Viront Z85
NISABA-10
Hot and cold playground of the rich and soon-to-be-rich
Planetary Survey
The lights of Viront rival its own star. Though the planet only supports life along its equator, that life is all the keener, all the brighter – as though it were spurred on by the precarious conditions in which it developed. It was this striving that drew the Vironti syndicates to flout Alliance advisories in settling here, carving a band of crystalline wealth from the planet’s dross.
Viront is tidally locked to Nisaba, a subdwarf in the proximity of the Urashanum nebula. It is an “eyeball planet”; the side facing Nisaba is in perpetual light, and is accordingly a scorched desert. The side facing away from Nisaba is in perpetual darkness, and therefore consists of a frozen wasteland. A narrow band along the terminator zone of the planet is temperate and habitable in comparison.
It is this band which saw life arise independently on Viront. A jungle of protocarnivorous glass ferns coats the planet’s habitable band, supporting a canopy full of venomous parasitoids. The least territorial of these have been genetically altered to produce Viront’s fashionable – and docile – Crozier houseplants and Vespid lap-bugs.
The colony of Viront is a single elongated city, a continuous linear settlement that runs along the planet’s entire circumference. On the ground, Nisaba hangs unmoving beyond the horizon, its corona providing the planet’s signature and never-ending “Tyrian twilight” – while water vapours rising from the jungle hide the stars behind an inflexible haze. Massive solar farms on the bright side of the planet harness the sunshine, running power through the cityscape and up to the frozen north. There, supercomputer arrays steam in glacial pools: the brains behind Viront’s automatic splendour.
Billions of Vironti live, work and play in that narrow band of gold, hemmed in by gossamer jungles and the inhospitable landscapes beyond. It is a neon paradise, a wonderland of excess and intrigue, balanced on a razor’s edge.
E/I/R
Economy
Viront plays a key role in interplanetary trade in its sector and in the broader alliance. This includes the trade of contraband, and of restricted technology.
Research
Viront leads the Alliance in patents, driving innovation in fields such as orbital sports, procedural FABREP art, and virtual entertainment.
Industry
Viront’s mineral resources are largely untapped. The planet prefers to import raw materials from Alliance members, using its own factories and refineries in concert with a common-trust drone fleet for construction and manufacturing.
Demographic Review
All paths lead to Viront. The planet is a delivery hub, importing raw materials from elsewhere and exporting consumer goods to the rest of the Alliance. Orbital elevators and Lagrange gates in the local system allow for easy launches and landings. It is also a travel hotspot, advertising itself as the “playground of the Alliance”. Whether they are traders or tourists, people from all walks of life may be found riding Viront’s sleek trains, exploring the twilit forest in trawlers, or taking in dazzling holoshows.
For permanent residents, life is defined by Viront’s corporations. The bottom line of living needs for citizens and visitors alike is ensured by moment-to-moment management of the cityscape’s interconnected systems by GREY, an artificial intelligence housed on the planet’s glacial side. With their basic needs met, Vironti can focus on their hungers for influence and recognition. Most join up with a corporation, itself joined to a syndicate overseeing millions, within which they can pursue their dreams and the excess for which Viront is a byword.
Cultural Evaluation
Viront’s reliance on automated labour has led to the breakdown of most hierarchical structures. The prevailing attitude is one of “easy-come, easy-go”; from the most elite to the destitute, all are aware that one bad season or one great idea might see their positions reversed. Gambling is accordingly popular on Viront.
The people of Viront are seen as ambitious, and curious to a fault – hustlers, in a word, always looking for a new angle or something that others have missed. Conversely, they are loyal – whoever they work with is a true ally, and potential trading partners are also evaluated as new friends. Vironti value knowledge and honesty: they find a sense of pride in rising by merit (so that one can boast about it), not by deception or stealth.
Viront leads the Alliance in its embrace of cybernetics and implanted tech. Most Vironti show off their implants; the planet’s culture of self-improvement leads many to proudly display their enhancements, though discrete medical devices are available.
Diplomatic Positioning
The Vironti attitude towards Alliance regulations is best described as “relaxed”, which does not endear it to Earth. Indeed, among the capital planets there are few with mild feelings toward Viront: their industrial rivalry with the Marzion planets is well-known, while Kessler is an old ally often engaged for sweeps of Viront’s upper atmosphere.
