Ias is the most developed planet in the 0901 Meneus system, and the homeworld of the Democratic Mandate.
Ias History[]
Ias has always been a backwater planet, sitting at the fringes of the sector, with few people ever showing interest in the large toxic rock with its poisonous atmosphere.
The original settlers of Ias were a Fornax mining operation and a Triangulum research expedition. This is considered the first wave. The people that settled there were mostly miners and researchers, brought to this hellscape to serve their noble masters. However, said nobles rarely dared brave the dangers and as such the population of Ias was left mostly to lead itself, and they even developed a soft form of democracy, as without their masters to influence the matter, all serfs were equal. Ias itself was part of the Empire but stayed out of contact for most of the Empire's existence, judged to be too low priority, too dangerous or too low value to "peacefully reunify".
This, however, was not to last. In the year 3000, as the habitable planets in the sector became fewer and fewer, a Triangulum scientists decided to approach the Emperox with a plan to terraform the planet. House Cygnus immediately showed interest, offering their expertise in building a biosphere and even colonists coming from Hong Lu. A team of House Triangulum and House Cygnus terraformers went looking for a way to make the population hubs of the sector safer, and with the Emperox’s blessing, they began terraforming Ias to be livable. Wealthy families from all the Noble Houses decided to contribute to the expenses in exchange for pieces of land. This is considered the second wave. It took some years until they actually could live on their purchased land.
The project started off with a lot of difficulty. The first couple of actual tests worsened the atmosphere enough that several of the bubble cities were irreparably damaged and large masses had to be evacuated to the orbiting research stations. After that, the terraforming fortunately began going smoothly, and over the next few decades the atmosphere finally turned clean for human habitation, the water and earth purified for all the toxic materials, and an oxygen generator was installed to maintain the current atmosphere until life could be installed.
In this time the first noble families reached Ias and slowly mixed their culture with the serfs already there. These are called the "Resettlement Families." Most of the Iasian culture comes from these people.
During the years, the Empire has fallen various times in a state of war. Thanks to its relatively isolated position, Ias became a safe haven for refugees. These waves contributed to the pacifist attitude common on the planet. These leads to Ias getting Out of Contact with the rest of the Empire, whenever war happens, although they still follow the Imperial Rulings and Degrees.
The last wave of settlement happened during the STO conflict and led to an opening of Ias to the sector afterwards.
Ias Culture[]
While Ias itself is a hotpot of cultures from all around the sector due to it being an empty lifeless planet before, there are certain cultural phenomenons existing on the planet. There are also some cultural differences between the Nobles and other people living in the Bubble Cities and the more nomadic serfs living outside of the Cities.
Bubble Cities[]
The Bubble Cities were necessary on early-middle stages of terraforming, but not anymore. Instead of being deconstructed, they were repurposed, as natural reserves for various biomes. There is for example an oasis bubble city in the middle of a desert. The Bubble Cities are time-capsules for the people on Ias. The Ias Nobles and Serfs are really into their short history and into the terraforming they achieved and want to preserve it in such a way.
Local history leads to all nobles being expected to live in the bubble cities, mostly in the capital. Nobles appoint non-noble representatives for the day-to-day governance of their territories, and exercise oversight to varying degrees based on their interests and expectations.
Low Tide and High Tide[]
Twice a year, Nobles travel through their domains to survey their lands; this pilgrimage is known as the Low Tide.
Serf Representatives must be approved by the Nobles in the Capital, so at the end of each term all the serfs who wish to participate, travel from their homes to the Capital. This pilgrimage is known as the High Tide.
The City of Nobles and the High Tide[]
The capital city of Ias holds great significance in the planetary culture, both on the temporal and spiritual level. Given their role in society, nobles are expected to spend most of their lives within its walls, lest they lose their connection with both the Divine and the cultural roots of the planet. This societal quirk contributed to the isolation of Ias to the rest of the sector, as few important figures wanted to leave their homes for extended periods of time, and even fewer could imagine leaving the planet. Recently, though, a growing movement spearheaded by business entrepreneurs and young nobles is seeking to relax the societal pressure to follow this norm. The arrival of Pyxis explorers on planet and the decision of the Democratic Mandate to establish their headquarters on Ias has done much to help their cause.
Non-nobles have to acquire a special permit to have access to the city, and this privilege is usually granted only to the personal servants of a noble family or to the most important serfs on planet. The only time this requirement is lifted is during the High Tide, since representatives can only be chosen in the Capital; even then, serfs without permits are not allowed to sleep within the city, and must spend the night outside the bubble in tents and other temporary residences. This movement of people from the outer bubble cities to the Capital is known as the High Tide. The first time a young adult participates to a High Tide is considered an important step, and is often highly celebrated within their family.
The City Governors and the Low Tide[]
Since nobles are expected to spend most of their lives inside the Capital, the day-to-day governance of the outside is left to representatives chosen from the serf population of the settlement. In the past the candidates were hand-picked by the noble family, but the nobility soon found out that letting their serfs have a say in the process resulted in a happier workforce, which in turn resulted in fewer rebellions and higher productivity levels. Nowadays when the term of office of a governor is nearing its end, the bubble cities hold elections following their own electoral laws; after a candidate is chosen, they must travel to the capital city to receive the blessing of the noble family. The noble family will interview the candidate and run a background check, after which they will decide whether they accept that person for the role. This process has become mostly ceremonial with time, but candidates can still be rejected if there’s evidence of illegal activities or connections with unsavory characters.
Twice a year, all landholding nobles leave their homes with their courts to survey their lands. This pilgrimage is known as the Low Tide, and plays an important part in establishing the pecking order of the noble families; travelling nobles are expected to showcase their wealth and influence by bringing with them priests, philosophers, artists and various luxuries, as well as the best specimens from their herds. Once arrived in a bubble city, the nobles will bless fields and livestock, listen to the peasants’ grievances, give judgements, and reapprove (or rarely, reject) the current governor. When they’ve taken stock of the city’s situation they’ll leave for their next destination, until there are no more territories to inspect.
Festivities and Music[]
Ias has many festivities taking place all throughout the year. The most notable is the High Tide and the Low Tide, which is celebrated by nearly everyone on the planet.
While drinking, games and dancing is all part of these festivities, the most notable is the music. The serfs of Ias have developed a new kind of music. While there are still other instruments, many serfs learn relatively early how to throat sing. The best musicians are also invited by the Nobles to participate at their festivities within the Capital, which is seen as the greatest honor for the serf on Ias.
Flora and Fauna[]
Ias never developed a biosphere because its hyper-saline environment made it unsuitable for the appearance of life forms. This changed with the terraforming by House Cygnus and House Triangulum in the year 3000.
The still standing Bubble Cities are the original sites of the terraforming machines, which extracted the salt from the ground, making it fertile. The Biosphere was never finished due to Cygnus Plot and the War against the Artificials. The ground inside the Bubble Cities and immediately around is very fertile. That's why the Bubble Cities are decorated with many parks and plants, while the rest of the planet is still mostly covered in steppes where the vegetation is scarce.
Since the territory outside of the Bubble Cities was very harsh, Nobles mostly left the serfs working in the steppes to their own devices, leading to a soft form of democracy, the Khurals. The Nobles made sure that the fragile ecosystems developing inside of the Bubbles was left undisturbed, and even after the terraforming process was halted they still saw themselves as the wardens of Ias' oasis. Today, this role is entrenched in Iasian culture, and Nobles are expected to spend most of their lives inside the Bubbles.
ISalt's is one of the biggest company on Ias and they are using one of the salt-extracting machinery near an oceanic bubble city called Yc to mine salt from Ias.
Ias Education[]
Iasians are very proud of their education. Since the first "Resettlement families" arrived on Ias education has been a major interest on the planet. At first it was to have enough educated people to keep the Bubble Cities and the terraforming going, but soon schools were formed by the different families.
As a reaction to this the Grand Diet decided to unify these education efforts and started combining these schools under one organisation-the OISS. The Official Ias School System project let to great success and raised the standard of education on Ias to extreme heights. With that Ias became a center of humanities in the sector. This was disturbed by the War against the Officials and the Ias Government capping connection to the rest of the sector.
In the year 3200 the Grand Diet decided to reintegrate them-self fully back into the Empire. While they still had the infrastructure of the OISS they planned a revival of the school system. With the support of the Democratic Mandate and the search for more knowledge in their ranks, the USEPT was formed and has since spread even off Ias.
Ias Government[]
There are three different political entities on Ias, which hold some kind of power: Little Khurals, the Great Khural, and the Grand Diet. While the serf Khurals have long been vessels of expertise and input, and have certain ceremonial functions guaranteed by old Iasi laws, they are increasingly being afforded more formal importance in the Iasi government. The Forum is the local noble senate that holds legislative and judiciary power and is placed in the Capital.
The Grand Diet[]
aka: The Most Grand and Noble Diet of Meneus, the Oathbound Lords Regent of Ias and its Associated Territories, in the Name of the Messiah-as-Emperox and Their Mission of Civilization
The Grand Diet is a legislative assembly which governs Ias, constituted from the noble families of the planet. Each family holds between two and eight seats, with additional seats beyond two gained for direct descent from a “resettlement family” (2), a formal recognition by the Forum for great services rendered (1-2), and especially large or profitable local holdings (1-3).
The Grand Diet also appoint from their number three consuls, who together exercise the executive functions of Iasi government. Each serves a ten year term unless recalled.
- The Protector of Ias is responsible for civil defense, law enforcement, and the maintenance of the planetary isolation cordon. This last duty became increasingly controversial over the last few decades and is now mostly obsolete following new legislation.
- The Warden of Ias is responsible for civil administration, the maintenance of planetary government facilities (most notably the public and logistical areas of the bubble cities). They are also responsible for administering elections, giving them connections and subtle sway with the Khurals.
- The Reclaimer of Ias is responsible for managing terraforming efforts and related scientific, educational, medical, and infrastructural programs.
Coalitions in the Diet[]
Three informal coalitions dominate the politics of the Diet. By old political shorthand, they are referred to as the Mountain, the River, and the Stargazers.
- There are two different though perhaps not truly contradictory stories as to how the Mountain got their name. One, more often claimed by the members themselves, is that they are called the Mountain for the towering strength of their resolve and the lasting majesty of the traditions they protect. The other story, more often told by weary spouses or members of other coalitions, is that these cranky conservatives liked to claim the highest seats in the Diet, from where they could look down on everyone else and loudly decry everything they disapproved of. Going up the steps to them for support became known as “climbing the mountain,” and soon the group was just the Mountain.
- The River is explicitly named in contrast to the Mountain; like a river they seek lower points where things come together, moving steadily back and forth from their more accessible seating. They are pragmatists, dealmakers, and optimizers. It is uncommon for fewer than two of the Consuls to be identified with the River, and the Warden of Ias has been part of the River for the last twelve terms.
- That the common name for the Stargazers bloc is commonly agreed to have originated as a condescension speaks to the limited power Iasi liberals held for centuries. Despite their reputation for having their eyes fixed on some place and time far above the Diet they forget their feet are standing in, this eclectic group of liberals and reformists has gained considerable influence over the last few decades as the (locally quite conservative) Cygnus nobility fell, terraforming grows increasingly complete, and a new democratic spirit has taken hold in Iasi society.
The Khurals[]
Khural is usually translated as ‘assembly,’ but locals rarely translate the word when speaking in other languages and centuries of culturally specific practice have lent it specific connotations. They are gatherings of serfs that provide input to nobles by discussing the issues of the day, provide candidates for local administration, and serve as a ritualized public festival; most Iasi would be scandalized to attend a Khural that did not involve any dancing, music, or stylized historical documentaries. Most also involve a considerable amount of miscellaneous networking on the side, from intelligence gathering and business deals to gossip, flirtation, and marriage negotiations
Little Khurals[]
Little Khurals (Baga Khurals) are meetings of serfs within a particular range or holding, usually but not always coterminous with a noble’s demesne. While the largest Baga Khurals of the year are always during Low Tide, they can be called at any time during the year by the local governor, noble, or a petition approved by the Warden of Ias.
Low Tide Baga Khurals are also when local governor candidates must first be nominated and presented, and then approved by the local noble. Voting for their election will not commence until High Tide, and while traditionally most campaigning takes place in the last few weeks as people travel to and arrive in the capital, securing support behind the scenes has generally already been under way by the time they’re nominated.
The Great Khural[]
The Great Khural (or Ikh Ias Khural) is a gathering of representatives from all over the planet, exclusively called to order at the same time as meetings of the Grand Diet during High Tide. Everyone can cast their votes for provincial candidates at this time, and also choose a handful of representatives from each holding to speak and vote for them on the Great Khural’s proposals.
Over the last hundred years, more and more legislation has been written chiefly in the Khurals, especially in areas where serf knowledge is seen as useful such as local agricultural policies or residential practices outside the bubble cities. Controversial, narrow-majority issues are usually the province of the Diet, but on technical issues where broad consensus can be achieved, the Khural is a productive think tank that can hold hearings and record testimony in a way the Forum traditionally does not, with a surplus of manpower. Sometimes when differences between local nobles have run hot, it has also been convenient to argue via proxies in the Khural rather than face to face in the Diet.
Lately, following news from Yakiyah, there has been talk of reforming the Great Khural into something with a mixture of local representatives and planet-wide proportional representatives of specific party and purpose, but so far the plans have not been finalized.
History of the Horse Rumors[]
‘Master of Horses’ was a title originally associated with low tide, a position held by a young noble or experienced serf who acted as a sort of chief of staff for the lead noble of the journey. Over time, it’s taken on a connotation in Iasi politics similar to “rainmaker” or “power player” or “political operative,” and is often used to describe, say, Abendroth lawyers who never leave the capitol and don’t have much to do with horses, much less serve as an actual Master of Horses.
Cities on Ias[]
While most cities on Ias are placed under the Bubble to have safety issues with the former terra-forming, many of the new cities on Ias are placed outside of the Bubbles.
The Capital of Ias[]
The Capital of Ias or Morin Nuur is the home of the Grand Diet and many of the "Resettlement Families". It is also home to the USEPT Campus on Ias and many of the other groups of the Forum of the Democratic Mandate.
Jeladó[]
One of the few cities outside of the Bubbles. Relatively new city, home to the HRSE station on Ias.
Yc[]
A Bubble City placed near an ocean on an archipelago. Home to ISALT Solutions.
Out of Contact[]
The natives have been entirely out of contact with the greater galaxy for centuries or longer. Perhaps the original colonists were seeking to hide from the rest of the universe, or the Silence destroyed any means of communication. It may have been so long that human origins on other worlds have regressed into a topic for legends. The players might be on the first offworld ship to land since the First Wave of colonization a thousand years ago.
Enemies:[]
- Fearful local ruler
- Zealous native cleric
- Sinister power that has kept the world isolated
Friends:[]
- Scheming native noble
- Heretical theologian
- UFO cultist native
Complications:[]
- Automated defenses fire on ships that try to take off
- The natives want to stay out of contact
- The natives are highly vulnerable to offworld diseases
- The native language is completely unlike any known to the group
Things:[]
- Ancient pretech equipment
- Terran relic brought from earth
- Logs of the original colonists
Places:[]
- Court of the local ruler
- Long-lost colonial landing site
- Ancient defense battery controls
Bubble Cities[]
Whether due to a lack of atmosphere or an uninhabitable climate, the world's cities exist within domes or pressurized buildings. In such sealed environments, techniques of surveillance and control can grow baroque and extreme.
Enemies:[]
- Native deading outsider contamination
- Saboteur from another bubble city
- Local official hostile to outsider ignorance of laws
Friends:[]
- Local rebel against the city officials
- Maintenance chief in need of hel
- Surveyor seeking new building site
Complications:[]
- Bubble rupture
- Failing atmosphere reprocessor
- Native revolt against officials
- All-seeing surveillance cameras
Things:[]
- Pretech habitat technology
- Valuable industrial products
- Master key codes to a city's security system
Places:[]
- City power core
- Surface of the bubble
- Hydroponics complex
- Warren-like hab block
Moon[]
Hallfdi[]
Research Base[]
Occupation: Experiments that have gotten loose
Situation: Science monsters run amok
Factory and Research Base[]
Occupation: DeMand weapons research and production personel
Situation: We're fine, were all fine here now, thank you
Research Base[]
Kansk 1[]
Occupation: Secret employees of a foreign power
Situation: Perilous research underway
Space Stations[]
Aspen 8[]
Occupation: Eccentric oligarch and minions
Situation: Vault for dangerous pretech
Ubud 8[]
Occupation: Dangerously odd humans
Situation: Black market for the elite