Makrania Orwoods
Famous (some say infamous) orwoods around Frei (HJer-IV, NoCoZo); they are well known across inhabited space for their zero gravity free-space casinos, sports and hedonics.
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Makrania OrwoodsFamous (some say infamous) orwoods around Frei (HJer-IV, NoCoZo); they are well known across inhabited space for their zero gravity free-space casinos, sports and hedonics. |
The founders of the Makrania orwoods were the two AIs Botryophoros
and Polygethes
who emigrated from the Dionysian
Erotocracy during its breakup. They arrived at Frei in 3344, and
began seeding the rings of the planet with
their "starseeds". The locals, a number of technetes on Thomaso
(Hjer-III) were at first sceptical of the project and several times
petitioned the AIs to cease and desist; the AIs on the other hand
managed to produce authentic if very irregular documents proving they
owned the ring according to in-system law. As the orwoods expanded,
sweeping up the dust of the ring and blossoming into a fantastic space
ecology containing both Dionysian and terrestrial themes, more and more
of the young began to spend time in the orwoods. The cultural influence
of the post-erotocracy AIs spread, and by 3600 the entire system had
been successfully subverted: the last technetes abandoned Thomaso and
moved into the orwoods.
The system was linked with a stargate to Graunstein 5783 (and later
directly to Merrion), and became
known as a major resort and hedonics
center. The population and economy boomed, transforming the previously
minor system to one of the wealthier polities of the NoCoZo at the
time.
By now Botryophoros and Polyghetes had tired of their project and had
moved on outwards, leaving the Orwood in the hands of their successor
gods Sykrites and Kissokomes. This pattern was to be repeated roughly
every millennium, as the old gods retired to leave place to a new pair.
At present it is ruled by Ploutodotes and Euanthes, expected to step
down in the next two centuries or so.
During the Version War
the system declared itself neutral, and
deliberately minimized the stargates. During this period of relative
isolation the culture was to develop to its current core state, with a
strong emphasis on the Five Virtues: spending, lust, amusement,
activity
and cleverness. The system came to be dominated by an oligarchy of
"houses" (more corresponding to casinos/pleasure palaces than noble
houses), each representing a certain mixture or interpretation of the
virtues. For example the UlnekiJasa devotes itself to the arts of
spending and lust through its chain of erotic environments and
pleasuretrees, while Xantra Ent combines amusement with cleverness by
arranging fabulistic adventures across the Makrania Orwoods. These
houses have remained roughly unchanged throughout the millennia, with
the exception of occasional collapses or scandals that lead to the
emergence of new houses to take the weakest oldest houses' place. Nro
Buzines is still run by Nyktipolos, a now retired orwood god, and
arranges autodestructive hunts and other borderline legal activities in
order to give the system a dark edge and celebrate activity struggling
with cleverness.
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