# Muan Autonomous Sector Comprising a number of star systems centred on the planet of Muan, the Muan Autonomous Sector represents the first major conquest of the Tiziran Empire, 4 centuries ago. ### Muan: Welcome to the Empire, Peons #### Fact Sheet: * Muan is the home planet of the Muan-Et, a race of humanoid amphibians. * The surface of Muan is covered by deep swamps, both freshwater and saltwater. Dense canopies shroud the majority of the world from the sky. The few areas of dry land have been mostly taken up by colonial enclaves built by the Tiziran administration on the planet- including the new capital, Nidos. * Muan's atmosphere is thick with spores from a variety of mushrooms that sprout on its trees. These spores are toxic to most other species, including the Tizirans, who must suit up and enclose themselves in dome-cities for survival on Muan's surface. * Muan-Et architecture is dominated by trees. Homes are built into the roots of colossal mangroves, partially submerged into water, while freestanding structures house civic and commercial buildings, constructed from wood and mudbrick. This contrasts with the monumentalist dome-cities of their Tiziran overlords, where the lizards live in opulent enclaves sealed against the toxic atmosphere. Located about 150 light years from Tizira, Muan is a planet that holds great significance to the Tiziran Empire- as it was Tizira's first grand conquest after taking to the stars. Following first contact with the Muan-Et Confederacy, Tizira engaged in a series of conflicts that would ultimately leave their enemies at their mercy- and creating Tizira's first client state. Since those heady days nearly 4 centuries ago, the Muan-Et have served the empire, faithfully (or not), and become colonial subjects in all but official documentation, with the resources of the confederacy being siphoned back towards Tizira, and lizards coming to displace the Muan-Et from their lands. Muan itself is one of the few areas to mostly escape the grasp of the Tiziran settlers, due in no small part to its atmosphere. Home to a varied range of fungi, Muan's atmosphere is perpetually thick with spores- spores which are deeply toxic to most known life, excepting, of course, the Muan-Et. Therefore here they find a safe haven, able to maintain their traditions even in the face of Imperial laws designed to outlaw their language, ban their cultural festivals, and impose Tiziran values on their "esteemed subjects" (even if they are poorly enforced at the best of times). This has given the Muan-Et a better grasp over their history and discrete identity than most Tiziran subject nations- as well as more entrenched opposition. The Muan-Et watch the growing political instability on Tizira closely, ever vigilant for a time to shake off their bonds. ### Qilao: Fracking Hell #### Fact Sheet: * Once one of the Muan-Et's proudest colonies, Qilao has been turned by the Tizirans into a barren wasteland in their relentless extraction of the planet's plasma resources- one of the Tiziran Empire's few homegrown sources of the precious material. While initial extraction was evenly-paced, the increasing necessity of the purple stuff and dwindling access to readily-accessible deposits has driven the Tizirans to more and more desperate means on Qilao. Most recently, high intensity fracking has been adopted- destroying the planet's ecosystem and putting increasing pressure on the remaining Muan-Et populations there to leave their homes. * The planet's population has dropped dramatically following the ramping-up in intensity of extraction operations. Buildings crumble to dust under the force of repeated earthquakes. Flare stacks pump poisonous waste products into the air. Water supplies become increasingly scarce as wastewater and fracking fluid pollute aquifers. When the Muan-Et left Muan itself, their first colony was Qilao- given the Muani term for "hope" as a name, this gorgeous planet was known for its rolling fields and crystal-clear lakes, a perfect habitat for the amphibious Muan-Et. When the Tizirans came, however, their surveys for resources found a material previously unknown to the planet's inhabitants- deep plasma gas veins, buried under the surface. The lizards did as the lizards do with big mineral finds- resorted to drilling through the landscape, setting up refineries and industry to take advantage of this excellent opportunity. But the yields produced did not match expectations, and so there was only one solution for the Tizirans- more intensive operations. Eventually, high-pressure fracking was implemented, finally letting the plasma-hungry lizards at their prize; though at great cost to the planet's ecology. Today, Qilao is becoming more and more unliveable in the face of unprecedented pollution and constant earthquakes- though the Muan-Et try to persist through hacking coughs on this world that they have lived on for generations, the battle is almost lost, and the once thriving planet of millions now boasts a population of less than 50,000, and more leave every year. Meanwhile, the meagre amounts (relative to humanity, anyway) of plasma produced here go to fuel Tizira's industry and war machine.
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FTL Drives

In all of human history, no singular invention can be said to have opened more doors than that of faster-than-light flight. Prior to its discovery, human expansion was very limited, with even Alpha Centauri taking the better part of 5 years to travel to and from. The First Pioneers The earliest work in discovering FTL flight began in the mid-2100s, after the settling of Adasta in Alpha Centauri provided a reasonable target for an experimental FTL vessel. During this time dozens of theories and prototypes were created, but very little actual progress was made until the Zhang's Comet incident of 2198 opened the eyes of humanity to the "Bluespace"; a parallel dimension which could, theoretically, be entered by specialised vessels. The first successful entry into bluespace by an unmanned vessel was made in 2205 when a research team from the University of Seoul sent a probe through via a "bluespace crush": detonating a bomb encased in bluespace crystals taken from Zhang's Comet, which proved enough to cause a short jump in space. Unfortunately, this initial travel also proved too stressful for the vessel to survive, with only wreckage arriving at the other side, but it was a promising step forward that showed that FTL flight was possible. The bluespace crush concept was expanded upon by subsequent research, with the first successful survivable flight occurring in 2208. From here, small scale tests with living creatures were conducted; first rats, then dogs, then monkeys, and with each proving to be survivable and successful, the race was on for the first manned bluespace jump. For this undertaking, TerraGov itself became strongly involved in the process, assembling a crack team of researchers and corporate sponsors to ensure the viability of the project; as well as picking their first pioneer, Air Force Lieutenant Othman bin Sulaiman. After years of physical and mental preparation and the combined efforts of hundreds of researchers, the day finally arrived for Othman to enter the capsule and begin his test flight. The resulting journey between Jump Zero and Point 65 in Alpha Centauri took around 45 minutes; equating to a nominal Bluespace Travel Factor of 1.2 (BTF is x in the equation v = c^x). This monumental leap made travel between humanity's two closest systems a mild commute; indeed, it took longer by sublight to get to Jump Zero from Earth than the subsequent journey from Jump Zero to Point 65, and overnight this changed humanity's outlook on the stars. After Othman was deemed physically and mentally unaffected by his voyage, plans began in earnest to scale up the technology and reduce the associated cost: while bluespace crush cores worked from a technical perspective, the required load of bluespace crystals for each journey would make the technology economically unviable at larger scales. Eventually, the answer would come in the form of Nuclear Driver Cores. Early FTL (Nuclear Driver Cores) The initial plans for the NDC came from a joint research project between the Institute of Astronautic Research and Conarex under the direction of Doctor Helena Franklin. The Institute had been experimenting for a time with using sources of high energy laser light to energise bluespace crystals, but were unable to generate enough energy by traditional means to create the desired effect. Eventually, the decision was made to investigate the use of nuclear-pumped lasers; previously only investigated experimentally for use as a weapons platform, these lasers generate a colossal amount of energy- however, their various drawbacks made them unviable for most purposes. The economic benefits from having more accessible FTL flight, however, would dramatically overpower these drawbacks; if they could only get them to work. After years of testing and prototyping, a breakthrough was made in 2219, and the first Franklin Spike underwent full-scale testing on the Terran Navy destroyer, the TMV Hammerhead, on a run between Harvest and Earth that achieved an approximate BTF of 2. This finally proved that mass-scale FTL was not only viable but eminently achieveable, and within the year the first Franklin Spikes were making their way off of production lines and into the vessels of the Terran Navy.

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Wayfarers: Scoundrel

Amongst the stars, it takes skills to survive- and nobody is more skilled than the Scoundrel. Leveraging resourcefulness, roguish wit, and a healthy dose of luck, the Scoundrel forms an integral part of any successful party.

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