Renthiv

The planet Renthiv (//) was the home of the Garjo. It was located in the. After its conquest in 155 ABY, it became a member world of the Golden Empire.

Geography
Renthiv boasted a wide variety of terrain. Much of the surface alternated between highlands and fertile valleys; the highlands were sometimes little more than high hills, although the planet had long mountain ranges too. There were broad swaths of plains and prairies, with two major deserts.

Renthiv had many seas, but no real oceans. Many civilizations developed in the valleys which bordered the hundreds of fjords. All the surface water on Renthiv was fresh.

Much of Renthiv's fauna was larger than that found on other worlds, including the multitude of fish which lived in the seas.

Society and culture
All Garjo were warriors to some degree, and their society, which dominated their homeworld, represented this fact. Many major cities were well-defended and built in strategic locations, and the Garjo put a great deal of effort into developing infrastructure not only for commerce, but also to keep supply lines viable in times of war.

Service in a military was considered the most honorable career available, and many Garjo who were not full-time soldiers were reservists.

Most Garjo societies were autocratic, though their specific makeups varied and included hereditary dictatorships and monarchies and elected versions of both.

History
Archaeological evidence supported the theory that the Garjo developed organized, primitive warfare before developing permanent settlements. There was a brief lull in combat when the first city-states were founded, but war accelerated from then on. Pre-modern Garjo societies often had accepted "campaign seasons", although these varied around the globe.

At various stages in their history, the Garjo were visited by aliens. Some came as conquerors and others as explorers or diplomats, but all were met with full force by the natives. From the dawn of Garjo civilization until 155 ABY, Renthiv never had any long-lasting alien presence. However, the Garjo did harvest offworld weaponry from their defeated foes; Garjo scientists were eventually able to copy the technology, creating laser weapons and energy shields.

In 155, the Golden Empire's diplomats were the ones on the receiving end of Renthiv's specious hospitality. After they were executed, however, the Empire retaliated, sending an invasion force under Breek Zagrev to conquer the planet. After a brutal, six-day battle, the Garjo were defeated and Renthiv was absorbed into the Empire.