Barren are the majority of the Milky Way's cosmic shores. Bastions of life, islands of fertility dot the galactic scape amidst archipelagoes of their volcanic and turmoil ridden brethren. Yet still, even in perpetual, nature induced death these atolls are as rich and prized as their vibrant counterparts. Vied for they are constantly by empires reaching out past their native bounds. Violently these planet-nations thrust outward into the endless waves of primordial star matter, their children braving radiation and rocks, open field war and closed door diplomacy, untrue peace and unsecurable safety, for the glory of their empires and the sustainment of their homes. And by the hands of pirates, enemies, and eternal, endless space, they die.
Yet not safe could they be even with their boots in the soil of destination worlds. They are still subject to the cruelty of nature's oppressive design. Bombarded by radiation under gasless skies, freezing in the nights, boiling in the days, forced to breath toxic fumes from the earth beneath their feet, drowning in nearly liquid thick atmospheres and trying to suck in as much paper thin air as possible on these extraterrestrial missions, astronauts of all species were deterred by all native conditions. Thus the most important industrial boom in the Galaxy's interplanetary history was set to take place.
Enter the modern age of terraforming. The most expensive pieces of equipment in the known universe, Terraforming engines take decades to learn and lifetimes to master. These behemoths of pure power break continental plates to raise mountain ranges, crush land into ocean basins, evaporate noxious gasses into space, generate entire atmospheres, melt icy worlds, freeze volcanic hells, and can guide sea bearing comets from deep space all the way to arid systems. The ships they travel upon are captained and crewed by the most highly trained and experienced individuals brought and bribed from every corner of the known universe. For their sacrifices of years aboard the vessels, tremendous efforts to operate the equipment, bravery in defending the pride of empires, and losses of lives and limbs in the service, these crewsmen are paid like kings, and revered like gods.
By those who do not believe in gods. Though the grip of religion on the galaxy's consciousness has slipped in slight ways, the Interstellar Church of Jesus Christ’s Galactic Ascention, emanating from the Solar system to infiltrate the institutions of every species. The group, though dominated by the humans who brought terraforming into vogue, vehemently protests the practices as infringements of mortals onto the powers solely reserved for God himself. Their faculties stage passionate demonstrations damning terraforming and all of it’s conspirators, and theocracies governing in their name are constant source of historically empty yet increasingly violent threats. These unstable factors have thrown a shadow on the process, and, quaking under the influence of such indomitable oppressors or to avert disaster with neighboring powers, many of the otherwise secular dominions within the galaxy have scaled back their terraforming funding, some to almost or altogether non-existent, flooding the markets with trained crews, operators, technicians, and officers seeking asylum in other operations.
And thus, into the ever increasingly volatile galaxy, the Audhumla, chartered by the interstellar, nationally independant corporation Áes Dána and crewed by many of various races and nationalities from throughout the galaxy, leaves its port on Epsilon Eridani for deep space on a ten year mission. Captain Celebalda Ilúvatar has accepted a hefty workload for his crew, totaling seven contracts from varying corporations and nations for their services in making owned planets colonizable. The ship has been boarded by its menial crew, and prepared for the coming life. As the officers board once again, returning to the base from their home systems, Captain Ilúvatar requires a renewed personnel registration.
Remaining to be entered are:
First Mate: A direct assistant to the captain, and commander in his absence. This integral position is one only to be filled by a charismatic soul who has been promoted through the ranks in the company over years of service and demonstrating leadership, no matter at what position they entered the company’s employment, and is being preened for their own captainship someday.
Ground Crew Leader: In surveying the exoplanet, this officer will lead a landing team to the planet’s surface, collecting geological samples and conducting surveying exercises. A military background is a plus, considering the adaptability and experience required when leading a team into the unknown territory against hostile environments.
Navigations Officer: This officer is tasked with plotting the ship’s course through the galaxy, star systems, and atmospheres.
Chief Engineer: The upkeep and functionality of the ship itself is in the hands of the Chief Engineer. The position requires knowledge of the inner-workings of the ships’s systems, from the hyperdrive to the life support, keeping the Audhumla afloat and moving towards the completion of it’s mission is this officer’s goal.
First Terraforming Officer: The brains behind creating a livable habitat out of an inhospitable but incredibly valuable no-man’s land, requiring an understanding of the climates and environmental factors that will lead to sustainability and growth for the planet’s future colonies.
Chief Terraforming Technician: Working closely with the Terraforming Officer, the Chief Terraforming Technician conducts the actual operation of the most valuable and powerful pieces of equipment in existence, from the groundbreaker to the tectonic tractor to the cloud accumulator and others.
Biological Officer: The Audhumla carries millions of biological samples of flora and fauna, which must be carefully selected by this officer to stabilize the nutrient and elemental cycles of a planet’s newly created environment.
When these positions are filled, with new faces or hardened crew, the Audhumla shall embark to sow the fragile seeds of life into soft sands of the Milky Way’s cosmic coasts.
This is a reboot of an RP I tried once before, but which died after the first round of posts. For now, I’d ask that you just put down what role you are interested in playing. Should you be interested in doubling, playing a different officer role, or playing a non-officer character, or anything else, just say so and I can probably work you in. I don’t expect you to actually be an expert in ecosystems or exo-biology or theoretical physics, just creative and intelligent enough to BS and google your way to a convincing, entertaining post. I had races for this story last time, but they have been lost, so I will give a good deal of creative freedom if you would like to play as something other than a human. Also, if we can get far enough and people don’t entirely bail out on us, the story is not going to be entirely terraforming. There will eventually be some action-oriented elements, as I tried to foreshadow. However, it may start sort of slow. But what story doesn’t take a little time to build up the appropriate steam?
In any case, if you’ve read this far, thank you for your time and interest, and I hope that we can create a great story together.
