Grimhold
Grimhold is a planetoid located within the Underzone, notable as a waystation and trading post for passing traffic, and as a pirate haven before that.
Conditions on Grimhold's surface are that of a permanent starless night, broken only by the red glows of a few exit Jumpgates and, in modern times, the lights of an occasional settlement or city. While its rocky crust is rich in metals, volatiles such as ice, nitrogen, and oxygen are extremely scarce, existing only in a few scattered deposits. This was one factor which drove the inhabitants of Grimhold to piracy during the Dark Ages.
The Final Wars came as a shock, throwing Grimhold into isolation as trade broke down and civilization-collapse set in. Utterly dependent on imports, much of the population died off and the survivors turned to scavenging to maintain their life-support systems. After this came the formation of the infamous "Reaver" pirate bands whose outriders roamed the Underzone throughout the rest of the Dark Ages, looting wrecks and preying upon the few ships venturing in from the outside universe.
After the Reavers' defeat, and Grimhold's reform into a civilian government, the planet regained its role as a trade hub in the Unified Era. Despite that, its seedy reputation continues, as one of the few permanent colonies in the Underzone and an isolated place where one can conduct all manners of transaction far from the eyes of the law.
Planetary Characteristics
A small world with a surface gravity of 0.43g and no atmosphere to speak of, scientists theorize Grimhold is the former core of a gas-giant moon, somehow transported into the Underzone by its builders hundreds of millions of years ago and stripped of its ice crust to leave the rocky center.Conditions on Grimhold's surface are that of a permanent starless night, broken only by the red glows of a few exit Jumpgates and, in modern times, the lights of an occasional settlement or city. While its rocky crust is rich in metals, volatiles such as ice, nitrogen, and oxygen are extremely scarce, existing only in a few scattered deposits. This was one factor which drove the inhabitants of Grimhold to piracy during the Dark Ages.
History
Settlement of Grimhold originates in the mid-Second Interstellar Period, not long after the Underzone's discovery. It slowly rose to prominence as a hub for trade between the stargate networks of the Human Sphere and Glorious Empire, gathering a semi-permanent population despite its harsh conditions.The Final Wars came as a shock, throwing Grimhold into isolation as trade broke down and civilization-collapse set in. Utterly dependent on imports, much of the population died off and the survivors turned to scavenging to maintain their life-support systems. After this came the formation of the infamous "Reaver" pirate bands whose outriders roamed the Underzone throughout the rest of the Dark Ages, looting wrecks and preying upon the few ships venturing in from the outside universe.
After the Reavers' defeat, and Grimhold's reform into a civilian government, the planet regained its role as a trade hub in the Unified Era. Despite that, its seedy reputation continues, as one of the few permanent colonies in the Underzone and an isolated place where one can conduct all manners of transaction far from the eyes of the law.
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