The Ien Yaeger Campaign


Continuity:

This campaign is set shortly after the events of the Star Wars Trilogy, simultaneously with the novels. It is set at an edge of known space, and will be little effected by the events of the novels.

Setting:

The campaign is set in the Yaeger sector, an area of space on the outside of the Correlian route, between the Expansion area, and the Mid Rim. The Yaeger sector contain 372 solar systems, and a pair of small nebulae, the Thorain and the Specter nebula. The Yaeger is inhabited by seventeen major spacefaring species of aliens, and nearly two thousand non -spacefaring intelligent races.

History:

The Yaeger Sector was first discovered by human settlers during one of the periods of expansion that the Old Republic went through, about 10,000 years ago (Y 0) The first human settlement in the sector was on the planet of Cothoria, now called Yaeger Prime. The settlers gradually lost contact with the old Republic due to a pair of factors. One was the remote nature of the sector, as it was nearly eight weeks travel from the nearest outpost of the Republic, and the second was a local hyperspace anomaly that prevented any form of radio communication over hyperspace. The last ship that left to the Old Republic left in Y 230, and by Y 3,000 the Old Republic had become nothing more than a shadowy myth.

During this time, the humans of Cothoria began to expand out across the planet, and soon came into contact with the other sapient creatures of the planet, the Huthor and the Dimmamyuk. Highly influenced by the predatory, catlike Huthor, the humans began to refer to themselves as Ien Yaeger, a term meaning "the hunters" in the local language. After several years of brutal warfare among the three races, the Treaty of Miranon was signed in Y 450, and has stood until the present day, regulating the interaction between the three races.

Inter-stellar travel, a secret that had been lost around Y 350, during the three races war, was rediscovered in Y 1,215. The Yaeger humans quickly expanded from their homeworld, renamed Yaeger Prime in Y 1,307. By Y 4,012, the Yaeger humans had built an empire of 70 worlds. Then, they were attacked by an alien spacegoing species, the Yrotha. The attack was sudden and unexpected, and the Ien Yaeger were driven back to about half their former territory. In order to combat the Yrotha, the Yaeger began concentrating on military spacecraft, and as a result of several remarkable innovations, pushed the Yrotha back. By Y 4,550, the Yaeger had reconquered all of their previously held territory, and by Y 4,710 they had expanded deeply into the Yrotha's home territory. The war with the Yrotha ended in Y 4,834 with the destruction of the last of the Yrotha.

Many of the planets that had been under the rule of the Yrotha wanted complete independence, and the Yaeger did not have sufficient resources to maintain control of unwilling colonies. The Yaeger maintained control of 84 planets and habitable moons from Y 4,843 to Y 6,721. Then the Yaeger began a war with the Skathelon, another alien race that had began expanding into the territory formerly held by the Yrotha. The Skathelon War lasted for 2,450 years, until Y 9,171. The treaty of Dar Umak ended that war, with the Skathelons agreeing to leave the area formerly held by the Yrotha. That area was now known as the Yrotha protectorate, and fell under the nominal control of the Yaeger.

This situation remained fairly stable until the year Y 9,784. That year, an 500 capital ship Imperial fleet arrived in the Yaeger sector. Following old records, the Empire had decided to unify all the outlying sectors of the Old Republic. This fleet, under the command of Moff Doran proceeded to 'unify' the Yaeger sector by use of traditional Imperial methods. After first gaining a number of client races by promises of future benefits and revenge against hated enemies, the Imperial fleet began to crush all resistance against their rule.

Realizing the danger posed by the Imperials, the Yaeger Nation began pouring all their funds into their already formidable space navy. In Y 9,811 the Empire set out to destroy the Yaeger Nation. The Imperial fleet had 487 capital ships remaining from it's original fleet, and 102 capital ships recruited from the fleets of client races. The Yaeger nation was able to field only 315 capital ships, nearly half of which were outdated and under-armed.

As could be expected, the Imperial fleet won all battles between massed groups of ships. However, despite their outdated hardware, the Yaeger had been fighting battles in this territory for over three thousand years, and their tactical knowledge enabled them to inflict massive damage to the Imperial fleet. By Y 9,843 the Yaeger war had disintegrated into a series of raids by the Yaeger against the Imperial fleet. Remarkably, the Yaeger managed to maintain complete control of 35 worlds, including their major ship yards, and their largest agricultural worlds, and maintain at least a partial presence on 22 others, including the Yaeger home world. Moff Doran could never muster enough ships to attack the Yaeger core, because of the constant raids on the edge of the Imperial space. In Y 9,853 45 Star Destroyers were sent to aid Moff Doran's cause.

Again, the Yaeger managed to avoid certain defeat, producing 20 capital ships of their own at that time. The Imperial reinforcements were forced to be deployed in response to the new Yaeger ships. Unknown to the Imperials, the Yaeger ships were little more than shells with hyperdrives, and were no threat whatsoever. Finally, Moff Doran forced a conflict. In Y 9,858 he mobilized all available ships, and headed for the Yaeger core. The Yaeger fleet met him at the Oth'Lenar system. The battle of Oth'Lenar was technically a victory for the Empire, as they held the field of battle, and destroyed great numbers of Yaeger ships. However, in all other ways the Yaeger won the conflict.

During the absence of the main Imperial fleet, Yaeger raiders were able to completely overcome the planetary defence of sixteen systems, and land troops on twenty others. In addition, the Yaeger had developed a weapon that they used to great effect against the imperial navy. On one of the moonlets of the Oth'Lenar system, the Yaeger had constructed a super laser, near the power of that on the Imperial Death Star. That laser took out thirteen Star Destroyers before the Imperials destroyed it. One of those ships was the Imperiator, the Super Star Destroyer that was Moff Doran's flagship. Because of the paranoia of Moff Doran, nobody who had any great abilities of command was allowed out of his sight, and all those that could have replaced him died on the Imperiator.

The resulting state of chaos was ideal for the Yaeger raiders who were able to prey off of Imperial traders with impunity. In the year Y 9,876 the Death Star was destroyed near Endor. Refugee ships began to flood the outer sectors of the settled galaxy. The Yaeger suffered as a result, and were forced back to thirty two systems, not including Yaeger Prime, which was restored to a state of war. However, the Imperial disorder worked in the Yaeger's favor, and by Y 9,895 the Yaeger had taken control of twenty four more systems, but still could not regain Yaeger Prime. In the year Y 9,901, the New Republic began expanding into the Yaeger sector.

This is where the campaign begins.

Major Forces:

The Yaeger:

Currently in control of fifty six planets, the Yaeger nation has the best knowledge of the region, and the second largest space fleet, after the empire. The Yaeger ships are well made and battle tested, and the fleet is organized under strong and independent commanders.

Organization:

The Yaeger are governed by two legislative bodies. The first is the Gii Yaeg (great hunt) in Exile, is a democratically elected council, whose members must pass stringent tests of skill, ability, loyalty and honesty before they can stand for election. The Gii Yaeg is nominally in control of all aspects of the domestic life of the Yaeger, and has control over such matters as conscription and taxation. The Second, the Yaeger High Command, is nominally under the control of the Gii Yaeg. However, it's leaders are selected through promotion rather than election, with a Supreme commander being appointed for a ten year term by the Gii Yaeg. The Yaeger High Command has complete control over military matters once war is declared by the Gii Yaeg. Many members of the Gii Yaeg are drawn from the military, and many who have served on the Yaeg return to the military, so the bond between the two bodies is a very close one.

Factions:

Most of the Yaeger are firm believers in the Yaeger system of government. However, the libertarian nature of the Yaeger culture has allowed for a fairly well established splinter groups. The major groups are the Space Gund, the Society of Erebaind, and the Black Serpents.

The Space Gund:

7,000 members. Despite their sparse numbers, the Space Gund are one of the most influential and accepted of the splinter groups. Composed exclusively of combat veterans, the Space Gund is an organization who do not respect the limitations that the Yaeger High Command has placed on combat. They believe that the Gund, the traditional right of free hunting, extends into space combat. During the Yaeger war the Space Gund proved remarkably effective, capturing and destroying thousands of Imperial Transports. Now, they are less useful but more numerous, and their raids on ships flying New Republic colors could strain the relationships between the Yaeger and the New Republic.

The Society of Erebaind:

3.4 million members. The Society of Erebaind is what remains of the animist Yaeger religion. Erebaind was a legendary Yaeger hunter who died in unarmed combat with Krein'Kath'Katar, a Huthor renegade who violated the treaty of Miramon. The Society of Erebaind is dedicated to preserving the virtues that defined that hero. In a sense, the society can be described as Yaeger freemasons, with arcane rules and hierarchies, and very little real purpose. However, the Society is very comfortable with violence, and have been known to overthrow planetary governments that strayed too far from the Yaeger ideal.

The Black Serpents:

43,000 members. This most sinister of the Yaeger splinters is the only one that is openly suppressed by the Yaeger government. The Black Serpents take the Yaeger hunter ethic to the extreme. They hunt men. The Black Serpents have perfected the arts of stealth and cunning, and begin training at a very young age. Unknown to the rest of the Yaeger, a Black Serpent assassin killed several Imperial officers that tried to replace Moff Doran after the battle of Oth'Lenar. In addition, Black Serpent saboteurs destroyed several Star Destroyers during the Yaeger War. Black Serpents are employed as assassins, spies, saboteurs, and underworld enforcers by many of the less savory elements of the sector, and have an iron grasp on much of the crime on Yaeger held worlds.

Most of the Black Serpents are nothing more than well trained and well equipped criminals with a fanatical devotion to their cause. Those in charge of the order are more than that. The Inner Circle of the Order of the Black Serpent, or the Shadow Dragons, are a group of evil force users. The Shadow Dragons are a remnant of a break-off Jedi faction, the Jhemadan, who accompanied the original settlers into Yaeger space. The Shadow Dragon's order of spies and informers enables them to capture and train all those force sensitive born in Yaeger space, and turn them to the Dark Side. Those that can not be turned are killed, often by classmates. The Shadow Dragons want the Yaeger to ally with the empire, and then seize control of that alliance themselves, and are using the Black Serpents to accomplish that alliance.

Relationships with the other powers:

The Yaeger have long been sworn enemies of the Empire, and are still at a state of war with them. However, Black Serpent operatives have made it seem as though the aggressiveness of the Empire was the result of Moff Doran's personal viciousness. Many of the Yaeger now merely wish to reestablish the borders that they held before the Imperial attack, and may be willing to negotiate with the Empire after they achieve that goal. The Yaeger's relationship with the New Republic is rather tense, as many of the Yaeger believe that it was the New Republic's victory at Endor that led to the increased imperial presence in their sector, and the second loss of their homeworld. In addition, the New Republic's initial overtures of piece and alliance are in many ways similar to those of the empire, leading to the fear that they are just another group of would-be conquerors.

The New Republic:

As the New Republic attempts to expand into the Mid Rim areas, it tries to push out pockets of Imperial influence, so as not to have an enemy army within their borders. The Yaeger sector is one of those areas. The empire had long tried to keep what was going on in the Yaeger sector a secret: After all, if word got out that there was an area that was resisting Imperial control, others might begin considering their own resistance. In addition, Yaeger ships were equipped with weapons, plasma guns that were marginally superior to the blasters that had been standard since before the Clone Wars. Until they learned how to construct them, they didn't want them in anyone else's hands. It was an outlying sector, far from the usual spacelanes, and word did not get out.

After the New Republic captured many of the Imperial Records on Coruscant, they discovered the existence of the Imperial venture in the Yaeger sector, but most of the details were lost. General Caggfyn McCrain, a veteran of the Rebellion, was assigned to the Yaeger Sector. He has been given a fairly large amount of resources to rid the area of Imperial control, and to bring it under the banner of the New Republic if possible. General McCrain had liberated fourteen worlds from imperial control, and incorporated them into the New Republic before he encountered the Yaeger. Five of the Worlds he liberated, Dumak, Al'Geneb, Thoria, Shellshaar, and Griant were formerly Yaeger worlds, and the Yaeger nation wants them back.

Organization:

The New Republic forces in the region are bound by the decisions of the central command.

Relationship with the other powers:

The New Republic is not yet sure that the Yaeger are all that they claim. Black Serpent agents that have infiltrated the chain of command of the New Republic, have raised the possibility that the Yaeger nation never really existed, and that it is merely a front by Imperial planetary governors that are looking for a way to maintain control of a region of space during the New Republic era. What the Black Serpents hope to accomplish through this course remains unclear. It is entirely possible that the Shadow Dragons are working to force war against the New Republic, and then an alliance with the Empire, an alliance that they intend to control.

The Empire:

After the battle of Oth'Lenar, the Imperial forces in the region underwent a period of chaos. Planetary governors and various minor Moffs set up their own private kingdoms, each composed of two or three worlds. The Imperials did realize that without some central organization they would soon be destroyed. Many of these petty rulers attempted to unite these fragmentary states. Within the last few years there have been eighteen self appointed Grand Moffs of the Yaeger sector, four Grand Imperial Warlords, and a pair of Emperors. All of these failed in their aspirations, destroyed by others that feared their ambitions. In Y 9,901, An ex-planetary governor by the name of Alhedrin Rulduk succeeded in reuniting the majority of the imperial fragments, with him as Moff of the Yaeger sector. Moff Rulduk's mixture of diplomacy, threats, and assassination have not left him without enemies, and now, at the beginning of his rule, he is in a very vulnerable position. It should be noted that the Black Serpents have been influential in his rise to power. It should also be noted that many of Moff Rulduk's initial victories were against petty rulers that thought that they were using him against their own opponents.

Organization:

Moff Rulduk has set up a strict hierarchy of control throughout his area of control. Other splinters will be discussed below. It should be noted that Moff Rulduk lacks Moff Doran's paranoia in regard to his underlings, and has placed many intelligent individuals in positions of great responsibility.

Factions:

Independent Imperial Worlds:

Moff Rulduk has control of around two thirds of the Imperial worlds of the Yaeger sector. Many of those worlds that have not yet incorporated into his empire are controlled by various petty warlords, similar to the situation that existed before his rise to power. These worlds have united into an uneasy alliance, hoping to avoid his control. This alliance in unstable, and will probably shatter as soon as Moff Rulduk turns his attention toward them.

Core World Refugees:

Heavily armed convoys of Imperial troops have been arriving in the Yaeger sector ever since the Rebels victory at Endor. These convoys vary greatly among themselves, but most of them are loyal to the empire, believing that the Emperor somehow survived the destruction of the Death Star, and will ally themselves with whomever seems most loyal to the Emperor. The flow of refugees has slackened lately, but a convoy large enough to affect the balance of power could arrive at any point of the campaign.

Dark Lords of the Sith:

One of the two self declared Emperors of the Yaeger sector survived his loss of power. Always unstable, this "Black Emperor" went completely insane. He now believes that he was imbued with the wandering spirit of the Emperor, and he is essentially the Emperor reincarnated. Regardless of the truth of his claim, the Black Emperor is a dark jedi of great power, and has been raising a dedicated cadre of followers known as the Dark Lords of the Sith, several of whom are dark jedi in their own right. Moff Rulduk sees this group as a threat to his own power, but the Black Emperor and his followers have always been able to avoid or destroy those forces that Moff Rulduk has sent after him. It is entirely possible that the Black Emperor would be able to unite the Core World refugees under his own banner, where he to regain some measure of coherent thought.

Minor Forces:

The Yaeger Nations, the New Republic, and the Empire are the three strongest military forces in the area. In addition to these three, the following other groups also can affect the course of the campaign:

Imperial Clients:

These races acted on behalf of the Empire during the occupation of the Yaeger sector. Moff Doran had carefully bled off their most powerful ships, their best technical products, and their most talented individuals, both to strengthen the Empire and to weaken the clients. Viewed with distrust and anger by those who were forced into the Imperial yoke, the Imperial Clients have formed a loose alliance. Known as the Chakh Empire, they control fifty eight worlds, but their fleets are much weaker than those of the major players.

Unaligned worlds:

Formerly held by the Empire, many planets have rose up in rebellion against the Empire, backed either by the Yaeger or the New Republic. One of the most successful of these rebellions was the Shuumar, who not only took complete control of their planets, but also managed to commandeer 3 Star Destroyers. Using this fleet, the Shuumar managed to aid fourteen other planets in throwing off Imperial control.

Fearing domination by the Yaeger or the New Republic, the Shuumar and their allies formed a Confederation of Unaligned Worlds. Their ranks have been swelled by other planets with similar goals, the Confederation now controls thirty four worlds. However, the Confederation's fleet is pitifully small, despite the superior quality of the Shuumar's Wulfen fighter, and it is only the fear of a Yaeger or New Republic retaliation that keeps the Empire from crushing them.

The Ulfgar:

The Ulfgar were once imperial clients, who later rebelled against the Empire. Not having a place with either the Chakh or the Confederation, the Ulfgar have become close allies of the Yaeger, and provide them with specialist and technology. As such the Ulfgar can be considered a major factor, though they themselves are quite unmilitary.

The Brennai:

This reclusive race has lived in the Thorain Nebula for hundreds of thousands of years. Technologically advanced beyond most of the rest of the galaxy, the Brennai just want to be left alone. After losing twelve Star Destroyers to unknown causes, Moff Doran was more than happy to agree. The Brenaai have no interest in conquest, and their weapons only function within the special conditions in the Nebula, or they would be a major force in the region.

Campaign:

The Yaeger sector is in flux, and player characters can easily change the course and tenor of the campaign. An Alliance between the Yaeger and Rulduk's forces could prove quite threatening. They would quickly dominate that sector, and begin expanding outward, toward the Core Worlds. The characters don't have to die for this to happen, and they could be given opportunities to fracture that alliance, or stand and fight against the Yaeger/Imperial fleet.

In my campaign, the "Black Emperor" is quite strong in the dark side, but is a deluded madman controlled by a Black Serpent force user. However, he could become a more powerful force. After all, Obi Wan and Yoda became ghostly advisors after they died. The Emperor could have become a more ominous spirit, capable of finding willing host bodies... (note: in case you have not noticed, I have not read the books.)

The Brenaii have not played an important part of this campaign yet, but there is no reason that this has to stay that way. They have no regard for the life of non-Brenaii, and a technological breakthrough could cause them to threaten the entire galaxy.

The Yaeger sector is a fertile ground for the actions of smugglers and legitimate traders of various sorts, as many of the goods of the core worlds (such as Kessel spice and ion cannons) are virtually unknown in the Yaeger sector, and many of the goods of the Yaeger sector (plasma guns, Ulfgar technicians, etc.) would find a wide market among the worlds of the rest of the galaxy.

Intrigue and counter-intrigue have reached a fever pitch in the Yaeger sector in the last few years, as the future of the sector (and perhaps the galaxy) is undecided. If the Yaeger and the Empire form an alliance, they would immediately push the New Republic out of the Yaeger sector, and might threaten the core worlds. A Yaeger/New Republic alliance might eliminate the remaining Imperial forces, and provide a base of experienced warriors for the fledgling New Republic Navy. The other powers in the sector are all working to push their own aims forward, and almost all of them are looking to hire trained operatives of various sorts. Finally, the Shadow Dragons have become aware of the New Jedi Academy, and seeing the relative weakness of the only other organization of force users, have become interested in destroying the Jedi while they are still weak. A failed attempt would almost certainly bring Jedi into the sector to investigate. All in all, the Yaeger sector is a fertile ground for adventurers of all types.
text

geocities

index

Click Here!