Physical Description

Skalds
Location	The Farrago
Capital Planet	Llothu
Government	Planetary Alliance
Tech Level	Modern, Advanced Bio-mechanical
Established	Ancient
Composition	Skald
Participating Governments	Chesh Tarkha Domos Lissing Yanti Rikiru
Planets	Bruck Caragon Emalrina Llothu Mitunan Shammaur Sylviadna Tiaramyu Toben

Essentially, human. Short, wide, and solid. 

Culture/Political
Llothu has traditionally been a world full of tribes at war. Gradually, the smaller countries joined or were absorbed by stronger powers until the four modern cultures emerged. 

The Yanti Rikiru are a culture centered around the almost universal rule of their military. While the military essentially drives the government by appointing the head-of-state Monitor, elections pick the civil administrative government. Far from a "bully dictatorship", the military functions for the protection and betterment of the Yanti Rikiru society as a whole. The Yantis have a strong, functional, and structured society.

The Chesh Tarkha is a civilian dictatorship run by a Senate of the society's most powerful members. Daily, banal governmental activities are taken care of by elected Councils that administer law, business, bureaucracy, and war. The Tarkhs maintain an aggressive free market economy. Those who garner enough power through their business or governmental activities may lobby to join the Senate.   

The Democratic Republic of Domos is a self-proclaimed "Eliminotocracy" ruled by a council of five from which citizens regularly vote to replace the weakest member with a stronger candidate. Members of the Republic form their own local governments but work with regional Magistrates appointed by the Council. Domins see struggle and simplicity as virtues. A historical lack of resources have lead them to compensate culturally by maximizing their differences and striving to be on the cutting edge of manufacturing, technology, and efficiency.

A remote island chain, the Kingdom of Lissing has always been smaller and somewhat isolated from the constant bickering on the rest of Llothu. They have maintained their traditional monarchal society in which each King chooses and builds up his successor. One of the least militaristic cultures on Llothu, Lissing is a kingdom of explorers and artists. They often end up being the first to settle the next territory the Skalds will fight over. 

History
Through known history, the Skalds have existed on Llothu. Legends say that they tore themselves a spot in the harsh, hostile world during the first, lost age of colonization before civilization plunged back into the dark ages. When the Fall came, the Skalds were left without their technologies that had kept the hostile creatures and extreme environment at bay. They were left to toughen up and survive. And this they did. They struggled, fragmented into tribes, and warred against themselves and the environment, eventually overcoming and developing a variety of advanced civilizations and a myriad of local governments. 

The planet became driven by multi-partisan politics, feuds, and a military technology race. The competition and warring caused the major players to develop high technology quickly and forced them to attempt to expand their territory and power base quickly. Ironically, each burst of expansion brought about a new stagnation as the various sides fought over the territory, attempting to conquer or fortify. Smaller nations were conquered or went voluntarily under the flags of others for the support of their own best interests.  Eventually, they would all be absorbed and carried into space by the four dominant powers on the planet today. 

The massive continent of Heriano would be split geographically between the superpowers known as Yanti Rikiru and Chesh Tarkha. The Democratic Republic of Domos would absorb the smaller continent of Domos. The Kingdom of Lissing , isolated and remote, would become one of the few star-faring cultures to retain its traditional system of monarchy. 

The factions slowly crept out to neighbouring systems, dividing worlds and parts of worlds while maintaining strong ties to their ancestral homes and conflicts. The four Skald factions do not share any formal union or government. Each acts independently towards its own interests. Any conflict involving one faction invariably involves dragging in one or more of the other factions on one side or the other. Any foreign threat to the world of Llothu or the Skald species as a whole would trigger, at least temporarily, a unified Skald response.

Technology
They are nano-mechanical specialists, traditionally mistrustful of the Immasu and their biological technologies. The Skalds incorporate technology into life.

War
As they develop colonies, they maintain strong ancestral ties and conflicts, creeping slowly and radially to neighbouring systems. As a planetary culture, they have developed strong traditional military and tactics through self-conflict.