Vannes

Vannes
Vannes 3151.svg
System Information
X:Y Coordinates−167.474 : 548.318[e]
Spectral classK0V[1]
Recharge time191 hours[1]
Recharge station(s)None[1]

Vannes is a system approximately 573 light-years coreward of Terra.

System Description[edit]

Vannes is located near the Fredotto and Ingvolstand systems.

System History[edit]

The Vannes system was a part of the Apollo Province of the Rim Worlds Republic.[2]

Political Affiliation[edit]


Vannes I[edit]

Vannes I
Astrophysical
System positionFirst[1]
Jump Point distance5.48 days[1]
Moons1 (Cartagia)[1]
Geophysical
Surface gravity0.90[1]
Atmospheric pressureStandard (Thin)[1]
Equatorial temperature28°C (Mild-Temperate)[1]
Surface water45%[1]
Highest native lifeAmphibian[1]
History and Culture
Demonym(s)Vannite[1]
Population100,000 (2890),[1]
524,000 (3095)[1]
Government and Infrastructure
Noble RulerLord Thomas Arthur Hoigart-Klaus[1]
HPG ClassNone[1]

Planetary History[edit]

Rim Worlds Republic[edit]

Vannes was a minor Rim Worlds Republic world prior to the Reunification War, and didn't even feature on the maps of the Republic used by the Star League Defense Force during the war.[3] The Republic had established an armor factory deep in the tropical jungles found around the equator and manufactured Merkava tanks there until the plant was mothballed in 2531 due to the proliferation of new armor technology across the Republic. A significant number of tanks were sealed in a large storehouse on the site and would remain unnoticed there for centuries after the plant closed.[1]

Succession Wars[edit]

A Castle Brian was established on Vannes near the city of Ubis by the SLDF and which survived the Amaris Civil War; the Castle Brian subsequently became known as "Castle Vannes" to the population. With the destruction of the Republic the population of Vannes began to drop; when pirates from the former Void Nation arrived in 2890 intent on invading the population on Vannes had dropped to just over one hundred thousand.[1]

The Void Nation pirates located the Castle Brian and swiftly seized it; although the nearby city of Ubis still survived, the population of the city had been hit by a mass plague in the 2840s, and when the Void Nation forces used the leftover technology they found within the former Republican fortress to enrich themselves and relocate the remains of their suffering nation to Vannes the remaining populace was quickly conquered.[1]

Having seized Vannes, the Voiders promptly embarked on a series of civil wars fueled by their continual paranoia and various rifts within their ranks. It wasn't until Mikel Hoigart and his Band of Black won the Fifteenth Vannes Civil War in 2910 that the Vannite Pirate Kingdom was established, and that didn't end the civil wars.[1]

The Vannite Pirate Kingdom was based solely within the Vannes system but managed to grow in strength, defending itself twice against attacks by the Empire of the Stars, who were intent on seizing Castle Vannes for themselves. Margurite Klaus, leader of the Teutonic Plague, found the mothballed tank factory near the equator in 2984, and in 2985 she used a number of reactivated Merkavas as a part of her forces when launching her bid to seize power in 2985 during the Twenty-first Vannes Civil War. The War ended with a truce between the Vannites and the Teutonics, and the marriage between Margurite Klaus and Wilhelm Hoigart effectively sealed the kingdom's hold over those pirate bands that remained within the system.[1]

Clan Invasion Era[edit]

Several Seekers from Clan Goliath Scorpion visited the Vannes system in 3056. The planetary ruler at the time was Lord Hoigart-Klaus, and he displayed a rare moment of intelligence when he elected to negotiate with the Scorpions, rather than attempting to ambush them and steal their technology. This proved a great success for Hoigart-Klaus; he allowed the Scorpions free and complete access to Castle Vannes, in exchange for which the Scorpions restored the Merkava factory to working order. The factory had served for decades as a spares warehouse and science base, but the Scorpions not only got the facility working again, they also trained a number of Vannites in how to operate and maintain the factory, allowing the Vannites to produce a handful of Merkavas every year.[1]

The Scorpions discovered and removed a number of Star League-era BattleMechs from Castle Vannes which the Vannites hadn't discovered during their occupation, although one of the 'Mechs—an ancient Talon—was left behind, a gesture that the locals interpreted as a gesture of thanks, but which research from Clan Diamond Shark decades later revealed to simply have been a consequence of the Seeker DropShip being fully laden. The Vannites were able to use the limited production from the Merkava factory to become one of the more powerful proto-nations within the Chainelane Isles, selling tanks to buyers who traveled from across the Isles for the opportunity to purchase them.[1]

The Dark Age[edit]

In 3079, merchants from Clan Diamond Shark struck a deal with the Vannites to supply them with new autocannons for their Merkava plant—autocannons that the Diamond Sharks had stripped from their storage facilities on Trondheim—and in 3084 another Diamond Shark merchant team provided the Vannites with new parts for the factory and suggestions on how to upgrade various portions of it. This led to the Vannites manufacturing improved Merkavas and increased the number of vehicles coming off the production line slightly, resulting in an influx of weapons across the Isles and a corresponding influx in tensions between the various proto-nations in the region.[1]

Having helped the Vannites improve the capabilities of their Merkava plant, the Diamond Sharks also contacted the Markham family on Fredotto to encourage the Fredottons to increase their raids against Vannes.[1]

Vannes was also visited by the Helene Collective after the Collective seized power over Ingvolstand and restored the planet to slow but steady growth; the Helenes were looking to expand their influence through trade and communication, having already established a neutral ground for trade deals on Rondane. The "selection ceremony" held on Vannes, which were seen by some as being more like controlled orgies for Helenist women coming of age, did succeed in increasing communication with Vannes and subtly building the power bloc wielded by the Collective.[29]

Notes[edit]

  • Although Vannes was detailed on maps within Handbook: Major Periphery States up until 2750,[2] none of the maps from later eras presented in the Handbooks series of sourcebooks extended far enough into the Periphery to confirm or deny the continued presence of this system during the Succession Wars era, although Field Manual: 3085 confirmed that Vannes still existed post-Jihad.[25]

Map Gallery[edit]

Nearby Systems[edit]

Closest 20 systems (15 within 60 light-years)
Distance in light years, closest systems first:
Fredotto 14.1 Ingvolstand 26.1 Givrodat 32.7 Syrstart 33.2
Erin 33.3 Idrmach 36.2 Caillinius 37.4 Paran 37.8
Haublan 46.2 Apsalar 48.1 Far Reach 53.1 Cryfder 56.2
Sentarus 58.6 Battaraigi 58.8 Beowulf 59.7 Dirkel 62.9
Transfer Station J239H2 63.9 Tordenskjold 64.3 Jápminboddu 65.2 Botany Bay 66.1

References[edit]

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 1.24 1.25 1.26 1.27 1.28 1.29 1.30 Interstellar Expeditions: Interstellar Players 3, p. 38: "Vannes"
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Handbook: Major Periphery States, p. 25: "Rim Worlds Republic at the Fall of the Star League - [2750] Map"
  3. 3.0 3.1 Handbook: Major Periphery States, p. 18: "Rim Worlds Republic after Age of War - [2571] Map"
  4. Historical: Reunification War, p. 158: "Inner Sphere - [2596] Map"
  5. Era Report: 2750, p. 36: "Inner Sphere - [2750] Map"
  6. Field Manual: SLDF, p. xi: "Inner Sphere - [2764] Map"
  7. Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 1, p. 10: "Inner Sphere - [2765] Map"
  8. Field Report 2765: Periphery, p. 38: "Rim Worlds Army Deployment Map - [2765]"
  9. Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 1, p. 104: "Rim Worlds Republic - [2767] Map"
  10. First Succession War, pp. 24–25: "Inner Sphere - [2786] Map"
  11. Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 2, pp. 122–123: "Inner Sphere - [2822] Map"
  12. First Succession War, pp. 112–113: "Inner Sphere - [2822] Map"
  13. The Periphery, pp. 156–157: "Maps of the Periphery"
  14. Historical: War of 3039, p. 133: "Inner Sphere - [3040] Map"
  15. Era Report: 3052, p. 11: "Inner Sphere - [3050] Map"
  16. Era Report: 3052, p. 23: "Inner Sphere - [3052] Map"
  17. Objective Raids, p. 46: "Map of Periphery States"
  18. Era Report: 3062, p. 11: "Inner Sphere - [3057] Map"
  19. The Periphery, 2nd Edition, p. 115: "Greater Valkyrate, Oberon Confederation & Elysian Fields"
  20. Era Report: 3062, p. 29: "Inner Sphere - [3063] Map"
  21. Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 43: "Inner Sphere - [3067] Map"
  22. Jihad Secrets: The Blake Documents, p. 65: "Inner Sphere [3075] Map"
  23. Field Report: Periphery, p. 24: "Last Known Deep Periphery"
  24. Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 63: "Inner Sphere - [3081] Map"
  25. 25.0 25.1 Field Manual: 3085, p. vi: "Inner Sphere - October 3085"
  26. Era Report: 3145, p. 10: "Inner Sphere Map - [3135]"
  27. Era Report: 3145, p. 38: "Inner Sphere Map - [3145]"
  28. Field Manual: 3145, p. VI: "Inner Sphere - [3145] Map"
  29. Interstellar Expeditions: Interstellar Players 3, p. 36: "Ingvolstand"

Bibliography[edit]