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| − | {{IF}} | + | {{IF}}{{tocright}} |
| − | = Timeline of the Icarus Fall Setting =
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| − | '''2056''' — Life extension practical on a large scale, earth population decrease slows.
| + | Icarus Fall is a science-fiction setting of the Solar System in 2330, two decades after the collapse of the Dedalus solar-mining project; named Icarus Fall, this disaster shattered inner-system infrastructure and long-held optimism. |
| | | | |
| − | '''2071''' — First successful Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA) mining missions. Initial operations target water and carbonaceous materials.
| + | === Places === |
| | + | * [[First Orbital Zone: Mercury (IF)|First Orbital Zone: Mercury]] ([[Gamemaster First Orbital Zone: Mercury (IF)|GM]]) |
| | + | * [[Second Orbital Zone: Venus (IF)|Second Orbital Zone: Venus]] ([[Gamemaster Second Orbital Zone: Venus (IF)|GM]]) |
| | + | * [[Third Orbital Zone: Terra (IF)|Third Orbital Zone: Terra]] ([[Gamemaster Third Orbital Zone: Terra (IF)|GM]]) |
| | + | * [[Fourth Orbital Zone: Mars (IF)|Fourth Orbital Zone: Mars]] ([[Gamemaster Fourth Orbital Zone: Mars (IF)|GM]]) |
| | + | * [[Fifth Orbital Zone: Asteroid Belt (IF)|Fifth Orbital Zone: Asteroid Belt]] ([[Gamemaster Fifth Orbital Zone: Asteroid Belt (IF)|GM]]) |
| | + | * [[Sixth Orbital Zone: Jovian System (IF)|Sixth Orbital Zone: Jovian System]] ([[Gamemaster Sixth Orbital Zone: Jovian System (IF)|GM]]) |
| | + | * [[Seventh Orbital Zone: Saturnian System (IF)|Seventh Orbital Zone: Saturnian System]] ([[Gamemaster Seventh Orbital Zone: Saturnian System (IF)|GM]]) |
| | + | * [[Adventure Locations (IF)|Adventure Locations]] |
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| − | '''2080''' — Carbon-rich NEAs remain vital for off-Earth industry. The Moon dominates the cislunar economy, but reliance on NEAs continues, especially for carbon.
| + | === Topics === |
| − | | + | * [[Icarus Fall Dictionary (IF)|Icarus Fall Dictionary]] |
| − | '''2102''' — Establishment of a mature cislunar economy. Lunar industry expands significantly. Start of the '''Golden Age''' of rapid advancement and peaceful expansion.
| + | * [[History (IF)|History]] ([[Gamemaster History (IF)|GM]]) |
| − | | + | * [[Culture (IF)|Culture]] ([[Gamemaster Culture (IF)|GM]]) |
| − | '''2130''' — First operational space elevator completed on Waigeo in Indonesia, spearheaded by international cooperation led by Japan. Enables vastly cheaper and more efficient access to cislunar space but soon proves too small and too remote.
| + | * [[Technology (IF)|Technology]] ([[Gamemaster Technology (IF)|GM]]) |
| − | | + | * [[Environments (IF)|Environments]] ([[Gamemaster Environments (IF)|GM]]) |
| − | '''2138''' — Invention of the first practical long-duration ion drive. Drastically increases potential for slow but efficient interplanetary travel. Risks, mainly from radiation, makes adaptation slow.
| + | * [[Spacecraft and Space Warfare (IF)|Spacecraft and Space Warfare]] ([[Gamemaster Spacecraft and Space Warfare (IF)|GM]]) |
| − | | + | * [[Trade (IF)|Trade]] ([[Gamemaster Trade (IF)|GM]]) |
| − | '''2145''' — USA completes its own space elevator on Jarvis Island, focusing on military and commercial cargo transport to orbit.
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| − | '''2155''' — China and ESA finish space elevators on Hainan and São Tomé and Príncipe respectively, expanding global access to orbit and solidifying their roles in the emerging cislunar economy. China begins large scale colonization by ion ship, others strive to catch up.
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| − | '''2168''' — Chinese colonies off-world show a strong bent for independence. Other nations on Earth step in as sponsors, and Chia supports their colonies' independence.
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| − | '''2170''' — Chaotic wave of exploration and early colonization across the solar system. Many ventures fail or are absorbed by larger players.
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| − | | |
| − | '''2210''' — Launch of the Mars Terraforming Initiative. Massive investment from Earth. Described as a symbolic vanity project, but clearly affordable and doable on a long time scale.
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| − | | |
| − | '''2214''' — Second-generation colonies begin. These are launched from space habitats and successful early colonies rather than Earth.
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| − | | |
| − | '''2225''' — Mercury Industrial Boom begins. Night-side and twilight-zone settlements extract rare metals. Heavy investment from solar power harvesting firms.
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| − | | |
| − | '''2245''' — Solar Alchemy Project officially launched and named Dedalus. Ambitious attempt to manipulate solar fusion processes and harvest exotic particles and elements from the solar corona using mega-mirrors and orbital infrastructure.
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| − | '''2265''' — First large-scale practical fusion reactors come online. These installations require exotic materials, including those produced by the Solar Alchemy Project. Initially limited to major orbital platforms and high-priority installations.
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| − | '''2270''' — Climate stabilization efforts on Earth complete. Massive orbital mirrors and solar shades contribute, in coordination with asteroid carbon capture systems. Emigration from Earth slows down.
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| − | '''2285''' — Solar Alchemy Project achieves breakthrough in exotic matter synthesis. These are strategic materials for fusion power and other specialized uses.
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| − | '''2290''' — Compact fusion reactors become viable for shipboard use but remain resource-intensive. Rare materials keep production limited to powerful states and megacorps.
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| − | '''2310''' — '''Daedalus Fall''': Catastrophic failure of the Solar Alchemy Project ends the '''Golden Age'''. Solar instability increases dramatically. Solar storms wreak havoc from Mercury to the Asteroid Belt. Massive losses in orbital infrastructure across the inner system, including the loss of all except the small Japanese space elevator. Earth prestige plummets.
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| − | '''2310–2312''' — Disaster years - all energies focused on saving lives and rebuilding things that have been lost.
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| − | | |
| − | '''2312–2350''' — Widespread fragmentation of political and economic control. Colonies become de facto independent. Earth remains population center but loses coercive power. Apocalyptic cults and radical ideologies emerge.
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| − | '''2315–2330''' — Rise of the '''Earth First''' movement. Following the Daedalus Fall, anti-space sentiment surges on Earth. The new Earth government calls for a rollback of space colonization and demands that colonies devolve and re-integrate. Most colonies ignore these edicts, accelerating Earth's loss of influence.
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| − | '''2335''' — Formation of '''Earthforce''', a militarized enforcement arm of the Earth government, intended to police and control off-world colonies. Cislunar stations and parts of the Moon are occupied. Colonies rapidly militarize in response using local 3D-printed weapons. Skirmishes erupt.
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| − | '''2340''' — Fusion reactor designs no longer require rare materials. Decentralized manufacturing using advanced 3D-printing enables proliferation of cottage-industry fusion tech. Fusion-powered ships and habitats become common across the lawless outer system.
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| − | '''"Now" (Setting Present Day, \~2450)''' — Earth is still the most populated region but now heavily reliant on trade with self-sufficient colonies. Exploration and recovery efforts continue in Mercury ruins and abandoned solar orbit structures. High radiation limits drone use, pushing humans into dangerous salvage and diplomacy roles.
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| − | | |
| − | == Adventure Seeds == | |
| − | * Abandoned mining base at an NEA. Small, rapidly rotating cylinder with high gravity gradient. Survivors abandoned in evacuation, xenophobic and radiation-scarred. | |
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| − | * Old base on Mercury’s dark side. Searching for data on surviving parts of Solar Alchemy project. Hazards: static electric charges in metals, seismic fissures, over-pressured living quarters holding plasma from Daedalus Fall.
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| − | * Using telemetry from previous mission to chase down a part of Solar Alchemy harvesting array and its exotic matter.
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| − | * Various space habitats governed by exotic dogma.
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| − | * Linear accelerator launching post-human pilots at very high velocities.
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| − | * '''The Ghost That Burns''' — Long-range telescopes detect a faint gamma-ray source on a hyperbolic path through the system. Spectral anomalies suggest the object may be composed entirely of antimatter, annihilating in flashes when struck by cosmic dust. It will pass through the Belt in weeks before vanishing into deep space. Multiple factions want a sample, proof, or its destruction. Interception is extraordinarily dangerous: any dust from a ship could trigger surface explosions, altering its trajectory unpredictably — or shattering it into a lethal cloud of antimatter particles. Even more perilous, a ship’s own engine plume could cause annihilation on contact, making direct braking approaches suicidal. To match trajectories without disaster, the crew must execute a long, fuel-hungry offset approach, coasting in on minimal thrust while expert systems track its erratic motion.
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| − | = Icarus Fall's Solar System =
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| − | | |
| − | * [[Asteroid Belt (IF)|Fifth Orbit: Asteroid Belt]] | |
| − | | |
| − | == First Orbit: Mercury ==
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| − | Former mining colony destroyed by Icarus Fall.
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| − | | |
| − | Mercury hosted an industrial boom starting around 2225, focusing on night-side and twilight-zone settlements mining rare metals. Ruins of the old Solar Alchemy Project — including dangerous plasma containment chambers and wrecked magnetic launch infrastructure — remain as hazardous salvage sites. Ruins of extensive solar power generators are common in the twilight zone and make orbital hazards.
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| − | Mercury weathered the Fall unexpectedly well, but it was still a major disaster.
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| − | Rumors let many people escape into the shadow of the planet's dark side.
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| − | Much work back then was done remotely from habitats or bases on mercury itself in a way that is impossible today.
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| − | Still all solar infrastructure, both in space and in the twilight zone, was destroyed.
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| − | Countless humans perished, well over half the population, and many of those who survived got psychological scars.
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| − | Many were evacuated back to Earth.
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| − | The present population is a mix of survivors and their descendent who remained to maintain and repair what could be salvaged, and adventurers, often from the Belt, here to score big on salvage.
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| − | The planet’s most important infrastructure before the Fall was a human-rated magnetic accelerator capable of launching people and cargo directly into solar orbit. This massive installation was destroyed during the Fall, but enough was salvageable to reconstruct a shorter, cargo-only launcher. The rebuilt version can send 5–10 tons per shot into low Mercury orbit every few hours, feeding a “twilight station” depot in a low polar orbit that stays in Mercury’s shadow.
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| − | This is not enough to be a major export, but specific orders can be fired directly into orbits that can be harvested from orbits near the Sun.
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| − | Tugs constantly work to keep loads on station and deliver loads to customers in orbit of Mercury. It is well-known that some tugs will occasionally ''lose'' a load to a solar storm and sell it without registry or questions.
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| − | Sunward zone on Mercury reaches 700 K+ (about 430 °C) with molten metal flows, constant solar wind bombardment, and extreme radiation. Twilight zone is cooler, 250–350 K (–20 to 80 °C), still harsh but more manageable, and hosts most current settlements. Both require extreme engineering to survive thermal stress, radiation, and seismic instability. The molten metals of the sunward side are used for exotic industry and occasionally as natural hazards in adventure sites.
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| − | Nearby asteroids and debris orbiting in solar orbits close to Mercury include volatile fragments from the Solar Alchemy disaster, valuable but hazardous for explorers.
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| − | | |
| − | == Second Orbit: Venus ==
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| − | Venus is a world of extremes, locked in a slow, strange dance with the Sun. Its day lasts longer than its year, creating long periods of relentless sunlight followed by equally long darkness. The atmosphere grows denser and hotter closer to the surface, crushing and toxic, dominated by thick clouds of sulfuric acid. This hostile environment shapes every aspect of life and technology, forcing colonies to cling to the high-altitude cloud layer where pressure and temperature become marginally more forgiving, and where survival depends on constant adaptation to a volatile, alien sky.
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| − | Venus colonization pre-Daedalus Fall consisted mainly of floating cities high in the atmosphere (50–60 km), where pressure and temperature are Earth-like. These cities hosted advanced biotech research and limited bio-industry, exploiting Venus’ extreme environment as a natural lab.
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| − | The dense atmosphere below provides strong shielding from radiation, allowing radio and other electromagnetic signals to travel downwards from cloud cities to the surface and lower layers. This makes Venus one of the few places in the inner system where exploration drones can work. However, ships orbiting above the atmosphere can not reliably use electronic sensors looking down, nor can the cities effectively scan upward into space. This creates a natural electromagnetic “blind spot” between space and the cloud layer.
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| − | After Daedalus Fall, many surface and lower atmosphere installations were lost or abandoned. When Earth ordered colonies to devolve after Daedalus Fall, Venus was one of the few places that did move back to Earth as available transport permitted, but some were left behind as there was a lack of ships. Some cloud cities survived, continuing limited research and habitation amid harsh conditions and fragmented infrastructure.
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| − | Venus today features only a few surviving high-altitude cloud cities, isolated and fragile amid ongoing solar storms and atmospheric turbulence. Surface and lower atmosphere bases largely failed or were abandoned, with colonists forced back to Earth due to unsustainable conditions.
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| − | Adventure locations include drifting, possibly derelict cloud bases — some frozen in place by persistent storm eyes — offering exploration into lost biotech research and remnants of the Solar Alchemy exotic material efforts.
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| − | A unique bioengineered membrane layer may exist below the cloud cities, stabilized by a sharp thermal inversion and specialized plants or biotech. This layer could be dense, hot, acidic, and toxic beneath but have an Earth-like atmosphere on top, forming a semi-solid floating platform strong enough to walk on or build upon. It’s an exotic ecosystem and an intriguing frontier for research, survival, and conflict.
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| − | | |
| − | == Space Habitats ==
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| − | From cislunar space outward, space habitats are the dominant human living spaces. These are rotating cylindrical stations in stable orbits — usually at Lagrange points or in heliocentric drift. Artificial gravity comes from spin: the farther from the central axis, the stronger the gravity. People live on the interior of the rotating tube, often in stacked levels. Spacecraft dock at the zero-G ends.
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| − | Habitats are built from the center outward. "Down" means toward the hull. A glowing central light tube provides illumination, supports plant growth, and doubles as a transit tunnel for rapid movement along the station’s length. The outermost interior layer holds parks, farms, and elite estates. Below that are habitation levels, then industry, then the bottom layers: warehouses, water tanks, and radiation shielding. In poor habitats, slums cling to the shell — where gravity is highest, shielding thinnest, and life harshest.
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| − | Larger habitats can afford to spin slowly, making Earthlike gravity stable and comfortable. Smaller ones must spin faster, causing steep gravity gradients and disorienting motion — dropped objects curve unpredictably as the habitat rotates beneath them. In large, safe habitats, gliding from the zero-G center is a popular sport.
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| − | Here are examples of typical habitats and their living conditions.
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| − | Small ones are harsh. Large ones support leisure and autonomy.
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| − | There are exceptions — but this is the usual pattern.
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| − | '''200-meter diameter, 1,200 meters long'''
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| − | : 3.0 RPM, 2.0 G at hull
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| − | : 750,000 m² living space
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| − | : Population: ~25,000 up to 100,000
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| − | Vertigo is constant. Gravity gradients are extreme. Survival depends on repression or fanaticism. Many such settlements cram people much tighter to house more workers, lower levels are barely usable, especially not for habitation. The earliest habitats were like this, held together by dedication to the cause of colonization.
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| − | '''400-meter diameter, 1,400 meters long'''
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| − | : 2.2 RPM, 1.5 G at hull
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| − | : 1.8 million m² living space
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| − | : Population: ~60,000
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| − | Still unpleasant. Gravity is tolerable, but vertigo remains common. The smallest model that can sustain a society. Slums likely. Low quality of life.
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| − | '''600-meter diameter, 1,600 meters long'''
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| − | : 1.8 RPM, 1.3 G at hull
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| − | : 3 million m² living space
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| − | : Population: ~100,000
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| − | Livable. Most residents have a decent life. Gravity is only mildly uncomfortable. Slums exist, but there’s room for stability and choice.
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| − | '''1,000-meter diameter, 2,000 meters long'''
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| − | : 1.3 RPM, 1.2 G at hull
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| − | : 6 million m² living space
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| − | : Population: ~200,000
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| − | Comfortable and affluent. If slums exist, they are maintained by policy, not necessity. Life is good unless the regime is harsh.
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| − | '''1,600-meter diameter, 2,600 meters long'''
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| − | : 1.0 RPM, 1.12 G at hull
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| − | : 13 million m² living space
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| − | : Population: ~400,000
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| − | Spacious and stable. Gravity differences are gentle. Inequality is political, not structural. Open cultures thrive here.
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| − | '''2,000-meter diameter, 3,000 meters long'''
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| − | : 0.85 RPM, 1.1 G at hull
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| − | : 20 million m² living space
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| − | : Population: ~600,000
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| − | Opulent. Large, slow-spinning, and easy to manage. Most inhabitants live in comfort.
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| − | Smaller habitats focus on resource extraction.
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| − | Mid-sized ones support industry.
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| − | Large ones host researchers, merchants, and middle-class life.
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| − | All habitats have managers who rule and control resources.
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| − | | |
| − | A habitat can always be made shorter with only a proportional loss of size and population, preserving comfort but potentially making it less economically viable.
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| − | Longer habitats can also be built, with increased risk of structural instability.
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| − | There’s no hard line between a habitat and a large spaceship. Most are stationary, but some mount ion drives for slow migration or repositioning.
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| − | These are often short wide habitat rings connected to vast cargo arrays that do not rotate and remain in zero-G.
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| − | Many habitats become self-sufficent city-states over time. Their isolation make them perfect for cults — religious, political, or corporate. Whoever controls the air, water, and access to zero-G controls everything.
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| − | Other habitats embrace openness. Some cluster in chains, sharing transit and infrastructure. These tend to be prosperous, and diverse.
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| − | '''Building Space Habitats'''
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| − | Building a space habitat is relatively easy — just gather materials and 3D-print the structure. The hardest resource to source is carbon, needed for the biotope on the top level. Without enough carbon, soil is shallow or absent, stunting plant growth and removing the environment's natural stress relief. Many spacers would kill for carbon if their habitat is running low.
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| − | '''Space Habitat Terrain'''
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| − | Habitats present terrain unlike either gravity or microgravity.
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| − | As long as you're standing on the inner surface or floating near the center, things behave predictably. But with spin-induced gravity and confusing flight dynamics, two terrain types are unique to rotating space habitats:
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| − | The first is the central zero-gravity region.
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| − | From here, you can jump to nearly any point on the inner surface — if your aim and braking are good. Get it wrong, and you’ll either drift helplessly or slam into the wrong spot.
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| − | The second is the outer hull.
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| − | Gravity here seems to pull away from the hull, but if you let go, you’re flung along a tangent — not straight out. As you approach the hull, it slides sideways beneath you, making it hard to grab hold. Staying close requires constant acceleration toward the surface.
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| − | This is why many Jovian personal vehicles are humanoid in form, equipped with magnetic or grappling feet to stay anchored on the outside of a habitat.
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| − | | |
| − | == Third Orbit: Terra ==
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| − | In modern usage, ''Terra'' refers to the region of space near Earth’s orbit, while ''Earth'' refers specifically to the planet.
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| − | === Earth ===
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| − | === Cislunar Space ===
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| − | Cislunar space is a cluttered, hazardous frontier shaped by decades of expansion, conflict, and the aftermath of Icarus Fall. The orbital environment around Earth and the Moon is choked with debris and derelict satellites, creating a dangerous “Kepler syndrome” that complicates navigation and transit. Most tiny objects have burned up by now, making previously inaccessible areas merely dangerous — still far from safe. Cylinder habitats and stations cluster around Earth, the Moon, and their Lagrange points, but many have fallen into disrepair or abandonment following the solar catastrophe.
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| − | The congested debris fields and damaged infrastructure of cislunar space create unique adventure zones. Smugglers and runners use risky passages through the junk fields to bypass patrols and cut time, but insurance companies aggressively deny claims tied to these routes. Salvage hunting remains profitable but lethal; most easy targets were stripped clean decades ago, leaving only hazardous, heavily contested wrecks. Intelligence on salvageable sites and hidden hazards is highly valuable — espionage, sabotage, and information warfare are staples of cislunar intrigue.
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| − | === Luna ===
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| − | The Moon is politically and culturally fractured. Control is split between Earth-based powers, independent settlements, and external factions from the Belt and Jovian space.
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| − | Earthforce maintains tight control on imports and exports, particularly cargoes that could potentially be weaponized to hit Earth — this happened when Earthforce first seized control of cislunar space and they are determined to prevent a repeat.
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| − | Moon gravity remains a constant health problem: some cities rely on rotating structures to simulate Earth-like conditions; others use genetic engineering to adapt the human body. These differing approaches have hardened into cultural divisions between habitats.
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| − | Luna’s main exports are metals, silicates (for electronics), oxygen (for air and propellant), and hydrogen — as reaction mass and the fusion fuels deuterium and tritium. What the Moon lacks is carbon. Biochemicals must be imported and meticulously recycled. It's considered rude to eat and not use the restroom.
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| − | Early colonies began in lava tubes and expanded through excavation mining, controlled by large entities with heavy machinery.
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| − | Regolith mining on the surface is something else: dangerous, dirty, small scale, and mostly handled by independent crews — tough, low-gravity–adapted, and defiant. Derisively called “farmers,” they resist corporate and Earth control, making them central to black markets, sabotage ops, and pro-Luna movements. They despise fixed-price contracts and prefer to deal with outsiders and smugglers.
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| − | The most heavily guarded sites on the surface are the magnetic accelerators that launch cargo and passengers offworld. In the boom before Icarus Fall, dozens of rails formed the backbone of the cislunar economy, shipping thousands of tons per day and making possible both Earth’s climate recovery and the colonization of the solar system. Today, only four major long-range accelerators remain in service with many more in ruins.
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| − | * '''Silver Spoke''' – 50 km passenger-rated launcher to lunar orbit, marketed to tourism and prestige travel. Can only run at low Gs. | |
| − | * '''Blue Horizon''' – 50 km passenger-rated launcher to lunar orbit, handling most commercial passenger traffic. Can potentially ship cargo out of Luna's gravity well but is monitored to prevent this.
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| − | * '''Esperance''' – 30 km Earthforce-controlled cargo rail capable of launching heavy loads past lunar orbit to Earth or interplanetary trajectories.
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| − | * '''Iron Lance''' – 25 km launcher officially rated for cargo to orbit, but capable of high-G launches to Earth and used for passenger smuggling. Operated by “farmer” syndicates and small traders, it is a known hub for black-market dealings and could be weaponized.
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| − | Dozens of shorter and less secure 15 km rails remain in operation for bulk cargo to lunar orbit. These feed short-haul trade and local industry.
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| − | === Near Earth Asteroids ===
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| − | A near-Earth asteroid is one whose orbit keeps it near Earth’s distance from the Sun for most of its path. They are not “close” in the sense the Moon is — early spacecraft took months to reach them, and even with modern ion drives, travel still takes days. The same applies to other asteroids inside the main belt, though those with more eccentric orbits are harder to reach and harvest.
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| − | Resources from near-Earth asteroids were essential to kickstart the cislunar economy, and they remain the inner system’s most important source of carbon. This carbon is found in regolith asteroids — loose collections of space sand and dust. In microgravity, mining regolith directly is inefficient, even dangerous, as most of it drifts off to become dangerous debris. The standard method is to heat the regolith until it gasifies, then collect the released gases for processing.
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| − | Many of these asteroids were eventually mined out, leaving only their hollowed husks and abandoned mining equipment — valuable salvage for later ventures. Some installations may even harbor desperate survivors, overlooked or abandoned during evacuations or simply forgotten in the chaos of the Icarus Fall.
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| − | | |
| − | == Fourth orbit: Mars ==
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| − | ''Mars: An Adventure, Not Just Life.'' <br>
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| − | — Advertising slogan for Mars tourism.
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| − | | |
| − | Mars was an early colonization target, but the lack of unique resources, an atmosphere too thin to use yet too thick to ignore, and no good site for large-scale accelerator launches meant Mars never became a major industrial center. Its surface gravity (~38% of Earth’s) is insufficient for long-term health, so most workers live in nearby rotating habitats that provide full artificial gravity. Terraforming, a vanity project of the Terran golden age, advanced through the 22nd and 23rd centuries, with orbital mirrors boosting temperature and partial polar ice melt. Icarus Fall destroyed most of these systems, halting progress but not reversing it. Mars now lives on borrowed time, seeking to cash in on its partially terraformed environment before it begins to degrade.
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| − | Mars is primarily a destination rather than a home — offering exclusive, high-end tourism rather than mass travel. Wealthy mobile habitats sometimes park in Mars orbit for a season, but otherwise only a few tens of thousands of affluent visitors and a large number of service personnel are planetside at any given time. Mars sells high-society pleasures with minimal regulation: gambling, personal companionship, extreme sports, mock combat, and wilderness expeditions. Radiation from solar storms, cosmic rays, and a thin atmosphere is a constant hazard, but for short stays shielding and shelters keep risks manageable — turning danger itself into an attraction. Medical regulations are lax, you can get many procedures done here that are illegal elsewhere. Long-term habitation depends on advanced medical treatment to repair cell damage. Mars also fuels a lucrative media industry producing shows of high life and sports. The finale in several solar sports leagues are played on Mars. With interplanetary media transfers so expensive, only top-rated productions are worth shipping, and Mars consistently delivers.
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| − | The workforce is a mix of young short-term workers, a genetically adapted minority, and Martian natives who cannot survive in full gravity. Most short-term staff commute from orbital habitats, while infrastructure crews live on the surface. This mix adds both vitality and tension to local culture.
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| − | The most exclusive business on Mars is diplomacy. The planet offers an opulent neutral ground for high-level talks between wealthy states and corporate powers, with a constant undercurrent of spycraft — where defectors, agents, and dignitaries rub shoulders in gilded halls, socializing and conspiring in equal measure. This is all spiced up by valuable data of all kinds, including research from the nearby orbital universities.
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| − | | |
| − | === Near Mars Space ===
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| − | '''Phobos''', Mars’ inner moon, is a rugged space rock in a tight orbit. Its borderline gravity — just high enough that only the strongest leaps can escape — makes it a center for daredevil tourism: extreme parkour, strap-on wing flight, trampoline jumps into orbit, and other sports too dangerous for microgravity. Mars’ only orbital magnetic accelerator is here, handling high-value cargo and tourism. Throughput is limited by Phobos’ size and ultra-low gravity and every launch is in full view, making covert shipments impractical.
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| − | | |
| − | '''Deimos''', the outer moon, is a small, porous regolith asteroid under Earthforce control. Its surface is enclosed in a thin artificial envelope to stabilize loose material during mining, which reflects light well, making Deimos much brighter. Operations supply carbon-rich feedstock for Mars’ biotopes, along with valuable trace metals and industrial lithium deposits — critical for certain high-performance applications. Deep inside, a pre-Fall megaproject still runs, breeding tritium from the moon’s natural lithium reserves. With no accelerator, all output is shipped by spacecraft. Earthforce maintains a nearby naval base in forced Mars orbit to guard the site and to stage military exercises, some timed for visibility from Mars to add to its image of excitement and danger.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Mars orbit is crowded with large, slow-rotating cylinder habitats built for comfort and prestige. Several are universities drawing students from across the system, alongside an Earthforce academy. Sports and exchange programs foster cross-cultural rivalries and friendships, with competitions and duels — sometimes fought in Jovian exosuits — staged as spectacles for tourists.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Both civilian and military students often work in the tourism sector as a rite of passage, even if they are financially independent. Many are drawn into Mars’ high-society circuit as exclusive hosts or companions for wealthy visitors. Cadets in parade dress lend glamour to events, prompting some civilian universities to also adopt formal uniforms. Each year, a few students get lost in the lifestyle and never return to complete their studies.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Lastly, the '''biotope habitats''' — vast orbital stations replicating entire Earth biomes, from savannah to jungle, coral reefs, and primeval forest — offer a different attraction. Founded by the ultra-rich Orchid Crown Foundation as nature preserves, they now admit a limited number of tourists and big game hunters, a policy introduced by central management to capitalize on Mars’ luxury trade. Many of the on-site caretakers and ecologists view this as a betrayal of the foundation’s original mission. Large vertical terrain features like mountains or deep-sea trenches are rare; with uniform gravity a requirement, such habitats need to be be colossal to accommodate any serious height difference.
| |
| − | | |
| − | == Fifth orbit: Asteroid Belt ==
| |
| − | {{IF}}
| |
| − | The Asteroid Belt (often just Belt, sometimes The Rocks or Stone Space) marks the outer edge of the Sun’s dangerous weather. Solar storm effects are rarer here than in Mars orbit, but when they hit, there’s no planetary bulk to hide behind. Belters rely on deep-shielded shelters and storm warning networks to survive.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Politically, Earthforce is the biggest single player, controlling one of the Belt’s major accelerators and backing several corporate mining fleets. Their influence is resented: actual compliance with their rules is low, and most enforcement stops at the gates of their own stations. Belters operate under a consensus democracy, where a meeting over a given issue are announced and those interested enough come to discuss it. Ultimately it is might that decides outcome, but enough consensus is sought and often found to make shows of force exceedingly rare.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Culturally, Belters prize independence. The ideal of the hardy frontier prospector still shapes their identity, even for those living in plush spin habitats. Prospecting is high-stakes work: mapping and claiming a valuable rock an make or break an entire habitat. Rich finds may be worked by the discoverer; lesser ones are sold to big mining firms, who bag and feed the rock into industrial grinders.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Isolationism runs deep. Belter settlements tend to be tight-knit and xenophobic, accepting lone individuals but keeping other crews and communities at arm’s length. This fuels extreme diversity between communes — many are theocratic, ideological, or run as corporate fiefdoms. The Belt is a fertile ground for cults of all stripes.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Major hubs like Vesta, Europa, and Psyche serve as industrial and cultural centers, each with multiple heavy accelerators for moving cargo and feeding smelters. Vesta is the site of the colonial administration from Earth, Europa is the de facto capital, both are warrens of tunnels and domes supporting trade, manufacturing, and a volatile mix of cultures. Smaller stations cluster near rich resource zones, often around captured asteroids already half-dismantled by mining.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Standard Belter Community ===
| |
| − | Most Belters live in free-floating cylindrical habitats drifting in heliocentric orbits near mining zones or trade routes. Many hold forced orbits in the shadow of an asteroid. Entire habitats can migrate when needed, using tugs or their own ion drives. Building into an asteroid offers superior radiation and impact protection, but once the rock is mined out there’s little reason to stay.
| |
| − | | |
| − | A typical Belter habitat is a '''400–600 m diameter spin station''' housing 50,000–100,000 people. The standard layout is:
| |
| − | * '''Central axis''' — Zero-G docks and transit hub, with microgravity cargo handling.
| |
| − | * '''Upper decks''' — Workshops, industry, and utilities. Unlike the more common practice of placing industry below the residential ring, Belter stations put it here to better handle the mass of heavy materials traded in low gravity.
| |
| − | * '''Biological ring''' — Farms, parks, and luxury housing, with spin gravity just under 1 g. The upper decks somewhat diminish the open, airy ambience found in the usual bio deck.
| |
| − | * '''Habitation layer''' — Most visitors and residents live here, along with schools, hospitals, and other community services.
| |
| − | * '''Shield layer''' — Water, volatiles, or slag tanks wrapped around the hull for radiation and impact protection. The high gravity and radiation make this undesirable for living, but outcasts and poor outsiders often form slums here.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Belter stations are rugged and self-sufficient: recycling everything, growing food, and refining local ore. Trade brings luxuries, spare parts, and specialist equipment. Governance is usually by council, charter, or corporate board, with cultures ranging from loose and permissive to rigid and doctrinal.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Prospectors often base in habitats like these, heading out for long forays and returning for repairs and recovery. Their money and need for relaxation add a rowdy edge to station life, and tough mining vessels can be pressed into defensive service in an emergency.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Long-term settlers form a clannish core community. Visiting Belters are respected, but this core holds the final say. Outsiders who stay long enough can join, often by marriage, though most never do and instead move on as new opportunities arise.
| |
| − | | |
| − | While this model is common, no two stations are identical. Some run lighter, with minimal spin rings and sprawling zero-G arrays; others go heavier, with deep-shielded core vaults for storm season. A few cling to mined-out rocks as fortified citadels — but most of the Belt’s life is in the drifting cities between them. Social diversity is even greater, with every kind of community thriving in its own habitat. Some maintain an open and welcoming residential base, but insular communities remain more common.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Example Communities ===
| |
| − | | |
| − | * '''Kirov Haven''' — An anarcho-syndicalist commune built into a hollowed carbonaceous asteroid, known for its ship repair yards and hardline refusal of corporate contracts.
| |
| − | * '''Aletheia''' — A theocratic habitat orbiting a small M-type asteroid, governed by a rigid solar-worship calendar.
| |
| − | * '''The Forge of Ishtar''' — A corporate-run mining complex doubling as a fortress, bristling with automated defenses and worker barracks dug deep into nickel-iron.
| |
| − | * '''Free Prospectors’ Guild''' — Nomadic flotillas of prospecting craft, sharing maps and intelligence with members in good standing. The core and mining population are merged; individual new crew are tolerated, but strange ships are not welcome.
| |
| − | * '''Alpha Cluster''' — Appears to follow the pattern of a standard habitat almost too closely, but the core is secretly a cult serving what they think is a General AI.
| |
| − | * '''Tortuga''' — Situated near the Earthforce base on Vesta, Tortuga claims to be a secret pirate hideout to attract visitors, sidelining as a pirate-themed amusement station. Industrial activity centers on shipping, though visitors are told the incoming freighters carry “loot.”
| |
| − | * '''Novaya Rossiya''' — Founded by refugees from Russia on Earth, this community strictly enforces solar, ethni,c and linguistic rules fitting an imagined past.
| |
| − | * '''Furtopia''' — The core population are a furry community, some wearing fur suits, others cybernetically or even genetically modified.
| |
| − | The Belt is noisy with transponder beacons, half-broken claims, drifting hulks, and unregistered rockhoppers. Out here, the line between miner, smuggler, and pirate is thin — and Belters like to keep it that way.
| |
| | | | |
| − | === Asteroid Mining === | + | === Expanded Subjects === |
| | + | * [[Belt Hazards (IF)|Belt Hazards]] |
| | * [[Belters Guide to Asteroid Mining (IF)|Belters Guide to Asteroid Mining]] | | * [[Belters Guide to Asteroid Mining (IF)|Belters Guide to Asteroid Mining]] |
| | + | * [[Bern Orbital (FI)|Bern Orbital]] |
| | + | * [[Degrav (IF)|Degrav]] |
| | + | * [[Earthforce Navy (IF)|Earthforce Navy]] |
| | + | * [[Jovian Government (IF)|Jovian Government]] |
| | + | * [[Learning Neural Control (IF)|Learning Neural Control]] |
| | + | * [[Meteor Kill Chain (IF)|Meteor Kill Chain]] |
| | + | * [[Posthuman Genetic Modifications (IF)|Posthuman Genetic Modifications]] |
| | + | * [[Solar Alchemy (IF)|Solar Alchemy]] |
| | + | * [[Spin Habitats (IF)|Spin Habitats]] |
| | | | |
| − | === Largest Asteroids === | + | === Rules === |
| − | Below are the ten largest bodies in the main belt, with their composition, role in the modern Belt, and notable features.
| + | * [[Icarus Burning]] — Blades in the Dark hack. |
| − | | |
| − | '''Ceres''' — Dwarf planet; carbonaceous icy-rock. Largest body in the Belt and declared a scientific preserve during the Golden Age, bypassed after the Fall when smaller asteroids proved easier to exploit. Rumors persist that its vast interior could hide multiple independent bases, each unaware of the others. Officially, no such activity exists — but occasional sightings of small, harmless Belter enclaves keep the stories alive.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Vesta''' — Differentiated rocky protoplanet. Now an Earthforce stronghold with the largest cargo accelerator in the Belt, used to launch bulk shipments to the inner system. Several mining concerns operate here, and it is a major hub for resupply, repair, and recreation. It offers its Earthborn fortune-seeker clientele cheap pleasures resulting in occasional chaos.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Pallas''' — Carbonaceous silicate. Radius ~256 km. Its irregular shape and inclined orbit make it an awkward mining target. Most operators prefer smaller, more accessible C-types, and Pallas remains underdeveloped apart from a few stubborn independents.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Hygiea''' — Carbonaceous, nearly spherical. Radius ~217 km. Once outcompeted Pallas as a C-type mining site, thanks to fast low-orbit skimming and electrostatic dust collection. Poor debris control turned the surrounding lanes into a micrometeor hazard, leading to slow abandonment. Activity spikes whenever an entrepreneur claims to have a “safe” new extraction method.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Interamnia''' — Primitive rocky/icy (F-type). Radius ~166 km. Once boomed supplying water to Mars, now a rust-belt holdout. Hosts the second-largest Spaceforce presence in the Belt and a smaller accelerator for long-orbit bulk shipments. The decline has left it a hub for black-market trade and speculative cargo ventures.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Europa''' — Carbonaceous (C-type). Radius ~160 km. The largest rock settled entirely by independent Belters, serving as a neutral ground for resolving disputes. Important cases are announced in advance, drawing large crowds. Any Earthforce movement near Europa triggers a congestion of Belter ships who just happen to be testing their mining lasers.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Davida''' — Carbonaceous (C-type). Radius ~147 km. Notable for unusually pure carbon deposits with small, rounded regolith particles. The lack of metal content makes magnetic harvesting useless, and mechanical mining is dangerous. No permanent settlements; desperate or naïve crews sometimes try their luck and end up dead or outlawed.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Psyche''' — Metallic (M-type). Radius ~113 km. Base of Psyche Astro Mining (PAM), an Earth corporation operating outside Earthforce. Better relations with Belters than Earthforce, but still viewed warily. PAM’s paranoia limits Belters to a small, dull enclave with little entertainment. Rumors of hostile takeovers circulate constantly.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Eunomia''' — Silicate (S-type). Radius ~134 km. Rich in stony minerals and metals, but heavily cratered and irregular. Mining is possible but logistically challenging, keeping output modest.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Themis''' — Icy-carbon (C-type with ice). Radius ~100–150 km. Confirmed surface ice and possible subsurface water replenishment make it valuable for water mining. Remote location keeps settlement light.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Travel Hazards in the Belt ===
| |
| − | Contrary to popular image, the Belt is not a crowded minefield of natural asteroids. The rocks are widely spaced, their orbits well-mapped, and their movements predictable. The real dangers are human-made.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Early mining was careless. Unbagged tailings, slag, and regolith dust were ejected into space, where sunlight, outgassing, and small impacts slowly pushed them into unpredictable paths. Partially mined asteroids can tumble irregularly or shed debris, making their motion harder to forecast. Some zones, especially near old accelerators, are thick with abandoned claims, drifting machinery, and forgotten rockhoppers.
| |
| − | | |
| − | The Daedalus Fall destroyed or disabled some solar infrastructure in the Belt, but far less than in the inner system. What it did leave are a scattering of derelict trusses, mirrors, and collector fragments on eccentric orbits — dangerous to approach and harder to track against the background.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Debris density in most of the Belt is low enough that navigation is straightforward with careful observation and up-to-date charts. High-traffic mining regions, however, can form “dirty zones” where constant scanning is necessary. Crews rely on repeated visual sweeps, with expert systems analyzing the images for anything accelerating or on an intercept. Local hazards are well known to residents, but outsiders may be caught unprepared.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Accelerators mounted on asteroids create their own quirks. Each shot imparts a recoil to the host rock, gradually altering its spin or orbit. This is predictable and easily countered with thrusters or launch scheduling, but neglecting station-keeping can turn an accelerator into a slow-moving hazard.
| |
| − | | |
| − | == Sixth Orbit: The Jovians ==
| |
| − | Jupiter dominates the sixth orbit, a vast gas giant whose storms and radiation shape everything around it. No one lives on the planet itself, but its moons and surrounding space host one of the most important civilizations in the system. The four Galilean moons — volcanic Io, ice-shrouded Europa, massive Ganymede, and cratered Callisto — are the heart of Jovian society. Dozens of smaller moons carry outposts and mines, while the planet’s two great Trojan asteroid belts, leading and trailing it in orbit, serve as waystations, depots, and meeting grounds. Together, they form the Jovian system: fortified, industrious, and proud of surviving the Fall intact.
| |
| − | | |
| − | The Jovians weathered the Icarus Fall better than almost anyone. They never relied on solar power, already lived under heavy shielding against Jupiter’s fierce radiation belts, and so when the inner system faltered, the Jovians endured. More than that — they could afford to send aid, and in their eyes that settled all old debts to Earth. To Jovian thinking, they earned independence by survival and sacrifice. Earthforce disagrees, but in the outer system the Jovian view is what matters.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Jovian Society ===
| |
| − | Unlike the socially fragmented Belt, the Jovians share a common culture. Colonies among the moons are close enough for constant travel and trade, and over generations this fostered a strong sense of shared identity. Many early settlers came from Luna, bringing the Lunar ethic of tireless work and communal responsibility. While the Belt fractured into communes and sects, Jovians developed a more unified outlook: proud, industrious, and tightly knit. A few colonies remain under Earth or Belt cultural norms, tolerated as foreign concessions much like treaty ports of old, but never considered truly Jovian.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Work shapes life. Every Jovian is expected to maintain both a vocation in service of the colony and an avocation in service of themselves or their community. The workday divides neatly: four hours for your trade, four hours for your chosen pursuit, whether art, music, education, or public service. This dual ethic keeps society cohesive: a miner might also be a poet, a pilot might serve in a gardening club, and your cab driver could share a debating hall with the local baron. Status comes not only from wealth but from the quality of your contributions to both work and community.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Radiation remains a fact of life. Drones do much of the work, but solar storms and Jupiter’s magnetosphere demand close human oversight. To Jovians, risk is inseparable from reward, and stepping into danger earns respect. They have become masters of shielding, pioneering compact superconducting magnetospheres that supplement traditional armor. These fields cannot keep you safe forever, but they give hours where once you had only minutes. The catch is that they project far beyond the suit, interfering with each other when brought too close. As a result, Jovian workers and warriors operate with enforced spacing — alone, or in loose constellations. This fact of physics helped shape a culture of individual daring, where recognition belongs to those who stand alone in the void.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Jovians live densely. Habitats in the system hold half again as many people as comparable stations elsewhere. Private quarters are small, communal halls and parks are large, and most citizens are accustomed to finding privacy in public spaces rather than behind walls. The result is a society that values connection, ritual, and the shared stage. It is more formal than the Belt, less rigid than Earth — a civilization both pragmatic and proud, conscious of its hard-earned independence and determined to hold it.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Jovian society is layered. The original pioneers, many still alive through life-extension, hold lasting power. Their descendants often call themselves barons, dukes, or counts, adopting the trappings of nobility. Customs vary — some colonies follow strict primogeniture, others scatter titles among a dozen heirs — but in every case, noble houses remain fixtures of local politics. Yet this is not a rigid aristocracy. Guilds of miners, pilots, and engineers wield their own power, and neural pilots — trained from childhood to operate machinery by direct nerve link — hold special prestige. These “knights of the void” combine technical mastery with ritual honor, and are celebrated as much as any baron. Nobility provides continuity, but merit and risk can still raise an outsider to high status.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Jovian Chivalry: Knights of the Void'''
| |
| − | On habitats or inside capital ships, where close quarters make Aegis fields unusable, Jovians rely on conventional arms. But in open space, chivalry and technology fuse. An Aegis is more than survival — it is a badge of status, a halo of honor — and the space between shields defines both tactics and society.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Since two fields cannot safely overlap, Jovian warriors fight alone or in loose constellations, never shoulder to shoulder. Recognition belongs to the one who dares the void in solitary combat. This fostered a knightly code: courage in danger, fairness in duels, and respect for rivals who stand under their own shield.
| |
| − | | |
| − | The elite are the “knights of the void,” neural-linked pilots trained from childhood, often scions of nobility. Their duels are both battle and ceremony, with plasma arcs and auroras flashing where fields collide. Melee is chaos, dangerous to victor and vanquished alike — and thus the highest proof of honor.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Civilian guilds also use Aegis fields and neural links for mining, rescue, and construction. Less prestigious than knights, they are still skilled, and in emergencies quick to fight.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Colonies of the Jovian System ===
| |
| − | Life near Jupiter means living under the rock. The giant’s magnetosphere is so fierce that free-flying habitats, common around Mars or Luna, are impossible here. Instead, Jovian colonies burrow deep, carving artificial spin-gravity rings into ice and stone, wrapped in shielding that makes the surface a place only for work, not for home. Daily life is secure and communal underground; venturing into space is dangerous and rare. This divide gave rise to the glory of the void knights, whose mastery of Aegis fields lets them fight, mine, and build in the deadly open, turning exposure itself into freedom’s badge. Each moon offers its own hazards and resources, shaping colonies that are distinctly Jovian yet bound together by shared peril.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Jovian colonization began with wide-orbit habitats and ships, sending shuttles down for ice, sulfur, and metals. These extraction sites grew into colonies, only to be out-competed when the Trojan swarms opened and proved richer, safer, and easier to mine. Yet distance and transport costs kept the moons relevant: closer to the inner system, already home to larger populations, and specialized in resources only they could provide. Today the moons support industry, science, and culture, while heavy industry sits in free habitats beyond Jupiter’s grip. Each moon has carved out its niche, surviving through focus rather than sheer abundance.
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Io: The Dragon’s Hoard ====
| |
| − | Io is no place to live. The innermost Galilean moon is a volcanic inferno, shaken by quakes and bathed in lethal radiation. Subsurface colonies are impossible, and free habitats cannot survive the belts. Instead, Io became a raiding ground — a land of dragons where danger and treasure are one.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Volcanic plumes loft exotic vapors into the acid atmosphere, where chemistry runs wild. Rare crystals, reflective “sulfur snows,” and volatile sulfide-metal compounds condense, drifting down in radiant, short-lived layers. These cannot be synthesized at such a scale and variety: only Io’s insane mix of heat, pressure, and radiation can forge them in quantity. But they are transient. Every quake, every new eruption threatens to bury, melt, or transmute the prize.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Jovian knights descend in shielded mechs to snatch these fleeting hoards. The wealth feeds niche industries, but the true prize is honor: to survive Io is proof of mastery. Jovian knights descend in shielded craft to seize these hoards before they vanish. To claim a trove is to risk the dragon's fury, and this danger has elevated Io from mine to myth. The wealth feeds niche research and industry, but its true wealth is honor: survival in Io’s fire is proof of mastery.
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Europa: The Moon of Mazes ====
| |
| − | Europa is the Jovian system’s great forbidden laboratory, a maze where science brushes against horror and every dive is a dip into the unknown. Long before the Fall, Earth declared the moon interdicted to preserve its subsurface ocean and prevent contamination of any Europid life. But interdictions mean little to colonists. By the 2180s, independent crews were already drilling through the crust, sending submersible drones into the abyss. Contamination followed — Earth microbes, engineered strains, and human industry mingling with fragile native mats. Earthforce still insists on the ban, but Jovians ignore it and enforcement is impossible.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Native Life'''
| |
| − | * Originally sprawling colonies of simple cells clustered around hydrothermal vents, metabolizing sulfur and metals.
| |
| − | * Over thousands of years, these mats secreted silicate and exotic ices denser than water, creating labyrinthine “reef vaults” on the ocean floor. | |
| − | * After contamination, hybrids appeared:
| |
| − | :* Small motile grazers feeding on the mats.
| |
| − | :* Rare mobile mats drifting like dark carpets or translucent veils.
| |
| − | :* Hybrids are unstable and localized; each unexplored vent may hold something entirely new.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Ice Hazards'''
| |
| − | Radiation makes the open surface lethal; colonists survive by digging into the ice. Even a few dozen meters provides shielding, while deeper caverns give long-term safety and stability.
| |
| − | * Ice mining is limited — bulk ice is cheaper on Callisto — but Europa’s exotic biochemistry keeps scientists, smugglers, and nobles returning.
| |
| − | * Subsurface caverns may trap oxygen from radiolysis, sometimes mixed with sulfur or organics. Normally harmless in vacuum, these pockets can erupt if ignited by thrusters or torches.
| |
| − | * Cryotectonic movement fractures the crust into canyons and twisted, maze-like fissures.
| |
| − | * Exotic ices can have strange optical properties, sometimes transparent to the point of invisibility or acting as natural mirrors and lenses.
| |
| − | * At depths of hundreds of meters or more, exotic ice phases may occur, luring glaciospeleologists into unstable tunnels.
| |
| − | * Ferroelectric ice (Ice XI) sometimes forms in long-sealed ice caves. It is valuable, but can distort radio signals, scramble sensors, and even store dangerous electric charge.
| |
| − | * Aeons of mineral deposition have turned fissures and reef vaults into natural treasure vaults.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Water Hazards'''
| |
| − | Europa’s abyss is as dangerous as its surface. Beneath tens of kilometers of ice, the ocean is held under pressures that dwarf Earth’s deepest trenches. Europa’s ocean is not just dark and alien — it is a place where the very weight of water is an enemy.
| |
| − | * At ~2,000 atmospheres, the pressure is crushing. Human physiology cannot withstand it; even mechs and subs need reinforced hulls. Experimental “liquid breathing” systems exist to survive these depths, but failure means death by crushing or by catastrophic decompression. Drones and posthuman conversions are the safest method of access.
| |
| − | * Any borehole or fissure that opens into this reservoir risks violent blowback: super-pressurized water will surge upward, decompress, and flash to steam, fracturing surrounding ice and entombing or destroying whatever pierced the crust. A full-scale surface geyser from human drilling is unlikely — the ice will choke the breach long before the water reaches the surface — but any submersible, diver, or tunneling rig can be caught and crushed in an instant.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Adventure Hooks'''
| |
| − | * '''The Maze Above''' — Cryotectonic fissures in the ice promise rare deposits. But as explorers push deeper, the ice begins to scream and shift.
| |
| − | * '''The Maze Below''' — A coral-like labyrinth built by native life hides under their mats. Mapping the maze could yield silicate treasures — if explorers survive.
| |
| − | * '''The Forbidden Vent''' — Drilling into a “dead” vent found it crawling with hybrids. Scientists want samples, knights seek honor, and everyone fears what will emerge.
| |
| − | * '''Oxygen Firestorm''' — A stranded crew hides in an ice cavern, unaware it holds a pocket of oxygen and volatile organics trapped by cryotectonic shifts. Normally inert, the mix only becomes explosive if ignited by a fusion thruster or plasma torch — turning the cavern into a brief but deadly inferno.
| |
| − | * '''The Smuggler’s Haul''' — Black-market organics from Europa’s depths are rumored to enhance neural interfaces. Earthforce wants them destroyed, scientists want them preserved, nobles want them monopolized.
| |
| − | * '''The Lost Dome''' — A pre-Fall research station lies buried in ice. Its records may reveal the first contamination site — or worse, what the researchers found.
| |
| − | * '''[[Franz's Plasma Tunneler (IF)|Franz's Plasma Tunneler]]''' — A Jovian inventor wants a live test of his new plasma tunnel rig to “outrun refreeze.” It works for a few hundred meters — then the bore self-chokes, pressure climbs, and the rig starts to freeze into the ice.
| |
| − | | |
| − | = Technology =
| |
| − | Technological development before and after the Icarus Fall followed very different paths. Before the Fall, abundant energy, reliable long-distance communication, and near-universal automation allowed a highly centralized, interconnected civilization. After the Fall, loss of solar collection, collapse of long-range radio, and the end of sail propulsion forced technology into smaller, harder, and more independent forms.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Power ===
| |
| − | Pre-Fall, Luna, Mercury, and high-altitude Venus platforms could rely on abundant solar power, Earth on orbital solar collectors. Vehicles ran on batteries or chemical engines. Post-Fall, with solar collection crippled and power grids fragmented, fusion reactors became the backbone of energy production across the system, with batteries for subsidiary systems like civilian vehicles.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Fusion power is based on fusing isotopes of hydrogen, deuterium (one positron, one neutron) and tritium (one positron, two neutrons). The two dominant reaction types are deuterium–deuterium (D-D) that fuse pairs of deuterium atoms and tritium–deuterium (T-D) that fuse deuterium and tritium. Deuterium is common, found in water ice across the solar system. Tritium is rare in nature due to its 12-year half-life, normally bred from lithium in reactor blankets. Rarity makes tritium a strategic resource in peace and essential in war.
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Deuterium–Deuterium (D-D) Reactors ====
| |
| − | D-D reactors are the workhorses of the post-Fall economy, accounting for roughly 99% of fusion capacity. They are fuel-efficient, can run for years between refueling, and rely on a fuel source abundant on icy moons, comets, and in planetary oceans. Their main drawbacks are high ignition energy requirements and slow startup times — often days to weeks for large plants — making them unsuited to applications where immediate power is needed from a cold start.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Capital ships and major facilities typically mount multiple D-D reactors in parallel, allowing one to be shut down for refueling or maintenance while the others keep the lights on.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Uses include:
| |
| − | * Primary power for all large ships
| |
| − | * Large industrial sites, colonies, and habitats
| |
| − | * Stationary power generation on planets and moons
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Tritium–Deuterium (T-D) Reactors ====
| |
| − | Advances in materials science shortly before the Fall produced rugged, compact T-D units small enough to fit into a mining crawler or a small spacecraft’s engine room. Before the Fall, their high cost kept them rare outside high-value or military roles.
| |
| − | | |
| − | T-D reactors burn hotter, produce more energy per unit mass of fuel, and can be brought online in hours rather than days. They can idle on standby to achieve full capacity in minutes — at the cost of wear and burning a trickle of fuel. They are compact for their output, but inefficient, consuming tritium rapidly and generating heavier neutron flux, especially in small reactors, requiring more shielding and more frequent overhauls. T-D fuel is a strategic commodity.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Because they must be shut down completely for refueling, ships rarely rely on them alone for sustained operations. Instead, they are used for burst-power roles or to jump-start larger D-D plants.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Uses include:
| |
| − | * Power plants for small, high-performance craft such as space fighters
| |
| − | * Burst-power units for artillery ships, point-defense platforms, and energy weapons
| |
| − | * Auxiliary “starter” reactors for bringing large D-D plants online
| |
| − | * Mobile salvage and recovery ships restarting cold-shutdown reactors
| |
| − | * Dedicated yard or wharf facilities for capital ship reactor start-up
| |
| − | | |
| − | Many large installations have a T-D reactor kept cold, to be started in an emergency.
| |
| − | This dual-system approach creates a steady civilian demand for tritium in addition to military needs — keeping breeder facilities strategically valuable even in peacetime.
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Batteries ====
| |
| − | High-temperature superconductors improve many technologies such as lasers and magnetic systems, but are imperfect and do not fully solve the problem of storing large amounts of energy. Superconductor-based batteries can hold large reserves with minimal loss over time, but their peak discharge rate is limited. This only matters under exceptional circumstances — chiefly when batteries must compete with tritium–deuterium (T-D) fusion for peak performance or for mining and exploration craft that need endurance over time.
| |
| − | | |
| − | High-density batteries offer a cheaper, easier-to-source alternative to T-D reactors. They scale at will, reach full power instantly, are quick to recharge from a D-D reactor, and need no exotic fuels. Drawbacks are lower peak output and shorter endurance. Battery-powered craft are significantly cheaper to build and operate, allowing a larger force for the same investment — at the cost of needing more crew, more carrier space, and careful mission planning to avoid running dry.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Comparative Use'''
| |
| − | * '''D-D ships''': Almost all spaceships and large installations, both civilian and military, use D-D fusion reactors.
| |
| − | * '''Battery fighters''': More numerous, suitable for swarm tactics, hit-and-run strikes, operations close to a carrier or base, and boarding. Focused on interceptor roles. Their thrusters are still called fusion rockets — no-one brags about running on batteries.
| |
| − | * '''T-D fighters''': Fewer in number, elite units with long-range endurance and high sustained output; excel in prolonged or high-intensity engagements. Focused on attack roles.
| |
| − | * '''Civilian craft''': Nearly all use batteries; only exceptional performance demands justify T-D reactors.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Ion Drives ===
| |
| − | Before the Fall, ion drives were favored for deep-space travel, while the inner system depended on magnetic solar sails for interplanetary routes. After the Icarus Fall rendered sail propulsion unworkable, ion drives became essential for all but the shortest runs. They are more costly to operate and require constant maintenance, making fuel depots and workshops strategic points worth fighting over.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Ion drives are most efficient on large ships. With 10–20% of their mass in reaction mass, heavy freighters can sustain low thrust (0.001–0.003 g) for weeks at a time. This allows them to cross interplanetary distances in a few months, with Trojans-to-Jupiter transits in weeks and Earth-to-Jupiter runs in 3–9 months depending on drive class. Faster couriers and escorts can trade efficiency for higher thrust, but endurance drops sharply. Personal and utility craft still rely on chemical rockets or compact fusion rockets for short hops, mining runs, and rapid maneuvers.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Electromagnetic Shields (Aegis Fields) ===
| |
| − | Habitats and large ships can afford to use ballast as radiation shielding, but small craft and fighter in particular cannot. In the inner system the usual solution is to have the pilot or suit encased in a water bubble. More advanced craft, especially among the Jovians, use electromagnetic shielding.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Commonly called Aegis fields, these use superconducting coils to project an artificial magnetosphere around a suit or vehicle. They bend and scatter incoming charged particles, giving hours of protection against solar storms and Jupiter’s deadly radiation where armor alone would fail. The fields extend dozens to hundreds of meters beyond the operator, creating a “bubble” of partial safety. This also gives limited protection against charged particle projectors used as weapons. Aegis fields are normally invisible, but under heavy particle flux they glow with auroral arcs — a dramatic warning sign and a signature of Jovian knightly duels.
| |
| − | | |
| − | The system is not perfect. Neutrons and high-energy gamma rays still penetrate, so long-term protection requires ballast shielding (water, regolith, or metal). And the fields interfere when brought close together, producing unstable zones where radiation actually worsens. Standard procedure is to keep Aegis-equipped units at least a kilometer apart in routine operations, closing closer only with near-zero relative velocity.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Fusion rockets can coexist with Aegis fields, but ion engines and exhaust plumes interact violently: exhaust streams scatter, fields flare, and both efficiency and safety plummet. Nor do Aegis fields work near a large mass, particularly a metallic mass like a ship. A shielded craft has to shut down its shields on final approach.
| |
| − | | |
| − | The technology is theoretically available to anyone with superconductors, but Jovians are the acknowledged masters. They miniaturized the systems for personal hardsuits and mechs, trained generations in their safe use, and wove the limitations of the technology into their culture. See Jovian Chivalry for the social and tactical consequences.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Rocketry ===
| |
| − | Even in the fusion era, rockets remain the simplest and most reliable means of producing short, high-thrust burns. In this context, “rocketry” covers all propulsion systems that expel reaction mass directly for thrust, from simple chemical engines to advanced fusion-thermal drives.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Thermal rockets use a ship’s fusion plant to superheat a light propellant — often water or hydrogen — with lasers or magnetic heaters, then expel it through a magnetic nozzle at extreme velocities. They burn reaction mass faster than ion drives but can sustain powerful thrust for hours. Large fusion-powered ships can combine these systems, using ion drives for cruising and rockets for combat or rapid course changes.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Rocket engines of any kind are governed by fuel discipline. The more thrust demanded, the faster reaction mass is burned, and the heavier the engine and associated systems become. High-G craft sacrifice endurance for agility, making them short-range interceptors or boarding ships. Long-range attack and capital ships are designed for lower acceleration to conserve propellant over extended missions.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Thermal rockets are the favored solution for orbital access both in vacuum and on worlds with thick atmospheres. On Earth the new standard is offshore launch platforms on remote equatorial seas, where fusion lifters can rise directly to orbit. These platforms reduce human exposure to launch noise, heat, and shockwaves, while confining environmental effects to localized ocean heating, steam clouds, and disturbed marine life.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Magnetic Acceleration ===
| |
| − | Mass drivers and electromagnetic launchers use magnetic fields to accelerate a payload along a track at high speed. The principle is simple — switching magnetic coils on and off in sequence — but the engineering challenges are immense. Tracks must be extremely straight and stable, power delivery must be precisely timed, and any misalignment can destroy the payload or launcher.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Pre-Fall, magnetic acceleration was mainly used to move bulk cargo between orbital facilities and planetary surfaces, especially from low-gravity bodies where chemical launch was wasteful. Dense cargo like metal ingots, refined ores, and water ice could be launched at hundreds of Gs without damage, making them ideal for high-throughput shipping. Passenger launches were limited to a few Gs for comfort and safety.
| |
| − | | |
| − | The track length needed depends on the local gravity and desired final velocity. On Luna, achieving low orbit (≈1.7 km/s) at 3 G requires about 50 km of track; on Phobos or Deimos, where escape velocity is under 10 m/s, only a few hundred meters are needed. For bulk cargo, accelerations of 100 G or more are possible, meaning even lunar escape velocity can be reached in under 1 km of track. On Mercury, where escape velocity is ≈4.25 km/s, a 3 G passenger launch would require roughly 300 km of track, but hardened cargo could be flung in only a few kilometers.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Post-Fall, the same technology was adapted for military use. Higher accelerations — up to 10 G for crewed craft, far more for hardened munitions — can hurl projectiles, cargo pods, or even small ships at significant relative velocities. The technique is most effective from bodies with low escape velocity, where the launcher can be mounted directly to the surface and fire without atmospheric interference. Vacuum environments also allow for extremely long launch tracks without drag losses.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Limitations include the fixed location of the launcher, its vulnerability to attack, and the difficulty of aiming at distant moving targets. Launching crewed craft above a few G requires specialized training, genetic modification, or cybernetic reinforcement. Most human crews stay in the 2–4 G range, but unmanned craft and drones can be designed for far higher accelerations.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Strategic use varies by site. Some facilities focus on bulk cargo and fuel shipments; others double as defensive batteries, able to launch interceptors or kinetic kill projectiles at hostile craft. The largest can serve as force multipliers in fleet actions, sending small craft on pre-calculated, low-power “cold runs” that are nearly invisible until the target is in range.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Sensors and Communication ===
| |
| − | Constant post-Fall solar storms make radio and radar unreliable in the inner system, with only brief and unpredictable windows of clarity. The most dependable methods are those less affected by charged-particle interference, though even these have limitations.
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Optical Detection ====
| |
| − | Visual and near-visible light remains the most reliable detection medium. Solar activity distorts it far less than radio, and modern sensor arrays sweep wide arcs of sky across multiple wavelengths, feeding expert systems that identify silhouettes and track known objects, anything that accelerates or is on an intercept trajectory will raise an alarm.
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Thermal Detection ====
| |
| − | All active spacecraft produce heat, and in space that heat is a telltale. Waste energy from drives, reactors, and life support radiates away as infrared light, which sensitive detectors can pick up at great distances in clear conditions. Solar storms raise background IR noise — making faint signatures harder to detect — but also make drive plumes and laser heat dumps more visible.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Common thermal signature sources and countermeasures:
| |
| − | * '''Energy weapons''': The solar wind is dense enough to scatter energy from beams and particle weapons, leaving a brightly glowing path. Light-speed weapons are only visible after impact, but particle weapons may give a brief warning.
| |
| − | * '''Drive plumes''': Highly collimated exhaust and efficient nozzles reduce visibility except directly along the exhaust axis — unless heavy solar activity is lit up by the plume.
| |
| − | * '''Laser heat dumps''': Waste heat converted to laser light and beamed into deep space, often along the drive plume. Solar storms can scatter and reveal these beams.
| |
| − | * '''Cold running''': Large insulated masses absorb heat for a limited time, allowing stealth. Eventually, stored heat must be dumped. Directional radiators can shed some heat toward empty space or friendly sectors, but any high-energy activity — especially acceleration — will raise your signature.
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Laser Communication ====
| |
| − | With radio swamped by interference, lasers became the standard for high-bandwidth comms. They ignore solar noise but demand extreme precision — both ends must know each other’s exact position and maintain alignment. This is easy for fixed sites but challenging for ships beyond a light-second, especially during solar storms. Minor orbital shifts can break the link. Most ships can manage only short-range laser comms; long-range requires capital-ship arrays or dedicated relays. For many routes, courier drones carrying physical data cores remain faster, more reliable, and more secure.
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Neutrino Anomaly Alerts ====
| |
| − | A handful of scientific neutrino detectors sometimes flag “hot” regions where many high-output fusion cores are active. They offer no tactical resolution — bearings are vague, single ships are invisible, and false positives are common from cosmic events — but can signal strategic shifts: a shipyard spinning up, a fleet idling, or an artillery platform preheating. Militaries rarely integrate them into automatic alert grids; getting the data to decision-makers in time can itself be an adventure.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Expert Systems ===
| |
| − | General AI never worked. Every serious attempt ended in disaster — rogue behavior, mass suicide, or breakdown into useless output. What endured were ''expert systems'' — narrow-focus automation capable of flawless repetitive work but incapable of planning or innovation. Pre-Fall, these could be coordinated over vast distances by human supervisors. Post-Fall, without real-time control, drones require on-site human oversight, greatly increasing labor needs. Armed drones survive in limited roles under strict, pre-set engagement rules. The term “AI” has fallen out of use in favor of the more modest “expert system.” But the dream of general AI still lives in research installations.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Hooks:
| |
| − | * In the golden age there were a Dozen Celestials, a very ambitious AI project to create minds to control each orbit and additional ones to control other essentials. Investigating rumors of one of these surviving is an adventure hook, investigating all of them is a campaign.
| |
| − | * Your patron/ship is secretly an AI with a hidden agenda.
| |
| − | * A recent Ai may be going rampant, that is start to grow exponentially. Stop it before it becomes godlike.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Gene Therapy ===
| |
| − | Advanced gene therapy can halt aging, but only up to a point. Initial treatments are as easy as vaccines, eliminating most cancers, repairing radiation damage, and making long-duration cold sleep possible. Lifespans of a century and a half are routine, two centuries are possible for the wealthy or lucky, but each additional round of rejuvenation is more costly and dangerous. Only rarely can humans reach three centuries without lethal complications. Bodies and minds stay young, preventing the cultural stagnation of elderly populations, but also locking entrenched elites in place for generations. However, rapid technological change leaves older-but-rejuvenated citizens constantly retraining to stay relevant.
| |
| − | | |
| − | Ovulation can be controlled, eliminating undesired menstruation and maintaining female fertility throughout an extended lifespan, removing the need for contraceptives. Gene therapy is routinely used to remove genetic disorders and substandard human traits, but attempts to create “superhumans” have a negligible success rate. Genetic screening tends to reduce the occurrence of exceptional traits such as artistic brilliance or unorthodox problem-solving, at the cost of genetic diversity.
| |
| − | | |
| − | More radical alterations — regeneration of limbs and organs, adaptation to alien environments, and major redesign — remain experimental, expensive, and risky.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Weapons ===
| |
| − | Fusion power allows the use of weapons that consume immense amounts of energy, but older, leaner systems still see use. Weapon choice depends on available energy, the tactical goal, the environment, and whether you want the target intact for boarding.
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Energy and Particle Weapons ====
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Lightning Guns''' (Electron Projectors, atmosphere) — Fire bursts of electrons down a path cleared by a low-powered laser. The laser ionizes the air into a low-density channel, preventing scatter. On impact, the charge disrupts electronics and can incapacitate crew by overloading nervous systems. Armor penetration is poor, making them best for disabling rather than destroying. Common as vehicle mounts or large personal arms. Useful in boarding to suppress defenses without breaching the hull, though they risk damaging onboard electronics.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Ion Lance''' (Charged Particle Projectors, space) — Uses magnets to accelerate charged protons. On impact, they deliver both kinetic damage and severe electromagnetic disruption. Charged beams scatter over distance and can be deflected by magnetic fields, plasma, or heavy solar wind, making this well suited to medium-range space combat, less so for precision or long-range strikes.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Realkanon''' (Relativistic Neutral Particle Projectors, space) — A siege weapon similar in principle to the Ion Lance, but accelerates protons to relativistic speeds and neutralizes their charge by adding electrons just before launch. Without charge, the beam stays tightly focused over extreme distances and cannot be deflected magnetically. The accelerator is often kilometers long, making the weapon slow-firing, power-hungry, and complex, but devastating against stationary targets. The impact punches deep into the target, blasting fragments inward and creating intense secondary radiation. Use in populated zones causes severe collateral damage.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Beamers''' (Lasers, dual-environment) — Short-range weapons usable in both atmosphere and space. Atmospheric scatter and solar storms limit range, but in clear conditions they’re light, cheap, and capable of very high rates of fire. Lasers cause surface explosions with little penetration, making them better for point defense than as main guns. In boarding, they risk hull breaches but can be tuned for precision strikes on sensors or weapons. Common civilian sidearms.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Arc Lance''' (Dual-use tool/weapon) — Industrial cutting equipment adapted for tactical use. Projects a short, magnetically shaped plasma jet that slices through bulkheads, armor, and other hardened materials. Effective only at contact range. Power-hungry, produces intense glare and heat, and showers the operator in vaporized debris. Valued in boarding for breaching compartments or disabling machinery, but rarely carried into combat.
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Kinetic Weapons ====
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Railguns''' (Mass Drivers, space) — Magnetic coils hurl metal rods at high speed. Too slow for long-range offense, but excellent for point defense against missiles and fighters, or for creating temporary debris fields to block approach vectors. At point-blank range they can cripple capital ships, though this is a desperate measure. Stealthy — they emit no visible signature even in solar storms. Unsuitable for boarding: impacts compromise hull integrity.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Slugthrowers''' (Firearms, personal) — Chemical-propellant guns. Cheap, reliable, and lethal at short range. Risk of hull puncture, detectable by chemical sniffers, and leaves residue. Low-penetration ammo can reduce the risk of hull breach. Easily improvised and traditional among hunters and enthusiasts on Earth, but falling out of favor in professional forces.
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Guided Weapons ====
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''K-Killers''' (Kinetic Kill Missiles, space) — High-G rockets guided by onboard expert systems. Usually unarmed; damage comes from kinetic impact and any remaining propellant. Require target lock before launch. Inflicts structural damage that hinders boarding.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''K-Kill Mines''' — Dormant kinetic-kill missiles placed in key locations, lying cold until triggered by sensors, signature match, or remote command. Purpose-built versions can wait for years; improvised ones from standard missiles have shorter standby and lower reliability. On activation, they burn hard to intercept, destroying by sheer impact velocity. Effective if placed along an approach paths; mining civilian orbits is treated as an act of war.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Rocket Guns''' (Gyrojet Weapons, personal) — Fire miniature guided rockets, locking with a built-in laser designator. Small and handy due to minimal barrel length, though long-range use still requires two hands. The missiles carry small armor-piercing explosives and do not rely on velocity for lethality, avoiding minimum-range issues. Ammunition types include armor-piercing, toxin injectors, electric stun rounds, and blunt “hammerheads” to avoid hull breaches. Standard military and utility sidearm.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Strike Missiles''' (Manpads, personal/vehicle) — Single-shot shoulder-fired missiles. Require lock-on or a pre-programmed target profile, with high friendly-fire risk. Minimum range is about ten meters. Larger versions serve as artillery or strategic weapons. Very high risk of collateral damage in boarding.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Cruise Missiles''' (Drones) — Similar to strike missiles but slower and designed for long loiter times. Can wait for targets or conduct reconnaissance. Solar storms limit remote control and communications, reducing their utility, especially away from Earth.
| |
| − | | |
| − | ==== Unconcentional Weapons ====
| |
| − | There are many technologies that can be weaponized but rarely are.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Excalibur Mines''' — Nuke-pumped laser arrays, one-shot and directional. Built to shred missiles or small craft in an ambush; useless once fired. Rare, expensive, and politically sensitive.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Kessler Spread''' — Deliberate high-speed debris dispersal to cripple orbital zones. Best done by accelerator; regarded as a war crime since the Fall, used only in desperation or atrocity.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Meteor Bombardment''' — Drops rocks or metal slugs from space at planetary targets. Same tech base as Kessler Spread, best done with accelerators. Crude, terrifying, and politically toxic.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Blinder Mines''' — Detonate to flood sensors with EM, plasma, and chaff. Non-lethal but cripples drones, missiles, and civilian craft. Comparable to “space smoke,” nearly useless on hardened warships.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Star-Core Weapons''' — Massive fusion charges for moon or asteroid surface destruction. Kept as state secrets, rarely acknowledged, and never openly tested.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Vacuum-Optimized Bioweapons''' — Engineered spores or nanomachines dormant in space, deadly once inhaled in atmospheres. Ineffective in space combat; a terror tool against stations or worlds.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Exotic Radiologicals''' — Dirty bombs with isotopes that linger for decades. Almost universally banned, feared for their long-term contamination.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Solar Pump Weapons''' — Weaponized stellar output via focusing mirrors or arrays. Taboo after the Icarus Fall’s orbital devastation.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Nano Swarms''' — Nanomachines are vital in civilian fabrication, maintenance, and medicine, but weaponized forms are rare. Radiation, vacuum, and heat destroy them quickly in space. As sabotage tools, swarms seeded on hulls or radiators slowly corrode surfaces, dangerous only in sieges or covert strikes.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Defenses in Space ===
| |
| − | Habitats survive because they’re big, wet, and compartmented — meters of water, grain, and tankage between people and vacuum. Warships need all of that plus active defenses. Below are the main layers in the order an attacker will encounter them.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Agility'''
| |
| − | High-authority RCS and short fusion-thermal bursts to jink. Small ships survive by forcing high angular-rate tracking; propellant budget for evasive burns is as vital as ammo.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''ECM & Deception'''
| |
| − | Hot/cold decoys, laser retroreflector “ghosts,” conductive micro-foil chaff, and plasma puffs to distort particle tracks. Solar storms limit classic jamming, so deception leans passive and optical.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Point Defense'''
| |
| − | CIWS layers:
| |
| − | * Rail/coil close-in guns throwing ablative shot and “sand” curtains.
| |
| − | * Fast shutters and gimbaled mirrors for laser dazzle/deflection.
| |
| − | * Interceptor drones with miniature K-kill darts.
| |
| − | * Defensive rockets laying transient debris veils.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Stores as Shielding'''
| |
| − | Water, propellant, and bulk supplies double as radiation/particle shields and micrometeoroid armor. Warships route tankage around crew spaces; “citadels” sit inside a water jacket.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Hardening & Vacuum Ops'''
| |
| − | Faraday cages, graded-Z linings, neutron absorbers, and rad-hard electronics. Critical optics get shutters; exposed sensors are sacrificial. In combat, nonessential volumes are vented and crew work in skinsuits, denying the enemy atmospheric firepower multipliers and making punctures survivable.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Structure & Compartmentalization'''
| |
| − | Whipple bumpers and spaced skins to break up impacts before they reach the pressure hull. Honeycomb/foam cores, armored spines, and pressure doors every few tens of meters; automatic blow-out shutters for ducts and cable runs.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Redundancy & Damage Control'''
| |
| − | Multiple bridges, buses, and drives; cross-plumbed life support. DC teams use patch bots, suppressant foams, spray-on sealants, and pop-out hull patches. Nonessential volumes pre-rigged for rapid vent/isolations.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Personal Protection ===
| |
| − | Standard features include acceleration suit functions and umbilicals connected to a larger life-support system. Short-term, high-dose exposure remains dangerous, so personal gear must protect against vacuum and acute radiation events. Long-term radiation damage is no longer the terror it once was due to gene therapy. Severe solar storms demand shelter, not just suits.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Skinsuit'''
| |
| − | A skintight vacuum suit with impact-hardened fabric, an inflatable hood, and about an hour of oxygen. Doubles as an acceleration suit. Earthers wear them under clothing; in the outer system, patterns and animated effects are fashionable. Blunts shrapnel and micrometeoroids but offers little real armor. Common upgrades include boots, gloves, helmet, air recycler pack, and an optional ‘belt’ for waste recycling.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Hardsuit'''
| |
| − | A civilian exoskeleton with rigid plating and powered assist to carry its own weight. Protects against crushing, slashing, and piercing hazards, though shock still transfers. Armor-piercing weapons penetrate. Air and waste recycling give endurance of weeks, though living in one is miserable. Built-in thrusters allow limited maneuvering; extra propellant is needed for extended mobility.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Hazard Suit'''
| |
| − | A hardsuit upgraded with a strength-enhancing exoskeleton, heavier plating, improved radiation shielding, and extended-life support. Used mainly by military and asteroid miners. Comes with multiple sensor arrays, hardened comms, and modular tool/weapon mounts. High-thrust maneuver packs enable rapid zero-g repositioning. Stops small-arms fire and deflects glancing energy hits, but military-grade weapons will still breach.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Laser Cooling ===
| |
| − | Rather than relying on broad thermal radiators, some advanced ships use laser-based heat dumping: a heat exchanger that converts waste thermal energy into a coherent, high-powered light beam. This beam vents excess energy in a narrow cone, usually aligned with the main drive plume, masking it from most viewing angles. The approach avoids the usual thermal signature and works even in extreme environments where traditional radiators would melt.
| |
| − | | |
| − | The key breakthrough was developing solid-state emitters capable of operating at reactor temperatures without degradation. While not perfect — all heat still needs to be shed — laser cooling allows higher sustained power output, better stealth, and greater survivability near hostile stars or in combat.
| |
| − | | |
| − | == Spacecraft and Space Warfare ==
| |
| − | Space warfare after the Icarus Fall is shaped by the realities of propulsion, detection, and the cost of reaction mass. Space flight is less about “speed” in the traditional sense and more about '''acceleration''' (how fast a ship can change course or velocity) and '''delta-V''' (the total change in velocity a ship can sustain before exhausting its propellant).
| |
| − | While constant-acceleration craft simplify maneuvering compared to present-day delta-V–limited ships, battle is still defined by geometry and fuel discipline. High-G burns are decisive but costly; every ton of reaction mass spent on maneuver is unavailable for later pursuit, retreat, or course correction.
| |
| − | | |
| − | === Combat Ranges ===
| |
| − | Space combat and interception are measured in light-time bands — how long it takes information to go out and effects to come back. The ranges are separated by orders of magnitude rather than linear steps because it is vastly harder to cross the final increment into a closer band than it is to move within one. Approaching a target in space requires matching its velocity and controlling closing speed; closing from one band to the next demands a disproportionate amount of delta-V and exposes you longer to defensive fire. Fleets typically approach on oblique vectors to control range, and most combat involves holding or opening distance rather than charging straight in.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Boarding range''' runs from zero to 1 millilight-second (about 300 km). This is grapples, breaching, and point-blank tools. Precision railgun hits are only practical at the sub-millisecond end, where time-of-flight is short enough for live tracking. Anything further is too far for true boarding but close enough to risk return fire.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Close range''' covers 1 to 10 millilight-seconds (about 3,000–30,000 km). Lasers and ion lances are most effective here. Mass drivers can be used for precision hits at the short end or for creating debris fields and flak curtains at the long end. Interceptors working this close burn hard to hold the range — too much delta-V is spent just on staying in knife-fight distance.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Medium range''' spans 10 millilight-seconds to 1 light-second (about 30,000–300,000 km — roughly Earth–Moon distance). At this range, direct-fire weapons that are not relativistic can hit large, predictable targets such as capital ships or stations using predictive targeting. Against nimble fighters, hits are only possible if their maneuver options are heavily constrained. This is the most common range for ship-to-ship duels.
| |
| − | | |
| − | '''Long range''' runs from 1 to 10 light-seconds (0.003–0.02 AU). Here, missiles, drones, and attack craft dominate, relying on onboard guidance rather than continuous control. Firing solutions are more about steering the target into the intercept corridor than aiming at a point in space.
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| − | | |
| − | '''Extreme range''' is 10 to 100 light-seconds (0.02–0.2 AU, or up to 30 million km). This is the realm of strategic strikes — realkanon shots, long-burn missiles, and slow-approach attack craft. Engagements here depend on pre-plotted firing windows and the ability of the projectile or craft to retain accuracy and energy over long flight times. This range pushes the limits of both missile delta-V and neutral-beam cohesion.
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| − | | |
| − | === Surprise and Engaging the Enemy ===
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| − | Ships at high relative speeds cannot effectively engage each other, the close-range time window is too short.
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| − | This requires matching velocities, approaching at slow relative speed.
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| − | With post-Fall radar clutter, it is impossible to detect approaching ship at range, both sides have to rely on scout craft, which must return to base to report. This opens up various surprise scenarios.
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| − | | |
| − | * '''Deep Space Interdiction''' Almost all space encounters happen near a destination. Engaging ships in deep space transit is almost impossible. Travelling at huge velocities, any encounter far away from a destination only lasts minutes, and with no warning it is impossible to engage an enemy under these circumstances. If you have intelligence on how the target is about to travel it is possible to intercept at slow relative velocities, making this a standard engagement, from most distant to closest.
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| − | * '''Standoff Artillery''' The attacker foregoes stealth and pelts the target with artillery at extreme range. The defender can calculate the attackers position and send its own fighters to interdict. This turns the tables, forcing the defender to counter-attack, but only works against stationary targets - even ion engines allows you to duck this type of attack. The attacker benefits from scout craft to act as forward observers and a rely chain to forward scout reports back to the artillery platform.
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| − | * '''Distant Launch''' This is a low risk ow reward strategy. Launch fighters at long range with the carrier travelling at high speed relative to the target. Running cold and only powering up at attack range, this can bypass outer defenses, but the combat window is short, only allowing for a single attack run before velocity carries the fighters out of range. The carrier diverts its path around the target to pick up its fighters afterward. This pickup position is the most dangerous point, the defender can calculate approximately where it is to be and launch its own fighters to intercept.
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| − | * '''Close Launch''' This is a high risk, high reward strategy. The carrier runs cold on a trajectory that ends up near the target at low relative velocity and coasts in without accelerating, only releasing fighters very close to the target. If this achieves surprise it gives the fighters a much longer attack window, potentially inflicting a lot of damage. If detected on approach the carrier is a sitting duck and will have to launch its fighters as a defense when the target sends its own fighters.
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| − | | |
| − | === Battle Environments ===
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| − | * '''Deep Space''' – The preferred arena for large-scale battles. No gravity wells to distort orbits; geometry is straightforward and predictable. Engagements occur in three dimensions but are easier to coordinate.
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| − | * '''Combat in a Gravity Well''' – Every thrust alters your orbit, creating complex and counterintuitive motion. Surprise and timing are critical, but engagements are harder to sustain. Fleets often avoid major battles close to a planet unless a target in low orbit demands immediate destruction. The exception are very large and shallow gravity wells like that of Jupiter or the Sun – as long as you are not too close to the primary, this is effectively deep space.
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| − | * '''Combat on a Space Habitat''': Habitats presents two terrains unlike either gravity or microgravity. The first is the central zero-gravity region. From here, you can jump to nearly any point on the inner surface — if your aim and braking are good. Get it wrong, and you’ll either drift helplessly or slam into the wrong spot. The second is the outer hull. Gravity here seems to pull away from the hull, but if you let go, you’re flung along a tangent — not straight out. As you approach the hull, it slides sideways beneath you, making it hard to grab hold. Staying close requires constant acceleration toward the surface.
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| − | | |
| − | === Tactical Zones ===
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| − | Space battles often move through three overlapping ranges:
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| − | * '''Long Range''' – Artillery exchanges and standoff weapon use. Detection and interception dominate; neutral-particle projectors are most effective here.
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| − | * '''Mid Range''' – Attack craft engage capital ships; point-defense fire and interceptors try to thin the attackers.
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| − | * '''Close Range''' – High-G maneuvering and rapid vector changes. Interceptors and boarding craft fight in short, violent passes where fire windows are seconds long.
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| − | * '''Boarding''' – Large, predictable targets like habitats and ion-drive ships can be swarmed, but doing so consumes enormous amounts of reaction mass. Boarding actions are dangerous and rarely attempted without total surprise or overwhelming suppression. Still, boarding is an alternative to destroying a target that just won't give up.
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| − | | |
| − | === Combat Roles ===
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| − | * '''Artillery''' – Long-range fire support, often delivered by neutral-particle projectors. Effective against static or slow targets; less useful in fast-moving engagements. Vulnerable if caught without escorts.
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| − | * '''Carriers''' – Project force through wings of small craft. Typically form the backbone of offensive fleets, with heavy point-defense arrays to protect against counterattack.
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| − | * '''Interceptors''' – Short-range defense and close-in attack. Operate from carriers or bases; burn reaction mass rapidly in high-G dogfights.
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| − | * '''Attack Craft''' – Medium acceleration, long endurance. Specialize in independent strikes, coasting cold for stealth before attacking and disengaging.
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| − | * '''Boarding Craft''' – Close to a target and match velocity for capture. Only viable after suppression of defenses.
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| | | | |
| − | === Weapons Employment === | + | === Old Variants === |
| − | * '''Lasers''' – Ideal for short to mid-range precision fire; point-defense staple. | + | * [[Original Main Page (IF)|Original Main Page]] |
| − | * '''Neutral Particle Projectors''' – Long-range, high-damage artillery; cannot be intercepted.
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| − | * '''Charged Particle Weapons''' – In atmosphere, act as lightning projectors; in space, serve as short-range disruptors for electronics and crew.
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| − | * '''Missiles/Drones''' – Effective at short to medium range; long-range missiles are rare due to navigation difficulties in the post-Fall environment.
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| | | | |
| − | === Operational Realities === | + | == See Also == |
| − | * '''Fuel Discipline''' – Commanders must balance decisive acceleration with the need to preserve reaction mass for later phases of a battle.
| + | * [[Touchstones (IF)|Touchstones]] |
| − | * '''Crew Endurance''' – Even with gene therapy, sustained high-G maneuvers are limited by human physiology. Combat at 5G is near the practical maximum without artificial support.
| + | * [[Spin Habitats (IF)|Spin Habitats]] raw from Chat GPT |
| − | * '''Civilian Conversions''' – Many “warships” are converted mining or cargo craft. In emergencies, habitats can be armed rapidly if enough raw material is available.
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| − | | |
| − | === Capital Ships ===
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| − | Capital ships are the backbone of any fleet, serving both as mobile command platforms and the primary source of heavy firepower. They are heavily shielded against radiation and debris, with armor more akin to layers of ablative gravel than the rigid plating of ancient sea warships. This design soaks up hits and sheds energy over time, making them tough to kill outright. Hulls are heavily compartmentalized, and crews operate in vac suits during combat, rendering decompression a slow and usually non-fatal threat.
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| − | | |
| − | Capital ships often mount multiple independent power plants and thruster arrays to remain combat-capable even after taking severe damage. Sizes vary dramatically:
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| − | | |
| − | Small capital ships lack artificial gravity and can only sustain months-long deployments. If in a task force with capital ships, it is possible to exchange crews, allowing these shups to participate in longer missions. These ships often have fallback rocket engines and are capable of short bursts of acceleration, mainly used to dodge.
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| − | | |
| − | Largest capital ships are functionally mobile habitats, crowded with permanent crews, production bays, and the ability to build fighters from scratch.
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| − | | |
| − | Two main types dominate the role:
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| − | | |
| − | Carriers – These deploy interceptors, attack craft, and boarding vessels. In practice, they become the heavy hitters of a fleet, projecting force through their wings of small craft. Carriers themselves carry extensive point-defense arrays and limited heavy weapons for close defense.
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| − | | |
| − | Artillery Ships – The siege trains of space warfare. Their primary weapons are long-range neutral particle projectors, which cannot be intercepted and can hammer static or slow-moving targets from beyond the reach of most defenses.
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| − | Artillery ships have little use in mobile fleet battles and may arrive only after the fighting is over. However, if built for lower acceleration to save on cost and mass, they require escorts to survive the journey to the target. Different fleets adopt different doctrines, with some insisting on artillery capable of keeping pace with the main force and others treating them as slower, protected assets.
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| − | | |
| − | === Interceptors ===
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| − | Interceptors are short-range, high-acceleration craft designed for defense and fast attack in the immediate battlespace. Even these limit their sustained burn to about 5G — enough to overwhelm most opponents without killing the pilot. Reaction mass is consumed at a prodigious rate, making interceptors dependent on carriers or nearby bases for refueling and maintenance.
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| − | | |
| − | Their role is to dominate close-range engagements, where superior thrust allows rapid vector changes, forcing enemies into high-angular-velocity targeting problems. Interceptors are armed for these knife-fight ranges, favoring high-energy lasers and charged particle weapons, where accuracy and rapid target switching matter more than endurance.
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| − | | |
| − | === Attack Craft ===
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| − | Attack craft are designed for independent strikes at much greater ranges than interceptors. They sacrifice peak acceleration for longer operational endurance, allowing them to launch from standoff carriers, coast cold to the target for stealth, and strike before returning along a circuitous route.
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| − | | |
| − | They excel at hit-and-run attacks against shipping, installations, and isolated capital ships. If intercepted, they can fight back but — like WWII torpedo bombers — they are at a disadvantage against dedicated interceptors. Attack craft often mount turreted weapons for defense against high-angular-velocity targets and carry standoff armaments such as short-range missiles or neutral-particle guns for engaging from beyond immediate point-defense range.
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| − | | |
| − | === Boarding Craft ===
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| − | Boarding craft are built to match velocity with a target, something only possible against a vessel with low or no thrust. This slow, deliberate approach is highly vulnerable to defensive fire, so boarding attempts require complete surprise or prior suppression of the target’s point-defense systems. Charged-particle weapons are often used for this suppression, as they can fry sensors and electronics without destroying the prize.
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| − | | |
| − | For the final approach, boarding craft may use a brief, extreme-G burn to close the last few kilometers quickly. While boarding actions are dangerous, they can be highly profitable — the only way to seize an intact ship or habitat that refuses to surrender.
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| − | | |
| − | == Ideas ==
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| − | * Bubble suit
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| − | * Projectile deflection in spin gravity
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| − | | |
| − | = See Also = | |
| − | * [[Learning Neural Control (DF)]] | |
| − | * [[Icarus Fall Dictionary (IF)|Icarus Fall Dictionary]] | |
