Talchek (world)

Talchek/District 268 (Spinward Marches 1631) Milieu 1116 C7B1442-8 Starport C Routine: No Construction, Major Repair, Unrefined fuel Size 7 Medium (11,200 km, 0.70g - 0.94g) Atmosphere B Exotic (corrosive) Hydrographics 1 Dry World 10% Population 4 Moderate (60 thousand) Government 4 Representative Democracy Law 2 Low Law (no energy weapons) Tech Level 8 Pre-Stellar (superconductors)
See also	UWP
style="width: 220px; height: 250px;" Jump map from Travellermap.com
System Details
Primary	K8 V M5 V
Worlds	10
Gas Giants	1
Planetoid Belts	0
Cultural Details
Government	Representative democracy
Law Level	Low
Cultural Extension	1214
Army Size (BEs)	0
Economic Details
Technology Level	8
Economic Extension	731-5 Resources 7 Few Labor 3 Low (6 thousand) Infrastructure 1 Extremely limited Efficiency -5 Extremely poor
Importance Extension	-2
Resource Units	11
GWP (BCr)	0
World Trade Number	3
Trade Volume (MCr/year)	0
Starport Details
Classification	Class-C
Port Size	0
Building Capacity (Tons)	0
Port employees	0
Port passengers (annual)	0

Talchek has an exotic, corrosive, or insidious atmosphere with a small percentage of liquid, but not water, on the surface. The system has a population between 10,000 and 10 million, lacking the industrial base to be completely self-supporting. This world is designated an Amber Zone with an environment, laws, customs, life forms, or other conditions make it dangerous to visitors. It is a client state of Third Imperium in the District 268 Subsector of Spinward Marches Sector.

Astrography & Planetology

Talchek is a member of the Spinward Main.

Talcheck is an inhospitable world with an uncomfortable high average surface temperature (31°C), a fluorine and hydrofluoric acid atmosphere, and no surface water (the ‘oceans’ consist of liquid acid). Yet, despite its decidedly unwelcoming environment, the ease with which valuable chemical compounds could be extracted from Talchek’s corrosive atmosphere prompted the Darrians to colonize the planet around -1000. The colony was abandoned in the aftermath of the Maghiz, but the remains of a Darrian gas refinery have been preserved as an historical site.

Binary Solar System

Talchek Binary Star System

Star Name	Hierarchy	Category		Mass (Sol)	Temp (K)	Luminosity (Sol)
Talchek Primary K8 V	Primary	Main Sequence		0.5214	3000 - 3800	0.056
	Unit	Diameter	Min Distance	Hab Zone	Jump Shadow	M-Drive Limit
	AU	0.00517	0.01963	0.19 - 0.31	0.517	5.17
	Orbit #	*	*	0	1	6
Star Name	Hierarchy	Category		Mass (Sol)	Temp (K)	Luminosity (Sol)
Talchek Companion M5 V	Secondary	Main Sequence		0.331	2000 - 2900	0.007
	Unit	Diameter	Min Distance	Hab Zone	Jump Shadow	M-Drive Limit
	AU	0.00333	0.00694	0.07 - 0.11	0.333	3.33
	Orbit #	*	*	*	1	5

History & Background (Dossier)

Talcheck was uninhabited for nearly two millennia after the Darrians pulled out. It was not until 975 that new colonists from Forine (Spinward Marches 1533) began to arrive. They were sent by recently-installed Forinean dictator Chorni Norep to extract and export chemicals to home system industries -- and to rid herself of political opponents who were too prominent to "disappear" en masse. Many of the original Talchekian colonists were political and religious dissidents, and the same was true of the Forinean colony that was simultaneously being established on neighboring Elixabeth (Spinward Marches 1532).

In 989, Norep announced plans to relocate millions of Forine’s surplus population to Elixabeth. The Elixabethan colonists, fearful of being overwhelmed by masses of impoverished immigrants, resisted by means of nonviolent civil disobedience. The colonists on Talchek, inspired by this example, launched their own campaign of protest and non-violent resistance aimed at loosening the grip of Norepian oppression. Forinean military commanders in both systems were authorized to use deadly force, and several hundred colonists died as a result. However, instead of breaking colonial opposition, these incidents merely escalated the conflict to a new level as the colonists resorted to sabotage and low-intensity guerrilla warfare. Mass arrests in both systems caused thousands of colonists to be incarcerated in hastily-constructed and unsanitary military detention facilities.

Their feisty and -- at least initially -- non-violent resistance to Norep’s oppressive rule had made the colonists on Elixabeth and Talchek a cause célèbre throughout many Imperial systems in the Spinward Marches. As inmates in the Forinean military stockades began to fall ill and die in substantial numbers, calls for Imperial intervention began to be heard. The Imperial authorities, who had been antagonized by Norep’s pro-Sword Worlds rhetoric and policies, saw the situation as a welcome opportunity to clip her wings. Therefore, in mid-990, they threatened to intervene “for humanitarian reasons” if the Forinean government did not begin negotiating with the rebels under Imperial arbitration.

The peace agreement signed several months later required major concessions by both sides. The settlers on Elixabeth and Talchek had to abandon their aspirations for independence, since both systems were to remain Forinean colonies under the rule of governors appointed by the homeworld. Norep, for her part, had to grant the colonists autonomy in a broad range of “internal” policy arenas (including immigration) while retaining total control over “external” matters such as defense, and extrastellar relations and trade. Furthermore, the two colonial worlds were given representation in a newly-created ‘Forine Assembly’ that was proportionally much greater than their relative populations in comparison to that of Forine itself. Finally, in order to ensure that all parties abided by the terms of the agreement, Talchek and Elixabeth both became client states of the Imperium and an Imperial naval base was established in the latter system.

Over the century since the Imperial intervention of 990, Talchek’s inhabitants have gradually eroded the powers of the Forinean colonial government to the point where it is now merely a figurehead. In particular, they made great gains in autonomy during the period of turmoil that afflicted Forine between the assassination of Chorni Norep in 1081 and the establishment of the new ‘Council of Swords’ government late the following year. Thus, while theoretically under Forinean rule, in practical terms the Talchekians are virtually independent and live in a society whose expansive social, economic and political freedoms stand in sharp contrast to the oppressive conditions found in the homesystem. The Forinean government tolerates this situation both because its economy relies heavily upon chemical imports from Talchek and because it does not wish to antagonize the Imperium.

Travel Advisory

The IISS has designated Talchek as an Amber Zone because it is so dangerous to work and travel (especially by flying) in the planet’s highly corrosive atmosphere.

References & Contributors (Sources)

This article has a secret.

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 Far Future Enterprises or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.

• Marc Miller. The Spinward Marches (Game Designers Workshop, 1979), 18-19.
• Marc Miller. The Spinward Marches Campaign (Game Designers Workshop, 1985), 18-19.
• Marc Miller. Imperial Encyclopedia (Game Designers Workshop, 1987), 94-100. (UWP only)
• Rob Caswell. "Domain of Deneb: Sector Data." MegaTraveller Journal 3 (1992): 47-58. (UWP only)
• Dave Nilsen. The Regency Sourcebook (Game Designers Workshop, 1995), 48-49.
• Martin Dougherty, Neil Frier. Behind the Claw (Steve Jackson Games, 1998), 77.
• Mike West. The Spinward States (Avenger Enterprises, 2008), 110. (UWP only)
• Martin Dougherty. The Spinward Marches (Mongoose Publishing, 2008), .
• Martin Dougherty. Behind the Claw (Mongoose Publishing, 2019), 123-127. (UWP only)
• Peter Gray - BARD OPAL 9533
• Contributor: Vendarth