Origins of the Plan
After years of developing psychohistory, Hari Seldon reached a devastating conclusion: the Galactic Empire, which had stood for 12,000 years, was on the verge of collapse. His mathematical models predicted an inevitable fall followed by 30,000 years of barbarism before a new empire could rise.
Rather than accept this fate, Seldon devised a plan to reduce the interregnum to a mere 1,000 years. The plan required the establishment of two Foundations and a carefully orchestrated series of crises that would guide humanity toward rebuilding civilization.
The First Foundation
Located on Terminus, a remote planet at the edge of the galaxy, the First Foundation was ostensibly created to compile the Encyclopedia Galactica—a repository of all human knowledge. In reality, the encyclopedia was merely a pretext; the Foundation's true purpose was to serve as a nucleus for the new civilization.
Through a series of Seldon Crises, the Foundation evolved from a small colony of encyclopedists into a powerful trading nation, and eventually into a dominant political force in the Periphery.
The Second Foundation
Hidden 'at Star's End,' the Second Foundation was designed to protect the plan from within. Its members, trained in mentalics—the ability to read and manipulate minds—served as guardians of psychohistory itself.
While the First Foundation dealt with physical challenges, the Second Foundation worked in secrecy to correct deviations from the plan, particularly those caused by unpredictable individuals.
Threats to the Plan
The greatest threat came from the Mule, a mutant with unprecedented mental powers who could not be predicted by psychohistory. His conquests threw the plan into chaos and forced the Second Foundation to reveal itself to correct the timeline.
Later threats included the Foundation's own awareness of the Second Foundation, which created a feedback loop that could invalidate psychohistorical predictions.