Corsair Lyceum
The Corsair Lyceum is a loose confederation located along the trailing side of Gakghang Sector, between the Pirian Domain and the Rho Cluster.
- It is near the edge of coreward Charted Space.
[edit]
| Polity | Survey | Code | Type | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No polity | Pre-Imperial | No standard code | None | |
| No polity | 1st Survey (300) | 2-ltr code | None | |
| Corsair Lyceum | 2nd Survey (1065) | CoLy | 4-ltr code | None |
NOTES: The Lyceum was unknown to the Imperial Interstellar Scout Service until 1104, but following standard practice, the above codes were retroactively added upon the Lyceum's discovery.
Description (Specifications)[edit]
The Corsair Lyceum is an alliance of systems founded on scavenging the remnants of society and wealth after the Empress Wave. It is also the name of the principle school of thought, actively promoted and taught by the government (thus the name "Lyceum", or "School"), that the citizens should take what they need from the world (thus the name "Corsair") - so long as no fellow corsair is using it. The implication that no one outside the Corsair Lyceum has any rights, property or otherwise, is somewhat concerning to neighboring polities.
Most of the worlds it claims are Die Back Worlds, which it interdicts against anyone not from the Corsair Lyceum. Any ships jumping in do so at risk of being boarded and seized. Corsair Lyceum salvage experts scour world after world looking for anything of value, that can be taken back to a still-inhabited world; only after they are done would the worlds be considered for recolonization, and as of 1105 none of their claimed barren worlds have reached this status yet. As such, they are all essentially red zoned. It is remarkably easy to take advantage of their lax internal laws and approach their populated worlds without being seized, if one has a high enough jump rating to bypass the interdicted worlds, so their populated worlds are merely amber zoned.
Most of the inhabited worlds surrounding it are actively resisting its expansion, often with sponsorship from some larger polity (mostly the Pirian Domain, with help from the Solomani Preserve, Rho Cluster, Federation of the Fused Mains, Spike Society, and even a few contributions from the Yaskoydri Technocracy). Of the local polities, only the Tijian Khaganate and the Wave Chasers are not actively opposed to the Corsair Lyceum, and even they are merely neutral.
Culture & Society (Ethnology)[edit]
There are those who say the Corsair Lyceum fundamentally misunderstands what a corsair is. The vast majority of those are sectors away from the Corsair Lyceum (having only heard about them through this and similar reports), with definitions similarly distant, and will never have the chance to tell them in person. This is for the best, as they would be rather unconvincing.
The Corsair Lyceum styles itself as a something akin to a university or a monastery that just happens to span multiple systems. Life long education is prized, as a form of value that anyone can keep taking from the universe ("plucked from between the winds", as they commonly put it). This often leans toward recovery of knowledge and capability lost to the Empress Wave more than toward original research, though the occasional truly new invention is celebrated as well.
As of 1105, there is a distinct generational split between those who survived the Empress Wave and those born afterward. The former remember the lost glories; the latter do not generally lament said past. There is a thriving artistic movement based on "found art": creating paintings and sculptures from salvaged things (there have been attempts to bring this into digital media, but these have been less successful). Recreation of past works from mostly-intact bases also happens, but more for the personal pride of reverse-engineering and repairing than for the art itself. The general attitude is that the societies that created the past works are dead; those who now live should (and do) care more about art from the now.
History & Background (Dossier)[edit]
The worlds that now form the Corsair Lyceum were generally not warned of the Empress Wave. Passing merchants distributed word, but the evidence for such an extraordinary claim was often not presented. When word was received and believed, the worlds - either independent, or in small polities (that no longer exist as of 1105) - had insufficient resources to meaningfully prepare.
This led to resentment in 1060 among survivors on Port Lyceum. Feeling abandoned by the rest of Gakghang Sector, and discovering the surviving population was roughly half-vargr, they looked to legends of vargr traditions and soon found the concept of the corsair. There were not large, vulnerable merchant convoys to raid, but there was plenty of "loot" to be had, lying undefended wherever people had died.
Salvaging began on planet, then in the system. Within the year, ships were jumping to nearby worlds, finding some depopulated and others with survivors in similar situations. The survivors they helped organize, teaching them how to salvage. The dead planets they took what they could carry from, marking the rest for later trips.
Glory to those who bring resources to share is a concept both humans and vargr share from ancient times. It lined up well in this case with vargr concepts of charisma, which the Pirian population soaked up like a sponge (already practicing it themselves, by some standards). Initial surviving populations were quite grateful, agreeing to abandon whatever prior government they had and sign on to a small set of rules binding them to the alliance.
This good luck could not hold out forever. In 1089, Fie's Teeth earned its current name by rejecting their envoys, then rejecting more forceful contact. Three years later, salvage teams sent to Vacice were repelled by teams from Chalanda, beginning a low level war that would slowly increase as every increase in resources the Lyceum poured in was matched by Chalandan forces (often "trained" or "donated" from the Pirian Domain).
By 1105 the Lyceum was fighting on a total of five worlds to further expand, which only fanned their isolationist flames. Trade through their borders was essentially halted, as they had begun seizing all inbound cargo ships (and sending none, expecting the same treatment). Each of the Pirian Domain, Solomani Preserve, Rho Cluster, Federation of the Fused Mains, and Spike Society have at one time or another officially suspected one of the others or the Tijian Khaganate of setting up and funding this obstacle.
Language & Letters (Communication)[edit]
Anglic is their official language.
Worlds & Sectors (Astrography)[edit]
This polity can be primarily found in the following areas:
Charted Space:
Capital/s: 1105[edit]
The capital/s of this polity is/are located in the following location/s:
World Listing: 1105[edit]
The following systems and worlds are a part of this polity:
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References & Contributors (Sources)[edit]
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- Traveller Wiki Editorial Team
- Author & Contributor: Adrian Tymes