Viack

Viack is a member world of the Emissariate of Bolusca, 250 parsecs antispinward of Bolusca.

Planetary Characteristics

Viack is a class C world, the fourth planet of an F9 primary. Its orbital distance is 1.5 Boluscanomical Units (BU), giving it a year of 1.8 cycles. Gravity is fractionally higher than Boluscan standard. The atmosphere is an oxygen/nitrogen mix almost identical to Boluscan standard. Oceans cover 80% of the surface, with several continental land masses distributed around the globe. An equatorial day is 26 standard hours.

An extreme axial tilt of 34 degrees gives the planet a wide seasonal variation and limits the ideal habitable zone to equatorial latitudes. Large ice caps at both poles alternately grow and shrink over the course of the year, resulting in a widely fluctuating sea level, and driving climate dynamics that produce regular massive cyclonic storms over the oceans and almost constant rainfall in the highlands.

The population of Viack is approximately two billion, predominantly of Boluscan descent, and clustered in several large cities spread across the highlands of the largest equatorial continent.

History

Viack was discovered and colonized in the early days of the Emissariate. Although conditions were marginal compared with some other worlds, it was sufficiantly like Bolusca to attract colonists, and the population began to slowly grow.

Compared with other core worlds, however, the colony lacked a viable export, resulting in very slow economic growth. There were sufficient mineral deposits to support a local industry, and sufficient agriculture to support a population of around two billion (which is the level the population eventually stabilized at), but no surplus of either. Consequently, Viack has remained one of the more impoverished of the core worlds, though the population does enjoy all the benefits of living in a modern industrial society, and true poverty is almost unknown.

Support for the Emissariate is very low on Viack, as the population resent what they see as an unequal wealth distribution with Viack at the bottom of the heap. Travel advisories note that off-worlders with obvious money are at risk, and can expect little protection from the corrupt planetary police. More outspoken critics have called the entire world a wretched hive of scum and villainy, and make a big deal of the fact that it is the closest core world to Prison Planet.

Infrastructure

There is a spaceport adjacent to the capital, Mountain City (population 25 million, elevation 1400 metres), though traffic is unusually light for a world of Viack's population. Other cities may have ad hoc facilities for landing ships. Viack has no orbital port facility capable of handling shuttle-to-ship transfers, though there are small manned orbital stations that mainly serve as weather monitors. There is no offical teleport network used by the government or the Planetary Police.

The Fleet rarely maintains a presence in the Viack system.

Unusually among the core worlds, Viack's energy grid is not based on a fusion powersphere but is 100% generated by wave, wind, and hydro power.

Notable Individuals