Vargo (Planet)

Vargo Survey Report
Commissioned by Alexius Hawkwood
August 4994

Cathedral: Sainte Vargo of the Light (Orthodox)
Agora: Engineers
Garrison: 5
Capital: Vargo City
Jumps: 2
Adjacent Worlds: Tethys (dayside), Egg (nightside)
Solar System: Phenice, Vargo, Eurymede, Azura, Asteroid Belt, Jumpgate, Cueball
Tech: 3-5 offworlders, 3-4 natives
Human Population: 5,000,000 estimated
Alien Population: Unknown
Resources: Iron, Exotic Hardwoods
Exports: Weapons, Manufactured Goods, Natural Resources
Landscape: Vargo is an ocean world, with most of its land mass concentrated in a single island continent and numerous chains of smaller islands. Many of those islands seem to be volcanically active, and the planet experiences fierce storm systems that form over its vast oceans. Vargo also suffers from frequent meteorite impacts.

Geography

The planet known as Vargo is a water world, with oceans covering more than 92 percent of its surface. There are numerous small island chains, but the bulk of the landmass is concentrated on one continent.

Primary Continent Area: 1,993,000 square kilometers
Coastline: 9,103 miles
Population: 3,250,000 estimated
Economy: Agrarian
Climate: Temperate. Clear, hot summers in the interior, more moderateand cloudy along the coast. Cloudy, cold winters in the interior,partly cloudy and cool along the coast.
Terrain: Large, rolling hills with one primary mountain range runningnorth to south. Massive crater walls in central desert.
Elevation extremes: 0 meters at ocean to 4,718 meters in the mountains.
Natural Resources: Coal, iron ore, lead, copper.

Island Chains Area: 779,000 square kilometers
Population: 1,750,000 estimated
Economy: Agrarian
Climate: Subarctic to Tropical

Capital City Name: Vargo City
Population: 75,000 estimated
Area: 7.5 square miles
Pop. Density: 10,000 per square mile

Government

Government Type: Triumvirate
Notes: Until reclamation, Vargo was ruled by House Mercedes. All indications are that House Mercedes has ruled Vargo since the fall of the Second Republic. The hereditary leader of the house was known as the First Senator. And an elected assembly that held minor power mirrored the Second Republic senate in many details. However, there is no question that House Mercedes ruled the world. No record has been found of a House Mercedes in the Imperial Library. But secondary sources indicate there may be a connection between House Mercedes and House Juandaastas.

The Triumvirate, imposed by Imperial fiat, is administered by three Triumvirs, each representing a sphere of the powers that rule the Known Worlds. The Noble Triumvir, appointed by the Emperor, is named the Protector. The Merchant League Triumvir, elected from the planet's leading guilders, is called the Chancellor. The Church's representation in the Triumvirate is the Primate of Vargo.

Most government is invested in a Council of Keys, composed of leading nobles and churchmen on the planet. Their leader is the Lord Privy Seal, the day-to-day ruler of the planet.

Religion

Cathedral: St. Vargo of the Light.
Diocese: Shared
Notes: Until reclamation, Vargo's Church was operated by the descendents of the Second Republic era Universal Church. Early after contact was made, it became clear that the priests of the Church supported both republicanism and technology! The Patriarch deemed the entire Vargo Church heretical and expelled its priests from the Cathedral. Currently, the Orthodox sect administers services at the Cathedral, with the support of the other sects through the counsel of the Synod of Vargo.

Trade

Agora: Agora of Vargo
Products: Primarily agricultural. Grains, citrus fruits, vegetables, beef, fish, coffee and spices. Readily available processed products include olive oil, cheese, bread. Vargo City's primary industry is textiles, and the city is home to a number of textile mills. There is also a furniture industry and a strong tradition of woodcarving.
Technology: Appears to be slightly above the Known Worlds standard in some areas, lower in others. Vargo City does have a hydroelectric power station in a structure known as the Watergate. Most of the city and surrounding countryside relies on a limited supply of natural gas and olive oil for lighting purposes. The ruins of the House Mercedes holdings in Vargo City and the countryside did hold some indication of higher levels of technology, including possible Second Republic devices. Popular folk tales indicate House Mercedes may have maintained space-capable vehicles and think machines.

Garrison

Prior to reclamation, Vargo apparently had only a token standing military force. The militia was equipped with slug weapons of an ancient but deceptively sophisticated design. During reclamation, there have been occasional small-scale confrontations with this force. Intelligence reports indicate the militia still exists in fragmented form in the largely unclaimed countryside, serving the various political associations formed among the native landholders.

Currently, the Triumvirate's military needs are served by the Army of the Triumvirate. The armyconsists of levies raised from the native populace, as well as troops contributed by the various Known Worlds factions. In addition, a detachment of Imperial Fighters is stationed at Highport Station in-system. An Imperial Frigate based in Tethys makes regular sweeps through the system.

Original Name: Tern's Vista

Known History

Second Republic records found in the Imperial Library mention a world called Tern's Vista only in passing. Most of those records mention a trade route between Tethys and Tern's Vista. The final record is dated 3897. Only a few historical records have been found on Vargo. Most are believed to have been destroyed in the attack on House Mercedes or hidden away by native priests. The following is postulated from the records that have been discovered to date and is subject to change as more documents are discovered.

It is believed that Tern's Vista was settled sometime during the Diaspora, and experienced periodic conflicts with renegade Sathraists during its early history. At some point, a young woman named Vargo performed some sort of miracle and saved the colony, and the world was later renamed in her honor. At the time of the Fall, the ruling Senator Mercedes allegedly sealed Vargo's jumpgate, cutting the planet off from the rest of the Known Worlds. Current evidence suggests that the gate was not really sealed after all, only recoded by means unknown.

Yet travel through the gate during the millennium after the Fall was restricted by House Mercedes, and most of Vargo's population remained ignorant of the deception. There are indications that House Mercedes engaged in acts of piracy against the rest of the Known Worlds to sustain its rule at home. For all practical purposes, the bulk of Vargo's populas had no contact with the rest of human space the entire time. There were several periods of civil unrest and an occasional outbreak of civil war. Six famines, two plagues, and numerous major storms and earthquakes are recorded.



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