Lately, I've been working a lot with a character who is an astronomer--Niela from Of Gods and Dragons, specifically, a woman whose knowledge of the stars gave rise to the campaign in the first place. It struck me that I've carefully mapped my world, created an accurate globe for it, and written about it in detail here, and yet I've never looked beyond. The one thing I know is that the planet that is my homebrew setting is called Izar. That said, I should know more, especially given that I have a regularly featured character who specializes in astronomy--she knows what she's talking about, so I need to.
When it comes to scientific knowledge in my setting, things are deliberately incomplete. I teased in both Listen Check and Lethanin's intro session in Of Gods and Dragons that there was more to the world than people know, and so this accurate information is known only by a few leading experts willing to delve into esoterica and theorize on their own. And since Niela is just such an expert, this will be information she has and can talk about. All of this said, here's a guide to the solar system Izar resides in.
The Sun
The sun, simply called the sun, is very much what we have in our world. It is massive, projects heat and warmth, and obeys the laws of stars in space. One notable different is that the sun in this solar system issues solar flares more often, and people in Evanoch are used to random changes in light while outside. Myth says that Pelor, deity of the sun and moon, powers the sun (although some Daltoners believe living sacrifice powers the sun)--the scientific reality is that the sun burns as part of a chemical process and is unlikely to "go out" in anyone's lifetime. The nearest sun-sized and -phased star to the sun is called Adsila, a reference to a disciple of Pelor's in myth; the stars are fairly close, and light from Adsila is regularly visible at night.
Narine
The planet nearest the sun is small and incredibly dense, having more mass than Izar, which is five times larger than the smaller planet. Its surface appears to be rocky and irregular, with several canyons etching its surface almost all around. One large patch taking up nearly a fifth of the planet is volcanic, with three distinct volcanoes in the area which erupt frequently if irregularly. The eruptions are powerful enough to be visible from Izar. Narine is named for the the mythic elemental spirit of stone.
The atmosphere of Narine appears to be incredibly stormy, with some manner of thick lavender clouds choking the planet every few days and raining some kind of acidic substance down on the volcanic rock below. The acidic rain appears to keep eating away at the volcanic rock, keeping the new eruptions from expanding the planet meaningfully. The temperature of Narine seems to be very high given its proximity to the sun.
Narine rotates very slowly, a single day lasting fourteen Izar days. It orbits the sun at slightly slower than the speed of Izar, with a year of 311 days. Narine has no moons, but a small network of tiny asteroids caught in its gravity orbit it in loose, spiraling rings, suggesting that the interior of Narine is not consistently the same material. In the night sky, Narine appears pale grey with bursts of orange light and occasional lavender haze.
Izar
The second planet in the solar system, Izar has a complex ecosystem that bears life and is home to our homebrew setting. Izar is a rocky planet with large oceans. Evanoch the continent is joined by smaller continents, Fanin, Dalton, and Ramsey, as well as one larger icy continent across a vast sea. Evanoch and the other continents have rich ecosystems in and of themselves, as indicated through this site's records. Izar is home to countless species, geographical features, and histories. Izar is named for the mythical name for the event of all creation.
The atmosphere of Izar features breathable air that is refreshed by plant life, which remains plentiful despite efforts by some people. Rain in the form of clean water regularly occurs, helping foster plant life. The temperature of Izar varies depending on location; the south of Evanoch, Dalton, and Ramsey are rather warm for humanoid life, while the north of Evanoch, Fanin, and the icy continent far away tend to be colder, all by degrees.
Izar rotates over the period of one day (twenty-four hours), and it orbits the sun in one year (273 days). The rotation of the planet is not aligned with the orbit around the sun, producing irregular sun in many places. The icy continent seldom receives direct light, and sporadically; Ramsey receives frequent, irregular light; only in Evanoch do generally balanced days and nights occur. This also affects agriculture; Evanine crops tend to be the most plentiful. Izar has three moons, one similar in size to our Earth moon, and two smaller and more irregularly shaped (the larger round moon is called moon or Pelor and has a cratered grey surface; one of the smaller is oblong and bold blue, called Bal for the mythic spirit of movement; and the last is boxy and rosy pink, called Mosi for the mythic spirit of joy). When astronomers have remotely viewed Izar, it is largely blue and green or blue and brown with large patches of white in the form of clouds and ice.
Naja
Naja, the third planet, is slightly larger than Izar and covered in water entirely. It is unknown how deep the waters of Naja go. Its waters are deep blue with a tinge of dark green. From Izar, the waters look stormy; waves that are big enough to be seen move across Naja often. The planet appears largely inhospitable to many--a ship could never survive the waters of Naja, and there is no land to speak of. However, scientists argue that marine life could easily exist, including the potential for intelligent life. Naja is named for the sister of Vecna and the mythic discoverer of the boat.
The atmosphere of Naja is remarkably calm. It is in fact hard to detect an atmosphere at all. Some astronomers have speculated that there is some invisible gas which affects the planet that explains its wild tides; others have countered that the combined gravitational forces of its moons could also explain the waves. The temperature of Naja seems to be fairly low, similar to spring and fall weather in Fanin, where people experience chill to cold temperatures and sporadic snow, though there seems to be no observable precipitation on Naja.
Naja rotates over a period of twenty-eight hours, orbiting the sun once every year (273 days). As a result of its identical orbit, Naja and Izar are locked in a close orbit, which Naja visible every night with the naked eye. Naja has two moons which are identical in size and similar to Izar's moon Pelor. One is black and reflective, called Lamya for the mythic force of darkness, and the other is pale green and covered in dense plant life, called Zoticus for an early saint known for miracles. In the night sky, Naja appears as a looming deep blue orb with flashing black and lush green orbs crowding it. (Speculation that life exists on Zoticus has run wild for as long as astronomy has existed.
The Vazen Asteroid Field
For tens of thousands of miles, asteroids hang in space. They are visible with a telescope and seem to be made of some metallic material. They move mostly in concert, a long strip of debris orbiting the sun. Our real life asteroid belt goes much further than this one by a large margin--this belt is far smaller. This asteroid field was named for the mythic prisoner of Vecna.
Bakarn
The fourth planet, Bakarn, is seven times the size of Izar. Vast strips of it are desert, the deserts' borders scorched by something, the rest of the planet scarred and burned to ash. It is evident that some cataclysm occurred on Bakarn, but looking at it does not bear the answer why. It is clear that no recognizable form of life could exist on Bakarn; even its deserts are constantly facing the sun and bear signs of heat damage. Bakarn is a true wasteland. Bakarn is named for the mythic gatekeeper of the underworld.
The atmosphere of Bakarn appears to be very heavy. Although the ashes on Bakarn were visible the first time the planet was sighted, the ashes seem not to have moved, not even stirred by a gust of wind, leaving scientists to conclude that Bakarn's atmosphere is incredibly heavy and would not support recognizable life. The temperature of Bakarn seems polarized--hot like Narine on one side, cold like the icy steppes of Evanoch on the other. Precipitation does not observably occur on Bakarn.
Bakarn does not rotate, or rather, it rotates at a speed that keeps it always facing the sun from the same side. It orbits the sun over the course of 491 days, taking nearly twice as long as Izar to pass a year. Bakarn has one moon, Yetim, named for the mythic orphan hero. Yetim is scorched on one side, and astronomers have suggested that whatever damage was done to Bakarn reached Yetim as well. Yetim's unburned side is a rusty red orange.
The Enkaz Asteroid Field
Another asteroid field lies beyond Bakarn, this one just a bit wider than the first. These two are metallic in nature, but these asteroids are substantially larger, no less than eight times the size of the first. This one is still narrower than our real life asteroid belt, but the asteroids in the Enkaz Field are much larger than ours. This field is named for the mythic collector of all things.
Sanca
The fifth planet, Sanca, is about three times the size of Izar. It seems to be covered in bright colors, largely purple, pinks, oranges, and bright greens in strange shapes. It also seems to be illuminated from within, casting a pale orange glow whenever visible. Given its coloration, astronomers do not know how to theorize what type of substance the planet is made of, though some have argued that plant life exists there, just with different coloration than on Izar. Whether the planet is hospitable to life is as debated as often as it is with Naja, though Evanines know even less what to expect from Sanca than Naja. Sanca is named for the mythic artist who created writing.
The atmosphere of Sanca seems similar to Izar's--it has regular storms with fluffy white clouds, and nothing indicates the air is very dense or thin. The planet is too distant to make much more assertion than that. The planet has three large rings surrounding it, one dark purple, one magenta, and one bright pink. How the rings affect Sanca's atmosphere or gravity is unknown. Precipitation does occur on Sanca, and with precise regularity--mild to moderate (but never severe) rain can be observed every three days like clockwork.
Sanca rotates quickly compared to other planets in the solar system, taking only three and a half hours to rotate completely, the shortest day in the solar system. It also has the solar system's longest year, clocking in at 1,428 days (or more than five Izar years). Sanca has seventeen moons or varying sizes and colors, though all are a vibrant shade, tending towards warm colors. Its three largest moons, which are roughly the size of Narine, are white (Dcera, named for the mythic keeper of secrets); pink (Lany, named for the mythic keeper of the dawn); and light blue (Vajze, named for the mythic keeper of the dusk).
Vuras
The sixth planet, Vuras, is just over two hundred times larger than Izar, the largest in the solar system. It is a vibrant yellow dotted by deep blue lakes which are much larger than Izar's oceans. Vuras is marked by constant storms which occur randomly across the planet's surface; these storms are characterized by massive green clouds that never go away. Something in the planet's atmosphere appears to keep the storm going persistently, with a massive eye-like storm occurring at three locations on the planet at all times. These are colloquially called "The Green Spots," which are visible on the planet without difficulty. Vuras is named for the mythic sailor who encountered a hurricane and survived.
The atmosphere of Vuras seems intense, especially given the likelihood that close inspection reveals that the storms are trying to leave the atmosphere but are trapped by extreme forces. Some astronomers have argued that the surface of Vuras would simply come apart and float away in atmospheric conditions like Izar's. These storms do not seem to create precipitation as we know it, as the "rain" from these massive superstorms appears to instantly evaporate for some reason, returning to the storms and fueling their endless raging.
Vuras rotates rather slowly, taking more than eleven Izar days to rotate. Vuras also orbits slowly, taking 891 days to complete a year (over three years in Izar). Vuras has six moons, all relatively small given its size. They are uniformly deep green and iridescent. They are named, from largest to smallest: Elav, named for the mythic founder of civilization; Jalle, named for the mythic tamer of beasts; Ziyv, named for the mythic keeper of peace; Voi, named for the mythic feeder of the hungry; Bizirik, named for the mythic builder of cities; and Mado, named for the mythic teller of tales.
Instellar Clouds
Gases, plasma, and cosmic dust hang in space, causing strange displays of colors and shapes. Within this range are seven nebulae: the Hammer Nebula, the Mouse Nebula, the Rose Nebula, the Arm Nebula, the Squid Nebula, the Antler Nebula, and the Twins Nebula. This space exists beyond Vuras for hundreds of thousands of miles.
Seren
The last planet in the solar system, Seren is nearly one hundred and fifty times the size of Izar. It is silver in appearance, reflecting light in even indirect light. Seren is made of gas and lacks any safe or stable land to stand on. The only gas planet in the solar system, Seren is a mystery to astronomers, who do not fully grasp how gas can be held together enough to form a planet, though observation during comet impacts has confirmed that the planet is indeed made of gas. Seren is named for the mythic explorer who found the edge of the world.
The atmosphere of Seren is estimated to be the most oppressive in the solar system. What's more, its gravity seems to be stronger than any other planet's, at least judging from changes in trajectory on nearby comets. Precipitation does not occur in a recognizable way. Astronomers have observed storms in the form of large black clouds, but they are unsure what the precipitation is; whatever the clouds produce disappears within the gases too quickly to be seen.
Seren rotates somewhat quickly, taking twenty-two hours and nine minutes to complete a day; it orbits quite quickly given its distance from the sun, with a year on Seren taking only 461 days--more than an Izar year, but also meaning that Seren is moving thousands of times faster than Izar. Seren has one moon, a blue and green planetoid about the size of Izar. The moon is called Tukza, named for the mythic forger of fate.
Beyond
Other objects are visible from Izar. Astronomers believe some of them to be distant solar systems in places so far they cannot imagine them. Astronomers interested in life outside of Izar speculate that could exist on Naja, Sanca, and potentially Tukza, but the means to travel or even make contact are well beyond their wildest dreams.
There you have it: a guide to all seven planets in my homebrew setting's solar system, plus some other exciting stuff. Personally, I was obsessed with space as a kid--I read every space book I could find, and I dreamed of being an astronaut. All these years later, I've forgotten my love of space, but doing this helped me to reconnect with it. And now, I can describe interesting things in the night sky during normal adventuring and really dig in with characters who know about astronomy, like Niela. It's always rewarding to fill out your homebrew world, and this was no exception. Who knows what future campaigns and one-shots might bring--a visit to these other planets? I don't know, but I do know I'm glad I got to discover all of this with this guide.
That's all for now. Coming soon: clan guides to the half-elves, gnomes, and halflings. Until next time, happy gaming!
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