Volaria

Volaria was a in the  which served as the capital of the Volarian Empire. Due to its close proximity to the and the rest of the, Volaria was considered to be part of  region. Most of the planet's surface was devastated in a long-forgotten conflict, leaving it covered in scorching deserts, frozen mountains, and pools of radioactive sludge.

Geography
Most of the planet's surface was devastated during a major war in an era long past, leaving Volarian landscape covered in either scorching deserts, frozen mountains, or pools of radioactive sludge. The planet's native inhabitants, a race known as Volarians, made a living in vast underground caverns, which they expanded over the centuries into a collection of cities, factories, mines, and other facilities. Their civilization relied on geothermal energy to power its settlements. The largest city, which was also the closest to the core of Volaria, was known as Volar. The city was built in several layers of caves, with the innermost layer containing the Imperial Palace, the Senatorium, and other important government centers. Cities were separated from industrial centers such as factories and shipyards for safety reasons, but were located nearby. A system of tunnel pathways connected all major population centers and facilities, along with a high-speed maglev railway.

Due to the Volarians' militaristic nature, the planet also contained a large amount of military bases. They were usually located further away from cities than industrial facilities to maintain some degree of secrecy and security. The military also operated some installations on the desolate surface, such as research and communications posts. Access to the surface was restricted for civilians, due to the hazardous environment.

History
The planet was first discovered by scouts from the in 14,104 BBY. It was originally a lush terrestrial world, and thus deemed to be acceptable for colonization. Several groups of Republic colonists from the arrived and established numerous settlements on the planet, which they named Volaria. Its environment allowed them to perform extensive agriculture and expand rapidly. Over the next few centuries the planet's population mainly lived in city-states, whose leaders nominally pledged loyalty to the Republic government on. However, they rarely had any contact with the Republic due to their remote location and were largely left alone. In 13,785 BBY an overzealous ruler who rose to power in one of the larger settlements began a campaign of unification, which resulted in the use of nuclear weapons. The Volarian environment suffered greatly during the ensuing conflict, which ended in the destruction of many of the cities. The survivors were forced to flee underground to survive, as contact with the Republic was completely severed and most of the starships that were not used to flee the planet were destroyed.

Over the next several thousand years, Volarian civilization developed underground. The survivors from the surface carved out large, elaborate tunnel systems and caverns, beginning new city-states. When the citizens of these cities began meeting each other, a new war broke out. However, this one was much shorter and less bloody than the one that transpired on the surface. A group of oligarchs seized control of many of the cities, possessing much of the old military hardware from the days of dwelling above ground, and met little resistance. The leader of the oligarchs established himself as the first of Volaria, beginning a dynasty in 12,578 BBY which would lead the planet for much of it's history. The new Volarian Empire thrived, enjoying a period of recuperation, expansion, and technological innovation from about 12,000 BBY until around 8000 BBY. Eventually, however, the Volarians began running out of space to continue digging in, and many of their underground structures were in danger of collapsing. That was why the Volarian Ruling Council―which had largely taken control of the government, with the emperor remaining as a figurehead―decided to expand out into space.

The Volarians constructed starships based on new research as well as what little information they had on the colonists' vessels. By 7976 BBY, the Volarian Empire had established colonies throughout the nearby systems, though the capital still remained center of their civilization. This colonial empire continued to expand, which began another period of growth and prosperity for the Volarian people. However, the Ruling Council―locating the colony worlds in the nearby and being aware of the Republic's existence―decided to expand their control to the rest of the galaxy. Volarian society was very violent, militaristic, and driven by greed and an obsession to serve the Emperor (although by then he was a mere figurehead of the Ruling Council). The Council recognized this and decided to invade the Republic, which they viewed to be weak and incapable of defending itself. Only the upper echelons of the Empire were aware of it initially, but the invasion plan became less classified as the invasion date grew nearer.