Askigaak (world)

E549AA8-B

Starport	E	Frontier - no facilities
Size	5	Medium (8,000 km, 0.40g - 0.57g)
Atmosphere	4	Thin (tainted)
Hydrographics	9	Wet World 90%
Population	A	High (90 billion)
Government	A	Charismatic Dictator
Law	8	High Law (controlled blades)
Tech Level	B	Average Stellar (large starships)

Era: New Era

Askigaak is an industrial world with a tainted atmosphere. The system has a population over one billion. It is a member of Regency of Deneb in the Star Lane Subsector of Deneb Sector. This is the homeworld of the Sigka, a Minor Race.

Description (Astrography & Planetology)[edit]

This small, cold aquatic world is the home to a huge population of native Sigka.
This world is part of the namesake Askigaak Loop.

Stellar Data[edit]

Askigaak has a solitary primary star.

Type	Category		Mass (Sol)	Temperature (K)	Luminosity
M1 V	Main Sequence (Dwarf)		0.5	3620 - 3660	0.08839
Unit	Diameter	Safe Distance	Habitable Zone	Jump Shadow	M-Drive Limit
AU	0.0047	0.0247	0.31 - 0.59	0.47	4.7
Orbit #	*	*	1	1	6
Remarks

System Data[edit]

Lurent planetoid ships may be found, trading, in the inner system or in the system’s Oort clouds, refuelling.

Mainworld Data[edit]

Askigaak orbits towards the outer edge of its star's habitable zone.

It receives relatively low levels of stellar energy.

Mainworld Size (S)[edit]

Askigaak is a Meso World between 7,200km and 8,800km in diameter. The world has a standard gravity between 0.4G and 0.57G. The horizon will appear about 4km away.

Mainworld Atmosphere (A)[edit]

Askigaak has a pressure of 0.43 to 0.70 atmospheres. While the thin atmosphere does not require survival gear this atmosphere also contains an unusual taint such as disease, a hazardous gas mix, pollutants, or sulfur compounds which requires the use of a Filter Mask. Some taints may require more protective equipment. TL–3 or more advanced survival gear is required to settle this world.

It experiences low temperatures.

Mainworld Hydrosphere (H)[edit]

Askigaak has 85-95% of its surface covered by liquid water with a few small continents, and a number of islands and archipelagos. Dry land is limited. Wilderness refueling is possible.

Mainworld Geography & Topography[edit]

The surface of Askigaak is bitterly cold, and its world-ocean frequently freezes over in the wintering hemisphere. However the seafloor is bisected by thousands of hot spots and volcanic plumes that prevent the world from completely freezing over, and are rich sources of geothermal energy and minerals.

Native Lifeforms[edit]

Askigaak is a relatively old world, and most of its surface life has become extinct, and the oceanic life is dependent upon geothermal heat sources for survival.

The oceans of Askigaak are home to the Sachupe, large, voracious predators which continually chase -- and feed on -- Sigka colonies.

Native Sophont (NIL): Sigka[edit]

Askigaak is notable as the homeworld of the technologically adept Sigka, an aquatic Minor Race. The Sigka have a thriving industrial complex and can be found throughout the Starlane Subsector. Sigka are friendly toward outsiders and offworlders and their hospitality is well-established. First contact was made by the IISS early in the Third Imperium period. One of the most important meetings of the first contact mission was the signing of a treaty with the Imperium, which the Sigka themselves drew up with enthusiasm. Askigaak quickly became an important world for the development of the Imperium in the Deneb and Spinward Marches sectors.

History & Background (Dossier)[edit]

Comp-Prog-Dav-R-Deitrick-Starter-Trav-Page-16 16-July-2018a.jpg

Imperial Landed Nobility[edit]

Askigaak, as a member world of the Third Imperium, holds the estate of an Imperial Landed Knight who acts as an Imperial representative to the world, and the fiefdom of a member of the Imperial Landed Nobility, who oversees affairs regarding the world at an Interstellar and Imperial level.

It holds the estate of an Imperial knight, the Imperial representative to the world.
It holds the fiefdom of an Imperial count.
See: Nobles of Askigaak

World Starport[edit]

Askigaak has a Class E Starport, a frontier quality installation with few expected amenities. There is unrefined fuel for starships and a limited variety of ship provisions. There is no shipyard of any kind, but there may be parts and technical support for doing minor services and repair. Ports of this classification generally consist of a downport.

World Population (P)[edit]

Askigaak has a population of 90,000,000,000 sophonts (tens of billions).

High Population Worlds like this tend to have huge consumer markets.
Most of the population consists of Sigka, swimming the oceans in massive communities.

World Technology Level[edit]

Askigaak possesses a Technology Level of TL–11 or TL-B in Hexadecimal Notation.

Common Communication technologies for this TL include: Holovision, Personal Global Communications, and advanced Translators.
Common Power Generation technologies for this TL include: Increasingly advanced fusion plants and advanced fuel cells.
Common Transportation technologies for this TL include:
- Land, Water & Air: Personal G-Tubes and advanced gravcraft.
- Space: Advanced interplanetary spacecraft (System Craft).
- FTL: Jump Drive-2.

World Government[edit]

Askigaak is governed by a Charismatic Dictatorship. Charismatic governments justify their ability to rule by simply asserting their right to rule. Charismatic dictatorships are typically young governments, coming as a recent change, and rely on the leader(s) to supply head of government.

The world is the seat of the independent County of Askigaak, one of the three powers found in Star Lane.

World Economy[edit]

When Askigaak was first surveyed in 58, the world was found to be a rich source of mineral ores and other resources necessary for the Imperium's expansion into the Spinward Marches. Star Lane was the main connector to the Spinward Main, and the world's close proximity would allow its factories and mines to supply the colonization effort with little pain. Unfortunately, this interest petered out after the rise of competing industrial centers in nearby Sabine Subsector in the 400s, and Askigaak became the backwater king of a backwater subsector.

Al Morai established subsidized merchant service to Askigaak by 385.

World Culture[edit]

No information yet available.

Alternative Information[edit]

Alternative Data (click to reveal)

The current cities resemble huge industrial facilities, minimalist and functional in appearance and design. The population lives in small, closet-like apartments, organized around a central life support plant, known as Wards. Local government is brutally simple; an overseer is elected or appointed to govern all aspects of life for a community Ward, and their word traditionally is life or death. Because of the natural warmth of close proximity to other people, many wards are actually extended families, and the Overseer is a patriarch/matriarch of advanced age and recognized wisdom. The locals rarely do anything outside of their family, and usually travel or entertain themselves in groups. Conformity is heavily stressed, even more so than normal for Vilani culture, and the population wears bland but well insulated uniforms that communicate their status in their families.

With few outlets for creativity or dissatisfaction, local politics becomes the main means of entertainment and individual expression. While nominally ruled by the ducal seat (which has been under the control of the Tukera family since the Alkhalikoi ascension), real government is a "Feuding" Technocracy of bureaucratic managers, civic leaders and local family overseers. Despite the huge size of the population, allegiances and loyalties are complex and convoluted. The swirling alliances of different wards are contests for control over vital industrial facilities, particularly high value sites like offworld exports and starport concessions, and vital government jobs and postings. Political contests are decided by majority elections and votes in the assembly overseen by the Duke, but enormous amounts of intrigue go into creating a majority consensus among wards and their voters, with factions promising patronage jobs and political payoffs to potential supporters.
As a result most government officials are highly corrupt, though bribery and meddling by offworlders are not tolerated. Local crime is nonexistent, and offworld perpetrators are subject to lengthy sentences for trivial crimes. Local offenders are usually outcast into the local wilderness, where they usually perish from exposure or hunger, being spurned by the entire community. Such exile is of limited duration, and those who survive the ordeal are eventually forgiven and reintegrated into the community as heroes.

World Demographics

As was the case with many first wave colonizations into Deneb Sector, the first colonists were mostly Vilani. While later waves brought larger groups of Solomani, the frigid climate and shortage of fuels and food guaranteed that the cooperation centered Vilani culture would predominate and be practiced by the new arrivals. Land shortages and a runaway birth rate caused major overcrowding that was partially alleviated by terraforming of new islands. But most of the population lived in oceanic habitats that sacrificed most amenities as expensive luxuries after the world was bypassed by Imperial commerce. Like Ashasi the locals are aloof from most offworld contact, but where it is pride for Ashasians, it is simple survival for 'Gaaks.
The large population is a sign of their success at surviving on their world. But it overstrains the local ecosystem, and the population is even more dependent upon artificial life support than before. Food is fungus or genetically modified algae grown in large vats on wastes and sewage. Though crude and unappetizing, it is never in short supply no matter how large the population has grown. More damaging is the unchecked dumping of industrial wastes into the local air and water; the world is no longer capable of naturally filtering pollution, and the water and air are not fit for normal consumption. The reliance upon geothermal heat sources and labor intensive industry create most of this pollution, as does inadequate sewage treatment.
At 90 billion, it is the most populated world in the subsector.

Historical Data

Since the Collapse, and the subsequent invasion of the Kishkii in 1139, Askigaak has been elevated by the Industrial Development Program into a very important industrial world. Because of its massive population, updated education programs would create a very large number of skilled workers and professional personnel desperately needed by the Regency for its war against Virus. Development has been slowed by local politics, and despite major progress, the world has fallen well short of its potential. The education and development programs were originally tailored towards individual initiative, and clashed head on with the local consensus based society. Despite this the world has become home to a number of vital military industries, including the Regency government shipyards of Plant 60 and 61. Progression to TL-15 is steady, with attainment in around twenty years.

Since 1186, the Askigaaki government has been negotiating with Aziziyah and Rimkuku in the hopes of appropriating them as colonies to stem continuing overcrowding. Initially it was hoped to relocate up to half of the population, but resistance from the population, technical and economic limitations, and the coincidence of the Frontier's reopening has reduced this to perhaps a few billion to each world in the next quarter century.

References & Contributors (Sources)[edit]

This article is missing content for one or more detailed sections. Additional details are required to complete the article. You can help the Traveller Wiki by expanding it.

This list of sources was used by the Traveller Wiki Editorial Team and individual contributors to compose this article. Copyrighted material is used under license from Mongoose Publishing or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.

Rob Caswell. "Domain of Deneb: Sector Data." MegaTraveller Journal 3 (1992): 47-58.
Dave Nilsen. The Regency Sourcebook (Game Designers Workshop, 1995), 60.
Peter Gray - Traveller TNE Mailing List High Population Worlds of Deneb Sector Part 3 published 9 October 2001
Mongoose Traveller: Deneb Sector (UWP only)
External Link: Sunbane data

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