Planets (Updated)
Alderaan
ASTROGRAPHICAL REGION
Core Worlds
ALLEGIANCE
Independent
STATUS
Several of Alderaan’s noble houses are battling for the throne in a brutal civil war
TERRAIN
Forests, Hills and Snow-Capped Mountains
KEY FACTS
Following the Treaty of Coruscant, Alderaan seceded from the Galactic Republic
BATTLE FOR THE THRONE
Since the Republic’s inception, Alderaan’s nobility has been at the political forefront, taking a stand in the Senate for peace, freedom and unity. While Coruscant has always been considered the heart of the Republic, to some extent, Alderaan has been its soul. In the aftermath of the Treaty of Coruscant, however, Alderaan withdrew from the Republic and soon became embroiled in one of the bloodiest civil wars in the galaxy’s history. The future of this once-proud planet is heavily in doubt.
Renowned for its captivating beauty, Alderaan’s verdant forests and snow-capped mountain ranges have always been a vision of utopia. Matching the landscape’s serenity, Alderaan’s political process has historically been smooth, though the crown has often been handed back and forth between several entrenched noble houses. At the height of the Great War, though, everything changed—Alderaan’s timeless tranquility was shattered. Seeking to sap the Republic’s morale, the Sith Empire invaded the planet with all its might, quickly overwhelming local defense forces and taking the royal family hostage. The reaction was equally swift and savage—Republic and Jedi forces tapped into previously unknown reserves of valor and rushed to Alderaan’s rescue. The Republic’s heroes obliterated the invaders and handed the Sith Empire a humiliating defeat.
The Imperial invasion was not forgotten, though. For the first time in history, Alderaan’s leaders became a voice for aggressive military action in the Senate. When the Treaty of Coruscant was signed a few years later, Alderaan’s crown prince marched out of the Senate in protest. Alderaan seceded from the Republic and became an independent system. The crown prince’s decision was met with mixed reaction at home; though many were supportive, others were outraged. Despite the controversy, order was kept until an assassin’s blaster took the prince’s life, and the queen died heirless just days later. Alderaan’s parliament soon became deadlocked on which of the noble houses should inherit the throne. When one of the houses sought to settle the matter through a show of force, civil war broke out on all fronts.
Adding fuel to the fire, one of Alderaan’s forgotten houses has now returned with Imperial backing to claim its rightful place, and the Republic has begun funneling support to the honorable House Organa. Though neither superpower has troops on the ground, Alderaan could become the tinderbox that sparks a return to a galaxy-spanning war. Still, no matter how violent and chaotic the political climate may become, the legacy of the planet’s rich history and its sheer environmental beauty make Alderaan a breathtaking place to behold. The question lies in whose hands this treasure will eventually end up…
BALMORRA
ASTROLOGICAL REGION
Colonies Region
ALLEGIANCE
Independent
STATUS
Occupied by the Empire
TERRAIN
War-torn Plains
KEY FACTS
The Sith Empire has taken a special interest in the manufacturing facilities on Balmorra, but a local resistance stands between them and full occupation.
BALMORRA: ON THE EDGE OF ALL-OUT WAR
Few places in the galaxy have seen the peace promised by the Treaty of Coruscant so thoroughly cast aside as the world of Balmorra. Fiercely independent, this long time ally of the Republic has led the galaxy in advanced droid and weapons manufacturing. Now Balmorra’s workers live and suffer under a full Imperial occupation force.
Soon after Balmorra was colonized, in the infancy of the Republic, it became a haven for some of the most prolific manufacturers of fearsome weaponry and battle droids in the known galaxy. These terrible military assets, combined with the planet’s strategic location close to the Core Worlds, kept Balmorra in a constant state of war. Setting its sights on the weapons of war manufactured on the planet, the Sith Empire resolved to take Balmorra, and in answer the Galactic Republic sent soldiers to aid the Balmorrans in their fight to preserve their independence.
As the war tore on and continued to spread, the strained Republic could no longer afford to spend its forces on Balmorra. Wave after wave of Republic troops were pulled off of the world for redeployment elsewhere in the galaxy, until finally, in accordance with the Treaty of Coruscant, the Republic was forced to officially end its support of Balmorra. A small, underground Republic force was left on the planet to aid their Resistance, but the Balmorrans knew the truth of it; they had been abandoned. Even so, the Empire was still unable to take full control of Balmorra.
Now, years after the treaty, a regrouped and rebuilt Republic is testing the limits of their fragile peace with the Empire, sending back the reinforcements they had pulled off the planet years before. Although the Balmorrans are accepting of Republic help, they do little to hide their resentment at having been abandoned years before. Meanwhile, the Sith Empire is escalating their presence on the planet, determined to claim Balmorra’s weapons, and put an end to this conflict once and for all.
Coruscant
Core Worlds
ALLEGIANCE
Republic
STATUS
Capital of the Republic
TERRAIN
Cityscape
KEY FACTS
Sacked by the Sith Empire several years ago, Coruscant is still recovering. Many sectors in the lower levels have fallen under gang control.
CAPITAL OF THE REPUBLIC
At the center of the galaxy, the gleaming towers of Coruscant symbolize the power and prosperity of Republic civilization—the result of thousands of years of progress and democracy. Coruscant has been capital of the Republic since its founding more than twenty thousand years ago. Home to the Supreme Chancellor and the Galactic Senate, Coruscant is the most politically prominent planet in the galaxy.
Protected by the legendary Jedi Order, Coruscant has always been the galaxy’s safest haven for law abiding citizens. All who would come in peace and partnership are welcome, and hundreds of alien species and star systems have come to be represented on Coruscant over time. These varied influences have made Coruscant the ultimate metropolis—a planet where anyone and everyone can find somewhere they belong.
Sitting at the zero point for hyperspace coordinates, Coruscant acts as the hub for all the galaxy’s trade routes. Though the city-world is without natural resources, it has long relied on member systems and allies to supply the raw goods for the population’s growth and prosperity. Though it has faced many difficulties in its long history, Coruscant has ever developed in a positive arc.
Despite the Republic’s initial losses in the Great War, the Jedi successfully repelled the Sith Empire’s attacks on the Core Worlds. Citizens believed they were safe on Coruscant, and for many, that led to an idyllic hope that the Republic would win the war. That hope was shattered when the Sith deceived the Republic’s leaders, sacked Coruscant, and destroyed the Jedi Temple.
Since the Treaty of Coruscant, the Senate has been forced to make difficult decisions on prioritizing the Republic’s resources. Focus has been put on shoring up defenses in the border worlds and rebuilding only the parts of Coruscant critical to governance and trade. Large parts of the city-world still remain in ruins, and many sectors have fallen under gang control.
Ultimately, the state of Coruscant is the state of the Republic—impressive and imperfect at the same time. Like the Republic as well, though, the strength of Coruscant lies not in its structures and systems, but in its people.
Tython
ASTROGRAPHICAL REGION
Deep Core
ALLEGIANCE
Galactic Republic
STATUS
Largely Unexplored
TERRAIN
Mountains and forests
KEY FACTS
Ancient home world of the Jedi
Where the Force was first discovered.
Mystical scholars gathered on the harsh and mysterious world of Tython millennia ago to begin the first studies of the Force, but controversy among the scholars’ ranks created a cataclysm which nearly destroyed the planet. A small group of survivors fled to another star system, put their dark past behind them, and founded the Jedi Order.
Thousands of years passed, and the true legacy of Tython was forgotten.
Rediscovering the planet early in the Great War, the modern Jedi began exploring the mysteries of Tython’s history, and learning much about the earliest Force users.
When the Empire sacked Coruscant and destroyed their long-standing Temple, the Jedi Council chose to rebuild the Temple on Tython and train a new generation of Jedi to battle the Sith menace. They soon discovered, however, that Tython’s mystical power carried its own dark legacy, a pervasive taint of unknown origins…
KORIBAN
ASTROGRAPHICAL REGION
Imperial-controlled Outer Rim
ALLEGIANCE
Sith Empire
STATUS
Tightly controlled by the Sith
TERRAIN
Red, rocky desert
KEY FACTS
Original home world of the Sith
Homeworld of the Sith
The earliest Sith lived on the red, dusty planet of Korriban, determined to grow strong despite the inhospitable climate. Their success culminated in a bold civilization, made stronger when dark Force-users arrived and interbred after being driven out of the early Jedi Order. This ancient Sith civilization eventually became a superpower and challenged the Republic during the Great Hyperspace war. Their defeat drove a handful of survivors into deep space where they regrouped and rebuilt, determined to return.
Over time, the new Sith Empire lost its way back to Korriban, until a visit a few centuries ago by two Jedi returning from the Mandalorian wars. Turned to the dark side, the two Jedi, Revan and Malak, attempted to reclaim the Sith’s legacy in the known galaxy, but turned on each other and self-destructed.
The true Sith Empire, governed by a thousand-year-old Dark Emperor, wisely waited, and returned to the known galaxy only when completely prepared to defeat the Jedi and the Republic.
Retaking the holy planet of Korriban as a top priority, the Sith re-established the glorious Sith Academy and began training a new generation of Sith to inherit their dark legacy and seize their birthright as the true rulers of the galaxy.
Hutta
ASTROGRAPHICAL REGION
Hutt Space
ALLEGIANCE
Neutral
STATUS
Over-industrialized; Polluted
TERRAIN
Swamps and Industrial wasteland
KEY FACTS
Also known as Nal Hutta, this is where the Hutt Crime Cartels originated
WHERE HUTT GANGSTERS GO TO RELAX
In Huttese, the name translates into “Glorious Jewel”, and the planet more commonly called Nal Hutta is considered a paradise to the gluttonous tastes of the Hutts. To anyone else, though, the planet is a living nightmare—a disgusting and dangerous place to visit, and an unthinkable place to live. Current Underworld slang has shortened the name to a simple ‘Hutta’—a place where more civilized people threaten to send their children if they misbehave.
Before the creation of the Republic, Hutta was controlled by the native Evocii, a relatively primitive race who made the mistake of engaging in extensive business deals with the Hutts, ignoring rumors of their legendary greed. Centuries later, the Evocii realized their mistake too late—their entire civilization was mortgaged. When the Hutts’ home-world of Varl later became polluted and uninhabitable, the Hutts collected on the Evocii’s debts, becoming rulers of the planet.
In the thousands of years since, the Hutts have subjugated the Evocii—they live in slavery and squalor while the Hutts’ insatiable pursuit of wealth pollutes the planet. Hutta has become the breeding grounds for the powerful Hutt families who control competing crime cartels that operate across the galaxy. Though petty vendettas keep them in constant conflict with one another, the Hutts have remained neutral in the long-running war between the Republic and the Sith Empire, keeping their world exactly as they like it.
The Hutts are the lords of Hutta’s demented society, and all other races, even official foreign emissaries, are seen as expendable fodder in the Hutts’ bloated, wormlike eyes. Even the most infamous bounty hunters are hesitant to venture on the Hutts’ home-turf, and no sane person would ever come to Hutta willingly without the most crucial need.
Ord Mantell
ASTROGRAPHICAL REGION
Mid Rim
ALLEGIANCE
Galactic Republic
STATUS
Embroiled in civil war
TERRAIN
Saltwater seas and Islands
KEY FACTS
Despite the planet's status as a critical Republic military outpost, the local government is controlled by criminal elements
Volcanic Islands And Sprawling Plains
The mountainous plains and volcanic islands of Ord Mantell are littered with the ravages of a ruthless civil war. Republic forces are fighting elusive separatists who are conducting guerilla style strikes against both military and civilian targets. Adding questions to an already questionable situation, the planet’s government, though loyal to the Republic, is merely a puppet regime for underworld concerns.
Corellian colonists settled Ord Mantell nine thousand years ago, and the planet became a staging point for Republic military operations in the Outer Rim. Ord Mantell’s strategic value waned over the centuries, however, and after a corrupt admiral sold off the local fleet, the military all but abandoned the planet. Ord Mantell soon became a haven for smugglers, pirates, and bounty hunters, and the local government fell under the sway of the crime syndicates—a dynamic that remains in place to this day.
Though largely uncontested during the war between the Republic and the Sith Empire, things changed after the Treaty of Coruscant. Though many star systems withdrew from the Republic, Ord Mantell’s corrupt governors decided it was better business to stay loyal. Not all of the planet’s populace agreed, however, and a separatist movement began and quickly escalated into an armed conflict.
The marauders began a hit-and-run war to drive the military off the planet and achieve independence. Over the last two years, the separatist attacks have ravaged the landscape and de-stabilized the corrupted government. Despite the difficult situation, Ord Mantell’s defenses are being bolstered. Crime syndicates backing the local government are bringing in potent black-market technologies from Nar Shaddaa, and the Republic is deploying its most elite forces.
The battle for Ord Mantell is just beginning.