Braxis

Braxis, an ice planet, was a Terran Dominion stronghold by the time the United Earth Directorate's Expeditionary Force reached the Koprulu Sector. Much earlier, it had been a Protoss colony, by the name of Khyrador. It was abandoned when Protoss strife escalated and mysterious storms struck.

A harsh, unforgiving world, it's mostly covered in a thick layer of permafrost that allows little in the way of plant life and winter storms constantly sweep across its plains. It is presumed that it is the closest Koprulu Sector object to Earth, since the UED fleet first came here.

Braxis is the homeworld of the Ursadon.

History
"Long ago, this world was a Protoss colony called Khyrador. When the strife between our tribes escalated, this planet and the Uraj Crystal were abandoned."

- Zeratul tells Kerrigan about Braxis

Khyrador was one of the first colony worlds established by the Protoss after the Aeon of Strife. The Protoss carried the Uraj crystal with them and installed it in a place of honor on Braxis. During the conflict with the Rogue Tribes, mysterious psionic storms broke out on Aiur and colonies such as Khyrador. The Protoss hastily fled the strife, abandoning the Uraj and other treasured items. The world was more recently settled by the Terran Dominion.

During the early part of the Brood War, the Protoss, seeking the Uraj crystal, track it to their former colony world of Khyrador. Their Matriarch, Raszagal, had ordered the Protoss not to let anything stop them from recovering the crystal, and had also ordered them to accept the assistance of Infested Kerrigan. Kerrigan landed with a number of Protoss forces on the planet, destroying a Dominion base and recovering the crystal.

Before the Protoss could leave, however, they were surprised by the appearance of a group of unknown Terrans, who introduce themselves as the United Earth Directorate fleet. They were blockading Braxis with a system of Missile Turrets on the space platforms over Braxis. Praetor Artanis scouted ahead and found a way through the blockade by destroying the UED's power generators.

The United Earth Directorate landed forces on the world, although they run into difficulty when they realize their landing site doesn't have any Vespene gas. Their intentions to capture the capital city of Boralis were stalled due to lack of Vespene, along with the extreme fortifications, until they received assistance and guidance from Samir Duran and his Confederate Resistance Forces.

Boralis fell under UED control when Duran destroyed its Command Center. The UED used the information in the Dominion security datalink to help plan their next moves. The UED then proceeded to Tarsonis where they uncovered the Psi Disrupter, a powerful anti-Zerg weapon. UED Vice Admiral Alexei Stukov disobeyed orders to destroy the Disrupter, hiding it on Braxis.

During the UED occupation, Schezar's Scavengers took shelter on the planet, including Alan Schezar himself and powerful anti-Protoss technology, along with a number of Zerg enslaved by the Dark Templar terrorist, Ulrezaj.

The UED Admiral, Gerard DuGalle, eventually became aware of what he considered treason committed by Alexei Stukov and ordered his advisor, Samir Duran, to "terminate Stukov's command". The mission turns into a disaster, as Duran was in fact working against the UED. Duran assassinated Stukov and vanished, leaving behind large numbers of Zerg and having set the Psi Disrupter's power core to overload. The UED forces were able to slay the Zerg and prevent the meltdown.

The Psi Disrupter severely disrupted Infested Kerrigan's control over her Zerg forces; striking an alliance with Arcturus Mengsk, Fenix, and Jim Raynor, she persuaded them to assist her in destroying the Disrupter. The attack was successful, enabling Kerrigan to regain full control over her forces

After the conclusion of the Brood War, Alexei Stukov made a reappearance; he had been resurrected and infested by a Zerg Cerebrate, Kaloth. Stukov had Terran and Zerg forces, who appeared to have taken over the entire world. A combined operation between the Protoss and Raynor's Raiders, led by the elderly Dragoon Taldarin and Jim Raynor, was mounted to use nanotech technology to reverse the infestation process on Stukov. The operation was a success, but it had a high cost; not only did most of the troops sent to Braxis perish, but the Protoss purified Braxis afterwards, destroying all life on its surface. Since then, the planet has frozen back over.

Locations

 * Boralis
 * Glacier Bay
 * Mountain Stronghold
 * Ursadon Flats

Trivia
A university team discovered a giant two-mile wide "Blizzard" logo on Braxis, which was clearly created by sentient beings. Dr. Fredrica Wallis, a physical scientist, believes the report is evidence that the universe "is merely a game simulation being played upon the personal computer of a higher life form." She was lambasted by her university for supporting such an obviously "insane" theory.

The figures are widely believed to be a bizzare alien archaeological site, possibly holding cosmic significance, and a military officer who claimed that it was, in fact, just a game logo was locked up by his commanding officer as "a certified loon".