Nausicaa

A wild, rough world of predators and harsh winters, Nausicaa is also the home of the Nausicaans. These imposing figures are seen at the fringes of civilization, threatening those they can successfully intimidate, and remembering days of glory long ended by the Federation and other powerful empires.

Class: M

Moons or Rings: 3 moons

Gravity: 0.7 G

Climate: Standard atmosphere, 40% hydrosphere, Cold temperature.

Though 40% of Nausicaa is water, it does not truly form oceans so much as lakes. All of Nausicaa’s major landmasses are connected, with water mostly forming barriers around them. One interesting facet of this is that ocean life varies greatly from sea to sea, with only a few rivers interconnecting some of the collections. The land area of Nausicaa is rough and rocky, with mountains bracketing long windswept plains. Given the storms, the conditions, and the wind, one would assume that little could survive on this world. One would be wrong, however. Nausicaa is fairly teeming with life—flora and fauna alike—evolved to take advantage of the wind, the rain and the storms. The creatures and plants of Nausicaa are hardy and resistant to weather, and almost all animals on Nausicaa are omnivores, able to subsist on plants where they are common, and each other where they are not. Sadly, “civilization” has reduced many of these species to shadows of their former selves. Nausicaan climate is irrevocably affected by heavy industrial pollution. Because of the anarchic nature of the planet’s civilization, combined with the exploitation of resources on a massive scale during their initial infrastructure build-up in the 21st and 22nd centuries, Nausicaa bears the permanent scars of total ecological disaster. Rain is often acidic and dangerous; the atmosphere is difficult to breathe. Thousands of native life forms became extinct in the course of a century.

There is one place on Nausicaa where violence and competition is not the norm. The Great Silver Plain, over Nausicaa’s north pole, is a glacier of smooth ice and clear skies, with little food. The ice is very thick, and almost polished by the constant winds. Even snow does not tend to accumulate on the Great Silver Plain. Nausicaans who seek enlightenment take a pilgrimage across the Great Silver Plain—a journey of 300 miles—without ranged weapons of any kind. No Nausicaan may attack or fight another on the Great Silver Plain, but neither can they help each other. Survival is said to bring understanding… or madness.