Khaleri

Khaleri is the fifth planet in the Windoon system, and one of the thirty planets in the Planetary Alliance.

Climate
Due to its distance from the star, Khaleri should be just on the edge of the habitable zone due to sub-freezing temperatures. However, extreme volcanic activity and an atmosphere composed of heat trapping gases, the average temperature actually hovers around freezing.

The constant volcanic eruptions and earthquakes still make Khaleri generally a dangerous place to live. Plants have adapted to grow quickly or become resistant to lava flows. Animal life have evolved to be adaptable to be nomadic and survive in new climates and territories.

Windon
The city of Windon is the capital of Khaleri and by far the most prosperous city. Permanent cities are uncommon on Khaleri due to earthquakes and volcanic activity, but Windon was strategically placed to be as far away from tectonic threats as possible. Further, the city was designed to be able to withstand earthquakes and minor lava flows, as well as other natural disasters.

Windon is one of the few cities with consistent contact with other worlds. This is partially due to the prosperity of the city, but also simply because the other tribes of Khaleri are frequently on the move.

The city is designed with three distinct rings around a central hill. The amount of wealth increases exponentially the further into the city one travels.

Pre-P.A. History
The history of Khaleri revolves around the many battles and wars that have occurred between the Khalerian tribes over the centuries. The most common cause for war is the encroachment of one tribe onto another tribe's territory, generally due to the invading tribe losing their home to a natural disaster. Tribes are frequently absorbed into one another, either when one leader takes control of another's tribe, or when refugees from one tribe join another.

All Khalerian tribes have their own unique culture and history, but there is one commonality between all of them: the strong lead the tribe. The definition of strong varies from tribe to tribe, and the manner in which the tribe passes the chief's position from one chieftain to the next differs. Nearly all of the tribes involve some sort of challenge that is unique to the tribe.

P.A. History
The Yiptaens first landed on Khaleri in -274 AY (-91 in local years). The Yiptaens quickly spread their influence, even without the capability to transport many people there, as they offered to trade technology and the building of manufacturing plants for power. Soon, Khaleri became dependent on Yiptae. To this day, many Khaleri tribes are completely dependent on Yiptaen trade and manufacture.

Some Khalerians fought back, as they traveled to Yiptae and wreaked havoc on the planet starting in -257 AY (-87 in Khaleri local years). This period of time is called the Reign of the Terrors on Yiptae, and it lasted until -163 AY.

Khaleri joined the P.A. as part of the Third Wave, in 119 AY. The calendar was reset such that the year Khaleri joined the P.A. is year 0 in local years.

Government
The government of Khaleri is not organized on a planetary level, and each Khalerian tribe essentially sets their own laws and enforcement of those laws.

P.A. Senator
The P.A. Senator generally comes from Windon. Since it is the largest city on Khaleri, and has the most interplanetary trade by far, Windon is most affected by P.A. decisions. Since joining the P.A., the Chief of Windon has selected the Senator and then allowed other tribes to object and put forth their own nomination. Only twice since joining the P.A. has the Senator not been from Windon.

The admittedly hit-and-miss process at least serves as evidence to the P.A. that the planet is united under a single banner, as required in the P.A. rules. Further, since there has never been a dispute brought to the P.A. on the Senator's position, there is no cause for alarm in the P.A..

Khaleri Tribes
The number of Khalerian tribes fluctuates with the frequent birth, death, and absorbtion of tribes. At last count, there were sixteen tribes in Khaleri, with by far the largest occupying the city of Windon.

Khaleri tribes are responsible for the actions of their people, which leads to frequent battles between the tribes. While some of these clashes due result in a full-scale battle, these are frequently resolved by the Chiefs of the tribe. In some cases, the Chiefs come to an agreement, and in others, they fight to the death. The winning Chief absorbs the other tribe into his/her own.

Chiefs and Challenges
The only true universal law on Khaleri is "power rules." Essentially this boils down to how tribe chiefs are selected. In all tribes, the most powerful is the chief. However, from tribe-to-tribe the definition of "most powerful" may vary according to the tribes' or chiefs' strengths. All tribes have some version of a Challenger's Circle, where disputes of power are decided. The Challenger's Circles are constructed very differently from one tribe to another. In many tribes, it is truly an open circle, while in Windon, for example, it is a course of obstacles and traps that either Chief may take advantage of.

Some tribes have typically only had ceremonial challenges, where an older Chief will willingly "lose" to an up-and-comer, both to preserve his/her life and for the good of the clan. Other tribes may allow the Chief or challenger to select a champion to fight in their stead. When the champion wins, he/she immediately concedes to the Chief or challenger, respectively.