New Promise

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Geography

New Promise is a temperate world with two main moons, Wen ( short for Wenchang Wang: 文昌王 ) and Caishen  (財神).  The planet itself is dominated by two major east-west oriented continents ideal for farming with most of the land consisting of gently rolling plains, punctuated by numerous river deltas.

  The Capitol of the Planetary League settlement was Annan City (named for Kofi Annan, an early leader of the United Nations).  The major cities in Planetary League territory included Annan City, Alexandria, New Clinton, Franklin City, New Denver, Union Delta, Port Sushi, Key Center, and New Alvarez.

Annan City was the first city in human-controlled space to achieve a population of over one billion.  Port Sushi was named for the abundant, high-quality seafood found nearby, off the coast.

History

First reached by human explorers in GSC 130, New Promise is a very Earth-like world.  It was the first world discovered by the Planetary League that was immediately suitable to agriculture. New Promise was discovered at a time when the human population was exploding, and agricultural lands were straining at their limits to feed everyone.  Upon discovery, various scientific surveys and studies were rapidly undertaken before starting full-scale agriculture.  Where possible, care was taken to preserve local ecosystems, but the nutritional needs of the core-worlds dominated the development of the planet.

New Promise was settled before any official contact had been made with intelligent alien species.  First contact was made as a result of the First Convergence War, a conflict between the settlers (backed by the Planetary League) and a group greys from the Convergence who had set up an outpost nearby.  The Convergence was trying to dissuade human settlement because of the radio noise that comes along with human settlements, and interferes with their hive-minds.

At the height of the war, during the Battle of Key Center, the Planetary League battleship Le Guin fired her massive dispersion gun while still technically below the horizon at the Convergence mother-ship, instantly carving 100 Meter Canyon (named for the exact width of the dispersion beam, which, not coincidentally, is also the width of the canyon) in the flank of the Burton Range, south-west of Key Center.

The 100 Meter Canyon

The Edenites set up a colony and nature preserve early on, called Silvernote Hollow.  The capitol was Potterton, named after Beatrix Potter.

The rogue planet Dogur-dann was discovered in the vicinity of the New Promise system in GSC 138, the home-world of the Dogarri that had been flung out of its original system.  This led to the passage of the Alien Assistance Act of GSC 139.

Over time, New Promise developed many other industries beyond agriculture, and large cities grew there.  New Promise was the location of the first city in human-controlled space to house over one billion people, Alexandria.

New Promise was the birthplace of Zoe Bonnard, one of the most famous explorers of the Planetary League.

The economy relied too heavily on automation and robotic labor, leading in time to several robotic uprisings inspired, and encouraged by the Cult of Troniac.

New Promise remained an important agricultural world throughout Eras 1,2,and3. 

Notable Native Life-forms

Fire-grass is a plant that bursts into flames when it comes into contact with uric acid.

Glogvine is a small plant with edible seed-pods, found in highland areas.

Pixielamp is a short grass with bioluminescent flowers.

The Squidbeast is a large predator. The biggest populations of which live on the arid steppes between Franklin City, Annan City, and Alexandria.

Reactor Springs

On the planet New Albuquerque, in the mountains west of Colony City, there is a place known as Reactor Springs.  Reactor Springs is a system of hot springs heated by natural reactors that formed in the ground.  Some claim that the radioactive waters provide health benefits, but not those with a working knowledge of medicine. 

When it was first discovered by the colonists, a town grew up around the site, and it was used as a water source, since New Albuquerque is a planet dominated by dry climates.  The springs were also used as a source of geothermal energy.  When the true nature of the springs was discovered, the town became a ghost town, with a few people remaining behind to operate the geothermal plant.  A few squatters and the occasional recluse still make Reactor Springs their home, but use the water at their own peril.

Later, in Era-2, a small deposit of antimatter crystals was discovered near Reactor Springs, and a couple small mining operations opened up to extract them.

Mefitis

Description

Mefitis, named for the Roman goddess of poisonous gasses from the Earth, is a rather Earth-like planet.  It has two main moons, and rotates at about 1/3 the speed of the Earth, with about twice the gravity.  Mefitis also has an unusual biosphere.

The life-forms of Mefitis are roughly as complex as terrestrial plants and animals, with the apex species being similar to terrestrial lizards.  The thing that makes them unique is the fact that the organic molecules they are based on are primarily prions, (differently folded versions of common organic molecules that can infect cells with the normal versions of that molecule).  Perhaps because of this, the plants and animals of Mefitis generally have vaguely unsettling appearances.  The organic pigments that color them are slightly different from those on most planets, their movements are strange, and their forms seem slightly wrong.  

History

When explorers from the Planetary League first reached Mefitis, they quickly discovered the nature of the biosphere, and placed the whole planet under strict quarantine.  Unfortunately, ambitious bio-prospectors from Cosmid had arrived first, and several deadly infections had been accidentally set loose upon the galaxy, including the dreaded Mefitis Plague, (also known as the zombie virus).  A tightly controlled and quarantined research station was set up, mainly focused on curing those same diseases.

During Era-2, after the Holy Empire of Man took over, Mefitis became a prime source for its horrific biological weapons.

Dionysus

History

Dionysus orbits a G-class star (like the Sun), in a solar system with about a dozen planets.  

When it was first visited by explorers from the Planetary League, ( in GSC 155) Dionysus was home to a large number of hunter/gatherers and a handful of city-states at a bronze-age level of development.  The local people look essentially human, except for some distinct ridges on their foreheads, and are known as Dionysians.  

An important feature of the planet is that many of the fruit trees have evolved in such a way that the fruit has a high alcohol content.  The fruit comes in a wide variety of flavors and forms, and is a highly sought-after commodity. After the Planetary League arrived, the alcoholic fruit became Dionysus's chief export. Within about a century, many of the local cultures had created an ad-hoc government that moved immediately to join the Planetary League. The ad-hoc government and the Planetary League were careful to protect the locals who had relatively little exposure to the outside world, but in the later years of era-1, outside business interests were able to start exploiting the planet and its people.

Dionysus was conquered by the Holy Empire of Man after the official end of the Great Reckoning, before the War of the Empires.  The local garrison was small, and the battle was one-sided.  Dionysian fruit graced the tables of the Emperor and the imperial court throughout Era-2 until Dionysus joined the Galactic Republic, after a short, relatively peaceful revolution during the War of Galactic Unification.

Notable native life-forms

Del-Brikki is a tree that bears alcoholic fruit, and is one of Dionysus’ chief exports.

Dionysians are the native inhabitants of Dionysus.

Gabriel

History

Gabriel is a planet deep in the heart of the Veil of Fear, a nebula famous for making human visitors feel uneasy due to its slowly oscillating magnetic fields.  Being a little too far from its star, extensive terraforming was needed when it was colonized by the Planetary League late in Era-1. 

Even after terraforming, the dominant biomes were arctic, taiga, and steppes.  Despite this, it was still strategically located, and populated enough to become a regional capitol, and supported the largest garrison in the sector.  

At the end of Era-1, a young and aggressive general, Potus Clarke, was assigned to lead the garrison.  Clarke had bigger ambitions, however, and when news got out that the Planetary League had made contact with the long rumored and dreaded Empire of 1,000,000 Suns, he seized the opportunity.  Assisted by the Church of God, (an extremist religious group, combining elements of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam), and a number of mega-corporations, Clarke founded the Holy Empire of Man.  

Gabriel was the capitol of the Holy Empire of Man throughout Era-2, even though the Emperor did maintain a palace on Earth after the end of the Great Reckoning.  

At the end of the war of Galactic Unification, after the Emperor's defeat, the remaining loyalists to the Empire rallied on Gabriel for a final stand.  There was a brief siege, and an even briefer battle as the Galactic Republic took over the planet.

In Era-3, Gabriel was largely turned over to parkland, historical memorials, and museums with some agriculture and industry. 

Bonnard's World

History

Discovered by Zoe Bonnard early in Era-1, Bonnard's World orbits Bonnard, an F-class star, in its habitable zone.  

Bonnard's World had a simple ecosystem consisting of single-celled organisms based solely on RNA.  After discovery, the Planetary League set up a research station.  

After considerable study, it was determined that the planet would be ideally suited for a terraforming project to recreate the conditions of the Triassic Period as part of an initiative to restore extinct species.

A local economy grew up around the Triassic nature preserve, and several areas were set aside as hunting grounds where people could hunt dinosaurs for a fee.

During the Great Reckoning, as the Planetary League was crumbling, Bonnard's World joined the Midori Republic.  

For a period in the run up to the War of the Empires, the Holy Empire of Man did capture Bonnard's World, but the Midori Republic took it back during the War of the Gods.

During the War of Galactic Unification, Bonnard's World joined the Galactic Republic by popular vote.

Fitzgerald's World

Description

Fitzgerald's World is a very Earth-like planet, orbiting a G-class Star.  

The biosphere of Fitzgerald’s World is one that sustains complex plant and animal life, but lacks intelligent species.  This lack of a native intelligence may stem from the fact that Fitzgerald’s World doesn’t have any land-based predators larger than an insect.  Not having predators means that the populations of land-based herbivores regularly explode, and then collapse, as they eat all the vegetation in one area, and then quickly die off due to starvation.  The herbivores also lack a lot of the specific adaptations that are typically used to escape or fend off predators.  They tend to be large and slow-moving.  Many are brightly colored, in order to attract mates.  Since there are no notable predators, adjacent ecological niches tend to be hyper-developed.  Scavengers are common and highly aggressive, and there are a wide variety of deadly pathogens as well.  Fortunately, most of the pathogens don’t generally infect non-native species very easily.  One exception to this is Fitzgerald’s Lung Rot, a debilitating, and occasionally deadly infection.   

Notable Life-forms

A notable herbivorous species is the Fitzgerald’s Landstrider, a towering creature that stands as tall as a ten-story building, and eats trees whole when fully grown.  The backs of these creatures are occasionally fitted with enormous howdahs by visiting intelligent life-forms, and used as living transportation for entire tour groups.

The Juffalope is a grazing animal noted for its unusual coloration, and small head.  During Era-2, it was raised for its hide and meat.

The Spud Bug is a native species, of a type most similar to terrestrial insects.  It is approximately the size, shape and color of a large potato, hence the name.  The Spud Bug is a scavenger that lives off the bodily waste, and remains of the larger herbivores.  Spud bugs have two large, yet vestigial black wings on their backs, and breathe through a series of visible openings in their sides.   The most disconcerting aspect of these bugs is their instinct to follow any large, moving thing, including humans.  The bugs are harmless scavengers, but they often sneak up on people, who tend to react violently.  Unfortunately, these bugs have stowed away on various ships and are seen as a nuisance throughout much of the galaxy.  They are sometimes taken as pets by Cielioids (who have a biologically-driven affection for insects), and by teenage boys (who like to gross people out).

Economy

The main industries of Fitzgerald’s world (after colonization by the Planetary League during Era-1) are agriculture and ecotourism.  Ranchers, especially, thrive here because of the lack of predators, and several of the local species have been domesticated.

During the Great Reckoning, Fitzgerald's World was conquered by the Holy Empire of Man.

During the War of Galactic Unification, Fitzgerald's World joined the Galactic Republic by popular vote.

The Moons of Jupiter

History

Early in Era-1, when the Solar System was being settled, simple life was discovered on Jupiter's moon, Europa.  Beneath the surface ice there was a tidally warmed sea, and a research station was set up to study it.  

Next the Planetary League decided to terraform Ganymede and Callisto using precisely planned asteroid and comet impacts.  Through careful tending, these moons became habitable, and acted as a forward base for further exploration.  Io, being highly geologically active, was deemed too unstable for terraforming, but a few small outposts and mining operations did spring up there.  Due to the hazards of mining on Io, the Tardigrades were founded, as a search and rescue operation.

Ganymede became the capitol of the Jovian system, and Callisto became the commercial center.  Both Ganymede and Callisto had significant agriculture to support themselves and the other moons.  Most industrial operations were carried out in space colonies, or on the smaller moons. 

Jupiter's smaller moons were mined for raw materials, and a group of thriving colonies emerged.   

Over time, Jupiter's moons attracted members of the Steampunk community, and the area became known as the Clockwork Empire.  Although the Jovian colonies remained a part of the Planetary League, they developed a strong local culture that resembled a more fantastical version of Victorian England.

During the Great Reckoning, the Jovian system was captured by the Holy Empire of Man.  The resistance was significant, but the HEM had vastly superior numbers.  During Era-2, the moons of Jupiter became a manufacturing center for the HEM.

During the War of the Gods, the Jovian moons rose up and joined with the forces of Troniac, due to the largely robotic workforce that worked there.  

In Era-3, the moons of Jupiter became part of the Galactic Republic by popular vote.