After an intense discussion in the HC chat of CR, I finally realized what a large part of the discovery community was thinking about this faction. But let's not jump to conclusions. Let's think at the lore of the NPC faction.
Once upon a time...:PKidding
This faction has a very interesting lore, something that attracted me to it from the first time I joined it. It's about a group of people, mostly europeans that were the pioneers that tested the first 2 prototypes of sleeper ships. Smaller crafts, not like the ones that were used during the trailer of the game.
The events are set way before Starlancer, at the beginning of space colonization, when there was no "Coalition" or "Alliance". What happened? These 2 sleeper ships started their journey, having scientists and technicians on board; some of the elite of space engineering. The training of the crews allowed them to survive after they couldn't find their way back.
Now, you wonder how did these 2 groups grow to millions in so short time? I know this because I was wondering the same when I was trying to understand most of their lore... well, it wasn't a short time at all because. We have no clear information about when the war between the coalition and the alliance has started relative to when the CR sleeper ships took off. So it can be 100 years before, or 400, it doesn't really matter because if we look at the rate of population grouth speed right now, on Earth, we see it +1 billion every 50 years so yeah...
So, the 2 sleeper ships got to a sector called Crayter and they developed and grew and blah blah, then something happened, a black hole. The CR put the sleeper ships back together and headed where they were hoping to find the Sol system... but there was nothing. Instead, they found their way to Sirius.
And here's where the problems started, first with Planetform, then gaians, then the whole bretonia... CR was forced to retreat to T-44 where they had a fresh start. It is stated in the lore that their ship constructing capacity was to a minimum, due to not having all the resources. they started building ships and shared blue prints with IMG.
When I joined CR, there were only 3 Zephyrs: Rubicon, the flagship, Valkirie and Nemesis. My dream was to fly one of those but they were already too many for CR's lore. Years passed, waiting for 4.86, and before it got live, the number of Zephyrs had doubled. CR had 6 Zephyrs: Triton, Nemesis, Rubicon, Europa (Valkirie), Deimos, Poseidon. Take that, stupid lore! Of course, it was RPed (in most cases). "CR grew, CR has power, CR has economy, CR can mine, CR allied to IMG, etc." < RP examples that were meant to justify the number of caps.
Then the members started discussing about the future lore. What will happen in 4.86, while being pissed that GRN was so meh and lead by the wrong people:D. Anyway, it was decided that there will be "evacuation events" where convoys of CR will run from T44 while the fleets fight each other. Such events never happened. meanwhile, Coronado was given from IMG as a possible new CR home. To get there, the CR convoys had to go past T29. T29 was under Kusair control. So what happened? CR started a war with Kusari, actually Kusari started a war with CR, but CR did nothing to prevent it. What about the convoys? Official answer from CR leader: "What? They're already there!"
So, CR also invented teleportation. Anyway, back to the gallic problem. It was agreed long time ago that CR would lose some of it's carriers, if not all, durring the GRN invasion. It lost two. One of them was never an actual ship, but a RP element for forumlancer. The other was one of the actual carriers. It became a station, in T39, so it's not completely lost. It was also RPed that the CR fleet will receive only 1 more Kronos than what was on the market at that time.
Now, the CR built a new home in Coronado, a new shipyard and other new things. The new capital shipline used parts of the other carriers to become reality.... in 1 month, and completely new kronoses were built. three of them... 3!
Math time:
How it should have been: 6-2+1=5 Kronoses (one more ship than the ones that were first produced)
How it really happened: 6-1+3=8 Kronoses (Got to love the workers at that shipyard)
The number of capital ships is now 8 Kronoses and God knows how many Cruisers. I heard they're equipping new members with them (so go join if you want to fly a cruiser in an official faction).
So, that, ladies and gents is how a faction that's supposed to take a major hit becomes a superpower, being able to compete with Kusari or Rheinland at the numbers of caps.
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Did you fall out with the HC or something?
In any case, the date in Starlancer is fairly clearly specified, as is the history of spacial development leading up to it - Starlancer's war isn't actually the first fought between the two powers. More like the third or forth. There's a fair amount of lore hidden in the iTAC. The Alliance and Coalition pretty much always existed during the practical space ages of Sol, as well.
Childish comment, Panzypants. But just so you know the ship that I made was the one that was discussed a long long time ago that will be created in 4.86, as the first pure Kronos. It's all in the post that I'm sure you haven't read completely. But I have no problem with scrapping that ship that was funded from my own bank as long as you refund me.;)
That comparison was relative. Earth (totaling over 6 billion people) raised to 7 billion recently and studies said that in 50 years we'll get to 8 billions. So for a group like the one in your example I'd say they'd triple their numbers in 50 years and increase exponential after that.