Chippe

Chippe is part of the Phalest system in Hex #0005. Being one of the furthest and least interesting corners of the Empire, it is believed to be the origin of the phrase "backwater". It has been a long-term posting for disfavored nobles of all Houses who needed to be taught a lesson.

## History

### Before the Scream

In the dawn of human exploration, Chippe was inhabited by a plethora of island-bound alien species. Thought to be docile and peaceful at first, the aliens violently resisted any contact with the fledgling human fleet, which rapidly escalated during the War for Human Prosperity. Soon enough, humanity drove off the aliens from Chippe and claimed the planet for the fledgling Empire.

It quickly became apparent, however, that life on Chippe was going to be difficult. There was no atmosphere to speak of, at least for humans and what little life had flourished here had depended on the migratory pattern of the civilized islanders to survive. Realizing that humanity had little chance to sustain themselves on the surface, a group of settlers did what many would once have thought impossible. They built a city at the bottom of the ocean.

The city of Sanparadiz flourished for many years, growing from a small colonial habitat into a city-complex that would house a population of millions. Under the careful governance of a select council of nobles, it would eventually earn the nickname “The Pearl” and grow into a prosperous city. Far away from the light of its star, Sanparadiz lives in the eternal darkness of the depths below.

### The Scream

The interstellar disaster known as the Scream struck Chippe especially hard. Already a remote planet, it relied greatly on the few trade missions that made its way here; in particular from the “nearby” planets of Thorg and Kerdava. Without their support, Sanparadiz’ means of food production collapsed, and civilized society fell with it. Those who did not die from starvation or sickness were driven mad by the isolation.

### Rediscovery of Chippe

When House Vela eventually rediscovered Chippe, over a century after the Scream, they found a world in ruins. The surface-level spaceport, a floating construction connected to an underwater shuttle system, was now ruled by a seafaring raider-tribe descended from the original spaceport operators. Safe to say, they were less than friendly. It would take many years until diplomatic channels were stable enough for Velan explorers to learn of the City Below.

### The Sanparadiz Discovery

It was a brave crew that ventured into the depths of the ocean in search of this lost city. With pre-Scream technology still scarce, there were those who thought that Sanparadiz would be a treasure trove of untouched secrets. Instead, they found only remnants of a civilization that had torn itself apart at the seams. Large parts of the city were flooded, and those sections fortunate enough to be sealed off in time showed all the signs of madness in isolation. Even then, the explorers were determined to find something, and got to work.

### Neuparadiz

Once again back under Imperial rule, Sanparadiz became an excavation site more than anything else. The surface-level spaceport was gradually expanded over the years, eventually large enough to be considered a city by itself. Its first ruler dubbed the city Neuparadiz, in honor of the fallen city, and while it would never grow to be as prosperous or powerful as its namesake, it maintains a sizeable population to this day.

### The Age of Wars

Chippe was mostly left alone during the Age of Wars immediately following the Scream. Unlike their neighbors on Thorg, they remained loyal to the Empire and sent several of their bravest to fight alongside the Houses against the Blood Eagle.

### Reign of the Shining Star

The people of Chippe were adamant supporters of the Shining Star and strongly supported House Vela as the Imperial House. However, it was during this time that Chippe grew into a veritable dumping ground for discarded nobles, leading to a growing anti-Imperial (and anti-Velan in particular) sentiment across the planet.

### War Against the Artificials

The people of Chippe fought alongside the Houses Noble during the War Against the Artificials, sending their bravest young fighters to take down the synthetic menace. Chippe itself did suffer significant losses during the war as several of the more dangerous maintenance duties relied on synthetic labor to minimise risk.

## Individuals of Note

While there are a scattering of smaller settlements across the planet, most of Chippe's population is centered in the city of Neuparadiz.

The city of Neuparadiz is overseen and governed by a council of nobles from various Houses, both Major and Minor. It is currently presided over by **Emir Vela Nejem Octavian**, Emir of Neuparadiz, leader of the Mercantile Association of Chippe. Also a part of this council, where she serves as Master of Distribution as well as Master of Ships Astral and Aquatic, is **Regulatos Eridanus Narang Emilia**, long-time rival of Octavian's.

Representing House Triangulum's interests in Phalest System, where they maintain a small research station in orbit, is **Lady Pretechnician Pythagoras Triangulum Campbell Paulina.** She serves on the Council as Master of the Sciences.

A recent arrival on the planet that has been garnering quite substantial support is **Seeker Pyxis Nazaryan Jun**. Nazaryan claims descent from the original Velan explorers of Chippe and Sanparadiz, and therefore right of ownership and exploration of the City Below. This has turned out to be quite a controversial issue within the Council, as Sanparadiz is a notable expense for the city but also a very prestigious piece of property.

One of Pyxis Nazaryan's chief supporters is **Horuset Lyra Sartore Mukhtar**, Master of the Arts on the Council who bears a grudge against the Emir for a perceived slight many years ago. Other notable individuals include **Farid Sienkewicz**, account representative with the Deathless who oversees a defensive contract on Chippe, and **Musir Vela Barak Soraya,** Emir Octavian's personal chief of security.

## Faction Relations

### House Vela

As the original settlers and re-establishers of Neuparadiz, the people of Chippe owe a debt of gratitude to House Vela and consider them their noble ancestors.

### House Pyxis

The sense of exploration and adventure that drives House Pyxis resonates with the people of Chippe, descended in large part from explorers themselves. As such, Chippe welcomes the nobles of House Pyxis to explore the ruins of Sanparadiz and see what they can find.

### House Triangulum

A small cabal of Triangulum researchers are holed up on the deep space station of Bombala-5, in orbit around Chippe’s star. The resident pretech experts, while dealing with a vault of their own to crack, occasionally assist the people of Neuparadiz with deciphering any recovered relics from the depths below. A representative from Bombala-5, Lady Pretechnician Pythagoras Triangulum Campbell Paulina, sits on Neuparadiz' mayoral council.

### The Deathless

Deathless Conflict Solutions maintain a standing defense contract with the people of Chippe, manning a small fleet based out of the Loto asteroid belt. They remain on good terms, though any contact between them is mostly diplomatic.

## Oceanic World

The world is entirely or almost entirely covered with liquid water. Habitations might be floating cities, or might cling precariously to the few rocky atolls jutting up from the waves, or are planted as bubbles on promontories deep beneath the stormy surface. Survival depends on aquaculture. Planets with inedible alien life rely on gengineered Terran sea crops.

### Enemies:

* Pirate raider
* Violent "salvager" gang
* Tentacled sea monster

### Friends:

* Daredevil fishermen
* Sea hermit
* Sapient native life

### Complications:

* The liquid flux confuses grav engines too badly for them to function on this world
* Sea is corrosive or toxic
* The seas are wracked by regular storms

### Things:

* Buried pirate treasure
* *Location of schools of enormous fish*
* Pretech water purification equipment

### Places:

* The only island on the planet
* Floating spaceport
* Deck of storm-swept ship
* Undersea bubble city

## Night World

The world is plunged into eternal darkness. The only life on this planet derives its energy from other sources, such as geothermal heat, extremely volatile chemical reactions in the planet's soil, or light in a non-visible spectrum. Most flora and fauna is voraciously eager to consume other life.

### Enemies:

* Monstrous thing from the night
* Offworlder finding the obscurity of the world convenient for dark purposes
* Mad scientist experimenting with local life

### Friends:

* Curious offworlder researcher
* Hard-pressed colony leader
* High priest of a sect that finds religious significance in the night

### Complications:

* Daylight comes as a cataclysmic event at very long intervals
* Light causes very dangerous reactions to native life or chemicals here
* The locals have been gengineered to exist without light

### Things:

* Rare chemicals created in the darkness
* Light source usable on this world
* Smuggler cache hidden here in ages past

### Places:

* Formlessly pitch-black wilderness
* Sea without a sun
* Location defined by sounds or smells