About Arcadia
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Et in Arcadia ego takes place in the star system Vega, which has only been terraformed by Sol humans within the last two centuries. Vega was being developed as a strategic trade location between Sol humans and peoples from other parts of the galaxy. However, eight years ago Empress Sin put up a tachyon web around Vega, preventing all communication and travel in and out of the system. The system contains about 1 billion people, and consists of the bright star Vega, 9 planets, dozens of moons and space colonies, and a vast asteroid belt.
Vega Overview The planets, moons, and major colonies, in order of distance from the Vegan star: Hippolyta Moon: Eurydice Hippolyta was destined to be the center of government and society in Vega, as the Earth was the center of Sol for many millennia. However, a colossal accident occurred while the planet was being terraformed, rendering the atmosphere of the planet toxic. Hippolyta looks like a moonstone, its atmosphere a milky iridescent color. It is impossible to see the surface of Hippolyta from space. Eurydice While Sin does not rule from Eurydice, it is still home to most of Vega's central government offices and federal services. Eurydice is covered in urban centers built around federal buildings, and all of the businesses, personnel, and goods required to support government dealings are crowded around in clusters. Around the edges of the Eurydice cities are the ghettos, abandoned shipyards, and other low-value areas. Arcadia Station When Hippolyta's terraforming was halted, the management and governance of Vega was moved to Arcadia Station, the large space station in the orbit of Hippolyta. Under the rule of Sin, Arcadia Station still serves as the seat of the government, as well as the fortress of Sin. Penthesilea Moons: Melanippe, Marpesia, Molpadia Penthesilea is the backwoods of the system, with its only distinction being top notch psychics and hick jokes. It is a land of jungles which are slowly giving away to deserts as the heat becomes more extreme. Psyche Psyche is a tropical planet with dazzling cities and colorful, dynamic people. While Psyche is the center of popular entertainment and fashion, it is steeped in a powerfully hedonistic culture and cut-throat business dealings. Atalanta A failed terraforming project, Atalanta is as cold as the hearts of its people are warm. The rich and famous holiday at Zethes Mountain Resort, the intelligent and industrious work at Hypatia Research Station, and the ill-fortuned and criminal are incarcerated at Calydon Penitentiary Complex. Heracles Moons: Iolaus, Hebe, Megara, Omphale, Deianira Known as the Cornucopia of Vega, Heracles is notable both for its reputation as an agricultural center, supported by an honest, hard-working population, and for its extensive, largely unexplored jungle ecosystem. It is also a major staging ground for the Vegan military forces. The Cyanean Belt Planetoids: TBA Colliqually known as The Gades or the Clashing Rocks, the Cyanean belt is an asteroid belt consisting of beautiful blue rocks, though there is plenty of other debris within it - ruined spacecraft, giant mining rocks, lost comets. There are some dwarf planets and mega-asteroids within the belt which could theoretically be made to host human life, but travelling within the Cyanean Belt is so dangerous that it is not yet feasible. Ida Moons: Amaltheia, Attis The preeminent center for healthcare in the Vega system, Ida's cities are situated in dormant volcanic calderas to protect the largely intellectual population from the enormous duststorms that sweep the once-Mediterranean planet. Work camps abound for those who can't pay their medical bills, while the Resistance flourishes amongst the Folk. Icarus Moons: Pasiphae, Maeander, Cocalus, Daedalus, Minos, Samos, Girit, Talos, Ariadne, Theseus, Perdix, Delos, and Sicily Battered by terrifying windstorms, Icarus' cities are sheltered in canyons or subterranean caverns. Here fortune favors the bold-- be it the beastly rich Gentry or the Folkbred pilots, miners, and pirates. Odysseus Covered as it is by 90% water and salt water, at that, Odysseus is best known for fishing, all things to do with ships, and an amazingly hardy people that value ingenuity and hard work over one's actual heritage. Its tides and currents are fearsome and many underwater coral reefs present a definite challenge to outsiders more used to traveling the empty reaches of space. Orpheus Moon: Linos The worst planet in terms of class warfare, Orpheus features beautiful above-ground biodomes exclusively for use by the Gentry classes and their supporters, while beneath the cities are underground communities which live in squalor. Orpheans are known for their sophisticated tastes, art and music, museums, and a freaky underground counter-culture that is everything but sophisticated. The Comets/The Tachyon Web The Tachyon Web is a force-field and barrier which was erected by Sin to completely isolate the Vegan system. There is debris around the barrier from where fool-hardy pilots have tried to breach the gate. Not even lightspeed travel can pierce the Tachyon Web. Two comets orbit in the path of the Web, and though this is not common knowledge, it is suspected that the comets are the hosts of the technology which keeps the Tachyon Web operational. |