GateSpace

Gatespace is a fairly large sphere with a typically diverse set of planets. It is a relatively standard sphere, with numerous worlds, moons, an asteroid field, stars, and the like.

In addition to the planets and stars, Gatespace also has five smaller crystal spheres which orbit around it. These satellite spheres are all the same distance from Gatespace, and can be reached from Gatespace in two days. The satellite spheres, in clockwise order, are Splitspace, Windyspace, Chitinspace, Chromaspace, and Shamblespace.

Name Size and Type
Hasaril Type H spherical fire body (sun)
Wegrya Type E spherical water world
Belagin Type G spherical air world
Phaeris Type D elliptical fire world
Dauveron Type D spherical earth world
Ganae Type E spherical earth world
The Braid Type D earth belt
Lindrac Type F cubical earth world
Krensar Type F octahedral air world
Aeslir Type D flat water body
The Strinads Type D Fire cluster
Other Bodies

Gatespace gains its name from two factors. The first are its stars, which are portals to the various elemental planes. The second factor is the relatively high number of extraplanar gates which manifest within the sphere. Gates are particularly common on Ganae. A random gate opened to a random prime material plane has almost twice the chances of opening on Ganae as Toril. This has given Ganae its bewildering diversity of life. Other planets in the system frequently also have gates, causing some planets to have pockets of extraplanar visitors. In addition, this effect seems to have allowed any deity to function within the sphere - all known deities may grant spells to their priests in this sphere.

Stars

The stars of Gatespace are portals to the various inner planes. These star-gates not only provide illumination and warmth, but frequently other benefits and dangers as well. The stars of Gatespace range in size anywhere up to 10 miles across, with 1-3 miles in diameter being the average diameter.

Unlike Realmspace and Krynnspace, which also have gates for stars, Gatespace's stars are not limited to the planes of Radiance or Fire. There are star-gates to every inner plane, including non-illuminating planes such as the plane of Earth, or dangerous and invisible star-gates such as apertures to the Negative Material Plane or the plane of Vacuum. The various types of star-gates are described below. All star-gates are two-way conduits, and may have creatures from the appropriate plane dwelling within them. The stars never occur closer than 20 miles apart, and are fixed. The star-gates are of three major shapes:

The actual gate can be determined by the table below. Notes about each type are listed subsequently. No star of any type has an air envelope, nor do they exhibit gravity. Bubble and flow stars whose material is separated from the gate do show gravity. Why the gravity comes into effect is a mystery.

Star Types
01-08 Air 41-48 Negative 65-68 Vacuum 85-88 Ice
09-16 Earth 49-52 Lightning 69-72 Dust 89-92 Smoke
17-24 Fire 53-56 Minerals 73-76 Ash 93-96 Ooze
25-32 Water 57-60 Radiance 77-80 Salt 97-00 Double Star
33-40 Positive 61-64 Steam 81-84 Magma (roll twice)

Typically, entry into bubble-stars affects the ship and crew as if it entered the associated plane. Aperture stars are gates to the relevant plane, so entry into them has the same effect. Flow stars usually have variable effects. See the individual star descriptions for more details.

Air-stars are perhaps the most hospitable. Air-bubble stars refresh the air envelope of any ship venturing into them. Air-aperture stars provide access directly to the elemental plane of Air; ships have been known to spend a year sailing through this plane. Air-flow stars have a varying force to their air-flow, which may change from time to time. Air-flow stars also refresh the air envelope of ships, replacing one man-day of air per mile for every round the ship is within the air current. From the planets of Gatespace, most air-stars are visible as far as the Braid as a sky-blue point of light.

Earth-stars are generally completely solid. Dwarvish attempts to create a stronghold in earth-stars have failed. The dwarves have occasionally broken off pieces of a earth-bubble star for construction of a citadel; however, it is easier to use an asteroid (particularly since the earth-stars have no atmosphere). Earth-aperture stars and earth-bubble stars both are solid rock; however, earth-flow stars actually provide a phenomenon familiar to most observers - meteors. The flow is usually at a low rate, and the rock crumbles, so small chunks of rock fall inwards toward the center of the sphere. At times, they will strike the atmosphere of another world, burning up as meteors. This is the most common natural source of meteors in Gatespace. Earth stars are not visible until the ship is within 1000 miles of the Sphere.

Fire-stars are one of the true "stars". Burning brightly in colors from bright yellow to cool red (and occasionally others as well), fire-stars are noticeable from almost every world in Gatespace. Fire-aperture stars do not radiate heat from the plane of fire, and are useful for bright illumination. Fire-bubble stars, on the other hand, are identical to fire-worlds, causing damage to passing ships. Regardless of the size, the damage from these stars is always the same (see SJBK). Fire-flow stars are dangerous, giving a continuous flow of fire-flares. For each round a ship is caught in a fire star flow, the exposed crew takes 1d6 damage per mile diameter of the flow; the ship takes damage at the usual 1 hull point per 10 hit points of damage.

Water-stars are also fairly hospitable. The water-flow stars provide one of the pleasant sensations of Gatespace - fresh showers. The water flow varies from light rain to heavy monsoon to crushing tidal force (and it may change from time to time for any star). The largest water stars are visible from Krensar, as dim spots of blue-green light.

Positive-stars are another of the "true" star types. Providing a strong amount of energy, the positive stars are seen throughout the Sphere. Contact with the material of a positive star affects individuals and items just as if they were exposed to the positive material plane. Positive-flow stars are deliberately avoided for this reason. Positive stars are visible throughout the sphere as white colored stars, and are among the brightest stars.

Negative stars are hardly ever visible. They are black against a black background of the sphere. Contact with the material of the negative stars affects individuals and items just as if they were exposed to the negative material plane. Negative-bubble and negative-flow stars actually can be detected from the surface of the sphere, as one will block out light from other stars. The best way to detect these stars is by the undead ships which are frequently found nearby.

Lightning stars are also a primary source of starlight in Gatespace. Lightning-bubble stars have air within them, but entrance into a lightning-bubble will severely damage anything not immune to electricity (as if the creature or item were in the quasi-elemental plane). Lightning-flow stars are sources of great bolts of lightning. Damage for being in a lightning-flow is 1d6/mile of diameter of the aperture. Lightning stars are visible throughout the sphere, usually as white or blue-white stars which flicker more than other stars.

Mineral stars are similar to earth stars in all respects save for the actual material of the star. Mineral stars may reflect or refract light, and a few even emit light in the case of certain crystals. These rare stars may glow any color - some even glow in the ultravisual range. Depending on their composition, mineral stars may be visible from the Braid.

Radiance stars are another source of standard starlight. Source of the brightest stars and in the widest range of brilliant colors. The radiance-aperture stars and radiance-bubble stars will affect any object just as if it entered the plane of Radiance. Radiance-flow stars cause damage equal to half the damage of a fire-flow star of the same diameter (1d6/2 miles diameter); exposed crew must also save vs. spell or be blinded for 1d6 turns.

Steam stars are a source of both water and air. While some steam stars are hot, and will cause damage, others are cool and refreshing. Experienced ship captains will usually test the temperature of a steam star before exposing their crew. The temperature of any given steam star varies. Steam stars also refresh the air envelope as air stars do, though they will also soak any ship entering them.

Smoke stars are not visible from a distance, although they may be spotted like negative stars - by eclipsing other stars. Entry into a smoke-bubble star will immediately foul the atmosphere of any ship, and the atmosphere will become deadly a turn later. A smoke-flow star will also foul the atmosphere of a ship, if given time. A smoke-flow star will foul a tonnage of ship equal to the diameter of the star in miles each round, this effect is cumulative. For instance, a Hammership (60T) caught in the smoke flow from a 4-mile diameter smoke star would have its air fouled in 15 rounds.

Magma stars appear as reddish stars as far in as Ganae, where they are very dim. The magma stars cause damage to any ships and creatures which come into contact with them. Magma bubble stars also radiate heat like Fire stars. In addition, the magma may also adhere to ships like ooze flow stars.

Ooze stars are generally avoided, particularly ooze-flow stars. Few things are more bothersome than having to remove mud from your entire ship. In addition, the ooze may stick to the ship, making it more sluggish. Each round, a ship has a 40% chance of losing 1 MC, and a 25% chance of losing 1 SR. These penalties last until the crew cleans the ooze from the ship. It is quite possible for a ship to be totally trapped in an ooze-flow, and unable to break free. Ooze stars cannot be seen from a significant distance.

Ice stars are visible up to the Braid as blue-white stars. The ice-bubble stars are huge hemispheres of pure ice, sometimes used by a ship to replenish its water supply. Ice-flow stars vary in the type of flow, ranging from sleet and hail which may damage ships and crew, to releasing occasional ice-bergs, to the occasional snow flurry.

Vacuum stars are second only to Negative stars in their danger to ships and crew. They are invisible from space; not even the bubble-stars or flow-stars are visible. Entry into a vacuum bubble immediately eliminates a ship's atmosphere. Unlike a deadly atmosphere, there is no air at all present to change back to fresh air. Paradoxically, as in the quasi-elemental plane of vacuum, temperature and pressure do not drop with the removal of the atmosphere. A vacuum flow-star will slowly destroy the air of a ship - each round a ship is exposed to a vacuum flow, it loses a number of crew-air-days equal to the diameter of the flow.

Ash-stars, dust-stars, and salt-stars are similar to each other. Exposure to a flow star of any of these types typically uses up 1d6 days of air (as it gets fouled slightly). The ship usually needs a good cleaning afterwards as well. Most ash stars are too dark to see. Dust stars can be seen as a pale star as far as Krensar, while salt stars are seen as a faint whitish star up to Lindrac. In addition, exposure to an ash flow star has a 20% chance/round that flames are extinguished each round. Salt flow stars dehydrate liquids; open water will evaporate quickly. Dust flow stars can cause damage to mineral-based ships; these ships suffer 1-3 hull points each round.

Double stars are two stars which occur within 10 miles of each other. They are always of the same type, i.e. either two aperture stars, two bubble stars, or two flow stars. They are not necessarily from the same plane.


The Worlds of Gatespace

Hasaril (the Sun)

Type H Spherical Fire body.

Primary, relatively typical sun. Burns a brilliant yellow-white.


Wegrya

Type E spherical water world.
Distance From Primary: 10 million miles
Orbital Direction: Clockwise
Day Length: 20 hours
Year Length: 36 standard days
Satellites: None
Population: Kna, Kuo-tua, Locathah, Sahuagin, Lizardfolk

The waters of Wegrya are steamy and hot due to the planet's close proximity to the sun. The entire planet is interlaced with marine plant life, which is thriving in the close proximity to the sun. There are gigantic beds of kelp which can be walked upon at the surface, and many other deep-sea plants have adapted to a life without soil. The plants become even thicker towards the poles, and are capable of supporting spelljamming ships (up to 75 tons) which cannot land in the sea. Many varieties of tropical fish dart in and out of the vegetation, providing a rainbow of colors below the surface. It is said that for every imaginable color, there is a fish in that hue on Wegrya. There are a number of larger fish preying on these, in a usual marine food chain.

The primary sentient races of Wegrya are the Locathah, Sahuagin, Kna, and Kuo-tua. The races existed in a balance of power, with the locathah and sahuagin dominating the upper reaches, while the kuo-tua dwelled deeper. The Kna, less common, also dwell near the surface, and usually ally with the locathah. Reef giants are also somewhat common, though they have largely withdrawn from interacting with the other races.

The three major races maintained a fragile truce until the lizard men discovered this planet. The lizard men saw the abundant plant and animal life as a gift from their god. Obviously, the world's proximity to the sun made it the perfect breeding ground for new generations of lizard men, and so the lizard men established landing areas on both poles and began to claim territory. This was two hundred years ago. Since then, generations of lizard men have been raised to fight this war. Although the lizard men of Wegrya have begun to show an advanced intelligence, they are still locked into a war with the locathah and sahuagin because of their belief in their divine right to this world.

The northern polar nation of lizard men is strong and thriving, and boasts the largest temple to Semuanya in this crystal sphere (woven out of plant life and materials brought from off-world). The southern polar nation is largely destroyed; only a scattering of lizard men remain.


Belagin

Type G spherical air world
Distance From Primary: 40 million miles
Orbital Direction: Counter-clockwise
Day Length: 32 hours
Year Length: 120 standard days
Satellites: None
Population: Aaracokra, Avariel, Raptorians, many other races

Belagin is a somewhat typical air world, with numerous solid islands floating throughout it. These islands, which sometimes are the size of continents, hold a wide variety of human, demi-human, humanoid, and other creatures, usually living in a tribal lifestyle. The races possess a wide variety of cultures and levels of civilization. The various races usually keep to themselves, living in isolation and only occasionally meeting to trade.

The floating continents and islands of Belagin actually rise over time. The underside of each floating land mass is super-heated, and produces lift. The rising land mass slowly spreads as it rises within Belagin, cooling as it does so. Eventually, the ascent slows, and the land mass begins to crumble. The continents typically have lifespan of 2-12 years, so the inhabitants must find new territories on a regular basis. This causes most of the civilizations to have a quasi-nomadic lifestyle, competing for good land.

The tribes are mostly unfamiliar with spelljamming technology. A few have developed other means of navigating through the air - gliders and balloons are common. A few tribes have developed craft which fly (similar to spelljamming) with magical enchantment, and some have even formed merchant caravans. Spelljamming visitors to Belagin are frequently mistaken for scouts or invaders from another tribe.

The actual skies of Belagin have a variety of bewildering weather patterns. Tornados, hurricane-force winds, and mild showers all are found within Belagin. The tornados of Belagin are of particular interest, since they actually form not only the familiar cones, but also double cones, cylinders, or even a whirling disc. Fortunately, bad weather is only slightly more common than on Ganae.

The Elven Imperial Navy maintains a small base near Belagin, and some Avariel from Belagin have joined the navy. The planet is also a favorite spot for Hadozee.

More information on Belagin


Phaeris

Type D elliptical fire world
Distance From Primary: 60 million miles
Orbital Direction: Clockwise
Day Length: N/A; Vostyl: 14 hours
Year Length: 172 standard days
Satellites: Vostyl
Population: Vostyl: Byrni

Phaeris burns a cool red, with a few brighter yellow-orange spots. The longest axis of Phaeris is perpendicular to its plane of revolution around the primary. The fire world provides another bright star in the skies of other worlds.

Vostyl: type C spherical earth world. Orbiting Phaeris is Vostyl, a very hot, volcanically active moon. The mean temperature varies between 120 and 150 degrees because of the proximity to Phaeris. However, Vostyl has a surprising abundance of life. The dominant race is a red-skinned humanoid race known as the Byrni. Vostyl is also home to salamanders, fire-newts, and similar monsters which prefer warmer climes, as well as the dreaded Rel-Eth. Water is practically non-existent on Vostyl, but the inhabitants have adapted to not require water. Vostyl is itself circled by a ring of fire, of the same color as Phaeris itself. Some sages believe that the ring may be somehow connected to Phaeris.

More information on Phaeris and Vostyl


Dauveron

Type D spherical earth world
Distance From Primary: 70 million miles
Orbital Direction: Counter-clockwise
Day Length: 27 hours
Year Length: 235 standard days
Satellites: None
Population: Humans, few dwarves, gnomes, orcs

Dauveron is a world which is extremely mountanous over most of its surface. The only exception is a narrow belt around the equatorial regions which has verdant grasslands, some lakes, and forests. Dauveron is inhabited by humans (mostly) with a scattering of dwarves, gnomes, and orcs all hiding in homes within the mountains.

Dauveron's human population in the fertile belt is made up of a number of gynocracies. The human women dominate all aspects of life. Men are second-class citizens at best, and sometimes little better than slaves. The women of Dauveron form the privelidged ruling class. A significant number of these women are psions, and the gynocracies encourage their members to develop their mental disciplines. They also get access to training in magical arts if they so desire it. Men are prohibited from learning psionics or magic, or even reading unless their job requires it. The men perform the physical labor required to keep the society going.

Many male slaves (and female sympathizers) have escaped into the mountains, where they generally live a hard but free life either as individuals or in small villages. Many of these warriors have to endure the fierce mountain life, or occasionally happen upon one of the few demi-human settlements. Even when the freemen find such a settlement, they rarely stay very long. There are a few human villages which function like trading posts. In the mountainous areas, the settlements are kept small to avoid discovery by the gynocracies of the fertile belt.

Illithids and Neogi commonly visit Dauveron to acquire slaves. Scro maintain a few hidden bases in the mountainous region.


Ganae

Type E spherical Earth body
Distance From Primary: 110 million miles
Orbital Direction: Counter-clockwise
Day Length: 24 hours
Year Length: 388 standard days
Satellites: 4: Alinah, Gloran, Herlom, Vensuri
Population: Widely varied

The main planet of the sphere. Ganae is home to an amazingly diverse number of species. Ganae has three main and two minor continents, a variety of cultures similar to most fantasy worlds. More information on Ganae, my primary campaign world.

Ganae has four moons, one of each type:

Alinah: Spherical type C Earth body, period of 26 days. The major moon (and the one referred to when "the moon" is mentioned) is a small world in its own right. Visitors to Alinah find the view breathtaking, as the majority of the surface is made up of white marble-like rock or grey soils. Silvery streams and lakes provide a striking vista. There is little indigenous life, and the vegetation is mostly mosses and lower plant life. No plants much larger than small bushes survive here. The sky appears as if it were always night here, even when the sun is visible. Stars are always visible from Alinah.

The most striking feature of Alinah is its lack of colors. None of the native life - either plants or animals - have any color. Instead, they vary among shades of black, white, gray or silver, with a variety of textures and patterns. Plants are typically darker grays, while fruits and flowers are usually glossy white or silver, and some even glow softly. The native animals also have similar colorations, though there is no other significant difference between native life forms and those found elsewhere. The soil and rocks of Alinah also share this unusual colorless property. The entire effect is similar to a striking high-contrast black and white photograph. The effect is not magical; visitors do not lose their coloration.

The main sentient life on Alinah is a spider race known as the Chak, also known as planar spiders. Other species have established colonies on the moon, including grey elves, tinker gnomes, and hobgoblins. The grey elves are typically isolationistic in their single city, while the gnomes and Chak indulge in trade and assist one another. The hobgoblins are more civilized than most, mainly due to the rule of Gorth Naergrin, an exceptionally strong, wise and wily hobgoblin. The hobgoblins actually operate one of the two major ports of call (the other is controlled by the chak and gnomes). There is also a small nation of Illithids underground. The Illithids use this as a coordination point for activities on Ganae.

Gloran: type B spherical water body, period of 8 days - a small water world. From Ganae, Gloran appears fairly bright, and blue in color. No surface features are visible, and it moves in a direction opposite to Alinah.

Gloran is mainly inhabited by mer-folk. A good number of fish dwell in Gloran, as well as other typical sea-life. The waters of Gloran are fresh, and the mermen have adapted to the fresh water. There are also a few groups of sea-lions and hippocampi scattered throughout the moon.

There are only three small floating continents which move about the surface. They are made up of vast growths of coral. Each of the land masses is actually made up of coral and other growths. Each of these floating coral reefs have grown around and attached to a wrecked spelljamming ship which crashed on Gloran. Over the years, the growths have developed and become sizable masses where other ship can now land upon. This fact would have gone undiscovered except that one of the land masses still has a few decks of the original ship (an ogre mammoth) accessible. The land masses are known by the ships at their core: Mammoth, Hammer, and Uspo.

Herlom: (the Omen) flat type A fire body, irregular orbit. The Omen is usually a flat fire-world, bright enough to be notable in the night sky, but not enough to hamper the view of other celestial bodies. It is also the most distant of Ganae's moons. In general, the red-orange flames are confined to a flat disk of dddM diameter, which rotates perpendicular to the axis of revolution (the fire-moon "whirls").

Astrologers put a great deal of emphasis on Herlom's relative shape and positions to the other celestial bodies. Occasionally, the disk flares, so that the world seems to shape itself like a hollow cone (similar to a butterfly net when swung). This is seen as a momentous omen, and is frequently connected with severe fortune, either good or bad.

Vensuri: type B spherical air body, period of 41 days. It also does not have "phases", as the others do, but is sort of a uniform gray color. When it eclipses the sun (or a particularly bright star), the sun can be seen thru the moon dimly, as if thru a very dirty lens.

Vensuri is very misty and foggy. There is a great deal of water vapor throughout the moon. Occasional winds and rain will occur within the planet. Fortunately, there are no floating land masses to collide with, since visibility is frequently limited to 10'. Most ships signal their presence audibly by a gong or bells while within the moon.

Vensuri is primarily inhabited by a variety of gaseous creatures. These creatures find the solid humanoids and their ships distasteful, so they usually avoid spelljammers.


The Braid

Type D (mostly) earth belt
Distance From Primary: 400 million miles
Orbital Direction: Varies
Day Length: Varies
Year Length: 1200 days (approximate)
Satellites: None
Population: Widely varied

This asteroid field is similar to many others in that it is composed of many asteroids of a wide variety of sizes. Some of the orbiting bodies are up to size C, becoming virtual worlds in and of themselves. There are actually a number of water "asteroids" also within the belt, and more than a few "mud-bergs".

The worldlets of the Braid orbit in different directions; some move clockwise around the sun, while others move counterclockwise, and a few even stand still. Strangely, collisions are few; mostly this is due to the braiding that has occurred. There are a number of paths moving each direction which do not intersect, but which intertwine.

Imagine a large number of loops of yarn, all braided together. Some of these loops are one color, say red, some are another (blue), and a few yet a third (yellow). The red loops move clockwise, while the blue loops move counter-clockwise and the yellow cords stay in place. Replace the loops with streams of asteroids and you get the idea.

Of course, the movement of the asteroids in the Braid are practically impossible for a novice navigator to manage. Many wrecked ships can be found in the braid, and scavengers are common.


Lindrac

Type F cubical earth world
Distance From Primary: 800 million miles
Orbital Direction: Clockwise
Day Length: 28 hours
Year Length: 3250 standard days
Satellites: Cordaji
Population: None (Dragons); Cordaji: Dracons, draconians and Kobolds

Lindrac has no atmosphere, and is thus a voidworld.

Or so it seems to most people. Long ago the dragons of dozens of worlds decided that they wanted a world free of human and demi-human interference, where they could form their own society and be free of adventurers who want to earn a name for themselves. They found Lindrac, and decided to make it their home. Lindrac is actually hollow, and contains air on the interior, as well as a variety of climates suitable for all types of dragons.

Lindrac is inhabited by all varieties of dragons, as well as all dragon-like monsters (wyverns, pseudo-dragons, and other draconic creatures) and a large number of herbivorous dinosaurs. The dinosaurs are the dragon's main source of food, and are even herded by the dragons in some regions. Carnivorous dinosaurs exist, but are comparitively rare, and generally have a tough time competing against the intelligent dragons. Some dragons have even begun to herd dinosaurs.

Because of the size of Lindrac, there is plenty of room for the plentiful dragons which inhabit it. Although there are rivalries and combats between dragons, they are rare. Some of the dragons live in "cities" - a few hundred inhabit lairs within a few miles of each other. These dragons work together in a community, taking roles which contribute to the community's success.

The dragons of Lindrac are xenophobic. They positively do not want humans to know of their existence, and only the "good" dragons will not destroy any trespassers immediately; they will ascertain whether these humans can keep the secret or not. No human, demi-human, or humanoid is allowed to stay in Lindrac - those who do not swear to secrecy are destroyed. About the only exception the dragons are willing to make are for dracons, draconians and kobolds, all of whom revere the dragons. These creatures regard the interior of Lindrac as a paradise, and will obey the dragons without hesitation.

The external rock of Lindrac averages 100 miles in thickness, and has few accesses to the interior. Those that do enter a series of caves and caverns similar to the underdark on most worlds (except for the absence of demi-humans and most monster types). The air does not escape to the outside, but begins just below the outer surface of Lindrac. Most of the larger caves which open to space are homes to subterranean or radiant dragons who will not take kindly to trespassers, and will quickly enforce the "draconic beings only" rule.

Perhaps the only non-xenophobic natives are the dragonets (pseudo-dragons, faerie dragons and the like). These creatures are frequently very curious to discover a non-draconic creature, since they are so rare.

The interior of Lindrac is lit by a small size A cubic fireworld called Lunoro. Only three of the six sides actually are lit, the other three inert. The inner sun rotates, creating a night and day effect.

Cordaji: Type C spherical earth world. Cordaji is the solitary moon of Lindrac. It orbits the voidworld in a standard circular orbit, with a period of 20 days. Dracons and kobolds operate several spelljamming ports, and other draconic races also have settlements on the moon, and the moon has a variety of other life. Outside visitors are welcome, and Cordaji serves as a relatively safe haven and stopover for many travelers. Cordaji serves as a gateway for goods that the dragons of Lindrac may need, as well as a way to hear about potential threats.

Cordaji is secretly governed by a ruling council consisting of a quartet of dragons: one metallic, one chromatic, one gemstone dragon, and one of any other type. The actual members of the ruling council rotate each Lindrac-year. The rulers rarely take action unless the safety and security of Lindrac are threatened.


Krensar

Type F air world, octahedrally shaped (like a d8)
Distance From Primary: 1000 million miles
Orbital Direction: Fixed
Day Length: 96 hours
Year Length: N/A
Satellites: 8: Bytsegai, Chendryl, Fescar, Nempeh, Phimogo, Quassim, Shahag, Velamos
Population: Krensar: ???; moons: various

Also known as the Diamond Nebula, Krensar is visually impressive, as its color varies from space. It glows, with its color varying randomly, but always appearing a uniform color. Krensar is frequently used by spelljammers as a rendezvous. The air seems very clean and crisp. Krensar does not orbit the sun, but is fixed along a line from the sun to where the Dancers ascend through the orbital plane of the other planets. It is mostly gaseous, but there are floating chunks of rock, drifting trees, and other solid material which can be found within the nebula.

Most spelljamming vessels avoid intruding too deeply into Krensar's interior. Except for the outer 10 miles of the atmosphere, the entire nebula is a very potent wild magic zone. For every 100 miles inside Krensar, there is a cumulative 1 in 20 chance that wild surges will occur when any being casts a spell or spell effect. Once a character gets over 2000 miles inside Krensar, wild surges occur with every spell, and other random magical effects begin to occur with increasing probability.

Krensar is translucent to strong light. Light from Hasaril, Phaeris, or the Dancers can be seen through the diamond nebula. However, the light from these bodies is color-shifted, showing different colors at different times. Whenever Ganae, Krensar, and the Dancers line up, Ganae astrologers place a great deal of significance on the event.

Krensar is mainly inhabited by small avian creatures. The birds of Krensar do possess legs, which they use to perch on the occasional stray bits of floating matter. Many varieties of avians exhibit magical properties and abilities. The known life of Krensar typically remains at the upper altitudes, though some spacefarers tell of larger creatures dwelling within Krensar that are either immune to magic or can control the potent wild magic to devastating effect. Some of the creatures frequently encountered Krensar are spellweavers and fihyr

Krensar has eight small moons. These moons each follow erratic orbits, spending half of their time over one of Krensar's faces, and then moving along a random path during the other part of their cycle. Most of the moons have small civilizations, and are aware of spelljamming. The various moons feud with each other, and visiting spelljammers can get drawn into their conflicts.

Bytsegai: type B spherical earth world. While Fescar is the most dangerous of Krensar's moons, Bytsegai is also hazardous, primarily because of its inhabitants. Bytsegai is inhabited by several extraplanar races, who maintain a bizarre truce. A group of tanar'ri form the small but potent navy of the moon. A large squadron of modrons led by a rogue nonaton maintain the facilities and repair ships. A small clan of dao mine ore and acquire other resources. A few other races also have roles. How this bizarre mix of creatures came to the moon is a mystery - one persistent rumor is that a demigod actually rules the moon. The moon seems to have a normalizing influence on its inhabitants - the tanar'ri are not quite as savage as their brethren in the Abyss.

Teleportation magics are blocked on or near Bytsegai. Additionally, the creatures cannot easily return to their home plane for some reason. Rumors persist of gates which could return the inhabitants to their home, which keeps the various races constantly searching the small moon. While most of the outsiders feel uneasy about wildspace, a few have embraced spelljamming. One such group, a band of tanar'ri led by a vrock with a sardonic love of irony, now command a swanship called The Elegant Swan, and prey upon other ships in the system.

Chendryl: type C spherical earth (live?) world. Chendryl is the most beautiful of the moons of Krensar, perhaps the most beautiful place in the sphere. The moon is an extensive network of foliage, flowering bushes and trees, growing out of the ground. The air is very fresh and filled with pleasant aromas. Some believe that the bushes and trees are all interconnected, forming one gestalt plant entity. Others consider Chendryl simply an earth world with abundant plant life.

Chendryl is home to many fey creatures. They care for their world, and tend to its needs. The local fey are generally friendly to visitors, and many travelers do not wish to leave this paradise. Of course, the fey of Chendryl defend their moon from the forces of the other moons; what they lack in martial prowess, they make up in dedication - not to mention a large number of visitors volunteering.

Fescar: type B spherical fire world. The smallest of Belagin's moons, Fescar is an irregularity among fire worlds. While many fire worlds include floating islands of metal or earth, Fescar actually includes a few stable islands of ice. The largest of these is about a mile in diameter. Powerful atmospheric storms are caused by interactions along the border between the super-heated sun and the ice islands, generating ferocious thunder and lightning. Not only do visitors have to deal with fire damage, they also must content with a turbulent photosphere complete with lightning, thunder, and regions of cold.

Fescar is uninhabited. It is avoided by most of the inhabitants of the system, because of its irregularity. Even the other moon civilizations avoid the ferocious little fire body.

Nempeh: type B regular earth world. Nempeh is shaped like a great icosahedron - a regular stellated polyhedron. It is primarily composed of crystal, rather than earth. The creatures of the moon are primarily crystalline as well. They rarely engage in combat with any of the other moons, but demonstrate uncanny tactics and skill when they do. Their ships are primarily crystalline as well. The Elven Imperial Navy has tried to establish a relationship with the inhabitants, with little success.

Phimogo: type B elliptical air world. Most of the time, Phimogo appears as an ovoid of shimmering clouds; the cloud cover completely encloses the interior of the moon. Inside the cloud cover are a few floating land and water masses. One of the land masses has been colonized by (non-tinker) gnomes; they have several gnomish whelks available. The moon is ruled by an enigmatic group of powerful beings known as manushya. The manushya act like feudal lords; each pursuing individual agendas. The exact nature of this group of beings is not known, as their appearance seems to vary. The gnomes and manushya are allied, and support each other in the ongoing inter-moon feuds.

The skies of Phimogo are usually fairly calm. Intense storms are unknown, though rainbows are frequent. Phimogo is something of a mystery - at times, it seems to disappear, or even resemble one of the other moons.

Quassim: type C spherical water world. One of the larger moons of Krensar, Quassim includes a variety of life. Quassim has a number of floating land masses, each up to several miles across.

Plasmoids are one of the dominant races on Quassim, operating an open spelljamming port. The waters of Quassim are dominated by selkies and aquatic hengeyoki. Such shapechanging creatures are common on Quassim. Almost all native life is either amorphous or has multiple forms. Visitors wonder what they are dealing with at any time.

The moon is generally friendly to visitors though, and a visiting spelljammer can reprovision and rest here easily. The most frequent threat is from seawolves, who roam the waters in packs.

Shahag: type B spherical layered earth world. Shahag is a dense, rocky moon, with a thin atmosphere. Its surface is mostly smooth, except for a few irregular formations. In fact, the surface of the world is only 2 miles thick. Inside is a gap of air of about a mile, and then a second surface resembling the first. This pattern continues throughout the moon - there are at least 10 layers, all perfectly nestled within one another like an onion.

Dwarves are the primary inhabitants of Shahag. They are highly insular, rarely venturing away from their moon. They will drive any perceived threat away with overwhelming force. The dwarves mine mithril and adamantite from the moon, and use it to bolster their defenses. They operate small spelljamming ships for defense and travel between the layers of the moon, using hidden mazes of passages to move the small ships through the rocky crust. These ships are usually mithril-plated, and bristling with armaments.

Velamos: type B earth cluster. It is believed that Velamos was once a flat earth world, but was shattered during one of the various battles between the moons. The remnants are largely inhabited by undead, ruled by a powerful lich. The lich is said to be incredibly powerful, and so old that it has forgotten its former race and gender. Velamos has a moderately large fleet of ships crewed by undead sailors, some of which scout the materials near the stars of the crystal shell. Gith pirates are also common within the Velamos cluster.


Aeslir

Type D flat water body
Distance From Primary: 1600 million miles
Orbital Direction: Counter-clockwise
Day Length: N/A (24 hour rotation period)
Year Length: 13500 standard days
Satellites: Falagos Cluster
Population: Humans, uldra, darfellans, other arctic races

The planet is always perpendicular to the sun, so it is always "face on", rolling like a wheel in its orbit. Because of the extreme distance from the sun, Aeslir is a cold world. The sunward side is made up of cool fresh water, and the other side has many icebergs and sheets of ice. Many of the hardy aquatic inhabitants make caves in the underside of the ice (as if it were the bottom of the seas, since in one sense it is). There are several small floating land masses, generally believed to be one of the Falagos that has fallen into Aeslir. Their general roughness would seem to support that theory.

There are a few rugged human colonies which make a living on the sunward side of Aeslir. These settlements are composed of northmen who have been transplanted here. Most of the northmen live on one of their ships, as the few rocks which are large enough are used to raise food crops. The northmen still live on their ships, transplanted here over a century ago. A few of the longships are capable of spelljamming, and will occasionally launch forays and raids into space. This raiding is a major source of income to the northmen who have adopted Aeslir as their home.

Other inhabitants of Aeslir include furchin halflings, uldra and darfellans. The dohwar maintain several ports on the dark side

On the dark side, the world is in twilight. Enough light filters through the water and ice to provide some small illumination. Living on the ice are various normal arctic creatures (polar bears, seals, walruses, penguins, etc.). Yetis are a common hazard of the iceward side, and a few white dragons also claim territory on Aeslir.

Falagos: type A earth cluster. Aeslir has a small cluster of asteroids in a tight orbit around it. These asteroids, known as the Falagos, are mostly composed of small (type A) bodies and smaller rocks. These orbit in the same plane that the planet itself occupies, so an observer at the center of the disc may not see the cluster.

More information on Aeslir and the Falagos


The Strinads (commonly known as the Dancers)

Fire body cluster of type D
Distance From Primary: 1800 million miles
Orbital Direction: Mostly vertical
Day Length: N/A
Year Length: 4500 standard days
Satellites: Varies
Population: None known

The Strinads are a group of eight fire-bodies, each of size D. The dancers orbit in a band roughly perpendicular to the rest of the bodies in the system. As they revolve around the central sun, the dancers pursue many small sub-orbits, with the motions seemingly following a very complex "dance". The central-most follows a fairly circular orbit, with all other stars orbiting around it. The overall view of the dancers is very beautiful, as flares from one star are frequently captured by another. The dancers each burn a different color, and have individual names as well:

The distance across the cluster of fire bodies that make up the Strinads is large. The Strinads can be seen individually from most of the planets of the system. Furthermore, their dance - their rotation - can also be seen by sharp-eyed individuals. This means that the individual fire bodies travel very fast in their dance. Ships are warned to stay well away from them. While the Strinads are beautiful to watch, they are best viewed from a significant distance.

At present, Nadliarr is in the center of the dancers. However, some records from over 5000 years ago indicate that this was not always the case. Explorers on the ice-ward side of Aeslir have found a star-chart within an the wreckage of an ancient spelljamming ship. This planetary map indicated that at the time the star chart was made, Nadsayr was in the center of the cluster. Since the central dancer follows the circular path with the others around it, several sages believe that something significant happened in the region of the dancers to cause them to re-orient.

In addition, the Dancers usually have several small moonlets of matter orbiting within the group of fire-bodies. These moonlets are typically of pure elemental matter, and are believed to originate from the various flow-stars. The moonlets apparently decay or are absorbed by the Strinads, as they seldom last more than a few cycles. The moonlets do not have any true residents.


Other bodies of interest

Protoworlds

At the top and bottom of the sphere, near where the Dancers reach their senith and nadir, are two small worldlets. These worldlets are uninhabited, and do not appear on most star charts. The existence of these worldlets is not widely known; the elven admiral of the sphere has stated that the worldlets were not there 100 years ago, when he took command of the Elven Imperial Navy forces within Gatespace.

The worldlet at the top of the sphere, dubbed Honel, is a small water world of size C. It has several small islands, and the surface is covered with silt. The atmosphere is hazy and hard to breathe. The worldlet at the bottom of the sphere, dubbed Neji, is an air world of size D, which has several floating bodies of water, and a few mud-masses. The air of Neji glows faintly.

Reigar and mercane have both been seen in the proximity of these worldlets. Whether either race is responsible for the worldlets' formation, or whether they are as baffled by their presence, is unknown.

Black Diamond Sargasso

Directly opposite the sun from Krensar is the Black Diamond Sargasso. It lies exactly at the same distance from the sun as Krensar. While spacefarers have yet to determine if the sargasso is actually shaped like a diamond (e.g., an octahedron like Krensar), popular spacefarer tales paint the sargasso as an "anti-Krensar". The sargasso is considerably larger than Krensar itself, and any spacefarer that has attempted to chart its size has failed. The Black Diamond Sargasso evidently has other dangers in addition to the sargasso itself - many explorers who prepare themselves for the dangers of a sargasso still fail to return.

More Worlds to Explore

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