Tursia is a snowy alpine planet within the Arkanis Imperium, renowned for its rich mineral veins and gem mines. Its icy peaks, deep valleys, and sprawling forests make it both breathtaking and treacherous, yet its greatest value lies beneath the surface: a network of mines and caverns producing the empire’s most prized metals and gemstones.
The planet was once a major battleground against the Hardan Republic, where the Arkanis Imperium emerged victorious and claimed Tursia. The citizens retain a strong patriotism for the Imperium, viewing their snowy world as both a symbol of Imperial might and a source of wealth crucial to the empire’s dominance.
Tursia’s landscape is defined by:
Snow-covered mountain ranges and icy valleys dotted with mining outposts and surface cities.
Crystal-clear skies and shimmering ice formations contrasted with the glowing veins of minerals visible in exposed rock and tunnels.
Massive alpine forests in the lower elevations, alongside thousands of abandoned mines that hint at centuries of resource extraction.
The Arkanis Imperium enforces strict environmental protections using advanced technology and magic, allowing Tursia to be mined extensively without collapse or ecological devastation. While mostly inhabited by humans, a few other races have made their home among the mining communities and settlements.
Mirabar is the capital city of Tursia, a bastion of Arkanis Imperium craftsmanship and wealth, ranking as the empire’s second richest city. It is a fortified stronghold and crucial trade hub, reflecting the planet’s economic and strategic importance.
The city is split between surface and subterranean areas:
Underground: Over 600,000 miners inhabit a labyrinth of residential caverns, roaring superheated forges, and extensive mine tunnels, producing high-quality metals, machinery, and artisan goods.
Surface: Humans manage trade, transport resources, and maintain security alongside Stellar Knights, ensuring the city’s operations run smoothly while defending against external threats.
Governance:
Mirabar is ruled by Merchant Lord Mortius Benzonius III, a greedy and cunning cousin of the Emperor. He oversees trade, taxation, and the city’s famed Gladitorial Games, exploiting the planet’s population for both wealth and entertainment.
Gladitorial Games Center: A towering darksteel structure overlooking the Skirmish Zone, it serves as the administrative hub for the city’s gladiatorial games. Volunteers, criminals, and slaves register here to compete, agreeing to the extreme risks of battle in exchange for fame, wealth, or potential freedom. Registrants select match types—team or lone wolf—and choose their callsigns before entering the arena.
Skirmish Arena: A vast walled section of the city near Mirabar, designed for deadly combat games. The arena features towering ice walls reinforced with steel, frozen terrain scarred by past battles, and remnants of previous combat—burning wrecks, flooded ice sections, and shattered vehicles. Spectators watch via hovering gravcars with camera crews, broadcasting the games to the galaxy. Sounds of blasterfire, clashing weapons, and the occasional scream echo across the frozen zone. The arena embodies both danger and spectacle, a grim testament to Tursia’s harsh culture and Mortius’s authority.
Tursia Governor’s Estate: A sprawling complex of darksteel buildings surrounded by frost-covered steel walls, home to Merchant Lord Mortius Benzonius III. The estate serves as both residence and administrative hub for the planet, symbolizing his wealth, power, and familial connection to the Emperor.
Tursians are proud and industrious, shaped by their harsh environment and the demands of mining and trade. Loyalty to the Arkanis Imperium runs deep, and many citizens view their work as both duty and honor. Mirabar, with its wealth and gladiatorial spectacle, demonstrates the fusion of human industry, martial culture, and Imperial propaganda, keeping the populace productive, disciplined, and loyal.