Re: Known Space

From: "Adam Miller" <night_druid3000@?????.com>
Sent: Monday, November 05, 2007 10:44 PM
Subject: Re: [SPELLJAMMER] Known Space


> Building on an earlier post.
>
> So if you want to define a "Known Space", we have the
> following that largely belong:
>
> * Realms/Oerth/Krynn (SJ core)
> * Refuge/Pirtel/Darnannon/Korv (Dungeon)
> * Great/Hero/Faerie (maybe) (SJA 3)
> * Path/Prime/Way/Vista/Heart/Winter (novels)
> * Bral/Gromm/Taur/Falx (Paul)
> * Neth/Mirror (Me, SJL...;) )
>
> Just outside of Known Space:
> * Morag/Shadow (SJS/SJQ)
> * Dark/Faerie (maybe) (SJA 3)
> * Vodoni Empire (SJA4)
> * Nix/Various others (novels)
> * Cluster/Red Eyes/Steel (SJ line)
>
> This gives us a good 21 or so spheres for known space;
> that's enough, I think.  Particularly, we have several
> with little to no information on
> (Prime/Path/Way/Vista/Darnannon).  I think these
> especially can be used; with these, we can create the
> destinations for all much of trade SJ sees now.

That works for me. With that definition, I'd argue that the organisations 
found in Adventures in Wildspace, should be more common in those spheres and 
less common elsewhere.

Into the Void page 186 has a planet called Waypoint in Wayspace. I'd argue 
that was the main planet in the sphere.

The Broken Sphere page 202 has Primespace between Pathspace and Vistaspace. 
I'd put the three spheres on a phlogiston river.

I can't find anything on Darnannon.

> So here's one possible scenario.
>
> The area of modern Known Space began as a deserted,
> little used area.

I'm pretty sure that "deserted" doesn't work for Greatspace, but I'd go with 
these spheres having groundling planets.

> The prime population centers were
> Oerth/Krynn/Toril/a few others.  Starting at about 20k
> years ago, a few ships of the Elven Fleet stumbled
> onto the area.  For the next oh, 15k years, they were
> the only game in town.  The elves came from "beyond".

I'm not sure why, but that still doesn't do it for me. I'm thinking that we 
are going to need a groundling world, where elves discovered (or were 
taught) spelljamming and then spread it to their kin on other worlds.

> About 5k years ago, there was an "age of discovery".
> In short order, the Kreen, beholders, and illithids
> "arrived" in the area, probably from "beyond".  Some
> groundling nations, particularly Netheril, took to the
> stars.  Many planets, such as Anadari, are colonized
> by adventurers & survivors of shipwrecks.  Populations
> begin to swell on minor worlds.

I think I'm going to need homeworlds for all of these SJ ancestor races. (At 
least homeworlds for the spacefaring versions of the races. I'm happy for 
grounding versions to exist in multiple spheres.) I don't mind if these 
homeworlds are outside Known Space, in fact I want them to be outside Known 
Space and to either be hard to find or legendary.

I'm willing to go with illithids being time travelers if, and only if, we 
sort out an Astromundispace for them to timewarp back into *and* come up 
with a reason for them not jumping back to the begining of time.

> About 1k years ago, traffic begins to pick up.  Trade
> routes are established, and with them, piracy.

That works for me.

> New
> races, such as neogi, giff, apes, goblin-kin, ogres,
> and more become commonplace in space, so much so that
> the elves from "beyond" wage war to stop the goblins.

Hmm. These races can not be "new". They should all start of as groundling 
races. Someone should deleberately be bringing new races into wildspace.

I think we either need these races to live in spheres where the elves or 
another group arrive, or to be spelljamming races from outside Known Space 
that send out explorers, who arrive in Known Space during this period.

>  Afterwards, colonization & trade really picks up,
> such that the Inner Flow is viewed as a unified whole
> instead of as unrelated spheres.

I'm not sure how much importance I'd put on colonisation. While it would 
work for *some* planets and most asteroids, I'd like to see worlds have 
histories as groundling worlds, before becoming spacefaring ones.

In fact, I'd like to see bigger planets have spacefaring ports, land or sea 
based trade routes out from those ports to smaller cities and towns, 
villiages that have little contact with spacefarers and wilderness areas 
where nobody knows much about spelljamming apart from the basics.

When people *do* "colonise" a world, they should be moving onto a world that 
is already full of other races.

> Anyways, just some thoughts. :)

Very useful ones, too. :-D

David "Big Mac" Shepheard
Virtual Eclipse Role Playing Club
http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/virtualeclipselrp/links/d20_system_001071937434/Spelljammer_001071430476
http://spelljammer.wikia.com/
http://www32.brinkster.com/virtualeclipse/