(Disclaimer: I had an idea and kinda ran with it)
I forget the name of it, but it would look like the planet were Inara is at in Serenity with all the Companions. Its like Naboo without the gungans or any other Starwars stuff.
I'd call it R'lyeh or Eden, or something original that I didn't think of in 3 seconds, and it would be a resort planet with Epicurean and Hedonist values, and artists and pleasure seekers across the galaxy would flock to it for inspiration or satisfaction.
There would be a very strictly enforced set of limited rules that with no exception cannot be broken. Mainly things like no killing, theft, or maiming. The government would consist of a federation of local guildmasters and other business owners with the king or queen essentially being the c.e.o. of the planet as commerce is the main concern.
It would be very much like the planet Guera and its outspace guild from "This Alien Shore" by C.S. Friedman. Which you all should go read if you haven't
Very few people are allowed to become full residents of the planet that aren't born there, and having children at all is only allowed on a very carefully considered and limited basis.
This means that there would never be a problem with overcrowding, of their being too many people and not enough meaningless jobs for all of them to waste their lives toiling at so they can afford more useless crap and pass it on to their growing brood of offspring.
Everyone on the planet would eventually belong to an established guild that provides all the tourists with their entertainment. A companion's guild, a pyrotech guild, a metal workers guild, an acrobat guild, casino guild etc.
Because of this fact there would be a very limited number of schools on the planet that are each devoted to the knowledge required of your chosen guild, like we have Majors, only they will actually be good for something after you are done with them. Everyone's tuition would be paid by the ruling oligarchy and obviously obtained from all the tourists spending their money on our "product" as well as the exports that our various artists ship out.
If a graduate chooses to leave the planet and start a family elsewhere and deny the planet their talents they shall be expected to earn enough to pay back their tuition in full as well as a percentage of their earnings in proportion to the rest of their guild's share each year.
Failure to do so, i.e. getting your free education in highly marketable and proprietary guild secrets, and running off to make it big offworld results in a visit from the assassin's guild.
Obviously there would need to be large incentives to get people to join the hero guild to become doctors, firefighters, police etc. so the planet can maintain itself because everyone can't just join the circus so to speak.
Each guild would be competing with the others to produce the most jawdropping and innovative attractions and works of art. The universe would marvel at the beauty of our creations, the skill of our companions, and how our casino games are so much fun to play that they don't even mind losing.
There would be a set limit of how much you could win/lose/play per day, because we aren't out to bankrupt our returning customers. We don't need people on planet with no means of getting off, roaming around looking for action. Those that try to circumvent the guild run casinos and start their own private establishments will regret their entrepreneurial spirit.
Our artisans will be commissioned for works everywhere. They will be hunted and their secrets sought after by every rival, and so they will always be accompanied by guards and receive defense training and torture resistance training and only take jobs off world that cannot feasibly be created and shipped to the installation or otherwise preformed onworld.
The main downside being that we would rely almost entirely on importation for all of our raw materials. We may have architects and sculptors, but we don't have any quarries or mines for the stone and metal. Our chefs would need fresh ingredients so we would of course need extensive gardens and orchards, but we would import our livestock because we aren't going to ruin perfectly good land by letting a bunch of animals crap and trample all over it.
Or we could have a lot of seafood dishes like japan, problem solved.
Since our only real resource is our guild secrets and our products, I can't imagine that anyone would go to war with us just to get at our profits so we probably wouldn't have a dedicated military. It would be like going to war on Las Vegas for the casino's take. Or an art museum, or a brothel, circus etc. Disrupting that much trade, and then trying to control the guilds who will categorically refuse to work for anyone other than the recognized guild czar will get you nothing but the enmity of the rest of the universe that suddenly can't hire a good chef, a good companion, or one of the fine "recreational" products from the alchemists guild. People like their booze and drugs.
Ours would actually be good for you, because we care.
Besides when you are the entertainment capital of the universe, you would probably be more likely to try and bribe your way into becoming a resident, getting your kid enrolled in a guild (and try to learn its secrets) than trying to blow it up. Unless you are from a planet that hates fun, and seeks to stamp it out wherever it can.
Again you would be answering to the rest of the universe. Much like the Witch Queen in another C.S. Friedman series, we would enjoy the protection of more powerful allies because they NEED what only we can provide.
TLDR - PONIES and lasers PEW PEW PEW (not really)
