MotM: Blueheart

A new month, a new Moon! :)

Adam

Blueheart
Tiny (C) Flat Earth
Climate: Tropical
Orbital Position: Lunar Track #12
Day Length: 19 hours
Year Length: 200 standard days
Native Races: Any (see below)

This is a teardrop-shaped moon with alternating spots
of light and dark green, with patches of dark brown at
the center.

Blueheart is a small, flat island of earth with the
overall shape of a teardrop.  Lowlands at the edges
rise to rolling hills at the center of both sides. 
Blueheart is about 200 miles along its longest axis
and 150 miles at the widest.  It is twenty miles
thick.  Rivers empty into small lakes along its edges.

The whole of Blueheart is owned and run by the
powerful Blue Hand Trading House.  It runs the
numerous sapphire mines that the moon is named for. 
Large quantities of raw, uncut sapphires are hauled
from Blueheart to gemcutters around the Known Spheres.
 The moon is a magnet for poor miners from a hundred
worlds, who come looking to strike it rich.  Few truly
strike it rich, but the Blue Hands make certain those
that do become famous, ensuring a steady supply of
eager workers.

Blueheart is tropical in climate.  The days are hot
and humid, while nights are cooler and drier.  Hard
rains occur every few weeks and last for about three
days at a time.  The underground is hotter still, with
stagnant air that makes mine working dangerous and
difficult.

Landmarks
Hope Hills: These foothills were mountains and fuming
volcanoes in ancient times, worn down by the ages and
erosion.  They are located at the center of
Blueheart’s northern face.  Though gemstones are
abundant, they are difficult to remove from the
hardened rocks.  Near the entrances of each of the
dozen or so major mines is a large graveyard, filled
with the bodies of those who perish in the mines. 
Though named the “Hope Hills” by the Blue Hand, miners
know the area as the “Bonegrinder Hills” for the
countless miners in the nearby graveyards.

Coastal Jungles: The flat lands at the edges of
Blueheart are covered by lush rainforests and jungles.
 The edges of the forests have been cleared for
cultivation, although the soil is poor and exhausted
after only a few seasons.  Jaguars and man-eating
tigers stalk the jungles, making the area very
dangerous.  

Point Cindertop: The tallest mountain on the southern
face is Cindertop, an extinct volcano that is about
2,300’ tall.  The summit commands a view of four
nearby sapphire mines, which is why the Blue Hands
built a large fort there.  Two full regiments of giff,
a force of 200 giff warriors plus a like number of
dependants, make up the garrison.  Behind its solid
stone walls are four great bombards and twenty smaller
bombards.  

Native Creatures 
Plants and animals native to a hot climate are
suitable on Bluheart, especially those native to
jungles and rolling hills.  At the top of the food
chain are big cats, especially jaguars and tigers. 
Dire versions of these creatures are rare, but not
unknown.  

Guide to Groundlings
Blueheart is a magnet for miners from a hundred worlds
and almost as many races.  Standard races, such as
humans, elves, dwarves, and halflings are abundant,
but just as common are half-orcs, true orcs, gnolls,
kobolds, lizardmen, grommam, hadozee, giants, and even
stranger races.  All labor for the Blue Hands, in one
fashion or another.

At the top of the society of Blueheart are mercane of
the Blue Hand Trading House.  Only four of these
creatures are known to reside on Blueheart and almost
always encountered at Grimharo.  From their
sequestered palaces they manage the entire moon. 
Rastipedes act as their trusted agents and upper
management.  Through their rastipede managers, the
mercane micro-manage the moon to such a degree that
they have absolute control over the moon’s economy. 
Behind the thick, grim walls of their palaces, the
mercane live in absolute luxury, with hundreds of
servants to cater to their every whim.  Rumors claim
that their quarters include a fanciful arcade,
complete with an indoor canal and finely crafted
arches, columns, and art galleries.  Only their most
trusted advisors, henchmen, and bodyguards are allowed
access to this inner sanctum.

Below the mercane and rastipedes are regiments of giff
mercenaries.  No less than seven full regiments are
deployed at Blueheart (two at Cindertop, three at
Grimharo, and two at smaller forts).  Several smaller
giff companies are stationed at the various mining
towns.  The giff are hardened soldiers, fiercely
enforcing whatever laws the Blue Hands decree.  They
are well-paid for their services, and are well-stocked
with smokepowder and magical weapons.  Their numbers
are bolstered by companies of other races, although
none are as effective or as powerful as the giff.

Low-rank managers and shopkeepers of all races make up
the next rung on the social ladder.  These are
ruthless agents of the Blue Hands, scheming and
grasping at whatever power and wealth they can
accumulate.  They encourage this constant backstabbing
and scheming, as it keeps the moon firmly under their
thumb.  

At the bottom are the laborers.  These are people who
come to Blueheart for a host of reasons.  Some are
indentured servants, owing debts they cannot pay. 
Others are poor freemen seeking a better life.  Others
still are outcasts looking for their place in the
universe.  Most work in the dangerous mines in shifts
which last two back-breaking weeks.  Conditions in the
mines are terrible at best, with deadly air, cave-ins,
flooding, monster attacks and territorial spats
between rival gangs are just some of their troubles. 
At the end of their shifts, the miners emerge at one
of the many towns to spend their hard-earned wages at
the taverns, gambling halls, and brothels before
heading back into the mine for another two-week shift.

Because they work for the Blue Hands, prices and wages
are set such that at the end of a hard day’s work,
everyone ends up more in debt than at the start of the
day.  The Blue Hands are very good at concealing this
by creating loopholes that can be exploited that allow
some to truly “strike it rich”.  The loopholes
constantly change, of course, so that it is impossible
to follow another’s footsteps to riches.

An unknown number of blue dragons inhabit the hills of
Blueheart.  These creatures act as special enforcers
for the Blue Hands, dealing with any particularly
troublesome business that might arise.  The last time
they were used was during an uprising at Tigertower,
when miners seized control of several valuable mines
and threatened to choke off the sapphire trade if they
were not given better treatment and higher wages.  A
week later, the Blue Hands’ answered their ultimatum
with a devastating blue dragon attack that leveled the
town and killed the rebellious miners.  This was
merely the latest of a series of such attacks, all
aimed at crushing rebellions in a swift and brutal
manner.  The lair of these dragons is unknown, but
believed to hold great treasures of gold, magic, and
gleaming sapphires.

Recently, agents and hired thugs of the Xaroth clan, a
well-known beholder clan active in many illegal
trades, have arrived and muscled their way into
protection rackets and the smuggling of narcotic
drugs.  This local branch of the Xaroth is run by the
beholder Xor-Xanu, more commonly known as Smokeye for
his habit of chewing on enormous, lit cigars.  Smokeye
is a ruthless gangster who has hundreds of thugs at
his disposal and dozens of officials in his pocket. 
The Blue Hands have yet to try to root him out, as he
is actually a useful pawn to them.  For his part,
Smokeye has no interest in challenging the power of
the Blue Hands, instead preferring to prey on the much
more vulnerable laborers and shopkeepers. 

Resources and Trade
The sapphire trade dominates Blueheart’s economy. 
Sapphires, rubies, and lesser gemstones are the
primary and most valuable resources of the moon.  The
moon’s other resources, such as lumber, groves of
fruit trees, and iron and copper deposits are
exploited only so much as to support the sapphire
mining.  The Blue Hands have little interest in
exploring what other resources the moon might have, as
that would divert attention from the lucrative
sapphire trade.

The moon primary import is passengers, bound to toil
in the mines or in one of the businesses of the moon’s
towns.  Just as important are mining and building
tools necessary to keep the mines operating.  Traders
should be warned that only Blue Hand ships may handle
all sapphire shipments.  Any ship that is discovered
to have sapphires or rubies aboard risk being
impounded by local officials and the crew arrested. 
Trials are brief and never fair; bribery has more to
do with the outcome of a trial than guilt or
innocence.  

Every few weeks, a load of uncut gemstones is loaded
aboard three heavily armed hammerships and flown to an
unspecified harbor.  An escort of four additional
hammerships, crewed by crack giff marines and sailors,
protect the treasure ships from harm.  They fly in
absolute secrecy, using cloaking helms and spells to
evade any would-be pursers.  Would-be pirates should
be warned that these treasure fleets are fiercely
guarded by fanatically loyal crews and the best
weapons money can buy.

Ports of Call
Grimharo (small city, 7,300): Grimharo is heavily
fortified and well-patrolled by several giff
companies.  The city has a large artificial lake used
for water landings and a nearby field for
ground-landing craft.  The city is the local seat of
power for the Blue Hands, where sapphires mined from
the hills of Blueheart are taken before being shipped
off-world on Blue Hand ships.  The sapphire trade is
tightly controlled to prevent smuggling.  Six heavily
armed squidships and four heavy hammerships guard the
port.  Only ships flying the Blue Hand flag may land
at this port; independent ships are waved off and sent
to the nearby towns.

Brokenridge (large town, 2,050): Brokenridge is an
example of the many mining towns scattered across
Blueheart.  It is an unwalled town of just over two
thousand souls that work the nearby mines.  There is a
small, man-made lake nearby where water-landing craft
can set down and dock.  The main road through town is
Sin Street, and is lined by three brothels, several
taverns and inns, a gambling hall, and a pit-fighting
arena.  Many buildings are in shoddy shape, the wood
gray with age and neglect.  It is a brawling, low-life
hell-hole by all accounts, with corrupt locals
constantly scheming and justice is determined by the
fist and the sword.  A local company of twenty giff
and one hundred human mercenaries are just as likely
to prey on the populous as anyone else.  

History
For ages, Blueheart was an anonymous moon among many,
with a small population of jungle-dwelling kobolds and
troglodytes dwelling in the hills.  The deposits of
sapphires were first discovered by prospecting dwarves
about three centuries ago.  The clan set up mining
operations, but the costs of protecting their mines
from troglodyte attack proved too much, and they
pulled up stakes nine years later.  The
nearly-destitute clan sold their stake to the Blue
Hands.  The greater resources of the Blue Hands made
all the difference, and their mines proved very
profitable.  The troglodytes were handily defeated by
giff mercenaries in a series of battles known as the
Lizard-Slaying wars.  

By the close of the Lizard-Slaying wars, towns popped
up all across Blueheart, close to the mine entrances. 
New towns were built where new mines were discovered,
and old towns were abandoned after the mines played
out.  The Blue Hands built fortresses at strategic
points throughout the moon to guard their investments,
garrisoned by giff mercenaries.  

Soon after treasure fleets began departing Blueheart,
pirates began plotting how to capture these riches for
themselves.  Several attempts were made, all ending in
miserable failure.  One pirate, the minotaur
Blackhorn, did manage to muster more than twenty
pirate ships for one attack and even managed to board
and capture one treasure ship.  Though he managed to
escape the battle with his prize, over half of his
ships were left burning in the void to the loss of
only two escorting hammerships.  Blackhorn was later
forced to flee the Known Spheres upon pain of death,
as the Blue Hands took great pains to hunt down and
destroyed every pirate, buccaneer, and scalawag that
took part in the raid.  For weeks, the mangled bodies
of the pirates hung from the gallows of a hundred
ports as a stern warning to pirates everywhere.

It is rumored that the reason for the Blue Hands’ fury
may have to do with specific sapphire that was aboard
the ship Blackhorn discovered.  It is claimed that a
sapphire of unusual size and quality had been
discovered.  This sapphire was the Blueheart, as it
was the size of a halfling’s heart, and only the
slightest of cutting was required to create a gemstone
of such magnificence that it would be the envy of
every mercane in the Known Spheres.  If true, it is
entirely possible that Blackhorn was merely an agent
of another mercane house.  This would explain how, a
relatively minor pirate, was able to muster the
resources to assemble such a vast and powerful fleet
in such a short time.  The Blueheart, of course,
remains merely a legend and dream of many adventurers.

Satellites
The Shattered Spiders: In low orbit around Blueheart
is a trio of broken deathspiders, the wreckage of a
neogi raid on the moon.  After the neogi rout, their
ships were put on display as a macabre warning to any
would-be attackers that the port can and will defend
itself.  Smugglers have set up shop in the shattered
wrecks, although they must take care to avoid
detection by local patrols.  These smugglers,
collectively known as The Pouch, make use of
dragonflies and mosquitoes in their operations.  The
Pouch is very secretive about their operation, such
that even the Blue Hands do not yet know its
existence.

Bibliography
Spelljammer: Dungeons & Dragons in Space



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