Star Systems Near Knexion

Jereba (0205)

Starport: E

Size: @4000 miles

Atmosphere: 3 (Very thin)

Hydrographics: @50% surface water

Population: @4 million

Government: Feudal technocracy

Law Level: 4

Tech Level: 7

Trade Code: Non-industrial

Summary: Jereba is a small world whose government is formed by an unelected elite known for their expertise in harvesting and utilizing planetary resources, primarily mirkala, a wood with a deep green color that is harder than oak. This wood is in high demand in the markets of Voirait and Cumandi. The majority of the population subsists in enclosed settlements ranging in population from a few dozen to several hundred persons; the largest city by far is the capital city, Ahdalla, with about half a million inhabitants. The Jerebans are a race of creatures evolved from ancestral grazer stock; they are quadrupedal with heads situated at the end of an upraised trunk. Their forelimbs have well-developed hands that can grasp and move like human hands while still being strong enough to walk upon. The atmosphere of Jereba does not support widespread agriculture, although the Jerebans have developed  a foodstuff derived from the kelp that grows in the planet’s shallow seas. This food takes the form of a compressed cracker (flots-ahm) that with the addition of water becomes a spongy morass that is not particularly appetizing but which provides most dietary essentials. The starport is an uncomplicated affair, with a landing pad and half a dozen open-air “berths” for loading and unloading starships. Most ships visiting Jereba are commercial vessels bringing finished industrial products from Voirait or Cumandi or food from Imlista (which is reserved for the government elite in Ahdalla but which sometimes makes its way to the black market for sale to the average citizen). 

Balison (0303)

Starport: C

Size: @4000 miles

Atmosphere: 3 (Very thin)

Hydrographics: @20% surface water

Population: @20 million

Government: Feudal technocracy

Law Level: 5

Tech Level: 10

Base: Scout base present

Trade Codes: Non-agricultural, Poor

Summary: Balison’s low atmospheric pressure and relative lack of surface water makes it difficult to feed its population, which is located exclusively within fifteen domed cities. Food imports from Imlista via Voirait provide most of the food the Balisos eat; unfortunately the prices of these imports are high, and the majority of the population exists at a bare subsistence level. The government has been trying to develop a trade in minerals for decades; mining is still a small-scale business while prospecting for new mineral lodes is a major concern, attracting off-worlders hoping to strike it rich. There is also a small but growing business in manufacturing personal hi-tech items (up to TL 11) but its only support is among the more progressive of Balison’s government  technocrats. The class C starport supports a scout base; the local scouts prospect the system’s three planetoid belts for rare minerals that are used in the nascent hi-tech industry. The planetoid prospectors, however, are looked down upon by the elite, primarily for their consistent flouting of Balison’s laws and regulations. The Baliso race is humanoid. They average 5 feet in height and tend to have an overweight look to them, a result of having evolved fat stores in times of famine. Their skin coloration tends to be blue or bluish-green, and they have evolved scales that keep water within their bodies.

Telere (0304)

Starport: D

Size: @6000 miles

Atmosphere: 1 (Trace)

Hydrographics: @60% surface ice

Population: @500 thousand

Government: Colony of Voirait

Law Level: 7

Tech Level: 7

Trade Codes: Ice-capped, Non-industrial

Summary: A mid-sized “ice planet”, Telere’s median surface temperature is approximately -65 degrees Fahrenheit, though during high summer at the equator the temperature soars to 70 degrees F during the day (plunging to -20 at night). The entire population of Telere dwells in a single domed city (Telere City) and lives under a planetary governor appointed from Voirait. The purpose of the colony is to eventually terraform Telere into an agricultural world. To this end the Telereans dig under the surface of the planet in search of frozen carbon dioxide and other greenhouse  gasses, with the intent of releasing the freed gasses into the atmosphere and producing a greenhouse  effect. If Telere can be transformed in this way the government of Voirait would have a nearby world to send colonists from its overpopulated  world. All of the unrefined fuel available at the starport is made from the water ice on the planet’s surface and there is a small industry supporting the harvesting of this ice for that purpose. As a consequence the union of ice miners is the only powerful organization counter-balancing  the colonial government.

Popetea (0306)

Starport: E

Size: @2000 miles

Atmosphere: 3 (Very thin)

Hydrographics: @60% surface water

Population: @700

Government: Colony of Voirait

Law Level: 7

Tech Level: 7

Trade Codes: Low population

Summary: Popetea has only recently been populated  by colonists from Voirait. The present population  is made up mostly of researchers and their families exploring the potential of Popetea  for exploitation and development. There are no cities as such; rather there are several dozen research stations established across the planet’s surface. The planetary governor, appointed  from Voirait, maintains a base near the paved ground that serves as a starport. A planetary satellite network has yet to be established so communications are limited to radio, laser, and couriers. There are plans to establish a fishing industry in hopes of exporting food to Voirait.

Voirait (0403)

Starport: A

Size: @6000 miles

Atmosphere: 6 (Standard)

Hydrographics: @50% surface water

Population: @1 billion

Government: Representative democracy

Law Level: 0

Tech Level: 9

Trade Codes: High population

Summary: Voirait has an unusual government  structure. Ostensibly a representative democracy, real power is held by the Bosses who control Voirait’s six Territories. There is an Overboss who runs what passes for the planetary government  and is elected into his position by the six Bosses. In turn the Bosses are actually elected by the voters of their Territories. Yet it is possible, and quite common, to advance in government  via assassination and violence; the Bosses routinely raid their neighbors to expand their territories and gain greater influence planetwide. Much of the populace is armed and “gangland” rules predominate. Because of the constant turmoil, Voirait does not have as much influence in the subsector as it might otherwise enjoy; other planetary governments have taken advantage of Voirait’s competing factions to keep its government  weak and unable to dominate its surrounding worlds. Voirait’s native race is bipedal and evolved from chaser/omnivores. Their bodies are covered in fur and their teeth retain the fangs of their ancestors. They average about 5’5” in height and are known for their ability to run long distances without tiring. Their eyes, colored a bright crimson, are known to unnerve off-worlders.

Meranta (0404)

Starport: X

Size: @7000 miles

Atmosphere: 4 (Thin, tainted)

Hydrographics: @80% surface water

Population: @6 thousand

Government: Participatory democracy

Law Level: 2

Tech Level: 5

Trade Codes: Low population,  low technology

Summary: Meranta is a larger-than-average  world that has become a refuge for many of Voirait’s intelligentsia, trying to escape the chaos of their home planet. There is a single city built under a protective dome, with a half dozen smaller connected domes housing various scientific specialties - astrophysics, mathematics, medicine, etc. While the overall tech level of the world is 5 (a level at which the people prefer to live), in areas of scientific knowledge the effective tech level is 12, making Merantan experts sought after throughout the local star cluster; electronic devices built on Meranta (by hand) are highly prized for their dependability and utility.

Akram (0405)

Starport: C

Size: @6000 miles

Atmosphere: 2 (Very thin, tainted)

Hydrographics: @20% surface water

Population: @500 thousand

Government: Civil service bureaucracy

Law Level: A

Tech Level: 7

Trade Codes: Non-industrial, poor

Summary: Akram is home to the Akrami, a race of creatures that superficially resemble a cross between insects and reptiles. They stand about 4.5 feet tall, are bipedal, and have four arms. Their faces are elongated with a pronounced snout and they have two pairs of eyes, two for binocular vision and two “lesser” eyes on either side of their heads to detect motion. They have no noses but smell through a short pair of antennae atop their heads. The Akrami do not have independent space travel but maintain a C-class starport at the behest of, and administered by, Imlista. Despite the presence of Imlistan advisors, the Akrami do not generally trust off-worlders and do not normally engage with them in commerce. While the planet is classified as poor and undeveloped, there are reports of great mineral riches beneath Akram’s surface - but the locals refuse to grant mining permits.

Ruhaim (0406)

Starport: C

Size: @9000 miles

Atmosphere: 9 (Dense, tainted)

Hydrographics: @100% surface water

Population: @800 thousand

Government: Colony of Imlista

Law Level: 5

Tech Level: 7

Base: Scout base present

Trade Codes: Non-industrial, water world

Summary: A colony planet of Imlista, Ruhaim’s surface is entirely covered with liquid water. The goal of the long-term settlement of Imlista is to create an economy based on aquaculture, further cementing Imlista’s status as the breadbasket of the local cluster. A floating city has been established as a base from which Ruhaim’s resources can be exploited. It has attracted settlers from all over the subsector, until the population of the colony world has outstripped that of Imlista. The scout base on the planet is used primarily by submersible craft to explore the depths of the planetary ocean.

Vinculus (0408)

Starport: B

Size: @3000 miles

Atmosphere: 3 (Very thin)

Hydrographics: @20% surface water

Population: @3 million

Government: Feudal technocracy

Law Level: 9

Tech Level: 5

Trade Codes: Non-agricultural, non-industrial, poor

Summary:  A poor backwater world with few resources, Vinculus nevertheless has benefitted from investment from Imlista and Voirait due to its proximity to Cumandi and its markets. The starport, rated B, is a hub of traffic in the subsector and has enriched the local technocratic government, while the vast majority of the population  is employed as support staff for the starport. The Vinculi are a species of intelligent, multi-legged crab-like beings, well suited to their dry and dusty world, but theirs is a simple culture and they do not often see much beyond their duty to labor for the technarchs - they are educated up to the level of being of service to the elite, and their movements and freedoms are strictly curtailed. Exceptionally intelligent and ambitious Vinculi sometimes gain admittance to the government and civil administration.

Imlista (0505)

Starport: B

Size: @4000 miles

Atmosphere: 4 (Thin, tainted)

Hydrographics: @50% surface water

Population: @100 thousand

Government: Civil service bureaucracy

Law Level: 3

Tech Level: 7

Trade Codes: Agricultural, non-industrial

Summary: A planet devoted to agriculture and agricultural exports, Imlista’s small native population of tall, pale humanoids are overwhelmingly counted among the governing bureaucracy that sees to the fulfillment of quotas, the orderly transition of cargos to visiting merchant vessels, and the efficient running of the government to see to the needs of the vast immigrant labor force who do not enjoy citizenship. Thus while the official population is about 100,000 the immigrant laborers and their families account for an additional 900,000 sentients. A conservative and traditional culture, Imlista’s agricultural concerns insist that all farm labor is done by hand with only a minimum of mechanized assistance. Occasional labor strife has led to violence, but even here the government has imported a solution: a Vargr mercenary police force of some 15,000 strong maintains the peace, while the small Imlistan navy, stationed at its class B starport, is made up of thirty-seven Vargr mercenary craft charged to ward off pirates and maintain the safety of agricultural export ships.

Cumandi (0509)

Starport: B

Size: @4000 miles

Atmosphere: 6 (Standard)

Hydrographics: @60% surface water

Population: @4 billion

Government: Balkanized

Law Level: 7

Tech Level: A

Base: Scout base present

Trade Codes: High population

Summary: Overcrowded, divided, and aswirl with intrigue, Cumandi’s population of sentients is made up of a Vargr off-shoot that was transplanted by the Ancients tens of thousands of years ago. There are three large alliances that have warred with each other over the last two hundred  years; fortunately the nature of these conflicts has been relegated mostly to brush wars between the smaller members of each alliance. The worldwide economy is overwhelmingly devoted to maintaining this state of low-intensity conflict, and mercenary forces abound. The class-B starport is an orbital installation that is governed by all three alliances by treaty, though tensions occasionally occur there as well. The scout base is a cooperative endeavor of the three alliances to further research into Cumandi’s system, exploring for research and potential colonies. The nearby worlds all have an interest in keeping Cumandi disunited, for fear that should it unite it would dominate the local cluster.

Yukul (0510)

Starport: X

Size: @2000 miles

Atmosphere: 1 (Trace)

Hydrographics: @0% surface water

Population: @200

Government: Participatory democracy

Law Level: 2

Tech Level: 7

Base: Pirate base present

Trade Codes: Low population

Summary: The single settlement on Yukul serves as the base of operations for the Faeng Kudhounei (Fang Corsairs), a Vargr pirate band that fled Cumandi and which now preys on shipping to their old homeworld. While the official “population” is about two hundred sentients, this number is an estimate by the Cumandi alliances and is likely an undercount by a factor of five. While Cumandi is the favored target of the corsairs, they have been known to conduct raids against Vinculus, Ruhaim, and Knexion.

T’Sorth (0806)

Starport: D

Size: @5000 miles

Atmosphere: 0 (Vacuum)

Hydrographics: @20% surface ice

Population: @600 thousand

Government: Balkanized

Law Level: 8

Tech Level: 7

Trade Codes: Ice-capped, non-industrial, vacuum

Summary: Cold, airless T’Sorth is at the fringes of the local cluster and is rarely visited. All that is known of the world is that it is divided up into a number of domed city-states, and that it is rumored to be an Ancient site where relics and even ultra-tech items have been discovered.