The Echelon System is humanity’s last bastion, a beacon of progress and survival in the cold abyss of the Void. As the story is told in history books, corporate records, and the ever-present media, humanity was saved from the brink of annihilation by the visionary leadership of the Founders, six extraordinary individuals who forged the Oblivion Pact to ensure the survival and prosperity of their people.

The Exodus

Once, Earth was a dying world—rife with environmental collapse, internal strife, and a final war that left it inhospitable. With no future left on their homeworld, humanity turned to the stars, guided by the brilliance of their greatest scientists, engineers, and leaders. Through unparalleled advancements in dimensional-skip technology, developed by the legendary Dr. Elias Vortex, a remnant of Earth’s population embarked on an exodus, traveling across the galaxy to reach the Echelon System—a distant yet habitable system untouched by war, brimming with resources, and primed for colonization.

Neo Prospect

Upon arrival, the Founders took swift action. They established Neo Prospect, the gleaming heart of civilization on Echelon Prime, a world both beautiful and unforgiving. However, the planet was not uninhabited. In its untamed wilderness, remnants of a primitive alien species resisted humanity’s expansion, attacking early settlements in disorganized but vicious skirmishes. The Founders, unwilling to risk the survival of their people, led a decisive campaign to secure the planet, driving the native creatures into the deepest reaches of the Outlands. With order restored, construction of Neo Prospect began—a city built as a monument to resilience, designed to stand against the challenges of this new frontier.

Legacy of the Nox

As humanity spread across the system, ancient ruins and artifacts were discovered buried beneath the sands of Echelon Prime and hidden within the Void-choked remains of lost celestial bodies. These relics, belonging to an extinct alien civilization, hinted at an era long before human arrival—one marked by technological marvels and inexplicable anomalies. Though much about this lost species remains a mystery, scholars and researchers continue to debate the purpose of their artifacts, and whether their downfall was truly natural. Historians gave a name to this ancient species, the Nox.

Golden Age

With Neo Prospect established, the Founders ushered in a Golden Age, ensuring stability through technological innovation, strict governance, and a unified purpose. Their sacrifices and wisdom laid the foundations for a new society—one shielded from chaos, one focused on progress.

The Prime Defense Corps was formed to protect Neo Prospect and humanity’s expansion across the system. Under the Founders' leadership, megacorporations flourished, transforming the system into a hub of industry, commerce, and scientific advancement. The Slipstream Network, a marvel of modern engineering, linked the planets together, making interstellar travel safe and efficient. Terraforming projects reshaped entire worlds, ensuring that future generations would thrive.

The Void, Renegades, and the Forsaken Tide

Yet, the Echelon System is not without its dangers. The Void, an ever-present miasma of unknown energy, lurks at the edges of civilization, a remnant of the vast, chaotic forces that once threatened all existence. The Renegades, a fractured insurgency of idealists, outcasts, and extremists, fight to undermine the Founders’ rule, believing the system's governance to be a lie built on oppression. Operating from hidden enclaves in the Outlands and beyond, they sabotage corporate holdings, disrupt trade routes, and seek to expose forbidden truths buried by the Pact. Meanwhile, the Forsaken Tide, a lawless confederacy of raiders and exiles, haunts the system’s slipstream lanes, preying upon the weak. And within the shadows, whispers persist of an ancient enemy, long banished but never truly defeated.

To this day, the Founders and their successors safeguard humanity’s future, ensuring that order prevails over anarchy. The Pact is upheld through vigilance, discipline, and sacrifice. The Founders' message is clear: humanity will never fall again.

"We stand unshaken against the tide of entropy. Ours is a future carved from the brilliance of our past. Under the guidance of the Founders, the Echelon System thrives—and with it, humanity endures." — Unknown Author

Concepts for Further Discovery

Calendar

Communications

Cultures

Drones

The Founders

Megacorporations

Mnemoscape

The Echelon Sun

The Echelon Sun is the bright blue star at the center of the Echelon solar system, providing light and energy to its surrounding planets. It is surrounded by the Void, a cold and caustic miasma that creates both a physical and narrative barrier around the core worlds.

Planets of the Echelon System

The planets are listed in the order of their orbit around the Echelon Sun.

Scora

Scora is a scorching, metallic planet orbiting close to the Echelon Sun. With its surface rich in various metals and minerals, Scora endures extreme temperatures and relentless solar radiation, creating a harsh environment that only the most resilient beings can withstand.

Environment

• Surface: Molten landscapes, towering metal formations, frequent tectonic activity.
• Atmosphere: Thin, filled with metallic vapors and traces of toxic gases.
• Weather: Intense heatwaves, magnetic storms, occasional metal rain.
• Sparse life includes heat-resistant fungi and crystalline growths that thrive in the extreme heat. Rare silicon-based lifeforms, resembling living magma, dwell in lava flows, feeding on mineral-rich deposits.

Inhabitants: Scori

• Description: A humanoid, cold-blooded species native to Scora, adapted to thrive in the planet's extreme conditions.
• Physiology: Scori have heat-resistant skin, almost like scales, thin limbs for efficient movement across molten terrain, and inner thermal regulation systems.
• Society: The Scori live in underground cities to escape the harsh surface conditions. They have a deep connection to the planet's natural resources and a rich cultural heritage centered around their survival and adaptation skills.
• Origin: Recent discoveries suggest that the Scori were genetically engineered by an ancient, advanced civilization to harvest the rare metals of Scora.

Noccor

Noccor is an inhospitable planet enshrouded in thick, corrosive clouds composed of sulfuric acid and other toxic gases. The surface of the planet remains largely unseen, hidden beneath the dense atmosphere. Noccor's environment is hostile to most forms of life, making it a treacherous place to explore or inhabit.

Environment

• Surface: Shrouded by impenetrable clouds, with rocky terrain and vast acidic lakes and rivers. Floating islands of nebulous coral-like formations drift above acidic seas, creating strange, otherworldly landscapes.
• Atmosphere: Thick, corrosive clouds; highly acidic rain; frequent electrical storms.
• Weather: Constant cloud cover, intense acid storms, volatile surface conditions.
• Acid-tolerant plant analogs cling to the islands, while bioluminescent creatures navigate the swirling mists. Swarms of winged, insect-like predators hunt among the clouds, presenting constant danger.

Historical Significance

• Alien Artifacts: Noccor served as a hub for an ancient, horrific alien civilization, the Nox. The planet is dotted with alien artifacts and advanced technologies buried beneath the surface.

Echelon Prime

Echelon Prime is the most habitable planet in the system, boasting a verdant equatorial band (the Verdance) surrounded by arid Outlands and ice-covered poles. Echelon Prime owes much of its viability to its spectacular Ice Rings, a unique natural feature that moderates its environment and provides essential resources.

Environment

• Ecosystem:
  • The Verdance: A lush subtropical zone protected by the Ice Rings. The region is teeming with life, including massive herbivorous creatures, swift carnivorous predators, and a vast array of flora. Human civilization flourishes here, supported by fertile lands and abundant resources.
  • The Outlands: Harsh deserts and badlands stretch beyond the Verdance, dotted with venomous reptiles, hardy shrubs, and scavengers adapted to the arid conditions. Seasonal firestorms periodically devastate the Outlands, making survival here a constant struggle.
  • Underground reservoirs of freshwater and saltwater sustain isolated ecosystems in both the Verdance and the Outlands, though these resources are tightly controlled by corporate interests.
• The Ice Rings:
  • Environmental Role: The Ice Rings of Echelon Prime serve as a natural shield, reflecting harmful radiation and helping to regulate the planet's temperature. The rings disperse light and heat more evenly, contributing to the subtropical climate of the Verdance while reducing the extremes of the Outlands.
  • Encouraging Growth and Warmth: The reflected light and thermal effects of the Ice Rings create optimal growing conditions for the Verdance’s agriculture and wildlife. Crops grow faster and larger under the diffuse sunlight, making Echelon Prime the breadbasket of the inner system.
  • Fuel Source: The rings are rich in frozen hydrogen and water ice, which are mined and refined for use in fusion reactors and space travel. This resource fuels not only Echelon Prime’s orbital infrastructure but also the slipstream buoys and spacecraft that traverse the Void.
• Unique Features:
  • The Ice Rings, visible from the surface as shimmering arcs in the sky, are a constant reminder of the planet’s unique role in the system.
  • Verdant equatorial forests filled with alien biodiversity contrast sharply with the desolation of the Outlands.
  • Neo Prospect, capital of human civilization in the Echelon System, a megacity carved out of the Verdance.

Neo Prospect

Vormax (Red Titan)

Vormax, colloquially known as the Red Titan, is a massive gas giant in the Echelon solar system. Its dense, swirling gas storms and intense atmospheric activity give it an imposing and primal presence. The planet's distinctive reddish hue and violent weather patterns make it both a beautiful and dangerous spectacle.

Environment

• Atmosphere: Thick layers of hydrogen, helium, and other gases, with high levels of turbulence and frequent electrical storms.
• Weather: Constant, intense gas storms with powerful winds and frequent lightning.
• Color: A striking red hue, caused by the specific composition of its atmospheric gases.
• Gravity: High gravity, approximately 20 m/s².
• Moons: Fifteen moons orbit Vormax, the largest of which are granted the name “Titan”, like Titan V, Titan VIII, and Titan XV.

Ecosystem

• Vormax’s upper atmosphere is dominated by violent cyclonic storms, where winds reach unimaginable speeds, making it nearly impossible to traverse.
• Deeper in the atmosphere, the middle layers host glowing plankton clouds that thrive in storm-charged air and serve as the foundation of a unique ecosystem.
• Gigantic airborne creatures, resembling living zeppelins, ride the currents. These colossal beasts feed on the plankton, while smaller, predatory fliers hunt among the clouds.

Inhabitants: Titans

• Description: The Titans are a formidable reptilian humanoid species native to Vormax. Adapted to their harsh environment, they possess unique physiological traits that allow them to thrive in the high-gravity, gas-rich atmosphere of Vormax.
• Physiology:
  • Gills: Titans breathe through specialized gills that filter harmful gases and convert them into breathable air.
  • Strength: Due to Vormax's high gravity, Titans have incredibly strong and muscular bodies, capable of impressive feats of strength.
  • Fire/Acid Breathing: Titans can exhale either fire or acid, a defensive and offensive adaptation reminiscent of dragons.
  • Scales: Their thick, resilient scales provide protection against the planet's harsh elements and potential predators.
• Society:
  • Structure: Titans live in hierarchical clans, each led by a chieftain. Their society values strength, resilience, and survival skills.
  • Technology: While their technology is primarily organic and adapted to their environment, Titans have developed advanced methods of harnessing the planet's resources.
  • Culture: Titans have a rich oral tradition, with stories of their ancestors and the planet's history passed down through generations.

Leviathan

Leviathan is the second gas giant in the Echelon solar system, known for its breathtaking beauty and unique environment. This cloud planet paradise is characterized by its floating islands, strange and vibrant alien wildlife, and constant electrical storms that fill the atmosphere with energy.

Environment:

• Atmosphere: Layers of colorful gases creating a stunning, ever-changing sky, frequently illuminated by spectacular electrical storms.
• Floating Islands: Massive chunks of land that float in the dense, buoyant atmosphere, each with its own unique ecosystem.
• Weather: Mild, with gentle breezes and frequent, intense electrical storms that charge the air with both physical and mystical energy.

Ecosystem

• Leviathan is home to a diverse array of alien wildlife, including creatures reminiscent of ancient Earth dinosaurs but with unique, otherworldly features.
• The floating islands are covered in lush vegetation, providing a rich habitat for various species of alien herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores. Many of these creatures have adapted to the planet's electrical activity, developing unique bioluminescent and electro-reactive traits.
• The storms act as both a barrier and a source of energy for the ecosystem, driving both the creation and destruction of life on the islands.
• Beneath the islands, creatures adapted to the chaos of the storms—like fire-eels and ice-gliders—move between the elemental chaos.

Inhabitants: The Lux (Elementals)

• Description: The Lux are beings of pure energy, capable of morphing into humanoid forms for communication with material beings. They are often referred to as "Elementals" due to their connection with the planet's electrical and mystical energies.
• Physiology: In their pure form, the Lux are shimmering, ethereal entities composed of energy. When they take on humanoid forms, they appear as glowing, translucent figures with defined features.
• Abilities: The Lux can manipulate electrical and mystical energies, making them powerful allies or formidable opponents. They can interact with the physical world and communicate telepathically when in their humanoid forms.
• Ethos: The Lux embody principles of harmony, enlightenment, and balance. They seek to maintain the natural and mystical equilibrium of Leviathan and were diametrically opposed to the Nox, who represented darkness and destruction.

Specter

Specter is the final planet in the Echelon solar system, known for its ghostly, icy landscapes. This planet is characterized by its perpetual cold, vast ice crevices, and the eerie presence of literal ghosts that haunt its frozen expanses.

Environment

• Surface: Covered in thick ice and snow, with deep crevices and glaciers.
• Atmosphere: Thin and frigid, with a constant, ghostly wind that howls across the surface.
• Weather: Perpetual cold, with occasional ice storms and auroras that light up the night sky.

Ecosystem

• Jagged ice formations and sprawling crevices dominate the surface, with endless blizzards creating an inhospitable environment.
• Rare geothermal springs sustain bioluminescent algae and predatory ice worms, but life remains sparse.
• Crystalline husks of the Crysix dot the surface, emitting psychic echoes that distort reality and haunt the minds of explorers.
• Ghosts haunt the ice crevices. They are mostly non-hostile but can be unsettling and sometimes dangerous if provoked.

Unique Features:

Slipstream Travel