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THE SATRAPY
SITE LORE
- STRUCTURE
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STRUCTURE
The modern Satrapy is what amounts to a small star empire, composing a dozen or so systems located in a defensible corner of the Stygian Reaches. Although far from the only worlds settled by humans in the Reaches, the majority of the Satrapy is composed of planets with majority human populations, and appears to have had at least long periods of stability which allowed the member worlds to establish stable cultural and technological institutions, not a given in all parts of the region.
The Satrapy is ruled by the High Satrap, a hereditary overlord, who delegates to a council of Low Satraps, each in charge of their own planet in the Satrapy; many positions are hereditary, with those in the line of succession subjected to crude but effective hypno-imprinting techniques applied in childhood. These ensure that all beings who rise to power in the Satrapy are at least knowledgeable, whether or not they can apply it competently.
- TECHNOLOGY
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TECHNOLOGY
The Satrapy's technology is about a millennium behind the Galactic baseline, with certain areas more or less advanced. Satrapy ships, for example, are not equipped with modern deflector screens, however they have largely made up for the lack in the form of advanced metallurgy and magnetic seals for armor. Satrapy energy weapons are all direct developments of archaic beam tube technology, and though they have generally shorter range than Galactic standard laser weapons, they pack an incredible wallop.
Satrapese droid technology is about as sophisticated as any found in the old Galaxy, although automation is generally not widespread. Droids, especially war droids, are held in some reverence by much of Satrapese society; advice given by computers and droids is treated with much more weight than is typical in many Galactic cultures.
Finally, Satrapese hyperspace technology is generally stunted; although navicomputers exist, the majority of Satrapy-built starships are not equipped with them, instead relying on hyperspace beacon networks to travel between systems; given the difficulty of astrogating in the Stygian Reaches even with a modern navicomputer, this is perhaps understandable.
- HISTORY
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HISTORY
The Satrapy is, as mentioned, an incredibly old civilization, with origins stretching back to before the founding of the Galaxy's Old Republic. Originally, the title of "satrap" referred to a regional governor in Xim the Despot's sprawling empire; indeed, this was all the Satrapy was, an admittedly far-flung outpost of Xim's kingdom, overseen by an appointed functionary on behalf of a distant ruler.
The earliest incarnation of the Satrapy was cut off from the rest of Xim's empire by damage to the Linchpin Torus, preventing travel between the old Galaxy and the Stygian Reaches. This was apparently caused by some sort of conflict; according to the Satrapy's highly incomplete records from this period, the government chose to abandon the Linchpin in favor of a more defensible capitol, moving to its present home on the ice world of Psykros.
Although the Satrapy has existed for many millennia, that is not to say it is static. The Satrapy has undergone a number of catastrophic episodes, events precipitated by wars, plagues and unrest which have brought the civilization to its knees. During these events, important historical knowledge has been lost, and so the Satrapese retain only broad notions of their early history. It is known that the Satrapy has been larger and smaller than its current size in the past; it is currently in the process of expanding after a long period of relative dormancy, enlisting and/or conquering worlds outside its defensible pocket.
Since the Great Unmaking, the Satrapy has been in an astropolitical rivalry with the Eternity, a military and economic rival. The Satrapy and the Eternity do not share a border, and have only engaged in direct conflict a handful of times, however many in the Satrapy believe that a final conflict against the forces of the Eternity is inevitable.
- CULTURE
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CULTURE
The Satrapy, like any true interstellar civilization, is hardly a mono-culture, however the shared ancestry of most of its component populations has led to a number of commonalities.
The population of the Satrapy is majority human, the descendants of Tionese settlers who came to the region on ancient times; although non-human sentient species exist within the Satrapy, they are a minority. To the current High Satrap's present, there have been largely successful efforts to curtail prejudices against non-humans in Satrapese society, however these feelings do still exist in many areas.
Most Satrapese speak a dialect of the old Tionese language, their ancestors having left the Galaxy well before the invention of Galactic Basic Standard, let alone its widespread adoption. Tionese is therefore the official language of the Satrapy, although regional languages also exist, especially among non-human populations.
Although it has been thousands of years since the peoples of the Satrapy were cut off from their mother government, they still retain some memory of their ancient patron, albeit a distorted one. The High Satrap still claims to rule in the name of Xim, who is remembered less as an actual historical figure and more as something akin to a demigod, with great deeds and strange powers attributed to him. To this day, many communities in the Satrapy have shrines to the greatness of Xim, and many Satrapese believe that Xim himself will one day emerge from the Linchpin Torus and lead them to greatness.
INTENT
To create a major political entity within the Stygian Reaches.