Solar System

Mercury
Mercury is the innermost and smallest planet of the Solar System. With it's surface temperature ranging between 100 and 700 Kelvin it is practically uninhabitable, but it also has a practically unexhaustable deposit several valuable minerals (most importantly iron), and more than enough solar energy to mine them and launch them into space. These days, most of the iron used in the Inner System comes from Mercurian mines.

Mercurians live in huge underground mining towns called deeptowns. Due to the intense solar activity (and the electronic malfunctions they cause) the level of automatization is low and the economy is decentralized. Each deeptown is an independent political entity called "crew", often waging resource wars on each other.

Mercurians despise human enhancement (often even neuronics), very loyal to their crew and prefer "a good death over a bad life." They are often percieved as savage barbarians by the rest of mankind, but also as respectable and fearsome warriors.

Venus
Venus, with it's high pressure carbon dioxide atmosphere, sulphur dioxide clouds and lava-strewn, unstable surface is the closest thing to hell mankind have ever discovered. 150 years ago a bold terraforming operation was launched by a conglomeration of three Terran corporations called Vespertina. However, unexpeced delays and difficulties have put Vespertina into heavy debts. The directorate decided to reduce the wages and living standards of the Venerean workers radically and eventually to force them into debt slavery, prohibiting them from leaving the planet. In 2279, an uprising called the Yellow Revolution have overthrown the corporate leaders and brought a new, independent government into power.

During the first decades of it's rule the new Venerean government faced many difficulties: failing infrastructure damaged by the revolution, attempts of Terran corporations to reclaim their property (including military operations, sabotage and economic embargos) and a high rate of emigration.