Cormorant Principality

Wjire Kavou

The Cormorant Principality, known locally as the Wjire Kavou (House of Kawau), is a dynastic principality consisting of three relatively prosperous systems, located within the Urea Nebula and the sector of the same name. It is one of the states to emerge from the nebula following the Cataclysm, ruled over by a line of monarchs who have positioned themselves as benevolent protectors of the realm and thus far have promoted the general welfare of subjects of the realm, and the resulting work of those subjects has created one of the most diverse and prospoerous states near the Wild Frontier. However, the Principality frequently finds itself locked into conflict with the other two nations in the nebula, the Urean Kingdom and the Spinward Urean Republic.

Culture

The culture of the Cormorant Republic is fairly unique. Having been established by multinational corporations instead of by the charter of a national governate, people from all over the world were included in the settlement process, though a majority came from Central Europe and the Pacific Islands of Old Earth. These cultures would blend to a large extent throughout the history of the region. Similarly, the colonization process has bred a strong sense of independence, which has become a major component of national identity for citizens of the principality. Peoples of Cormorant Principality tend to be self-reliant and competitive, valuing their own strength, though this is tempered by a strong sense of fair play.

History

The worlds of the inner Urea Nebula were settled in the middle of the Second Expansion. As the settlement craze after the discovery of the Pardian civilization passed, many of the worlds of the nebula were colonized. Unlike with other colonial efforts of the era, the settlement of the inner Urea Nebula was a private venture with two large corporations, Allimany Holdings, and the Urea Colonial Corporation being the primary sponsors of the effort. Worlds in the nebula were not terraformed fully before settlement, and the area was difficult to traverse even with the most advanced jump drives of the day. The isolation and hostility of the worlds of early Urea made life difficult for the colonists, resulting in the development of a staunchly independent culture among them. The initial corporate backers found themselves bought out by colonists who quickly outperformed expectations and leveraged their economic power to buy their colonial charter. The region would weather the Era of Despair and the Third Great Human Civil War fairly well, owing to its isolation. Despite the region's economic utility, it remained difficult to exercise hard power within it. Siding with the Frentierists, the Urean systems were on the winning side of the conflict; however, the newly founded Stellar League, seeing the relative prosperity of the region, began to exert greater control over it. Many aspects of Urean society and economics were regularized with the wider league, to mixed results. It was in this era that a number of new, powerful corporations, often established in the region, were established and began to dominate the area. In the last days of the Age of Unity, the Urean region began to fall behind the other areas of Civilized Space, due to the difficulty of jumping within the region. One corporation, Kawau Heavy Industry, would become a major player; however, with its owners, the Kawau family becoming the wealthiest people in the region. Urea weathered the Jred Scourge fairly well, its relative isolation making the area safe from even the furthest Jred attacks, with only fairly modest refugee influxes. After The Great Cataclysm shattered interstellar civilization, however, the Urea Sector, though less severely impacted than other areas of Civilized Space, found itself again forced to rely on itself. In response to this, Anaru Kawau, along with a number of other famous technocrats, held a conference on the Tachi System (modern Coromadia). Upon its completion, Tachi, Aurigia, and Haichi (modern Coromadia, Aurigia, and Aranea) are confederated into the Cormorant Principality, with Anaru Kawau establishing himself as first Grand Prince Anaru I. After its establishment, the Cormorant Principality sought to consolidate its holdings, embarking on a massive program of rebuilding infrastructure. Through the concerted efforts of the state, under the reign of a line of fortunately benevolent monarchs, the principality quickly established itself as the most developed of the emerging interstellar states in the Urea Sector. Conflict would arise, however, when the sector government, rebranded as the Urean Kingdom, sought to establish control over the Principality. The limited militaries available to both states, however, meant that wars quickly shrank in scope, this status quo later being enforced by treaty with small skirmishes being used to settle disputes between the two states. Though this periodic war would destabilize the Principality, the new status quo has since been maintained.

Demography and Population

The Cormorant Principality is comparatively well developed and compact for an interstellar state and thus maintains a relatively accurate census for citizens of the realm, particularly in comparison to its immediate neighbors. According to the most recent data available, the population of the Cormorant Principality runs in the upper billions, with the bulk of this population concentrated in the Aranea System, though both Coromadia and Aurigia also maintain sizable populations of their own. The settlement contract for the systems that would make up the Cormorant Republic was given to a strange mix of Central European and Pacific States, and as a result, the bulk of the population originates from these regions of Old Earth. The fallout of the Jred Scourge and The Great Cataclysm has resulted in a broader mixing of peoples within the Principality.

Territories

The Cormorant Principality is a relatively small interstellar state spanning three parsecs of space entirely within the Urea Sector. The principality lays claim only to areas of space containing a populated system under its control, and as a result, none of the principality's territories can be considered "empty space." The House of Kawau has not seen fit to expand its territory any further, so it maintains its relatively compact size. Each of the main worlds under the principality's command can be said to be a relatively prosperous, civilized world with relatively pleasant environments and of development at least roughly equivalent to the later days of Early Spaceflight.

Military

The Cormorant Principality maintains a fairly small army for this size of the state, relying almost exclusively on a class of soldiers that borders on hereditary. This class of professional soldiers forms the backbone of the principality's expeditionary capability, as well as serving as the primary defensive force. In times of need, a levy can be called to fill in the numbers of this small army. Due to the unique sociological and technological of societies in the Urea Nebula, the military of the Principality is geared towards a highly ritualized form of warfare that isn't seen in most of the galaxy, settling disputes with small groups of grav-powered combat walkers known as Lancers dueling against one another, ideally in such a manner where their lance serves as the primary weapon. This has resulted in a highly specialized military of unknown value against more traditional militaries.

Technological Level

The Cormorant Republic, while not especially advanced on the galactic scale, is the most technologically advanced nation within the Urea Nebula. Each member system maintains at least Fusion age technology, and for the most part, maintains interstellar levels of technology. Though technological uplift is not a primary concern of the throne, understanding of technology and the advancement of the industrial base has continued steadily since the Long Night, resulting in steadily improving living conditions.

Religion

The Cormorant Republic is formally a secular nation that allows its citizens to practice any religion or no religion, if they so choose. In practice, however, Opus Dei has become the dominant religious force in the wake of the cataclysm. In particular, a strange form of Opus Dei, unique to the Urea Nebula has arisen. This sect is more willing to overlook what could be considered perversions of the Great Work, so long as the design is fundamentally human in origin. This has allowed the sanction of grav-enhanced combat walkers and the lance, among other uniquely Urean technology. Traditional religions have also taken root in the Republic, with indigenous Pacific religions having seen something of a revival within the Principality.

Foreign Relations

The Cormorant Principality is somewhat isolated from the rest of the galaxy. As a result, its primary relationships are with its neighboring Urean states. Here, the situation is unique, the Principality finds itself in a frequent cycle of conflict with the Urean Kingdom and Spinward Urean Reubpic. However, settling disputes is resolved primarily through ritualized combats rather than open warfare leading to a relatively stable cycle of peace, building tensions, and a series of Lancer duels to release the tension. Outside of this relationship the Principality maintains distant relations with other states.

Laws

The Cormorant Principality is broadly considered to have low law levels, with a broadly libertine legal system. Within the principality carriage of weapons, even up to most military arms is legal, and often encouraged, and practice of psionics is freely allowed. Controls on most activities are loose at best with one notable exception, the throne is permissive of most things, but threats to its existence are not allowed, even relatively indirect threats. This has resulted in a number of unaware visitors getting in significant trouble for something they expected was safe.

Agriculture & Industry

The Cormorant Principality is a largely self-sustaining state, with sufficient agricultural and industrial output to ensure the needs of its own citizens are well met, and to provide a modest surplus for export to the wider galaxy. Coromadia and Aurigia are relatively healthy agriculturally focused garden worlds that nonetheless sustain themselves industrially, and Aranea is a highly productive industrial world that also serves as the main importer of the food produced on other the Principality's other constituent worlds. The Principality has started to recover from the impacts of the Long Night, and has developed a technical base that is superior to that typical of an SBT dependant state, but is quite strange with a number of technologies largely unique to the Principality and its neighbors.

Education

The Cormorant Principality maintains relatively high and near universal standards of education throughout its small realm. Schools are decentralized and highly digitized, with students encouraged to be self-reliant and independence is encouraged as students move through a broad array of courses in the humanities and the sciences, as well as more vocational studies. Schools in the Principality also strongly encourage physical fitness, and athletic competitions between schools is common.

Infrastructure

The Cormorant Republic is a highly developed state in terms of infrastructure. Thanks to support from the Galactic Surveyor's Guild, and the relative intactness of the Principality's member worlds after The Great Cataclysm, rebuilding the Jumpgate network was relatively easy. As a result every member system of the Principality is connected to the network. Aside from this each member world maintains strong interstellar infrastructure in the form of starports, and strong local infrastructure networks.