Editing Aleria

|system=[[Elduros system]]<ref name="trade">''[[Halo: Nightfall]]'', "[[Halo: Nightfall: ONI: Trade Barriers|ONI: Trade Barriers]]"</ref><ref name="universe">[[Halo Waypoint]]: [https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/locations/aleria ''Aleria'']</ref>

|atmosphere=[[Oxygen|O₂]], [[Wikipedia:Nitrogen|N₂]]<ref name="travelers">''Halo: Nightfall'', "[[Halo: Nightfall: Indebted Travelers|Indebted Travelers]]"</ref>

'''Aleria''', also known as '''Elduros II''',<ref name="Halo Channel">''[[Halo Channel]]'': Encyclopedia</ref> is the second and outermost [[planet]] in the [[Elduros system]] and an impoverished [[Outer Colony|Outer]] [[Human colonies|Colony]] on the frontier of [[human]] space. The planet was once a thriving Outer Colony famed for its rich ore deposits and robust economy, but Aleria's increasingly inhospitable climate and governmental mismanagement eventually led to an economic collapse.{{Ref/Reuse|universe}}<ref>Halo Waypoint: [https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/canon-fodder-second-to-none ''Canon Fodder - Second to None'']</ref>

Now cut off from the [[Unified Earth Government]], Aleria is a dry and desolate Third World colony ruled by [[courier guild]]s, groups of desperate and dangerous smugglers and [[Piracy|pirates]].{{Ref/Reuse|universe}}<ref name="cooperative">''Halo: Nightfall'', "[[Halo: Nightfall: Cooperative Protocol|Cooperative Protocol]]"</ref>

Aleria was once a fertile planet{{Ref/Reuse|travelers}} well-regarded for its rich mineral deposits, but failed [[terraforming]] efforts and the instability of [[Elduros]] has caused a [[Devil's Kiss|planetwide drought]] and rain has not fallen in over a century.{{Ref/Reuse|trade}}{{Ref/Reuse|universe}} Now a dry and desolate world,{{Ref/Reuse|universe}} Aleria's soil has since become barren and infertile,{{Ref/Reuse|travelers}} as the planet's rivers and lakes rapidly receded after decades without rainfall.{{Ref/Reuse|trade}} Much of the planet's surface had turned to desert,{{Ref/Reuse|travelers}} and Aleria had become a notoriously dusty world.{{Ref/Reuse|sas13}}<ref name="sas7">''Halo: Smoke and Shadow'', Chapter 7</ref>

Beginning in [[2453]],{{Ref/Reuse|trade}} a drought that has lasted for over a century devastated Aleria. The drought caused many of the planet's residents to become smugglers to allow them to earn money and to counter food shortages.<ref>''Halo: Nightfall'', Chapter 3</ref> The drought, referred to as "The [[Devil's Kiss]]", led to Alerian government officials attempting to secure support from the Unified Earth Government and the [[Inner Colonies]], but to no avail. Some Alerians faulted the local government for the lack of support, with [[Hicham Upadte]] claiming that the Alerian government was attempting to keep the power to themselves without asking the UEG for support. However, only a minority of Alerians agreed with Upadte, while most blamed the Unified Earth Government for the planet's troubles as they believed the Inner Colonies were only concerned with their own welfare.{{Ref/Reuse|trade}}

By [[2553]], Aleria's population had been cut to half of that of the previous century.{{Ref/Reuse|universe}} Many Alerians soon turned to crime and "[[courier guild]]s" flourished across the colony, reaping the benefits of smuggling and [[piracy]]. The widespread depression on Aleria became so saturated that local authorities became complicit in crimes.{{Ref/Reuse|trade}} The newly established courier guilds fought to oppose the might of Mols'Desias, justifying their violence on behalf of the Alerian population.<ref name="sas13">''[[Halo: Smoke and Shadow]]'', Chapter 13</ref> The crisis on Aleria continued to escalate when [[Tarek Boesis]], head of Mols'Desias and grandson of Esil Boesis, was murdered by smugglers of the [[Blackdust]] courier guild. Already devastated by the transition of much of its labor force to crime, Mols'Desias soon collapsed in [[2554]],{{Ref/Reuse|trade}} causing many Alerians to face substantial debt and unemployment.<ref name="arris">Halo Waypoint: [https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/characters/arris ''Arris Le'']</ref><ref name="wari">Halo Waypoint: [https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/characters/haisal ''Haisal Wari'']</ref> The remnants of Mols'Desias became the foundation for organized smuggling activities,{{Ref/Reuse|trade}} as the courier guilds grew and split, and turn their attention to consolidating power.{{Ref/Reuse|sas13}} The various courier guilds maintain a large fleet of [[slipspace]]-capable transports and provide Alerians with a source of income and allow them to feed their families, although they are considered to be nothing more than mere bandits and smugglers by the [[United Nations Space Command]]. Aleria remains beyond the Unified Earth Government's control and assistance.{{Ref/Reuse|universe}}

In [[2558#August|August 2558]], [[Niko]] learned from [[Bex]] that there was a small resistance movement on Aleria that planned to reclaim the dying planet from the guilds. By this time, scientists had predicted that Aleria wouldn't last another twenty years without drastic interference and that the planet's star's unstable phase would last another century. However, the star would then stabilize and remain stable for at least another three centuries. Bex and the resistance intended to terraform Aleria themselves which would only be a stopgap measure as it wouldn't fix the unstable star, but it would buy Aleria enough time for the star to stabilize. Bex blackmailed Niko into getting her [[slipspace capacitor]]s as the the same extreme power banks were used in [[terraforming]] technology. Niko agreed to help Bex and her people in saving Aleria, realizing that on [[Triniel]] was enough salvage to help fund saving a hundred Alerias from destruction.{{Ref/Novel|PoL|Chapter=31}}

Local government on Aleria is notoriously mismanaged and ineffectual, which had led to near-continuous declarations of state emergencies by the colonial administrators.{{Ref/Reuse|universe}} Various officials of the Alerian government proved quite ineffective in diplomacy with the Unified Earth Government and were unable to secure support, with some Alerians believing their government only sought to consolidate power and influence for themselves.{{Ref/Reuse|trade}} While Aleria still maintains some form of local government,<ref name="sas1">''Halo: Smoke and Shadow'', Chapter 1</ref> Aleria is now dominated by various [[courier guild]]s, regarded as petty smugglers and bandits.{{Ref/Reuse|universe}} The courier guilds were initially well-received for rising against the might of [[Mols'Desias]], their smuggling bringing commerce and food to Aleria. However, over time, these guilds grew and split, and soon focused on consolidating power over supporting the Alerian community.{{Ref/Reuse|sas7}}

Following the initial colonization of Aleria, the colony was home to a nascent agricultural industry.{{Ref/Reuse|universe}} However, as climate change from the instability of [[Elduros system|Elduros]] resulted in widespread droughts across Aleria, agricultural sectors failed and most food stuffs were imported to Aleria.{{Ref/Reuse|trade}}{{Ref/Reuse|universe}} However, economic prospects on Aleria quickly shifted to mining the rich ore deposits on the planet. With an expansion of new employment opportunities and economic activity, Aleria had a robust economy fueled by a mining industry.{{Ref/Reuse|universe}}

Historically, mining concerns on Aleria consisted of over a dozen fragmented private mining groups, until they were unified by the mining mogul [[Esil Boesis]], who founded [[Mols'Desias]]. The mining union was established to keep Alerian influence in the hands of the workforce, while also ensuring stability and bargaining power for its constituents to provide long-term security for the industry.{{Ref/Reuse|trade}} Aleria soon became a powerhouse of trade between the [[Inner Colonies]] and [[Outer Colonies]], providing raw materials to fuel the expansion of the [[Unified Earth Government]], in exchange for food stuffs, electronics, and spacecraft.{{Ref/Reuse|universe}} However, the Alerian economy soon suffered from the [[Devil's Kiss|planetary drought]] and trade tariffs. Aleria's job economy was dominated by the mining industry, having seen a dramatic shift away from nearly every agriculturally based profession.{{Ref/Reuse|trade}} With the start of the [[Human-Covenant War]], trade halted at Aleria's borders as the Unified Earth Government diverted resources elsewhere. Food imports to Aleria effectively ceased and the planet's economy collapsed,{{Ref/Reuse|universe}} leading to widespread depression across Aleria.{{Ref/Reuse|trade}}

As the crisis on Aleria grew, the colony became a hot spot for illegal activity and seventy percent of wages were left undeclared.{{Ref/Reuse|trade}} With almost no competition in the declining Alerian economy, many Alerians felt obligated to turn to more illicit activities to make ends meet,{{Ref/Reuse|trade}} giving rise to the [[courier guild]]s of Aleria who bring commerce and money to the towns and markets of Aleria.{{Ref/Reuse|sas13}} Though mining continues on the colony,{{Ref/Reuse|universe}} the industry is often considered to be a dead-end profession{{Ref/Reuse|arris}} while the courier guilds provide Alerians a source of income through smuggling and [[piracy]].{{Ref/Reuse|universe}} A day of smuggling is equivalent to a month of mining on Aleria, leading to Alerians leaving the local labor force for criminal activity or off-world mining, smuggling contraband back into Alerian ports and trafficking straight to the highest bidder. This lead to the eventual collapse of Mols'Desias, which was blamed for monopolizing the failing Alerian job market and forcing workers to work impossible hours for very little pay.{{Ref/Reuse|trade}} With the courier guilds now dominating Aleria's economy, honest trade is rare on the colony.<ref>''[[Halo: Renegades]]'', Chapter 15</ref>

While Aleria remains unconnected to any trade route of the Unified Earth Government, the [[Via Casilina Trade Route]] is a notable trade route that was arisen, connecting Aleria to independent worlds in the [[Orso system|Orso]], [[Cordoba system|Cordoba]], [[Shaps system|Shaps]], and [[Sverdlovsk system|Sverdlovsk systems]].<ref name="itf">"[[Into the Fire]]" — ''[[Halo: Fractures]]'', p. 239 (Google Play edition)</ref>

The people of Aleria, called Alerians, are largely miners and smugglers, forced into off-world mining and [[piracy]] by the collapse of the Alerian economy.{{Ref/Reuse|universe}}{{Ref/Reuse|arris}}{{Ref/Reuse|wari}} Many Alerians are anti-centralists opposed to the [[Unified Earth Government]]'s rule and were quick to blame the UEG for only supporting the [[Inner Colonies]], often at the expense of worlds like Aleria.{{Ref/Reuse|trade}} [[Alerian dice]] is a popular dice game played among Alerians.<ref name="sas12">''Halo: Smoke and Shadow'', Chapter 12</ref>

Considered a "Third World" colony,{{Ref/Reuse|cooperative}} the Alerian standard of living has severely dropped and the vast majority of the population live in extreme poverty. By [[2553]], the population had been half of what it was the previous century and the median lifespan on Aleria was only 45 years of age.{{Ref/Reuse|universe}} The population of Aleria is centered around markets and towns,{{Ref/Reuse|sas13}} with the wealthy owning most land,{{Ref/Reuse|travelers}} while the poor live in mining slums, bazaars, or tent cities.{{Ref/Reuse|sas1}}{{Ref/Reuse|sas7}} Tired of colonial unrest and hostile living conditions, Aleria's youth often turned to petty crime and violence, though their actions were often dominated by the [[courier guild]]s.{{Ref/Reuse|sas7}} As most Alerians are unable to afford modern spacecraft, they often use outdated vessels such as {{Class|Bactrian|freighter}}s for interplanetary transport.{{Ref/Reuse|cooperative}}<ref>Halo Waypoint: [https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/vehicles/colonial-tug ''Colonial Tug'']</ref> Pregnancy among the youth of Aleria is quite common, and many of these young parents fall ill or disappear in the colony's dusty mines. The quality of education was also quite low on Aleria, particularly among the poor.{{Ref/Reuse|sas7}}