A to Z: K is for Kamperel

Kamperel is a system in My Traveller Universe, the RimWorlds Sector. Kamperel and the Kamperelian Republic are one of those little quirks that get thrown up by random system generation, and then take on a life of their own when a little thought is applied.

The Kamperelian Republic is a three-system polity near the centre of Miazan Subsector, consisting of the systems of Kamperal, Floranna and Ektra. Once member worlds of the Imperium, Kamperel and its two subject systems now refuse to recognise the authority of either the Subsector Duke of Miazan, or the Sector Duke. As the population of Kamperel numbers a large percentage of the total population of the Subsector, the House Geyukthi Subsector Dukes of Miazan have not been able to muster the resources to bring Kamperel to heel.

So, how did this situation come about?

Kamperel, Floranna and Ektra make up the Kamperel Cluster – a group of stars within one parsec of each other and separated by at least two parsecs from all neighbouring systems. This makes their location fairly strategic because all trade moving through the subsector is either obliged to move through Kamperelian space, or divert around it, adding many weeks to transit times.

Kamperel is a small, poor, dry world with a very thin atmosphere, a population in the 10s of billions, and a Tech Level of 11 – low interstellar. Ektra is a small, desert world with a very thin tainted atmosphere, a population in the low millions and a Tech Level of 8. Floranna is an average-sized water world with a standard, tainted atmosphere, a population in the millions and a Tech Level of 12. One thing all three systems share is that their populations live in sealed environments. Otherwise, there was not a lot to distinguish them from any number of other systems.

In my notes on the history of the RimWorlds, there was a mysterious entry, “1032 Cessation of the Rivokul War”. What I had originally intended by that entry, I no longer remember. During late 2007/early 2008, as I was creating my Traveller website and working up the Library Data, I decided upon this:

“House Rivokul, as retainers of the Geyukthi Dukes of Miazan Subsector, had been Siridar-Barons of Kamperel/Miazan since the middle of the 10th Century. Outrageously corrupt, they had mercilessly exploited the huge population of their small, poor world. While the 3rd Outrim War was at its height, clandestine shipments of arms from the Outrim Alliance began reaching the People’s Justice Army of Kamperel. For eighteen months in 1031 – 32 the People’s Justice Army took on House Rivokul’s brutal mercenary guardsmen, fighting for control of the factories and tower blocks of Kamperel. A young Torvor Van Zaquerl, barely nineteen years old, personally led a team that penetrated House Rivokul’s fortress-palace where the entire family, and their retainers, were summarily executed.

"By the time Sector Duke Yuri Sehlemarl had concluded the 3rd Outrim War in 1038, a republican government headed by Torvor Van Zaquerl was firmly established on Kamperel. As most of House Geyukthi, who had supported House Rivokul, or at least turned a blind eye to their misdeeds, had perished in the Outrim War, there was little political will to overturn the new administration on Kamperel, provided it remained loyal to the Imperium and its appointed representative, the Sector Duke.”

So, a throw-away line in a note book had become a fully fledged event, with personalities and links to outside events.

During the 3rd Outrim War, Outrim Alliance raiders penetrated through much of Miazan Subsector. As Alliance ground forces were faring poorly against Imperial garrisons – lacking both the numbers and the technology to take planets with any decent-sized population – Alliance Command switched to the alternate tactic of arming and encouraging local resistance and revolutionary movements in an effort to force Imperial Forces to spread out to protect their hinterland. House Rivokul, already corrupt and hated by their subjects, was a prime contender for this tactic.

The Kamperelian Republic remained quiescent after the Outrim War, while extending their economic domination over their near neighbour, Ektra. In 1051, the Ektrans turned on the Kamperelian Merchant Factors on-planet and sacked their compounds. Torvor Van Zaquerl, now “Governor” of Kamperal, dispatched six Kamperelian Cruisers and an invasion force against Ektra. After a savage bombardment, the Ektrans surrendered to Kamperel and have been garrisoned ever since.

Kamperel remained neutral during the 4th Outrim War of 1080 – 85, but one of Marc Van Zaquerl’s first acts as Governor, upon succeeded his father Torvor in 1082, was to launch a sudden attack on Floranna. Under the guise of securing the Kamperel Cluster against Outrim raiders, Van Zaquerl’s task force caught the Florannese SDB flotilla unprepared and destroyed them. The sub aquatic domed cities of Floranna held out against the Kamperelians for another twenty months, but were eventually forced to surrender.

In the aftermath of the Outrim War, Imperial authorities in Miazan Subsector were, once again, in such a weakened state that apart from lodging a protest with the Sector Ducal Court they, once more, acquiesced with the fait accompli they had been presented with.

In the subsequent 30 years, relations between the Subsector Duchy and the Kamperelians have been cool.

One interesting effect of the topography that the Kamperelian armed forces operate in is that they are one of the few militaries to have developed walker technology beyond humanoid droids. Wheeled traffic has never really developed on any of the three main worlds of the Cluster. Both the sub aquatic cities of Floranna and the warrens of Ektra are effectively closed-in tunnel environments, very similar to the megacity sprawl of Kamperel’s inhabited zone in that they are three-dimensional mazes designed for human access only. Vehicular transportation for the Kamperelian military is limited to Power Armour or Walkers as these can cope with the narrow access halls, staircases and lift shafts.

Accidents in Astrogation – Miazan Subsector #2

Miazan Subsector, as an Imperial political entity, is slowly evaporating. Over 80% of the subsector’s population is located in the Kamperelian Cluster and has been effectively lost to the Imperium since the end of the Rivokul War in 1033. The Cabria Subsector systems of Lo Taisang and Tonivar, long attached to the Duchy of Miazan, were settled by demobilised Vargr mercenary clans and while these populations bravely resisted both Outrim Alliance and Kalar-Wi aggression over the last century, their total population still numbers just slightly over a million sophonts. While this is often enough to slow down small numbers of raiders, their low Tech Levels (TL 9 and 8 respectively) and poor port facilities preclude the long term stationing of more effective Naval elements in-system.

Within Miazan Subsector proper, Nakaya, Exxilon and Miazan systems support the bulk of the Imperial population – 6 billion sophonts in the relatively isolated low-tech Nakaya system, 5 billion sophonts in the Miazan system, and another half billion in Exxilon system. Of the three High Population systems, Miazan maintains a Tech Level of 12, while Exxilon has a Tech Level of 9. Nakaya lags well behind the times with a Tech Level of 7. The Tech Level D worlds of the subsector, Golus and Janda, have high tech research or production facilities with very small populations.

In the two decades since the end of the 4th Outrim War in 1085, the Miazan Subsector Dukes have had to cope with a shift of Sector political power away from the Outrim Frontier; the growing threat of the Kamperelian Republic squarely across Imperial supply lines; and the unification and growth in power of the Hunt of Rronurl, a Vargr polity of some six to eight worlds lapping around the Spin/Rimward end of the Miazan Subsector. With only the Naval Bases at Miazan and the fortress world of Celephais, the Miazan Subsector Navy has recovered slowly from losses suffered during the 4th Outrim War and replacement units have been restricted to Miazan’s Tech Level 12 Naval Yards. Falling behind in numbers, and loosing the technological edge that the Imperium has traditionally enjoyed, military planners on the Ducal staff are experiencing sleepless nights as they await deployment decisions at the Sector level.

Accidents in Astrogation – Miazan Subsector #1

Lying Rimward of Gamelea Subsector, Miazan Subsector contains two stellar constellations and a small scattering of stars along the edge of the Rimward Deep. The Miazan Main runs Rimward along the Spinward edge of the Miazan Subsector from the Tonivar Cluster in Cabria Subsector to Hydrot, while the Kamperel Cluster dominates the Coreward centre of the subsector.

Miazan Subsector contains seventeen systems with a total population of 65.6777 billion sophonts. The highest population, A, is at Kamperel, and the highest Tech Level, D, is at Golus and Janda. Twelve of the seventeen systems are members of the Imperium, the three systems of the Kamperelian Cluster are members of the Kamperelian Republic, and the systems of Lithia and Huop are non-aligned.

House Rivokul, loyal retainers of the House Geyukthi Dukes of Miazan, had been Siridar-Barons of Kamperel/Miazan since the middle of the 10th Century. Outrageously corrupt, they mercilessly exploited the enormous population of their small, poor, world. During the 3rd Outrim War (1025 – 1038) the Outrim Alliance smuggled arms to various resistance groups on Kamperel and a popular uprising, known as the Rivokul War, broke out in 1031. After a bitter 18-month struggle, the People’s Justice Army of Kamperel emerged victorious as the dominant rebel faction, House Rivokul’s Mercenary force had been smashed, and all members of House Rivokul had been executed.

By the time the 3rd Outrim War had been concluded in 1038, House Geyukthi was in decline, a new Sector Duke was on the throne, the People’s Justice Army ruled Kamperel with an iron fist, and the Van Zaquerl family was in total control of the People’s Justice Army. Within fifty years, Kamperel had gained control of Ektra and Floranna, the other two systems in the Kamperel Cluster, while relationships with the Imperium continued to sour.

During the 4th Outrim War (1080 – 85), the Kamperelian Republic sided with the Outrim Alliance, effectively paralysing the Miazan Subsector Fleet until the Kalar-Wi Navy smashed the main Outrim Alliance force at the Battle of Anthorann in 1085. Since the war, most trade traffic from Gamelea Subsector has been rerouted via the Kalar-Wi and Tonivar Clusters to avoid Kamperelian space. Relations with Kamperel thawed enough to provide an alternate route during the Kalar-Wi War (1103 – 1105) but most regular shippers still prefer the Kalar-Wi/Tonivar route for Jump-2 ships.

Merchants wishing to avoid Zoni space in Nolgor Subsector favour the route from Celephais via Byer’s Planet and Naltor to Dariak/Gazul, though this route benefits merchants out of Gamelea more than traders from Nolgor Subsector.

Lithia is an non-aligned world that has established strong commercial links with the Imperium through the pharmaceutical industry, while Huop is a non-aligned world that has been essentially settled and developed by three Imperial mega-corporations. It remains vulnerable to incursions by Outrim raiders.

Miazan Subsector is home to two Minor Races; the humanoid Olkathi of the deserts of Golus and the ursoid Purvions of the rain forests of Lithia.

There are three main dialects of Imperial Basic spoken in the Miazan Subsector:
1) Gamelea Imperial Basic: - spoken on Celephais, Byer’s Planet and Naltor.
2) Miazan Imperial Basic: Dialect of Imperial Basic spoken along the Miazan Main, and on Nakaya and Epoch.
3) Kampereli Basic: - Dialect of Miazan Imperial Basic spoken on Kamperel, Ektra and Floranna in Miazan Subsector.

Other languages spoken in the Miazan Subsector include:
Sahsah sai – Main language of the Olkathi Minor Race of Golus/Miazan.
Aerrghvi – Vargr dialect of Gvegh, one of the major Vargr language groups, spoken by the Vargr mercenary clan settled on Lo-Taisang/Cabria and who trade regularly along the Miazan Main.
Igzgal – Vargr dialect spoken by the Vargr mercenary clan settled on Tonivar/Cabria and who trade regularly along the Miazan Main.
Kassuriik: Main language of the Purvion Minor Race of Lithia.

Website Update #4

It’s taken several days, but I’ve finally updated my modelling log and my webpage.

I’m quite pleased with how my Ground Zero Games Heavy Battlesuits have come out, and I like the Rebel Minis Earthforce Marines – now doing duty as Kamperalian infantry. The evolution of the Kamperalian Ground Forces as a distinctive Tech Level 11, non-Grav using army has been quite fun, as well.

Checking my notes, I see that both Floranna and Ektra, the other two worlds in the Kamperal polity, have similarly restricted operating areas for armed forces as Kamperal, itself. Floranna is a water world, with the population of some 7 million sophonts living in domed undersea settlements, while Ektra, a small, waterless and nearly airless world supports nearly 9 million sophonts in various subterranean warrens. In both cases, the Kamperalian Heavy Battlesuits should easily support the infantry in their patrol and garrison duties, while the Combat Walkers will be able to winkle out any serious resistance.

Accidents in Astrography: RimWorlds Sector

This is the original sector map of the RimWorlds Sector, as drawn by me back in 1984 or 1985. Gamelea Subsector occupies the K region of the sector.

The light green area of the map shows the part of the sector under Imperial control. The blue area in the Lymethius subsector (Subsector J) is the Geithurian Republic, a human-dominated but anti-Imperial polity.

In Subsector L (Nolgor Subsector), Lur (homeworld of the insectoid Zoni), the Theocracy of Lotarf and the splinter state of Naos VI are all resisting Imperial control, while in Miazan Subsector (Subsector N), the Republic of Kamperal has become increasingly hostile to Imperial control to the point that the Miazan Subsector Duke is preparing to declare that a state of rebellion exists within the borders of the Imperium.

Gamelea, Nolgor and Miazan subsectors are all beset with political weakness, stagnant economies, corruption and hostile neighbours. Each subsector has its own unique flavour and all offer challenges to adventurers.

'... for when you absolutely, positively, have to go trans-uranium on somebody's ass.'

A chap on the Stargrunt-Full Thrust Yahoo discussion group wanted to know how large the new 15mm Cyclops Battle suits from Ground Zero Games were. The short answer is that the battle suits stand about 30mm tall, or approximately 12' or 4 meters tall in RL.


Here are a couple of WIPs comparing the battle suit with 15mm figures from Ground Zero Games and a 25mm Samurai from Eureka Miniatures (the only 25mm figure I have to hand).

I was initially sceptical about the whole 'walker' thing until I realised that the battle suits actually have two 'mechanical toes' for balance, rather than the metal 'boot' mechs are often depicted with. This little design touch suddenly made them believable to me - that and seeing the battle suits in Avatar.

Just remembered to snap a shot of the battle suit along side one of my Sydites - up until now the largest figures in my Traveller collection (well, non-vehicle figures). I think I had worked the Sydites out at twice man-height (which is a little larger than in the T20 rule book, but the Sydites in the RimWorlds eat all their greens and that's why they're so tall). The Cyclops tops them in height, and bulk.

I'm currently painting them up as support weapon platforms for my Rebel Miniatures Earth Force Marines - the latter are going to be ground forces for the Republic of Kamperal in the Miazan Subsector. Kamperal is a small, poor, high population world of moderate tech level that controls two neighbouring systems. My theory is that lacking small grav units, and with predominantly urban terrain to fight in, the Kamperalians opted for walker-type heavy weapons and armour as these can manoeuvre and fight more easily in tunnel systems and arcologies.