Planet Crete

The ancestors of the Corsairs that had set adrift from the crippled sleeper-ship Hispania made planetfall on Crete shortly after the other Houses arrived in the Sirius Sector.

Scratching out a living, the Corsairs managed a bleak existence for four centuries. Eventually they developed a strong self-identity, isolated from the rest of the Houses. In 450 A.S., the insular world changed. An exploratory expedition headed by Franz Schulman -- financed by Daumann and the Rheinland government -- stumbled into the system while mapping the far reaches of the Walker Nebula. The local inhabitants, sensing a historic opportunity, attacked the landing party en masse, killing all save Schulman, whom they took hostage to gain control of the mother ship Schiller in orbit above the planet.

No one is entirely sure who first nicknamed them the "Corsairs", recalling the ancient pirate clans of the Mediterranean, but the name came into popular use among the Houses sometime around 500 A.S. The Corsairs began attacking unprotected outposts and ships, plundering whatever supplies and equipment they could lay their hands on, before escaping through one of their secret jump holes. The systematic expansion of the Houses into the Omega Border Worlds further fueled the Corsair movement, dramatically increasing the quantity and variety of accessible goods.

The final chapter began in the sixth century A.S., when an enterprising, well-armed Liberty freelancer named Jim Bown made his way to Omicron Gamma. He brought various commodities to trade, but the Corsairs could offer little but Artifacts. A year later, he returned. Those trinkets were all the rage with the elite of Planet Manhattan. He saw a great business opportunity if they could set up a viable trade route to Liberty. The Corsairs were on their way. They grew rapidly in size and sophistication as they built up the Artifact trade.

The primary smuggling route goes north to Sigma-19, where Artifacts are traded with the Hogosha aboard the Luxury Liner Hawaii. The Corsairs have also opened up a route into Rheinland via Yanagi Junker base in Sigma-13 and in the west the Corsairs invaded Bretonia in order to reach the Junker's Trafalgar base in New London.

The Bounty Hunters Guild has taken advantage of several Freeports in the Edge Worlds to attack the Corsair's home system. So far they've been more of nuisance than a real threat, but the presence of Zoner-controlled bases so close to Omicron Gamma has provoked intense debate among the Elders of Crete regarding the future of nearby independent bases.

Geography
Crete is for all intents and purposes a barren planet which is far from ideal for supporting a large population. There are considerable extremes in climate, ranging from hot, dusty desert-like plains to icy snow capped mountain ranges. While not being devoid of water, Crete is famously short of suitable land for farming and what land that is used in this regaurd is far too inadequate to support the ever growing populace. Forests are few in number, however there are several notable exceptions, and a small number of large areas of forest growth are known to exist, these tend to be gathered in valleys nestled between mountain ranges and access to these areas is difficult and often only reachable by air. Some Corsairs have been known to venture into these areas and there is a small but thriving domestic market for the furs and hides of some of the local wildlife that is known to exist there.

Artifacts, while often mined in space in and around the Omicron Gamma System itself can also be found on the planet - there have been several extensive finds which are usually opened up quickly to excavation and mining. Much of this is regulated by the Council of Elders, however the sheer number of unreported finds is believed to be so great that many independant and localised operations constantly spring up in order to exploit this resource.

Missions Offered

 * Corsairs: $250,000 to $450,000 range