Worlds of Voskhod Subsector

Located 1.3 AUs from its host star, tilted 38°, and possessing a thin atmosphere, Taraddiin is a planet of wide temperature ranges. While boasting an average temperature of 16.7°C, summer highs soar into the 50s during the day—even the poles climb above freezing—but come crashing down at night into the sub zero teens. In winter, only the lower latitudes are spared the sub zero temperatures during the day.

Life here has evolved to roll with the extremes. Flowering plants open up with the first rays of sunlight and curl up at night. Insects that live more than a day possess proteins to keep them from freezing overnight. And hibernation keeps larger animals going through the long cold winters. Colonists have taken clues from local life and crossbred agricultural staples with native flora to provide hybrids that can take full advantage of the long summer days and season.

But there were few people willing to put in the work to make a colony on Taraddiin work. Like Enard (Vland 0307), Empress Porfiria found allies in the Moot to provide for a colony in the budget. But unlike Enard, no megacorp came in to oversee operations and govern. Instead, there's a governor who reports to the subsector duke at Voskhod. In fact, 100% of Taraddiin's exports go to Voskhod, which pays market rate for what they receive.

There's a small Chirper colony on Taraddiin which lives on a large island. It has been granted autonomy and is exempt from Imperial rules and regulations. The population here has lost the vestigial wings that its brethren still retain.

Based on library data that appears in Vilani & Vargr

When the wind blows on Khankari you notice. The dense atmosphere carries enormous kinetic energy and distributes heat from the tropics to the poles. Khankari's sharp axial tilt and short year (in the inner orbit around a cool star) contribute to abrupt seasonal changes and generate some of the sector's most dramatic weather. Hurricanes wiped out the first colony planted here and then decimated the population repeatedly thereafter. The small group now living here uses well-reinforced homes, often underground. Ironically, Khankari's adverse turbulence is the very thing that protected it from invading Vampire Fleets, who found the planet's tumultuous environment much to dangerous to navigate. -by CG

Lankhi might not strike one as a good candidate for an Ag-world, but its tide-locked nature works. The daylit side tops out at 51.6°C. While that's too hot for most sentients, it's less than boiling, thus making it possible for a healthy atmospheric-water vapor cycle to function.

The inhabitants consider this balance miraculous and thus have strict technological limits for fear of upsetting it. Hydrocarbon-based tech is forbidden. Electricity is generated solely from renewables, thus all vehicles are powered from the grid. Solar panels were purchased en masse to generate electricity, paid for with revenue from agriculture exports.

But there's another reason for the hydrocarbon ban: a higher level of oxygen in the atmosphere. Technically, this is the reason for the "tainted atmosphere" rating. This works well for creatures requiring standard atmospheric pressure to breathe, but it also has the potential for an increased risk of forest fires, something that the natives are dreadfully afraid of.

That fear of upsetting the atmospheric balance is the reason why there's also no real starport. The landing site, located on the night side of the planet, is devoid of amenities so as to discourage traffic. The intended use of the landing pad is for exporting agricultural products and importing manufactured goods the Lankhian society needs to function.

Setting all of that aside, the Lankhians are fairly easy going lot. There are very few laws, those in existence are primarily environmentally focused, and they're always on the lookout for those technologies that they can incorporate into their society, even though they won't be manufacturing them on site.

Enard was deemed unworthy of colonization by the Vilani during the First Imperium days. Its very dense atmosphere, high gravity (2G), toxic atmosphere (a mix of nitrogen and ammonia), and, thanks to an average surface temperature of -85°C, seas of liquid ammonia.

Things changed during the Third Imperium as a hungry Imperial economy demanded resources. When Empress Porfiria couldn't convince one of the megacorps to purchase the world, the Moot provided for a colony in the budget. After it was established, Ling Standard Products agreed to oversee mining operations.

The treacherous nature of the world's environment instilled a safety conscious mindset from the start of the colony. Over time, Enard's culture discouraged risky behavior, rebelliousness, and anything that might be perceived as "rocking the boat." Even elections are deemed potentially upsetting. The inhabitants are content to live in a strict society run by a Chief Administrator so long as all of their basic needs are met, their families provided for, and no unreasonable requests are made by the government.

The Scout Service has a base here and uses the planet's harsh conditions for training purposes. -by DED

Shaddukan was colonized by the Vilani during the First Imperium for its lanthanum deposits, but once they were depleted, the planet's harsh environment sent nearly everyone packing for greener pastures, both economic and literal. For a while, the planet was a training ground for military exercises, but eventually this was phased out as well, and the planet was sold to a group of technophiles looking to establish a haven for like-minded individuals to pursue technology for the sake of technology.

That dream got derailed a bit. While the planet's technological level rating is 15, maximum Imperial, it no longer rivals any of the research centers scattered through the Imperium. But that seems to suit its inhabitants just fine. To generate revenue, both the Scout Service and the Navy were invited to build bases here, and over time, the relationship has suited all parties quite well.

Robots fill nearly every employment niche that a Human (or other sapient) would fill, and they're programmed to love what they do. Most of these have been tailor-made by the locals. And while they aren't mass produced for export, they can be purchased at a more expensive multiple of a commercial robots. In fact, that's their brand: one-of-a-kind and specialty robots. The military appreciates this "cottage industry" and is quite protective of it.

There aren't many visitors dirtside as the locals prefer to conduct their business remotely or at the orbital starport. That's not to say that visitors aren't welcome; it's just that amenities may be hard to come by on the surface. So unless one is invited down, one might be hard-pressed to have a reason to go.

Another backwater world of the First Imperium, the Vilani made modest attempts to exploit the world's mineralogical wealth, primarily sticking close to the world's equatorial region where a mild, dry climate predominates. During the Rule of Man, Solomani from the highlands of South Central Asia made their way here and settled away from the equator up in the mountain chains that run parallel to it. It was a place for quiet contemplation and a simple existence.

While the world's average temperature is 1.3°C, the mid to polar latitudes are much colder. Summers are tolerable, and the snow melts from the peaks, running downslope towards the equator. Nights are tough to manage anywhere as the thin atmosphere sheds 45°, but the winters are especially brutal, forcing even the highlanders to migrate to the milder latitudes.

Over the last two centuries, as the population has grown, there seemed to be a need for more than simple existence. Several kingdoms coalesced around leaders promising technological advancement and the construction of infrastructure to support it. A landing field was constructed to help facilitate the export of raw materials which, in turn, was used to finance educational initiatives.

Lately, there is concern that the younger generations are abandoning the culture of their ancestors for trendy Imperial fads. While the kingdoms' leaders are trying to rally the funds for a proper starport, there is pushback among the populace that things are moving too fast. -by DED

A cursory examination of Arfaan's stats might seem to indicate that Arfaan is a pleasant world, prime for settlement. In fact, its host star is not quite warm enough, and Arfaan's orbit is slightly too far away. Arfaan runs cold. It has an average temperature of -14°C. Life is pleasant, albeit chilly, around the equator, but the rest of the world's climate, at best, runs from boreal to sub-arctic.

Few settlers from the First Imperium made their home here. During the Second Imperium, there were thoughts of investing in tourism infrastructure for winter sports and recreation, but the Long Night put an end to that idea and all the inhabitants emigrated elsewhere. Early in the Third Imperium, a wealthy man named Farouk Hamadani was moved when he saw pictures of the world, particularly some rock formations covered in snow. He invested his personal fortune in purchasing the world, naming it Arfaan, which in the Quran means "wisdom" and is typically used as a boy's name. It is unknown why Hamadani chose this name.

Access to the world is restricted by the Hamadani family. While visitors are allowed to conduct business with the family or its traders at the starport orbiting the planet, one must petition the family to settle on the surface, and typically only upstanding Muslims are permitted to do so. -by DED

Lenordi (Vland 0707)

Voskhod is the subsector capital and home to an Imperial Way Station.

At first glance, there's nothing remarkable about the world. It's just another airless rock orbiting too close to its sun. During the First Imperium, the Vilani dabbled in some lanthanum mining, but soon made short work of it. It wasn't until the Rule of Man that the world's wealth made itself known.

A Russian entrepreneur named Sergei Povnovich was poring over the survey data and noticed some anomalous readings at a large impact crater that the Vilani overlooked. He bought the mineral rights from the fledgling Second Imperium for a song and got to work. It turned out that the crater was incredibly rich in platinum, nickel, and palladium. But most surprising of all was the discovery of a stable isotope of darmstadtium. While the isotope had a half-life of 315 years, it was as if time had stopped after it had formed. Decay didn't start until after the lode was exposed to sunlight, further compounding the mystery.

Povnovich was instantly an incredibly wealthy man. He named the world Voskhod, the Russian word for "sunrise". A religious man, he felt it was divine providence that called him here and the discovery that made him rich was a reward for his faith. The message was: Faith plus hard work equals divine and material rewards.

Povnovich ruled as a benevolent dictator, but his descendants created a religion around his message and elevated him to prophet. A strict religious autocracy was formed. It stayed in power by ensuring everyone had a job. Investments were made into industrial infrastructure and technical academies. Megacorporations were invited to set up shop and utilize the cheap labor force. Over time, the world developed into an economic powerhouse with the population to match. To its credit, the government took care of its well-behaved citizens. However, dissent was never tolerated.

Despite all of its wealth, there was nothing that could be done to spare the world from Virus. When the world's massive computer networks were infected, all communications with the outside ceased. While it is assumed that everyone perished, the world hasn't been visited. Rumors abound about the world being transformed into a viral hellhole, but no one has been able to substantiate those rumors. -by DED

Kharzet (Vland 0709)

The ocean world of Gadiga has proven difficult to colonize. Attempts to set up fisheries and other forms of aquaculture have met with disaster as native lifeforms have preyed upon fishing vessels and demolished farms. Tourism never gained a foothold for the same reasons. A few brave souls call this place home and can be hired out as guides to sport fishermen and big game hunters.

After the Collapse, refugees unable to reach the Domain of Deneb settled here. Before they passed on, the locals warned the newcomers about the megafauna. As new batches of refugees arrived, they established settlements on the islands, each governing themselves. There isn't much trade, however they do share information on megafauna sightings and will work together to combat them. -by DED

Kunumi orbits its host star at 10 AUs, and yet the world is still warm with an average temperature of 29°C. A local year is over 17.6 standard years in length, so seasons take an exceptionally long time. In summer, the ice caps melt; in winter, the thin atmosphere bleeds so much heat that not only do they return but it snows along the equator.

As such, the world's population has been known to ebb and flow with the seasons. To provide stability, the Ziru Sirka granted ownership to Makhidkarun who has overseen it ever since. While the tourism industry ebbs and flows with the seasons, mining operations in the belts provide a steady stream of revenue.

During the Rebellion, Vilani naval forces have been spread thin, thus providing opportunities for corsairs to raid shipping, poach mineral ore, and hold tourists for ransom.

After the Collapse, refugees unable to reach the Domain of Deneb settled here. With plenty of land to go around, the groups of refugees and the locals have gone tribal. While they don't intermix much, there is some trade. The locals taught the newcomers about the lengthy seasons, and now all practice a nomadic way of life. -by DED