Here's my first submission for your approval. The Periphery never gets enough attention.
Out in the darkenss of the Deep Periphery lies a hidden treasure. Out beyond the generally accepted boundaries of known space is a civilization that has given new life to the old legends of the seven cities of gold. Only this time the streets aren't lined with gold, but something even more valuable. Something every sucessor state lord would sell his grandmother for. Comstar knows the location, but isn't talking. Neither is the Word of Blake (fortunately for all of us).
System Name: Providencia
Distance from Terra: 1792.13 LY (behind the Orion Nebula)
Star Type: G8V
recharge time 171 hours
travel time to jump point: 6.14 days
Recharging Station:None
Political Leader:General Ubiratan Miranda
Popuation (total): approx. 3.8 billion
ComStar Facility Class: None
ComStar Representative:None
Hidden from the prying eyes of the Inner Sphere by the Orion Nebula the Providencia system is considered by ComStar's Explorer Corps to be the farthest documented human settlement, although there is evidence that the Star League sent ships even further. Founded by political idealogues fleeing the heavy-handed Terran government the original Bolivar foundation has always been assumed by the Inner Sphere to have suffered some misfortune. This mistaken belief has allowed the people to grow and develop into a mature society relatively free from the strife of the Inner Sphere.
Centered around a star that is slightly more massive and more than two and a half times as bright as the Terran sun the system is comparitively young, barely a billion and a half years into its main life cycle. By comparison, the terran system is three times older. The first explorers couldn't believe their eyes upon discovering a star with three habitable worlds, two of which were in a binary orbit. To date, the Explorer Corps has not found another such system, although it has found a couple with three viable planets.
The youth of the star and its planets has also precluded the development of advanced lifeforms. Only Padua supports native life more advanced than plants, which is the case for both Valença and Eivissa. The Paduan oceans contain a wide diversity of fish, although life on land is extremely sparse. Zoologists are not sure why this is so, but recognize that it was a major factor in the early colonization of the system.
World Name: Cytherea
Position in System: 3
Time to Jump Point:
Political Leader: Governador Bernabe Massa
Population: 1,150,000,000
Level of Native Life: None
Socio-Industrial Levels: B-B-B-B-A
Originally a Venusian hell with an atmosphere thick enough to crush most vessels, the world of Cytherea set the pattern for every central governemnt to come when in the mid twenty-fourth century the leaders decided to use the world as a rallying point. Even today, seven centuries later social scientists and historians debate the results of the project; most agree that the immense costs and consumption of resources necessary to terraform the world held society back beyond any possible benefit.
Despite the dour opinions of academics the planet is shining example of the engineering prowess of Providencia. Scientists were able to extract most of the atmosphere and precipitate most of it to the surface, creating oceans and various chemicals that enriched the soil. An extensive layer of clouds reflects most the sun's energy into space, keeping the surface temperatures within comfortable norms (and also results in spectacular sunsets). Although it would take four centuries to complete-the Star League engineers were capable of terraforming worlds in mere decades- the result was a world easily as beautiful as any from the Star League.
An enormous world whose somewhat higher gravity and rather stuffy, wet climate is a bit hard on non-natives, Cytherea's landmass consists of some scattered islands and a gigantic supercontinent by the name of Pangea. This single continent is nearly double the size of all the land masses of old Terra and consists of seemingly endless plains and majestic mountain chains (although low ones: the lower level of tectonic activity has resulted in low and well-worn mountains). In the sea created by the Pangean "arc," Salamanca Island lies squarely in the middle. Roughly the size of the British isle of old Terra, it is the home base for the Providencian Armed Forces. Nearly the entire island has been converted into a massive base and a series of vast warehouses since the arival of the
SLS Pioneer in 2692.
As far as the general public is concerned, the four hundred and thirty or so years that the world has been colonized have come to form the heart of Providencian society. The world still recieves an influx of immigration from the other worlds every year, attracted by the endless land and chances to start a new life. For many, this was the only escape from what came to be known as the Long Night; even today the military government finds its fiercest resistance on this world. To make matters worse, the Alternate Zones of Cytherea enjoy a standard of living that is nearly equal to the legitimate citizenry of the world. The alternates here lack the stigma of other worlds and actively trade with the rest of Cytherea, occupying in fact a significant percentage of the cultural scene in open defiance of the central government.
Ironically, some of the government's strongest support can also be found here. This is the world where one can find the so-called mechwarrior families, the families descended from the mechwarriors of the 349th. Only two have survived to become listed as great families: the McEvedy and the Ross clans. The first is of extreme interest to Comstar since it was founded by Lt. Jason McEvedy, the younger brother of Sarah McEvedy. She was known to be close to the Kerenskys, and it is documented that she accompanied them on the Exodus. The descendents of Jason McEvedy maintain the story that the brother and sister were to be reunited at New Samarkand in time for the jouney. It is proof enough of their lineage that the family has consistently produced highly successful career mechwarriors.
World Name: Valença
Position in System: 4
Time to Jump Point:
Political Leader: Governador Juan Pablo Russo
Population: 1,245,500,000
Level of Native Life:40%, plant
Socio-Industrial Levels: B-B-B-B-B
Vitually equal in size and gravity to old Terra, although with a slightly warmer and drier climate, Valença has the largest population of any planet in the system and in some ways the most dynamic culture. While it cannot compete with the raw output of Padua or the scale of Cytherea no other world produces more athletes and artists. The population of this planet exemplifies the expression "work hard and play hard" as a way of life. Beyond that Valença tends to be seen as a mid-point between the utter exploitation of Eivissa and the egualitarianism of Padua. The families that dominate the political scene- the Russo, Souza, and Costas clans- control the world with an iron grip but take care maintain the standard of living sufficiently high to avoid social unrest. Thus, the general population is content despite the notably high economic inequality.
World Name: Eivissa
Position in System: 4.1
Time to Jump Point:
Political Leader: Governador Antonio Carlos Montana
Population:417,000,000 (411,000,000 in Gibraltar Station, 6,000,000 on the surface)
Level of Native Life:85%, plant
Socio-Industrial Levels: D-A-B-A-C
Originally occupying a place in the heart of the Providencian people for its beautiful landscapes and pleasant climate, many a song was written praising the jewel that was Eivissa. Now in the present songs are still sung, but they have a very different character. No other world has come to symbolize the effects wrought upon Providencia by the military takeover of 2792 by the officers of the 349th Dragoons of the SLDF. Their alliance with, and eventual dependence on, the Montana family has turned the world into a nightmare for its inhabitants. The construction of the Gibraltar Station came to dominate every aspect of the economy. Worse, the population has polarized into a small elite with the world at their rarified fingertips and the dreary masses that have been reduced to subuman conditions. Much of the blame for this situation falls squarely on the shoulders of the world's current political ruler. Known to most only by his initials ACM this venal little man has brutally repressed all oppositon to his authority, even within his own family since assuming the governorship in 3014. It is said that nothing happens on Eivissa unless ACM permits it. One of the biggest results of his policies has been the virtual depopulation of the surface; the vast majority was relocated to Gibraltar Station starting in 3019. Since most eivissans are completely dependent on the public sector for their very existence they had no choice but to comply.
Ironically, the inhuman policies of ACM have brought about the planet's recovery. With the surface basically devoid of habitation and industry (all moved to Gibraltar Station) Mother Nature has reasserted her control over the world. While life for the beeswarm millions aboard Gibraltar Station is a living hell of Big Brother-type oppression and endless toil the surface is a virtual Eden whose only remaining industry is a thriving tourism sector.
World Name: Padua
Position in System: 5
Time to Jump Point:
Political Leader: Governador Francisco Dantas
Population:982,350,000
Level of Native Life:52%, fish
Socio-Industrial Levels: A-B-B-B-A
Santo Antonio de Padua, site of the original settlement, still holds an importance in Providencia society far out of proportion to its size even now nine centuries after the colony's founding. Alternately ruled since the beginning by the Dantas, Miranda, and Salazar families the world has always tenaciously clung to the ideals of the Bolivar Foundation, with results visible even today. Supporting a quality of life far above the rest of the system Padua represents the best that Providencia has to offer. Even the lowest laborer can boast of an extensive education, and is likely well-versed in some form of creative expression. With its highly developed infrastructure an outsider might think that the world is some long-lost fragment of the vanished Star League. Nevertheless, the average technology level is a bit below Terran Hegemony standards, generally at or around mid twenty-seventh century Terra. Social inequality is absent here, as everyone benefits from society's bounty. On the other hand, those who end up in the Alternate Zones see the dark side of Paduan society. Isolated from the prosperous mainstream public, life in the zones is short and mean.
World Name: Patagonia
Position in System: 6
Time to Jump Point:
Political Leader: Community Leader Paulo Elias
Population:2,150,000
Level of Native Life: None
Socio-Industrial Levels:C-C-B-C-D
The world known as Patagonia- named for the windswept plains that reminded the original explorers of the southern tip of the South American continent on old Terra- was uninhabitable at first and strictly speaking, is still not entirely habitable. The object of terraforming experiments in the late twenty-third and early twenty-fourth centuries, the atmosphere has been thickened to the point that now it is possible to walk on the surface with little more than a light environmental suit. One side effect of this is that various molds and lichen- perfectly able to survive on the surface, unlike humans- have prospered in the following centuries to the point that many comment that modern-day Patagonia resembles a moldy pizza from orbit. Apart from some mining concerns the only settlement on the world is a series of domes containing an Alternate Zone that operates the mines for commerce with other worlds.
