Cart'hen III
The third planet in the Cart'hen Star System, it is the only one permenantly inhabited.
History
A pre tech world when the Klingons added it to their Empire, the native population was around 300,000. They were quickly rounded up and put to work by their new overlords. Prior to that they were a scattered collection of tribes living off the land, nomad's for the most part with only a few small permanent settlements.
At one time the Klingons did have a very high population on this planet... that was before a better source of the mostly industrial metals was found closer to the heart of the Empire... at that time the Klingon empire left the world...
However they have maintained a mining facility and a military base on the planet's surface. Now they transport a large number of criminals of many races to the planet, useing the facility as a kind of penal colony. They also rotate Infantry units through the base stationed next to the mining facility. The harsh desert conditions makes it a natural for training purpose's.
The native population has decreased greatly both dureing and after the Klingons left... first through high deaths due to the harsh inhuman working conditions forced on them in the mines... then due to the destruction of their culture... values and way of life... they now number around 45,000 of which about 30,000 live in the cities... with the other 15,000 being rebels... liveing in the deserts... trying to recreate their culture and way of life... their population is finally on the upswing.
Natives
The natives of Cart'hen III are a hardy people, with the men standing on average 5'6" and weighting about 160 lbs. Females are on average 5'4" and weight about 130 lbs. They are covered in a very short course sandy fur, with double eye lids, one of which is transparent to protect the eye from intense light or flying sand.
They have the ability to store water within a special internal water storage organ, due to this they can on average go for as long as a week without needing to take a drink. They also have wide flat feet with 4 toes and hands with 3 long fingers and 1 thumb.
Those that still live in the deserts still wear long loose robes, usually tan or mixed light browns in color. These robes allow them to blend into their environment. Those that live in the cities wear a wide variety of styles.
Before the Klingon occupation they were a peaceful people and while it is unheard of for them to take any violent action against another native, regardless of tribe, they have been known to attack off worlder's. Those that have returned to the desert's have become excellent guerrilla fighters useing unpredictable, unconventional, deceitful and depriving combat tactics that use the environment to their best military benefit.
Environment
The entire planets surface is a blending of various browns. Sand, stone and rock with a scattering of native plants. In some areas sand is constantly on the move, blown around by the wind.
Rock outcroppings dot the entire planet, but they usually do not rise more than a few hundred feet above the surrounding landscape. These rock outcrops can be as small as a few dozen feet or extend over an area of a few hundred square miles. While a gradual slopeing rise is the norm it is possible to find steep drops and the occasional cliff deep among the larger groupings of rock.
Plant life is widely scattered, most with a outer surface that prevents water loss and roots that extend deep below the surface of the planet. Most of these plants are not edible by the natives but are eaten by some of the animal lifeforms native to this world.
Those plants that are edible by the natives are carefully maintained, cared for, with new plants planted in an effort to increase future harvests. Most notable among these is a fruit tree that produces a kind of fruit almost like a terran pomagranite.
Savage sand storms can last for a couple days but usually only last for a few hours.
Animals
Cart'hen III does not have many types of animals. The few they have are mostly vegetarians. The most common of these are the Itik, Gonan and Prat. The last 2 have been domesticated by the natives and are raised in herds, however they can also be found running wild.
The Itik is a small animal on average between 2 to 5 lbs. It is a mammal that can leap up to 10 feet. They have larger hind legs than front legs. They tend to be a pest eating anything they can get. They burrow into the sand to avoid the heat of the day as they are nocturnal.
The Gonan is on average between 20 and 40 lbs. A vegetarian they graze on the grasses and shrubs found just about everywhere outside the rock outcroppings and the shifting sands. They can eat more type's of plants than any other native life form.
The Prat is on average between 50 and 80 lbs. Their feet are large and wide with thick pads on the bottoms that allow them to traverse the drifting sands and the rock outcroppings with out sinking or suffering damage from any sharp rock edges. They also have a special water storage organ as well as a second stomack to store excess food. As a result they can go for almost 2 weeks with out needing to eat or drink anything. They have a second tranparent eyelid and a nasty disposition.
The only predator is called a Trith. This animal has short tan fur, large fangs and sharp claws. It can easily take down a person and is an extremely cunning beast. It weighs between 180 and 200 lbs fully grown. It tends to sleep for long periods and avoids the sands as much as possible, prefering to remain among the larger rock outcroppings. Here it can find shade. They tend to live alone, only getting together to mate. A female will on average have 2 cubs. These will stay with her until they are over 100 lbs at which time they are considered adults. During the Klingon occupation it was one of their favourite sports to hunt them. It is a testimont to their savagery and skill that they won the hunt more often than the hunters.
Economy
Almost all the food consumed on this world has to be brought in from off world. The various mining operations, factions and corporations ship raw materials off world. Most notable, industrial metals which are extremely plentiful. The income from this is then spent to bring in food and other essentials which are sold to the workers at an outlandish cost.
Most of the mines are all deep under ground due to the fact that over 97% of all the planets mineral wealth is over 200 feet below the surface. Due to this fact the 3 mining facilites abandoned by the Klingons have become city centers. All the major work of ecavating down to where the mineral content is high enough to make it worth while has already been done.
Communities
On the surface of the planet there are 5 large communites, only 3 of them could be considered true cities. The other 2 are just large mining colonies with dreams of greatness.
The largest city is Mith. They claim to be the Capitol city but with no central government none of the others agree. The other 2 cities are Pilith and Toith.
Each city is controled by a number of factions... these represent criminal organizations, corporations, mining companies, racial groups, etc... each group or faction has their own armed retainers... and have over the years worked out some form of mutual understanding... they all jockey for position... trying to improve or increase their power... these power struggles often result in open warfare...
Kri'dok is both a Klingon military base and a penal colony pretending to be a mining facility. Most of the Klingon population on the planet can be found here.
The last and smallest community is the Nor'anda mining community. A corporation controled facility.
Population
The planetary population breaks down as follows, 45,000 are Cart'hen natives, 30,000 are Klingons, 200,000 are from member worlds of the Federation, 300,000 are exiled peoples from among the subject peoples of the Klingon Empire and the last 25,000 are escaped peoples from among the subject races of the Romulan Empire, for a world wide total includeing the many small groups of nomads and tiny communites scattered over its harsh surface of about 600,000.
Mith is the largest city with a population of about 260,000. While Pilith has a population of about 140,000 and Toith has a population of about 90,000.
Kri'dok has a population of about 45,000 with 20,000 being Klingon troops at the base, 5,000 being guards at the penal colony mining facility and the last 20,000 being prisoners.
Nor'anda Corporation mining colony has a population of about 30,000.
Living as nomad's or in tiny communities scattered over the deserts are about 25,000 of which 15,000 are native's and the rest are mostly escaped prisoners from the Klingon penal colony or other newcomers to the planet who could not afford to leave or survive in the cities.
Mith
By far the largest city on the planet it also has the only thing even closely resembleing a commercial space port. As well as the only buildings that could even be considered skyscrapers. Towering over the city are 5 large gray towers. The tallest reaching to an impressive 55 floors of which 40 of them are above ground.
This city was built on the site of the first strip mining operation run by the Klingons after they took control of the planet. The surface of the planet was dug into to create a depression over 1 km wide and more than 150 feet deep. It is within this excavation that the city has been built and grown.
Over 3/4 of the city proper is actually below ground, built into the tunnels and mine shafts left behind by extensive excavations. This warren of passages, chambers and ramps are mostly slum like liveing conditions for almost 9/10ths of the cities population. Below this are the current mine works, slowly tunneling ever deeper.
The top 7 levels in the tallest tower belong to the city council. This council has 11 members representing the 11 most powerful factions in the city. Each of these factions has their own armed forces, HQ and plans. This elite 11 are made up of members from corporations, gangs, fanatics and syndicates.
The council employs a group called the Enforcers, almost like a police force, they are well armed, dress like a police force but are in reality simply the councils club, with which they control all the other mobs, factions, gangs and corporations with in the city.
The Tal Shiar, Romulan secret police have a listening post on the top 5 floors of one of the towers. Their agents move freely within the various communities poseing as refugees or escaped prisoners of the Romulan Empire.
Pilith
Was built on the location of the Klingon's second strip mining operation on the planet. The large depression is over 1 km wide and 250 feet deep. On the surface out side the depression are large slag heaps. Inside the depression lies about half the city built up around the one major road 30 feet wide that from the surface down to all the major mine shafts.
The other half of the city is below ground. Both upper and lower city sections are a confuseing mass of alleys, twisting streets, garbage, refuse, slums, crime, shops and bars. Those that live in the upper city are better off than those who live in the lower section.
The city is governed by a coalition of mining interests, criminal factions and labour groups.
Toith
The smallest of the cities on the surface of the planet is also built within the depression created by the Klingons strip mining efforts. A smaller depression it is only about 1/2 a km wide and 180 feet deep. Just over 2/3rds of the city is below ground.
The youngest of the cities, it is also the only one laid out in anything even closely resembleing order. Part of that may be becouse the city has been governed right from the start by only 3 factions. These 3 factions have never had a falling out and work well together.
That is not to say that the city is clean or modern looking. The building are still constructed of native materials for the most part. Over 90% are only 1 level tall, but it is easy to tell the 3 districts apart.
The first district in houseing, the second is commercial and the third is mining. These 3 divisions match with the 3 factions. The Cril'ik Mining Company controls all the mining interests and facilities. The People is the next faction, a group representing the mine workers, almost like a union. They work with the mining company to ensure that the workers have decent wages and living conditions. A large part of this work force are native's to Cart'hen III.
The last faction is that of Mom. An elderly Orion female who has a controling interest in every business with in the commercial sector as well as the Cril'ik mining company and the union. She also owns or controls every nightclub, gambling facility, entertainment venue and the entire red light district.
She makes sure that everyone pays on time, that their are no independent criminal activites not sanctioned by her working with in her city. She controls the police, mine guards and her own fairly large army of thugs.
Kri'dok
Kri'dok is both a Klingon military base with 20,000 infantry troops and a penal colony pretending to be a mining facility with 5,000 guards and 20,000 prisoners. At any one time their are usually 5 X 5,000 man infantry regiments serveing at this location. They are rotated through the facility in order to recieve training in desert warfare.
This rotation cycle is in 6 month stages. When a regiment first lands at the base it's first duty for the first stage of its stay is as prison guards. This gives them a chance to slowly get use to the heat, dust and intense sunlight prior to starting their actual training out on the desert sands.
After that the next 2 stages involve more complex operations of longer duration out on the desert sands. The 4th stage involves mock combat against the 5th stage troops who will be rotated off world at the end of this training.
The Commander of the senior regiment is in charge of the entire facility. One of his duties is to ensure that the income from the mining/prison is sufficent to cover the expenses for the entire complex.
The military base is almost 3 km from the mining/prison complex and is composed of 4 large reinforced concrete buildings that are identical in design and layout. Each building is about 2,000 meters long by 750 meters wide on the surface with just over 2/3rds of the entire building below ground. Each of these buildings forms the side of a large square around the landing and take off pad for the base.
Each of these buildings is completely self contained with their own mess hall, storage rooms, armoury, barracks, hospital, brig, combat simulator rooms and athletic training facilities below ground. The area above ground holds the administrative and communication rooms. On top of that the entire exterior wall faceing out into the desert has defensive gun turrets every 100 meters. The other exterior walls all have openings for troops to fire out.
The mining facility is mostly below ground but the troops stationed their to act as guards for the inmates have one large barracks building built much like the ones at the base. The only difference with this one is that it has a secondary building 200 meters away that holds the metal for shipping as well as the vehicles used to transport it back to the military base. That and the exterior wall has no gun turrets but does have armoured slits that can be opened to allow the men in side to shoot out.
Around the outside of the huge mine works which are almost a full km in width are a number of small reinforced concrete bunkers. These hold around 10 Klingons at a time. Inside the mines are numerous guard stations and the prisoners are secured in the lower sections of the mines at night. Working conditions are harsh and the death rate can be high depending on the current Commander in charge of the facility.
Prisoners have escaped in the past and for the most part the Klingons don't waste their time hunting for them. Other than a casual search of the surrounding area. For the most part the desert usually kills them before a search party can find them.
Nor'anda
This mining colony is totally owned and operated by the Nor'anda Corporation. They actively seek out and recruit workers from far and wide. They offer to pay the cost of travel to Cart'hen III with claims that the worker can quickly pay off the debt and then earn excellent wages. In reality any workers who arrive become little more than indentured slaves. The cost to buy there food and then pay for rent in the company owned flop houses is more than they get paid. Every week they work finds then deeper in debt, with no hope or chance to pay the company back what they owe.
Every single building, shop and business is owned and controled by the Corporation. They control the police, communications, travel and the lives of all the workers. The saying is "Once here, you die here."
The surface complex is scattered over a 1/2 km of land. Here is the storage facilities for metal to be shipped off world and the warehouse's that hold the food, medicine, clothing, etc that the company sells to its workers. The main hospital complex, police facility plus living accomadations for all the supervisors, managers plus skilled workers are also on the surface.
The normal workers employed by the company all live below ground. Most never get to see the surface again unless they manage to escape into the surrounding desert.
Nomads
The majority of the people living as nomads in the wilderness are natives of Cart'hen III, while the majority of settlers in tiny communities scattered accoss it's harsh surface are escaped prisoners from the Klingon penal colony or those who have fled from the cities looking for a better life. Not all the nomads are natives, nor are all the settlers in the tiny communities off worlders, just the greater majority.
Most of the tiny settlements range in size from as few as 10 people to maybe as many as 100. The amount of water available plus land for crops or graze for animals is the determining factor.
Nomad tribes wander from water source to water source. Moveing their herds of grazeing animals with them. These tribes usually number between 20 and 150 in size with the average being about 100.
The Bridak Tribe is the largest and they number over 400 in the main group with 4 splinter groups of about 100 that are also considered Bridak. Just under half of the tribe are excaped prisoners from the Klingon mines. The overall leader is a native Cart'hen called Scrizer.
