Overview
Once the prosperous governing world of the subsector, now unimportant and technologically regressed. Rusting cities are hermetically sealed against the unbreathable atmosphere, and the unusual biosphere creates a high demand for water.
Quick Facts
C7A3879-6
- Starport: C-class (routine quality, unrefined fuel)
- Gas giant in system
- Diameter: 7,000 miles / 11,000 km (slightly smaller than Earth)
- Atmosphere: Exotic
- Water coverage: 30%
- Population: 1 billion
- Government: Balkanization
- Law level: Generally low, but 9 at starport (all weapons prohibited)
- Tech level: 6 (nuclear fission)
- Trade classification: General
- Space lanes to: Befandefa (jump-2), Gaffa (jump-2), Miconia (jump-1), Moller (jump-1), Kasman (jump-2)
Government, Law, and Diplomacy
Niedaoida is split into 17 independent countries. Most of these are city-states, but three are larger: the bureaucratic Eikanoida at the north pole, the feudal Obareida of the north, and the democratic Volgo Federation of the south.
The smaller countries find themselves manipulated by Obareida and the Volgo Federation in a cold war. Outright conflict would cause terrible damage to both sides. If a sealed city is breached, it’s not long before the population has no air to breathe anymore.
All weapons are prohibited in Stuin, the starport city. Elsewhere, weapon laws are generally permissive. Obareida has a law level of 1 (hidden pistols, bombs, and poison gas prohibited), and the Volgo Federation has a law level of 4 (light assault weapons and heavier weapons are prohibited).
Surface Travel
- Stuin - Reika, by train: 3 days
- Stuin - Graizen, by train: 5 days
- Graizen - Meileina, by train: 8 days
Interstellar Travel
In a given week, ships with the following destinations may be present at the starport:
- Befandefa - 6+ chance
- Gaffa - 8+ chance
- Miconia - 6+ chance
- Moller - 6+ chance
- Kasman - 6+ chance
A Short History
In the days of the Imperium, Niedaoida was a prosperous industrial world, and the seat of the subsector’s governing duke. In the wars of the collapse, the duke was killed and succession was disputed. After a disastrous war between two of the planet’s main claimants, the remaining ones backed off. The barons of Niedaoida each retained control of their own cities.
Over the following years, Obareida and the Volgo Federation emerged as Niedaoida’s major powers. However, when the ore mines on Befandefa ran out, easy access to easy rare metals was lost. The world’s economy and technology regressed severely, until it could just barely sustain itself. Still, Niedaoida has the highest population of any world in the subsector.
Atmosphere and Biosphere
Niedaoida is a rather dry planet, and its atmosphere contains barely any oxygen. Its life forms have cell structures quite different from those of Earth. They are still edible to humans, but contain very little water. Humans on Niedaoida have to drink a lot more water in a day than those with diets from photosynthesis-sustained worlds.
The sky is purple on Niedaoida, and plant life is usually red.
The Sealed Cities
Niedaoida’s cities are sealed, keeping the hostile atmosphere outside. Algae tanks provide oxygen. The city’s buildings are separate, with streets and electric vehicles, but a roof and outer walls envelops the whole city. There are a few windows, but generally there is an “indoors” feeling to the whole place.
Stuin
The city-state Stuin holds the planet’s starport - once top-class, with shipyards and fuel refineries, but today most of it is abandoned and rusting. Stuin remains neutral between Obareida and the Volgo Federation, maintaining the balance of power.
Eikanoida
The smallest of the major countries on Niedaoida, Eikanoida sits on the planet’s north pole, controlling the vast water resources of the ice cap. Eikanoida exports water south by train, making great profits.
Obareida
Obareida maintains the old Imperial tradition and feudal hierarchy. Count Haigrick rules from the capital Graizen, and each other city is ruled by its own baron. With the advance of the New Imperium in the southwest of the subsector, some people in Obareida hope (rather unrealistically) that the return of Imperial rule would bring back Niedaoida’s glory days.
The library and archive in Graizen holds a lot of knowledge and history about the subsector, often lost elsewhere.
Political dissidents wishing for democracy can be found throughout Obareida, often sponsored by the Volgo Federation.
The Volgo Federation
The Volgo Federation is a collection of cities who have overthrown their feudal rulers, and formed a democratic union. Far away from Eikanoida, the Federation imports most of its water from the city-states along the Stuin river.
The City-States
The many city-states of Niedaoida are mostly ruled by their old Imperial baron families. Obareida and the Volgo Federation both try to sway them to their own interests.
The Lost Cities
The cities of the west were destroyed in the succession war that followed the death of Niedaoida’s duke. The cost of the war was horrifying, as the sealed cities quickly became uninhabitable when breached. To this day, there have been no more wars on Niedaoida, and no attempt to reclaim the lost cities have been made - the resources to do so simply don’t exist. However, the cities may still hold advanced technology from the old days, which could be reclaimed.
Several of the cities are now occupied by shrubstriders, a local species of centauroid beings. They have learnt rudimentary tool use, but not language. In a few hundreds of thousands of years, they may develop true sapience.
Scenarios
- Zaikon “18 Bodybags” Rels is wanted by the Obareida authorities for eighteen counts of murder, and water theft. His gang operates out of Eikanoida, crossing the border into Obareida to rob water transports going south. The Eikanoida government doesn’t care to stop him. They’ve already been paid for the water, after all.
- One of the lost cities has an underground starship hangar holding a noble’s yacht, forgotten in the chaos of the succession war. A family of shrubstriders has made it their home, however.
