Editing Nobledark Imperium Notes (section)

== The Arkhan Confederacy ==

Arkhan is a planet whose greatest crime is being on the wrong side of history. A land of mini-mecha and aristocratic landowners, the Arkhan Confederacy declared their support for Vandire during the Imperial Civil War, in a sector that was deeply divided between Throne and Rebellion supporters. The inhabitants of Arkhan are known for their bitterness over the results of the Imperial Civil War, mostly because the surrounding planets never let them live it down. Even though in hindsight the more recent citizens of Arkhan agree with the general consensus that Vandire was a nut with good charisma, they still have grievances with what the pro-Thor planets did to them during the war, as well as the fact that the pro-Thor planets treated them like garbage afterwards. The area around Arkhan was home to some brutal fighting between Thor and Vandire loyalists, with both sides bombarding the others’ population centers from orbit. Sebastian Thor is not a popular figure on Arkhan.

Eventually this resentment reached a tipping point and in 861.M41 the planet rebelled. When the Imperium’s military response arrived four years later, they found the Arkhan Confederacy had been defeated by a counter-resistance of Imperium loyalists, who had overthrown the Arkhan Confederacy and established the more centralized Arkhan Dominion. The leader of the Dominion is a taskmaster, but he is also a devious, deeply unpleasant man. There are even whispers that he stoked the flames of resentment in order to seize power in the first place. He maintains order and keeps the planet politically stable, but many are worried his heavy-handed tactics are building more resentment and are likely to cause another rebellion. Unfortunately, Arkhan is a nowhere world out in the boondocks, and as long as people aren’t actively shooting at each other the Imperium is willing to begrudgingly look the other way.

From a meta perspective, the politics of the Arkhan system and the potential of stopping (or starting) another civil war are meant to be a plot hook for street level games (e.g., Dark Heresy).