Dragonstar: The Throneworlds
The Dragon Empire is ruled at the highest level from Draconis Prime. But the greatest concentration of political, military, and economic power is found on the throneworlds of the royal houses of Qesemet and Asamet.
These planets have truly ancient histories, and the various dragon clans rose to dominance over most of them centuries or millennia before the discovery of star travel. As a result, they have been bastions of strength and security for the dragons for thousands and thousands of years. Nevertheless, while the dragons are preeminent on their throneworlds, these are cosmopolitan planets and systems, and their populations are filled with representatives of many different races.
List of the Throneworlds
The imperial domains, systems, and throneworlds are listed below.
| Imperial Domain |
Star System |
Throneworld |
|---|---|---|
| Deserene | Arlant | Galador |
| Sarava | Casenore | Aelding |
| Handor | Idradon | Endagar |
| Aranath | Magrant | Ambrant |
| Golion | Savain | Meneer |
| Mazorgrim | Andragus | Arangorn |
| Osorus | Heridor | Thormorath |
| Noros | Kalain | Morngond |
| Esmer | Parvan | Malaval |
| Altara | Eloine | Rilion |
Arlant System
The throneworld of House Deserene is the third planet in the Arlant system. Galador is one of the most technically advanced planets in the known galaxy. Betherian, a vast, sprawling metropolis that spans more than a million square miles, dominates its central continent. The silver spires of steel, mithral, and glass at its heart reach several miles into the sky. The political center of the Kingdom of Qesemet is located in the Royal District of Betherian. From a great palace in this exclusive sector of the city, King Khelorn still rules his realm. The district is nestled in a wide mountain valley, and a 500-foot-tall statue of Galador the Great watches over the city from the rock above.
The Arlant system is the largest single producer of manufactured goods in the known galaxy. Most of its industry is located in the orbital stations that ring Galador, and nearly inexhaustible raw materials are mined in the system's extensive asteroid belt. While local law prohibits polluting industries from operating on the planet's surface, the commercial districts of Betherian are leading centers for many vital services, including banking, insurance, and medicine.
Casenore System
The secluded mountain eyries of Aelding offer some of the most breathtaking vistas in the Empire, though few common folk ever see them. The cloud city of Vespar, the capital of Aelding, is suspended in the atmosphere by massive antigravity generators. Vespar is one of the greatest achievements of arcane technology in the Empire, and the dragon lords of House Sarava built it at monumental expense for the simple joy of living in the sky.
House Sarava has major interests in countless industries, but the Casenore system is most renowned for its aerospace manufacturers. Factories on Aelding produce state-of-the-art aircraft and starship components, and these are transported by space elevator to the massive shipyards in orbit. This space elevator, or skyhook, stretches from Mount Rimidil on the equator to an asteroid counterweight in a stationary orbit around Aelding. The skyhook is a 100-foot-thick cable constructed of carbon fiber and reinforced with magic. It runs from Mount Rimidil, through the center of Vespar, to Andrin Station. The skyhook allows cargo to be transported between the planet and orbit at very low cost, and it has made the Aelding shipyards the most profitable producers of spacecraft and starships in the Empire.
Idradon System
Throneworld of house Handor is on the pristine waterworld of Endagar. More than 90% of the planet is covered with clean, blue-green oceans—a literal paradise for the bronze dragons. Endagar's vast kelp fields and fish farms provide fresh food and delicacies for all of the worlds connected by the Long Road, and many more beyond it. Endagar Pearls are among the most sought-after precious stones in the Empire, prized by jewelers for their luster and treasured by alchemists and wizards for their reputed mystical properties.
Endagar's stretch of the Long Road is anchored on one of the planet's larger islands, but more than half of its length is constructed along a series of rafts and causeways that connect several floating cities. Many of these cities extend as far below the waves as above them, and several are linked by umbilical lines to vast habitats and industrial complexes built on the seafloor. Endagar boasts the most advanced deep-sea engineering and industry in the Empire.
A small power-generation facility near the Ambrant Gate was attacked by a kraken more than a hundred years ago. The damage was so extensive that the Long Road was actually closed for repairs for several weeks. Scientists claim that the creature was attracted to electrical emissions from the plant, and the Long Road is now equipped with deterrence systems to prevent attacks by marine predators.
Today, Endagar is best known for its aquaculture, marine industry, and exclusive island resorts. Less public but perhaps even more influential, however, is the Endagar Royal War College. At an isolated island and seafloor complex on Endagar, the bronze dragons' passion and respect for warfare has led to the creation of the leading military academy in the Empire. Admission is typically granted only to the aristocracy of Qesemet, and most of the highest-ranking officers in the kingdom's military forces are alumni of the War College. These experienced officers filled the ranks of the Imperial Legions and Imperial Navy until Mezzenbone ascended the Golden Throne.
Magrant System
The throneworid of House Aranath, Ambrant, is the mirror image of Endagar. It is a hot, dry world with very little industry or developed economic base. The one notable exception is information technology: House Aranath is an imperial leader in the design and manufacture of computers and information networks, and Ambrant is home to many of its largest research labs and production facilities.
Many of these facilities are clustered along the Ambrant stretch of the Long Road. The city of Arakel in the Helras Desert is both the capital of Ambrant and the most active hub of the InfoNet. The basic structure of this worlds-spanning information network was designed and developed by House Aranath engineers. While the InfoNet does not allow faster-than-light communication over interstellar distances, it does connect the 10 throneworlds via fiber-optic lines running under the Long Road.
Savain System
The copper dragons are renowned architects and builders, and the towers, temples, and vaults of the Irunath Mountains on Meneer are some of the most awe-inspiring structures in the Empire. The grand duke's palace winds over and through the majestic peaks. a beautiful stronghold carved of native stone that is more than 10,000 years old. House Golion has forged professional alliances with several other races to pursue long-term projects. The copper dragons work with elven biologists and ecologists on terraforming science, and with dwarven engineers on materials and construction technology. While it is little more than a figurehead organization, the government-in-exile of the Dwarven Commonwealth has its offices on Meneer.
Unsurprisingly, professional expertise is Meneer's chief export. While House Golion—like all the royal houses—has extensive commercial interests in countless industries, the throneworld is dedicated to the advancement of art, science, and craft. The various branches of the University of Meneer support a student population of more than 1,000,000, and its College of Architecture is widely regarded as the best in the Empire. The Royal Exploratory Service's training academy is also located in the wilds of Meneer, where it takes advantage of the planet's varied terrains and climates to prepare its students for survival on unfamiliar worlds.
Andragus System
The throneworld of House Mazorgrim is the second planet in the Andragus system. Arangorn is an infernally hot, rugged world orbiting just on the inside edge of its bright yellow star's habitability zone. Wasted badlands and barren mountain ranges dominate most of the planet, and few living creatures can survive for long on the surface without protection. Arangorn is tectonically very active, and major earthquakes and volcanic eruptions frequently ravage the planet's crust. The planet is also extraordinarily rich in precious metals and minerals, however, and the surface is dotted with mining, refining, and industrial facilities. The red dragons typically live in vast underground complexes, where bioengineered algae provide an abundant supply of clean air. There are also a few fully enclosed habitats scattered about the surface and the length of the Long Road.
Visitors to Arangorn often wonder why the red dragons, with all their wealth and a vast number of planets to choose from, would make the inhospitable world their capital. The simple answer is that red dragons don't share the aesthetic values of other races. The truth is, they admire the hellish vistas of the surface and feel at home in the tangled subterranean vaults and warrens of the planet's sprawling undercities. The planet's infernal temperatures and barren landscapes also ensure that visitors won't often bother the dragons of House Mazorgrim.
Hedidor System
The warm, arid world of Thormorath offers little in the way of natural resources, and few regions receive enough rainfall to support large-scale agriculture. Instead, the planet is reserved for the vast, sprawling estates of the dragon lords of House Osorus. The capital city, Kazar, is rooted at the base of a great mountain range in the Abzaman Desert. Its lush gardens and gilded palaces set the standard for ostentatious indulgence of aristocratic excess. It is said that hidden teleportation circles are scattered throughout Kazar, and that a blue dragon lord can slip into the shadows and arrive on Draconis Prime or the other throneworlds of Asamet from anywhere in the great city.
The Long Road does not approach within thousands of miles of Kazar, It runs through a sort of "border town" called Azalkar. This city serves as the "foreign quarter" of Thormorath, and few non-dragons are permitted to venture beyond its boundaries. It is in Azalkar that representatives of other races and political groups must seek audience with the bureaucrats and low-ranking lords of House Osorus. Azalkar is also one of the primary commercial hubs of the Empire. House Osorus has built its own economic empire on financial and legal services, and Azalkar is the central battleground for the dealing and double-dealing that greases the wheels of commerce in the Dragon Empire.
Kalain System
The throneworld of the Domain of Noros is the hot, humid planet Morngond. Perpetually shrouded in thick cloud cover, Morngond's single major landmass is dominated by dense jungle and marsh. House Noros has historically been loosely allied with House Mazorgrim, but this alliance is always circumstantial and temporary. Both houses are political opponents of House Osorus: The blue dragon lords are both powerful and all too willing to restrict the activities of the other houses.
The only truly developed region of Morngond is the narrow corridor clustered around the Long Road. The superhighway runs along a flat coastal plain, and a huge, state-of-the-art spaceport adjoins it. House Noros's principle economic activities center on the transport and transfer of cargo and information. Despite its torrid climate and dangerous jungles, Morngond is one of the leading distribution hubs in the Empire. Most of the largest shipping companies are backed by House Noros, and it is widely known—though unproven—that the black dragons sponsor several different smuggling and piracy operations within the domains of Qesemet.
Parvan System
The throneworld of House Esmer is the beautiful forest world of Malaval. A young planet by cosmological standards, most of Malaval's landmasses are covered in primeval forest. From the dense jungles of the tropical climes to the vast deciduous forests of the temperate latitudes, the endless woods of Malaval are a natural paradise for the green dragon lords.
Grand Duke Lemradon and his court live and work in Nashak, the capital city of Malayal and the heart of the Domain of Esmer. This small, exclusive city is located deep in a continent-spanning temperate forest clustered around the Rilion Gate of the Long Road. A sister city, Marak, is located at the Noros Gate. Marak is a much larger metropolis and is much more open to non-dragons. While Nashak is the political center of Malaval, Marak is its commercial center. House Esmer's extensive defense industries are headquartered in Marak.
Eloine System
Rilion, the throneworld of the Domain of Altara, has been locked in the frigid grip of an ice age since it was colonized by the white dragons before the great war. The vast glaciers extend well into the temperate latitudes, and even the tropics suffer long, frozen winters. Like many of the throneworlds, there is almost no industrial development on Rilion. The white dragons of House Altara are widely considered the least sophisticated of the dragons, and they have preserved the cold wilderness of Rilion as a planet-wide preserve for the huge populations of dire animals that roam the frozen wastes. Hunting these animals is the Altars aristocracy's favored pastime.
The white dragons do not dominate any specific trade or industry. The individual lords pursue commercial interests suited to their natures and ambitions or inherited from their families. As a result, House Altara is perhaps the most economically diversified and decentralized of the royal houses. The Rilion section of the Long Road is almost completely undeveloped, except for the small city of lnglor located at the Malaval Gate and the sprawling military base and checkpoint at the Galador Gate.