Scintilla
| Map | Basic Data | Planetary Image | |
|---|---|---|---|
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Name: | Scintilla | 
|
| Segmentum: | Segmentum Obscurus[1][3a][4a] | ||
| Sector: | Calixis Sector[1][2][3b][4a] | ||
| Subsector: | Golgenna Reach[2][4a] | ||
| System: | |||
| Population: | 25 billion[2][4b] | ||
| Affiliation: | Imperium[1] | ||
| Class: | Hive World[2][3b] Industrial World[4a] | ||
| Tithe Grade: | Exactus Extremis[4a][4b] | ||
Scintilla is the sector capital of the Calixis Sector.[1]
Contents
Overview
The world is governed by Calixis' Sector Governor, currently Marius Hax. It is a thriving Imperial hub that supports the largest planetary population in the territory. It is dominated by two vast hive cities, Hive Sibellus and Hive Tarsus which hold the majority of the planetary population. Despite the dominance of those two hives, the "offspring" communities of Ambulon and Gunmetal City contribute significantly to the planet's economy as well. Scintilla is a world where the powerful and wealthy compete with ruthless appetite. Magnificence is astonishing on Scintilla, from the wondrous fashions of the hive's nobility to the spectacle of the hives themselves. Landmarks like Lucid Palace and the Cathedral of Illumination, are famous throughout the Calixis Sector.[2] The three imposing towers of the Tricorn Palace of the Inquisition is one of the most prominent and overt seat of power of the Calixian Conclave in the sector.[3c] Rulers of the world meet in the so-called Lucid Palace. Scintilla, Sepheris Secundus, and Iocanthos form a triumvirate of worlds on which the fortunes of the Calixis Sector are founded.[3b]
It is also a world of corruption where members of noble houses are deluded by their wealth and status and the corruption and privilege runs deep in the culture of the high-born. Noble houses consider themselves (sometimes correctly) as above or outside Imperial law and can wield immense influence. Their attitude towards the lower-born is callous; it is not unknown for thrill-seeking degenerates from noble houses to prey upon lesser humans as a sport.[2]
On the other end of the social spectrum, the underhives are rife with mutants, outlaws and ultra-violent gangs, as well psychotic zealots from the Redemption Cult.[2]
The middle hives are trapped between aristo spires and rancid underhives and the hivers live the thankless life of unending toil, where ignorance is a virtue and death a reward for a lifetime of loyal, drone servitude, fulfilling the exorbitant tithes levied on Scintilla by the Administratum. It has been this way since the days of Angevin and some of Scintilla corruption is so deeply ingrained that it is invisible even to those who perpetrate it.[2]
Geography
Scintilla has three main continents: one surrounds the planet's southern polar cap and is mountainous (including a number of volcanoes), the second is an equatorial crescent covered in extensive deserts and jungle (featuring both Hive Tarsus and the extinct Hive Tenebra), and the final is a northern temperate landmass, home to Hive Sibellus, Ambulon and Gunmetal City. A heavily polluted ocean covers the rest of the planet's surface. This ocean does support lifeforms, but its fish stocks have been heavily depleted.[2]
The overall climate is temperate.[2]
Hives Sibellus and Tarsus
The two hives are Scintilla's most important features: immense, multi-levelled cities that house billions of citizens. The hives are largely independent, ruled by the councils drawn from the nobles of the spires. The majority of the inhabitants of the middle hives are the laboring class, without whom the planet's manufactories and trade houses would cease to function. Almost all middle hivers are owned or indentured to nobles from great sector-wide families or Scintilla's own lesser houses. The most neglected, polluted and crime-ridden areas of the hives are underhives, where life is cheap and brutal gangs fight for supremacy before inevitable violent death claims them. As long as the violence doesn't spill into middle hives, the authorities are happy to let the gangs kill each other in the cesspit of the underhive.[2][4b]
Scintilla's two great hives have always competed against each other for prestige and influence, but no rational observer could fail to acknowledge Hive Sibellus's dominance. It is larger than Hive Tarsus, referred to as "the Capital" or the "ruling hive" and is the seat of both political and administrative power and the centre of the planet's manufacturing might. Hive Tarsus is a dark, shadowy twin of the Hives Sibellus, referred by Sibellians as the "other place" and is a mercantile hive which controls all off-world trade and commerce. Neither hive could function without each other, a fact celebrated in Scintillan proverbs and myths. However neither great hive could openly admit the importance of "offspring" communities, Ambulon and Gunmetal City, both of which wield considerable influence.[2][4b]
Society
Military
The planet possesses a large Planetary Defence Force called the Army of the Scintillan Protectorate, which is based out of Hive Tarsus. This army is regarded as relatively high quality.[2]
In addition, Scintilla raises Imperial Guard Regiments known as the Scintillan Fusiliers. A large number of recruits are drawn from Scintilla, from both the PDF and the planet's large underhive population.[2]
Economy
The local coinage of Scintilla are denominations of Thrones known as Scints, Scolds and Scabs. In the depths of Gunmetal City, however, some communities are known to trade rounds of ammunition as alternative currency.[2]
In addition to the manpower the planet provides for the Astra Militarum, Scintilla is a major exporter of manufactured goods, including ship-drive components and weaponry.[2]
In terms of imports, Scintilla cannot produce enough food to support itself, requiring supplies brought in from multiple agri-worlds across the Calixis Sector.[2]
Religion
The Cult of the Redemption is active on several planets, but its spiritual home in the Calixis Sector is Scintilla.[2]
Satellites
Scintillia has two moons, called Sothus and Lachesis, the latter of which is home to an Inquisitorial fortress called the Bastion Serpentis.[2]
In addition to the planet's natural satellites, there is a set of orbital docks in geostationary orbit above Hive Tarsus.[2]
Other Planetary Data
- Designation: C I.O.666 [4a]
- Galactic Position: 88/23/CS/SW [2]
- Mean Surface Temperature: 22 °C [2][4a]
- Tropospheric Composition: Nitrogen 72%, Oxygen 25%, Argon 1%, Ozone 1%, Carbon Dioxide 0.5% [2]
- Orbital Distance: 2.49 AU [4a]
- Gravity: 1.12 G [4a]
Contact with Other Worlds
As the sector capital, Scintilla has a great deal of contact with other worlds in the Calixis Sector, as well as worlds in other sectors and segmentums. Stable warp routes link Scintilla to Baraspine, Iocanthus, Luggnum, Malfi, Orbel Quill, Sepheris Secundus, Settlement 228 and Tranch.[2]
Trivia
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- In the Galactic Map of the Black Crusade Core Rulebook, Scintilla is shown as being much further north than the Calixis Sector, on the northernmost border of Segmentum Obscurus.[3a] This is contradictory to other sources,[4a] possibly being a mistake or oversight.
See also
Sources
 |
- 1: Scourge the Heretic (Novel), Map of the Calixis Sector (before Prologue, pgs. 6-7)
- 2: Black Industries' Calixis Sector: Scintilla (saved archive page, dated 17 February 2008, last accessed 02 December 2024)
- 3: Black Crusade Core Rulebook:
- 4: Dark Heresy Core Rulebook:
