A City State is a single town or city that has grown up around a single settler pod. In most cases, the growth of the area was essentially trouble-free, with little to no hardships experienced after landing.
The two extremes of a city state's ruling class are a Council of Notables or Imperial rule. Most city-states fall between these two extremes.
A Council of Notables is elected by a group of like-minded people, usually the populace. This form of society is as close to a modern-day democracy as exists in this world but is limited to the city-state itself. Other examples are also possible. The Nation of Ursa's council consists of the heads of the city state's significant artisan and merchant guilds.
An Imperial form of government is usually a hereditary form, with a single person having sole responsibility for all decision-making within a city-state. An Imperium may be either tyrannical or benign. The original city-state of Goranth was a benevolent hereditary-based system accepting input from the council but with the current king exercising sole decision-making authority. Contrast this with the origins of the Kingdom of the Sun, the city-state of The Sun Ascending, a benevolent non-hereditary system where the ruling council elected the head of state for the duration of their life.
Next