Editing Nobledark Imperium Member States (section)

= Survivor Civilizations =

Not every planet were as fortunate as Old Earth during the Age of Strife. Although the wellspring of humanity was devastated by the horrors of the Old Night, it still retained much of its technology and infrastructure and most of its surface still remained habitable for human life. Other worlds had no such luck; on many planets, the collapse of the Great and Bountiful Terran Empire caused their inhabitants to regress to medieval or even Stone Age levels of technology. Other planets retained some degree of advanced technology, but the conditions of their worlds were so harsh that people could just barely survive without assistance from offworld, and welcomed the Imperium with open arms.
 
When encountering a devolved human society, the Imperium would often unify the planet by the most expedient means possible, then have the appointed representative of the newly unified planet swear loyalty to either the Imperium, the Empty Throne, or the Steward, depending on prevailing cultural norms of that planet. Worlds with stories of a savior figure that would save them from the Old Night, a common type of story on many worlds, typically had the Steward inserted into that role to ease integration. Worlds that still held some dim memory of the Golden Age typically swore loyalty to the Imperium, which they saw as the great Terran Empire being rebuilt. Worlds that had prophecies of a king that would arise in the distant future to lead them into a Golden Age, another common belief, found it easier to swear allegiance to the Empty Throne instead. For these worlds, it was hard to see anyone born during that age as a potential messianic figure.
 
These worlds, which are typically under the direct control of the Imperial government and the Administratum, became known as Administrated Worlds, which make up the vast majority of the worlds in the Imperium today. One notable exception are the Forge Worlds, who would only listen or swear loyalty to the lost holy land of Mars, through which the Imperium acquired their cooperation.
 
However, the Imperium also discovered many worlds that, like Old Earth, had managed to rebuild from the Age of Strife and become highly advanced societies in their own right — some even managing to carve out their own small interstellar empires. In addition to the Sol-based Voidborn Migrant Fleet and the Mechanicum of Mars, these advanced societies included the Realm of Ultramar, the Interex, the Hubworld League, Colchis, Inwit, and Necromunda, among many others. For these entities, which became known as Survivor Civilizations, the Imperium extends a rather different proposal: political and industrial autonomy, within [[Nobledark_Imperium_Drafts#Imperial_Governmental_Structure|certain limits]], in exchange for inclusion and a prominent place in the Imperium. Through this arrangement, the Steward acknowledged that these civilisations were as much legitimate inheritors of the Golden Age Empire as Earth was, and thus extended proposals he himself would have desired had the roles been reversed and the survivor civilisations were extending the offer instead — which very well could have happened; had he been salvaged by one of them it was likely he would be offering the deals to Old Earth instead. The terms of these agreements may vary slightly from world to world, sometimes resembling trade accords or defence pacts as opposed to treaties of confederation, but [[Nobledark_Imperium_Drafts#Imperial_Governmental_Structure|a few core tenets remain the same]].

== Savlar ==
''"Savlar: Because Fuck You, That's Why"''<br>
— Inscribed above the door to Savlar spaceport, on a corrosion resistant glass slab

Savlar is, in the words of any locals who would care to waste oxygen describing the planet, a shit hole that runs on spite. Food grown there is poisonous and can only be consumed in careful combination, such that the various toxins cancel each other out. The air is laced with deadly chemicals and the weather patterns are capricious at best across most of the surface, thus making prediction of and preparation for any large movements of the planet's toxic atmospheric gases all but impossible. The water is unsafe to drink for all but the hardiest of constitutions — and must first be filtered even for them.

All in all, nobody should ever go to Savlar. Life is short, dangerous and unpleasant, much like the people that call it home — or at least a Savlar curse word that is equivalent to home. Savlar has a lot of curses, all forms of wishing natural hazards upon the recipient in a multitude of lewd and profane ways.

The only reason that the planet has any value at all to the Imperium is because of the mystical substance known as neutronium, which is produced on the accursed planet. It is not actual "neutronium", in the astrophysical "atoms of pure neutrons" sense, but is rather something that the lay-person calls neutronium due to it possibly being non-baryonic matter. Importantly, it is the key ingredient in the orbital tethers. Even more importantly, it is produced nowhere else in the galaxy. 

There are only two methods in the galaxy that the Imperium can reliably acquire neutronium. One is by salvaging and repurposing neutronium from Dark Age constructions — mostly orbital tethers, but occasionally the carcasses of Dark Age starships and other creations may also carry some. The problem with this first method is that this neutronium is obviously limited in supply — there are many planets with orbital rings that were once homes to thriving human populations that are now blasted wastelands, but it is impossible to dismantle something like the Daisy Chain of Earth or the [[Nobledark_Imperium_Notable_Planets#Medusa|Telstarax of Medusa]] for usage elsewhere. The other way is Savlar. Savlar neutronium contains many more impurities, and is much weaker compared to the neutronium produced by humanity during the Dark Age of Technology — akin to comparing low-quality iron ore to Damascus steel — but it is neutronium nonetheless.

Savlar has no native life forms, and when man first set foot on it had almost no atmosphere. The atmosphere is has now is a side effect of the old industries set up by the human colonists. That it turned out breathable, if barely, was just a coincidence. Savlar is now home to an ecosystem made up of extremophile and borderline extremophile life forms of the sort typically found growing next to volcanoes on less awful worlds.

The current, hideous environment of the planet is a result of the neutronium manufacturing. In the old days of the Golden Age, the chemical runoff was contained for processing in various facilities across the planet as the world around the facilities was slowly terraformed. When the Old Night rolled in the tanks were breached, the processing facilities destroyed, and all but one of the factories burned to the ground. This released the noxious chemical cocktail of an ecosystem that Savlar is known for.

The natives of Savlar are descendants of the workers who used to run the facilities — and who subsequently got stranded in those facilities for millenia. Genetically they are more or less pure human, but like Fenrisians there are very minor deviations from the baseline. Savlar natives can handle drugs and toxic substances far better than most people. Biological and cybernetic modifications to help deal with the environment are common on Savlar, and in the regiments raised there.

The Neutronium Workshop currently operates at a mere 5% of its original estimated output, and is tended to by a peculiar and closed order of tech-adepts, referred to as the Savlar Order, whom are descendants of the maintenance teams and factory workers that once operated the Workshop in the Golden Age. The Savlar Order is very much a closed order; they don't let anyone in, nobody leaves, they don't concern themselves with things beyond their gates, and they call no outside authority master. They make neutronium and cybernetic trinkets, which they exchange for stuff. That's how they like it and that is the extent of how the arrangement would have, could have, and should have been. But then the Olympus Mons brotherhood got involved and nearly ruined everything for everyone.

All technological wonders of humanity belong to the Mechanicum, or so the Martian orthodoxy goes. The Savlar Order tended the last neutronium workshop. They were human, the workshop was a human creation, and therefore they must submit to the rule of Mars. They sent the Savlar Order a letter, politely worded, to that effect. Savlar sent a letter back telling them in no uncertain terms that they would not submit to outsiders — whilst also called into question the parentage of the Mars Council and accusing the Fabricator General of sexual deviation.

A second, much more strongly worded, letter was written by the Mechanicum — and delivered by none other than Ferrus Manus himself, in all his brutal glory. This time the Mechanicum did not ask but demanded total obeisance from the Savlar, accompanied with a declaration that refusal would have the Savlar face the might of the entire Skitarii army. The Savlar Order responded with a crudely stenciled image of a Magos bent forwards and being anally penetrated by an anthropomorphic Aquila. The substance used to make the offending image was discovered to be fecal matter, apparently applied by aerosol.

The Steward stepped in before the situation could escalate any further. Savlar was elevated to the status of Survivor Civilization — a status it did not deserve by a long way, as its new status meant it was to be counted alongside The Interex and Ultramar in legal standing. As an allied Survivor Civilization, Savlar now had all the authority they needed to officially tell the Olympus Mons Brotherhood to go fuck themselves. Which they did.

By this point it was well-known that the Savlar Order were more than prepared to destroy all that they held dear rather than let it fall into Mars' hands — Mars had gotten into a contest of spite with Savlar and they were fools to do so. The Mechanicus could have retaliated; banned all their trade to Savlar and blacklisted anyone who did so. They also could have slit their own throats and gurgled the theme song to Aspects of Steel with the resulting blood — it would have achieved much the same effect. 

One of the ways that the Savlar Order has spent the better part of 10,000 years infuriating Mars is through the baffling tradition of The Great Savlar Scavenger Hunt. Once their stockpile of neutronium is filled, a list of items is placed on the outer gate of The Workshop. The list invariably contains a great many varieties of a great many things, some of them quite strange. Partly, this is almost certainly to prevent the Mars priesthood from deciphering the needed raw materials, though some of the items are obviously for personal use — the list will invariably contain food and fresh water somewhere. Everything is listed with exact amounts, in native Savlar measurements, and everything must be presented exactly as listed. ''Exactly. As. Listed.'' If they ask for a very specific amount of Valhallan Brandy in a specific number of arsenic bronze containers then you bring that, no more and no less. Deviation from the list is not permitted, and any such deviation means the offending contestant is instantly disqualified. The first one back with the entire list ticked off to the Order's satisfaction gets the entire stock heap, to divvy up and sell on as they see fit. 

The scavenger hunt infuriates Mars, as it puts them on equal footing to common traders and the like. There is no discernable pattern to the demands, and it is a constant point of discord in their filing system. Creatures of order as they are, this likewise infuriates the Mechanicus Scribes to no end. And that is almost certainly why the Savlar Order do it. Because fuck you, that's why.

Beyond this, very little of the Order is known. Investigations have been requested and refused. The Inquisition could push the issue, but it's not worth the risk.

Society outside of the walls of the Workshop consists mostly of an agrarian existence slightly above subsistence farming, with the very little surplus left over used to support Savlar's urban structures. Society — civilization is pushing it a little too far — tends to be tribe-based and ruled by tribal elders — or those who have opted to stay sober for a while.

The local religion consists of a plethora of small gods, though the Savlar would claim that they are too small to be gods. Typically, these gods can only be interacted with after taking something mind-altering, but there is too much consistency between the hallucinations for them to be merely the imaginary things typically seen in psychoactive drug trips. There have been investigations by both the Arbites and the Inquisition, but nothing exists that can prove or disprove — all that they can say is that there is no notable Chaos corruption.

Indeed not. Chaos offers hope, but the Savlar have given up on great hopes. Chaos offers comfort in despair, but the Savlar never really feel too much despair. They don't feel much anger at things, and merely accept the shit. They don't revel in the fumes or seek much excess. If their small gods of the æther are daemons, they are doing a terrible job. The most commonly reported advice that these small gods offer is exhortations to ease up on the LSD wine — a distinctly un-Chaos thing to suggest.

One more or less consistent belief among the tribes, and it can be inferred to have originated in The Workshop, is the Great Machine. It follows that the Omnissiah is the underlying mechanisms of the universe, the Ultimate Machine, but that it's obvious that the universe is broken. Therefore, god is broken and man must increase in wisdom to find a way of fixing it. Once fixed, the universe will work right. It is known as the Faith of the Broken God. This belief is considered '''HOLY SHIT''' levels of heresy within the Mechnicus orthodoxy, but the Martian Priesthood never quite gets as far as declaring the Savlar Order as such. Because neutronium.

Drugs are about the only thing that make life on Savlar tolerable. They will surely reduce your life time, certainly, but on Savlar you're probably going to be dead by age 45, snorting Rainbow Dust or not, so it's not really the issue it would be on a less fuck awful planet. 

Besides neutronium, the planet's only other notable exports are soldiers and recreational drugs. The Savlar soldiery are a motley band composed mostly of addicts (usually recruits) and former addicts (usually veterans).

== The Migrant Fleet ==

See [[Nobledark_Imperium_Notes#Void_Born|Void Born]] (Placeholder)

== The Mechanicus of Mars and its various Forgeworlds ==

== Interex ==

=== Interexi Military Forces ===

See [[Nobledark_Imperium_Imperial_Forces#Interex|Imperial Forces (Interex)]]

== Hubworld League (Squats) ==

=== Hubworld Military Forces ===

See [[Nobledark_Imperium_Imperial_Forces#Hubworld_League_.28Squats.29|Imperial Forces (Hubworld League)]]

=== Hubworld Architecture ===

The worlds of the Hubworld League are all fortresses. This is in part due to their natural architectural inclinations; any sturdy, underground structure can become a bunker with a minimum effort. Mostly, though, it is a matter of natural selection.

Worlds that were not fortresses did not survive the Long Night. The bulk of the Hubworlds are located near the galactic core — the largest concentration of Orks in the galaxy. During the Dark Age of Technology, endless robotic armies rendered this a non-factor. During the Age of Strife, each already-devastated world was thrown back onto its own resources. Thus, only the worlds which fortified their positions survived. 

Visitors to Squat holds often remark on how elaborately decorated they are. Statuary, engravings and murals, fine masonry and intricate fountains; their excellent craftsmanship extends far beyond weapons and armor. Such artwork tends to accumulate over time; the oldest holds are best described as 'cluttered with masterpieces'. 

Visitors experienced in military matters can observe how the complex and winding paths would force any prospective invader to divide their forces and funnel through chokepoints. They would notice how the engravings conceal hidden passages for the swift movement of troops, or obscure the mechanisms of elaborate deathtraps. 

Perhaps the collections of fine art is a reaction to the stress of having to live in a giant, trap-filled bunker all the time.

== Ultramar ==

During the relatively short-lived golden age of the Great Crusade, the Republic of Ultramar counted approximately 500 worlds within its borders — the height of the Republic's achievements at the time. Whilst many of these were mere provincial outposts and nothing more than seeds of potential, they were nevertheless indicative of a thriving and growing civilization.

When the Expeditionary forces of the Imperium first made it to the borders of those hardy survivors of Old Night, Ultramar was considered a grand and distinguished nation in its own right — exceptionally so by the standards of the time. Yet with a little over two hundred worlds to count as its territory — many of which being in states of destitution or disrepair — the Republic would ultimately amount to far less than it would eventually become. Nevertheless, for all their faded glory, the people of Ultramar were not without their grandeur nor their pride. Thus, when the diplomats and ambassadors of the Imperium offered them sanctuary within its aegis, they were somewhat hesitant. And why would they not be? They had survived for thousands of years alone, at the other end of the galaxy to the long forgotten homeworld, surrounded by barbarians and monsters; to be a mere vassal would be a dishonour to their heritage and their birthright. Though the negotiations were long and arduous, the negotiations eventually reached mutually favourable terms and the inclusion of Ultramar as a Survivor Civilization was eventually achieved.

In the days of the Great Crusade, Ultramar prospered like it had not done since before the Age of Strife, when it was a part of the Great and Bountiful Empire. With fresh trade and the pressure of barbarian invasion removed, Ultramar retook its old colony worlds and regained the ground it had lost.

But for all that the realm itself prospered in this time, the internal structures of Ultramar's governance began to be questioned. Many of the new border world powers, having grown rich and strong on Imperial trade, challenged the right of Macragge to rule all undisputedly. As time went on this dissatisfaction did not abate, and the rift between the Provincial Powers and the old money Throneworld only deepened.

Into this descended Prince Gaufrid Fouché, grandson of the Primarch Roboute Guilliman, son of King Gunthar Fouché, and (approximately, as the line of succession was in dispute at the time) eighth in line to the Throne of Franj. Gaufrid was under orders from Primarch Guilliman to set up contingencies for the unthinkable possibility of the Imperium failing, culminating in Gaurfrid laying the groundwork for the Imperium Secundus. Ultramar was distant enough from Old Earth to probably be unaffected by anything that could destroy the Imperium's capital, but civilized and prosperous enough to be a viable seed from which civilisation could regrow. Although Gaufrid had no actual direct authority within the Realm of Ultramar itself, he did have considerable territory and resources invested in him by the Imperium — through which an ever increasing majority of Ultamar's trade passed through. Peddling this influence to the provincials and the nobility of Macragge, he set forth propositions and proposals that would turn the elective monarchy of Ultramar into a fairer and more representative system: one planet one vote, with an overall leader elected for times of dire emergency. Macragge agreed to this to retain some power against the increasing might of its rival Calth, Calth agreed to it as recognition that they were not Macragge's mere subordinate was all they ever wanted, the provincial worlds agreed because it gave them a voice in the realm's decision-making, and they all agreed to it because any refusals would see a great decline in trade and a hardening of the borders with the rest of the Imperium. Was this entirely fair? Probably not — but many things are less so.

With the long-term threat of eventual civil war nullified, Gaufrid Fouché continued his ambitions by marrying the head of one of Ultramar's major internal trading companies — mostly a political decision, though he was good friends with her — to further his influence, and set about the meticulous and tedious task of reforming the disparate militaries of Ultramar's various planets and nation-states into a more cohesive whole. That said, Gaufrid's task was not entirely limited to matters of military — his hand could be found in almost every aspect of Ultramar's day-to-day proceedings. Under his influence the Realm grew richer and stronger than it had ever done before and, many would argue, since.

Then The Beast came, and all that planning seemed so very insignificant compared to such reckless barbarity.

Ultramar was, by great fortune, not as damaged as perhaps it could have been in the War of the Beast — Guilliman's choice for an Imperium Secundus proving to have been correct in that regard. This is not to say that Ultramar suffered no consequence from The Beast's feral warmongering, merely that Gaufrid's tireless efforts resulted in an armed and armoured Ultramar that had never been more prepared. But Ultramar's people still died, and worlds still burned.

The path of rebuilding took a long, long time. Many splinters and off-shoots of The Beast's WAAAGH! were scattered about the Realm's space, and stranded, corrupt Eldar raiders filtered through to the eastern fringe when The Beast was cast down. Yet Ultramar held the line, and in the face of its enemies endured as the Fortress of the Galactic East. 

Gaufrid took the name of Guilliman over Fouché to emphasize his authority — a name that his descendants would hold for the rest of Imperial history. Gaufrid Guilliman never saw the completion of his efforts to rebuild Ultramar, as he was a rare example of rejuvenant rejection and had adverse reactions to the procedures. He fell to the ravages of time at the tender age of 156.

After the Breaking of the Legions, the plans for an Imperium Secundus were acknowledged to be a very well-made contingency to a very real possibility, thus yet more steps were taken to secure its success. To that effect, the core chapter of the XIII Legion would be gifted to Ultramar as a means of safeguarding any such nascent second Imperium. That chapter would thereafter take upon the title of Ultramarines.

As of the dying of the Dark Millenium, the Realm of Ultramar spans nearly 300 developed, sophisticated, and cultured worlds, retaining its status as the grandest and strongest — if not necessarily the numerically largest — of the Survivor Civilizations. As Acting Chapter Master Titus puts forth his reform plans before the Senate, the upheaval that has resulted from this age of uncertainty threatens to come crashing down upon Ultramar and all who dwell within. Ultramar will either finally fall to its enemies, or it will be reborn stronger than ever to meet the oncoming storm.

== Colchis ==

The planet of Colchis was virtually a feudal world by the end of the Age of Strife. Its population had regressed into a society reminiscent of the Stone Age, due to the rebellion of the Men of Iron, and it had taken nearly nine millennia to reach even that level of technology again — an effort not helped by the sporadic Chaos uprisings and the brutal semi-arid climate of the planet. It this pitiful state that greeted the Eldar of the minor Craftworld Bel-Shammon when they arrived. 
 
The people of Bel-Shammon were desperate; the solar sails and propulsion mechanisms of their Craftworld had been damaged beyond repair, and they knew the birth of Slaanesh was soon at hand. Colchis was only a stone’s throw away from the homeworlds of the old Eldar Empire, and the people of Bel-Shammon knew that without the ability to move their Craftworld away from the psychic eruption they would need to either seek shelter or die. As a result, the people of Bel-Shammon were forced to take unconventional action, and asked the people of the nearby world of Colchis for sanctuary. Tears of desperation turned to tears of joy as the Colchians welcomed them into their homes. In gratitude, the Eldar repaid the people of Colchis by teaching them how to build a global and peaceful civilization.
 
By the time the Imperium first reached Colchis during the Great Crusade, Colchis resembled a planetside Eldar Craftworld governed in a manner not unlike a relatively calm and peaceful version of the ancient Holy Roman Empire. The planet was a patchwork of nominally independent nation-states, with a politically independent papacy acting as both a mediator in international disputes and a representative for the planet as a whole. Craftworld Bel-Shammon itself had been dismantled, its wraithbone structures turned into housing and architecture and its Infinity Circuit incorporated into the planet.
 
When Imperial ships first arrived in the Colchian system, they were greeted by elegant system defense ships. The Colchians had no Warp technology, but only because they never felt the need to go anywhere. There was a Webway gate in the center of the papal palace, having been moved planetside from the old Craftworld, but the planet had little contact with the greater galaxy and had not had a visitor from off-world in decades. The language they were greeted in was similarly unconventional; it seemed to be the hybridization of a language descended from the tongues of Old Earth and the High Speech of the Craftworlds. The Imperial ambassadors were later to learn that this was the global language of legal documents and trade — a practice mirrored in the Imperium with High Gothic.
 
The Imperium had initially expected Colchis to be controlled by an Eldar aristocracy ruling over a human underclass. To their surprise, no Eldar on the planet held any position of power above the level of provincial assistant administrator or some equivalent title. The refugees of Bel-Shammon had never wanted to rule, they only wanted a place to settle. Colchis was brought into the Imperium as a unique and civilized world, reminiscent of an idealized version of some pre-fall Eldar haven — albeit one with only 8% of the global population actually being Eldar.

Colchis has remained relatively peaceful, despite the general tumult in the galaxy since joining the Imperium. Colchis may not be armed to the teeth like Cadia or Krieg, but it has still fought off its fair share of invasions. Among the people of the Imperium, humans from Colchis tend to get along better with the Craftworlds than the average human, due to their similar cultures. Craftworlds like Alaitoc see Colchis as proof that mankind are not completely hopeless and can eventually learn to be civilized — perhaps in a few million years or so. Human and Eldar supremacist groups, like Craftworld Dorhai, see the harmonious and relatively non-militarized world of Colchis as the embodiment of everything wrong with the Imperium.

"''See, this is the cultural suicide of both the Eldar and human of this world. What my sights lay upon is the abominable fusion of both and the advancement of none. This is the destruction of Eldar culture and their human partners follow suit, for there is the strength of none while holding the weakness of both.''"<br>
— Unknown Dorhai writer

"''See that fool? That one right there? There lies the true suicide of both Eldar and humanity. I look upon them and I would be moved to pity were it not for my disgust at their stagnation and wretchedness. They scream and cry about strength and culture, yet their society crusts over in bones of wraith and dies starved of love or sunlight. They prattle on about purity, romanticizing a time that never was when they lived in some unseen Eden — all the while carefully omitting their decadence and depravities. Let them turn inwards and look no more upon the outside world. We will pick their corpses clean, we will outlive them, our beautiful hybrid society will remain ever young, ever vigorous. If they cannot change, they shall rot.''"<br>
— Her Ecumenical Excellence Mother Dwynwen XXIII of Colchis

== Necromunda ==

See [[Nobledark_Imperium_Notable_Planets#Necromunda|Necromunda]]