The Outer Colonies
Port StanleyStar Type: G2IV
Position in System: 2 (of 7)
Time to Jump Point: 11.89 days
Number of Satellites: 2 (Troy and Hawkins)
Surface Gravity: 1.01
Atm. Pressure: Thin (Breathable)
Equatorial Temperature: 32°C (Mild-Temperate)
Surface Water: 67%
Recharging Station: Zenith, Nadir
HPG Class Type: A
Highest Native Life: Avian
Planetary Capital: San Carlos
Population (3045): 3,635,000,000
Administrative capital, home to the Council Chambers and the most heavily populated planet in Outer Colonies, Port Stanley was settled by people of predominantly Northern European decent, but with a large number of Latin American's, resulting in names such as San Carlos and Ciudad de San Jorge. The three large continents have a largely temperate climate, with vast mountain ranges and wide valleys. One of the largest mountains is Mount Longdon, home of a Star League Castle Brian that is linked by an aboveground highway and an underground railway to the heavily fortified Port Howard space-port. Between them they act as the nexus of planetary defences, including the primary ground station for the orbital weapons platforms.
Much further north, on the continent of Fitzroy, is the city of Fox Bay, site of the single largest industrial complex in the Outer Colonies. Capable of reproducing almost any BattleMech or armoured vehicle deployed by the SLDF, the factory now operates at a fraction of its maximum, mainly producing replacement parts for the Outer Colonies Defence Force. Due to local geography, Fox Bay has a very small space-port, and most of the larger items produced at the factory are transported either by airship or ocean-going cargo ships.
Orbiting Port Stanley is the extensive
Clarke Station, a collection of shipyards, foundries and workshops that maintain both the merchant and military fleet. While the yards are capable of building anything up to and including a warship, they have not been tasked to do so since the Reunification War. The entire facility is protected from the moon of Troy, the bulk of which is given over to a massive military base that houses part of the aerospace academy.
The outer moon of Hawkins is much smaller, and is home to a scientific research station, including a 10km particle accelerator and other experiments that benefit from a microgravity environment.
New TasmaniaStar Type: K2IV
Position in System: 4 (of 8 )
Number of Moons: 1 (Sentinel)
Days to Jump Point: 5
Surface Water: 83%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Breathable)
Surface Gravity: 1.06
Equatorial Temp: 34°C (Mild-Temperate)
Recharging Station: Zenith
HPG Class Type: B
Highest Native Life: Mammals
Planetary Capital: Hobart
Population (3045): 1,960,000,000
A much more sparsely populated world in comparison, New Tasmania is still mostly untouched by man only the continent of Victoria is truly developed, with vast swathes of the others still in a near pristine condition. The worlds manly, large oceans are home to a thriving ecosystem and are spotted by long island chains, many the tips of still active volcanoes. It is this highly geologically active nature that makes the soil on New Tasmania as futile as it is, and food produce is the planets primary export.
San AntonioStar Type: F0VI
Position in System: 3 (of 6)
Number of Moons: 2 (Travis and Crockett)
Days to Jump Point: 22
Surface Water: 55%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Breathable)
Surface Gravity: 0.73
Equatorial Temp: 85°C (Desert)
Recharging Station: Zenith
HPG Class Type: B
Highest Native Life: Amphibians
Planetary Capital: Galveston
Population (3045): 690,000,000
A dry, arid world, San Antonio still has a frontier feel to it, centuries after it was first settled. The inhabitants are known for being hardy, self sufficient and independent: it took even the Star League Defence Force two decades to completely pacify the populace, and even then they had to deal with regular uprisings and protests. While things are much calmer since the Outer Colonies reorganised their government to allow for much greater local autonomy, there is still occasional talk of leaving the Outer Colonies and going fully independent, but given the planets low population base and limited arable land, this remains unlikely.
New JerseyStar Type: G2V
Position in System: 3 (of 12)
Number of Moons: 1 (Liberty)
Days to Jump Point: 9
Surface Water: 80%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Breathable)
Surface Gravity: 1.00
Equatorial Temp: 37°C (Mild-Temperate)
Recharging Station: Nadia
HPG Class Type: A
Highest Native Life: Mammals
Planetary Capital: Jersey City
Population (3045): 2,250,000,000
A wet and somewhat desolate world, New Jersey is none the less blessed with vast mineral reserves that have fuelled a thriving manufacturing and heavy industry led economy that is unmatched anywhere else in the Outer Colonies. It is also home to the only other operational shipyard in the region capable of building and maintaining JumpShip's,
Newport News Orbital Shipbuilding Inc., as well as extensive ground-based facilities for the construction and maintenance of DropShip's of any size. Unfortunately this economic leviathan has exacted a heavy toll on the local environment, and a large proportion of the planetary GDP is spent running a network of highly sophisticated atmospheric processors recovered from the failed colonies in the Hamunaptra system.
Despite all this, New Jersey has a thriving tourist industry, as it is the only one of the Outer Colonies to allow unrestricted gambling, among other vices that are more strictly controlled, if not outright prohibited, elsewhere.
This has given birth to the famous saying; “
What happens on New Jersey, stays on New Jersey...â€
RockallStar Type: F0IV
Position in System: 3 (of 12)
Number of Moons: 1 (Gibraltar)
Days to Jump Point: 12
Surface Water: 42%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Breathable)
Surface Gravity: 1.00
Equatorial Temp: 65ºC (Desert)
Recharging Station: Nadia
HPG Class Type: B
Highest Native Life: Reptilian
Planetary Capital: Derry
Population (3045): 450,000,000
Populated predominately by people of Scots-Irish decent, Rockall maintains a close-knit, family orientated societies based around the ancient Clans. Most of the populace is to be found around the northern Tyrol Mountains and freshwater lochs located there, far from the hash, inhospitable deserts of the equatorial regions. Rockall has a rather extreme rotational tilt, which geological evidence seems to indicate was caused by a collision with a large protoplanet back when the system was still forming, much like Terra was billions of years ago. This makes the seasons somewhat harsh, with very hot summers and cold, bitter winters.
Despite, or perhaps, because of this, Rockall is considered to be the home of the best single-malts in the entire Outer Colonies.
Last PostStar Type: G5V
Position in System: 4 (of 6)
Number of Moons: 1 (Charleston)
Days to Jump Point: 7.5
Surface Water: 68%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Breathable)
Surface Gravity: 1.01
Equatorial Temp: 30° C (Arid)
Recharging Station: Zenith
HPG Class Type: B
Highest Native Life: Mammal
Planetary Capital: Landing
Population (3045): 1,010,000,000
Dry but not overly hot, at first Last Post has little to attract settlers even now, but that is until you take into account the stable climate, low geological activity and stunning, if somewhat stark, beauty. It is no wonder that Lost Post has given the Outer Colonies more poets and artist than any other world.
The other thing that makes Lost Post stand out is that it is the home of the Knights Templar, and their massive land-hold on the continent of Haven in the eastern tropics. The capital of Haven is New Constantinople, located between the foot of a mountain ant the mouth of the Serenity River. The city is split into two sectioned: the sprawling Lower City down by the river, and the Citadel, which is carved out of the mountain itself. Only members of the Order are allowed into the Citadel, with every point of access guarded around the clock. Over the years many have tried to either slip in, or have joined the Order to discover its secrets. To date none of them have succeeded; they have all either been found out and deported, or 'gone native' and embraced the Order fully, turning their backs on their former life.
The highest apparent rank in the order is that of Paladin, the select few who control the order from somewhere within the Citadel. Below them are the Clerics, who act as administrators for their holdings, the Knights who make up the bulk of the order, including all the officers and senior NCO's within their paramilitary arm, the Men At Arms, who act as a police force across Haven and guard the Citadel itself, Squires, who carry out much of the day-to-day business of running an entire continent, and lastly the Acolytes, who are probationary members seeking to earn a place as full members of the Order. Acolytes are only allowed into the Citadel for the ceremony that sees them rise to the position of Squire or Man At Arms, and are more often seen going about their business in the Lower City.
The Treaty of New Constantinople, signed by the Star League and endorsed by the Outer Colonies grants the Order fully and total authority over Haven, and anyone entering the territory should be aware that they are under the legal jurisdiction and authority of the Order, not the Outer Colonies.
New JamaicaStar Type: K4III
Position in System: 4 (of 10)
Time to Jump Point: 4.12 days
Number of Satellites: 0
Surface Gravity: 1.0
Atmosphere Pressure: High (Breathable)
Surface Water Coverage: 62%
Equatorial Temperature: 34° C (Tropical)
Highest Native Life: Amphibians
Recharging Station: Nadir
HPG Class Type: A
Planetary Capital: Port Royal
Population (3045): 2,190,000,000
A near paradise, New Jamaica has the best beaches, the warmest, clearest seas and the most agreeable climate of any of the Outer Colonies. Almost zero axial tilt means that the seasons are split between hot a humid in the summer, and warm and wet in winter. This would normally make it a prime world for colonisation anywhere, but such endeavours have met an native enemy in the Iron-Root plant. Somewhat akin to the mangrove of Terra, iron-root has colonised vast swaths of New Jamaica and is unusually stubborn and all but impossible to eradicate to the point that military grade explosives and even BattleMech's have been called upon to clear areas that resisted more traditional methods. Some areas of old-growth forest are all but impenetrable, limiting the amount of land available for human habitation.
Despite this, the colonists of predominantly Afro-Caribbean and Latin-American stock have made the most of what they have, reclaiming large areas from the sea by filling in lagoons and atolls to gain living space. Its many lush, sandy beaches attract holiday makers from across the Outer Colonies, allowing it to rival even New Jersey as the number one vacation destination. Many are drawn to the famous floating cities, effectively free-floating habitats that migrate around the world to take advantage of the best weather conditions.
New Jamaica's main exports are lumber, spices and rum.
VisionStar Type: F8V
Position in System: 4 (of 12)
Number of Moons: 1 (Hope)
Days to Jump Point: 12
Surface Water: 60%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Breathable)
Surface Gravity: 1.2
Equatorial Temp: 30°C (Arid)
Highest Native Life: Reptiles
Recharging Station: Nadir
HPG Class Type: B
Planetary Capital: Eden
Population (3045): 915,000,000
A truly unremarkable world, Vision has little to make it stand out amongst its fellow colonies, resulting in a lower population then you might expect. While the world has enough natural resources and arable land sustain its population comfortably, they are not of sufficient quality or quantity to make export an economical choice. In a bid to boost income from off-world, the planetary council built large sports complex just outside their capital and played host to the first Outer Colonies Olympic Games.
The games were a resounding success, and by tradition, Vision plays host to every third tournament while the other Colonies take turns.
Malloy's WorldStar Type: K8V
Position in System: 3 (of 8 )
Number of Moons: 1 (Guardian)
Days to Jump Point: 3
Surface Water: 74%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Breathable)
Surface Gravity: 0.84
Equatorial Temp: 38°C (Tropical)
Highest Native Life: Birds
Recharging Station: Zenith
HPG Class Type: B
Planetary Capital: Rosalyn
Population (3045): 1,645,378,000
Not to be confused with the Federated Suns world with an almost identical name, Malloy’s World is one of the more Terra-like worlds in the Outer Colonies, having a relatively stable climate and low to moderate geological activity. In fact the world is almost as laid back as its inhabitants, who take advantage of its location at the edge of the Outer Colonies to allow the hustle and bustle of the more cosmopolitan worlds pass them by while they dedicate themselves to more scholastic pursuits, resulting in a far higher than average percentage of the population with qualifications from their worlds many centres of higher education. Even the capital, Rosalyn, feels more like a oversized collage campus than a major city.
One interesting piece of local trivia; the planet itself is named after Captain Gregory Malloy, commander of the JumpShip North Star, who first discovered the world, while the capital is named after his eldest daughter, Rosalyn Amber Cater-Malloy, who had been born during the long passage from the Inner Sphere.
Rorke's DriftStar Type: M2IV
Position in System: 4 (of 9)
Number of Moons: 2 (Ulysses and Odyssey)
Days to Jump Point: 3
Surface Water: 63%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Breathable)
Surface Gravity: 0.95
Equatorial Temp: 47°C (Desert)
Highest Native Life: Mammals
Recharging Station: Nadia and Zenith
HPG Class Type: A
Planetary Capital: Charlemagne
Population (3045): 1,958,205,000
Some may call the Outer Colonies unnecessarily paranoid when it comes to dealing with outsiders, but that doesn't even come close to describing the people of Rorke's Drift.
A sparsely populated world before the arrival of the surviving descendants of the 331st division, the world is geared almost totally to the business of warfare. For the forth most populous world in the Outer Colonies, Rorke's Drift provides the highest number of military personnel per-capita, and has the largest standing militia, with every citizen expected to join the planetary militia and to remain a member of the reserve until they reach forty. The only exceptions are medical disability and conviction of a non-misdemeanor. While the city of Charlemagne remains the officially capital, the largest settlement is in fact McEverdy City, some 200km to the south, deep in the Wolf's Bane Mountains. This heavily fortified settlement is surrounded by fortifications, including ground-to-orbit missile silos and capital-grade lasers and particle canons, collectively known as “the Ring of Fireâ€.
In orbit, amid an impressive number of weapons satellites and battle stations is a non-operational shipyard that was closed down and put into mothballs when the Star League fell, due to a decline in business now they no longer need to service JumpShips making the long an arduous journey to and from the Inner Sphere. While deactivated, the yards are kept in good repair and could easily be reactivated.
Protectorates:
HeliosStar Type: G5V
Position in System: 2 (of 4)
Number of Moons: 16 (of which the largest is Solitude)
Days to Jump Point: 20
Surface Water: N/A
Atm. Pressure: N/A
Surface Gravity: N/A
Equatorial Temp: N/A
Recharging Station: None
HPG Class Type: D
Highest Native Life: N/A
Planetary Capital: N/A
Population (3045): 120,000
An otherwise unimpressive yellow dwarf system, the Helios system is only remarkable due to the presence of the gas giant that gives it its name, which is home to a Star League era hydrogen mining station. The only other permanent settlement in the system is a mining outpost on the moon Solitude, which produces high-grade industrial diamonds and naturally occurring crystals that are used in laser focusing arrays, including military weapons. Both outposts are owned and operated by the Hark Corporation under the oversight of the Office of Colonial Affairs.
ArixoStar Type:K0V
Position in System: 2 (of 4)
Number of Moons: 2 (Coyote and Shadow)
Days to Jump Point: 4.25
Surface Water: 33%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Breathable)
Surface Gravity: 1.2
Equatorial Temp: 85ºC (Desert)
Recharging Station: None
HPG Class Type: C
Highest Native Life: Reptilian
Planetary Capital: Snake River
Population (3045): approximately 117,450,000
A dry, inhospitable world, Arixo attracted settlers from both the North American, Arabian and Australian regions on Terra, mainly people who wanted a simpler, nomadic life. Settlements are few and far between, with the bulk of the population moving around the vast savannah's and deserts with the seasons. The authority of the Office of Colonial Affairs doesn't extended to far from the few permanent settlements, and many of the locals still settle disputes by armed combat, something the local Marshals service spends a lot of time and effort trying to discourage. The only real export of note (aside from hand-tooled firearms and bladed weapons, which are much sort after by collectors across the Outer Colonies) is titanium and germanium from the Kata Tjuta Mountains on the southern continent of Uluru.
TRAVEL ADVISORY: several of Arixo's native species are both aggressive and carnivorous, many capable of overwhelming a unaware human. Take care when travailing outside of populated areas and if possible, travel in armed groups.
PacificaGovernment: Elected Council under the guidance of a Colonial Administrator
Star Type: F5III
Position in System: 4 (of 12)
Number of Moons: 1 (Mandalay)
Days to Jump Point: 11
Surface Water: 85%
Atm. Pressure: Standard
Surface Gravity: 1.02
Equatorial Temp: 33°C (Arid)
Recharging Station: none
HPG Class Type: C
Highest Native Life: Mammal
Planetary Capital: Roanapur
Population (3045): 150,315,000
Settled by people of Polynesian, Malayan and otherwise Far-Eastern decent, Pacifica maintains a close link it its cultural heritage, even thousands of light-years from Terra. The people who inhabit its many island chains and atolls lives lives not that dissimilar to their distance ancestors, all be it with ships made of high-tensile alloys, deep-scanning echo-locators and satellite communications. The planets only continent, MokuÊ»Äina, is home to both its capital and its only space port, but specially adapted amphibious DropShips and transatmospheric shuttles are used on occasions to deliver bulk cargo to and from isolated communities when speed is off the essence and the vast blue water transports are too slow.
The main industry of Pacifica is fishing; its deep, rich seas provide a rich bounty that even industrialised fishing is hard pressed to put a dent in. Fleets of ships roam the single, vast ocean, in search of their next catch, entire families going years between setting foot on dry ground. Some of the larger ships are effectively ocean-going towns that include schools, medical centres and all the other facilities one could ask for. Shepherding them are patrol ships of the Colonial Marshals, acting as both law enforcement, tax collectors and emergency response teams. The deep oceans of Pacifica are known to produce monster storms that can destroy even the mightiest vessels, and many lives have been saved by the timely arrival of an emergency shuttle.
Military Outposts
HamunaptraStar Type: G0III
Position in System: 4 (of 8 )
Number of Moons: 0
Days to Jump Point: 8
Surface Water: 67%
Atm. Pressure: Thick (Inhospitable)
Surface Gravity: 1.09
Equatorial Temp: 120°C
Recharging Station: None
HPG Class Type: None
Highest Native Life: Bacterial
Planetary Capital: N/A
Population (3045): 25,000
Hundreds of years ago, settlers attempted to found a colony on the world then known as Hibernia. Unfortunately, not long after they landed, the planet underwent a massive geological upheaval that rendered it unfit for human habitation. Many fled to other nearby worlds, but most remained behind, attempting to save their new home by deploying massive atmospheric processors and regulators similar to those used by the Star League to terraform worlds in the Inner Sphere. Unfortunately the tectonic and atmospheric instability had already reached a tipping point, and within a few decades the entire planet was all but dead, turned from a lush demi-paradise to a living hell. The remaining colonists either fled or died, but records from that time are fragmented at best, leaving their true fate unknown to this day.
When the Star League took an interest in the Outer Colonies, they sent a mission to the Hibernia system but found nothing but ruins. They managed to recover the terraforming equipment that had failed to save the world, then renamed it Hamunaptra, after a mythical necropolis on Terra.
Thus the world remained of little interest to anyone until the start of the Reunification War. Faced with the need to dispose of captured Periphery Navy warships, the local SLDF commander decided to relocate them to the Hamunaptra system, which was not listed on most maps not of local origin, and thus began the formation of the vast orbital bone-yard. Since then it has become home to more ships either captured or declared surplus and too expensive to ship back to the Inner Sphere for disposal. A number of these are held as part of the Naval Reserve and maintained to a certain level by a team of engineers and technicians, while others are allowed to just drift in orbit, occasional used as a convenient source of spare parts.
Many of the ships located in the bone-yard may well be the last of their kind in existence, and every few years a survey is conducted to make sure that the most historically significant ones are still in one piece, and unlikely to fall into a gravity well.
Nomad StationStar Type:DZ8
Position in System: N/A
Number of Moons: N/A
Days to Jump Point: 4
Surface Water: N/A
Atm. Pressure: N/A
Surface Gravity: N/A
Equatorial Temp: N/A
Recharging Station: none
HPG Class Type: D
Highest Native Life: N/A
Planetary Capital: N/A
Population (3045): 2,600
A scientific research station orbiting a white dwarf, Nomad Station was built by the Star League as part of a chain of radio telescopes scattered through to deep Periphery. The station is of negligible strategic value, but is normally home to a pair of assault DropShip’s and a fighter wing due to the high black-market value of the irreplaceable electronics it houses. The station is run by the Ministry of Since under a senior administrator.
ColumbiaStar Type: G2V
Position in System: 3 (of 7)
Number of Moons: None
Days to Jump Point: 10
Surface Water: 5%
Atm. Pressure: Thin (Borderline-breathable)
Surface Gravity: 0.89
Equatorial Temp: 15°C (Tundra)
Recharging Station: none
HPG Class Type: D
Highest Native Life: Mammal
Planetary Capital: Columbia Station
Population (3045): 14,000
At the 'northern' end of the perimeter, Columbia is an icy, desolate world that has never attracted any settlers due to the fact that is locked in the middle of an ice age. A few prospectors have scoured its surface in a bid to make their fortune, but its thick ice sheets and barely breathable atmosphere have made any finds economically impractical at this time, or at any point in the next few centuries. A small, domed military outpost on the equator maintains an array of satellites in orbit tasked with detecting the tell-tale signs of nearby hyperspace transits that would give warning of any nearby, unexpected JumpShip activity.
Fort KeriumStar Type: K9V
Position in System: 2 (of 5)
Number of Moons: 0
Days to Jump Point: 3
Surface Water: 20%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Highly-Tainted)
Surface Gravity: 1.11
Equatorial Temp: 24°C (Temperate)
Recharging Station: None
HPG Class Type: D
Highest Native Life: Reptilian
Planetary Capital: Fort Kerium
Population (3045): 12,000
If it wasn’t for the high concentration of Sulphur in the atmosphere, Fort Kerium would be ideal for human settlement. As it is it is reduced to serving as a mid-range military outpost on north-west edge of the Outer Colonies, most of which is burred below ground to avoid the smell. Even then, almost everyone who's served there insists they can still smell rotten eggs, despite the best the air scrubbers money can buy.
Fort CentrumStar Type: G4IV
Position in System: 1 (of 5)
Number of Moons: N/A (largest moon of a Gas Giant)
Days to Jump Point: 8
Surface Water: 36%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Tainted)
Surface Gravity: 0.69
Equatorial Temp: 47°C (Desert)
Recharging Station: None
HPG Class Type: D
Highest Native Life: Reptilian
Planetary Capital: Fort Centrum
Population (3045): 14,500
At the very centre of the defensive line, Fort Centrum has the misfortune of being the only rock in the entire system with even a partly breathable atmosphere, and a giant ball of windswept rock with such a high concentration of dust in the atmosphere that filter masks must be warn outside. To try and overcome the hardship of a world no-one likes garrisoning, a lot of time and money has been spent on leisure facilities, but even then there are few who'd serve there voluntarily. The low natural gravity is also a problem, as anyone who fails to maintain a proper exorcise regime can find it hard to adjust when they return to a world of more Terra-like proportions.
Fort DixieStar Type: G1V
Position in System: 4 (of 15)
Number of Moons: 1 (Alpha)
Days to Jump Point: 10
Surface Water: 36%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Breathable)
Surface Gravity: 1.06
Equatorial Temp: 24°C (Temperate)
Recharging Station: Zenith
HPG Class Type: A
Highest Native Life: Mammal
Planetary Capital: Fort Dixie
Population (3045): 20,800
Fort Dixie was once one end of the chain of HPG stations that linked the Outer Colonies to the rest of humanity, and was home to a good-sized support base geared towards maintaining that vital link. But now with the stations shut down and either destroyed or recovered, it serves mainly as a early warning station in case anyone should follow a line on a map and stumble upon the Outer Colonies. The recharge station at the Zenith jump-point is only partly operational and operates mainly as a transfer point for ships heading to or from the old Star League base.
TiconderogaStar Type: F7III
Position in System: 2 (of 6)
Number of Moons: None
Days to Jump Point: 13.5
Surface Water: 35%
Atm. Pressure: Low (Breathable)
Surface Gravity: 1.1
Equatorial Temp: 51° C (Arid)
Recharging Station: None
HPG Class Type: C
Highest Native Life: Avian
Planetary Capital: Champlain
Population (3045): 360,000
The southern tip of the defensive chain, Ticonderoga is home to a small but prosperous uranium mine and military-outpost. Every so often there is talk of expanding the settlement and establishing a full colony, but with so much land still available on already inhabited planets, few if any ever take up the challenge. That said, it has a high birth rate and there is some immigration, to the point where local amenities are always expanding, so it may just be a matter of time before it becomes the eleventh member of the Outer Colonies.