Hoth: Blood and Ice

[Dapper Dog]

Imperial Fashion and Culture

Imperial life is good, the standard of living for citizens is high. They live under what the Republic would call an oppressive regime but things are orderly and the wealth flows into the center of the Empire from the conquered worlds. The average citizen has gainful employment whether in the military or in the many State run businesses supporting the greater good. Young parents dream that their children will join Sith and become part of the privileged class within the Empire. At the street level most citizens consider Sith to be the saviors of the Empire against the hated Jedi that drove them into the far reaches of Space. Jedi are often described as bogey men that will murder their families and prop up the corrupt Republic.

When it comes to the Arts the most popular pieces are those works that can be traced back to Korriban or to the ancient Sith. There does seem to be a counterculture movement that eschews the past and creates artwork, typically statues and holographic art of scenes from the War focusing on the misery of the innocent. Many early artists used this to protest the War but it has had the opposite effect as well to do families seek out even more gruesome works to display at dinners in an ironic manner.

It should not be surprised that Imperial style for the average citizen is very conservative and tends to more military or functional styles. The wealthy seek to emulate the Sith with daring necklines for men and women alike. No well to do Imperial would be without their show slave, a slave purchased for their looks and grace. These slaves tend to be pampered and trained with a variety of talents to entertain. Cathar were all the rage last season but this season it seems to be outer rim humans that garner the most praise.

For a night out Imperial citizens enjoy operas and Rodian operas tend to be the bleeding edge of culture. Many Imperials go for the irony of seeing such wretched non-humans perform for their enjoyment. All mass entertainment is state controlled, the idea of freedom of the press is laughable and silly to an Imperial. They trust the Emperor and the Sith to guide them, to think otherwise would be seditious.

Lower Classes

Within the Empire there is the Sith, Nobility, and then everyone else lumped into the Lower Class. Military are technically above the Lower Class, but in practice this really only applies to commissioned officers, more so than all soldiers. Despite being considered lower class the standard of living is pretty high for citizens living in the core of the Empire, with military service compensatory for most unless they prove unfit for service in which case they are assigned another job to serve the state.

Common Imperial life is regimented and revolves around service to the Empire either directly or indirect support through their work or service. Homelessness is illegal; instead such individuals are taken in by the state and given work and are essentially slaves to the state for a time until a term of service is finished. One can also take a contract with the state, perhaps to learn a trade. Those that refuse to work, are put to death, those that cannot due to disability are exempt.

Recreational activities tend to revolve around local fare, cantinas and public spaces are popular fare. Media is state controlled and is focused on news and entertainment that glorifies the Empire and the Sith, the most popular show being the military themed soap opera in it’s fifty-eighth season, Emperor’s Hammer. The show has a large cast and loyal following. Popular with younger folks, they eschew mass media and prefer to socialize in the Holonet in the virtual network, Korriban.

It started as an Imperial social project and was shut down when it failed to meet expectations. Slicers got the code and setup rogue servers of their own and have been running it ever since. Korriban is virtual playground where people can chat with virtual avatars, trade virtual and real currency, and generally be anonymous. It has been updated and customized over the last five years of its existence. In Korriban people create outlandish avatars that they customize by earning tokens in game by completing challenges or spending real currency. There is also Korriban-Dark which is considered for the hardcore, you die, and you lose everything.

Nobility

Noble houses can trace their lineage back top the families that fled the Jedi into exile, making them old sprawling lines with major and minor nobility. The most influential houses tend to be a combination of old, wealthy, and producing Sith… though not always in equal measure. One can be wealthy and not considered nobility, and not every Sith is a noble. Nobility is a class of privilege and tradition, where blood relations matter and Honor and Glory are tangible concepts worth dying for. Imperial Nobility is ruthless and lacks the gentility of say Alderannian culture. It is dark and bloody, always looking to edge out enemies and gather more power for the family.

While it is common for the rabble to marry for love, the nobility almost never does, it is always for power, influence, and preserving bloodlines. Noble unions are planned years in advance, and contractual in nature. Children are extensions of that power and reach, and a union that produces no children is a poor union indeed. Couples can adopt but it that is done often quietly, another secret hidden behind the walls of their noble palaces. Same sex couples are discouraged, not out of shame but more so that producing heirs is important to any house. This is doubly so for a line that has produced Sith.

The wealthy serve in the military as well but almost always as officers, and if given a government or state posting they are given positions of authority, and nepotism is rampant, and expected. While the common folk attend state funded educations, nobility tend to home school with an army of tutors and experts and then send their children to prestigious learning institutions for upper education. For lesser houses, it is not uncommon for them to attend to private learning schools in lieu of personal tutors.

Entertainment for the wealthy tends to revolve around the social scene of salons, parties, and symposiums; live events to be seen and network. It is customary for major events to have themes that guests should adhere to. Such as wearing thematic costumes, or being attended to by thematic slaves, or even displaying a new artist one is patron to. These are extravagant if sedate affairs of idle conversation and dangerous intrigue. The only firm rule is that one should never wear or display the same thematic choices twice, to do so is to show a lack of creativity and wealth.

Sith tend to emulate the nobility if they choose to indulge the social scene at all. Despite their power many Sith are ill-prepared for the internecine conflicts of high society which can lead to violence that often favors the Sith… though more than one Sith has over estimated their power and fallen victim to the deadly intrigues of the noble houses.

Religion

The new regime has pushed mysticism and adoration of the Dark Side into the public sphere building what could account to be a religion of the Dark Side with the Empress and her immediate circle as divinely inspired by the Nameless Dark, the Infinite Void, and various other names. A priest hood of devoted Sith shepherd the masses in their dark cathedrals, and blood sacrifice though uncommon takes place to honor their devotion to the Dark Side.

The Empress is not worshipped as a Goddess, only the Dark Side itself and she is the most purified vessel of its expression but still it’s servant. She is the bridge between this universe and the Endless Void of the Dark Side. The religion is growing with speed as it is state sponsored and most common folks pay service to it, the nobility tend to fall in line, those that show the most devotion tend to be favored over others. The Sith are of many minds on it but most tend to follow the dictums of the dark faith as it does give them a privileged place in this new society.