Maj Space: Selene (update 25/Aug)

This is the 'non-monster' part of Selene for Maj Space - a number
of new bits have been added, and the details of the Great Lunar
Empire and Moonstone City extracted into their own specs:

http://www.romsys.demon.co.uk/frpg/spelljam/majspace/glu.htm
http://www.romsys.demon.co.uk//frpg/spelljam/majspace/moonstone.htm

This is a little cross-over between the two in the form of one
NPC.


Selene - 25/Aug/06

Selene is the planet-sized moon of Maj, the third planet in Maj
Space, tide-locked so one face always is towards Maj.  The
Maj-facing side is mostly barren and covered in fields of grey
lichen, which skinny grey moon goats graze on, while the rare
carnivorous giant moon rabbits (which can make themselves
invisible) eat the goats.  Also noted are tribes of winged
goblins, and some giant ants, which farm giant aphids, which in
turn eat the lichen.  For details of the farside, see The
Mushroom Forest, below.

The time for the wildspace journey between Maj and Selene is
about five minutes at spelljamming speed, which is over-shadowed
by the little more than an hour that is needed to pass through
the atmosphere and gravity well of both Maj and Selene.  Assuming
there are no problems with the weather on Maj (Selene's minimal
weather is unlikely to cause problems) a two-hour journey would
not be unreasonable.

While there are shallow, brackish, seas, covering the parts named
as seas on any map of Selene (Luna), this is in many respects a
dry world, with in general no rain, dew keeping the lichen alive,
and there are some pools of fresh water, and even small lakes, to
be found near the poles, where there is frozen ice.  Some of the
nearside goblin tribes have domesticated moon goats, and the
cheese made from their milk is said to be of exceptional quality. 
The goblins will trade cheese for metal, which they use to make
better weapons than their rather soft stone ones - metal does not
seem to be mineable on this moon.

Near the poles there is some more life, in the form of
shape-shifters, lunatics of all stripes, fractious city states
and the Great Lunar University.  Ah, the Great Lunar University! 
Home of knowledge, wisdom and base of many adventurers.  Its
motto is "Mapping the Universe, one casualty at a time". 
Possibly Selene's true ruler as much as it has one.


The Great Lunar University

Location: Selene, north polar region.

The Great Lunar University had an inauspicious start about 40
years ago as an insane asylum for spellcasters and scholars.  But
something in Selene's rarified air so conducive to irrationality
in the relatively sane seemed to have a curative effect on many
of the sufferers shipped there.  Since many of the inmates had
serious relapses if they left, a colony was formed, and a great
deal of scholarship ensued.  Later students were added.  For full
details see GLU.


"Loony Town" or The Old Settlement

Loony Town, while outside the walls of the Great Lunar
University, is the actual site of the original sanitarium that
the University grew out of, although the original building is
long gone.  Selene attracts all sorts of madmen and visionaries
and assorted crazies, and in the territory of The Great Luna
University they often end up in Loony Town, which lies next to,
but is distinct from, the harbor district.

In Loony Town you find the mad, the lazy, the practical and the
mystical.  Here you can find more refined sins than in the harbor
district, here you find odd cults, and here you find the
(moderately) illegal, the (moderately) immoral and the
(moderately) impossible.

The best restaurants in town, the wildest student hangouts, and
the strangest nightclubs are found in Looney Town.  There are
magic shops in Loony Town, and while they might not be as well
stocked as the University's magic exchange, they often have less
common, more specialized items.

Loony Town is safe enough if you stick to the streets and the
establishments on the edges -- those are well patrolled by GLU's
security forces.  However, what happens inside the stranger
establishments in the core of Loony Town tends to stay in those
establishments.


Piedra de la Luna Municipalidad aka Moonstone City

Location: Selene, north polar region; the Crater Plato, south of
the Mare Frigoris Sea, north of the Mare Imbrium Sea, and west of
Montes Alpes.

The Crater Plato is approximately 63 miles (101 km) in diameter.

Piedra de la Luna Municipalidad, or Moonstone City in the Common
language, was founded 1576 CE by Lord Lancelo Bazia del la
Madeira, an Iberian nobleman  For full details see Moonstone.


Nova Roma

The thriving Roma city-state, which is intended to aid in the
Roma conquest of Maj Space.  For something with a supposedly
military purpose it has many grand buildings, and temples to the
gods of Roma, and seems more a place of diplomatic than military
conflict.  In many respects, because of the temples, it also
seems to be something of a religion centre.  The various other
empires of Maj have found it very useful, as 'neutral' ground,
and can have quiet discusions while just there for 'religious
reasons'.

As far as the Roma army is concerned, they have been quite useful
in fending of attacks by Hoblocks, and several persistent tribes
of winged goblins, but there is not a lot of sign that they are
moving out into Maj Space, except on a few probing expeditions. 
Privately, the military leaders are both happy to have the time
to build-up and train their forces, and unhappy they are waiting
for the politicians to decide what to do.  Mercurius Adeptus
hears quite a few prayers for patience.


Emania

Emania means 'Moonland' in the Celtic language, and was
legendarily a place of the dead, guarded by wolves, but Albion
claims that it is intended to strike the fear of death into their
enemies, and be a wolf at the throat of any who dare strike
against them.

This Albion city-state, which was originally founded to support
naval activites on Maj, later expanded to be the main Albion
spelljamming port off Maj, and be a centre of commerce, though
the naval docks are still considered a major part of the town. 
It runs on a strict 24-hour day, independent on whether it is day
or night on Selene, and its noon is the same time as noon at
Winchester.  Trade seems to be an important part of its business,
no matter what the navy are currently up to.

-- 
Dreamer
dreamer@??????.?????.??.uk
http://www.romsys.demon.co.uk/