Nihon

**Nihon** is the eponymous planet in its system, located in the galactic northwest frontier in Wild Space. It is the home of the Force-sensitive race of near-humans who take their name from their planet, and was the seat of the Nihonite Imperium. Now it is the seat of the Nihonite Shogunate, a vassal state of the Fel Empire, and ruled by a Shogun of the Senshi clan who is a relative of the Imperial Dynasty. Since its integration into the Empire, the planet has become a strong ally to the Empire, mainly by providing force-sensitive individuals to its Imperial Knights and loyal soldiers to its Imperial Military.

## Description

Nihon is a medium-sized world of moderate climate and varied terrain, though the equatorial regions are noticeably more suited to farmland while towards the polar regions are more mountainous, enabling the planet to be self-reliant and not left in need of outside resources in order for inhabitants to thrive.

Nihon is a Force Nexus, which gives native-born Nihonites increased sensitivity to the Force and amplified the powers and sensitivity of anyone who came to the planet for a long duration.

## History

### Early History

Nihon was discovered by Je'daii outcasts who schismed from the order on Tython following the Force Wars due to moving away from the Je'daii philosophies about the Force. They believed that true balance was only achieved through equality between the numbers and powers of those who tapped into the Light and Dark sides of the Force. Having received visions of a new world where the Force was balanced and untainted by the philosophies of the Je'daii, the Great Journey of the Nihonites began in the wake of the Tython Diaspora. After several centuries in cryostasis aboard a sleeper ship, these Je'daii apostates entered the Nihon system and landed on **the planet** seen in their visions, upon which they immediately set up a settlement around the landed starship which became the central part of their new Great Temple where they gathered annually to celebrate their pilgrimage and their Homecoming to what they called "Mother Nihon." The next several centuries were spent peacefully as clans formed from the original settlers and the planet was colonized.

### Founding the Imperium

As the population of Nihon grew, resources started to become irreplaceable at a rate which could be kept up with the growing population, leading to conflicts among the clans and causing further destruction of lands and resources until a powerful clan leader proclaimed himself Shogun and united rival clans under his banner to such effect that the remaining clans swore fealty to him, and the Shogun was later formally crowned Emperor after uniting the clans of Nihon. One of the first acts of this new Emperor was to research and develop space-faring technology reverse-engineered from the sleeper ship that brought the original colonists to Nihon much to the chagrin and anger of the religious sects who ministered at the Great Temple the ship was housed in. After a brief conflict between the new Imperium Guard and the religious zealots, the ship was stripped of all its components except for the hull and supporting structures and the first Nihonite ships were developed with the use of kandaisa, the metal native to Nihon that formed the core of all their technologies.

### Collapse of the Imperium

In 3950 BBY, the Imperium collapsed after facing several military defeats at the hand of the Galactic Republic and the corruption of Nihonites by the Sith. With the collapse of the Imperium, the planet saw widespread war that hadn't been seen since before the founding of the Imperium. Of the billions who lived on planet at the start of the Dark Ages, only a few hundred million survived, leading to economic collapse and a reversion to clan structures holding power, with a few key cities like the capital still standing. However, the Nihonites learned to adjust to the new normal, and slowly began rebuilding their planet. Though the following centuries were still plagued with famine and near constant war between clans. Some Nihonite colony worlds like Shukaku still provided the planet with resources, but there was not enough manpower to utilize the full might of the industry and agriculture Nihon once wielded.

By 2500 BBY the planet had stabilized and a new governing order was set up, the Council of Daimyos, which provided a semblance of law and order by stopping worldwide conflicts from flaring up. However, the Council still left individual clans at the mercy of others, even those whose Daimyos were on the Council. While this system was in place, the office of Shogun was restored, though only symbolically and was only used when the Council took action. Despite the hardships, there was hope that one day Nihon would rise like a phoenix from the ashes and reclaim its glorious empire. During this time, Nihon remained isolated from the rest of the galaxy and was forgotten by them.

### Senshi Restoration

That day would come due to the actions of Daimyo Ken Senshi. A fleet of the newly formed Galactic Empire had rediscovered Nihon led by an Imperial Admiral by the name of Anton Atom, that served under Grand Moff Tarkin of Oversector Outer. Admiral Anton informed the Imperial hierarchy and was tasked by Grand Moff Tarkin to conquer the world for Emperor Palpatine. Anton's forces invaded Nihon, attempting to conquer and enslave its people. This invasion, however, led to Senshi being named Shogun in order to gain full support from the Council and his people. With a central commander leading them and aid from the planet's Force Nexus nature, the Nihonites were able to resist Imperial invasion in a true test of survival. With the death of Grand Moff Tarkin and Ardus Kaine being appointed the new Grand Moff of Oversector Outer, Anton was given fewer reinforcements to maintain his occupation and ultimately, after the death of Emperor Palpatine in 4 ABY, he lost the support of Grand Moff Kaine who sought to instead focus his resources on building his new Pentastar Alignment and its competition against other Imperial splinter factions that sprung up in the territory. Admiral Anton's forces dwindled in the following years as the Nihonites turned the tide of their Great War. During this period, Ken Senshi disappeared from Nihon and his wife Noburu Hato Senshi took up the position of Shogun. She was responsible for the ultimate defeat of Anton's forces and Nihon's freedom from the Empire. She was subsequently crowned Empress of a new Nihonite Imperium on 19 ABY.

Mesh'la Senshi, Ken Senshi's daughter by his new Mandalorian wife that he had met during his time outside of Nihon, succeeded Noburu as her heir and continued to bring Nihon to new heights of prosperity as well as establishing the Senshi Dynasty that rules Nihon to the present day. The new Nihonite Imperium reconquered its former colonies in Wild Space, entering a new golden age not seen since before the Mandalorian Wars. Nihon was made open to pilgrims who wished to make the once in a lifetime journey to the sleeper ship and the Great Temple, and became the center of all Nihonite culture, governance, and military might. However, their long war against the Empire had driven them to remain isolated from the rest of the galaxy, especially as their surrounding territory was occupied by Imperial splinter factions and later the newly created Fel Empire. The knowledge of Nihon was lost to the rest of the galaxy once more and the Nihonites were able to live in prosperity avoiding the coming wars that plagued the galaxy after the collapse of the Galactic Empire.

### Galactic Legends

Their peaceful withdrawal did not last forever as in the year 855 ABY, an Imperial Expeditionary Fleet stumbled upon the Nihonite system once more. Unlike with Anton's Fleet, however, the Nihonites were a united people and quickly mounted a defense of their territory against the Fel Empire. What resulted was ultimately a short but bloody war between the two empires, which ended with a peace treaty that was signed and sealed with the marriage of Nihonite Emperor Ken Senshi II and Fel Empress Andriah Fel. With this marriage, the main line of the Senshi Dynasty was absorbed into the Fel Dynasty, ending the Nihonite Imperium as a new Shogunate was establishment under the Fel Empire with a junior branch of the Senshi clan in control. Because it was in the end, a voluntary annexation, the Nihonites were able to maintain control of their territory which was classified as the newly created Nihonite Sector of the Fel Empire. By 1004 ABY, Kad Senshi is the reigning Shogun of Nihon.