Good morning, All,
This is the first pass at my landgrab entry for Irdashdis, an Imperial client-state in Ley sector, adjacent to the Sydite's former empire, now known as the Khuur League. The body of this text can also be found posted on my website:
Irdashdis Langgrab Entry
Special thanks to Stuart Ferris's incredible Heaven and Earth software for the image and the underlying data that supports the entry.
Note: All data herein is based on the T20 version of the Gateway Domain, and is current up to the date of 993.
Constructive feedback is appreciated, as always,
Flynn
* * * * *
IISS Survey Data: Irdashdis (Sydymic/Ley 2824)
Irdashdis (Sydymic/Ley 2824 A347849-C Agricultural 100 G4 V A9 D)
General Astrogational Information:
The planet Irdashdis lies in the fourth orbit of her primary star, Irdashdis Prime, a G4 main sequence star that shares its name with the mainworld of the system. A small airless rockball, Ferrensala, occupies the first orbit about Irdashdis Prime, a veritable inferno where a local mining corporation, Gestalt Industries, extracts valuable metals used by manufacturing concerns on Irdashdis. A ring of meteoric debris that encircles the diminutive planet marks Ferrensala as a world of interest to astronomers and belter-style miners. Shilkaska, another small rockball occupying the second orbit about Irdashdis Prime, holds the corporate headquarters of Gestalt Industries. The third orbit of Irdashdis Prime is home to the secondary star of this binary system, Irdashdis Secundus. The mainworld Irdashdis lies just beyond the second star, in the fourth orbital slot. Jerrhemi, in the fifth planetary orbit, holds the second largest population of the star system, with well over a million inhabitants. Jerrhemi possesses only one moon, Carson's Moon, which bears a number of ruins left behind by an space faring society over 10,000 years ago. The outermost planet of the system, Laasiter, lies in the sixth orbital slot. The third largest concentration of people in the system resides on Laasiter’s only moon, Argentia, a common recreational destination for the scattered population of the binary system. No further planets orbit Irdashdis Prime, though one small planetary body, Waakher, orbits the secondary star independently.
Gas Giants/Planetoid Belts:
The Irdashdis system does not have any gas giants, nor does it possess any planetoid belts.
World Map:
Public Starport Facilities: Class A
The initial Class A starport for Irdashdis, based at the Borathden arcology, came as a legacy of the Sydymic War. Used as a launching point for Imperial forces during the latter stages of the war after being retaken in 673, Irdashdis remained occupied by Imperial forces for several decades thereafter. When the military rule was abolished and the Imperium returned Irdashdis to the rule of the population, ending their occupation, the former Imperial naval bases, both surface and orbital facilities, were easily converted into a Class A starport for Borathden. Since then, Irdashdis has maintained a strong presence in Ley's Delta Quadrant, no doubt partly due to its position between the Sydite worlds of the Khuur League and the end of the Imperial Xboat routes at neighboring Shurril Gami (Sydymic/Ley 2724 C3337C7-9). Several of the largest arcologies maintain high-quality starports that are recognized by the ISA as providing Class B services.
Size: 3 – 5,120km (0.36g)
A small world with a molten core, Irdashdis rotates once every 21.36 standard hours, and revolves about Irdashdis Prime once every 608.75 standard days, producing a year of 683.99 local days. The local calendar is broken up into four seasons of three months each, and each month lasts 57 local days. Most businesses and offices in contact with interstellar trade tend to operate on the Imperial standard instead of the local calendar.
Atmosphere: 4 – Thin, tainted (Standard, with sulfur compounds taint)
Irdashdis is a torrid world, where average temperatures ranging from 75 degrees Celsius at the equator to 35 degrees Celsius at the poles. Evidence suggests that this was not always the case, but that a dramatic change in the environment occurs roughly 12,000 years ago. According to researchers, there is little if any evidence to support that this climactic change was a natural event. Indeed, the dramatic results appear to be the product of a terraforming effort that introduced the sulfurous taint to the atmosphere and increased the albedo. Nothing remains to suggest whether the terraforming effort was a success or a failure, though both human and Sydite researchers tend to believe that it was a failed attempt. Though theories abound, the identity of the race that performed this has not been identified conclusively, though many feel that it is most likely the same society that once inhabited Carson’s Moon. Although precipitation is acidic due to the sulfurous taints, the corrosive nature of the atmosphere does not meet the minimal requirements for IISS designation as either Corrosive or Exotic, and thus has been classified as Tainted during the Second Grand Survey.
Hydrosphere: 7 – 72% surface liquid
Irdashdis’s surface if more than two-thirds tainted water, essentially an acidic ocean incapable of supporting most known lifeforms. The acidic nature of the ocean has actually proved to be the source of most of Irdashdis’s resources and trade goods, for the waters hold a lot of metallic compounds in solution. Large refineries process the compounds from the oceans, creating a large industry for the inhabitants. Three of the largest city-arcologies on Irdashdis (Seraphus, Merandran, and Jehrandi) are built on islands that process enormous amounts of the ocean’s waters, producing much of the metals, metallic salts and compounds, and manufactured components that are among Irdashdis’s chief exports.
Population: 8 – 100 million sophonts
With a teaming population of over a hundred million sophonts, Irdashdis is the most populated planet of the cluster in which it resides. Although Irdashdis is generally an Imperial human-populated world, it had a large minority of Sydites (almost forty percent of the population) due to its relative closeness to Khuur, the homeworld of that four-armed human race. The people on the surface of Irdashdis dwell in tall arcologies to avoid the tainted atmosphere and occasional acid rainstorms. There are five orbital cities, as well, with populations ranging from ten thousand to a million inhabitants.
The most notable of the orbital cities is Farfurahl Orbital, which supports the system’s most elite academic university. Though Farfurahl Orbital houses only two hundred thousand people, the living quarters for academic instructors and students are quite large in comparison to the cramped living spaces of other arcologies or orbital cities. Due to the quality of education that graduates of the University of Farfurahl Orbital possess, most demand and receive spacious living quarters from their employers as part of the terms of their work contracts.
Government: 4 – Representative Democracy
Although Irdashdis has long been free of Imperial martial rule, the impact of their presence can still be seen, particularly in the world government. The world leader is known as the Lord (or Lady) Governor, and is an elected position with a six-year term. A small staff of executive officers assists the Lord Governor, but the most important position on the staff is the Cultural Liaison, who by the Articles of State must be a member of a race other than that of the Lord Governor. In the event that the Lord Governor cannot fulfill their term of service, the Cultural Liaison is first in the order of succession. The Lord Governor is both the executive and legislative leader of the people of Irdashdis.
A judiciary council elected from the members of each city settles judicial matters independently within their own arcology. Judiciary Council members served staggered six-year terms, to allow a graduated transition of power as the composition of the Judiciary Councils change. In addition, Judiciary Councils are required to reflect the population percentages by race of their respective cities.
Law Level: 9 – High
At one point in Irdashdis’s history immediately after Imperial martial law was removed, racial differences created separate castes in society. The Sydite people suffered under the differences in laws, oppressed and persecuted by their Imperial victors. Since then, times have changed. After the brief Irdashdis Civil War of 927, Irdashdis has become more egalitarian, and laws are now applied universally. The Sydite and Imperial populations are on equal footing. As a reaction of the Civil War, weapon possession outside one’s quarters is prohibited, and the government maintains a high visual presence in the interests of public security.
Industrial Tech Level: C – Average Interstellar Community
Irdashdis’s relatively high level of technology allows the arcologies to mass-produce large quantities of hydroponics, which grants this tainted world the Agricultural trade classification. In addition, the processing of metallic compounds and manufacture of components meets the industrial needs of the system, and make up the secondary major exports for which Irdashdis is known. Gestalt Industries is one of Irdashdis’s most accomplished corporations, maintaining a steady trade base with their mining and refinery processing while pushing the envelope in such areas as medical research, computer and software technology, and heavy military applications.
Irdashdis System History
Irdashdis has a full and colorful history. Prior to Imperial history, the system was originally settled over a millennium ago by an unknown space faring race. It is thought that this race may be responsible for Irdashdis’s current environmental condition. For reasons not yet fully understood, that race is no longer present within the system, though ruins found on Carson’s Moon tell us of their former presence.
Traders of the Second Imperium first set foot on Irdashdis in –2171, though only in the course of explorations. Neither colonies nor bases were established in the system, and with the fall of the Rule of Man, it seemed unlikely that any would make the system home. That honor would belong to the Sydites, who had advanced enough technologically to rediscover Jump drive in the latter years of the Long Night. Sylean dissidents, fleeing the sweeping reforms being instituted across their Federation, came across the fledgling world in –23. These political refugees settled into the Irdashdis Cluster in the two decades immediately prior to the formation of the Third Imperium, living under the rule of the indigenous Sydite populations.
The Irdashdis system served as a battlefront as early as 100, when Imperial expansion and the Pacification Campaigns forced a twenty-year war with the Sydites that ended non-productively for either side. Though skirmishes continued sporadically throughout the next six centuries, Irdashdis did not see a full-scale war until the Sydymic War of 640-675. During the latter years of the war, Irdashdis served as a military base and launch point for Imperial strikes against the Sydymic Empire.
In the forty-two years that followed the Sydymic War, Irdashdis lived under the military rule of the Imperium. In 717, however, the Imperium granted Irdashdis her freedom, and the pro-Imperial humans established a dictatorship. For numerous generations, life was difficult for the Sydite inhabitants of the system. Living under conditions bordering on indentured servitude, the Sydite people suffered greatly under the rule of their two-armed brethren. Finally, in 927, the oppressed people, aided by offworld support, launched the Irdashdis Civil War, a system-wide revolt. The Civil War was ended by intense negotiations, which resulted in the Articles of State. This constitution of laws established the basic outline of the representative democracy that governs Irdashdis today.
* * * * *
This is the first pass at my landgrab entry for Irdashdis, an Imperial client-state in Ley sector, adjacent to the Sydite's former empire, now known as the Khuur League. The body of this text can also be found posted on my website:
Irdashdis Langgrab Entry
Special thanks to Stuart Ferris's incredible Heaven and Earth software for the image and the underlying data that supports the entry.
Note: All data herein is based on the T20 version of the Gateway Domain, and is current up to the date of 993.
Constructive feedback is appreciated, as always,
Flynn
* * * * *
IISS Survey Data: Irdashdis (Sydymic/Ley 2824)
Irdashdis (Sydymic/Ley 2824 A347849-C Agricultural 100 G4 V A9 D)
General Astrogational Information:
The planet Irdashdis lies in the fourth orbit of her primary star, Irdashdis Prime, a G4 main sequence star that shares its name with the mainworld of the system. A small airless rockball, Ferrensala, occupies the first orbit about Irdashdis Prime, a veritable inferno where a local mining corporation, Gestalt Industries, extracts valuable metals used by manufacturing concerns on Irdashdis. A ring of meteoric debris that encircles the diminutive planet marks Ferrensala as a world of interest to astronomers and belter-style miners. Shilkaska, another small rockball occupying the second orbit about Irdashdis Prime, holds the corporate headquarters of Gestalt Industries. The third orbit of Irdashdis Prime is home to the secondary star of this binary system, Irdashdis Secundus. The mainworld Irdashdis lies just beyond the second star, in the fourth orbital slot. Jerrhemi, in the fifth planetary orbit, holds the second largest population of the star system, with well over a million inhabitants. Jerrhemi possesses only one moon, Carson's Moon, which bears a number of ruins left behind by an space faring society over 10,000 years ago. The outermost planet of the system, Laasiter, lies in the sixth orbital slot. The third largest concentration of people in the system resides on Laasiter’s only moon, Argentia, a common recreational destination for the scattered population of the binary system. No further planets orbit Irdashdis Prime, though one small planetary body, Waakher, orbits the secondary star independently.
Gas Giants/Planetoid Belts:
The Irdashdis system does not have any gas giants, nor does it possess any planetoid belts.
World Map:
Public Starport Facilities: Class A
The initial Class A starport for Irdashdis, based at the Borathden arcology, came as a legacy of the Sydymic War. Used as a launching point for Imperial forces during the latter stages of the war after being retaken in 673, Irdashdis remained occupied by Imperial forces for several decades thereafter. When the military rule was abolished and the Imperium returned Irdashdis to the rule of the population, ending their occupation, the former Imperial naval bases, both surface and orbital facilities, were easily converted into a Class A starport for Borathden. Since then, Irdashdis has maintained a strong presence in Ley's Delta Quadrant, no doubt partly due to its position between the Sydite worlds of the Khuur League and the end of the Imperial Xboat routes at neighboring Shurril Gami (Sydymic/Ley 2724 C3337C7-9). Several of the largest arcologies maintain high-quality starports that are recognized by the ISA as providing Class B services.
Size: 3 – 5,120km (0.36g)
A small world with a molten core, Irdashdis rotates once every 21.36 standard hours, and revolves about Irdashdis Prime once every 608.75 standard days, producing a year of 683.99 local days. The local calendar is broken up into four seasons of three months each, and each month lasts 57 local days. Most businesses and offices in contact with interstellar trade tend to operate on the Imperial standard instead of the local calendar.
Atmosphere: 4 – Thin, tainted (Standard, with sulfur compounds taint)
Irdashdis is a torrid world, where average temperatures ranging from 75 degrees Celsius at the equator to 35 degrees Celsius at the poles. Evidence suggests that this was not always the case, but that a dramatic change in the environment occurs roughly 12,000 years ago. According to researchers, there is little if any evidence to support that this climactic change was a natural event. Indeed, the dramatic results appear to be the product of a terraforming effort that introduced the sulfurous taint to the atmosphere and increased the albedo. Nothing remains to suggest whether the terraforming effort was a success or a failure, though both human and Sydite researchers tend to believe that it was a failed attempt. Though theories abound, the identity of the race that performed this has not been identified conclusively, though many feel that it is most likely the same society that once inhabited Carson’s Moon. Although precipitation is acidic due to the sulfurous taints, the corrosive nature of the atmosphere does not meet the minimal requirements for IISS designation as either Corrosive or Exotic, and thus has been classified as Tainted during the Second Grand Survey.
Hydrosphere: 7 – 72% surface liquid
Irdashdis’s surface if more than two-thirds tainted water, essentially an acidic ocean incapable of supporting most known lifeforms. The acidic nature of the ocean has actually proved to be the source of most of Irdashdis’s resources and trade goods, for the waters hold a lot of metallic compounds in solution. Large refineries process the compounds from the oceans, creating a large industry for the inhabitants. Three of the largest city-arcologies on Irdashdis (Seraphus, Merandran, and Jehrandi) are built on islands that process enormous amounts of the ocean’s waters, producing much of the metals, metallic salts and compounds, and manufactured components that are among Irdashdis’s chief exports.
Population: 8 – 100 million sophonts
With a teaming population of over a hundred million sophonts, Irdashdis is the most populated planet of the cluster in which it resides. Although Irdashdis is generally an Imperial human-populated world, it had a large minority of Sydites (almost forty percent of the population) due to its relative closeness to Khuur, the homeworld of that four-armed human race. The people on the surface of Irdashdis dwell in tall arcologies to avoid the tainted atmosphere and occasional acid rainstorms. There are five orbital cities, as well, with populations ranging from ten thousand to a million inhabitants.
The most notable of the orbital cities is Farfurahl Orbital, which supports the system’s most elite academic university. Though Farfurahl Orbital houses only two hundred thousand people, the living quarters for academic instructors and students are quite large in comparison to the cramped living spaces of other arcologies or orbital cities. Due to the quality of education that graduates of the University of Farfurahl Orbital possess, most demand and receive spacious living quarters from their employers as part of the terms of their work contracts.
Government: 4 – Representative Democracy
Although Irdashdis has long been free of Imperial martial rule, the impact of their presence can still be seen, particularly in the world government. The world leader is known as the Lord (or Lady) Governor, and is an elected position with a six-year term. A small staff of executive officers assists the Lord Governor, but the most important position on the staff is the Cultural Liaison, who by the Articles of State must be a member of a race other than that of the Lord Governor. In the event that the Lord Governor cannot fulfill their term of service, the Cultural Liaison is first in the order of succession. The Lord Governor is both the executive and legislative leader of the people of Irdashdis.
A judiciary council elected from the members of each city settles judicial matters independently within their own arcology. Judiciary Council members served staggered six-year terms, to allow a graduated transition of power as the composition of the Judiciary Councils change. In addition, Judiciary Councils are required to reflect the population percentages by race of their respective cities.
Law Level: 9 – High
At one point in Irdashdis’s history immediately after Imperial martial law was removed, racial differences created separate castes in society. The Sydite people suffered under the differences in laws, oppressed and persecuted by their Imperial victors. Since then, times have changed. After the brief Irdashdis Civil War of 927, Irdashdis has become more egalitarian, and laws are now applied universally. The Sydite and Imperial populations are on equal footing. As a reaction of the Civil War, weapon possession outside one’s quarters is prohibited, and the government maintains a high visual presence in the interests of public security.
Industrial Tech Level: C – Average Interstellar Community
Irdashdis’s relatively high level of technology allows the arcologies to mass-produce large quantities of hydroponics, which grants this tainted world the Agricultural trade classification. In addition, the processing of metallic compounds and manufacture of components meets the industrial needs of the system, and make up the secondary major exports for which Irdashdis is known. Gestalt Industries is one of Irdashdis’s most accomplished corporations, maintaining a steady trade base with their mining and refinery processing while pushing the envelope in such areas as medical research, computer and software technology, and heavy military applications.
Irdashdis System History
Irdashdis has a full and colorful history. Prior to Imperial history, the system was originally settled over a millennium ago by an unknown space faring race. It is thought that this race may be responsible for Irdashdis’s current environmental condition. For reasons not yet fully understood, that race is no longer present within the system, though ruins found on Carson’s Moon tell us of their former presence.
Traders of the Second Imperium first set foot on Irdashdis in –2171, though only in the course of explorations. Neither colonies nor bases were established in the system, and with the fall of the Rule of Man, it seemed unlikely that any would make the system home. That honor would belong to the Sydites, who had advanced enough technologically to rediscover Jump drive in the latter years of the Long Night. Sylean dissidents, fleeing the sweeping reforms being instituted across their Federation, came across the fledgling world in –23. These political refugees settled into the Irdashdis Cluster in the two decades immediately prior to the formation of the Third Imperium, living under the rule of the indigenous Sydite populations.
The Irdashdis system served as a battlefront as early as 100, when Imperial expansion and the Pacification Campaigns forced a twenty-year war with the Sydites that ended non-productively for either side. Though skirmishes continued sporadically throughout the next six centuries, Irdashdis did not see a full-scale war until the Sydymic War of 640-675. During the latter years of the war, Irdashdis served as a military base and launch point for Imperial strikes against the Sydymic Empire.
In the forty-two years that followed the Sydymic War, Irdashdis lived under the military rule of the Imperium. In 717, however, the Imperium granted Irdashdis her freedom, and the pro-Imperial humans established a dictatorship. For numerous generations, life was difficult for the Sydite inhabitants of the system. Living under conditions bordering on indentured servitude, the Sydite people suffered greatly under the rule of their two-armed brethren. Finally, in 927, the oppressed people, aided by offworld support, launched the Irdashdis Civil War, a system-wide revolt. The Civil War was ended by intense negotiations, which resulted in the Articles of State. This constitution of laws established the basic outline of the representative democracy that governs Irdashdis today.
* * * * *
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