Mirvak
Some chains are better left unbroken.
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To create a planet for my race the Czelosmertians.
- Image Credit: https://sithmasterjosh.deviantart.com/art/Toxic-Planet-161187582
- Canon: No.
- Links:
- Planet Name: Zhilaseraya (Grey Mine, in Yaziksmert.)
- Demonym: Czelosmertian.
- Region: Outer Rim.
- System Name: Pomnesti.
- System Features: The system, similar to Zhilaserya, is mostly bare. Zhilaseraya is a lonely planet, mirroring her inhabitants the Czelosmert in their xenophobic behavior.
- Coordinates: R53
- Major Imports: Food and water.
- Major Exports: Durelium and Hfredium ores.
- Gravity: Slightly more than Standard.
- Climate: Arid and cold.
- Primary Terrain: Barren plains and mountains.
- Major Locations: Imperiyagorodnya - "Imperial City," the original forced labor area established by the Empire over 900 years ago. It has developed into the main super city on Zhilaseraya that houses 60% of the populace.
Pyligorod - The massive industrial factory center mixed in with slums, called "Red City" for its many rusted and corroded buildings and the red flames that constantly burn in the factories.
Domaserf - The housing districts dispersed around Pyligorod that hold many of the workers.
Domatsari - Home of the Csars, the royal district within Gratazhk where only the elite live, including the royal family.
Kholodniy Seraya - A huge expansive, confusing mine system home to a large rebel group deep in the arctic mountain ranges.
POPULATION
- Native Species: Czelosmertians.
- Immigrated Species: No permanent non-natives permitted.
- Population: Heavily populated within the massive city Imperiyagorodnya. Sparsely populated in smaller cities and in the mining districts outside.
- Demographics: All permanent residents are Czelosmertian.
- Primary Languages: Yaziksmert, Galactic Basic.
- Culture: Czelosmertian culture is ingrained in family values, national pride, and violent sports.
Not surprisingly, Czelosmertians are extremely socially conservative, and outlaw homosexuality, prostitution, and hard narcotic use. While Czelosmertian have a very male dominated culture, women are valued just as much as men for their role as mothers, which is a position that some scholars regard as "higher than General." There is a saying during Czelosmertian marriage,"Neither is the husband a Czar and the wife a Peasant, nor the wife Czarina and the husband a Serf, but are both Royalty, are both subject and obedient to each other." While there are unhappy marriages, Czelosmertians rarely get divorced due to societal and social pressures, the most likely large family they've fostered, and the law not being accustomed to handling such requests very easily. However, abusive relationships, whether mental or physical, are exponentially low compared to galactically reported levels.
A remarkable, surreal phenomena in Czelosmertian culture shows this high respect and genuine love that can develop for women; where despicable and often downright evil men are observed to be the softest, most caring and loving person in the company of his wife or children. Even Czar Gratka the Third "the Immolater of Domaserf ," a man who was so short tempered and prone to violence that two thirds of his generals rebelled against him, was seen to 'lower his voice and brighten his countenance whenever his wife entered the room, a smile as genuine as a young lover would have for his betrothed.'
However, this does not mean that Czelosmertian men and women are incapable of disliking or even acting out in anger towards their families. Again, in the case of Czar Gratka the Third, his son Prince Ulyev, heir to the throne, barged into the war room while his father the Czar and his few remaining generals were planning how to defeat the massive loyalist army that had just vowed to dethrone Czar Gratka. Calling for his father to step down, to surrender to the rebels and prevent more Czelosmertian bloodshed, the Czar's famous anger was brought to a boiling point. Taking his heavy royal scepter in hand, the Czar struck the side of his son's head in a fit of rage, killing him instantly. The Czar, realizing what he had done, became inconsolable, and threw himself out a nearby balcony a few days later. Artist Demtri Petnarsky later depicted this tragic event in his painting, "Czar Gratka and the Prince."
Despite constant internal turmoil and frequent rebellions, the people are united under a common idea that they are the most resilient, the toughest, the most masculine race in the galaxy. While it is certainly a pride for their nation, it can be considered more of an extreme racial pride, which is unsurprising given their xenophobic nature. The rebels are often the mountain people, the ethnic group known as Gorasmert, who account for roughly 70% of the miners that extract the precious ship building ore needed to keep the economy going. The Gorasmert are subject to work in dangerous mines, with shifts rivaling that of the most overworked city dweller, and paychecks that would make even the most content factory worker turn against his bosses.
However, the Gorasmert people are rarely united under one flag of rebellion. This is because without the Kingdom, they receive no food or water besides what their pathetically maintained hydroponic farms can manage. The other reason being the Gorasmert people are extremely volatile and often unpredictable when they rebel, and when one prominent mountain dweller rebels and calls himself warlord, 4 more spring up. Even more complex is that these hypothetical 5 other factions could have very intricate diplomatic ties.
One warlord could be a foreman for a mine system that is taking up arms to protect the company he works for, and in exchange make much more money than what he would of. One warlord is a separatist that wishes to create a whole new Galactically recognized state upon the vast mountains of Zhilaserya. One warlord wants to overthrow the Czardom and crown his bloodline as king. And the last warlord just thinks the previous is a nonce and thinks he should be the king instead. But, there is sometimes a warlord that rises up that is able to unite all the fractured tribes of the mountains. But, as of yet, the man to hold this title has always been defeated.
GOVERNMENT & ECONOMY
- Government: Heredity Primogeniture Monarchy.
- Affiliation: None.
- Wealth: Low, due to government corruption and exploitation by various intergalactic powers it can never seem to be very rich.
- Stability: Low. Guerrilla attacks, factory worker riots, and bombings are common place.
- Freedom & Oppression: The planet has a history of long periods of civil strife dotted by briefer periods of peace. During peacetime, the Tsar is often more lenient, giving tax cuts and putting large sums of the budget into celebrations and holidays. During wartime, the Tsar cracks down heavily on opposition, and is no stranger to "total war" on the would-be rebels.
- Military: The military is composed primarily of conscripted young men, who employ often poor tactics against local rebel forces. Lacking many force multipliers such as artillery, fighter craft, or tanks, the army usually gets itself into ineffective slugging matches with the rebels. If given proper equipment and training, they could probably eliminate the rebels quite easily, but until then they are more of a containment force than anything. The Navy is almost nonexistant, with a few trade barges converted into frigates and destroyers.
- Technology: The technology is limited to very cheap means due to the poverty of the planet. Although technically on the same technological level as the rest of the galaxy, not all the citizens have access to the same luxuries as other worlds due to low income.
The planet was discovered by the Republic during the Clone Wars, and was found to be an extremely mineral rich planet. But, due to political and logistical concerns at the height of the war, the planet was not colonized. It was not until about 10 BBY when the Empire found a use for the planet as a hard labor camp. Using mostly human rebel sympathizers, criminals, and members of the resistance from the Outer Rim territories, it was made into a work camp planet. As the Galactic Civil War raged on and more troopers were needed elsewhere, the planet was established as a self governing puppet state, ran by former workers who were given opportunities to save themselves from labor through cooperation. The planet eventually broke away from the Empire after the destruction of the second Death Star, the Empire being too busy to consolidate its holdings in the Core states to bother with outer rim planet. The people rebelled against the newly independent planet, and were repelled by loyalist forces in short order.
Quickly acting to solidify any legitimacy the government had, the head of the once puppet government, Governor Met Tirran, crowned himself and his lineage as royalty, with their claimant being all of Zhilaseraya. Promising a rich lifestyle that would exploit the riches of the barren planet, many remained on Zhilaseraya with this promise of prosperity. The Kingdom upheld a strict political and military isolationist doctrine with the outside galaxy, and to this day keeps it that way. The only outside interference is through trade deals.
The people were slowly mutated, the planet not shielding them from the local star's radiation, and the horrid atmosphere getting worse every year. Eventually the humans mutated into something not quite human, a down trodden human offshoot condemned to their backwater planet's toxic atmosphere.
During the four century age of darkness caused by the Gulag Plague, what little economic growth that was made in its first few centuries was dashed away when all its prime buyers were wiped off the face of the galaxy. The plague itself did not affect the planet directly, as the isolationist and xenophobic nature of the Czelosmertians came into play. Attacking or turning away any would-be refugees before they could enter the system, the plague did not manage to infect the people of Zhilaseraya. But many suffered, as what few economically stable worlds that existed could support the demands for food and water that the planet needed. Not to mention, no one was buying their precious ship building ore, there was no demand for navies in a time where the galaxy was dying.
So the hardy Czelosmertians began to die out in great number due to starvation, and were forced to subsist off meager hydroponic farms and pathetically thin herd animals native to the world. The population remained at a low level, not seeing a boom until the last century. By the time the galaxy had rebuilt itself and the old factions were reformed, the Czardom was well rooted in its isolationist values. The Czardom was on a few times challenged with the possibility of being conglomerated against its will or diplomatically coerced into alliance by various factions, but each time it was avoided. But the strategically important resources within Zhilaseraya mean that her neutrality can only go on for so much longer, especially in a time where planets are being forced to choose a side or be destroyed by all.
When the Void was called forth, and millions dissipeared around the galaxy, Zhilaseraya was for once affected directly. It's Czar, Czar Alezand "the Firm", a iron fisted force sensitive ruler that kept the peace, was gone. With him went several key nobles, thousands of random commoners, and even a few prominent leaders within the ethnic mountain people tribes. The main mine vein, Kholodny Seraya, was said to be haunted by demons of some sort. Panic was in the streets. Having no heirs of his own, the throne was given to the Czar's brother, Czar Mirkov "the Reluctant", a Coruscant-trained doctor working within the slums of Zhilaseraya.
The cities were united under the new Czar, but the miner people, the Gorodsmert, leaderless and terrified of the force apparitions within the mines, unsurprisingly rose up in rebellion. And so the system was embroiled in another civil war, and just as they had always done, the loyalists succeeded in quelling the cantankerous Gorodsmert after a two year period of war.
The neutral balance of the Czardom can not last forever. There are whispers that the rebels are infiltrating the city-dwelling society and when they next rebel they will cripple all of Zhilaseraya economically. Hungry factions look at Zhilaseraya as easy pickings for a mineral rich planet, and there is little the planet can do to stop them. The future, as always, looks grim for the Czelosmertian people and for Zhilaseraya.
