-Nate
Gazetteer
of the Solar System
Presented below are stats for the planets of a typical
solar system.
Mercury
Diameter:
3,031 miles
Gravity:
0.38 standard
Period
of Rotation: 59 days
Period
of Revolution: 88 days
Distance
from Sun: 36 million miles
Temperature
Range: -297°
to 800°
Number
of Moons: 0
Ring
System?: No
Other Notable
Features: The proximity of
Mercury to the sun means that its sunward surface is extremely
hot, while the night side is very cold. This means that it is
possible to do some mining work in the edge between the two, but
one must be highly mobile in doing so.
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Venus
Diameter:
7,521 miles
Gravity:
0.9 standard
Period
of Rotation: 243 days
Period
of Revolution: 224 days
Distance
from Sun: 67 million miles
Temperature
Range: 896°
Number
of Moons: 0
Ring
System?: No
Other Notable
Features: This planet has an
acidic, hothouse atmosphere, making it even hotter than Mercury
and on all sides of the world. Some alchemists believe it might be
possible to harvest chemicals from the upper atmosphere, but
haven't perfected a method yet.
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Earth
Diameter:
7,926 miles
Gravity:
1.0 standard
Period
of Rotation: 24 hours
Period
of Revolution: 365 days
Distance
from Sun: 93 million miles
Temperature
Range: -60°
to 120°
Number
of Moons: 1
Ring
System?: No
Other Notable
Features: This planet is, of
course, the gold standard when it comes to habitability. It has
numerous highly-developed societies, and ones that now compete to
exploit the resources of the many bodies to be found throughout
the aether.
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Earth's Moon
Diameter:
2,171 miles
Gravity:
0.17 standard
Period
of Rotation: 29 days
Period
of Revolution: 29 days
Distance
from Sun: 93 million miles
Temperature
Range: -29°
Number
of Moons: 0
Ring
System?: No
Other Notable
Features: While it lacks
much of an atmosphere, it is relatively warm by aetherial
standards. As such, it is a favored location for experimentation
with agricultural processes. There are rumors, though, of undead
haunting some of the moon's dark corners.
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Mars
Diameter:
4,222 miles
Gravity:
0.38 standard
Period
of Rotation: 24 hours, 37
minutes
Period
of Revolution: 687 days
Distance
from Sun: 141,700,000 miles
Temperature
Range: -81°
Number
of Moons: 2
Ring
System?: No
Other Notable
Features: The surface of
this world is covered by red-tinted desert, which lends Mars its
distinctive appearance and thus its name. Long ago, astronomers on
Earth saw what looked like canals on its surface, and the first
aethernauts who arrived found that there was indeed the remains of
a long-ruined civilization. What is more, tunnels lead beneath the
world's surface into a veritable underdark. That underground world
remains relatively unexplored, however.
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Jupiter
Diameter:
88,846 miles
Gravity:
2.64 standard
Period
of Rotation: 9 hours, 55
minutes
Period
of Revolution: 11.86 years
Distance
from Sun: 483,500,000 miles
Temperature
Range: -202°
Number
of Moons: 66
Ring
System?: Yes
Other Notable
Features: The most striking
feature of this world is the giant red spot, a planet-sized storm
that has been active for years and circles the world. Legends tell
that this storm is inhabited by a powerful, angry spirit. Jupiter
also boasts a narrow band of planetary rings, along with dozen of
moons, with their own distinctive qualities, and ripe for
exploration and development in their own right.
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Saturn
Diameter:
74,900 miles
Gravity:
1.16 standard
Period
of Rotation: 10 hours, 39
minutes
Period
of Revolution: 29 years
Distance
from Sun: 888,750,000 miles
Temperature
Range: -202°
Number
of Moons: 62
Ring
System?: Yes
Other Notable
Features: The broad system
of rings is this planet's most notable feature, made of water ice
and dust or rock. As such, it is a favorite place for harvesting
ice for use on other worlds, not to mention a preferred
destination for the up-and-coming tourist trade. It has nearly as
many moons as Jupiter, too, promising plenty of opportunities in
the future.
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Uranus
Diameter:
31,763 miles
Gravity:
1.11 standard
Period
of Rotation: 17 hours, 14
minutes
Period
of Revolution: 84 years
Distance
from Sun: 1,783,744,300
miles
Temperature
Range: -238°
Number
of Moons: 27
Ring
System?: Yes
Other Notable
Features: This is another
gas giant (jovian planet), like Jupiter and Saturn. Its axis of
rotation lies parallel to its planet of revolution, meaning that
the planet rolls through the aether like a giant wheel. It is a
cold world, but speculators believe that its ice may contain
valuable alchemical compounds.
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Neptune
Diameter:
30,779 miles
Gravity:
1.21 standard
Period
of Rotation: 16 hours, 7
minutes
Period
of Revolution: 164.8 years
Distance
from Sun: 2,797,770,000
miles
Temperature
Range: -328°
Number
of Moons: 13
Ring
System?: Yes
Other Notable
Features: This planet is
best known for is distinctive blue coloration. Its atmosphere is
driven by powerful winds, and is very cold. In fact, it boasts a
great dark spot, a massive and powerful storm similar to that
found on Jupiter.
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Pluto
Diameter:
1,430 miles
Gravity:
0.07 standard
Period
of Rotation: 6 days, 9 hours
Period
of Revolution: 248 years
Distance
from Sun: 3,670,000,000
miles
Temperature
Range: -378°
Number
of Moons: 5
Ring
System?: No
Other Notable
Features: Some astronomers
argue that this is actually a dwarf planet, similar to larger
bodies in the asteroid belt and even some of the other planets'
moons. It is little more than a cold rock drifting through the
aether, but does boast a cache of supplies in case of
interplanetary emergencies.
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The Asteroid Belt
Given
that hundreds of thousands of individual bodies make up this belt, it
can't be detailed in the same way as the planets. The belt lies in a
broad orbit between Mars and Jupiter. Each of these drifting space
rocks can vary in size from ones that are similar to earth-bound
boulders to those that are larger than the planet Pluto. Many of
these are rich in minerals, making them a favorite target of space
miners. Of course, ones that have been dug full of tunnels can also
then become lairs for those creatures that live in the aether. In a
similar manner, the asteroids' relatively small size also makes them
the first candidates for terraforming, resulting in the first
permanent outposts built by aetherial travelers.
Travel
Times, Distance and Speed
Compared to planetside journeys, the distances
covered when traveling between bodies in a solar system are
incredibly long. After all, a voyage from the sun to the earth
covers 93 million miles. To handle this, a space fantasy campaign
divides movement into two different types.
Tactical speed is handled as per the rules
presented in Ultimate Combat. Ships move and maneuver at
their speeds in feet per round, while characters aboard them
operate in the same manner.
Cruising
speed, on the other hand, is much faster. In fact, cruising
speed for ships uses the same number, but it is applied in
thousands of miles per hour. Aetherships can only reach cruising
speed when they are beyond the gravity influence of heavenly
bodies—that is, outside of a planet's atmosphere, or at a
similar distance from bodies such as asteroids or comets.
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| Using Earth as a Campaign Setting GM's interested in using Earth and its solar system as the setting for a space fantasy campaign might want to check out the Kingdoms of Legend: World Guide from Interaction Point Games to find suggestions for that planet's cultures. |
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