Perun

A desolate planet populated mostly by miners and labourers, the real draw of Perun is its spaceport. Settled due to enormous reserves of valuable resources, Perun remains extremely important to the Colonial Sphere. Perun is located in the SvarogSystem.

General Information
Population: 47, 000, 000

Demonym: Perunese

Major Cities: New Moscow, Minsk, Lodz

Founding
During the first survey of planets for settlement, Perun was deemed a high priority for settlement due to the high amount of valuable resources present. The UCN faced a problem with settlement though in that the atmosphere was not conducive to widespread human settlement. A contract was reached with a consortium of Eastern European energy companies in 2130, who were subsidized for a majority of their costs in order to establish industry on the colony. Primarily relying on automated drones for mining, the settlers were remote operators and technicians living in a space station established just out of orbit. This station would later grow into Veles. A space elevator was proposed, but ultimately deemed impossible due to wear from the dust storms that plagued the planet.

Increased dust storms took its toll on remote communications to the planet, eventually forcing some of the technicians into permanent residence on the planet itself. New Moscow was the first settlement on the planet, established in 2133 originally consisting of some prefabricated buildings and little more than a thousand people. Over the next few years, the colony would grow, expanding into a sizeable industrial outpost of the budding Colonial Sphere.

Kosmar
The period of the Kosmar marks an exceptionally dark time in the settlement of Perun. In 2136, an enormous dust storm engulfed the colony of New Moscow, cutting off all communication and essentially dooming the settlement to destruction. The colonists were forced to live within the storm for three years, suffering from hunger and forced to survive off the meagre offerings of the new colony. Resulting in the deaths of nearly a third of the settlers, the Kosmar shaped the minds of the colonists and forever changed what Perun would become.

Reinvestment
When the Kosmar lifted in 2139, the corporations that monitored New Moscow were shocked to find anyone had survived. A period of reinvestment began, upgrading the colony to survive future dust storms as well as to expand upon any further settlements. Projects were announced and built upon, establishing the Space Elevator that now dominates Perun as well as developing materials and designs better suited to resist the constant wear of dust from the atmosphere. Autonomous drones also begin to make their appearance on Perun, reducing the need for remote communications and allowing the mines to go into more dangerous parts of the planets crust.

Despite all of these developments, many of the younger generation of colonists still felt the need to get off-world. The inauguration of the UCA in 2149 gave an outlet for many of these people, providing a huge boost for the fledgling UCA and ensuring Perunese dominance in the newly minted organization. The stream of Perunese recruits, combined with its vast resource exporting, makes it a major target of the UCN crackdown in 2168. With a large contingent of troops garrisoned on the planet to ensure obedience, the proud Perunese began to chafe under UCN rule.

Rebellion
With the beginning of the Agronnach rebellion in 2172, the Perunese seized their chance and supported their colonial brothers. The huge Perunese portion of the UCA largely broke off in a schism that rocked the capability of the powerful UCA and tipped the balance of some early battles in the favour of the rebels. The planet itself struggled to shrug off the mantle of UCN repression though, forced to fight a guerilla war amidst the mines and factories the likes of which devastated the planets capacity for production. Eventually assisted by rebel forces in 2177, Perun threw its entire weight into the rebellion, with the experienced militias proving invaluable in the city-fighting on Tian.

Rebuilding
After the war, Perun became a founding member of the ICSA and one of the most influential players in Colonial politics, despite having had most of its industry destroyed by the war. Rebuilding was a long process, with many of the mines having to be excavated and factories reconstructed. The sabotage of the Space Elevator, a last act committed by UCA forces on the planet, marked the most crippling to the planets infrastructure. Ultimately rebuilding, and even expanding upon much of the existing settlements, the Perunese maintain their place in the Colonial Sphere as an influential colony.

Geography
An absolutely inhospitable planet, it was nevertheless colonized by humanity. Vast refineries and mines dot its surface, harvesting the numerous resources found within the crust of the planet. Great dust storms sweep the surface, taking a toll on machinery and men alike. The dust gives everything a red hue, like a deep rust, that dominates the vision. A massive space elevator provides the most obvious feature on the planet, providing supplies for the populace on the surface, and drawing up resources for export at the space station.

Culture
Founded as a community to monitor and service the mining drones, the settlements of Perun have since grown to accomodate more active miners and other industrial workers. Primarily an industrial hub, the people are subdued and stoic, resigned to a harsh life on a hostile planet. Limited luxuries and a dangerous work environment make most bitter about their lot in life. Alcoholism and drug abuse is relatively uncontained within the population. The people are often characterized by a dark sense of humour and stoicism in the face of difficulty. A pride in surviving the conditions they deal with manifests quite prominently among the Perunese, with arguments over who has it worse being quite common.

Odlot
Due to the harsh environment and tough life that Perun poses for many of the colonists, much of the generations, as they are brought up, seek to leave the confines of their world and explore the Colonial Sphere for themselves. Due to the limited nature of their skills, however, it is difficult for many to find work in fields beyond unskilled labour positions or find themselves falling into a more criminal element. Either way, this exodus is seen as healthy by the Perunese, who refer to the practice as Odlot or departure. Many of the people who leave will eventually return to their homeworld, out of some loyalty the planet earns.

Government
Perun is small, but very important to Colonial politics. Despite being overshadowed by the more cosmopolitan Veles, Perun is the major provider of resources to the Colonial Sphere. This position, along with the dominant Perunese Defence Force, gives the Perunese representative at the ICSA council tremendous power. On the surface, Perun is governed by the corporations that run the mines and industries on the planet. These corporations are in turn moderated by trade unions that fight for the rights of the workers. No central government is in place, nor would it be tolerated by the individualistic Perunese. The only centralized organization on the planet is the Perunese Armed Forces, or PAF, that functions as a professional military with the aim of defending Perun from outside threats.