Post by Rugs on Apr 19, 2010 22:10:58 GMT -5
Here's a quick reference for a good deal of info on Aiaru. For more detail, check out the planet's app sheet.
Planet Name: Aiaru (eye-AH-roo)
Planet Type: Terrestrial, varied terrain
Habitable: Yes
Home to the: Stellar Mythics
System: Aiaru, Inner Rim
Diameter at the Equator: 13,894 km
Rotational Period: 25 Standard hours
Revolutionary Period: 390 Standard days
Terrain Overview: Aiaru is the only habitable planet in a small system that orbits the star of Helios. She has six moons: Fa'a'ipu, Firifiri'Aufau, Nihoniho teitei, 'Orerorero, Tahu'a, and Tamaumau'orero. The planet is a bit larger than the Earth, and has a range of weather conditions.
Aiaru has a range of topographical environments. The bulk of the western hemisphere, and about a third of the eastern one of planet is covered by one massive continent called Eostre. Atea, a massive ocean dominates the eastern hemisphere, and is dotted with an array of islands, ranging from small to the large islands in the Ricosta chain.
The northern edge of Eostre consists of plains that extend northwards to the polar ice cap, and begin rolling into hills that rise up to the Itzli mountains--some of which are volcanic--further south. From here, the mountain range turns and runs south along the western edge of the continent before fading to hills and giving way to a massive forest--the Evus forest. The forest spreads south and east, and the southeastern edge is bordered by a very old swamp, known to the people of Aiaru as the Culsu Swamp. The Culsu Swamp covers the mid area of the southern part of Eostre, and is the home to the (locally) legendary Flickercats.
The bulk of the interior of Eostre is made up of open, extremely fertile rolling plains. This region is where most of the few cities that Aiaru has--including Demas, the capital--are located, along with The Tower. They extend out to join the mountains in the west, meet the Culsu Swamp to the south, and the polar region to the north, and turn to desert in the northeastern edge of the continent. There is the occasional area of short mountains and hills--such as the low mountains along the northeastern coast of Idzumo Lake--but for the most part, the region is fairly level. A short, almost circular range of mountains rises out of the middle area of the plains, and The Tower of the Mythics is located within.
The Aethon Desert covers the northeastern edge of Eostre, and is, for all intents and purposes, uninhabited. The outer edges of the desert are hard and rocky, and spotted with soaring formations of rock that have been cut by the winds over the years; there's even some natural life, as Aiaru's hardiest plants and animals fight to survive here. But this all gives way to a massive sea of sand that covers the heart of the desert. It is a harsh place, and is plagued by massive sandstorms that are fueled by winds that can move the sand with enough force to eat flesh from the bone; these storms are most common in the heart of the desert, though nowhere is safe from them. The Aethon Desert has often been used as the place of punishment for none but the absolute worst criminals, and the ravaging sandstorm have become known to the people of the planet as the Fates.
The eastern shorline of Eostre that isn't a part of the Aethon Desert is among one of the most beautiful stretches of land on the planet. Brilliant white sand beaches stretch from the north to the south, and the sapphire blue waters are a sight to see. As such, it's a popular place for the people of Aiaru to go when the need to get away, and even off-worlders have a tendency to be drawn to the area. It is a sharp contrast to the harsh, cold shorelines near the Itzli mountains that dominate most of the western edge of the continent.
Idzumo lake is situated towards the eastern-central area of the continent. It's a massive freshwater lake, about a third again the size of the Mediterranean Sea, and there are a number of fishing villages along its shores, along with the city of Bylgia.
Atea, the world's only ocean, dominates the eastern hemisphere of Aiaru. Her waters are deep and a dark royal blue in color, and filled with all sorts of aquatic life that sustains the people of Aiaru. There's a large amount of small islands that dot the surface of the ocean, but the only islands of note are those of the Ricosta chain. These islands form an arc towards the middle of the Atea Ocean consisting of a number of fair-sized ones that surround a large volcanic island that goes by the name of Ipilya. There's a small city on Ipilya that goes by the same name. The island is known for its dense forests and the black sand beaches that go around the entire length of the island. Of course, there's the volcano, Mt. Ipilya, as well. The island of Ipilya is almost completely surrounded by a vast barrier reef that lies about twenty miles offshore. There are gaps in a few places, with the largest being on the southern side of the island, near the city of Ipilya.
Notable Geographic Features:
Eostre
Atea Ocean
Idzumo Lake
Ipilya
Culsu Swamp
Aethon Desert
Itzli Mountain Range
Evus Forest
Etherium deposits- the substance that is refined to make the drug of the same name can be found throughout Aiaru. The heaviest deposits are found near mountains, both in the Itzli mountain range and the small range in the center of Eostre. There is also a sizable deposit in the Culsu Swamp. Rumor has it that there is a massive amount hidden away in the Aethon Desert, but it is untouched as of yet. Ipilya is also home to a substantial deposit of the mineral.
Seasons: Aiaru's seasons are fairly mild, in the places where the change is noticeable. Summer and spring blend together, seeming to make one long warm season in the middle of the year. Fall is cooler, though the temperatures are still fairly mild for, for the most part. Winters are usually mild, with a few major snows in the deepest parts of the season before temperatures start to climb again. Though, it is not unheard of for there to be a particularly harsh winter from time to time.
Demas- The Capital city of Aiaru. It's situated in the northwestern area of the great plains of Eostre, towards the Itzli mountain range. It is a beautiful city of respectable size and population, and is known for its curving white architecture.
Bylgia- What was once a small fishing village has grown to become one of the main points of trade and commerce on Aiaru, and the world's largest city, both in size and population. It's on the southeastern edge of Idzumo Lake, and is a huge source of food for the people of Aiaru. It's grown in fits and starts over the centuries, and a trained eye can see in the slight differences in architectural styles and building arrangement from the different periods of expansion. Of course, in addition to being a bustling port city, Bylgia is also Aiaru's main industrial center, and many of the mechanical things used on world are manufactured here.
Ipilya- Ipilya is located on the volcanic island of the same name in the Ricosta island chain in the heart of the Atea Ocean. Her people are hardy and resilient, though Mt. Ipilya has not erupted in almost four hundred years. It is mainly a mining town, as there is a fairly large deposit of Etherium nearby, but it is also a bustling culture and arts center. Part of the old city still lies in ruins from a volcanic eruption that happened around 400 years ago. Its condition is maintained so that the people of Ipilya never forget that they live under the mercy of the mountain that shares the name of their city. It is also a memorial of sorts for the hundreds of thousands of people that perished in that eruption.
Agoue- Agoue is the easternmost city on Eostre, and is often referred to by natives as the Eastern Citadel, even though it's never been touched by any sort of conflict. Perhaps that is because of the terrain around the city. Agoue rises sharply up onto the rocks around a fairly large bay, and it, like its western counterpart Sednas, is built in a sort of terraced fashion. There's a massive statue of one of the massive creatures known as Tidebringers toward the middle of the city, on the highest terrace. It's made of the finest white Aiaru marble, and is visible from nearly anywhere within the city. Agoue is Aiaru's main sea port and fishing center, and also serves as the main link to the island of Ipilya.
The Tower- While not a city per se,The Tower is a very important location on Aiaru, given that it is the home of the mysterious Stellar Mythics. Everyone on Aiaru knows of The Tower. It's situated in a pass in the small ring of mountains towards the heart of Eostre. It is very tall, and it's soaring towers can be seen from miles away.
Abeona is the largest of a series of villages that runs along the northern border of the Culsu Swamp. It sits on the banks of the Epione River, and over time has become more of a large town than a small village.
Mithras is a coastal town on the northeaster shoreline of Eostre, near the edge of the Aethon Desert. In addition to being a fishing town, it is very close to an Etherium deposit, so mining is a key activity for the people there.
Sednas is the largest city on the western coastline of Eostre, and is also the westernmost settlement of the continent. It is built up in a terraced fashion, rising up out of the water along the rising slopes that lead back up to the Itzli Mountains. The city itself, much like the land around it, is hard and stony, and as a feel of age to it. There's an old, abandoned temple in the snowy mountains nearby, from the earliest days of the Mythic's existence.
History:
Aiaru was first discovered six hundred standard years ago by the the first of those who would go one to form the order of the Stellar Mythics stumbled upon it in their flight from persecution. In the centuries since, the growing trade of Etherium has brought a number of other inhabitants to live on the planet, and while Aiaru is a fairly remote planet, it's known well enough and has a pretty sizable population.
Demas is the oldest city, and also the capital. It was founded about ten years after the arrival of the first of the Mythics. At first it was meant to be little more than a place of refuge for the travelers, but as the Etherium trade expanded, so did it. The high council of the governing body came to reside in the city seventy years after the planet's discovery, and Demas has served as the capital ever since.
As time passed and the population grew, people started to move out across the surface of Aiaru more. With time came the birth of other towns and cities across the surface of the planet, with Bylgia being born sixty years after the arrival of the first Mythics, and Ipilya following one hundred and fifty years after their arrival.
Of course, all was not always easy. When the Aethon Desert was first discovered, a number of expeditions were sent out into it, and all of them fell prey to what the people would come to call Fates--the massive sandstorms that prowled the desert that could destroy almost anything unfortunate to be in their path. But as these expeditions continued, rumor started to spread that there was a huge deposit of Etherium in the desert, larger than any other known deposit anywhere else on the planet. Of course, as it became more and more clear that the desert was uninhabitable, the rumor spread faster, and grew into a sort of local legend. But still, to this day, if there are any Etherium deposits in the Aethon, they remain untouched.
Of course, Aiaru has also taken away some of the life she's given to those that call her home. Roughly four hundred years ago, about some fifty years after Ipillya was founded, the mountain that the city and island are named for erupted. It was a somewhat severe eruption, and the damage to the city was extensive. Huge swaths of it were set ablaze, and almost 80 percent of the people that lived in it were killed. The cost in damage done was astronomical, and some wanted to abandon the island, to avoid another such catastrophe. But some remained, and rebuilt, and though the going was slow, Ipilya was once again turned into one of the pride points of Aiaru. Even so, part of the city was left in the state it was in and is maintained that way, so that the people never forget that Aiaru can take as quickly as she gives.
~Basic Info~
Planet Name: Aiaru (eye-AH-roo)
Planet Type: Terrestrial, varied terrain
Habitable: Yes
Home to the: Stellar Mythics
System: Aiaru, Inner Rim
Diameter at the Equator: 13,894 km
Rotational Period: 25 Standard hours
Revolutionary Period: 390 Standard days
Terrain Overview: Aiaru is the only habitable planet in a small system that orbits the star of Helios. She has six moons: Fa'a'ipu, Firifiri'Aufau, Nihoniho teitei, 'Orerorero, Tahu'a, and Tamaumau'orero. The planet is a bit larger than the Earth, and has a range of weather conditions.
Aiaru has a range of topographical environments. The bulk of the western hemisphere, and about a third of the eastern one of planet is covered by one massive continent called Eostre. Atea, a massive ocean dominates the eastern hemisphere, and is dotted with an array of islands, ranging from small to the large islands in the Ricosta chain.
The northern edge of Eostre consists of plains that extend northwards to the polar ice cap, and begin rolling into hills that rise up to the Itzli mountains--some of which are volcanic--further south. From here, the mountain range turns and runs south along the western edge of the continent before fading to hills and giving way to a massive forest--the Evus forest. The forest spreads south and east, and the southeastern edge is bordered by a very old swamp, known to the people of Aiaru as the Culsu Swamp. The Culsu Swamp covers the mid area of the southern part of Eostre, and is the home to the (locally) legendary Flickercats.
The bulk of the interior of Eostre is made up of open, extremely fertile rolling plains. This region is where most of the few cities that Aiaru has--including Demas, the capital--are located, along with The Tower. They extend out to join the mountains in the west, meet the Culsu Swamp to the south, and the polar region to the north, and turn to desert in the northeastern edge of the continent. There is the occasional area of short mountains and hills--such as the low mountains along the northeastern coast of Idzumo Lake--but for the most part, the region is fairly level. A short, almost circular range of mountains rises out of the middle area of the plains, and The Tower of the Mythics is located within.
The Aethon Desert covers the northeastern edge of Eostre, and is, for all intents and purposes, uninhabited. The outer edges of the desert are hard and rocky, and spotted with soaring formations of rock that have been cut by the winds over the years; there's even some natural life, as Aiaru's hardiest plants and animals fight to survive here. But this all gives way to a massive sea of sand that covers the heart of the desert. It is a harsh place, and is plagued by massive sandstorms that are fueled by winds that can move the sand with enough force to eat flesh from the bone; these storms are most common in the heart of the desert, though nowhere is safe from them. The Aethon Desert has often been used as the place of punishment for none but the absolute worst criminals, and the ravaging sandstorm have become known to the people of the planet as the Fates.
The eastern shorline of Eostre that isn't a part of the Aethon Desert is among one of the most beautiful stretches of land on the planet. Brilliant white sand beaches stretch from the north to the south, and the sapphire blue waters are a sight to see. As such, it's a popular place for the people of Aiaru to go when the need to get away, and even off-worlders have a tendency to be drawn to the area. It is a sharp contrast to the harsh, cold shorelines near the Itzli mountains that dominate most of the western edge of the continent.
Idzumo lake is situated towards the eastern-central area of the continent. It's a massive freshwater lake, about a third again the size of the Mediterranean Sea, and there are a number of fishing villages along its shores, along with the city of Bylgia.
Atea, the world's only ocean, dominates the eastern hemisphere of Aiaru. Her waters are deep and a dark royal blue in color, and filled with all sorts of aquatic life that sustains the people of Aiaru. There's a large amount of small islands that dot the surface of the ocean, but the only islands of note are those of the Ricosta chain. These islands form an arc towards the middle of the Atea Ocean consisting of a number of fair-sized ones that surround a large volcanic island that goes by the name of Ipilya. There's a small city on Ipilya that goes by the same name. The island is known for its dense forests and the black sand beaches that go around the entire length of the island. Of course, there's the volcano, Mt. Ipilya, as well. The island of Ipilya is almost completely surrounded by a vast barrier reef that lies about twenty miles offshore. There are gaps in a few places, with the largest being on the southern side of the island, near the city of Ipilya.
Notable Geographic Features:
Eostre
Atea Ocean
Idzumo Lake
Ipilya
Culsu Swamp
Aethon Desert
Itzli Mountain Range
Evus Forest
Etherium deposits- the substance that is refined to make the drug of the same name can be found throughout Aiaru. The heaviest deposits are found near mountains, both in the Itzli mountain range and the small range in the center of Eostre. There is also a sizable deposit in the Culsu Swamp. Rumor has it that there is a massive amount hidden away in the Aethon Desert, but it is untouched as of yet. Ipilya is also home to a substantial deposit of the mineral.
Seasons: Aiaru's seasons are fairly mild, in the places where the change is noticeable. Summer and spring blend together, seeming to make one long warm season in the middle of the year. Fall is cooler, though the temperatures are still fairly mild for, for the most part. Winters are usually mild, with a few major snows in the deepest parts of the season before temperatures start to climb again. Though, it is not unheard of for there to be a particularly harsh winter from time to time.
~Cities~
Major cities
Demas- The Capital city of Aiaru. It's situated in the northwestern area of the great plains of Eostre, towards the Itzli mountain range. It is a beautiful city of respectable size and population, and is known for its curving white architecture.
Bylgia- What was once a small fishing village has grown to become one of the main points of trade and commerce on Aiaru, and the world's largest city, both in size and population. It's on the southeastern edge of Idzumo Lake, and is a huge source of food for the people of Aiaru. It's grown in fits and starts over the centuries, and a trained eye can see in the slight differences in architectural styles and building arrangement from the different periods of expansion. Of course, in addition to being a bustling port city, Bylgia is also Aiaru's main industrial center, and many of the mechanical things used on world are manufactured here.
Ipilya- Ipilya is located on the volcanic island of the same name in the Ricosta island chain in the heart of the Atea Ocean. Her people are hardy and resilient, though Mt. Ipilya has not erupted in almost four hundred years. It is mainly a mining town, as there is a fairly large deposit of Etherium nearby, but it is also a bustling culture and arts center. Part of the old city still lies in ruins from a volcanic eruption that happened around 400 years ago. Its condition is maintained so that the people of Ipilya never forget that they live under the mercy of the mountain that shares the name of their city. It is also a memorial of sorts for the hundreds of thousands of people that perished in that eruption.
Agoue- Agoue is the easternmost city on Eostre, and is often referred to by natives as the Eastern Citadel, even though it's never been touched by any sort of conflict. Perhaps that is because of the terrain around the city. Agoue rises sharply up onto the rocks around a fairly large bay, and it, like its western counterpart Sednas, is built in a sort of terraced fashion. There's a massive statue of one of the massive creatures known as Tidebringers toward the middle of the city, on the highest terrace. It's made of the finest white Aiaru marble, and is visible from nearly anywhere within the city. Agoue is Aiaru's main sea port and fishing center, and also serves as the main link to the island of Ipilya.
The Tower- While not a city per se,The Tower is a very important location on Aiaru, given that it is the home of the mysterious Stellar Mythics. Everyone on Aiaru knows of The Tower. It's situated in a pass in the small ring of mountains towards the heart of Eostre. It is very tall, and it's soaring towers can be seen from miles away.
Minor cities
Abeona is the largest of a series of villages that runs along the northern border of the Culsu Swamp. It sits on the banks of the Epione River, and over time has become more of a large town than a small village.
Mithras is a coastal town on the northeaster shoreline of Eostre, near the edge of the Aethon Desert. In addition to being a fishing town, it is very close to an Etherium deposit, so mining is a key activity for the people there.
Sednas is the largest city on the western coastline of Eostre, and is also the westernmost settlement of the continent. It is built up in a terraced fashion, rising up out of the water along the rising slopes that lead back up to the Itzli Mountains. The city itself, much like the land around it, is hard and stony, and as a feel of age to it. There's an old, abandoned temple in the snowy mountains nearby, from the earliest days of the Mythic's existence.
Wildlife
History:
Aiaru was first discovered six hundred standard years ago by the the first of those who would go one to form the order of the Stellar Mythics stumbled upon it in their flight from persecution. In the centuries since, the growing trade of Etherium has brought a number of other inhabitants to live on the planet, and while Aiaru is a fairly remote planet, it's known well enough and has a pretty sizable population.
Demas is the oldest city, and also the capital. It was founded about ten years after the arrival of the first of the Mythics. At first it was meant to be little more than a place of refuge for the travelers, but as the Etherium trade expanded, so did it. The high council of the governing body came to reside in the city seventy years after the planet's discovery, and Demas has served as the capital ever since.
As time passed and the population grew, people started to move out across the surface of Aiaru more. With time came the birth of other towns and cities across the surface of the planet, with Bylgia being born sixty years after the arrival of the first Mythics, and Ipilya following one hundred and fifty years after their arrival.
Of course, all was not always easy. When the Aethon Desert was first discovered, a number of expeditions were sent out into it, and all of them fell prey to what the people would come to call Fates--the massive sandstorms that prowled the desert that could destroy almost anything unfortunate to be in their path. But as these expeditions continued, rumor started to spread that there was a huge deposit of Etherium in the desert, larger than any other known deposit anywhere else on the planet. Of course, as it became more and more clear that the desert was uninhabitable, the rumor spread faster, and grew into a sort of local legend. But still, to this day, if there are any Etherium deposits in the Aethon, they remain untouched.
Of course, Aiaru has also taken away some of the life she's given to those that call her home. Roughly four hundred years ago, about some fifty years after Ipillya was founded, the mountain that the city and island are named for erupted. It was a somewhat severe eruption, and the damage to the city was extensive. Huge swaths of it were set ablaze, and almost 80 percent of the people that lived in it were killed. The cost in damage done was astronomical, and some wanted to abandon the island, to avoid another such catastrophe. But some remained, and rebuilt, and though the going was slow, Ipilya was once again turned into one of the pride points of Aiaru. Even so, part of the city was left in the state it was in and is maintained that way, so that the people never forget that Aiaru can take as quickly as she gives.