Mid-game will bring in some unique System Developments which can keep Pilgrims researching, fighting and exploring just fine. Never-the-less, a Pilgrim player should travel as far as quickly as they can, stealing exploration bonuses and systems before other Empires can grab them. That same technology also allows them to colonize Asteroids for huge FIDS at the cost of approval.
In contrast with the authoritarian United Empire, the Pilgrims make a point of relying on consensus systems and voting. In addition to the occasional system evacuation ahead of a United Empire fleet, they also uproot themselves to aid their search for the planet Tor. They are simultaneously educated scientists and tattooed mystics. The Pilgrims still maintain a semi-nomadic lifestyle, and combine science and religion in a seamless blend. The antipathy for the United Empire remained strong, but it became secondary to the desire to learn more about the Endless.Īt some point, the United Empire and the Pilgrims fought the First and Second Wars of Separation, but the time, duration, and details of the conflicts remain unclear. While their new friends taught them the arts of shipbuilding and interstellar travel, they were awe-struck by the vast ruins of this ancient civilization, developing a mystical fascination and reverence for the Endless. This twofold development transformed the Resistance. The two races became allies, with the Pilgrims receiving vital aid from the Sophons.
Moreover, they encountered a Sophon surveillance team that was also exploring the artifacts. While in the Kuiper-belt equivalent of an alien star system, they stumbled across a vast cache of Endless artifacts. However, this soon had a telling effect on the first children born into the Resistance. Constantly on the run, they grew accustomed to a semi-nomadic life. The new society spent its early days hiding in remote asteroid fields, fleeing the United Empire retaliatory forces. At some early phase of the United Empire's interstellar expansion, (the exact time is unclear) the Resistance hijacked a colonization ship and fled the Terran Solar System to form their own, less oppressive society. They objected to the corporate greed and authoritarian rule inherent to the Empire. The Pilgrims, then called the Resistance, began as a group of unhappy United Empire scientists, intellectuals, and other dissidents.