Cathay

Cathay is the furthest system from human space, and sits far away towards the rim of the galaxy. It is said that from Cathay, you can see beyond, into the universe, and this view has granted them great vision. True or not, this idea would please most Cathayans.

The people of Cathay were hardest hit by the Syrneth. They had looked after their lands, which made them rich in resources to strip mine. The Cathayans were also a proud and civilised people who were more hurt by having both traits beaten out of them by their oppressors.

So when they escaped Théah they went the furthest of all, almost to the outer rim of the galaxy. They then used sorcery and technology to create barriers to their space, so they might never be hurt again. Many in the rest of Théan space wonder what the inscuutable Cathayans are doing out there on the edge of the galaxy.

Cathayans are the most backward looking of all the societies of humans. They try to live their lives as simply as the Cathayans of old did. To this end they miniturise and conceal their technology to make it almost invisible. In this way their technology seems to be like magic, as it's devices and power sources are rarly aparent to the eye. So they are no less advanced that the Théans, and do not hesitate to use technology when they have a need for it.

The Cathayan System

The Cathay system is protected by a vast energy field. It is composed of a mixture of naturally occuring spacial gasses and matter, mixed together by a powerful fusion of sorcery and technology. The barrier is thought impenitrable by all but Cathayan ships. Every ship who has attempted to cross uninvited into Cathayan space has been lost. Cathayan space is in fact several small star systems. They are ruled from the largest and most wealthy system of Han'hua. Their space is almost as large as Thean space, and is frought with its own internal politics and rivalries. This is especially true when speaking of the Tiak'Har pirate fleets. These raiders attack shipping and return with their booty to secret lairs in a vast asteroid field, there they live their lives in a splendour and hedonism few would imagine possible in such a place. The Han'hua would dearly love to destroy them all, but cannot navigate the asteroid fields the Tiak'Har fly through with such ease.

Cathayan Ships
The spacecraft of Cathay are works of art in themselves. Never gaudy like the Castillian ships or arragoant like the Montaigne they have mastered an elegance and simplicity that is hard to match. Each ship is individual, and great care and time is taken with its design and manufacture.

Ship design - Son'a from 'Star Trek - Insurrection'