Coruscant: Senate Building

MONOPOLY STATS

Rent value (default): 50 Credits
Rent value (1 settlement): 200 Credits
Rent value (2 settlements): 600 Credits
Rent value (3 settlements): 1400 Credits
Rent value (4 settlements): 1700 Credits
Rent value (with City): 2000 Credits
Mortgage value: 200 Credits
Purchase value: 400 Credits
Cost of Settlement/City: 200 Credits

The Senate Building, sometimes known as the Senate Rotunda, Convocation Center, or Senate Dome, was the building on Coruscant which served as the seat of the Galactic Senate at the end of the Old Republic. The designers claimed that any weapon capable of destroying the Chamber would also have to be powerful enough to destroy the entire planet, making the facility invulnerable against sabotage or orbital bombardment. It was also considered the New Republic's most famous symbol of freedom.

FEATURES

A massive building boasting a diameter of more than two kilometers and was several hundred meters tall, with a shield-shaped dome mounted on a narrower drum-shaped body, the Senate Rotunda was built some time after 4,000 BBY, possibly due to the older Senate building being damaged during the Great Sith War.

Located in the heart of the Senate District, the building was situated at the end of a large, flat concourse known as the Avenue of the Core Founders. This area was lined with tall, thin humanoid statues. At the end of the concourse was one of the ceremonial entrances, the Great Door. It was adorned with the Great Seal of the Republic and the sigils of the Thousand Worlds, which were members of the Senate. Directly inside the Great Door was the Atrium of the Senate. This was a grand entry hall, that was lined with statues of the Republic's greatest heroes and politicans. When choosing a color scheme for the walls, ancient designers chose lavender—it was the only shade that had not been historically associated with mourning, anger, or war in the entire Galaxy.
Inside each Senatorial delegation was given large amounts of office banks that could be customized to more closely resemble the native environment of the specific Senator's home planet. The Senate's communications were handled by the Senate Communications Center. The building itself was protected by an automated defense perimeter.

GRAND CONVOCATION CHAMBER

The majority of the building was dedicated to the Grand Convocation Chamber, a large round room several hundreds meters tall, filled with floating repulsorpods for each senator, and dominated in the center by a podium used by the Supreme Chancellor, the Vice Chair and the Senior Administrative Aide to coordinate the sessions. There were 1,024 repulsorpods for located in the chamber, one for each Senator. When a Senator wanted to speak the their pod would detach from the wall and move towards the center of the chamber so that all the Senators could see it.

Underneath the Grand Convocation Chamber was the Chancellor's holding office, which was a preparations area used by the Chancellor to prepare to address the Senate and entertain guests. When not in use, the Supreme Chancellor's Podium would rest in this space. When he wished to address the Senate when it was in session, the podium, mounted on a large hydraulic pillar, would rise up through retractable ceiling of the office and into the Senate Chambers. The Podium contained controls that were used to coordinate the movement of the Senate's repulsorpods. The Chamber was ringed with the Grand Concourse, where the Senate Guards stood guard at every repulsorpod entrance.
In the center, a thirty-meter-tall podium would rise up from the Chancellor's holding office for the Senate sessions. On this podium, the Supreme Chancellor, his Staff Aide, and the Vice Chair stood on the upper level, and the Senate scribe, journal clerk, parliamentarian, and Sergeant at Arms were seated on the lower level. Many major events occurred in this room throughout the history of the Galactic Republic and the Galactic Empire.
In the time of the New Republic Senate, the senior members of the Senate were seated at the lower levels, with the newer and less powerful Senators seated in the upper tiers.

HISTORY

In 32 BBY, a session for the Senate was called to deal with the Invasion of Naboo. As a result of Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum's lack of power in resolving it, he was given a Vote of No Confidence. Senator Palpatine was voted the new Chancellor, and began serving soon after the crisis was ended.

Ten standard years later, Palpatine was voted emergency powers by the Senate to deal with the ongoing threat of the Separatist Crisis, which began the Clone Wars in 22 BBY.

After three years of battles and the Chancellor's own kidnapping, in 19 BBY, Palpatine announced to the Senate further security for his people by creating the Galactic Empire.

Mooments after the announcement of Order 66, the Grand Convocation Chamber became the location of a fight between Palpatine and Jedi Grand Master Yoda. In the duel, Palpatine threw several Senator pods towards Yoda, demolishing much of the once pristine chamber. It was quickly rebuilt, and continued to be used until the Senate was disbanded shortly before the Battle of Yavin.
The original Senate building was partially destroyed during the Rebel Alliance's retaking of the planet; it was later rebuilt afterwards. Then, during the Thrawn crisis, it was almost completely destroyed. Later, it would be severely damaged by Kueller's bombs and would undergo a major renovation. By the time of Borsk Fey'lya's election as Chief of State, the building itself was rebuilt and it housed thousands of chairs and benches around the walls on tiers instead of having the repulsor Senate pods. The upper levels were randomly pitted with large chambers to seat other senators or representatives temporarily visiting the planet. It was said that they may have replaced some of the rooms with repulsor lift pods, but by the time of the Yuuzhan Vong's taking of the planet, that plan had been long abandoned.