The Traders Guide to Gallicia

[Akren Garkos]

A major centre of trade & a vertiable melting pot of diverse ethnic backgrounds, Gallica is home to colourful characters & some of the most devout followers of Origin in the Alterran Galaxy.

Famous for it's ancient temples, it has become a major trade hub over the years, a position further cemented by it's close proximity to the Supergate. With the end of the Holy Crusade, Gallicia's has begun trading with worlds in the Milkyway through the Supergate, further boosting it's awareness in the consciousnesses of the many cultures & worlds of that galaxy.

[Akren Garkos]

Gallicia most closely resembles sub-Saharan Africa, featuring a single continent surrounded by broad shallows oceans dotted with a variety of islands; including a small reef off north-west coast. Wide coastal plains form an outward arc along the contient's eastern seaboard, beyond which lies the Sheen'ild Desert, which is bound at the far western side by the Rif Mountain Range. Most Gallicans on the planet dwell within this arc, with one or two notable exceptions along the southern coastline.

Gallicia is subject to monsoons & hurricanes along the coasts, sandstorms in the desert, & rock-slides in the mountains; sometimes at the discretion of the local monks Visitors should secure shelter & be prepared for any weather condition while on the planet. The natives usually dwell in walled cities or villages surrounded by vast fields of grains & fruit trees. Llamas & goats are the staple meat source, with camels used for most land transport. Horses are a rarity, but a few do exist, & are highly-prized by their owners.

[Akren Garkos]

Gallicia is a hospitable, successful planet which has thrived in the last two centuries, in spite of their devout adherence to the tenants of Origin. The inhabitants are a colorful bunch from a diverse mix of ethnic backgrounds, exhibiting a culture quite similar to that of ancient Moroco.

Technologically, most of the planet is comparable to Earth's Middle Ages, like most planet's throughout the Empire, with some variations. The navigation of the of their oceans is very advanced for the time, & the natives can calculate both longitude & latitude with remarkable accuracy.

As stated before, the culture of the planet resembles that of Morocco on Earth, where diverse cultures & ethnic backgrounds have been subsumed into an overarching authority. The planet's leaders are tolerant of outsiders, but not diverse religious belief; Origin & worship of the Orii dominates social life, & visitors would would do well to respect it. Despite their lack of flexibility, however, the ruling elite is generally peaceful. As long as visitors show dignity, respect & willingness to listen, they will have few problems with the local monks, Priors, or population.

Gallicia is essentially still a theocracy, in spite of the defeat of the Orii & their deprogramming by the Ark of Truth, & the governing body places a more heavy emphasis on faith than on other worlds throughout the Empire. Twice-daily prayers (Prostration) are conducted in every city, at dawn & dusk. The state has decreed a dozen local holy days throughout the years when all labor is suspended, & celebrations take place from dawn until dawn of the next day.Visitors are advised to cease work & appear to be in somber contemplation during prayers times, if they do not wish to attend services or join others in worship.

Despite such piety, the Gallicians still find time for more relaxed activities. Camel-racing takes place on the outskirts of most cities when weather permits, & the open markets make for a pleasant diversion from life's toil. Sword-&-knife 'clinics' are held in the early morning near the temples, & serve as a kind of tryout for the city & temple gaurds, as well as the Great Holy Imperial Armed Forces. Gunpowder is difficult to develop on Gallicia - many of the required minerals are rare & of middling quality - & only authorized personelle or enlisted members of the armed forces are allowed to carry & use staff weapons &/or stunners - so bows, swords, & the occasional catapult are the main forms of weaponry.

Polygamy exists in very complicated patterns amongst the ruling class, & both both polygyny & polyandry is tolerated among the lower classes; in spite of being far less common on other worlds throughout the Empire. A man may have have up to three (3) wives, so long as all can be treated equally, & a woman may have up to four (4) husbands, provided her first agrees to additional spouses being added to the household.

This often makes makes tracing familial relationships very complex, especially when interactions with the local monks are included. Various monks favor their own families when delegating use of the technology in the temples, while others hold grudges & deny the use of certain objects based on clan rivalries.

Women hold a lower status, socially speaking, than men on Gallicia, but occupy a few 'status niche' professions; such as decorative crafts (rugs, bridle & leather-crafting, jewelry), household goods (guild-controlled production of honey, species, & coffee) & 'weather-working' (female monks who dwell in the Storm Temple). Widows hold legal status equal to adult males, & some hold positions of authority as magistrates in the cities of Canaseva & Il-Sheen.

The Gallicians are by & large friendly towards outsiders, but the the civil authority is under fire. The last royal prince was killed in a civil war sixty years ago, & governmental authority has since fallen to local noble families & magistrates. As yet, there is too much unrest & opposition for any one family to gain prominence, leaving the planet divided between several would-be kings. Mundane criminals are treated very harshly, & captured ne'er-do-wells often disappear forever in the bowels of a city's jail.

Six (6) ruling families currently hold power, each of which has been anointed by the monks of one of the four (4) temples. The families ask the various temples for assistance & technology, often leaving them beholden to the monks, & though the clergy does not rule directly, their influence can be felt in every aspect of life. The fact that they cannot convince the squabbling nobility to unite makes the populace very uneasy.

The city's rulers welcome off-worlders & off-world trade, but will take reasonable defensive measures until congenial relations have been established. This can take some time; records show they may not trust outsiders with religious or political information relating to Gallicia for several years. However, individual exceptions have been made in the past for extreme conditions or to meet the needs of the populace.

[Akren Garkos]

Gallica's religious devotion to the Origin faith centers around the protection of four temples, presumably left by the Alterrans before the schism that led to the exodus of the Ancients from the their home galaxy (the level of technology attributed to them far exceeds the current level of science on Gallica, & the temples show distinct trade-marks of Ancient/Alterran design). The four temples are governed by Orii, & represent the primal forces of the planet: storm, fire (the most well-known element of all, & central icon of Origin), stars, & earth. It is rumored that each of the main temples contains technology left there in by the Orii in order to make life better for the people.

Why the Orii have allowed such heretical artefact's, which clearly pre-date the supposed creation of Humans in the Alterran Galaxy by the Orii, is a mystery; although many from the SGC & their ally worlds believe that the temples & the technology contained therein were deliberately spared by the Orii in order to further encourage belief in the Orii as gods & acceptance of the Origin faith (thereby increasing their power); testimonies to the power, majesty & knowledge of the Orii as gods, & to Origin as the 'true' faith. Since the demise of the Orii & the de-programming of the Alterrans by the Ark of Truth, the temples still remain functioning & belief in Origin & the Orii has remained as strong as ever on Gallica - as it has across most of the Empire - in spite of those whom would claim otherwise.

Regardless of the rumors, the monks of these temples exercise considerable control over the native environment. The first SG team on Gallica witnessed lightening & storm activity which appeared swiftly & out of season for the area. The local guide attributed these changes to the rituals at the Temple of Storms. Further research revealed that the temple supposedly contained a warehouse of superior seed stock & medicines for use during famine or plagues; & that the Temple of the Stars held Alterran stars maps & Stargate addresses as-yet unknown to the SGC, & maybe even to the Alterran High Council. The most intriguing rumors, however, concerned the Temple of Fire. Monks of the Temple of Fire supposedly guard a device which can kill an individual anywhere on Gallica by boiling his blood in his body. Such a device, if it exists, could be converted into an advanced weapon with potentially deadly consequences.

No off-worlder, other than Priors of the Orii, the Doci himself, or select members of the Alterran High Council, has been able to get close enough to the inner sanctum s of these temples to confirm these reports. The native population refuses to let outsiders draw close (even citizens from other worlds through the Empire), & will certainly not allow anyone to leave if caught stealing sacred artifacts. Any reconnaissance of these temples would require a covert ops team to first get in, & examine the structures, then later return to obtain any technology or records which would prove useful, & get out each temple city without being stopped for questioning. The SGC will refuse to authorize any such violation of the native trust - let alone risk a diplomatic incident which could lead to another war with the Empire - though other entities (Human & otherwise) may be more willing.

Each temple has three (3) layers of security & increasingly restricted access, depending on one's identity. The public, external layer - where rituals, such as Prostration, are conducted daily - is open to all, & includes prayers mats, tents for shelter, & bells which call the faithful to worship. The secondary level exist for those conducted in to the faith, & contains prayers rooms (completed with hard-bound copies of the Book of Origin), residential cells, & the like. It is accessible most of the time with permission of the local monks, who usually handle the public's requests for assistance with weather, healing, farming, & 'justice' here as well. An acolyte must escort any member of the public into these areas; temples guards will do so only if the monks do not the petitioner personally. The only exception is musicians, who are allowed into the second level in order to earn donations on the first day of every week. They can often be found here, performing quiet tunes to ease the monks minds.

The third & final area of the temples - where only the monks, Priors & Doci may entered (select members of the Alterran High Council may only enter with pre-arranged permission escorted by a Prior or in dire cases of emergency) - contain the devices, information & materials of interest to the SGC.

[Akren Garkos]

This Temple is the first place any off-world traveler sees. The Stargate is located here, & visitors are greeted by the temple monks upon arrival. SG team members may be surprised at how readily the monks accept off-world visitors; while they have never seen beings as technologically advanced as the Tau'ri (other than the limited use of high technology used by the Alterran military), the monks are quite accustomed to commings & goings through the Stargate more than most worlds throughout the Empire. They will warn travelers about local customs, offer them food & other refreshments, & log them in as official visitors. The main city of Canseva beyond the temple gates is a cosmopolitan metropolis, with markets, open cafes, lesser temples to the Orii, shops, three universities (medical, theological & mathematics/engineering) & poets, musicians, dancers & artists in residence often performing in the streets. In addition to the Stargate, this temple also houses a fairly advanced observatory, where academics from the universities study the movements of the stars & the information about them supposed left by the Orii.

Maps of the walls of the inner sanctum show addresses for gates within the Alterran Galaxy not known to the SGC or any of it's allies (some even speculate by the Alterran High Council itself!). None save the monks, Priors, or the Doci himself may enter these chambers, which are accessed through a system of shifting walls & electro-mechanical locks. However, details exist on the keys which the monks use to enter the chamber, & may be available in the archives of the mathematics university of Joaquen. A duplicate key would allow access to the Temple without necessitating an override. Luckily, such subterfuge may not be necessary. . .at least not here. Since the temple monks usually deal directly with off-worlders, they are more open-minded than monks of other temples, & may be willing to trade information about unexplored or unknown planets.

[Akren Garkos]

Located some 450 miles south of Canaseva on a coastal peninsula, the Temple of Storms reputedly contains a weather-altering device similar to that previously discovered by the SGC on the planet Madrona in the Milkyway Galaxy. Gallica's coast is occasionally subject to sudden & debilitating storms, & further inland, the Sheen'ild Desert often experiences deadly sandstorms.

The SGC suspects that this device is used to mitigate the effects of the local extreme weather. Rumors of an underwater tunnel entrance into the center of the temple suggest that a well-equipped diving team could enter without being detected, & determine if such a device is housed there. According to local sources, the ruins of a previous temple lie at the base of the cliffs below the temple complex. However, local help would be required to navigate the currents & rocks along the bay; sailors unfamiliar with the area can easily wreck their ships along the coastline.

If a weather-controlling device does exist, removing it from it's position might have a disastrous effect on the local weather (much as it did on Madrona)/ However, while the SGC would never condone such an activity, studying the device in-situ might be more sensible & considerate of the local population. There is also a possibility that the specifications for the device are engraved on the floor of the inner sanctum. Photos & notes regarding these specs would be almost as valuable to the SGC as obtaining a device.

[Akren Garkos]

Located approximately 250 miles west from the Temple of Storms, on the Jaroon plains near the borders of the Rif Mountains, the Temple of the Earth is devoted to all things that grow. It may have botanical gene-splicing technology, as well as advanced medicines, & local farmers have displayed impressive seed-stock as advanced as anything the SGC has yet encountered. Sacred scrolls which explain their use & cultivation are stored inside the inner sanctum. Usually, they remain the sole purveyance of the monks; but during the fall festival, winners of the desert-wide camel races are alllowed into the innermost temple & treated to a feast. A canny member of their company may be able to slip into the library & view the sacred scrolls.

Again, diplomacy may make further covert operaitons uncessary. The temple monks are open to trade for their seed stock, as well as medicine - indeed, other cities on other planets, such as Celestis, trade with the Temple on the regular basis - but do not usually allow outsiders to examine the scrolls. However, they would probably be willing to make an exception for the SGC in exchange for more medical knowledge, new equipment, & personel. Alien equipment, in particular, makes a strong impression, in spite of it's possible heretical nature (such equipment is frowned upon in the Origin faith & access to advanced technologies are strictly controlled & overseen by the Alterran High Council); & an SG team may be disptached to another planet for the sole purpose of uncovering some artifact which could be used to barter for the Temple's secrets.

Transport to the Temple of the Earth usually takes place by caravan; it's easier to get lost in the desert without local guides, & bandits prowl the canyons & outcroppings in search of victims. Sandstoms are common during the summer months, so most locals only take the trip in mid-fall or early spring, in order to avoid the weather. Three oases lie between the Temple of Storms & the Temple of the Earth along the safest route. Bandits habitually seize one or more of them & demand 'tolls' for their use (unless the caravan in question is accompanied by a Prior, in which case they keep a safe distance!); they usually usually relinquish control before the ruling families unite against them, but it remains a problem nonetheless. The monks have continually called for more stringent measures against such bandits, but with the planet's current political situation, that seems unlikely. For now, pilgrim & monk alike must be content with protecting themselves as best they can.

[Akren Garkos]

The Temple of Fire in an enigmatic institution, but the reputation of it's monks is unequivocally worrying. Stories abound of spontaneous deaths & assassinations conducted from a great distance, all attributed to the monks of this temple. Some may be simple superstition, but considering the technology which lies in the other three temples, it seems unlikely.

Evidently, if an individual is denied justice by the local magistrates, he may bring an article of his enemy's clothing, a piece of hair, of the like to the monks & lay charges against him or her. If the monks agree that punishment is justified, they will then offer certain prayers to the Orii, & access a device inside the inner sanctum. The accused invariably suffers dire machinations (attributed to monks of the Temple of Fire & as divine retribution meted out to the 'guilty' by the Orii), the planet's chaotic political situation has gone from bad to worse as bickering families 'consult' the monks quite often. Should they wish, the monks could take open control of the planet. Only their founding mandates, stressing guidance & impartiality over active rule - combined with the fundamental teachings of Origin - prevent them from doing so. Access to the Temple of Fire can determine if any artificial satellites orbit Gallica, enabling a hi-tech weapons platform to accomplish such effects.

If such a weapon truly does exist, the SGC may wish to remove it form the control of the Temple monks, since by all reports they have a tendency to abuse it. It is also believed that specifications for this weapon & it's 'operating manual' are engraved on the inner walls of the sanctum. If the weapon could be obtained, destroying it may make civil disagreements on Gallica easier to resolve. Like the Temple of the Earth, the Temple of Fire allows members of the public into the inner sanctum once a year for a feats in the name of the Orii & the honor & glory of Origin.

This Temple is approximately one week's journey into the mountains, at an altitude of approximately 15,000 feet above the plains; as mentioned earlier, it has become a popular pilgrimage site for many in the ruling caste. The easiest way to reach the Temple involves following the main river from the Temple of the Earth. It usually requires native guides or joining a caravan; thieves are just as active here as they are in the sands of the desert. The small city surrounding the temple - Ul-van - is more heavily guarded than the other cities, & it is difficult to leave without drawing attention from the city guards.

[Akren Garkos]

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