Monday, 23 November 2020

The Spheres in their Courses Above

There are few astronomers on Terafa, but those who do exist have charted the other planets that orbit the suns of that world. In addition to Terafa and the Suns, they have identified five planetary bodies, most of which are associated with greater gods of the Unbalanced Pantheon:

The Twins: At the centre of the system lie the two suns around which everything orbits. These are two spheres of fire, one larger and more constant, the other brighter but fickle.

Thought: The smallest and newest of the spheres, Thought is a relatively tiny, burnt cinder of a world. Its proximity to The Twins must surely mean that nothing could survive on this world. As such, it is closely aligned with the element of earth, in its least hospitable incarnation.

Terafa: Unaligned with any particular element, Terafa is a lush, green sphere that is the home to multitudes of beings. Terafa has two moons (now!) - Melira and Kalis.

The Shield: A thin ring of rocks of all sorts, the Shield is a belt of asteroids that is believed to protect Terafa from the greater dangers the lie beyond.

Naris: In many ways a near copy of Terafa, Naris is another sphere unaligned with any particular element. It is a lush, green shere, that is also home to much life. Transit between Naris and Terafa is exceedingly rare, but not entirely unknown. As a rule, inhabitants of Terafa consider those from Naris to be harsh, impolite, and arrogant; while those from Naris consider inhabitants of Terafa to be absurdly innocent and optimistic. Perhaps curiously, the people of Naris worship entirely different gods to those observed on Terafa, and yet respect the same planetary names. Naris has a single moon.

Klos: A giant green sphere, Klos is aligned with the element of air. It is a stately figure in the heavens, progressing through the night sky in a calm, untroubled progression. Klos has a multitude of moons, some of which may support life similar to that on Terafa and Naris.

Choriam: The largest of the planets, Choriam is also the brightest thing in the night sky other than the two moons. A huge red sphere, Choriam is aligned closely with the element of air. Choriam has many moons, but these are devoid of life - the gases that make up the great sphere are poisonous, and taint all its satelites.

Li: Another great sphere aligned with the element of air, Li is a fickle wandered in the skies - at times, she even crosses the orbit of Choriam, becoming closer to Klos for a time. She is a great purple sphere marked with many bands of green, pink, and other bright colours. Li has many moons, but the number is constant - something within the sphere periodically spawns entirely new moons, while others are ejected from her orbit like unwanted children.

Regarding Spelljammer

Terafa (and Naris also) was once the home of a Spelljammer campaign. Consequently, each of the planets has at least some alignment with one of the four classical elements. I'm disinclined to formally place Terafa within a Crystal Sphere in its "Ultimates Version" - not least because my inclination is that it's better only to do that when actually playing a Spelljammer campaign. However, if and when I do run a Spelljammer campaign again (and that's a big 'if'!), it's likely that Narispace will be one of the spheres likely to be visited - I might as well get the benefit of all this work!

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