First visited in GSC 203 by an expedition led by Zoe Bonnard, Shoji (From 諸寺 in Japanese, meaning various temples) was a barren, airless world a little larger than Earth. It was named for its many sites of natural, if desolate beauty. Shoji also had many rich veins of valuable minerals, and the Planetary League decided to terraform and settle it.
Shoji lacked an active core, so an electromagnetic ring was constructed around the planet (an immense undertaking that required decades to complete), and atmospheric conditioners were set up. Various mining interests came for the resources, and tourism to see the planets various natural wonders formed the backbone of the colony's economy.
Years passed, and Shoji flourished, a complete biosphere was established, large cities sprang up, and many industries came to call Shoji home.
In GSC 836, an event happened that would forever shatter the tranquility of Shoji. A group of bio-prospectors, laden with samples from Mefitis, on their way to a Cosmid laboratory accidentally contaminated the planet with a variety of diseases from Mefitis due to poor containment practices.
The Mefitis Plague ravaged the population, turning most of the inhabitants into mindless, shambling zombies. Various attempts were made to contain the contagion, including such drastic measures as nuclear and chemical weapons. All attempts failed, and the once thriving world was left in ruin. The planet was placed under strict quarantine, and its name was changed to 所持, meaning possession, but which is also written and pronounced Shoji in English. The Planetary League maintained a naval blockade of Shoji to enforce the quarantine, until all ships were recalled late in the Great Reckoning.
Shoji became a chaos world early in Era-2, and the Galactic Republic destroyed the planet after the War of Galactic Unification.
