalNet: Rochester Family Attacked
  8. GalNet: Vodel Purchased by Core Dynamics
  9. GalNet: Core Dynamics Bids to Purchase Lakon Spaceways
  10. GalNet: Lakon Spaceways Rejects Core Dynamics Bid
  11. GalNet: Core Dynamics Funds Takeover with Ship Discounts
  12. GalNet: Investors Take Control of Lakon Spaceways
  13. GalNet: Lakon Spaceways Faces Financial Collapse
  14. GalNet: Core Dynamics Purchases Lakon Spaceways
  15. GalNet: Core Dynamics Insider Discusses Lakon Takeover
  16. GalNet: Core Dynamics Implicated in Starship One Sabotage
  17. GalNet: Jupiter Rochester Named in Starship One Trial
  18. GalNet: Fleet Admiral Vincent Pronounced Guilty
  19. GalNet: Jupiter Rochester Goes Rogue from Core Dynamics
  20. GalNet: Takeover of Lakon Spaceways Declared Illegal
  21. GalNet: Federation Damaged by Corruption and Conspiracy
  22. GalNet: Victory for Federal Forces Against Jupiter Division
  23. GalNet: Lakon Spaceways HQ Moves to Alioth System
  24. GalNet: Galactic Summit Begins with Defence Request
  25. GalNet: Jupiter Rochester Sentenced to Life Imprisonment
  26. GalNet: Jupiter Division Inspires Corporatist Movement
  27. GalNet: Core Dynamics Engages Jupiter Division in Battle
  28. GalNet: Core Dynamics Triumphs Against Jupiter Division
  29. GalNet: Corporatists Stalled by Jupiter Division's Defeat
  30. GalNet: Vodel Releases Scorpion SRV
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