Location Directory

Territory: Vestusio III

Planet Name: Vestusio
Planet System: Vestusi System
Planet's Moons: Two moons, one roughly the size of Earth's moon, the other about half the size. The larger is known as "Dextera", the smaller is called "Sinistra".
Distance From Mother Star: Three planets (approx. 146,000,000 km)
Surface Gravity: Slighty greater than Earth (the difference is quite negligible)
Atmospheric Composition: Virtually the same as Earth (78.08% Nitrogen, 20.95% Oxygen, 0.93% Argon, 0.038% Carbon Dioxide, trace amounts of water vapor)
Population: 9.6 billion, approx.
Total # of Seasons: Four
Indigenous Races: Human (dominant) and smaller numbers of various other Humanoid and Alien beings. Many species of animals/insects/plants, etc. also inhabit the planet.

Terminology

none

Geographical Features

It is a world not unlike Earth in many ways. The planet itself is slightly larger than the Earth, and there are fewer separate continents. Those continents are: Zalvorg in the northwestern hemisphere, Legias in the southwestern, and Barmal in the eastern hemisphere.

Barmal is the largest of the three continents, and is also home to the largest desert on the planet. The majority of the southern portion of the continent is an arid wasteland, largely due to the war that took place several hundred years ago between Barmal and Zalvorg. Hardly anyone ventures down there, and even fewer actually call that place home. The northern half of the continent is much more hospitable, being a largely temperate climate, much like Europe. The far north is akin to Russia, in that it is treated to fairly harsh winters.

Zalvorg, the second largest continent, is very much like North America. It has a wide variety of climates, ranging from harsh tundra in the far north, to subtropical in the south. Most of the continent is temperate, and ideal for farming and such. Many forests, mountain ranges, lakes, and rivers, along with most any other kind of environment, can be found here.

Legias is the smallest continent, and it is also the only tropical climate. The continent is home to many jungles, including a massive one on the western side, through which a massive river runs out into the west ocean.

Important Cities

Senelseint: A huge technological metropolis, Senelseint is the capital city of Legias, located in the center of the southern continent. It is home to a number of large corporations, including the main branch HQ of Tartarus Heavy Industries. It is a very clean and prosperous city, with a bustling economy and generally friendly populace, in spite of the fact that many of the corporations headquartered there are actually weapons manufacturers. To them, it's just business.

Ruling Powers

Zalvorg Empire: The most powerful political force on the planet, though their overall power and influence has dwindled in recent years. Even so, they continue to carry the most influence politically and militarily. They are ruled by a council, with an appointed "Emperor" at its head, although generally speaking, the "Emperor" is almost always little more than a figurehead. Technically, they are a democracy, however, political power has been retained by a very select few for as long as anyone can really remember. The government is also very paranoid and xenophobic, which greatly hinders relations with off-worlders. The citizens of the Empire, for the most part, live in a state of "blissful ignorance", and since they currently enjoy a generally high standard of living, hardly anyone bothers to question the "system", let alone attempt to change it.

Barmal Alliance: An alliance of nations which banded together in order to combat the Zalvorg Empire hundreds of years prior. The Barmalian continent is actually the largest in terms of land size, however, much of it is nothing more than barren desert land, due to a certain catastrophic event that took place at the climax of the war with Zalvorg. This event, which effectively ended the war, also dashed any chances that the Barmal Alliance may have had at being on an even standing with Zalvorg. It is only recently that the Alliance has seen an increase in its overall standing on the world stage, due largely to the nation's great wealth in mineral deposits, which are greatly sought by off-world parties who are willing to pay large sums for mining rights. Barmal is a democracy, led by a Prime Minister elected every six years from one of the many smaller countries that make up the Alliance.

Legias Confederacy: Comparatively small when stacked up against Zalvorg and Barmal, Legias has traditionally remained neutral throughout history. As a matter of fact, the nations that comprise the current Confederacy were largely ignored by the larger powers of Barmal and Zalvorg, due to the fact that they were viewed as "unsophisticated backwater" countries. However, at some point soon after the war, a large groups of refugees from southern Barmal arrived, bringing with them their knowledge and ideas, which they freely shared with the citizens of the southern continent. Eventually, the nations became a single country, with the highest level of overall technological advancement. Legias is actually governed by a "board of directors" consisting of the CEO's of the top ten corporations, with the largest company's CEO acting as "Chairmain". It has actually proven to be a surprisingly fair and effective system of government, since most of the corporations are kept well in check by worker's unions and other regulatory bodies, which are of course governed by "the people".

History

Several hundred years ago, the planet was ravaged by war. Since then, it has enjoyed a period of relative peace and prosperity. Vestusio III has advanced to the point where it is now a hub for interplanetary relations, and enjoys a good deal of trade with other worlds. However, tensions still exist among the three main nations of Vestusio III, as unlike most other worlds that have advanced to their stage of technological development, they lack a central, truly unified world government.

Tartarus Heavy Industries

Location: Senelseint, Legias Confederacy
Type: Corporate HQ/R&D Facility

Description: Located in central Legias on the beautiful shores of Lake Taiho, Senelseint is one of the largest and most influential cities on Vestusio III. It also happens to be among the wealthiest, and its citizens enjoy an extremely high standard of living because of it. The streets and structures of this technological supercity shimmer and shine in the sunlight during the day, and are lit up in a dazzling array of vibrant colors of their own at night. Hardly a single speck of dust can be found anywhere, thanks in no small part to the innumerable worker drones, which scour the city 24/7, cleaning and maintaining everything from top to bottom. Normally, the city is open, and pretty well anybody can come and go freely. However, peace and order are stringently maintained by a highly trained (and very well-paid) Urban Security Force (USF), which has access to all the latest equipment. The main reason the force is so seemingly unbalanced is actually meant to be used as a rather blatant deterrent against any person (or rival power) committing espionage against any of the hundreds of corporations that are headquartered here. There is also a Regional Defense Grid (RDG) in place, which, when activated, surrounds the entire city in an incredibly powerful Lightwave Barrier Field (LwBF), which is capable of fully defending the city from things like air strikes and intercontinental ballistic missiles. Even orbital attacks (satellite beams, etc.) are stopped by the LwBF. However, it has its limits, and can only remain active for two or three days at the most. Under heavy fire, it can only be sustained for a matter of hours, if that. Of course, many of the corporate HQ's likely have their own defenses in place as well...in addition to their own private security forces.

Facilities/Resources

Tartarus Heavy Industries HQ: The main branch HQ of Tartarus Heavy Industries, a relatively new company that has proven itself to be one of the rising stars of advanced weapons research and development. Their HQ is actually located on (and under) Lake Taiho, as there was insufficient space within the city itself for their facility. The main office (administration) and research labs are located above the water, while the testing areas (along with many "top secret" R&D labs) are located beneath the waves, in the underwater facility, which is actually several times larger than the upper section. One of the only "known" areas of the underwater section is the Submarine Dock, which is an underwater docking area for transporting materials and personnel. It is surprisingly large, but that is due to the fact that, occasionally, an exceptionally massive vessel stops by...

Tartarus employs its own defense force, known as the "Tartarus Defense Brigade" (TDB), which is made up of a number of highly trained (and well-paid) soldiers, as well as pilots, who make use of a special detachment of Tartarus' "Gespenst" series of Mobile Units. The underwater section is actually crawling with TDB personnel, though that is completely understandable, all things considered. Then again, being that it's underwater, even getting there without proper access would be a feat in and of itself.

Underwater Dock: This is the Yggdrasil's docking area. It was designed specifically for the Yggdrasil, and in fact, the Crew pretty much has free reign over the entirety of Tartarus' underwater facilities. This is because, in reality, the Captain of the Ygg is actually a major shareholder in Tartarus, having put up significant funds for the startup of the company. While Tartarus is a mostly legitimate business on the surface, one of its primary functions is to serve as a production point for the Yggdrasil Space Pirates. This is a fact that is not well known to anyone outside of the Yggdrasil Crew and the higher-ups within Tartarus. It would, in theory, be possible to put two and two together after a time, being that the Yggdrasil Crew routinely employs various Tartarus products. However, even this would be rather tricky, as the vast majority of the Ygg's weapons are "unique" models and prototypes that are exclusive to the Crew.

History

Senelseint was actually founded several hundred years ago, by settling refugees who fled the Barmal Alliance in the aftermath of the war with the Zalvorg Empire. It flourished, due to the efforts of the people, and has grown to be one of the greatest cities on the planet.

Desert Base, "Crim's Lair"

Location: Kazeno Desert, Barmal Alliance
Type: Base

Description: An extensive military supply base that currently acts as the Yggdrasil's primary home port. Its location in the southern mountainous region of Barmal's Kazeno Desert is ideal, as it is quite isolated from any urban areas, and is very difficult to access without at least some prior knowledge of its location. It is important to note, however, that this is not the only such facility that the Yggdrasil Space Pirates have in their network. Of course, this one is presumably the largest and best-equipped of the lot. The base is manned at all times by a number of elite pirates, many of whom come from military backgrounds. Gun turrets and missile silos are hidden on and around the mountainside in which the main entrance is carved, but the main line of defense is the Geardam Corps, which consists mostly of mass-produced Huckebein MkII-M's and Gespensts, although at any given time, a heavy-hitting unit could easily be stationed there, lying in wait. Aside from all the heavy equipment, repair bays, and weaponry, the base is also equipped with all of the amenities that a pirate could ask for. In fact, it boasts some truly impressive recreational facilities, which is thanks in no small part to the Captain's love of fun and games to pass the time while he's bored out of his mind waiting for the ship to get patched up again and again. And again.

Facilities/Resources

Main Docking Bay: This is where the Yggdrasil rests. It is a huge, cavernous space, full of all manner of maintenance equipment. Giant cranes, industrial forklifts, massive electromagnets, powered-armors, and most anything else one would need for performing full-scale repairs on enormous space-faring warships like the Ygg.

Barracks: More like a gigantic apartment complex than a military barracks. Each member of the Crew, from the Captain himself, all the way down to the newest recruits and grunts, have their very own apartment. Those with families are able to stay in larger units. And, believe it or not, there are quite a few Crew members who are married with a bunch of rugrats running amok.

The Tunnel: The name given to the Geardam Dock Area, which is equipped with a series of linear catapults for rapid unit deployment. This area is actually the biggest space in the entire base, even surpassing that of the Main Docking Bay. It is capable of housing and servicing hundreds of individual mech units at any given time.

The Boardwalk: Not really a boardwalk, but this is what it's been called. This is actually something of a tiered shopping and recreational center, built into a huge natural stalactite cavern. There is a great deal of enjoyment to be had here, and it is exclusive to members of the Yggdrasil Space Pirates and their underworld affiliates.

History

Not much, really. About seven years ago, Crim scoped out the location and decided it would be ideal. Mere months later, the base was up and running at full capacity. The Kazeno Desert was once part of the ancient Kingdom of Gadaviel, however, it has long since deteriorated into a barren, useless wasteland, devoid of resources. Its only practical function is as a buffer zone between Barmal and Zalvorg.