 January 24, 2011 - 9:32pm | Discussing the seting Clarion is a heavy population planet. According to Zebs that means the planet has "numerous large cities and hundreds of smaller cities. Individual cities may be considered "maxi-cities" that cover thousands of square Kilometers." I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
January 24, 2011 - 9:35pm | For my game I think I arbitrarily settled on 12 for the "numerous large cities" From the original material we have 1. "Valentina is the throne city. The Royal Palace sprawls over square kilometers and the Royal Guard is headquartered here." - from the module IIRC 2. "Moline the headquarters of Eversafe"-from Zebs I created: 3. Port Royal, figuring the Royal Marines would need at least one planet side major base and training facility but that it would likely qualify as a major star port. since my game is set "80 years in the future" I figured the old Osprey would have been retired and turned into a museum and that is here next to the Royal Marine accademy. 4. I think I also named the Rostov Mountains- a significant source of uranium (from the module) and the primary area of operations of the Rostov Development Corporation a subsidary of AIPS Under the heading of hundreds of small cities I created: 5. Lapin a resort community at the south pole- popular skiing spot just south of Glacier Bay. (site of an attempted abduction of Princess Avana Ellilana Leonine next in line to inherit the throne, young and immature, has yet to grow into her role as a Princess of Clarion. Avid grav skier whose close confidants are Lord Baylor Von Wittin and Lady Pennelope. I was also leaning toward city domes being popular as the original module specified a rediculous amount of rain (IIRC its like 90%)- I'm at a loss as to how it could rain that much. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
 January 25, 2011 - 3:32am | I was also leaning toward city domes being popular as the original module specified a rediculous amount of rain (IIRC its like 90%)- I'm at a loss as to how it could rain that much. You've never visited Washington state...  More seriously, I might lean to making Clarion a predominantly water planet, with the 12 major cities making up the twelve largest land masses...or optionally have something like Valentina and Port Royal on the same land mass. Having Valentina, the Royal Guard, and Port Royal all on the same mass would also lean favor as to how the Leotine family has managed to rule for so long, what with everything common to one land mass. |
 January 25, 2011 - 6:17pm | For my game I think I arbitrarily settled on 12 for the "numerous large cities" I was also leaning toward city domes being popular as the original module specified a rediculous amount of rain (IIRC its like 90%)- I'm at a loss as to how it could rain that much. Exceptionally high humidity. " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
January 25, 2011 - 8:36pm | Yep, 85-90% water based surface coupled with high humidity would call for lots of rain (and tropical storms to boot, thus furthering the idea for domed cities). The polar caps would have to account for two of the 12 largest land mass/supercities. It would certainly work with jedion's description of Lapin. |
January 27, 2011 - 8:19pm | Of course, having re-read the system brief...85-90% water coverage isn't in the cards. "Most of Claion is covered by broad plains and mud flats." Eight seas divide the large masses of land. Sounds like a big swamp more than anything, and anyone that's been to coastal Lousiana will know what heavy humidity is like so that angle still works for massive rainfall. |
 January 28, 2011 - 6:31pm | Any when you get to the far Northern and Southern latitudes think the cold wet lands of Canada and the frozen permafrost of Alaska and Canada. This swamp to marsh to permafrost is what lends the name Gollywog. High boots are a must for trekking anywhere. -iggy |
January 29, 2011 - 12:08am | High boots are a must for trekking anywhere. Especially on the floor of Parliament....  " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
January 29, 2011 - 1:22am | This swamp to marsh to permafrost is what lends the name Gollywog. Hmm...make this into an offworlder (or even the dry humor dralasite) phrase for something derogatory and we might have a winner  |
January 29, 2011 - 11:31pm | Gollywog! Swamp to marsh to permafrost. The world that did land as an afterthought! -iggy |
January 31, 2011 - 3:21am | So here's what I propose for a back-story on the insulting nature of "Gollywog", based on Iggy's satirical input (which I loved, BTW  ):The swamp to marsh to permafrost setting of Clarion is something that early settlers found quite annoying. Future generations interacted with the other non-human races, who found equal dismay to this natural trend where high boots were a must for trekking anywhere. This eventually led to a dralasitic pun "Gollywog" which, translated from their language, means "The world that did land as an afterthought". |
January 31, 2011 - 9:38pm | Building on Shadow's tying of Gollywog being a dralasite word I have this to say. The word golly translates to a nice fungal swamp or lake as found on the dralasite homeworld. The word wog means soft rich soil. To say wog after golly means swamp with the soil added after making the swamp. Thus a gollywog is a poorly formed golly. In the purest sense the word gollywog identifies a fungal swamp on the dralasite home world where there is actually no land but rather layers of water and fungal growths until the surface where larger fungal growths mushroom and release their spores. Any actual land in the swamp is soil accumulated and created from decaying fungal, plant, and animal mater. There actually is a mud base deep under the multiple water and fungal layers but it is often hundred of meters down. These swamps are impassable by foot and boat because of the lack of anything solid enough to take weight or liquid enough to float upon. Many of us dralasites compare it to the consistency of rotting pudding with layers of liquid filling. Many dralasitic creatures drown and die in these gollywogs, especially the flying drupal that feast upon the spore clouds above these swamps. We dralasites also find the smell to be revolting when the cold season kills the upper layer of fungal growth and everything goes into decay. I guess I just came out as being a dralasite. I'm actually eating pudding as I write this. You can keep your gollywog. I'm going to wade in this nice golly over here sample the natural fungal puddings that are in season. And Shadow, thanks for the tip of thy sunglasses. I'm honored and pleased that you like my input. -iggy |
