STAR WARS Roleplaying: The Lannik Sector Pt.3: Factions of the Lannik System

 This part contains some sections that go into the backgrounds of the factions active in the system. Click on [GM Section] to reveal motives and deeper background information.

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The Empire

With most of the system valuable natural resources removed, the Empire has no further great plans for Lannik beyond regional control and some extraction of food stuffs for nearby factory worlds in other sectors. Lannik’s Imperial penal camps use slave labor to extract minerals on Lannik II. On Lannik IV several penal camps function as plantations producing food stuffs. Governor Krestner’s does believe that the Empire brings order and relative prosperity to the civilized parts of the system, mostly contained on its capital moon. Most of the Imperial fleet in the system patrols the asteroid belt and the shipping lanes leading to Nambeno station. The Lannik system is home to two Stormtrooper regiments of the 505^th Legion, and a larger array of other branches of the Imperial army.

The Imperial Fleet’s presence in the system is made up of three light cruisers, one light carrier and a detachment of seven Gozanti-Class cruisers.

[GM Section]

Krestner’s interests are mostly in growing his own personal fortune, and ruling his system without interference from outsiders—which includes outsiders from the Empire. Yes, there is rebel activity rumored to take place, but as long as there are no major incidents that his personal detachment cannot handle, Krestner will not escalate the situation up the chain of command. Yes, the Mining Consortium’s slave trade is unfortunate, but if he would interfere, the governor knows the slave trade would just go to some other place. So why bother. The Surkellos sometimes behave like it was them who ran Lannik, but if push should come to shove, if they don’t keep a lid on the more egregious criminal activities or if they should get the really, outstandingly bad idea in their head to throw in with the Rebel Alliance, Krestner is convinced his troops could take the station without so much as breaking a sweat. Neither the Dead nor the marauders bother Krestner much. He regards both as unavoidable nuisances that ultimately don’t represent much of a danger to his pocket of colonial civilization.

 

Lannik Mining Consortium

Ruthless businessmen all, this Imperial charter organization seeks to extract every last bit of valuable material from the system and sell it to the highest bidder. The voices inside the consortium that objected to using the Empire-provided slave labor have long been silenced. The consortium is primarily run by former opponents of Lannik’s royal family and High Court, seeing themselves as the rightful successors to the erstwhile rulers of the system.

The Mining Consortium has a small armada of twenty six Porter-Class freighters and five Bulk Freighters. For defensive purposes the organization largely relies on its Imperial connections and hired guns. However, the consortium operates an old separatist freighter that was remodeled into a lightly armed carrier to bring in a small fleet of eighteen skipray blast boats to stall any troublemakers long enough until Imperial support arrives.

[GM Section]

Its board of directors cares not for their employees, or who they are ultimately doing business with, as long as the credits keep flowing. The board regards the Empire as a useful ally, but should Krestner become too greedy for kickbacks, there are other eager bureaucrats waiting in the wings. The consortium has a longstanding and good relationship with the Surkellos, and both factions do cover each others’ backs. If the Rebel Alliance should approach the Consortium, it would be a matter of who exactly they were talking to. Some in the Consortium would not care dealing with the Rebels, as long as they pay. Others would rather not endanger their position, and might either try to take care of the issue themselves through hired guns, or, if the Alliance tries to engage one of the Consortium’s stingier members, might bring in the Empire to take care of the problem for them.

 

 

The Surkellos Family

Pon and her partner Versif run Lannik’s busiest spaceport like a well-oiled machine. They have pride in what their family has built. And as long as everyone who they allow access to Nambeno plays along, everything is fine. The Surkellos maintain a roster of Duros bodyguards that have served the family for more than a generation. The family does not have much in terms of a standing army at their command, but the Knife of Nambeno is a formidable defensive structure, and if the need should arise, the family has no problem procuring capable and well-equipped mercenaries on the spot.

[GM Section]

There is little love lost between the powerful family and the current Imperial governor. Pon begrudgingly accepts a small Imperial garrison on the station that keeps eyes out for Rebel activity and provides an additional layer of security for the Mining Consortium. There is a reason, however, that the station’s defenses are usually well maintained and manned. Not that any Surkellos is under much of an illusion that their operation could survive a serious confrontation with the Empire on the long run. But the firepower of the old battleship could allow any number of family members a window of opportunity large enough to escape the Lannik system. Not that any Surkellos wants that. None of the Surkellos wish to be personally involved with either the Hutt emissaries nor with representatives of the Black Sun. This is the main reason the family has so far not attempted to get rid of The Dead, through whom they maintain contacts to the criminal syndicates outside of their direct sphere of influence. In turn, the Dead enjoy a level of acceptance that sometimes borders on protection. The Surkellos would if necessary pull strings to keep the Empire off of their criminal allies’ backs. But all the unease that plagues the family in regards to the Empire does not make them sympathetic to the Rebel Alliance’s cause. In Pon’s eyes, the rebels mean mostly trouble, and trouble with the Empire is something that is to be avoided.

 

The Dead

Nobody knows exactly who or what the leader of the syndicate truly is. Rumors are that he is either a crippled, exiled Mandalorian who rebuilt himself with a little too many cybernetic parts, or an old Clone Trooper who suffered a terrible accident. But those are neither the only nor the wildest rumors about the Dead’s true nature and identity. What is certain is that his followers are loyal and ruthless, but also providing a palpable sense of security for many in the Lannik system. Which is the reason the syndicate enjoys sizable support among the local population on Nambemo station and even in the cities of Lannik IV. If there are disputes between parties on the space station, the syndicate is usually the first place for people to go.

The syndicate maintains a small force of fighter craft, a handful of cloak shape fighters, as well as a few Z95 AF headhunters. The Dead’s flag ship is an old YV 929 armed transport. But the syndicate’s forte is not in fighting space battles.  

[GM Section]

The organization has no interest in gaining more direct power in Lannik. That is a game for the Surkellos, and the Dead are generally happy that someone else does the administrative work. The syndicate is a tight knit family for many of its members. Like the Surkellos, the Dead are not political. They dislike the Empire, but they have no more love for the Rebels either, who they also see as just another way of law and order playing out – after all many of the planetary administrators that joined the alliance would crack down on the Dead’s intergalactic partners like the Hutts or Black Sun just as much as the Empire would. The Mining Consortium and the Dead maintain an uneasy truce. As long as the syndicate doesn’t overplay its hand and demands too large a cut from the operation’s profits, the consortium is willing to indulge them, and as long as the miners pay their dues, the syndicate is willing to extend its “protection” over their space shipping and slaving operations. After all, most of the slaves come from Hutt space, and pass through Dead hands first.

 

Lannik Royalist Remnant

The Lannik High Court was unpopular among the local population before the Clone Wars, with the royal family not enjoying a lot of support among its people, which in turn resulted in a long-lasting civil war. After the Empire rose, the High Court thought it prudent to play nice with the new galactic leadership, hoping the Empire could keep the insurgent elements on Lannik of the High Court’s collective backs. This resulted in catastrophe, as the Imperial diplomats altered their deal with the royal family, and so military support against the insurgents became permanent Imperial occupation, deposition of the High Court and imprisonment of the Royal Family. Imperial rule also proved much worse for the local population, resulting in some of the insurgents and most of the royalists begrudgingly joining forces. Their efforts against the Empire have been in vain so far. Adding insult to injury is that the Mining Consortium has successfully found ways to cooperate with the Empire.  

[GM Section]

Occasional acts of terror had no lasting effects on Imperial operations in the system. The royalists are reluctant to join the Rebel Alliance, since they see the Rebels as just another outside force that would further entangle Lannik in intergalactic affairs. But with things being as they are, the Royalists need every friend they can get. The Mining Consortium is generally seen as a pack of traitors who threw in with the Empire to exploit their own people and defy their rightful rulers. The Surkellos family occupies a similar position, however since they were always outsiders, tending to their space port, their perceived betrayal and lack of standing up to the Empire is not regarded with as much bile. The Royalists regard the Dead as not much different than any criminal operation.

The Rebel Alliance

[GM Section]

The small Rebel presence in the Lannik system tries to stay out of sight as best as possible. Of course, the local commander would prefer to extend a helping hand to the left-behind denizens of Lannik II, throw all wrenches possible into the slave trade, and capture the Knife of Nambeno for their cause. But Lannik is too far away from important shipping lanes, too poor in strategic resources to warrant such an effort on the entire Alliance’s part. And so, all the Rebels do is small, tactical strikes, random acts of sabotage here and there, while maintaining contacts—through disguises and middle men—with both the Mining Consortium and the Surkellos family. The Rebels would welcome the Royalist Remnant into the alliance, however even if the former rulers of the system officially joined, chances are slim that the Rebel cause could divert much resources to the system even then. There might, however, come a time when Lannik II could become a much-needed out-of-the-way hiding place for parts of the Rebel forces. In the meantime, the Alliance members remain dug in and out of sight. If necessary, the Dead could prove a useful, if uneasy, ally against the Empire.