Lakou (world)

Lakou/Five Sisters (Spinward Marches 0638) Milieu 1116 E779454-7 Starport E Frontier - no facilities Size 7 Medium (11,200 km, 0.70g - 0.94g) Atmosphere 7 Standard (tainted) Hydrographics 9 Wet World 90% Population 4 Moderate (60 thousand) Government 5 Feudal Technocracy Law 4 Moderate Law (no light assault weapons) Tech Level 7 Pre-Stellar (electronics)
See also	UWP
style="width: 220px; height: 250px;" Jump map from Travellermap.com
System Details
Primary	M2 V
Worlds	13
Gas Giants	1
Planetoid Belts	0
Cultural Details
Government	Feudal technocracy
Law Level	Moderate
Cultural Extension	2135
Army Size (BEs)	0
Economic Details
Technology Level	7
Economic Extension	631-5 Resources 6 Few Labor 3 Low (6 thousand) Infrastructure 1 Extremely limited Efficiency -5 Extremely poor
Importance Extension	-3
Resource Units	9
GWP (BCr)	0
World Trade Number	2.5
Trade Volume (MCr/year)	0
Starport Details
Classification	Class-E
Port Size	0
Building Capacity (Tons)	0
Port employees	0
Port passengers (annual)	0

Lakou has a population between 10,000 and 10 million sophonts, 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 member of Third Imperium in the Five Sisters Subsector of Spinward Marches Sector and in the Domain of Deneb. Lakou, as a member world of the Third Imperium, holds the estate of an Imperial knight, a member of the Imperial Nobility charged with overseeing the world.

Astrography & Planetology

Lakou is a member of the Spinward Main.. Lakou is a member of Collace Arm.

Monostellar System

Lakou Monostellar System

Star Name	Hierarchy	Category		Mass (Sol)	Temp (K)	Luminosity (Sol)
Lakou M2 V	Primary	Main Sequence		0.44	3470 - 3560	0.0565
	Unit	Diameter	Min Distance	Hab Zone	Jump Shadow	M-Drive Limit
	AU	0.0021	0.0197	0.25 - 0.48	0.21	2.1
	Orbit #	*	*	1	0	4

History & Background (Dossier)

Settled in the aftermath of the Psionics Suppressions as a sort of last resort colony. Mostly covered by water, with most of the landmass scattered large islands and archipelagoes. Most of the land came under the domination of the colonial bureaucracy, which soon evolved into a feudal system of bickering landlords. This feudal arrangement is known as the Custodiate, and consists of an elite council of landed and hereditary peers who represent the population as a whole. The Custodiate debates and deliberates issues of common interest to all of the lords, sets taxation, maintains a common legal code and judiciary, and resolves disputes between various landlords. The Common people have no voice in government, and the Custodiate successfully derailed popular agitation during the Representational Reforms.

Lakou's economy is primarily animal husbandry and truck farming. Low population densities guaranteed that local communities would be tied to their lord’s landholds. The lack of transportation infrastructure and the indifferent attitude of their lords created isolation and separation between these communities, laying the foundation for conflict. Frequent fighting over land and water resources escalated into mini-wars engulfing entire regions of the surface.

The increase in TL, and the Representational Reforms actually exacerbated local tensions. In the last twenty years, about a dozen small wars have erupted between the most powerful landlords. Most of these attempts take the form of "filibustering" by offworld mercs who infiltrate a rival landhold, posing as seasonal workers or legitimate security troops, and launch an uprising in the name of their actual employers.

Offworld analysts doubt if this upswing in violence is merely coincidental, citing evidence of involvement by offworld speculators and opportunists. Many mercenary units involved have been of professional standing greater than what the locals need or are able to afford. If it is an offworld powerplay, by either business interests on Mirriam, or former megacorporation personnel carrying out an independent enterprise, it is have unintended side effects.

In the last five years or so, a growing proportion of the landlords' tenants and retainers have been abandoning their posts and jobs, and striking off on their own. Most of these people were originally promised land and a secure life of their own as part of their lords contractual obligations to their retainers. But the fighting coupled with their lieges tightening control over their lives has created a grassroots reaction. Calling themselves "Freeholders", these people have been seizing unused or unclaimed land, often with assistance from merc units stranded on planet after failed filibusters. The tension and conflict this has created with the ruling Custodiate adds an even more lethal layer to the world's Amber Zone rating.

References & Contributors (Sources)

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), 10-11.
• 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. (UWP only)
• Martin Dougherty, Neil Frier. Behind the Claw (Steve Jackson Games, 1998), 54.
• Mike West. The Spinward States (Avenger Enterprises, 2008), 109. (UWP only)
• Martin Dougherty. The Spinward Marches (Mongoose Publishing, 2008), .
• Martin Dougherty. Behind the Claw (Mongoose Publishing, 2019), 98-102. (UWP only)
• Peter Gray - BARD OPAL 9514