The Slave Lords

The Slave Lords are a multi-species guild of interplanetary slavers. They operate countless slave markets across hundreds of worlds. They boast a powerful fleet of warships which are used to raid worlds and enslave their populations. Little matters to the Slave Lords outside of coin. Any and all are potential slaves. Dragons, stoneborne, krakens, demons - the Slave Lords would slap a titan in chains if it didn't mean bringing the Eternal Enclave down on their heads.

Overview
The Slave Lords are led by the seven greatest Slave Princes, which are determined by who operates the most profitable markets. Together they sit on a council known as the Unchained Court. The Court convenes bi-monthly to lay out future plans of expansion, and to manage the overall enterprise of slave trade. At these meetings they also handle matters of war, diplomacy, trade agreement, and also settle any disputes between Princes.

The Slave Lords homeworld of Undercity was once a lush and verdant world filled with complex flora and fauna. However instability of the planet's core, brought on by an abandoned titanic experiment, resulted in the near utter destruction of the planet. The planet cracked open and the majority of life on the world perished. However a few remained, located in the jagged floating remains of the planet's crust.

The largest chunk became known only as Undercity, and became the headquarters for the Slave Lords. They eventually used their rapidly growing wealth to purchase starvessels, and thrust forward out into the universe in search of new slaves.

Over the centuries many Slave Princes have come and gone. The current ruling Slave Princes aren't even members of the original species. Some weren't even humanoid. Despite being a slavering organization, the Slaver Lords are egalitarian in whom they employ. What precisely determines whether or not a race is allowed to join the Slave Lords, allowed to purchase their services, and which ones are enslaved, is based on a variety of factors, and the mood of the Slave Prince dealing with the race's representatives.

Rebellion
As the Slave Lords grew in strength, they expanded their operations across 24 different star systems. Their markets were flowing with coin and slaves, and dozens of factions, civilizations, and cities all used their services. As the demand for more slaves grew, so too did the Slave Lords armies. Soon they were operating veritable armadas of captured or bought ships. Their ragtag fleets plied wildspace in search of ever greener pastures to enslave.

Soon, over a hundred systems were counted among the Slave Worlds. And as their territory grew, so too did the seditious elements. Eventually a rebellion broke out centering around the world of Yvara. Slave rebellions erupted across the northern continent, destroying several major slave markets. Hundreds of slavers were killed, thousands of enforcers met their bloody end. Soon word spread to other worlds causing open revolt against the once unassailable Slave Lords.

As rebellion spread, the independent groups became more and more organized. Several factions were born out of the ashes of these enslaved worlds.

Zealots of Lamentation
The Zealots of Lamentation are a holy order of clerics primarily made up of Yvethi. They declared a holy war against the Slave Lords and their ilk, vowing to not stop until every last slaver is dead. They have since grown to encompass several other liberated races, all in reverence of their deity Bahamar. Their latest raid against the Slave Lords resulted in the capture of several starvessels, which as allowed the Zealots to greatly expand their operations.

Arbiters of Justice
This knightly order wages a guerrilla campaign against the Slave Lords, preferring to utilize shock & awe tactics against their foes. They charge in atop powerful six-legged beasts, performing lightning raids against the slavers and retreating before they can organize. When they aren't attacking slavers, the Arbiters assist enslaved villages with minor tasks such as farming, tending to the sick, and in some cases even acting as a police force in recently liberated areas.

Netan Syndicate
The Netan Syndicate is one of three organized crime families that has risen up in the vacuum left when the Slave Lords abandoned Haronhar. They are a drug running organization, specializing in a particularly potent hallucinogen known as stardust. It comes from a simple root-like plant which can grow in seemingly any environment. It is highly addictive and the Syndicate has used it to secure a powerbase among several planets.

Darin'har Family
The Darin'har Family is the second organized criminal syndicate to form in the wake of the Slaver Lord's withdraw from the world of Haronhar. The Family specializes in arms manufacturing, and operates several dozen black markets in which illegal weapons and armor flow freely. Darin'har likes to boast that many of the independent rebellions would not have survived without their efforts. That many of the weapons the rebels use were produced and sold to them by the Family. At a loss too!

Swornswords
The Swornswords are the third crime family to have risen up after the Slaver Lords abandoned the world of Haronhar. The Swornswords acted as mercenaries, hired killers, and even a private army at one point in their life or another. Swornswords are renowned for their skill with the blade, capable of matching virtually any foe in combat. It's even said that some of the best Swornswords have dueled demons and won, though whether this is simply a story told around campfires is unknown.