Normalspace Variant 1

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A variant of the normalspace universe in which the events of the original classic OtherSpace story arcs never transpired.

This realm can only be reached via riftdrive, assuming an intrepid explorer finds the proper rift to reach it. Until then, Variant 1 is isolated and will continue evolving on its own.

All the known worlds are divided into three regions: the Stellar Consortium, The Fringe, and the Parallax. Since these worlds never experienced the upheavals of the Kretonian Invasion and the Sanctuary era, many of them may seem almost unrecognizable to players who played in Normalspace between the Sanctuary Arcs and the Rift Crisis.

The Stellar Consortium

The Stellar Consortium is a confederation of planets that extends through much of known space. Its capital is on Earth, and it is governed by a council of representatives from its member planets. It is diverse, including a wide variety of alien races, and is economically prosperous and politically stable. The Consortium's military force is called the Vanguard, whose headquarters is the Citadel, a space station in Sol System located between Earth and Mars. The member planets of the Consortium contribute elements of their own planetary forces to serve in the Vanguard. Genetic engineering of sentient species is outlawed under the Genetic Engineering Limitations Treaty (GELT), signed in the aftermath of the Specialist Uprising on Luna in the 2100s. The Consortium is heavily dependent on the Otherspace Drive for travel, which cannot function without the aid of the Il'Ri'Kamm hive mind, located on the planet Sagittarius. While the Hivers are nominally allied to the Consortium, no vessels are permitted to approach Sagittarius. Those that do are quickly destroyed by the planet's immense defense network.

Castor

World Info

Home of the bear-like Castori, Castor is a member of the Stellar Consortium. The planet is entirely covered by a dense forest, and the inhabitants live in cities built among the treetops.

Race Info and RP Hooks

The Castori resemble small bears, about three to four feet tall. They have some psionic abilities, and they are renowned throughout the galaxy for their skill with machines. Castori engineers are some of the best in the galaxy, and their technological contributions to the Consortium are considerable.

Centauri

World Info

A crystaline planet with an atmosphere that is toxic to most non-native lifeforms. Most races require protective breathing gear to visit Centauri. It is the homeworld of the Centauran race.

Race Info and RP Hooks

Centaurans resemble giant crystal jellyfish. They are psionic and communicate exclusively through telepathy. They are pacifists and are technologically quite advanced. They are among the finest scientists in the Consortium, and have a deep respect for all forms of life. Centuarans are asexual and reproduce through a kind of crystaline fission.

Demaria

World Info

Homeworld of the felinoid Demarians. Demaria is a bustling commercial center. It is a very hot, arid planet, with twin suns that blaze overhead. Much of the main continent is taken up by a vast desert the Demarians call the Sand Mother; conditions there are inhospitable to most life forms. The desert plays a major role in Demarian culture. The Nall once invaded Demaria, centuries ago, but were repelled by the almost mythical Demarian hero known as Altheor, who sacrificed his own ship to destroy the invading fleet in the Battle of Twin Suns. Today Demaria is a valued member of the Stellar Consortium.

Race Info and RP Hooks

Demarians resemble large bipedal cats. They have thick fur and sharp claws; they are larger and stronger than most humanoids and can vary as widely in appearance as different breeds of cats can. Demarian society is broken into two classes: nobles, who live lives of comfort and hold all positions of political and economic power, and underclassers, who are servants and manual laborers.

Earth

World Info

Homeworld of humanity, capital and founding world of the Stellar Consortium. Earth is densely populated, and many cities are overcrowded and dirty. There are a number of regions on the planet that are too radioactive for people to visit, the result of nuclear devices set off during the Earth-Zangali war in the 2100s. Washington, D.C. is one example of such an area; nothing remains of this city but radioactive ruins.

Race Info and RP Hooks

Humans are perhaps the most common race in the Stellar Consortium. They are generally tolerant and accepting of alien races, though there are exceptions to that rule. In the 2100s, to fight the war with the Zangali, humans mass produced specialist clones to serve as soldiers. The descendants of these specialists are modern Lunites, who are largely indistinguishable from ordinary humans, but for many years they were discriminated against and mistreated. Today most humans are embarrassed by this history. Humans make up the majority of the membership of the Vanguard.

G'ahnlo

World Info

A planet covered by one giant ocean, this Consortium planet is home to the fishlike G'ahnli. While there are no substantial landmasses, the G'ahnli have built a few sea platforms to accomodate the needs of outworlders.

Race Info and RP Hooks

The G'ahnli resemble large dolphins. They are psionic and communicate telepathically. They cannot breathe air or exist on land, and when they travel away from their homeworld they remain in large water-filled hovertanks. G'ahnli tend to be merchants and traders, and place a great deal of importance on the accumulation of wealth. They are known to drive a hard bargain, and have often been accused of taking advantage of other races in economic transactions.

Ganymede

World Info

A moon of Jupiter in Sol System, location of a small terran colony and military base. Ganymede is believed to be the headquarters of the Consortium Intelligence Service. In this timeline, Jupiter remains a gas giant, and was never converted to a dwarf star.

Race Info and RP Hooks

There is no race native to Ganymede. Most of those who live and work here are human.

Luna

World Info

Earth's natural sattelite, home to the Lunite sub-grouping of humans. Luna was once the home of a cloning facility where specialists were produced. When those specialists rebelled, they seized Luna as their home. There is one large city on Luna; known as Lunar City, it is a domed city on the surface of the moon. Luna is mainly an industrial and mining world, and is somewhat economically depressed compared to the other planets of Sol System...think of Detroit, only on the moon. In contrast to post-Kretonian Luna, Lunites in this timeline live ONLY on the surface; extensive mining operations delve beneath the surface, but the workers all live in Lunar City.

Race Info and RP Hooks

The main inhabitants of Luna are humans who call themselves Lunites. They are descended from specialist clones created hundreds of years earlier, first to serve as manual laborers, then as soldiers during the Earth-Zangali war. The Specialists had no rights, were sterile, were programmed to excel at a specific set of tasks, such as armed combat, engineering or vehicle operations, and their rapid metabolisms meant they had a lifespan of only five years. They were grown to full adulthood in the cloning tanks before being awakened, and thus never had childhoods. After the Human-Zangali War, specialists on Luna rebelled and seized the cloning facility run by the Embryonix Corporation there. They demanded freedom, a longer lifespan and reproductive rights. Ultimately, these requests were granted; gene therapy slowed their metabolism and extended their lifespans to close to that of normal humans, and also restored their fertility; in addition, the Genetic Engineering Limitations Treaty (GELT) was signed, guaranteeing the Lunites, as they now called themselves, freedom and banning the creation of new specialists, or any form of cloning or genetic engineering of sentient species. This treaty is still in force throughout the Consortium. Lunites, even after their freedom, were often looked down upon by other humans, and referred to by racial slurs like "tubers." Today, Lunites enjoy full equality and most of the prejudice against them has subsided; they tend to join the Vanguard in large numbers. Many young Lunites seek a path to get off Luna as soon as they are able.

Mars

World Info

Fourth planet in Sol System, neighbor to Earth and member of the Consortium. Mars is the home both to a colony of humans from Earth and of the entire Zangali species. The planet has no breatheable atmosphere on the surface, and the human colonists live in domed cities, while the Zangali live in vast underground caverns. In contrast to post-Kretonian Mars in the main timeline, this world was never terraformed; there is no Outback and you cannot travel outside without some sort of protection. Centuries earlier, the first human colonists had attempted to begin terraforming the planet; unbeknownst to them the Zangali already lived on Mars, and the terraforming efforts led to the collapse of some undergound caverns, wiping out an entire Zangali city. This sparked the Earth-Zangali war. At the end of the war, both sides made peace, and agreed to share Mars, with the Zangali remaining underground and the human colonists agreeing to never again attempt to terraform the planet. Both Humans and Zangali on Mars are loyal members of the Stellar Consortium.

Race Info and RP Hooks

There are two races on Mars: Humans and Zangali. The humans are little different from those found on Earth, though they consider themselves more rugged and tougher for surviving in the harsh martian environment. The Zangali are a reptiloid species, larger than their cousins, the Grimlahdi and the Nall. They resemble large, bipedal iguanas. They have very thick, scaly skin that is resistant to damage and functions like a natural armor. They are large, averaging about 8 feet tall, and immensely strong, with sharp claws. They have a deeply rooted sense of honor and place a great deal of importance on family; they like to assign titles to themselves and their kin, memorializing even minor accomplishments ("I am Grokthar, master crate stacker, son of Lorthkgar, Mighty Consumer of Potatos,"). They are vegetarians. Zangali are sometimes believed to be stupid, though this is not really the case; some fail to learn very much terran standard, and speak a kind of bastardized version of the language that others take as a sign of stupidity. Centuries ago, the Zangali fled from their homeworld of Grimlahd to escape the domination of the Nall; there are no Zangali on Grimlahd today, only their distant cousins, the Grimlahdi remain there. Upon fleeing Grimlahd, the Zangali eventually found and settled on Mars, and remained there for centuries undetected by the nearby humans on Earth.

Phyrria

World Info

A ruined, war-blasted planet inhabited entirely by living machines. At some point in the distant past, the original inhabitants of Phyrria were annihilated in a war that left only the sentient machines they had created alive. The exact details of this conflict are not known to outsiders. Phyrria is a member of the Stellar Consortium.

Race Info and RP Hooks

Phyrrians are machines. While a few exist in a vaguely humanoid form, most do not; they come in a variety of shapes and sizes. They are motivated by pure logic and can communicate with other Phyrrians over great distances; all Phyrrians are bound together by a central guiding intelligence known as the Overmind. They are technologically advanced, and their bodies may sometimes include built-in weaponry or tools.

Sivad

World Info

A lush, vibrant planet with a thriving human colony on it. Sivad is an important member of the Stellar Consortium. Its moon, Morrigan, is one of the only known large supplies of Polydenum in the Consortium, which is required as a fuel source for most planets and starships. Sivad was settled centuries ago by settlers largely from the British Isles on Earth. Sivad has a thriving monarchy and an adequate local system military that contributes forces to the Consortium's Vanguard defense coalition. Sivad is a beautiful, temperate world that is a frequent tourist destination.

Race Info and RP Hooks

Sivadians are humans. Their culture is derived in part from British culture on Earth. Sivadians tend to be physically very attractive and of above-average intelligence, to a degree that seems to defy statistical probability; this has led to speculation that at some point in the past, Sivadians experimented on themselves with genetic engineering; there is some quiet speculation that they still do so, engineering themselves to be attractive, intelligent and athletic, in defiance of the prohibitions of GELT.

The Fringe

The Fringe is a poorly defined region of space between the Stellar Consortium and the Parallax. It consists of a number of planets, all of which either rejected membership in the Consortium or were established by settlers looking to escape the influence of Earth. Whereas the Consortium is a stable, law-and-order society, the Fringe is an anarchic, frontier society where individualism and independence are highly valued. The worlds of the Fringe are all under the domination of Lord Fagin, the Pirate King, whose vast criminal organization, Fagin's Riches, reaches out from Fagin's world of Tomin Kora to exert his will on the region. None of the worlds of the Fringe are strong enough to resist Fagin, so they have all reached an accomodation with him; he will leave them to govern their internal affairs mostly unhindered, if they agree to acknowledge his sway over their worlds, allow his criminal enterprises to operate unmolested in their territory, and provide support and shelter for members of his organization when they are in need. Most commerce in the region flows through Tomin Kora, where Fagin's powerful Guilds, the Smugglers' Guild and the Pirates' Guild, have their headquarters. The Guilds operate with impunity throughout the Fringe; they also are known to operate within the Consortium, though the Vanguard does its best to stop them there. Fagin has a vast network of informants, spies and servants on his payroll throughout the Fringe and on many worlds of the Consortium as well, though there they operate strictly underground. Fagin also employs an unknown number of highly skilled assassins. But the ultimate instrument of Lord Fagin's will is the highly feared Elite Guard, Fagin's personal bodyguard and private mercenary army. The Guard is ruthless, brutal and powerful, and fanatically loyal to Fagin himself. Its members are feared throughout the Fringe. Fagin himself is never seen publicly; he remains in his secret, legendary palace on Tomin Kora, and conducts business with outsiders through a majordomo.

Antimone

World Info

Homeworld of the Timonae people. Antimone is a world of the Fringe, under the influence of Lord Fagin, the Pirate King. It is a world well known for its thriving gambling industry, and attracts many tourists from the Stellar Consortium.

Race Info and RP Hooks

The Timonae are a mildly psionic race descended from the Kamir. Like most Kamiroid races they are similar in appearance to humans but with certain differences. Timonae have olive-colored skin and their hair is usually white. Once, the Timonae and the Shohobian Mystics were a single people, but the Timonae broke away and established their own society millenia ago. Over the intervening years their psionic talents have atrophied compared to their Mystic brethren; they still have a mild form of precognition but it is very weak. Nevertheless, they use this talent as a way of making money; many Timonae are fortune-tellers, and offworlders visit Antimone and pay a lot of money for a glimpse into their future. Often this glimpse is vague or inaccurate, and many accuse the Timonae of being cheats and charlatans. The Timonaes' vague ability to glimpse the future also makes them appear to be very lucky; they are especially adept at games of chance, and gambling plays a big role in their culture, as does the concept of luck, which is personified in Timonae religion, art and literature.

Odari

World Info

Homeworld of the insectoid Odarites, this Fringe world is an important commercial planet. It is not far from Tomin Kora, at the other end of the Tomin Nebula, and as with all Fringe worlds it acknowledges Fagin's sway.

Race Info and RP Hooks

Odarites are basically giant sentient beetles, with six legs and sharp claws. Their culture places a lot of emphasis on the accumulation of wealth, and many Odarites are merchants and traders.

Quaquan

World Info

A sparsely populated, mostly agricultural world in the Fringe, Quaquan is the home of the Qua, human settlers from Earth who are descended from Native American Indians from North America. The population is organized in small villages and lives in harmony with nature; while technology exists on the planet it is generally kept out of sight. Despite the peaceful nature of the inhabitants, Quaquan too is under Lord Fagin's thumb.

Race Info and RP Hooks

Centuries ago, a group of Native American Indians, primarily Navajo and Cheyenne, fled Earth aboard colony ships in a desperate attempt to preserve their dying culture. Eventually, they found the world they called Quaquan. They have lived there for many centuries, preserving their ancestral traditions. They want mainly to be left in peace, but while their villages seem simple and almost primative, they still possess spacefaring technology.

Tomin Kora

World Info

Tomin Kora is a harsh, barren world in the Tomin Nebula. It has little atmosphere, and what air exists is not breatheable. It receives little light from its dim star, Tomin, but the sky is always lit with the lavendar glow of the nebula. Tomin Kora is the center of Lord Fagin's empire, and is the closest thing the Fringe has to a capital world. The inhabited area consists of a single domed city, known as Freewheeling. It is here that the core of Fagin's Riches operates, and the base of operations for the Smugglers' Guild, Pirates' Guild and Elite Guard are all believed to be here. Tomin Kora is a world with no real law except the will of Lord Fagin; criminals and misfits from all over the galaxy come here, as do many fortune seekers. It is a dangerous planet with no police force and no formal government; violent crime is commonplace. Virtually all criminal enterprises have a home here; smuggling, piracy, gambling, drugs, prositution, illegal weapons and technology, genetic engineering and manipulation...in addition to various criminal concerns, there are also many legitimate businesses that choose to operate here free of the extensive government regulations that exist on other worlds. Many Consortium worlds warn their citizens not to travel to Tomin Kora because it is too dangerous; nonetheless many come here to seek their fortunes, and the planet is always bustling and busy, as the Guilds steer much of the commerce of the Fringe through here.

Deep beneath the streets of Freewheeling lies the hidden palace of Lord Fagin himself. No one outside Fagin's inner circle have ever seen it and lived to tell the tale. The path to the palace is protected by a series of booby traps of exceptionally lethal cunning. Nevertheless, the rumor of the great wealth of the Pirate King has encouraged treasure seekers to try to find the palace, in the hope of carrying off some of the vast piles of wealth rumored to be inside. Lord Fagin seems to subtly encourage this practice, as it enhances his legend; treasure seekers go in search of the palace, but none ever return alive.

Race Info and RP Hooks

There are no races native to Tomin Kora, but the planet will accept all comers. Be forewarned, though, it is a dangerous world to visit. Fagin's Riches is always recruiting new members of its various criminal enterprises, especially the Guilds, and someone can make a great deal of money in the service of the Pirate King. But once you agree to work for Lord Fagin, it is unlikely he'll let you leave his service while you're still breathing.

Ungstir

World Info

Centuries ago, a group of European settlers left Earth and came across a lush, green planet. They called it Youngster, and built a thriving, idyllic colony there. But it was close to the Parallax, and the Nall took the human colony as an intrusion. They attacked, and launched a core seeker missile at the planet. The missile caused the planet to explode, but three large chunks survived. The surviving humans dug deep into these three chunks, building a new society in the tunnels and mines beneath the surface of the shattered pieces of the world. They renamed the planet Ungstir, and the three chunks became known, in order of size, as Ungstir 1, Ungstir 2 and Ungstir 3. They orbit together in roughly the position of the former planet, amidst a field of debris and smaller rocks. Offworlders are often deeply disturbed when they arrive on Ungstir for the first time, as it appears that the three chunks will almost certainly crash into each other...though they never do. With the planet's atmosphere gone, the people live underground in tunnels and caverns, and mining has become the major industry on Ungstir. Ungstir is the closest planet to Tomin Kora, and the Tomin Nebula is clearly visible in the night sky. Lord Fagin's operations are said to have extensive influence on Ungstir.

Race Info and RP Hooks

The Ungstiri are pale-skinned, dark-haired humans. Having surived the destruction of their world and rebuilt their society amidst the ruins, they pride themselves on their stubbornness and resilience. "Ungstiri Tough" is a high compliment on Ungstir, used to describe anyone who personifies the Ungstiri spirit.

Val Shohob

World Info

Val Shohob is the homeworld of the Shohobian Mystics, a kamiroid race closely related to the Timonae. It is an arid world with a relatively small population. In this timeline, the planet's star did not go Nova, and the planet was NOT resurrected by the Il'Ri'Kamm hive mind and moved to the Vollistan System. It exists here in its own star system, many light years from Vollista.

Race Info and RP Hooks

The Mystics of Val Shohob are a powerfully psionic Kamiroid race closely related to the Timonae. They have numerous psionic talents, including a gift for seeing the future. They believe these visions of the future come to them from the Voice of the Universe, and they have collected their accumulated visions in a series of prophecies that they believe depict the universe's future. They believe it is their job to serve the Voice and help guide the other races of the galaxy through the challenges foretold in the prophecies. The head of the Order of Mystics is the Eye of Val Shohob, who effectively serves as the leader of the planet. Mystics are tall and roughly human in appearance, with olive skin and white hair. They wear long robes of gray or brown. They like to speak in riddles; they know something of the future, and yet are reluctant to reveal too much of it for fear of altering the course of events, so they tend to speak in vague pronouncements that are more confusing than revealing. At times talking to a Mystic can be like talking to a fortune cookie. This frustrates offworlders, who find it maddening to have a conversation with a Mystic; the Mystics themselves seem to enjoy this response.

The Parallax

Beyond the Fringe lies the vast and powerful empire of the reptiloid Nall, known as the Parallax. As one approaches Parallax space, one encounters a vast floating graveyard of derelict vessels. This is the Line of Pain, the shattered remnants of ships that attempted to enter the Parallax without permission. The capital of the Parallax is Nalhom, and most other worlds under Parallax control are little more than slave planets. The will of the Nall is carried out by the immensely powerful Clawed Fist Fleet, and no opposition to Nall rule is tolerated. The Consortium has had limited contact with the Parallax, and most of what is known of the Nall empire there is just rumor. It is widely speculated that Fagin's Riches may have more extensive dealings with the Parallax, but that again is only rumor.

Grimlahd

World Info

Homeworld of the Grimlahdi people and ancient homeworld of the Zangali, though none live there now. Grimlahd is one of a number of worlds enslaved by the Nall. The Grimlahdi are more likely than most of the Nall slave races to rebel, and this combined with the apparent resentment the Nall have toward reptiloid species that are larger than they are mean that the Nall oppression of Grimlahd is especially severe.

Race Info and RP Hooks

The Grimlahdi are a reptiloid species that is similar in appearance to Zangali but shorter, their height range running roughly midway between the Nall and the Zangali. They have a thick, scaly hide and sharp claws, as well as a tail they can use as a weapon.

Ist'thol'mek

World Info

Home of the insectiod Mekke, this world is enslaved by the Parallax.

Race Info and RP Hooks

The Mekke are an insectiod species. They live in a single large colony, led by Queen Odriax. Only the queen can reproduce, and so they are a vitally important resource to the Mekke. The Mekke are enslaved by the Nall, and often used as interrogators due to their psionic abilities.

Lebal

World Info

Lebal is the companion planet to Nalhom, at the center of the Parallax. Lebal and Nalhom are a binary planetary system, orbiting together around a central point in their shared orbit around their star.

Race Info and RP Hooks

See Nalhom.

Nalhom

World Info

Capital planet of the Parallax, home of the reptiloid Nall. Part of a binary planetary system, together with Lebal.

Race Info and RP Hooks

The Nall are the masters of the Parallax. They are a reptiloid species, perhaps four feet tall with sharp claws and a long tail. They are very fast, agile and aggressive. They look and act rather like velociraptors from Jurassic Park. The Nall have a keen sense of honor and are easily insulted. When insulted, they generally kill whoever or whatever insulted them. The Nall equivalent of a family is called a Hatch, and some hatches are very large and powerful. A Nall's name comes from a combination of his or her personal name combined with their hatch name. For example, Hurkvril is Hurk of Hatch Vril, and this is how Nall will usually refer to themselves. The Nall worship the goddess Nalia, and the leader of the Parallax is the Vox, who is considered Nalia's living representative. The Nall are a heavily militarized society, with the vast and powerful Clawed Fist Fleet maintaining rigid control of the worlds under Parallax dominion. Nall soldiers are punished for mistakes or disobedience by having a portion of their tail cut off, which is an act of supreme humiliation for a Nall. For the first offense the tip of the tail is cut off, for the second offense the tail is cut at the base, and for the third, the tail is cut off at the head.

Vollista

World Info

Homeworld of the Vollistan Light Singers. In the original Normalspace timeline as it unfolded in the original story arcs, Val Shohob was moved to the same star system as Vollista by the Hivers. This has NOT happened here.

Race Info and RP Hooks

Vollistan Light Singers are powerfully psionic Kamiroid race. Roughly human in appearance, the Light Singers are very tall and willowy, with long white hair. Their most distinctive feature is the colorful aura of light which surrounds them at nearly all times; this aura changes color according to their mood. Centuries ago the Light Singers were mainly artists, musicians and poets, but their powerful psionic talents have proven valuable to the Nall, who have ruthlessly enslaved their race. The most powerful Vollistans are employed by the Nall as Interrogators, and are used to forcibly extract information from the minds of anyone who might be planning to resist the Parallax. In this way, Vollistans play a key role in the ability of the Nall to maintain control over their empire, though the Light Singers generally find this role very distasteful. Nevertheless, because of the pain and suffering inflicted at the hands of Vollistan Interrogators, most other races in the Parallax fear and distrust them. (Note: This is very different from the way Vollistan culture had taken shape in the post-Sanctuary Normalspace timeline; it is nevertheless accurate to this time period.)

Ydahr

World Info

A swampy planet enslaved by the Nall, homeworld of the Ydahri people.

Race Info and RP Hooks

The Ydahri people resemble large Salamanders. They are amphibious and need to remain in a damp environment to survive, but they can exist on land. They are distant relatives to the G'ahnli, though the two races have had no contact for millenia.

Undiscovered Worlds

These are planets that existed in the main timeline of Normalspace, but in Variant 1 they have not been, and may never be, discovered. In many cases, these worlds were discovered and named by PCs during the course of the original Otherspace story arcs, and so if they are discovered again, they may be given different names and evolve quite differently.

Waldheim

Race Info and RP Hooks

Back to Multiverse Canon and RP Hooks.