Primary: Ember,
spectral class M0V. ICN S4G0304M0V. Mass, 0.489 standard. Stellar diameter,
0.549 standard. Luminosity 0.04 standard.
Planetary System: Two major
bodies. One inhabited world (Grampia, I). One gas giant in system. No planetoid
belts in system.
I Grampia: Mean
orbital radius, 29.92 million kilometers (.2AU). Period, 46.7 days. No
satellites. Diameter, 1998 kilometers. Density, 1.03 standard. Mass, .002
standard. Mean surface gravity, .13 G. Rotation period: none (tidal lock with
primary). Axial inclination, 35°14'3.2". Albedo, 0.32. Surface atmospheric
pressure, 0. 15 atm. Composition, standard oxygen-nitrogen mix, respirator
required to breathe atmosphere. Hydrographic percentage, 29%; composition,
frozen water-ice. Mean surface temperature (dayside), -19°C. Nightside
temperatures reach -40°C or lower.
Remarks: Grampia
is a small but rugged world settled only within the last two centuries. The
world offers much in the way of resources; a number of worthwhile minerals are
present in abundance, and the original settlement was founded by MacGregor
Minerals, a prominent resource exploitation firm. However, the firm made the
mistake of backing the wrong side during the Dynastic
Crisis of 1024, a mistake which caused the Company charter to be revoked
when Lord Campbell was elevated to the throne. The mining colony on Grampia rose
against management, ostensibly because of politics, but in fact because of the
agitation of a few opportunists who saw a rising as a ticket to power and
wealth.
Their vision was an accurate one. The victorious Prince granted control of the
Grampian colony and mines to the Provisional Workers' Council in early 1025, and
the colony remained in the hands of the people from that time on. The council
eventually passed power to a regularly elected executive body, with most major
decisions being submitted to a Worker's Vote. Any citizen of the planet holding
membership in one of several trade guilds is entitled to vote on such major
issues, though the franchise is carefully controlled by vested interests among
the various unions. Non-union members are second class citizens with few rights
and no voice in affairs at all.
Government by the people has not always run smoothly on Grampia. Politics on the world is an especially dirty game, with a dangerous amount of power being wielded by a few key union administrators. The fact that the Miner's Guild has recently come under the influence of an ambitious pro-Maxwellian, Thorn Bournais, has caused considerable concern both on and off Grampia. A power struggle between Bournais and a syndicate of less powerful politicians has been shaping up for some time, and it is believed that the Miner's Guild leader is receiving help from Maxwellian sympathizers on Claverse (Reavers' Deep 1913), as well. Though not a major world, Grampia's resources, and its proximity to both Caledon (Reavers' Deep 1815) and Scotia (Reavers' Deep 1916), make it a sensitive world in the interplay of contemporary politics,
More details
on Grampia
are covered in the Cargonaut
adventure Scam.