Non-State Actors in the Corridor

For this post I have relied heavily on the personal & group name tables provided in Stars Without Number. Even if you don't intend to play them, support the publishers of free games by picking up their stuff and sharing what's good about them!

In my Traveller Universe, there are some religious radicals, but the 10th century of the Space Age is more an era of political loopiness and wannabe world dictators, like the Yedos. (See Homesteader's Stand) Every crackpot political idea of the 20^th century, like every Christian heresy, will rear its ugly head again. 
Fascists!

Communists!

Anarchists!

Monarchists!

Oh My!

Across the map

Lots of rich guys think it's cool to have a private army to secure their big estates, settle scores and do the occasional job to disadvantage their rivals. Nobles are expected to have personal bodyguards and armed retinues.

Arms dealing, especially across TL lines, is frowned upon as being destabilizing, is done constantly, is highly profitable and often is very dangerous. Competition is fierce. 

There are several trade/cargo conglomerates. They are not beholden to any nation or state. These too have their own Private Military Contractors, including armed ships to defend their transports. The PMCs will guard docks, warehouses and ships. Private Naval Contractors, aka Privateers do 'jobs' in space.

Companies & corporations of any size and location may have PMCs.

Major corporations in the Corridor

Stavangerian Corporations

• Ortox-Matagarda Company: music, multimedia & telecom
• Akureyri Corporation: Heavy metals mining & refining, steel, copper, specialty alloys
• Korovsk Chemicals: polymers, plastics, solvents & adhesives
• Stavan-Tech: consumer & industrial electronics and computer systems
• Hafnarfjordur Outfitters: tools, outdoor gear, survival equipment, light watercraft, light aircraft and contra-grav.
• White Dwarf Enterprises: starships, orbital facilities, shipyards, freight liners, passenger liners

Lanzhouan Corporations

• Cao-Sang Enterprises: metallurgy, aeronautics & telecom
• Jinzhou Combine: Agriculture, hydroponics & aquaculture
• Dunhang Multistellar: shipyards, orbital facilities
• Yidu Corporation: robotics and computer systems
• Anshan-Fa Enterprises: weaponry, personal & military and security services
• Ping Trading Associates: freight, charter cargo & courier services, speculations

Dekalbian Corporations

• Summersfield Holdings: electronics, construction, banking, exploration, trade, robotics and other stuff.
• Thetford Transport Systems
• All modes of transportation from wheeled personal vehicles to starships.
• Thetford Wheeled systems
• Thetford Contra-grav systsm
• Thetford Aerospace
• Lewis-Woodford Corporation: multimedia and journalism
• Pskov Group: development, construction, real estate and vacc suits
• The Babangida Clan: 'recreational pharmaceuticals' and 'escort services'
• Berlingstoke Arsenal: weaponry, vehicle armoring, personal armor and security services
• Grummond Insurance Services: The leading starship insurance underwriter; has its own PMC force available for ship owners to hire. Also a major employer of insurance fraud investigators

Narokian Corporations

Sunbeam Agricultural Group: agriculture, processed foods, nutritional supplements

Now Cometh the Empire

Three of the Empire's ICOs are present in the Corridor:

• The Sakamoto Ring
• The Jayanti Syndicate
• The Sikorski Union

These all engage in drug sales and smuggling, prostitution, gambling, black markets, illegal weapons transfers, suborning/corrupting officials, protection rackets, etc. They are all in direct competition with each other, and with MK-203 (see below)

Some of the (crackpot) political groups that have moved into the Corridor are:

Imperial Victory Foundation: they want the Empire to directly annex the Client States

Popular Freedom Society: they want the Empire to withdraw from the Corridor, and stop controlling the Client States

Social Progress Council: they want to repeal all laws regarding personal behavior

Talavera First! Party: they are trade protectionists, and are aggressively anti-LTP. T1! Doesn't care about political control; they want a trade monopoly for the Empire.

Pact for Peace: they want the Navy to disband, to encourage the Corridor states to 'all get along'.

 Other Groups

Lykosky Trade Protectorate: The LTP operates a fleet of small to mid-size bulk carriers that transport goods around the Corridor. They have regular stops on Lanzhou, Stavanger, Dekalb, Narok, VanGoff, Mavramorn and Cadawala.

Strauss' Strikers: mercenary platoon, currently contracted by the military junta on Faldor.

Goodluck Shipping, Ltd. Based at Ferrocore, an Imperial shipping line with 8 vessels in the 1-5ktn range.

Ferrocore Mining and Metals (FMM) Operating in the Ferrocore belt, they are simply the largest belt mining firm there, not the owners or the government. They have 3 ships of 2Ktn+ which transport bulk ore to other systems.

And then there's MK-203

MK-203 is a criminal enterprise involved in:

• piracy
• smuggling
• human trafficking
• organized theft
• racketeering
• drug trafficking
• enforcers for hire

The organization has bases in these systems which have little ability to patrol their own space.

• Dekalb
• Schamel
• Ramsa
• Tagus
• Faldor

They have many ships and control the movement of many other ships. They use these ships to move stuff quietly, and bribe lots of customs officials to keep things off the record.

Rumors relating to MK-203

• That name has been around less than 10 years
• they always use fast ships
• not just a pirate ship, but a gang
• they never hit Imperials
• they build bases on gas giant moons
• they always have the advantage of numbers
• they are suppliers of contraband
• they work for the Warlord of Dorothua
• The M and K refer to the name of the gang's leader
• they have spies at most starports
• they'll let you live if you surrender immediately, otherwise not
• MK203 chases out other pirates
• there are lots of pirates in the Corridor
• pirates never go to Stavanger
• some planets have laws specifically against MK-203
• you see them a lot around Narok
• all their ships are painted red and blue
• Insurance companies have specific riders applicable to them
• they hire out as mercenaries/bodyguards/enforcers