Alrakis

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Alrakis

Note: X and Y are coordinates (light years on XY plane) relative to Terra at (0, 0)

Alrakis
Alrakis 3151.svg
System Information
X:Y Coordinates-19.908 : 81.891[e]
Spectral classK0V[1]
Planet(s)3[1]

The Alrakis system was home to at least one habitable world - Alrakis II - and as at 3145 was located in the Skandia Province of the Rasalhague Dominion.[2][3]

System Description

The Alrakis system has a single class K0V primary star and three planets.[1]

System History

The Alrakis system was settled prior to the mid-twenty-fourth century and was a part of the Federation of Skye prior to the formation of the Lyran Commonwealth.[4]

Alrakis II

Template:InfoBoxPlanetStandard

Alrakis II - more commonly referred to simply as Alrakis - is the second planet of three in the Alrakis system and has five moons named Cassius, Delvia, Fermosa, Weir, and Zalazar.[1]

Planetary History

Early History

The rich mineral resources on Alrakis swiftly made the world a bone of contention between the Lyran Commonwealth and Draconis Combine. The preponderance of ores in both Alrakis' mountains and its three moons triggered many raids and conflicts between the two Successor States. Though a pleasant enough world in most respects, it wasn't settled to the extent that other worlds were because of its high gravity and a fearsome native predator: the Alrakis Tigerfalcon. This avian is the size of a human male, and in addition to black-striped, fur-like feathers, a serrated beak, and four clawed feet, it was far stronger than any Terran bird of prey. During the first Star League, hunting the tigerfalcon was not only a tourist attraction, but necessary for the colonization of the planet. The tigerfalcon was eventually pushed into a smaller area, allowing the colonists to expand around the metal rich mountains of the Skopje continent and the inland seas.[1]

Star League

During the final years of the Star League, Alrakis was the host of a Star League Defense Force garrison.[5]

War of 3039

Alrakis was a target in the first wave of the Federated Commonwealth attacks on the Lyran front of the War of 3039. In mid-April, the first of two major units assigned to attack the world, the Twenty-third Arcturan Guards RCT dropped onto the planet. Landing on the 16th of April under the command of Leutnant-General Jacqueline Fincher, the intention in taking Alrakis was two-fold; firstly, it would act as a stepping stone to worlds further into the Combine interior, and secondly, it presented the opportunity for a moral victory over the Eleventh Legion of Vega, a unit personally associated with Theodore Kurita.[6]

The decisive, aggressive drop by the Twenty-third caught the Eleventh Legion by surprise, quickly forcing them out of their barracks and onto the back foot. Even as the advance contingent of the Twenty-third was pushing the more numerous Legion back, a second contingent landed on the shores of Lake Carantha and seized Sigmundrac, the planetary capital.[6] In the early hours of the 17th of April, elements of the Twenty-third's Second Battalion seized the Talumac Bridge system on the outskirts of Simundrac, which were a key route into and out of the city, as the bridge served one of the two superhighways running to Sigmundrac. The Twenty-third then held the Talumac Bridge system - and by extension, Carantha Highway-56 - in the face of active resistance from elements of the Legion's Third Battalion and supporting infantry forces.[7]

The Eleventh didn't take long to regroup; the commanding officer of the Legion, Tai-sa Esau Olivares, was well-known for his resourcefulness and determination, and had fought alongside the Kanrei during the Fourth Succession War in the fighting on Marduk. Olivares counterattacked in an attempt to gain an the initiative, forcing the Twenty-third into a bloody series of battles. Sensing that Olivares was striking from a weak position, Fincher and the Twenty-third launched their own offensive, pushing and harrying the Legion back and attempting to pin them up against the Caradhradene Mountains. On Marfick, in the previous war, Olivares had personally led the rearguard action that allowed Theodore Kurita to escape; acting with the same insight, Olivares knew that to be trapped against the mountains would result in the destruction of the Legion and he ordered a retreat to save as many of his troops as possible.[6]

The Legion evacuated Alrakis shortly after, with the last troops leaving the world on the 24th of April; the swift prosecution of the campaign by the Twenty-third Arcturan prompted the LCAF to cancel the deployment of the second force that had been assigned to the campaign, the Fifth Donegal Guards, and the forward observers from the Fifth who had already arrived on world left on the 5th of May to rejoin the Fifth on Ryde, ready early for the next phase of the war.[6]

The Twenty-third Arcturan Guards settled into the rhythm of garrisoning Alrakis quickly, and throughout May and June, Alrakis proved a quiet posting, with resistance on the planet consisting of little more than a few isolated sniper attacks, while the remaining militia forces appeared to be cooperative when it came to Alrakis' incorporation into the Federated Commonwealth. Concerns raised that the occupation appeared to be going too well were dismissed, which led to almost complete surprise when the DCMS counterattacked Alrakis in July. A strike force built predominantly around Olivares' Eleventh Legion of Vega and the Eighth Alshain Regulars under Tai-sa Remy Doulton had traveled back to Alrakis in secret via uninhabited worlds near Shionoha and managed to conceal their arrival in the Alrakis system thanks to a collaborator within the planetary Space Control Directorate. The defending Lyran forces had just one day's warning of the impending attack.[8]

Despite that warning, many of the Lyran forces were caught unawares; however, much of the RCT had dispersed to enjoy a local festival when the DCMS forces began landing on the 14th of July, and many were captured by Alrakan militia forced that turned against them. The exception was in and around Sigmundrac, where the Lyran command contingent had maintained strict discipline, and an over-eager attack by the turncoat militia forces was quickly rebuffed, with firefights erupting in the city leading to many of the militia troops being captured. The insurgency managed to prevent the Twenty-third from contesting the DCMS landing, and Olivares had his combined forces lay siege to the capital city, over-ruling requests for an aggressive attack on the defending forces by Tai-sa Doulton.[8]

Unwilling to cause the collateral damage that a direct assault, artillery strikes and aerial bombardment would cause, Olivares instead worked on a plan to neutralize the defending forces and embarrass the Lyran commanders. He had forces arranged in small squads infiltrate the city and place demolition charges at key points and on the 23rd of July, he marched his forces close to the city and called on the Arcturan Guards to surrender; when General Fincher refused, Olivares had the charges detonated, collapsing the Lyran command headquarters into the sewers, burying many of the senior officers in rubble and cutting them off completely from their forces. The Alshain Regulars and the Legion of Vega then advanced rapidly into the city, attempting to cut the Lyran troops off from the spaceport and any chance of retreat off-world.[8]

The senior Lyran officer after the destruction of the headquarters was Lieutenant Colonel Nadine Killson, commander of Able Battalion of the Twenty-third Arcturan Guards. Taking on the immense responsibility of coordinating the defense, Killson realized that the Lyran forces were in danger of being cut off and arranged her troops to try and block the DCMS attack. The result was a brutal close-quarters fight on the fringes of the spaceport; fighting against the Alshain Regulars on one front and the Legion of Vega on the other. Killson's 'Mechs were outnumbered three to one and had to use conventional forces. The Arcturan infantry and armor made daring attacks and staged point-blank ambushes against the Combine 'Mechs, even though many of the actions would prove to be futile.[8]

Killson held her defensive positions, losing half her forces overnight but destroying a portion of the Legion of Vega. Olivares was content to continue to press the attack, as he had reinforcements and supplies available; Killson knew that her extended position was untenable, and chose to retreat into the spaceport, fortifying it as a beachhead from which the Lyran forces could stage a counterattack if reinforced, but ceding control of Sigmundrac to the Combine. The Arcturan Guards held the spaceport until the 13th of August, launching raids and spoiling attacks, while fending off probing attacks from the Combine forces; on the 13th, orders were received to retreat, and the Twenty-third Arcturan Guards boarded their DropShips and left. In the meantime, General Fincher and a number of other senior officers were dug out of the remains of the command center and would be interned to the Combine for months before eventually being repatriated.[8]

The Dark Age

As part of the Republic of the Sphere, Alrakis was a center of heavy industrial material production, including IndustrialMechs. Due to its presence on the Lyran/Combine border, it never developed a large military industrial presence. Apparently companies didn't see the point of developing factories that could assist the enemy if captured.[1]

The planetary capital city, Sigmundrac, was located on Skopje along the northern edge of Lake Carantha. Tarowena, a spaceport city on the southern continent of Strumm, housed the only major armaments facility on the world, Desmond Arms. Desmond Arms specialized in weaponry used by infantry forces, from knives to heavy support lasers. By this point in time the tigerfalcon had been pushed back to the two jungle laden equatorial continents of Kabast and Ronigawa. With heavy jungles and ferocious tigerfalcons, these two continents were relatively free of humans.[1]

After the collapse of the HPG network on Gray Monday and the beginning of widespread annexation of Republic worlds, Khan Dalia Bekker of the Rasalhague Dominion deployed three of the Dominion's Galaxies to secure worlds in Prefecture I, acting out of her reverence for the Republic of the Sphere.

In March 3135, Capellan Confederation and Dragon's Fury forces clashed for the planet control. Eventually the Dragon's Fury took control of the planet[9], only to loose it when Alrakis and the nearby world of Konstance were secured by Alpha Galaxy in 3135, although Alpha only remained in place until Omega Galaxy secured Vega and departed before the formation of the Vega Protectorate.[10]

Political Affiliation

Planetary Rulers

3130

  • Planetary Governor Drake H'Chu[1]
  • Planetary Legate Anders de Paik[1]

Military Deployment

2764

3039

3040

  • Eleventh Legion of Vega[51]

3050

  • Eleventh Legion of Vega[52]

3079

- At this point in time the 5th Sung Zhang Academy Cadre were deployed across, Kessel and Alrakis. The 5th was at 45% of full strength, with 70% of their equipment featuring upgraded technology.

Geography

Alrakis is a world rich in metal ores that are easily exploited by industrial processes. Alrakis has a number of continents including the mountainous continent Skopje, a southern continent named Strumm, and two equatorial continents named Kabast and Ronigawa, both of which were largely covered in jungle.[1]

Planetary Locations

  • Caradhradene Mountains: a mountain chain near the capital city Sigmundrac[8]
  • Lake Carantha: an inland lake located near the capital city Sigmundrac[8]
  • Sigmundrac: the planetary capital city[8] located on the northern shore of Lake Carantha on Skopje[1]
  • Tarowena: a spaceport city located on Strumm[1]

Industrial Centers

Local Species

Nearby Systems

Closest 60 systems (59 within 60 light-years)
Distance in light years, closest systems first:
Kessel 7.0 Balkan 13.3 Konstance 14.5 La Blon 14.9
Dromini 15.8 Komephoros 17.4 Nai-Stohl 23.4 Kimball 23.8
Eltanin 25.1 Kaus Australis 25.6 Sabik 25.8 Marfik 26.0
Ryde 27.3 Kaus Media 27.7 Skondia 28.9 Unukalhai 29.0
Vega 29.6 Atria 30.5 Moore 31.2 New Wessex 32.4
Baxter 32.8 Alphecca 33.4 Kaus Borealis 34.5 Lone Star 35.0
Ko 38.0 Cebalrai 39.2 Alkalurops 40.0 Alnasi 41.0
Lambrecht 41.3 Nusakan 41.4 Ascella 41.5 Izar 43.0
Carnwath 43.2 Lyons 43.3 Kannon 43.3 Corridan 43.5
Yed Posterior 44.5 Kuzuu 45.6 Zebebelgenubi 47.2 Skye 48.0
Dyev 48.4 Alya 48.6 Alexandria 50.9 Imbros 51.0
Chaville 51.1 Freedom 51.3 Kochab 52.1 Phalan 52.5
Shionoha 54.4 Eaglesham 54.4 Tsukude 54.9 Glengarry 57.1
Syrma 57.2 Rocky 57.3 Zebeneschamali 58.5 Pike 58.5
Galatea 58.6 Juniper 58.8 Yed Prior 59.6 Summer 61.0

References

  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 Dark Age: Republic Worlds (3130), p. 2, "Alrakis World Profile"
  2. 2.0 2.1 Era Report: 3145, p. 39, "Inner Sphere - [3145] Map"
  3. 3.0 3.1 Field Manual: 3145, p. VI, "Inner Sphere - 3145"
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 Handbook: House Steiner, p. 13, "Federation of Skye world within the Lyran Commonwealth before [2340] and after at their founding in [2341]"
  5. Field Manual: SLDF, p. 255, "SLDF - Lyran Commonwealth Military Command Map"
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Historical: War of 3039, p. 28-29, "Alrakis"
  7. Fall of the Hammer
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 Historical: War of 3039, p. 70, p. 73, "Alrakis (July-August)"
  9. 9.0 9.1 3135 PDA Journals, p. 80 "18 August 3135"
  10. Field Manual: 3085, p. 162, "Alpha Galaxy"
  11. Handbook: House Marik, p. 16, "Free Worlds League Founding - [2217] Map"
  12. Handbook: House Kurita, p. 18, "Draconis Combine - [2319] Map"
  13. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 25, "Lyran Commonwealth after Age of War [2571] Map"
  14. Handbook: House Kurita, p. 31, "Draconis Combine after Age of War - [2571] Map"
  15. Historical: Reunification War, p. 159, "Inner Sphere Map [2596]"
  16. Era Report: 2750, p. 37, "Inner Sphere - 2750"
  17. Field Manual: SLDF, Inner Sphere - [2764] Map"
  18. Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 1, p. 11, "Inner Sphere - [2765] Map"
  19. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 36, "Lyran Commonwealth after First Succession War - [2822] Map"
  20. Handbook: House Kurita, p. 43, "Draconis Combine after First Succession War - [2822] Map"
  21. Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 2, p. 122-123, "Inner Sphere - [2822] Maü"
  22. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 40, "Lyran Commonwealth after Second Succession War - [2864] Map"
  23. Handbook: House Kurita, p. 53, "Draconis Combine after Second Succession War - [2864] Map"
  24. House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), "Draconis Combine Map - [3025]"
  25. Handbook: House Kurita, p. 64, "Draconis Combine after Third Succession War - [3025] Map"
  26. House Steiner (The Lyran Commonwealth), "Lyran Commonwealth - [3025] Map"
  27. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 47, "Lyran Commonwealth after Third Succession War - [3025] Map"
  28. Handbook: House Kurita, p. 66, "Draconis Combine after Fourth Succession War - [3030] Map"
  29. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 56, "Lyran Commonwealth after Fourth Succession War - [3030] Map"
  30. Handbook: House Kurita, p. 68, "Draconis Combine after War of 3039 - [3040] Map"
  31. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 59, "Lyran Commonwealth after War of 3039 - [3040] Map"
  32. Historical: War of 3039, p. 133, "Inner Sphere - [3040] Map"
  33. Era Report: 3052, p. 11, "Inner Sphere Map [3050]"
  34. Handbook: House Kurita, p. 71, "Draconis Combine after Operation REVIVAL - [3052] Map"
  35. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 61, "Lyran Commonwealth after Clan Invasion - [3052] Map"
  36. Era Report: 3052, p. 23, "Inner Sphere - [3052] Map"
  37. Era Report: 3062, p. 11, "Inner Sphere - [3057] Map"
  38. Era Report: 3062, p. 29, "Inner Sphere - [3063] Map"
  39. Handbook: House Kurita, p. 74, "Draconis Combine after FedCom Civil War - [3067] Map"
  40. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 69, "Lyran Alliance after FedCom Civil War - [3067] Map"
  41. Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 41, "Inner Sphere - [3067] Map"
  42. Jihad Secrets: The Blake Documents, p. 65, "Inner Sphere - [3075] Map"
  43. Field Report: DCMS, p. 21, "Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery Deployment Map - [August 3079]"
  44. Field Report: LAAF, p. 19, "Lyran Commonwealth Deployment Map - [August 3079]"
  45. Field Report: Clans, p. 29, "Terran Corridor Deployment Map - [August 3079]"
  46. Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 63, "Inner Sphere - [3081] Map"
  47. Field Manual: 3085, p. 127, "Inner Sphere - [3085] Map"
  48. Map of the Inner Sphere 3130
  49. Era Report: 3145, p. 11, "Inner Sphere - [3135] Map"
  50. Field Manual: SLDF, p. 255, "SLDF - Lyran Commonwealth Military Command Map"
  51. 51.0 51.1 Historical: War of 3039, p. 139, "Deployment Table"
  52. 20 Year Update, p. 40, "Draconis Combine Deployment Table"
  53. Field Report: DCMS, p. 14, "Sun Zhang Regimental Status"

Bibliography