Hepsia

**Hepsia** is a habitable superearthlike planet found in the Anammelech system within the eastern reaches of Ankati Nullsec. It is often referred to by local spacers as the "**Outband**" or "**Rim**" due to both its proximity to the frontier of Ankati space and the peculiar terrain of the small band of arable temperate land on the planet’s equator and approximately twenty degrees in either latitude. It is a harsh and often lawless world, despite the various nation-states across its habitable zones.

Formerly an agricultural colony of the Commonwealth of Ankat, the planet’s largest occupation has remained relatively unchanged in the last 182 years since the fall of organized government in the region, with the most significant difference being the development of further population centers along the temperate equator and the distinguishment of various independent statelets and foreign interests in the planet's growth and development.

## History

*Main Article: History of Hepsia*
When the planet was originally discovered, Hepsia was undergoing an intensive ice age, and vast glaciers covered the entirety of the planet. Harsh temperatures, savage ice-boring predators, and nomadic Tesari hives settled across the surface made Nibling settlement of the planet near impossible until the Ankati government declared it an imperative to terraform the planet and settle it “for the welfare of all space-abiding citizens”. The process to warm the planet and sublimate its intensive icecaps, while successful for the majority of its effort, was never completed, leaving only a narrow strip of habitable land around the equator that was comparable to a vast, open wasteland hemmed in on either side by the massive ice walls.

The habitable region for Ankati settlers, now known in the modern day as **the Rim**, was originally poor in terms of arability, as the glacial shelves had taken most of the topsoil with them as they receded and covered what remained in massive proglacial lakes in both hemispheres, though this came with the added benefit of various nutrient-rich rivers branching off of these lakes. A number of agricultural settlements along these rivers eventually bloomed into minor townships and cities, especially in the years directly after the collapse of the Commonwealth as numerous spacers sought shelter and stability in the face of the chaos of the civil war, allowing it to form a planetary government that rivaled most of the nascent spacer-stations of the region for a time. This golden age was short-lived however, as spacer factions regained their dominance in the region and began to vie for power. Hepsia became a rump state that eventually fractured under a myriad of calamities that have left the world with a long and complicated history.

## Society

From spacer bombardment and subjugation, to raids and conquests attempted by the glacial hordes of Tesar from the south or northern shelves, to cybercratic despots attempting to dominate and unify the Rim under their own control, the populace of Hepsia have known strife throughout most of their history. A general state of peace has only come to the planet’s populace within the last five decades, beginning with the collapse of the last of many feuding warlord states. While large city-states and coalitions of townships hold sway over large swaths of land, their control as governments in these expansive territories are minimal or nonexistent, and pastoral agricultural communities often live within them without serious concern about the prospects of ruling authorities or oversight.

While no wars may wage across its surface, the people of the Rim are not without their fair share of woes. Lacking the infrastructure or protection of more civilized planets, many communities must fend for themselves against the various challenges that the planet and its denizens may throw at them. From raiders and savage beasts living in the taiga hinterlands, to the boogeymen of the self-replicating "auto-wars" that emerge from the southern shelf in the midst of their conflicts with the local Tesar hives, or even the very governments that claim control of a given region attempting to showcase their power by force. Settlers on the Rim face a daunting life, made even more difficult in many regions by the presence of the Angelbane Syndicate and its attempts to influence and control much of Hepsian politics. Even the forces of nature seem to work against homesteading Hepsians, as many find that the once-receding glaciers have begun their slow march back inwards on the Rim, threatening to flood the various lakes they hold and overflow many of the rivers that they rely on for their professions, or the harsh planetary blizzards that come to the world during the winters, blacking out the skies for months at a time. It is a difficult life, but to most of the Rim the hard work of managing anything on Hepsia is a life they would not trade for anything.

### Economy

Hepsian economies are often mixed between local commerce, which is usually conducted by mercantile trade or through a local currency of silver and gold coins, or with offworld commerce. Cubits, as a digital currency, are not found to be very useful in the physical trading that goes on across most of the Rim, and are generally only used when doing business with individuals or entities from the the greater galaxy.

## Ecology

*Main page: Hepsia/Ecology*
The ecology of modern-day Hepsia is just as much a reminder of the world's confusing history as its societies. While some remaining fauna from the world's icy pre-colonial era exist and make niches for themselves, it is generally agreed upon that the majority of Hepsian wildlife and domestic animals are the descendants of imported lifeforms from places such as Lessos and Mayar to name a few of the many sources.

Likewise, a large amount of the more unique life found on Hepsia are genetically-engineered organisms, often tailormade to accommodate domestic or military purposes, often being hold-overs from the Tantric Reign or eras prior. With genetic drift allowing true speciation to accumulate in many of the lifeforms made by the people of Hepsia, artificial invasive species are found across the breadth of the Rim, with some causing various problems within settlements or even directly harming colonists.

## Nations on Hepsia

Hepsia is host to numerous city-states, republics, and regional monarchies that hold control over various regions of the Rim. While most settlements and governments are not long-lived and are often generational at best, with local communities and trader hubs being the most common sights to see along the flat grassy hills of the Rim, some are capable of surviving and establishing a presence within their given area, becoming bustling townships or some of the few capable planetary polities able to sustain noteworthy extraterrestrial contacts. These are few and far between however, as most states and statelets found on the planet are often insular or unwilling to cooperate with off-worlders, a general lack of trust having formed over the near two centuries of spacer invasion and occupation by foreign powers.

While the population of Hepsia is composed primarily of Niblings and Humans, it is not without its diversity in races. A notable Aoshanti population was founded in the wake of both the First and Third Concourse Wars, bringing Lessoan and Reformist homesteaders respectively to the hardy Ankati world. Likewise, some of the native Tesari clans have attempted to settle new hives in the southern hinterlands, often finding intense pushback from local communities to any attempts at diplomacy or conflict, and Saviki spacers have often been found settling in the harsh northern regions.

Players may create their own nations or organizations on Hepsia with the rules and guidelines found here.

## Locations

* Vafons Green
	+ Gambit Point

## Trivia

* Hepsia is based on various tropes of the "frontier world", though is most heavily inspired by *Rimworld*.
* Anyone is allowed to create both factions and characters on Hepsia. It is an open setting meant for both character stories and small-scale nation role-play.
	+ This includes the planet's history as well! A general outline of the planet's history is underway, but players can add to it as they see fit and message me (Tenorice) if they wish to do so!