Gilgamesh

Gilgamesh, affectionately known among UNSC personnel as Gil or Gilly, is a highly-populated Inner Colony, renowned among human space for its status as a tax haven and pleasure world.

Government and politics
Although Gilgamesh is represented in the United Earth Government via a loose coalition government, in practice this has very little power and rampant corruption prevents them from acting. Instead, the closest it has to a unified government is in the hands of a corporate council which represents the businesses that run the various enterprises on the colony. In fact, planet-wide regulations are not usually enforced, with each city acting like an independent polity, complete with their own laws enforced by private security firms. Official law-enforcement are unable to counter the whims of such organizations, and are generally seen as powerless and weak. Outside of these, in the large slums and tent-cities established by refugees, criminal elements are free to reign unchecked. Only those that attempt to challenge the status quo, or are felt to bring unwanted attention from the UEG or some higher authority, are usually opposed. Gilgamesh's crime problem has worsened following the glassing of the nearby Crystal, once notorious for its rampant organized crime. The surviving crime syndicates from Crystal made their new home on Gilgamesh, stretching the planet's already strained law enforcement system to its limit.

The lack of power in their government means that the population are rarely given the social support they need, and this has turned them towards the various banks and financial establishments that dot the planet. This means that outside of the privileged tycoons, almost everyone who lives on Gilgamesh live in debt to some extent, and this has allowed many of them to be exploited in questionable professions.

Industry
Gilgamesh hosts a massive tourism industry, which is primarily drawn to the colony because of its wide variety of shopping centers, casinos, and large brothels. Items and services considered illegal elsewhere are readily traded here, and special economic exceptions dating back to the 2390s ensures that many of these can be bought at far lower prices than anywhere else in Human Space. This has also given rise to unregulated research into cybernetics and biology, particularly in the orbital habitats where escape in the face of UNSC authorities (and the possible termination of experiments gone awry) is relatively easy, although the surface also boasts a few facilities. These research labs are rented out to external actors willing to pay handsomely for absolute privacy and as few questions asked as possible.

Some state-sanctioned industry is present on Gilgamesh, which has been established by the UNSC in an effort to keep unemployment numbers to a minimum, as well as replace depleting numbers of manufacturing centers lost. These most often supply weapons and material for use offworld, although several investing corporations have also used it as a cover for weapons research and development.

Geography
The most iconic imagery of Gilgamesh are the architecture of the cities, which are heavily influenced by Mesopotamian design cues. These are characterized by tall skyscrapers that are flanked by ziggurat-style casinos and hotels. Originating in a single city as part of a marketing strategy, this scheme has spread to become dominant the look of the planet's major population centers, although a small number of towns stand out by basing their structures on other ancient cultures. The overall feeling is to inspire a sense of opulence among tourists.

Gilgamesh, which orbits around the common center of mass of the p Eridani binary star, is a largely arid, desertified world whose habitable zones and ecosystems in are centered around the poles. In large swathes around the equator, temperatures are extreme. However, a few forms of native life have adapted to survive in these regions, and the cavern systems house thriving ecosystems, which have been studied relatively little since the colony's founding. At just over half that of Earth standard, Gilgamesh's gravity is relatively low, which also makes the planet comfortable for most visitors. A substantial axial tilt gives the planet a peculiar seasonal cycle. Gilgamesh's habitable zones are home to several floodplains and low-lying valleys where water collects at certain times of the year, so these cities built in these regions are designed to withstand the phenomenon. This has caused issues with establishing underground infrastructure, as the soil and rock is so water-clogged that these are prone to collapsing if not properly reinforced. In addition, the first refugee camps built during the Human-Covenant War also had to be abandoned periodically, as the wet and dry seasons made them impossible to inhabit without being submersed for months at a time.