Located at the outer edge of the Third Imperium, the Regina subsector lies on the main trade routes towards the Zhodani Consulate and Vargr Extents. An arm of the Spinward Main runs through the subsector from rimward before veering to spinward into Jewell. A jump-2 ship can reach any world in the subsector by jumping from the Main at the appropriate point.

The subsector is the responsibility of the 213th Fleet, which has its headquarters at the Efate Naval Base. Elements of the Sector Fleet are deployed at Efate, Regina and Pixie, making the subsector one of the best places to spot Imperial capital ships. Indeed, there is a deliberate policy of flag-showing in place, using cruisers and capital ships rather than the usual smaller vessels.

Almost the entire subsector is Imperial territory; only Ruie is not. Imperial vessels tend to bypass Ruie, heading coreward by way of Hefry unless they have business on Ruie itself. Ruie is a high-population industrialised mid-tech world, which could be a source of considerable exports were it not for internal troubles that have resulted in an Amber Zone advisory being applied to the world. There is no actual restriction associated with this, simply a warning to Travellers.

Roup is also Amber Zoned. Again there are no restrictions in place, merely a warning to take care. There are also three Red Zones in the subsector and restrictions are in place regarding access to these. It is possible to find out why a world is Red Zoned – in many cases it is an open secret – and even to obtain a permit to go there. However, this can be hazardous. For example, Shionthy is generally ‘known’ (common knowledge that may not actually be true) to have antimatter particles floating free about the system. Contact could cause massive damage to a starship, making a Red Zone a sensible precaution.

The reasons for the Red Zones at Algine and Pscias are not commonly disclosed but Pscias is known to have a very low-tech culture and is thought to be interdicted by the Scout Service to protect natives from outside onterference. Algine may be interdicted for the same or other reasons; those interested enough to speculate rarely have concrete information.

General Shipyards, subsidiary of General Products, maintains major shipyards at Efate, Pixie and Regina, and is an important employer in the region. This may have serious consequences as General has recently been hit with a number of lawsuits and complaints regarding the quality of vessels produced for the Imperial Navy and system squadrons. The cancellation of government orders could have repercussions for the yards and the local economy.

REGINA

Technically, Regina is not a planet but a moon orbiting the gas giant Assiniboia, which forms part of a complex triple star system. The system primary is Lusor, an F7 main sequence star orbited by a dwarf companion named Speck. The third star is Darida, an M6 red dwarf in a very distant orbit.

Darida has its own planetary system including a gas giant, Belnafaer and several ‘rockball’, or 'iceball' worlds of varying sizes. There are no habitable planets in the Darida system although a few scientific outposts and a small Navy base are located on various bodies. The latter is home to a squadron of the Sector Fleet and supporting assets, as well as a larger but constantly changing force of light patrol ships from the subsector fleet. A pool of Navy couriers also operates out of the base, serving both system administration and fleets.

The Lusor system also contains various bodies ranging from rockballs to gas giants but, as the only habitable world in the system, Regina itself was the first to be colonised and remains the main world not only of the system but also the subsector.

Aledon, Duke Norris Aella
Duke of Regina, Count Aledon, Marquis of Regina, Baron of Yori. Born 1063, second issue of Duke Willem Caranda Aledon and Fiorella Havasu Aella of Efate. Norris was enjoying a successful career in the Imperial Navy when the accidental death of his older brother William in 1097, during what would turn out to be their father’s last year of life, forced him rapidly into an unaccustomed role as the impending heir. He is unmarried and had no heir of his own. In his new role as Duke, has also advocated a new Elastic Defence Strategy (from the existing Crustal Defence strategy) to better defend the Imperium against future Zhodani or Sword World aggression.

Her Grace’s Security Service (HGSS)
Security service for the reigning Duchess of Mora and her immediate family. They offer close protection, escorts, and security vetting for the Duchess’ household, travel and official duties. They are sworn to serve the Duchess above all others and protect her privacy with fierce integrity.
They can commandeer local system assets in Her Grace’s name.

Imperial Interstellar Scout Service
The Imperial Interstellar Scout Service is a major service within the Imperium, equal in stature to the Imperial Army and the Imperial Navy, although assigned a variety of unique, primarily non-military missions. Its duties include exploration of the Imperial frontiers, on-going mapping and surveying of Imperial territory and the maintenance of interstellar communications through its express boat network. A Special Operations and Intelligence branch within the IISS also perform covert operations throughout Charted Space and intelligence gathering for Imperial interests.

Imperial Ministry of Justice
The Imperial Ministry of Justice largely exists to enforce Imperial High Law. It is mostly engaged in apprehending felons who are beyond the reach of planetary governments or felons who travel from one world to the next to avoid the repercussions of their crimes. It also investigates corporations and governments and can on occasion operate on worlds requesting support from their local law enforcement. The Ministry of Justice is the managerial authority over all transgressions and violations of Imperial High Law (for example Psionic institutes and the use of psychic powers which are prohibited under Imperial High Law). So long as the event takes place within Imperial territory, which includes ambassadorial excursions and Imperial vessels abroad , the Ministry is the ultimate power behind what is to happen to the criminal(s) in question. Emperor Strephon himself handed the power to the Ministry to be the arbiters of his judgments in these matters.

Imperial Ministry of State
The Imperial Ministry of State is in charge of diplomatic relations with the Imperium’s neighbour polities, with Imperial client states, and with various autonomous regions within the Imperium. The Ministry of State assists the Emperor in formulating Imperial foreign policy and advises on the creation of treaties and other agreements with foreign powers. It contains an Intelligence division which co-ordinates information collected by various sources, including its own agents. The Intelligence division is divided into bureaus including (but not limited to) the Spinward Bureau and the Zhodani Bureau.

Imperial Naval Intelligence
One of the Imperium’s most powerful intelligence agencies, Imperial Naval Intelligence (INI) can draw on the entire assets of the Imperial Navy and is primarily concerned with military intelligence. It tracks starship and troop operations, and can mount intelligence-gathering activities into all parts of the Imperium. They are rumoured to employ psionic agents for anti-Zhodani work.

Ine Givar
A terrorist organization active mostly in the Domain of Deneb but also found elsewhere in the Imperium, including the Spinward Marches. The Ine Givar are opposed to the Imperium and are rumoured to be a front organization for the Zhodani Consulate. Their stated aim is to free individual planets from the yoke of Imperial tyranny and pursue a broadly anarchist agenda against Imperial nobility and agencies of the state.

Ling Standard Products
Originally a mining firm and still very active in that are a, LSP currently engages in a wide spectrum of activities including, but by no means limited to, manufacture of electronic equipment of all sorts, ground and air vehicles, starships and starship armaments systems, drive systems, power systems, computer systems and software, small arms and a variety of other items. Also concerned, to a small degree, with banking, insurance and other activities. LSP maintains mining and manufacturing facilities throughout the Imperium and beyond.

An Imperial megacorporation which dates back to the Rule of Man and specializes in mining as well as banking and insurance. They are also known for manufacturing computer systems, electronic equipment, vehicles, robots and starships amongst other things. Some of its subsidiaries are: Baldang Arms, the Dashi Combine, Ling Personnel Systems, Ling-Standard Metals, Ling Standard Products Spinward & the Military Technologies Group.  A board of governors controls the megacorporation via a complex system of votes; Janice Ling is currently Chair of Board.

Stock ownership: Imperial family : 8%, Hortalez et Cie: 26%, GSbAG: 23%, Noble families: 8%, Murdoch Holdings LIC: 8%, Other: 27%

Mora (Spinward Marches 3124 AA99AC7 - F)
Capital of the Spinward Marches sector, and site of the first major Imperial establishment in that sector. Mora was settled in 60 and financed by Ling Standard Products. It was soon a thriving trade centre, building new ships, overhauling old ones, and producing other manufactured goods on the side. At one end of the trade routes through to the Sword Worlds Confederation and the Darrians, Mora became known as the ‘Gateway to the Marches’.

Mora sits near the centre of the Domain of Deneb, astride the Spinward Main. The bulk of the world’s ten billion population reside in a sprawling mega-city, straddling the equator and covering most of the major continent. The Duchess Delphine currently holds the reins of power in the world’s matriarchy. The Mora system’s belt is home to most of the significant biotech industries in the Spinward Marches. The belt environment has provided the biotech industries with a safe and flexible environment for research whilst being positioned at a large nexus of trade routes.

Morine
Morine is a private island which is the home and Ducal Palace of the Duchess Delphine and her family. Unlike the massively over-built conurbations of the main continent, this island paradise has been kept from visible over-development and consists of white sand beaches, fragrant gardens and palaces with sunny courtyards. Beneath the Ducal palace may be many levels of bunkers, stores, hangers, barracks and surveillance centres and there is a strong perimeter of sensors, submarines, aerial drones and starships overheard to guard the Ducal family, although you would never know it.

Muudashir, Duchess Delphine Adorania
Duchess of Mora (Spinward Marches). Born 980. Inducted into the Order of the Starship and Crown in 1018 by Emperor Gavin. Matriarch and ruler of Mora. Subsector Duchess and often performs the role of Sector Duke. One daughter, Ariana Muudashir, now deceased. One surviving granddaughter and heiress to the Duchy, Isolde.

Muudaashir, Lady Isolde Ling
Heiress to the Duchy of Mora. Granddaughter to Duchess Delphine. Born 1068 to Ariana Muudashir and Jevos Ling. Both parents died in an Ine Givar bombing in 1078.

Psionics Suppressions (800 to 826)
The revelation of scandals (financial, ethical, and moral) within the psionics institutes in the years 772 to 798 resulted in a shift in public opinion against the institutes. Over a 26-year period, various institute charters were cancelled, leading figures jailed or otherwise repressed, and restrictive laws passed limiting or prohibiting the practice of psionics via Imperial High Law. Many institute figures went underground, to espouse their cause in a type of guerrilla war. Popular prejudice against psionics continues to the present day. The average citizen will admit to a general dislike of psionics and if pressed, will usually state that psionics violates a person’s right of mental privacy.

Third Imperium
The Third Imperium is a strong interstellar government encompassing 281 subsectors and approximately 11,000 worlds. Nearly 1100 years old, it is the third human empire to control this area, the longest-lived, and the strongest. Nevertheless, it is under strong pressure from its neighbouring interstellar governments, and does not have the strength or the power which it once had. The Imperium can be best thought of as a form of feudal confederation, run by the Imperial government.

Member worlds of the Imperium agree to pay taxes and obey a few fundamental laws, which the Imperium promulgates, known as the High Laws. In return, the Imperium agrees to patrol the space between the worlds, to protect interstellar trade, to encourage travel and commerce, and to arbitrate diplomatic relations between worlds.

Beyond this, individual worlds are left to their own devices so long as they acknowledge the power of the Imperium to rule the space between the stars. Imperial power is present on member worlds in the form of consulates, bureaucratic offices, and bases. Sometimes, larger enclaves of Imperial power are placed where they can enhance the emperor’s strength.

Tozjabr
Literally, ‘the eye and the hand’, The Zhodani Consulate’s primary intelligence and covert operations agency. Founded after the First Frontier War, it exists to spy on the Third Imperium and other foreign powers. In the Spinward Marches they are reputed to have extensively infiltrated the Sword Worlds and the Ine Givar.

Zhodani Consulate
The Zhodani Consulate is a large empire immediately to coreward-spinward of the Imperium; its capital system is Zhdant. It encompasses 143 subsectors in an area approximately 40 parsecs in extent, containing approximately 6,500 systems. There have been repeated wars between the Imperium and the Consulate over control of the border areas. The Zhodani government has been known to cultivate and use individuals with psionic talents. There are three classes of Zhodani society, differentiated by psionic ability: Nobles (powerful psions), Intendants (functional psions), and Proles (non-psionic). Citizenship (and thus the right to vote) is restricted to the nobility. Intendants and Proles can only express their opinions to the Nobility, lobbying for a course of action. All Zhodani Proles work towards the collective good (as determined by psionic Nobles known as Consuls). Those who do not co-operate can have their attitude and personality altered by the Thought Police in a process of re-education.