Planet Athens
Athens was one of the centers of Independence before and during the war. It was well defended and when the Alliance Fleet came to attack it early in the Unification War, the Independence forces scored one of their biggest victories against their foe.
Operation Thermopylae was an effort to draw the largest Alliance force possible into a bottleneck by fighting on one of the many narrow archipelagos on the planet. The Independence Forces positioned the 300 Division at the site of what appeared to be a vast fleet. They leaked intel that the landing site was a staging ground for a massive fleet launch. From orbit the the intel appeared correct. The Alliance positioned their fleet to cut off any escape and began a massive landing.
A single division of Independence soldiers guarded the "vast fleet". The "fleet" was in fact a diversion, a collection of fake ships, junk, and other decoys. As soon as the first landing forces appeared, the valiant 300 did their best to look like a bigger force. Tactically it was hopeless. They were spread out over a large area and the Alliance Landing forces met with little resistance.
It was then that the bulk of the Independence Fleet attacked as well as a massive launch of anti-ship missiles from other sites. The Alliance Fleet was devastated, and much of it fled leaving the troops without support on the island. The Independents captured several thousand seasoned Alliances Marines. Those forces were held until the end of the war, and this battle was a rallying cry for Independents across the 'Verse. Athens was spared much fighting later in the war, the Alliance subjected it to orbital bombing but that was it.
As a result, Athens is a still a large planet with considerable commerce, mature industries and agriculture. The capital of Athens, Acropolis was modeled on the ancient city of Athens on Earth that Was, and possesses a thriving Agora or open air market.
Athens is famous for its polyglot of languages. Is is one of the few planets in the 'Verse where English and Chinese are not necessarily spoken everywhere, but a hundred other languages might be. As such it is home to the Historical Institute of Linguistics a massive university centered around the preservation of the languages of Earth that Was.
- Rabble Rousers - Browncoat Bar near the Acropolis Spaceport.(As seen in Episode 502: Reacquisitions.)
- Summer 2522 - The planet has begun stockpiling food and medicine in anticipation of an Alliance blockade. The people of Athens, still remember the dark days of the War and seem better prepared than most to handle this.
