Lore

Production System

Commerce · Xi'an · Government

Production systems are planetary systems in the Xi'an Empire that have been specifically designated as work zones. Each planet in such a system has been terraformed from the ground up for a specific purpose, such as farming or manufacturing. They perform their functions under…

Banu Friendship Museum

Culture · Banu

The Banu Friendship Museum was established in 2838 on a former United Empire of Earth (UEE) Navy base around Davien IV to commemorate Humanity's long relationship with the Banu. The museum features a variety of exhibits and artifacts on the history of the alliance between the…

Banu Flotilla

Banu

A Banu flotilla is a loosely allied collection of Banu-owned space stations and ships. Usually, Banu flotillas operate as vibrant marketplaces, acting as centers of trade for travelers. Most Banu planetary systems host one or more flotillas. Generally located in Banu space, they…

Silent Song

Art

Silent Song is a piece of interactive artwork located in the Tayac system asteroid belt, between Tayac II and Shepherd (Tayac III). The work was commissioned in honor of the Ark's centennial and to highlight xeno-relationships. It was created in collaboration by Human artist…

Caliban 3b

Moons

Caliban 3b is the second moon from the surface of Caliban III, Caliban system, located in Vanduul territory. Much smaller than its companion moon, it is porous, ovoid, and low in mass. It was most likely captured from the nearby Caliban belt alpha sometime before it was…

Defender

Banu · Spacecraft

The Defender is a Banu combat spacecraft that can generally be found escorting their trading caravans. A point defense interceptor, it is equipped with four tachyon cannons and delivers excellent performance in terms of speed and maneuverability. The Banu typically operate as…

Sentient Rights

Culture · Government

Sentient rights is a moral principle that states all sentient beings are entitled to basic rights and legal protections. These rights are understood as inherent and inalienable, and applicable to any species that reaches a threshold level of sentience regardless of its planet of…

Anti-Ship Mines

Weapons · Science and Technology

Anti-ship mines, also called proximity mines, are explosives that can be placed at fixed points in space. They are designed to explode when spacecraft come within a particular range, inflicting heat and projectile damage on anything nearby. Mines are used by the military for…

Cryopod

Science and Technology

A cryopod is a type of enclosed machine or medical device that is used to put people in a state of suspended animation. Once enclosed within the cryopod, the subject is injected with a chemical that induces deep sleep. The device then performs a series of precisely timed…

Taranis I

Planets

Taranis I is a mesoplanet in the unclaimed Taranis system. The closest planet to its sun, temperatures on Taranis I are sometimes high enough to warp hulls. In 2559, the planet came to fame when a new review of survey data captured in the wake of the system's discovery revealed…

Kofi Baféuma (Cothi Bat-Thel-Ma)

People · Exploration · Banu

Kofi Baféuma (Cothi Bat-Thel-Ma) is a Banu explorer, most notable for discovering the Tamsa system in SEY 2943. They sold the location of the system to the United Empire of Earth (UEE) on the condition that they be allowed to retain its naming rights. Once the UEE agreed, they…

Planetary Surveying

Science and Technology

Planetary surveying is the profession of assessing and documenting the potential of a planet. Usually enacted upon initial discovery, surveyors map and catalog the planet's natural resources, and create recommendations that will determine the terraforming possibility of a…

Vanduul Clans

Vanduul

Vanduul Clans are groups of Vanduul who have banded together to form a single mutually-beneficial unit. Although observers have not yet fully defined the leadership structure, it is believed that Clans operate as a martial meritocracy that shares some similarities with a…

Altruciatoxin

Illegal Activity · Science and Technology

Altruciatoxin is an illegal drug under United Empire of Earth (UEE) law. Derived from the pollen of the revenant tree, it is also known as dust, candy, or round off and most often sold in the form of a fine powder. It causes sensory enhancement, muscular relaxation, and lethargy…

Li'tova

Culture · Xi'an

Li'tova is the central code of ethics and main religion for the Xi'an people. It was established in roughly SEY 33900 BCE by early Xi'an. The core of Li'tova centers around the concept of time; specifically, the intent and effect of all actions throughout time, no matter how…

Tethtām (Hyoton V)

Planets

Tethtām (Hyoton V) is the farthest planet from the sun of the Hyoton system, Xi'an Empire (SaoXy'an). An orange and cream-colored gas giant, it has an atmosphere of hydrogen and helium and is the main source of fuel in Hyoton. It symbolized emptiness and time in ancient Xi'an…

Xi'an Criminal Professionals (Nyayu'a)

Xi'an · Culture

Xi'an criminal professionals (nyayu'a) are Xi'an who are granted license by the Xi'an government to practice certain forms of crime. Similar to Human crime syndicates, these Xi'an Houses double as disciplined organizations whose business involves criminal activity. In return for…

Kr'thak

Civilizations

The Kr'thak are a spacefaring civilization indigenous to an unknown area of space. Little is known about them, other than their involvement in a period of turmoil in Xi'an history called the Spirit Wars. The Xi'an have strict laws in place preventing the populace from…

Kellog III

Planets

Kellog III is the third planet from the sun of the Fair Chance Act (FCA)-protected Kellog system. With a high-pressure atmosphere of carbon dioxide and a runaway greenhouse effect, temperatures on Kellog III are hotter than those on neighboring planet Xis (Kellog II). In 2911, a…

Glaive

Spacecraft · Vanduul

The "Glaive" is the official United Empire of EarthNavy (UEEN) designation for a fighter spacecraft operated by Vanduul forces. The Glaive is notable for its double bladed wings, in contrast to the Scythe's single bladed wing, as well as the inclusion of a missile rack and a…

Oretani II

Planets

Oretani II is the second planet from the sun of the lost Oretani system. An ocean world with small land masses, it was located on the system's green band, and had been chosen as a prime candidate for future settlement. Turiya Terraforming took on the task of making the planet…

Olympus

Settlements

Olympus is a settlement on Ashana (Nul V). Built in the remains of the carrier UEES Olympus, which crashed into the planet in 2571 while pursuing a group of Human and Tevarin anti-Messer rebels, Olympus became a home to a diverse population of expatriates and outlaws from all…

Branaugh II

Planets

Branaugh II is the second planet from the sun of the Branaugh system. Uncommonly among terrestrial worlds of its size, it has a wide set of rings that are visible from its surface. Surveyors initially thought the beautiful rings might attract people to Branaugh II, but upon…

QuarterDeck

Locations

QuarterDeck is a maximum-security prison located on Kellog VI in the Fair Chance Act-protected Kellog system. Built to withstand the planet's frigidly cold, low-oxygen atmosphere, the penitentiary is under heavy guard and is considered virtually inescapable. The United Empire of…