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Overview: |
Endymion is a trading empire, in Sector B near the boundary with Sector G. Endymion has both treaties and minor trade pacts with half of the empires in known space. While small, both militarily and in number of systems (2), it wields a great deal of political power as a result of its treaties and alliances. The empire is arranged in a series of Houses, which are tight familial groups. The Houses are independent and are able, and encouraged, to compete against one another. Outright violence is frowned upon however, as the ability to best one's opponents through the use of economic force and subtle manipulation is held in the highest regard. Endymion wants nothing but total control of all economic forms, including information. However, they see the Omnet as being far to powerful to come into conflict with on any front, and so are focusing on the control of tangible commodities only. |
Navigation:CoLC Index |
Index:Q-dex / Technology / Magic
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Q-dex: |
T 757.3596/564.765 O M 343.2822/211.23
Life Linear: The primary substance of a Life Linear zone is Life. Life in one form or another is the first and most basic substance of that zone. It is the only one created from the Void and does so continually or at the initial moment of creation. All Energy and Matter manifesting in that zone are derived from or composites of Life. All Energy and Matter can at a sufficient level of technological knowledge be broken down into Life. |
Technology: |
Endymion is highly industrialized, but not in the classical sense. As Life is the primary substance of the zone, 2 pervasive forms of technology are currently in use.
The first is that of engineered life forms. This zone forces Energy to follow Life, so that much of the Energy in the system is bound to lifeforms. In order to make use of this energy organic systems needed to be created to take advantage of this bound Energy. Therefore on the low scale end, such as in the home and private life these engineered life forms take the place of common appliances. This is due to the fact that it is much cheaper to have organisms bred to do these simple tasks than create a machine to do such a small task. The second form of technology is one that takes advantage of the energy that is bound in the matter of deceased organisms. When under pressure these organisms convert to an Energy-rich sludge. This sludge or gan, as it was originally called by those who inhabited Endymion is used to power the large-scale machines such as factories, vehicles and starcraft. Gan does however have a single unfortunate side effect. As the Energy in gan wishes to revert to its original state of Life through the action of the Void, all machines that are powered by gan gain a state of semi-life. This is not to say that they have intelligence, far from it, they do however become temperamental and wish to be treated well. For instance a ground vehicle might wish to be driven regularly and not to have dirt on it, if the owner does not meet these conditions, the vehicle will not perform nearly as well as it would if treated well. There are also some instances where like other domesticated animals they are able to come to their name or perform simple tricks. Endymion has had FTL capability for several thousand years, and has patented a drive recently that works on a Cosmic String theory. While working particularly well in the zone, it has the unfortunate effect of making the starships that have the drive look like giant spiders. |
Magic: |
Magic is all but nonexistent. On occasion a talent for precognition or telepathy will crop up in a particular House, especially the Es'Dral, but these only last a single generation. All trading ships carry navigators that are proficient in magic, however these people are not original citizens of Endymion but are accepted into a House. |
Size: |
The Empire consists of 2 systems Endymion and Altena. In Endymion, Sylvain is the major planet and homeworld of the empire. There are 3 other planets in the Endymion system. In order from the star they are: Dezol, a barren greenhouse planet where the temperature regularly reaches 178 °C; Endymion; Antanor, a gas giant that supports life in its upper atmosphere, it is also close enough to Endymion to effect tides and for the cloud patterns to be seen at night; T'Chereth, a solid methane/carbon dioxide ice world.
In Altena there are 2 other planets and a planetoid. In order, from the star they are: Zeth, a nearly molten planet; Resith, a planet with a hydroxy/sulfuric/peroxide atmosphere that corrodes nearly all materials in minutes; Alloria; Es'lol, named after a fleet (as in quick) messenger of Endymion legend, is an erratic planetoid that has a highly elliptical orbit around the star. |
Population: |
There are approximately 6 billion people on the 2 worlds. Alloria has 1 billion and Endymion has the remaining 5. The major Houses make up nearly [***** INFORMATION RESTRICTED BY ORDER OF HOUSE D'ARSIN ******] and yet they survive, none the less. |
Climate and Geography: |
Endymion is a jungle planet. Even in the extreme reaches of the north, the plant life is nearly too thick to walk through. Mountain ranges stretch tens of thousands of miles across the northern and southern hemispheres and provide the best regions for habitability. There are several shallow seas that are several thousand miles across scattered across the globe. Storms are common in all regions of the planet, though these are usually very brief and very gentle. Every 50 years however the planet creates a massive storm called the Cha'Galt, or simply The Darkening. Though not violent, this storm lasts for weeks and usually has enough force to circle the planet at least once, although there have been records of Cha'Galt circling 5 times.
The Sea of Midnight is the only sea that can be seen year round. It gets its name from the gan that has floated on its surface since the start of recorded time. It appears as a dark smudge on the planet's surface from orbit. Alloria is a swamp. The air is foul with the smell of methane and the planet would likely not have been inhabitable without advanced construction and building techniques. Many areas of the globe are covered by shallow bodies of water, few are larger than a hundred miles however. There are three cities on Alloria, all of these are in the southern highlands, one of the few non-sinking bits of land on the planet. The planet has regular thunderstorms, some are violent enough to ionize spacecraft through their shielding as they pass through the storm. In the words of Wia Trione Desi, Captain of the Trallis, "How did such a cesspool get such a pretty name?" |
Flora and Fauna: |
The Suldom of Endymion has the great honor of being the stupidest predator in known space. It is mostly teeth, digestive tract and eyes. Its natural prey is a kind of blue lizard that lives in the trees of the jungle. Instead of climbing the trees the suldom chews the tree until it falls. This usually kills the suldom when the tree falls on it. If it doesn't die from the tree falling then it infallibly chases down and kills the lizard. The suldom however does not kill anything that is not blue. So most of the other animals of the forest are every color BUT blue. With the advent of spaceflight and tourism the suldom has a new prey, stupid tourist wearing blue. If the creature or tourist is not blue or wearing blue they are completely safe, even to the point of tripping over the idiotic beast. |
History: |
The period before first contact was one of inter-House war and desperation. The only notable achievement of the pre-contact civilization was the invention of the FTL drive.
It was immediately after first contact that several of the Houses realized that they would be outmatched by many of the other empires that had multiple systems and vast amounts of resources to exploit for their benefit. Endymion does have a great deal of fossil fuels however, due to its lush amounts of vegetation. They immediately sent out trade delegations to every nation that they could reach. The Hl'arn was formed in order to help all the Houses survive in the suddenly much bigger world. Several empires were willing to trade gan for materials and resources. Others were looking for the materials that distant empires could provide. The Hl'arn saw this as a huge opportunity and began expanding trade. The final addition to the current system came when 2 of the Houses of the Hl'arn went to war with each other. The Houses were expelled and stripped of resources and the Houseless One was created to mediate disputes in the Hl'arn. |
Government: |
The Hl'arn are the rulers of Endymion. They are a council made up of the 2 heads of each of the ten most successful Houses. At their head is the Houseless One, who is the ultimate head of the government. This person is chosen from among the lower Houses by the council and then taught to be the person who directs the actions of the council. The Hl'arn have rule over all extra-empire matters and over all disputes between the Houses. In any action between the Houses of the Hl'arn only the Houseless One is able to make any decision. They have very little effect on the lives on the average citizen, other than the collection of taxes. The House provides its own legal and police force for the areas that it governs and what laws will be in effect.
As with any government there are many grumbles about the policies that it puts forth, however as no group has yet found a better way for the government to operate it continues on as it always has. There are currently 237 Houses. Only 10 of these are considered to be ruling Houses. This is determined by the net worth of the House. The net worth is calculated in terms of population, land area, production and resources available, both monetary and material. All Houses rule their members in a slightly different manner. The current Houses are Rel'ar, D'Arsin, Vasel, Novrit, Qi'thin, Testlo, Harax, Un'thla, Giger, and I'Req't. The Houses have different responsibilities and take their jobs very seriously as their net worth benefits by the quality of the job that they do. Foreign Policy:Endymion is extremely helpful and open to trade with all other nations. The planet itself is also open to tourism, excepting the House strongholds. Domestic Policy:The government exists to regulate the actions of the Houses, and through them, the people. The Houses, however, are varied in both ruling techniques and burden placed on the individual. The majority of Houses are totalitarian, with internal police forces that keep order and eliminate spies from other Houses. Freedoms are varied, in House Es'Dral members are expected to open their ideas freely, while those of the Qi'thin are not allowed to speak at all in their main hall, and are to only write ideas out, never to speak of them while in the House Sanctum. The police of the Houses are varied in number and composition. All Houses are required to have an active police force of a certain number, according to the size of their holding. Criminals are captured and brought before a regional judge. The judge passes sentence upon the criminal. If the criminal does not agree with the sentence he can take death or go to the Arena. In the arena he must defeat 5 champions in duels to first blood over a series of days. If he looses, he must accept the sentence. If he wins, he faces the Judge in a duel to the death. Needless to say, this makes the Judges pass sentences that are fair or that err to the side of leniency. Criminals see this and in most cases will take the sentence. Judges are also some of the best duelers on the planet. |
Society: |
The Houses serve as both family, political group and economic group. There is no class structure between people, there is however a class structure among the Houses, as the lower Houses are expected to publicly defer to the higher Houses. However, all Houses must defer to the Hl'arn.
Internally the House is ruled by the Patriarch and Matriarch, a married couple who have been trained for their position all their life. They are tested and separated from their kresh early on and placed with a group of selectees who they must compete against. The competition is academic in the beginning but transitions to real world trade, politics and intrigue by their 17th year. The two who do the best are married by age 30 and become the leaders usually at age 40 to 60. They serve until one of the members die or both wish to retire, or they reach their 120th year. They are allowed to serve as councilors and teachers after retirement. Morals are at a medium, as using whatever power is necessary to get ahead is seen as being OK. Whether this is poison, drugs, sex, bribery or other criminal activity, it is OK as long as you do not get caught. Outright violence is as always, frowned upon. Most people do not use drugs of any sort as they see it as a way to loose their edge. Transporting and getting others addicted is encouraged privately, but frowned upon by Judges. Marriage is a very strong bond in the Houses, both internally and between Houses. Children are not raised by the married couple exclusively, but are placed in kreshes of 10 to 20 children, who learn and live together under the supervision of several married groups. Languages:There are 2 languages, Basic and Trade. Trade is not a [******INFORMATION RESTRICTED BY ORDER OF HOUSE D'ARSIN******] are sworn to never teach it to any outsider. Religion:There is only one god in Endymion, Arith. Arith is the god of commerce and invention. He has a very small following and most people ignore him. Castes:There are no castes. |
Economy: |
The basis for the economy is the trade of gan, methane and the brokerage and trade of resources of other empires. Money is in the form of chilane, a natural crystalline secretion of the territh tree. Though they are extremely beautiful and nearly indestructible (unworkable) they are only produced once in 10 years. Paper money representing thousandths and hundredths of chilane is used as a common currency. |
Military: |
House Harax and Un'thla are in charge of the military. Both Houses mix their troops to eliminate any unproductive rivalry between them. Nearly the entire population of both Houses is involved in the military to some degree. The other Houses leave the military strictly to their control.
The starships are all gan powered and the weapons are organic in nature. This makes the ships very organic in character and shape. The older Talon-class starships are distinctly bird shaped, and use a number of drive systems to operate in diverse zones, they are therefore less well armed than the Widow-class of ships, which is distinctly spider shaped. The Widow-class operate exclusively in the Endymion zone, and as such have a single drive type and are much better armed and armored. They have a [******INFORMATION RESTRICTED BY ORDER OF HOUSE D'ARSIN******] and a spinneret type cannon that can send out an entangling energy field. The main weapons of the fleet include engineered torpedoes that on impact open up and release a limpet creature that attempts to eat its way into the hull of the craft, depressurizing it and killing the crew. |
Sports and Leisure: |
There is a great diversity of entertainment, both physical and mental. Poetry and music flourish as many use them as ways to relax from the intense pressure of competition, and varied forms are common as well as experimentation into new forms such as light poems and sub-sonic orchestras.
The most impressive form of entertainment is the Arena, where different physical competition is held. These can be as simple as a foot race to as complex as a Grand Melee, where multiple Houses have warriors that compete. The fights are nearly always to first blood and the most advanced medical facilities are available to repair damage sustained in the battles. This is a recognize place for the Houses to receive attention and announce their triumphs in other parts of the galaxy. The markets of the Houses are also a favored leisure spot, as there are many vendors with wares from across the galaxy, and exotic plants and foods to see and sample. |
Major Population Centers: |
Freeport is the largest city on the planet of Endymion. It is located near the equator on the Sea of Midnight. Although the government is not located there it has at least the reputation of being the best place to get a deal on anything in the galaxy. Freeport is actually a free port, there is no tariff or inspection, ships are charged a flat rate according to weight and type of material (food and liquid cargoes are charged at half rate). Because of this a great deal of traffic passes through the system to refuel and get food, making it a prime commerce location.
Laws at Freeport are extremely lax, the only thing that is going to get you in any trouble is killing somebody, or stealing property. House Vasel administers the port and provides a very present security force in the port to stop any wrongdoers. The Hl'arn is situated at Koel, the only other open city on the planet. Koel, is a fairly small city located in the hills north west of Freeport. On a clear day the buildings of Koel can be seen from Freeport proper. |
Chronic Problems: |
Hubris. The citizens of Endymion are way too proud of themselves. This is most evident in their diplomatic corps and trade officials. Their haughtiness and rancor is going to annoy a powerful empire one day, and war will be declared. This would hurt the empire immensely as they would not be able to conduct the trade that supports the empire. |
Submission Information: |
Submitter's Name: David Eisebrey
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