Dark Forest Theory

Dark Forest Theory is a the primary driving ideology of Ares. It is this ideology that drove Ares to trigger the Collapse.

The theory postulates that exosolar civilizations fear each other so much that they don’t dare reveal themselves, lest they be considered a potential threat and destroyed. It is a possible solution to the Fermi paradox.

As a species progresses into an interplanetary civilization, the ability of destruction begins to vastly outgrow any sort of possible defense. It is not considerably difficult for a species with efficient interplanetary travel to redirect an asteroid with sufficient mass and accuracy to completely decimate a planetary biosphere. As such, any FTL-capable species would be able to launch an attack with no absolutely chance of detection, making any large-scale engagements short and utterly devastating. Thus, the only way to protect against such a threat is to avoid revealing yourself, as though you’re walking through a dark forest.