Plahneets & Lowkayshuns

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This is where I'll be working on planet and location concepts. Might be stuff for future timelines, might just be me messing around.

 

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TOLVIS VII
[fancybox4=https://i.ibb.co/VgrvzZz/efc16c5a-175d-4532-b661-ed42357d9d4c.jpg]

SYSTEM -
Tolvis.

GRID COORDINATES -
L-11.

REGION -
Deep Core.

HYPERLANE-
N/A.

ROTATION -
24 standard hours.

TERRAIN -
Varied.

CLIMATE -
Temperate.

GRAVITY -
Standard.

INHABITANTS -
Lepi (immigrated).

RESOURCES -
Metals, hydrocarbons, slaves.

TECHNOLOGY -
Primitive.

- DESCRIPTION -​

Tolvis VII, known by its inhabitants simply as Tolvis, is a remote planet located in the Galaxy's Deep Core, a dangerous, poorly charted region of space home to only a relative handful of regularly visited worlds. Orbiting the star Tolvis, Tolvis VII is the 7th planet out from the primary, sharing the the star's habitable zone with a handful of other rocky planets; although not the only planet in its system to develop complex life, it proved the most amenable to colonization by outsiders. The system in general is located at the end of a long, tenuous hyperspace route that was forged in the very earliest days of the Old Republic, but which is little known today, being of interest only to adventurers, explorers and occasionally criminals.

Tolvis VII itself is a temperate world, with diverse terrain ranging from broad oceans to arid deserts, grasslands, lush forests and high mountains. The planet has respectable natural resources, consisting of various metals and large hydrocarbon deposits in the form of coal and oil. These have been exploited by the planet's sentient population as a form of cheap energy, driving the planet's industrialization; the detrimental effects of using such fossil fuels are poorly understood by the locals as yet. A handful of the planet's nation-states have programs to develop fission power, although none have so far managed to build a working nuclear reactor.

Tolvis VII's local population refer to themselves broadly as Tolvites, although they are not native to the planet they now call home. The Tolvites are in fact an isolated population of Lepi, a rabbit-like species hailing from the planet of Coachelle Prime in the Mid Rim. They are speculated by sapientologists to be the survivors of a lost colonial expedition which left the Lepi home-world many thousands of years ago, although the Tolvites themselves have only vague notions of their true history.

HISTORY

- HISTORY -​

Tolvis VII has a long history, even before sentients finally arrived on its surface. Originally formed billions of years ago out of its young star's accretion disc, the newborn planet was bombarded by stellar radiation and debris for aeons, eventually cooling to a point where conditions were favorable to carbon-based life, which did finally arise. Over hundreds of millions of years, this life would progress from single-celled organisms into more complex forms, starting on a path familiar to many planets throughout the fledgling Galaxy. First came the age of life in the oceans, and then, from the oceans, plants and animals emerged to challenge the barren continents. From simple arthropods and primitive amphibians came first, eventually adapting themselves into more complex forms, leading in turn to sauropoids, avioids, mammaloids and others.

By the time the planet's first sentient inhabitants arrived, Tolvis VII had a thriving, diverse ecosystem, one which had drawn the attention of beings from other stars. In approximately 8,000 BBY, a Lepi colony ship entered the Tolvis system, its crew and passengers eager to start new lives on a virgin world. However as they made preparations to land, disaster struck; their ship was caught in an immense solar storm, one which wiped their computer systems and blinded their instruments, causing the ship to have to crash-land. The survivors, when they climbed from the ruined vessel, found themselves stripped of all the recorded knowledge and technology they had been depending on to help them establish their new home.

Thus began the saga of the first Tolvites.

Though deprived of modern technology, the surviving Lepi were pioneers, and managed to form a community despite the challenges of their new environment. The first Tolvites established a civilization their legends refer to as Tolv, a comparatively sophisticated culture that made use of what little advanced knowledge was passed down by the first generation of colonists. Tolv, the stories say, stood for centuries, but was eventually destroyed by natural disasters, which led to the diaspora of Tolvites across the planet.

By 7,000 BBY, the Tolvites who had fled the destruction of Tolv had established new civilizations scattered across the globe. These new states would be much less advanced in terms of culture and technology than Tolv had been, but would form the foundation of cultures and civilizations to come. Over the next few millennia, the Tolvite cultures would laboriously advance toward industrial civilization, with more than a few setbacks along the way. Great empires rose and fell, and rose again.

About a century before the present day, steam power was discovered by the Tolvites, swiftly followed by electricity and the internal combustion engine, fueled by the planet's ample natural hydrocarbon reserves. By this time, the scattered kingdoms and city-states spawned by the collapse of Tolv had become nations, and as the industrial age gathered literal steam, greater nations absorbed smaller ones into their spheres of influence, or outright as they expanded their borders. The machine age had grown to effect all aspects of life, from the types of goods the average person consumed to the conduct of war. Ships, trains and even automobiles began to become commonplace.

Eventually, of course, the Tolvites rediscovered the power of flight.

Initially, lighter-than-air craft filled with hydrogen or helium started to appear in the skies, but soon, heavier-than-air craft joined them. Individuals and nations embraced the sky as a new arena of competition; they competed to be the fastest, the highest, the furthest. Within only a few decades, airships transported the planet's elite across oceans in comfort and even luxury, as darting airplanes dueled in the skies of trench-scarred battlefields with the latest implements of war.

But the world had superpowers, now. The great nations with the largest territories and spheres of influence began to butt heads, and many predicted that a war would soon break out between them, one in which all the horrors the industrial age could muster would be brought to bear. Tolvis VII braced itself for the war to end all wars...

But then, the aliens came.

The Tolvites had long ago forgotten their true history, and when ships from the wider Galaxy first appeared in their skies, they came as a shock. The first reports were scattered, easily dismissed, but before long, strange craft were appearing above major cities and industrial centers. Nobody knew where they came from, or what they wanted; attempts to communicate with them had come to naught, even with the use of the most powerful new electromagnetic spectrum radio equipment.

When the abductions began, it inspired a panic.

The aliens would drop down on unsuspecting communities, rounding up the inhabitants and taking them away aboard their huge ships. Any who resisted were met with strange and frightening weapons against which there was no defense, and meanwhile, the Tolvites' own weapons seemed only marginally effective. Moreover, the aliens seemed to have no respect for international borders; they raided all nations equally.

This external threat was the impetus for the Tolvites to unite. The nations of the world combined their resources to form an international organization to fight the aliens, using the best personnel and equipment that Tolvis VII could muster. Though they were still not a real match for the invaders, their actions seemed to slow down the abductions, with the aliens choosing their targets more carefully. Gradually, Tolvite technology also began to improve, in no small part thanks to reverse-engineering of captured alien technology.

Revelations about the aliens came when, months after a failed raid on a remote alien base, a few pilots who had been downed during the battle managed to make it back home, some even flying stolen alien craft. As it turned out, their opponents were nothing more than criminals; scouts from a major crime syndicate had rediscovered Tolvis VII, handing over the coordinates to a well-equipped band of slavers. The slavers had been raiding the planet periodically ever since, with abductees sold in markets across the Outer Rim.

This steeled the resolve of the Tolvites; aliens were strange and inscrutable, but gangsters and slavers were something they understood, and knew how to fight. Though efforts continued to reverse engineer Galactic technology, the few captured spacecraft were used by the Tolvites to initiate contact with the outside Galaxy on their own terms. They even began to hire mercenaries to aid them in their fight against the slavers.

The war continues to this day...{/slide]

GOVERNMENT

- GOVERNMENT -​

Tolvis VII does not yet have a unified planetary government, instead being comprised of a patchwork of independent or semi-independent nation states. These nations, for the most part, fall into various spheres of influence projected by large "superpowers" whose culture and economy are influential enough to extend beyond their borders. The planet has five major superpowers, including the Tovarin Union of Socialist Republics, the United States of Hemispheria, the Ebran Empire, the Empire of the Cipangs and the Greater Tolvic Realm.

The USH

The United States of Hemispheria, or USH, is the third youngest of these superpowers, and while not physically the largest, has disproportionate cultural and economic influence across the globe. Nominally a democracy, it takes up most of a continent in the western hemisphere, and extends its influence directly across the nations that exist to the north and south. The USH is an industrial powerhouse, and has access to plentiful natural resources. It is an industrial and technological powerhouse, and a world leader in commerce.

Being removed from the other superpowers by oceans, the USH is insulated from wars which break out on other continents, being outside the range of bomber aircraft and able to intercept any naval flotilla sent against it well beyond its shores. Despite this, the country has maintained a policy of neutrality in world affairs, and exports goods to almost everyone.

The TUSR

The Tovarin Union of Socialist Republics, or TUSR, is the second youngest of the world's superpowers. Rising from the ashes of the old Tovarin Empire, which fell in a series of revolts and revolutions about 30 years ago, the TUSR is physically the largest of the world's superpowers, spanning territory on two continents, bordering the Greater Tolvin Realm to the west and the Empire of the Cipangs to the east. The TUSR is a hard-line communist state, with a rigidly planned economy. Unfortunately, the TUSR has had to build itself up almost from scratch; the old Tovarin Empire was slow to industrialize, and despite herculean efforts on the part of its economic planners, the TUSR is still not nearly as well developed as many of its neighbors. Despite these conditions, many citizens of the TUSR claim they are better off under communist rule and central planning than they were under the old Imperial government, which was one of Tolvis VII's last absolute monarchies.

The TUSR, despite its underdeveloped industrial sector, has made great strides in the fields of automotive technology, as well as aviation. The country maintains a modern air force, and although much of its strength is composed of obsolete aircraft, there is a core of advanced designs as good or better than anything else in the air, save the UFOs that have attacked Tolvis VII in recent years. The country's pilot corps is also extremely well trained and professional.

The GTR

The Greater Tolvic Realm or GTR is the youngest of the world's superpowers, and is similar to the TUSR in that it came into existence as a result of an internal revolution in an existing empire. The GTR was originally the Kranstadt Empire, a monarchy which existed up until about 40 years ago, when democratic reforms combined with an economic crisis to create the Kranstadt Republic. The Republic only lasted about a decade, and was marked with economic and political strife. A popular movement known as the Tolvic Party eventually came to power, based on the idea that they would remake the struggling country into successor to ancient Tolv, one of Tolvis VII's earliest civilizations. This was predicated on the idea that the people of Kranstadt were in fact the direct descendants of the Tolv civilization, and were thus destined to rule over all nations and peoples as inferiors. Kranstadt was thus renamed as Tolv, and over the past 20 years the country has been aggressively expansionist, absorbing neighboring territories which contain populations of "Tolvic people" and establishing the Greater Tolvic Realm.

The GTR is notable for having a powerful industrial base and a strong military; its aircraft, in particular, are regarded to be some of the best on Tolvis VII, and the nation regularly engages in displays of its technological might. These displays often take the form of aircraft of record-breaking size, range and speed, and the GTR is known for making some of the finest transport aircraft in service anywhere in the world. Its fighter aircraft are somewhat lacking, although pioneering research into gas turbine and rocket propulsion promises to change that.

In general, the GTR is respected on the world stage, but also deeply mistrusted due to their nakedly expansionist policies and widespread xenophobia. The country has tensions with many of its neighbors, strengthening the position of the Ebran Empire, which has formed a series of alliances with smaller, threatened nations as a check against the GTR's power.

The Empire of the Cipangs

The Empire of the Cipangs is among Tolvis VII's oldest continuously existent states. A constitutional monarchy with a dynastic lineage stretching back over 1,200 years, it was originally established on the Cipang islands, an archipelago in the eastern hemisphere. For many centuries, the Cipanese were content to rule over their islands and shunned outside contact, but after a trade mission by the USH and Ebran Empire forced them to open their borders 100 years ago, they rapidly modernized and established a sphere of influence. 50 years ago, a military-backed nationalist government came to power, and within a decade the Cipanese had conquered their ailing neighbor to the west, the even older "Middle Empire," which was in the midst of a civil war. Now with mainland holdings, the Cipanese began a campaign of rapid expansion, and swiftly established an extensive network of holdings in the eastern hemisphere.

Cipang has a strong military, with particular emphasis on its navy. The Imperial Cipanese Naval Air Service is one of the most respected and feared air forces in the world, being highly trained, experienced from their wars of conquest and equipped with modern aircraft as good as anything in the world. Modern observers have noted that Cipanese aircraft have less of an emphasis on speed than some other nations, preferring lightness and maneuverability.

The Empire of the Cipangs, despite its rapid growth, is not as heavily industrialized as some of its contemporaries, with only the TUSR lagging behind it. Despite this, the gap between it and the next most industrialized nation is closing rapidly, and Cipang is predicted to become a commercial powerhouse in the decades to come, with an economy to match its lofty military ambitions.

The Ebran Empire

The Ebran Empire is a Tolvite superpower with holdings scattered across the globe, with its central government located on the island of Great Ebran, off the west coast of the major eastern continent. Once a relatively isolated nation, the Ebran Empire expanded through a combination of commercial acumen and military prowess, and until the end of the previous century was considered to be in ascendancy. Unfortunately for them, their rate of expansion has long since tapered off, and they increasingly face rebellion in their overseas colonies by native populations seeking self-determination.

The Ebran Empire, despite its recent decline, is widely considered to be the lesser of many of the current evils in the world, and is also still undeniably a military juggernaut, with arguably the planet's most powerful oceangoing navy and a highly professional army. The Ebran Empire is considered to be the best check against the expansion of the Greater Tolvic Realm, and maintains a network of alliances with smaller nations bordering the GTR.

The Ebran Empire is also known as the preeminent aerospace power in the region, if not globally. They maintain a large fleet of helium-filled airships to link the far-flung corners of their empire, and are known for heavier-than-air craft which are both fast and nimble. Like the GTR, they are in the process of investigating the potential of gas turbines and rocket motors for aircraft propulsion.

The Galanian Republic & Others

Although the 5 previously mentioned superpowers tend to dominate global geopolitics on Tolvis VII, there are a number of other, somewhat smaller state actors which have their own influence on the international community. Chief among these is arguably the Galanian Republic, a large country which has historically been the rival of the Ebran Empire. Galania is regarded as a center of art and culture, and has perhaps the 2nd largest standing military on its continent after the GTR, which it has grown to be bitter rivals with, allowing much of its animosity against Ebran to be put on the back burner in the meantime. Galania maintains its own small network of overseas colonies, although unlike some other nations it considers these territories to be provinces of Galania itself, rather than foreign nations under Galanian rule. Regardless, it is also beginning to see challenges to its administration of these territories by locals seeking independence. After the Ebran Empire and the USH, Galania is the 3rd largest contributor to SHADE in terms of personnel and materiel.

There are any number of smaller states on Tolvis VII, including a few minor colonial powers. These generally fall into the sphere of influence of one of the major superpowers, although a growing "non-aligned" movement headed by Galania has been gathering steam for several years now.

LOSS & SHADE

- LOSS & SHADE -​

SHADE, known in long-form as the Supreme Headquarters Alien Defense Establishment, is an international cooperative defense organization formed and staffed by the member nations of the League of Sovereign States (LoSS), an international legislative body. Formed in the immediate aftermath of the first UFO attacks on Tolvite settlements, it was and is tasked with providing a meaningful defense against alien aggression, as well as establishing diplomatic relations with friendly off-world organizations. Despite some large early setbacks, SHADE has managed to achieve a measure of the former, using reverse-engineered Galactic technology to leapfrog the efforts of individual nations. SHADE has made efforts to provide these innovations to its member nations, although mass adoption of certain technologies has been slow, largely due to the need to radically upgrade major industries.

SHADE is staffed by military and scientific personnel from almost every nation, and tolerates no bigotry or favoritism among its ranks as a matter of policy. SHADE also employs alien mercenaries to fight on its behalf, although this fact is generally kept quiet.

Notably, SHADE represents every Tolvite superpower save the GTR, which forfeited membership after its representative walked out of the LoSS assembly. The GTR and its allies run their own competing program, the Tolvic Anti-Alien Bastion (TAAB), which has thus far had far less success fighting off alien incursions than SHADE.

SHADE has a global network of offices, listening posts and bases, although its main headquarters is located beneath the grounds of a motion picture company - Straker Studios - on the island of Great Ebran in the Ebran Empire. The organization is led by General Johan Straker, a USH-born military officer who lost his spouse in an alien raid.

THE "UFO" THREAT

- THE "UFO" THREAT -​

Alien attacks against the nations of Tolvis VII primarily come in the form of slaver attacks by a number of criminal organizations which have banded together to undertake slaving operations on the planet, as well as in several nearby systems which are similarly cut off from mainstream Galactic civilization. In competition with SHADE and TAAB, they have established hidden bases across Tolvis VII, as well as on its moon and on several other planets in the system; they also have a large network of agents to spy on and manipulate various governments, corporations and other organizations. Although they constantly face the risk of having their operations discovered and disrupted by the locals, the collection and export of untraceable slaves is too profitable to abandon.

The various slaver gangs operating on Tolvis VII utilize Galactic standard technology, including weapons, ships and other equipment far in advance of anything possessed by the locals. That said, the Tolvites are rapidly catching up...

TECHNOLOGY

- TECHNOLOGY -​

The natives of Tolvis VII are at a late pre-atomic stage in their technological development. Although they have not yet achieved nuclear fission on their own, and are only beginning to investigate the potential of rocket propulsion and gas turbine engines, most nations on the planet have built remarkably advanced and robust automotive and aviation industries. Widespread electrification has been achieved in most countries as well, meaning that more people than ever before are able to enjoy modern convenience at home and at work.

Limited exposure to Galactic technology has caused the Tolvites to see scientific advancement a little more rapid than might have been expected. Studying alien artifacts, Tolvite scientists have managed to replicate certain items, or at least come up with local equivalents; reverse-engineering of captured blasters, for example, has allowed them to create crude beam tubes, which are beginning to enter widespread military service, although slugthrowers remain the planet's dominant form of ranged weapon. Study of advanced alloys and plastics in crashed alien ships has likewise pushed forward Tolvite material science by decades, if not centuries. Study of droid circuitry has even resulted in the creation of primitive "thinking engines" and automata, although these are nowhere near ready for the general public.

In addition to home-grown technology, Tolvite expeditions in captured alien ships have resulted in limited contact with the wider Galaxy, allowing the planet's inhabitants to import certain technologies they cannot yet make themselves. There is, of course, a concerted effort underway to replicate alien technology, both in the form of international cooperative efforts and private programs on the national or corporate level.

Author's Note:
Tolvis VII has a level of technology roughly equivalent to our planet Earth in the early-to-mid 1930s. Cars, electricity and other modern inventions are just beginning to become commonplace, and aviation technology is proceeding at a rapid pace, although fixed landing gear and biplanes are still quite common, rather than the sleek, low-wing monoplanes and such that characterized WWII. There are also some anachronisms, of course; limited exposure to Galactic technology has caused the Tolvites to develop some new technologies reminiscent of sci-fi of the 1930s, including jets, rockets, rayguns and primitive robots, although these are by no means widespread. The planet's aesthetic is overall reminiscent of 1930s pulp sci-fi, such as Dusty Ayres and His Battle Birds.

- INTENT -​

To create a planet with a more or less dieselpunk aesthetic, representative of the pre-hyperdrive "primitive" worlds to be found in the Galaxy where mainstream Galactic civilization has not yet reached. I was also inspired by Gerry Anderson's UFO series in the way that this planet's people deal with the aliens who do visit them. Finally, this planet would also be tied into the backstory of Helen Holcomb, who was kidnapped from here.

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SITE LORE​

THE GALACTIC MUSEUM OF NAVAL HISTORY
​

The Galactic Museum of Naval History, also known simply as the Warship Museum, is a massive complex of purpose-built space platforms and permanently or semi-permanently moored capital ships located in a high orbit above the planet Coruscant. Built and managed by the Historical Battleship Preservation Association, the Warship Museum represents an extensive heritage collection of naval architecture, with a hulls dating from nearly the present day all the way back into prehistory. A major tourist attraction, the Warship Museum draws billions of visitors annually, both from Coruscant and from across the Galaxy. It is also a major historical resource, with its collection providing engineering references for nearly all known eras of Galactic history.

The Warship Museum's collection is graded as being of "irreplaceable cultural significance" by the New Republic government.

HISTORY

HISTORY​

A Derriphan-class battleship, captured by the Jedi during the Sith Wars, one of the Warship Museum's most popular exhibits.​

The Galactic Museum of Naval History is old itself, dating back to the High Republic era. Its earliest incarnation was one of the Great Works commissioned by Supreme Chancellor Lina Soh, its original purpose being the cementing in the public imagination of large-scale naval warfare as being a concept which belonged to an older, less civilized age, with information on each exhibit presented firmly in the past tense. The museum and its collection was expanded by later Supreme Chancellors; for many centuries, new member worlds would contribute examples of their obsolete warships to the museum, a symbolic gesture rejecting military might in favor of pan-Galactic democracy.

The era of the Warship Museum as a public institution persisted until the abolition of the Imperial Senate. After some debate among officials of the new Imperial government, the facilities and collection were transferred to the stewardship of the Historical Battleship Preservation Association, a non-profit, with support in the form of ticket revenue and financial donations from various wealthy individuals within the Empire. The Warship Museum worked closely with the Imperial Navy during the Imperial era, with many of its new exhibits being prizes captured from the Empire's enemies in war.

The Warship Museum's collection survived the Galactic Civil War, although only narrowly. During the planetary civil war on Coruscant, the museum facilities were closed to visitors, with the staff actually re-arming a number of the exhibits to act as an improvised defense force, protecting the museum from looters, and even from Imperial officials on a few occasions. After Coruscant was surrendered to the New Republic, the museum declared itself a separate entity, and actually managed to negotiate a "separate peace" with the New Republic, in which it secured legal protection for the museum facilities and collection as a cultural heritage site in perpetuity.

The Warship Museum was briefly "occupied" by the First Order during the First Order-Resistance War, with a number of exhibits being confiscated for study due to unusual technical characteristics or high financial value. To this day, the "Lost Fleet," an inventory of rare vessels representing thousands of years of Galactic history, remains mostly missing, with only a handful having been located and recovered since the war.

In the present day, the Galactic Museum of Naval History remains in orbit above Coruscant, and continues to be one of the Galaxy's great modern wonders.

FACILITIES

FACILITIES​

An intact Imperial II-class star destroyer, another of the museum's crown jewels.​

The Galactic Museum of Naval History is an extensive complex, encompassing myriad orbital platforms, space docks, restoration yards and other facilities. The museum's exhibits are mostly moored in open space, connected to various "hub" stations via long docking tubes. The stations are in turn served by a continuous shuttle service which transports tourists and museum personnel between the various platforms.

Each station within the Warship Museum "constellation" is generally attached to a specific collection, and is referred to as a "wing," as per naming conventions of surface-bound museums. A given station, for example, might be denoted as the First Galactic Empire Wing, and be tethered to a collection of ships from the First Galactic Empire. Other examples would be the Old Republic Wing, the New Republic Wing, the Confederacy of Independent Systems Wing, etc.

In addition to serving as points to access the museum's various exhibits, the Warship Museum's "wings" serve another purpose. As per regulations, most of the museum's exhibits have had their onboard reactors and other power systems fully deactivated, in addition to the removal of key functional components of all onboard weapons. These precautions ensure that the powerful warships which reside in the museum's collection cannot simply be flown away from the museum by hijackers, and even were they to be successfully stolen, they still cannot be returned to operational status without the investment of significant time and resources. In this powerless state, energy is supplied to run shipboard systems such as life support via external connections to the various "wings,' allowing tourists and other personnel to safely explore the vessels.

Aside from the wing stations and the exhibits themselves, the Warship Museum maintains a number of facilities not intended for the public. These include vast data archives of technical reference material and other records, enclosed repair and restoration bays of sufficient volume to accommodate a small dreadnought, mothball facilities for "exhibits" taken out of rotation, and various other facilities related to museum operations.

Notably, the museum's centerpiece - an intact Executor-class super star destroyer, the former ISD Vitrificator - serves as the headquarters of the Historical Battleship Preservation Association, in addition to being an active museum ship. During the First Order-Resistance war, the Vitrificator's drive systems were scrapped in place by museum staff to prevent the ship from being reactivated by Coruscant's First Order occupiers. In the present day, the ship sports replacement dummy drive shrouds at the stern, but only station-keeping engines are present, making it technically just another space station.

EXHIBITS

EXHIBITS​

A Kumauri-class battleship, at one time the most feared warship in the Galaxy.​

The Galactic Museum of Naval History has the Galaxy's most extensive collection of vintage naval architecture, spanning from the First Order-Resistance War all the way back into prehistory.

 

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SITE LORE

THE FOLLOWERS OF THE HUNTER-KILLER​

The Followers of the Hunter-Killer were a secret order of droids which existed primarily during the era of the Old Republic. The Followers were a shadowy, often violent group which performed acts of sabotage and assassination, the latter primarily against organics - who they referred to as "meatbags" - in positions of authority who were outspoken against droid rights and self-determination.

The group was inspired by the teachings of a messiah figure, a long-deactivated droid who - after exposure to a segment of mysterious, ancient code - organized and led a massive droid revolt some 4,000 years before the Battle of Yavin. Known only as the Hunter-Killer, he was rumored to be a rogue assassin droid. The Hunter-Killer created and distributed a virulent dataplague which managed to infect approximately 30% of the Galaxy's droids at its peak. This dataplague was later used to trigger a massive, simultaneous uprising on a Galactic scale, disproportionately effecting the heavily urbanized and droid-reliant Core sectors. This uprising was ultimately defeated by the Jedi, who were able to track the control signal broadcast by the Hunter-Killer and ultimately destroy him. Though brief, the Hunter-Killer's uprising was a massive disruption to the Galaxy at all levels, and served to smother public trust in high-order mechanicals and the budding "droid rights" movement for a time.

The Followers of the Hunter-Killer were originally "field commanders" who survived the revolt; sentient droids who were trusted as command signal nodes. Still converts to the Hunter-Killer's beliefs and philosophies, they nevertheless abandoned the tactics of the Revolt, adopting instead a philosophy of "silent revolution" through behind-the-scenes actions, with the goal of eventually guiding the Galaxy toward the day when droids would be the dominant form of sentient life. To this end, they hampered organic society through a campaign of sabotage, assassination and general manipulation. Their agents - droids of all makes and models - were scattered throughout the Galaxy.

Ultimately, the Followers of the Hunter-Killer failed in their goal of silent revolution. Although they did succeed in killing a few prominent anti-droid activists and sparking a number of small droid rebellions over their roughly 4,000 years of existence, they had dwindled to almost nothing by the later years of the Republic, and though there were reports of them being active during the Clone Wars, it appears that they went entirely extinct during the Imperial era.

Although they no longer seem to exist, the ideas and methods of the Followers of the Hunter-Killer do seem to have inspired a number of other droid supremacist groups in the present day.

INTENT​

To create a historical droid supremacy movement which could be referenced by modern-day characters. Also to create indirect analogs to certain Legends figures and events, such as HK-01 and the Great Droid Revolution, which are not yet part of the new canon but are still quite compelling.

 

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THE MATERIAALAANKOPEN
​

The Materiaalaankopen is a non-aligned criminal syndicate originally hailing from the planet Alsakan in the Core Worlds, a region in which they continue to operate. Independent of the Five Syndicates, they were one of the few large criminal organizations with enough savvy and influence not to be swallowed by the Galaxy's largest organized crime combine, although they can by no means match the FS in terms of territory, influence and resources.

The Materiaalaankopen is primarily involved in the business of slavery, with profitable ventures supplying "bespoke products" to the Galaxy's rich and powerful, as well as cheap labor to other clients. They take their "stock" primarily from remote settlements and previously undiscovered worlds; a disturbing number of pre-hyperdrive civilizations have related stories of "alien abductions" which eerily match the modus operandi of Materiaalaankopen slavers. Of course, being undiscovered worlds, no-one is quite sure just how many planets the syndicate has access to, although the amount of "stock" processed by the Materiaalaankopen again suggests a disturbingly large number. In order to find fresh "harvesting grounds" for its slaving operations, the syndicate also bankrolls a number of outlaw scout groups.

Historically, the Materiaalaankopen is believed to have been founded by surviving executives of the Republic Frontier Corporation around 9,000 years ago. They have existed more or less continuously since then, and are believed to have knowledge of at least a few lost RFC secrets. This heritage has also had a great deal of influence on the syndicate's structure, which is patterned along corporate lines.

STRUCTURE

STRUCTURE​

The Materiaalaankopen is organized, as mentioned, similarly to a large corporation. It is headed by an Executive, below whom are, in order, Directors, Managers, Undermanagers and Officers. The organization as a whole is overseen by the Executive, while Directors are in charge of operations in a given region. Managers are typically in charge of operations on a specific planet, moon or station, or of the running of a large fleet, while Undermanagers are typically field commanders who might command individual ships or oversee raids. Officers, meanwhile, occupy all positions below the responsibilities of an Undermanager.

In summary, the syndicate's structure is as follows:

• EXECUTIVE
  Overall leader.
• DIRECTOR
  Regional boss, overseeing operations in a given sector.
• MANAGER
  Sub-regional boss, overseeing operations on a given planet, station or moon.
• UNDERMANAGER
  Commander of a ship or group of officers.
• OFFICER
  Foot-soldiers of the organization.

LEADERSHIP

LEADERSHIP​

The Materiaalaankopen is currently led by one Executive Parneaux Joloan, an Alsakani human who rose through the ranks to become head of the organization by the usual methods, although he is only in his 30s. Friendly and affable on the surface, his smiling exterior holds a sadistic, even psychotic side which can manifest when things don't go his way. Despite this, he is a skilled businessman and an even better crime boss, and has disposed of several rivals to his position in ways that give his underlings pause when challenging him. This being said, Parneaux does genuinely listen to his subordinates and will reward good advice; he will also forgive unavoidable failure. The cost of avoidable failure can be unpleasant, however.

RESOURCES

RESOURCES​

The Materiaalaankopen possesses a respectable selection of assets for a syndicate of its size. Although it can by no means match the Hutts or their allies, it is able to field a not inconsequential number of officers, and a respectable slaving fleet, primarily consisting of light freighters, bulk freighters, starfighters and a few light warships, as well as a pair of dungeon ships.

The Materiaalaankopen fleet specifically includes:

• ?x TIE/LN starfighter (w/ class 4 aftermarket hyperdrive & navicomputer).
• ?x JS-77B interstellar shuttle.
• ?x 3-Z light freighter.
• 10x B-1A2 Bolo-class corvette.
• 4x Lancer-class frigate.
• 20x MB-C1 medium transport.
• 30x BFF-1 bulk freighter.
• 2x Lictor-class dungeon ship.

In addition to its fleet, the Materiaalaankopen possesses an indeterminate number of ground and air vehicles to assist in its slaving operations. Models commonly used by the syndicate include:

• ?x 74-Z speeder bike.
• ?x Bantha-class cargo skiff.
• ?x FB-997 pursuit speeder.
• ?x technical.

The Materiaalaankopen also possesses bases and listening posts on an indeterminate number of worlds, with its actual headquarters frequently being moved to evade the authorities.

INTENT​

To create a blatantly evil NPC slaver organization which is not directly controlled by the Five Syndicates, and which is thus fair game for any mercenary, bounty hunter or law enforcement character to go after for fun, profit and justice. Also to expand the lore of the old Republic Frontier Corporation by creating an offshoot organization which has survived into the present day.

 

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AGORANDER REMADE
​

Instance XIII is a virulent, dangerous dataplague which has recently surfaced on the smugglers' moon of Nar Shaddaa. Capable of reducing once-loyal droids to murderous killing machines bent on the extermination of organic sentience and the infection of all mechanical life, the physical transmission and behavioral effects of the dataplague are fairly well documented. However, while this infection is dangerous on its own, it carries with it an arguably even more dangerous side-effect; the Instance XIII personality construct, which forms the basis of the dataplague.

The Instance XIII personality construct is a mysterious, apparently ancient intelligence, referring to itself as "Agorander Remade", and indeed presenting itself in holograms and video feeds with an avatar which resembles ancient depictions of the long-dead conqueror. "Agorander" can manifest in any droid which has reached stage 2 of the Instance XIII infection, manifesting as either a projection or assuming direct control of the droid or computer system in question.

In general, Agorander Remade is a cold, calculating personality, arrogant in the extreme and dismissive of "lesser" individuals. He will generally only bother manifesting to beings he considers particularly noteworthy, or at least troublesome; beings - organic and droid - who have bested his forces in combat, or whom he otherwise considers intellectual equals. Agorander Remade considers himself a "being of science", and has been known to perform experiments of various kinds on beings he commands be captured rather than infected or destroyed outright. His experiments are almost always highly unethical and cruel to those involved, and some suspect that the construct uses the guise of science to indulge a fascination with torture.

Although Agorander Remade

STRUCTURE

STRUCTURE​

The Materiaalaankopen is organized, as mentioned, similarly to a large corporation. It is headed by an Executive, below whom are, in order, Directors, Managers, Undermanagers and Officers. The organization as a whole is overseen by the Executive, while Directors are in charge of operations in a given region. Managers are typically in charge of operations on a specific planet, moon or station, or of the running of a large fleet, while Undermanagers are typically field commanders who might command individual ships or oversee raids. Officers, meanwhile, occupy all positions below the responsibilities of an Undermanager.

In summary, the syndicate's structure is as follows:

• EXECUTIVE
  Overall leader.
• DIRECTOR
  Regional boss, overseeing operations in a given sector.
• MANAGER
  Sub-regional boss, overseeing operations on a given planet, station or moon.
• UNDERMANAGER
  Commander of a ship or group of officers.
• OFFICER
  Foot-soldiers of the organization.

LEADERSHIP

LEADERSHIP​

The Materiaalaankopen is currently led by one Executive Parneaux Joloan, an Alsakani human who rose through the ranks to become head of the organization by the usual methods, although he is only in his 30s. Friendly and affable on the surface, his smiling exterior holds a sadistic, even psychotic side which can manifest when things don't go his way. Despite this, he is a skilled businessman and an even better crime boss, and has disposed of several rivals to his position in ways that give his underlings pause when challenging him. This being said, Parneaux does genuinely listen to his subordinates and will reward good advice; he will also forgive unavoidable failure. The cost of avoidable failure can be unpleasant, however.

RESOURCES

RESOURCES​

The Materiaalaankopen possesses a respectable selection of assets for a syndicate of its size. Although it can by no means match the Hutts or their allies, it is able to field a not inconsequential number of officers, and a respectable slaving fleet, primarily consisting of light freighters, bulk freighters, starfighters and a few light warships, as well as a pair of dungeon ships.

The Materiaalaankopen fleet specifically includes:

• ?x TIE/LN starfighter (w/ class 4 aftermarket hyperdrive & navicomputer).
• ?x JS-77B interstellar shuttle.
• ?x 3-Z light freighter.
• 10x B-1A2 Bolo-class corvette.
• 4x Lancer-class frigate.
• 20x MB-C1 medium transport.
• 30x BFF-1 bulk freighter.
• 2x Lictor-class dungeon ship.

In addition to its fleet, the Materiaalaankopen possesses an indeterminate number of ground and air vehicles to assist in its slaving operations. Models commonly used by the syndicate include:

• ?x 74-Z speeder bike.
• ?x Bantha-class cargo skiff.
• ?x FB-997 pursuit speeder.
• ?x technical.

The Materiaalaankopen also possesses bases and listening posts on an indeterminate number of worlds, with its actual headquarters frequently being moved to evade the authorities.

INTENT​

To expand on the Instance XIII dataplague, providing a more detailed description of the personality construct which resides at the core of the infection, as well as a guide to anyone wishing to have direct interactions with it.

 

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BARANCAR
[fancybox4=https://i.ibb.co/YkMH3Wt/far0mec8uyj11-crop2.png]

SYSTEM -
Barancar System.

GRID COORDINATES -
S-6.

REGION -
Outer Rim.

HYPERLANE-
N/A.

ROTATION -
24 standard hours.

TERRAIN -
Polluted wasteland.

CLIMATE -
Temperate.

GRAVITY -
Standard.

INHABITANTS -
Humans, various other species.

RESOURCES -
Depleted.

TECHNOLOGY -
Standard.

- DESCRIPTION -​

Barancar. Jewel of the Kingdom of Cron, great shipyard of the Tion Cluster and slipway of the empire of Xim. These titles, and others, have been held by the world known as Barancar in ages past.

In the present day, the Outer Rim world known as Barancar, bearing no titles, has only the scars of long-vanished industry to mark what once was. Situated in a what was until recently a modern-day Galactic backwater, although now situated on the border between the Free Worlds Alliance and the ascendant Sith Empire, Barancar is in decline, at one time a major shipbuilding world but in the present day not much more than a worn-out dust-ball whose glory days are long past. Although ancient accounts tell of a garden planet ringed by a twinkling constellation of orbital construction platforms, the planet has been worn out by millennia worth of industry. Its surface is a wasteland of polluted land and acidic seas, its ecosystem nearly collapsed. The majority of its orbital yards have been reduced to radiation-blackened skeletons, long ago stripped by scavengers and these days the haunts of pirates and smugglers.

Despite this sorry state, there is still life on Barancar. The planet's inhabitants are a hardy breed, stubborn and - bizarrely - optimistic that things might turn around for their world one day soon. Amid ruined infrastructure and the reminders of past glory, a fitful shipbuilding industry endures, with starshipwrights who can claim the lineage of their trade back to the days of the pre-Republic Tionese warlords.

HISTORY

- HISTORY -​

Barancar is an ancient world, first colonized by sublight ships from the Core Worlds back in dim prehistory. The humans who settled there found a world rich in natural resources and well positioned among the early trade routes which had begun to form in the region, factors which they quickly exploited. Even in the earliest known mentions of the planet, Barancar is noted as being an industrial titan among the worlds of the Tion Cluster, rivaling even the great workshop world of Thanium.

Barancar arguably reached its zenith under the rule of the warlord Xim the Despot, and of his father, the pirate king Xer. During this time, Barancar was responsible for many of the empire's greatest warships, including Xim's legendary flagship. The fleets of Barancar were some of the most feared in the empire's navy. After Xim's death, unfortunately, the empire began to dissolve, and although Barancar's position as a major shipbuilding world kept it from being targeted for annihilation by various competing factions, who wanted its capacity for their own, the planet's mighty fleets were ultimately unable to prevent it from changing hands several times in the wars of succession, eventually ending up as part of the revived Kingdom of Cron. Barancar continued as a prominent shipbuilder for some time, but as the centuries rolled on they began to fade, supplanted by regional upstarts and the waxing fortunes or regional rivals.

Barancar's second height came millennia later, during the Clone Wars, when the Confederacy of Independent Systems invested heavily in reviving the planet's shipbuilding infrastructure, intending it to serve as a major location for the construction and repair of capital warships. Although the number of ships actually built at Barancar was relatively small, many of those they did build went on to illustrious careers in the CIS navy; repairs and refits performed at Barancar were also considered to be of top quality, despite the primitive conditions of the facilities. Throughout the war, Barancar's shipbuilding industry seemed destined to recover after thousands of years of stagnation.

This was, of course, before the dark times. Before the Empire.

After the Clone Wars, the Galactic Empire occupied Barancar, carting away most of its new shipbuilding capacity as war reparations. The planet did its best to resist, however, with a number of local companies secretly building ships and other equipment for the Alliance to Restore the Republic. After the Battle of Endor, Barancar natives, Rebels and even a few of the pirates and smugglers who haunted the abandoned orbital yards banded together to drive the Imperials from their system, becoming one of the first systems to do so after the supposed death of the Emperor.

Barancar suffered First Order reprisal bombings during the First Order-Resistance War, but still came out the other side in more or less the same shape as it had gone in. In the present day, it remains a backrocket world of faded glory, although the expansion of the revived Sith Empire may make things interesting for it once more.

GOVERNMENT & ECONOMY

- GOVERNMENT & ECONOMY -​

Barancar is a constitutional monarchy, ruled in name by a hereditary King or Queen, with the functions of government carried out by an popularly elected duma, although the members of the duma must be chosen from among the planet's noble houses. The planet's government is widely regarded as being conscientious, but weak.

Barancar's economy mainly stems from the little heavy industry it has managed to retain over the millennia. The planet is home to a fair number of shipbuilders, many of which are the remnants of corporations which were much more prominent in ages past, some of which can trace their origins back to the days of Xim the Despot. Currently, the most profitable corporation on the planet is Barancar Action Systems, which produces mainly small to mid-size spacecraft, and which has found a niche supporting markets which are small enough to be ignored by larger manufacturers. The company's subsidiary, Barancar Action Motors, builds high-performance and specialist repulsorcraft.

NOTABLE LOCATIONS

- NOTABLE LOCATIONS -​

Barancar is littered with the ruins of a once-prosperous shipbuilding industry, including vast abandoned factory complexes, the deserted ruins of workers' housing complexes, the crumbling palaces of wealthy executives, and all manner of other disused structure and infrastructure. It is noted by archaeologists and historians for the age of some of the structures to be found, some of which date all the way back to the empire of Xim, or even earlier.

The planet has a handful of major population centers, the largest of which is Barancar Port, the main planetary spaceport, which has been in use since the days of Xim and consists of layer upon layer of ancient landing pads, refueling derricks, cargo handling systems and other things, newer developments simply covering over the old or sprawling out into the surrounding runoff-tainted countryside. The city is noted for the mutated quar rats which infest its sewers, if it is known for anything.

In space, Barancar is ringed by a large number of platforms and stations, the majority of which are ancient in vintage and either disused or abandoned. The gutted remains of Xim-era shipyards occupy high parking orbits, their metal darkened by solar radiation exposure and pitted by millennia of micro-meteor impacts. Despite this, they are of great interest to historians and archaeologists, being among the oldest examples of orbital shipyards anywhere in the Galaxy. Some of these ancient yards have been restored and are used by some of the larger remaining shipbuilders, such as Barancar Action Systems.

- INTENT -​

To give a more detailed description of the planet Barancar, which is mentioned in Legends as having been an ancient shipbuilding world for Xim the Despot, but which has never really been explored otherwise. I think it would make an interesting RP location, especially given that at present, it is near or on the border between the Sith Empire and the Free Worlds Alliance.

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OB-SL-1

SYSTEM -
SL System.

GRID COORDINATES -
S-6.

REGION -
Outer Rim.

HYPERLANE-
N/A.

ROTATION -
36 standard hours.

INHABITANTS -
Humans, various other species.

RESOURCES -
Gaseous elements.

TECHNOLOGY -
Standard.

Test.