System: Marshall

Marshall has been likened to Terra at an earlier in Terra's development. The diversity of plant and animal life is much smaller on Marshall than on humanity's homeworld, with reptiles the most advanced species of fauna. Nevertheless, the planetary ecosystem is broadly compatible with human needs, making the world a prime candidate for colonization. An unprecedented six Clans crowded onto the world; the Steel Vipers and Goliath Scorpions control almost half of Marshall between them, and the Star Adders control another fifth. The other three Clans are shoehorned into the remaining land. This dense and diverse population makes Marshall the focus of many inter-Clan feuds and disputes, with Trials commonplace.

In the early days of the colony, these clashes were extremely bloody, as demonstrated by one incident in 2844. An assault by Clan Mongoose on the Star Adder enclave turned into a massacre when the Adder civilians took up arms to defend their homes. The Mongoose commander ordered his troops to slaughter the civilians for this affront, provoking massive retaliation from the Adder commanders. In a brutal campaign, the Adders killed every Mongoose warrior involved in the atrocity, and claimed the Mongoose colony on Tokasha as reparation. They then ordered Tokasha's population transported to Marshall to repopulate the Adder enclave. Since then, Marshall's inhabitants have developed a pragmatic approach to Trials. Several large areas are designated as common live-fire ranges, allowing battles to be fought without endangering local industry or agriculture.

Marshall has six continents, a seemingly ideal number for the occupants. However, the uneven distribution of arable land and the loss of large swathes of two continents under polar ice caps forces the often antagonistic inhabitants into close proximity. Though the Star Adders cannot claim the largest enclave, they are in the most defensible situation, isolated by the Waushaura Mountains and free to exploit the massive Poren Basin and the fertile Morten Plains nearby.

A moon of the outermost world in the Marshall system, the gas giant Xian, has an atmosphere and scrub flora. Named Diamondstar, Jade Falcon scientists have spent considerable effort studying the native life on this proto-world since wresting it from Steel Viper control in 3042, though the moon's mineral wealth is of more interest to the Clan's leaders.

There are no inhabited systems within thirty light-years of this planet.