[UPDATED] Hello everyone. Welcome to the interest check & planning thread for "The Scattered", a new nation RP which will follow a disastrous colonization attempt early in humanity's intersolar age. The disaster isn't an alien attack. It isn't a natural incompatibility with the new world. And it isn't a mechanical failure aboard the colony ships.
Mankind just screws up royally.
Upon detecting organized civilization on the target world, the fleet admiral orders that the colonization of the system be aborted. As the fleet travels below lightspeed, this means roughly another decade of cramped, boring travel. Factions within command that would rather seize the planet than move onwards preempt this order with a coup, leaving the Admiral dead and the flagship under their command.
Each player begins as a ship's Captain. Do you follow the coup leaders, actively resist, or follow the late Admiral's orders?
The Delta Pavonis System
Big thanks to Aegon for this awesome description!
Delta Pavonis:
A star incredibly similar to humanity's home star of Sol, Delta Pavonis is the closest solar analog star that is not in a binary system. Delta Pavonis is nearly 7 Billion Years Old and in the (slow) process of becoming a Red Giant. It is slightly smaller in mass, though bigger in both size and luminosity, making the habitable zone lie further out than the one that Earth resides in.
Delta Pavonis A:
This planet may be similar in size to a small Venus, but it is anything but. At approximately .8 Earth Mass and orbiting Delta Pavonis at about .71 Astronomical Units (AU), it has almost the exact same orbital characteristics. Delta Pavonis A orbits its star in about 219.5 Earth Days, although it doesn't have days of it's own. It is tidally locked, leaving one side perpetually facing Delta Pavonis, and one side perpetually facing away. With gravity similar to Venus (and therefore similar to Earth's), it maintains a thin atmosphere, though a lack of a magnetosphere and proximity to the sun makes it hard to hold onto it. The atmosphere has a pressure of 5.3 kPa, making it nearly nine times as much pressure as Mars, however it is still below the survivable limit for humans. Delta Pavonis A is a rocky, metallic body very similar to Mercury in composition, although the atmosphere allows dust to be blown across the surface, constantly eroding the craters it would otherwise have. There is no volcanic activity on Delta Pavonis A and it is very much so a dead world.
Delta Pavonis B:
Delta Pavonis B is slightly bigger than Earth, with a mass of about 1.05 Earth's (and a gravity at about .97 g's), but it orbits Delta Pavonis at about 1.28 AU (almost halfway between Earth and Mars, for comparison). It has a day approximately 25 hours long, giving it a year of 510 days, adding one extra day to the year every ten years. It is slightly cooler than Earth, with average surface temperature being 54F as opposed to Earth's 59F. The atmosphere is largely similar to Earth's, with 75% Nitrogen, 24% Oxygen, and 1% Other Gases.
-Delta Pavonis B1:
A moon only about 800 km in diameter, it largely has a composition of an iron-rich asteroid. B1 is mostly spherical with a few craters and orbits its planet roughly every 25 days and is tidally locked to its planet.
-Delta Pavonis B2:
A moon much larger than it's counterpart, B2 is roughly 1200 km in diameter and is very similar to Earth's moon in composition. It is mostly spherical, with many craters and orbits its planet roughly every 50 days and is tidally locked to its planet.
NOTE: B1 and B2 are in an orbital resonance pattern so that B2 completes two orbits every time B1 completes 1 Orbit. This creates the opportunity for a ship to orbit the planet every 100 days (orbiting once every time B2 does twice and B1 does four times) which allows it to get an extra gravitational "kick," allowing it to expend less fuel in order to leave orbit.
Delta Pavonis C:
At roughly 1.5 times the mass of Jupiter, Delta Pavonis C orbits at about 2.05 AU (just outside the habitable zone) in about 1076 Earth days.
MOON SYSTEM INFO
Delta Pavonis D:
Slightly larger than Earth in both mass and size, Delta Pavonis D is about 1.2 times the mass of Earth (with about 1.14 g's). While it retains an atmosphere (that is largely nitrogen with a sizable portion of hydrogen) and frozen ice, an orbit at 3.2 AU puts it well outside the habitable zone and a very dim view of it's star, to where it only looks like a very bright star in the sky and less like a sun. With a day nearly 20 hours long, it orbits Delta Pavonis in about 2520 days (50399 hours per orbit).
Delta Pavonis E
Largely a Saturn Analog in size, composition, and orbit, it has a spectacular ring system and several small moons. It orbits at about 10.3 AUs in about 12125 Earth days.
Delta Pavonis F:
Largely a Neptune Analog in size and composition, it orbits at about 24 AU in about 43131 Earth days. It's moons are largely similar to asteroids or comets.
Earth Day = A day measured relative to Earth's Day.
Day = A day measured relative to the planet it refers to.
The Natives
The habitable planet has a single sentient genus, which has settled most of the world. Similar to humans, they are bipedal, highly cephalized, and have systems similar to human skeletons and muscles. They differ in several notable ways. Most visibly, their skin is similar to that of amphibians; clammy, moist, somewhat leathery, and functioning as part of the respiratory system. Coloration differs significantly between tribes and individuals. Their builds are lankier, they lack hair, have no obvious external sexual organs, and have colorless irises. They are excellently adapted for wet, warm climates, but can do reasonably well in temperate regions. Deserts (of both the arctic and subtropical varieties) are even more inhospitable to them than they are towards humans.
Two species exist, separated by their reproductive habits. The larger population breeds by releasing many gametes into ponds. Offspring are cared for by the community, and no analogue to the family exists. Very few visible differences between the sexes exist in this species.
The second population invests more individual care in their offspring. Females attach their eggs to rocks, logs, or themselves. Generally producing fewer children but taking greater pains to ensure their survival, this group has a construct similar to the family (degrees of monogamy vary by tribe). Despite their lower population, this species has built the most powerful nations on-world.
The two species overlap in some territories, but generally avoid mixing. In rare cases they may successfully reproduce together, but the resulting children are entirely sterile.
Their technology varies, but the most advanced groups are roughly equivalent to Europe in the early modern period (1500-1700). Gunpowder weaponry, near-global trade networks, and advanced culture have all been developed. Like humanity, they feature many different nations and cultures.
Other life forms on-planet bear outward similarities to earth life, but large amphibian-like and reptile-like creatures are dominant.
The Settlers
The settlers of Delta Pavonis are at the end of journey which covered 19.92 light years and took more than twenty-three years. While all have originated from the EU, USA, or Canada and therefore have many cultural similarities, this long trip through interstellar space has allowed a community to develop aboard each ship. Lacking FTL or cryogenic technologies, the passengers have become well acquainted with one another (and with the commands of their vessels). This should influence the roleplay; shipmates will likely remain loyal to their vessel above (and even at the expense of) any other humans.
With them they bring advanced technology. The most comparable human technology would be the pre-war humans of Halo (Our settlers, however, lack FTL, cryo, advanced AI, and related technlogies). Energy weapons do exist, but have yet to fully displace projectile-based weapons. Medicine has advanced significantly, but is not perfect- especially here, at the frontier. The year is 2296.
The ships are large, designed to transport 10,000+ people, as well as all of the equipment and materials needed to establish colonial outposts. I personally take inspiration from the Pheonix Class Colony Ships of Halo, but the fleet does not have a standard ship. Design and features will vary.
One last note; this fleet is mainly populated by settlers. There are some soldiers, scientists, and sailors on board, but the group is designed to peaceably occupy an empty world- not to do whatever you'll be trying to do with it.
Notes
Join the Chat to discuss, or you may post here. Players will not be able to control native groups, but you may settle peaceably among them if you wish to interact with them a lot. I do not use dice, turns, or other restrictive gameplay frameworks. I will control the natives, the flagship, and anything else it makes sense for me to introduce. That's about it.
Nation Sheet
Ship Name:
Description: (Strengths, Weaknesses, Etc)
Population: (20,000 Maximum. If you max out the population, other aspects of your ship must make compromises to accommodate the large number of people)
Description: (Country/region of Origin (Must be US, Canada, or Europe. This isn't about limiting, this is because I don't want old-world rivalries to come over), culture, or anything really notable)
Captain Name:
Description:
Other Notable Individuals:
Notes:
Please PM me a brief statement on your immediate plans at the start of the roleplay as a supplement to this sheet. There is an immediate conflict presented in the intro, and you must make several choices. This PM will be considered as part of your application.
