The Joyeuse System

Joyeuse | 1123 | B-464778-A | M | Ag, Ri | Amber | 201 | M3v M9D | Sw

M3V  Carolus
     [Mass 0.4258 Sol, Luminosity 0.386 Sol,
      Diameter roughly 0.4 Sol (557000 km)]

0    Large GG  Charlemagne
     [Orbits at 0.2AU; 30 million kilometres]
     [180000 miles diameter; density 0.23; mass 2620; 50 days orbital period]
     [At Joyeuse or Charlemagne Carolus covers 1 degree in the sky]
     [Eclipses of Joyeuse by Charlemagne at most last 2.57 hours (155 minutes)]
     6r   F-s0026A-A  Charles   Re  (part of the Kingdom of Joyeuse)
     7r   F-s0026A-9  Pepin         (part of the Duchy of New Olenburg)
     8r   B-464778-A  Joyeuse
          [at 1152000km orbital radius; orbital period 2.69 days (64.56 hours)]
          [At Joyeuse, Charlemagne covers 14.25 degrees in the sky]
     9r   F-s0026A-A  Louis     Re  (part of the Kingdom of Joyeuse)
     10r  F-s0026A-9  Hruodrud      (part of the Grand Duchy of New Aachen)
     50r  F-s0026A-A  Gisela    Re  (part of the Grand Duchy of New Aachen)

3  M9D  Companion Star  Carloman
        [560 day orbital period]
        0  F-310538-A  Bertrada  Re, Nv  (the Dukedom of; ruled by Duke Alain)
           [There is a scientific research station at Bertrada]
        1  G-102319-A  St Giles  Nv  (a mining outpost)

5  G-40021B-9  Elbegast  (a mining outpost)

6  F-30043B-A  Roland    Nv  (the Dukedom of; ruled by Duke Bernard)
     1r   Y-R00000-0  Roland's Ring
     30r  Y-s00000-0  Liutgard
     45r  Y-s00000-0  Gersuinda

7  G-400119-9  Hildegard     (a mining outpost)

8  H-100167-A  Fastrada  Re  (part of the Duchy of New Olenburg)

Progressive and Advancing
Competitive and Militant
Discordant and Aloof

Law varies between nations but is undivided within nations.

• Joyeuse is named after Charlemagne's sword.
• 0.25G, 1.2 atmospheres pressure, base temperature of 279K raised by 5% by greenhouse effect terraforming to 292K. Tidally locked to the gas giant Charlemagne.
• Native life. The most common type of life-form has three limbs, two genders, radial symmetry and seven eyes (six circumferentially and one in the centre); native life sees into the IR but does not see blues. They tend to be quite spindly (due to the low gravity) and are mostly scaled (like lizards) or exoskeletal. Some land creatures run, some spin. Some laterally symmetrical flying types. Vegetation is glassy and transparent to visible light, but opaque to red and IR light (so appearing a dull cyan in white light). Native life very biologically compatible with Terran life; there are introduced species and dry-adapted crops.
• 1 major ocean (the Kingly Ocean; 10% of surface), 3 minor oceans (the Queenly, Princely and Knightly Oceans; 5% of surface each), 15 small seas (1% of surface each).
• Fifteen volcanoes.
• 26 cities of 100000's people (none larger); 84 cities of 10000's people; 280 towns of 1000's people; lots of smaller towns and villages. They tend to look like high-tech Scandinavian cities with lots of apartment blocks.
• People live by the human biological clock, ignoring the (far too long) actual day-night cycle. As such, all of Joyeuse is a single time zone.
• Native life was originally concentrated around and in the seas and oceans; there were quite distinct ecosystems in each one.
• Now there is extensive irrigation of the deserts which has turned Joyeuse into a rich agricultural world.
• Exports include Agricultural products, ores, radioactives, non-metals, consumables, weapons, recordings, software and documents.
• The whole place has a reddish colour from its sunlight.

Joyeuse is divided among 3 major and 3 minor powers:

1. Major:
   • The Kingdom of Joyeuse; 7 million people, Government 9 (Impersonal Bureaucracy), Law C; ruled by King Simon. Includes a large part of the shoreline of the Kingly Ocean, all of the Knightly Ocean and three seas.
   • The Duchy of New Olenburg; 6 million people, Government 9 (Impersonal Bureaucracy), Law 8; ruled by Arch-Duchess Beatrice. Includes some of the shoreline of the Kingly Ocean and one sea, but lots of land, much of it underdeveloped due to a lack of water.
   • The Grand Duchy of New Aachen; 3 million people, Government 5 (Feudal Technocracy), Law 4; ruled by Arch-Duke William. Includes all of the Queenly Ocean and four small seas.
2. Minor:
   • The Kingdom of Neustria; 2 million people, Government 9 (Impersonal Bureaucracy), Law 8; ruled by Queen Gudrun. Includes roughly half the shoreline of the Princely Ocean plus one sea. It has a presence in space made up of an enclave on the New Olenburg Station, and another on the New Aachen station.
   • The Kingdom of Lombardia; 1 million people, Government B (Non-Charismatic Leader), Law B; ruled by Queen Marguerite. Includes roughly half the shoreline of the Princely Ocean plus three seas. It has no presence in space.
   • The Empire of New Rome; 1 million people, Government 3 (Self-Perpetuating Oligarchy), Law 0; ruled by the Emperor Louis. Includes three small seas. Its presence in space is limted to an enclave on the New Aachen station.

The other small moons or Charlemagne hold military bases of the various nations of Joyeuse. Fastrada also holds an outpost of one of the Duchy of New Olenburg.

Joyeuse used to be the capital of the Sword Worlds. However a succession crisis when the King and most of his close family died in an accident (or 'accident'?), followed by an anti-Imperial coup by the other Sword worlds destroyed its power and led to civil war over who should rule. Joyeuse eventually stabilised into its current balkanised state.

Now there is war again (not the first). Gram has sent a contingent of warships, the 'Gram Squadron', there to ensure that trade is not disrupted by the war (as Joyeuse is on the routes to/from Colada, Tizon, Hrunting, Gungnir and Mjolnir); they are loitering near Charlemagne.

The war is between the Kingdom of Joyeuse and the allied Duchy of New Olenburg and the Kingdom of Neustria, over water. The Duchy of New Olenburg wants to expand its farmlands but it has no spare water resources; Neustria is similarly limited. The Kingdom of Joyeuse does have spare water, and there are old disagreements between those involved to spur them on given that the Kingdom of Joyeuse is not willing to share.

The Grand Duchy is the most advancing of Joyeuse's nations (and even it is not very advancing); it is much more interested in trade than war, but having little success in convincing the others of this. The Kingdom of Lombardia is very paranoid and isolationist. The (largely lawless) Empire of New Rome, situated in such a position that it would be useful to both sides in the war, is trying (essentially) to sell its services to whichever side will make it most worth their while. The Grand Duchy is trying to stop it doing this. As such New Rome is a hotbed of espionage at the moment. Also, because of its low law level there are stringent customs checks on anyone coming out of New Rome into anywhere else.

There is an International Negotiation Board (INB), a rough equivalent of the UN, which is, in theory, for arbitrating disputes like this one. It has an orbital HQ, and gets little respect. The orbital HQ is also the location of most of the embassies of the other Sword Worlds (there are consulates in the various nations, however).

There are other orbital stations, one for each major nation with the minor nations leasing space on them. However, the law levels of these stations are such that illegal things can not be obtained there so people who want law level zero things will have to go down to the surface (to the Empire of New Rome) to get them.

The war is being mostly fought on the ground with additional orbital fire support and space battles between the ships of each side (mainly 'Kingdom' class frigates and smaller ships). No nukes are being used. All nations have fixed missile batteries at spaceports and so on. On the ground TL10 'Striker' Grav tanks, TL10 'Gram' Grav APCs and some TL9 'Lagerhead'-type tanks are being used (plus foot soldiers, artillery and so on).

There are agreed approach corridors through which trade ships and so on can pass; however, missiles and so on do sometimes stray into these areas...

Note that Jumping in to Joyeuse is governed by the diameter of the star Carolus, not that of Charlemagne or Joyeuse. The 100 diameter limit for arrival and departure is about 56 million kilometres out from the star (i.e. not too far out from the 100 diameter limit of Charlemagne itself).

The Flag of the Joyeuse System:

The Blue circle represents Joyeuse itself, around Charlemagne, the large patterned circle. The small white circles represent the other smaller moons of Charlemagne.

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