The primary setting of Starlight's Eternity Saga
The Triangulum Galaxy is a vast spiral galaxy inhabited by numerous intelligent species, civilizations, and political powers. Home to trillions of individuals across countless inhabited worlds, Triangulum is a place of extraordinary technological achievement, cultural diversity, and seemingly endless conflict.
Despite centuries of expansion, exploration, and scientific advancement, much of the galaxy remains unexplored. Entire civilizations exist beyond the influence of established governments, while forgotten worlds and ancient structures hold remnants of a history few living inhabitants understand.
Triangulum is not governed by a single authority. Instead, its territories are divided among competing interstellar governments, independent civilizations, commercial enterprises, and nomadic populations. Political tensions, ideological differences, and territorial disputes have shaped much of the galaxy's modern history.
History of Human Civilization
Humanity is among the most widespread intelligent species inhabiting the Triangulum Galaxy.
The origins of human civilization have largely been lost to time. Although scattered historical accounts and obscure legends speak of humanity arriving from another galaxy, such stories are generally regarded as little more than ancient mythology.
For the overwhelming majority of humanity, Triangulum is the only home their species has ever known.
Over countless generations, humanity spread between star systems, establishing colonies, developing interstellar trade networks, and forming increasingly complex political institutions.
Expansion eventually gave way to division. Conflicting ideologies, disputes over territorial sovereignty, and competing ambitions fractured human civilization into separate governing powers.
Today, the two most influential human governments are the Human Federation of Systems and the Coalition of the Red Giant.
Major Political Powers
Human Federation of Systems (HFS)
One of the galaxy's dominant human governments, the Human Federation of Systems administers a vast network of inhabited planets, stations, and colonies.
Its territories support extensive commercial activity, technological development, and corporate expansion. Powerful companies hold considerable influence throughout Federation space, frequently undertaking industrial operations, planetary surveys, and colonization initiatives.
Coalition of the Red Giant (CRG)
The Coalition of the Red Giant is the second major human political power and a longstanding rival of the Federation.
Characterized by strict governance and an authoritarian legal system, the Coalition maintains control over its territories through centralized political and military authority. Its influence extends across numerous inhabited systems, industrial colonies, and resource-rich worlds.
Independent Civilizations and Territories
Not every inhabited system falls under the authority of these two governments.
Independent settlements, sovereign planetary governments, alien civilizations, and smaller political entities occupy numerous regions throughout Triangulum. Their relationships with the major powers vary considerably, ranging from formal alliances and trade agreements to outright hostility.
The Neutral Zone
Separating the territories of the Human Federation of Systems and the Coalition of the Red Giant is an extensive region commonly referred to as the Neutral Zone.
Established through treaties following conflict between the two governments, the Neutral Zone functions as a political buffer intended to discourage further hostilities.
Despite its intended purpose, the region has developed a reputation for instability.
Abandoned military installations, disputed colonies, unregulated commercial operations, and independent settlements occupy its numerous star systems. With neither major government exercising complete authority over the territory, enforcement of interstellar law is inconsistent.
This environment has created opportunities for smugglers, mercenaries, scavengers, independent merchants, and organizations seeking to operate beyond conventional governmental oversight.
The Neutral Zone has consequently become one of the galaxy's most unpredictable regions, where opportunity and danger frequently exist side by side.
Intelligent Species
Humanity shares the Triangulum Galaxy with numerous intelligent alien species, each possessing its own history, culture, and relationship with the wider galactic community.
Among the best-known are:
Dwemyri: An intelligent species best described as bat-like humanoids divided among numerous clans with distinct cultural traditions and philosophies. Their societies range from scientifically oriented communities to militant religious factions, all shaped around the ideology of building from reused materials rather than construction from scratch.
Groal: A humanoid species recognizable by their antlers. Following devastating conflicts with the Suttack, Groal are a dispossessed people and live beyond their ancestral territories, maintaining cultural identities through families, communities, and interstellar commerce.
Suttack: An isolationist civilization with a complicated history of religious conflict. With appearances that resemble humanoids with feline heads, their society places considerable emphasis on artistic expression and material luxury, while maintaining strict boundaries against unwanted outside influence.
Interactions between species have shaped the development of trade, technology, diplomacy, and warfare throughout Triangulum.
Although peaceful cooperation between civilizations is possible, centuries of cultural hostility and historical grievances continue to influence relations between many of its inhabitants.
Commerce and Interstellar Travel
Interstellar commerce serves as one of the principal forces connecting the galaxy's civilizations.
Advanced propulsion systems allow vessels to travel between distant star systems, supporting the movement of passengers, resources, manufactured goods, and information.
Commercial organizations range from independent merchants operating aboard modest transport vessels to enormous interstellar corporations capable of funding planetary colonization projects.
Among the galaxy's more distinctive populations are the Vultures, nomadic human communities whose livelihoods frequently revolve around salvage, scavenging, and trade.
Many Vultures inhabit immense mobile colony ships, allowing their civilizations to travel between regions without relying upon permanent planetary settlements.
Their independence and practical expertise have made them valuable participants in interstellar commerce, particularly in territories where conventional supply networks are unreliable.
Exploration and the Unknown
Despite its established civilizations, much of the Triangulum Galaxy remains beyond the practical reach of its major political powers.
Uncharted systems, abandoned colonies, dangerous stellar environments, and isolated worlds present significant obstacles to exploration.
Ancient ruins and forgotten technologies occasionally challenge accepted understandings of the galaxy's history. Other discoveries have inspired legends that persist across generations, their origins obscured by superstition and incomplete historical records.
For scientists, explorers, merchants, and scavengers alike, these unexplored regions represent both extraordinary opportunity and considerable danger.
Even after generations of discovery, the galaxy remains a place where the unknown can prove far more dangerous than the familiar.