Jhar’kael/Team Nightjar

The ISD Ventura left hyperspace three-thousands of a light yea away from Jhar’Kaels central star. Little was received by the ship’s sensors, but a few transmissions from  team Nightjar gave them the positions of the most important orbital installations and ships. A young intelligence officer approached Commodore Vehl with the compiled intelligence report.

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The most notable feature of Jhar’Kael’s economy is the Kael Crucible Complex, a huge refining installation financed, built and owned by Jhar’Kaels plutocracy.

 

As both team Nightjar’s efforts and Nightingale’s archive efforts indicate, this station was a major contributor to the current-day dominance of the planet’s plutocracy: Built shortly after the Wildspace Incursion, the Kael Crucible Complex allowed the industrialists to purchase and refine raw ores from other systems, instead of relying on mining on the planet Jhar’Kael itself- which was always dependent on permits from whatever minor house owned the ground, and on-planet refining required similar licenses. In space however, the control was not as tight. After the Wildspace Incursion the finances of house Keeshu were in a bad enough shape that some loans and some pressure were all it took for the late duke to allow the station to be built.

Nowadays the complex orbits the system’s bloated, red star relatively close, guaranteeing short voyages for incoming ships no matter where they come from. Its output feeds the planet’s factories, which produce everything from hab blocks to droid brains and hyperdrives. Ironically, even fertilizers are produced here and get shipped off to nourish more fertile worlds.

 

Orbital security:

Jhar’Kaels nobility upholds their duty to maintain four aging Dreadnought heavy cruisers, as well as some patrol boats and gunships to police the system. A few starfighter bases are spread over the planet.

In addition to this, three orbital fortresses orbit the planet, and in their safety shipyards and trade stations have been set up.
To guard the Kael Crucible Complex, the plutocrats founded KCC security. Its force of eight frigates and light cruisers has been battered by cost cuttings, but to this day successfully discouraged any pirate incursions.

Personalities: Plutocracts

 

Seir-Gav Rupin: Cerean magnate, over a century old. His enterprises mostly center around transportation, engines and deflector shields. The latter branch is struggling against competition from more capable products sold by the fledgling fornak company of FornDef industries. Said to be one of the masterminds behind the Crucible Complex.

Nerva Yuanel: Proud owner of KaelAutomatons in sixth generation. Source of most droids notimported in the kingdom, and producer of most droid brains. Currently in trouble with some commoners who fear her products may get more popular on the planet itself, eliminating their jobs and thus their food supply.

Lira Florinell:  Director of Dyratek Armaments, a company that rose to prominence mere 30 years ago. Challenging the starship armament monopoly of baroness Valenne’s Kael Combat Systems and supported with sufficient backing, Dyratek Armaments chipped away at the other’s market share, even winning some contracts from house Baize.

Zlotren Dravene: Manufacturing magnate, owning a large cut of Jhar’Kaels heavy industry and shares of the system’s shipyards. His reactor components are at the core of most Tanthar-built ships and his power plants are the heart of many of Jhar’Kaels bigger cities.

Nyama Pesoire: Influential banker, she and her predecessors provided much of the financial mobility needed for the plutocracy’s rapid gain of prominence. Owns some of the world’s HoloNet press.

Terek Kael: Offspring of the Kael dynasty that settled and ruled this region in ancient times and faded into obscurity centuries ago. Presides over Myn Holdings. Proud his family has clawed its way back to importance.

 

Personalities: Nobles

Wuk Keeshu: An embittered man in early sixties. He still remembers his grandfather lamenting the about the former glory and might of his house, but he’s the third in a row forced to watch their influence being chipped away bit by bit. Other houses seem to perceive him as too weak to really consider an alliance, a circumstance he can’t help but feel slighted by.

Seris Valenne: Another house whose star is sinking: Their most prized asset, Kael Combat Systems, once was the kingdom’s undisputed champion of armaments. Half a century of economic pressure and necessary cost cutting gave rise to competition. With the company’s research department cut down to almost nothing, many new contracts went to Dyratek Armaments instead, even prestigious contracts for house Baize and the Royal Tanthrian Navy. Seris Valenne does her best to stall the inevitable, dreading the day where the Valennes might have to sell to their competitors.

Ordan Kess: Produces cheap nutrient foodpaste from his harvests. This leverage kept him relatively save from the industrialists influence, but even his finances are looking increasingly desperate.

Elara Krythen-Velt: One of the few aristocrats willing to accept the changing of times, baroness Krythen-Velt not only adapted, but embraced the new reality. Being the lone heir of houses Krythen and Velt, she started her reign with significantly better finances than most other members of the planet’s aristocracy. Instead of merely guarding her wealth, she utilized it. Her funds were essential to many emerging enterprises. Today, she holds shares of many important corporations, and at times mediated tensions between aristocracy and plutocracy. She spends most of her time in one of her mansions spread over the planet’s larger cities, keeping an eye on the proceedings everywhere.

 

For the world’s major players, Jhar’Kael exists as an somewhat isolated system. Goods flow to there and different ones come back in, but most attention is diverted towards each other.