Due to the recent discussions about airships, I started thinking of new ways to make the metal beasts a physical possibility in some semblance of their present form. I thought about making the atmosphere denser and did a bit of thinking on how to do so. Wait a minute, Iron Grip doesn't take place on Earth as we know it... So why not have it set on a completely different planet? EUREKA! And thus, Theia was born.
Theia is a medium sized rocky planet, orbiting a young type G2 star known as Solaria once every 392 days in the nebula of an ancient supernova. Theia orbits Solaria at an average distance of around 167 million kilometers, giving it a temperature range comparable to Earth, though very slightly cooler as a whole, with an average temperature of roughly 13ºC (although the minimums and maximums are distant from this middle point). The planet's axis slowly rotates the same direction the planet orbits Solaria, leading to a very long season cycle of roughly three years. The planet itself is dense and very rich in heavy metals, primarily iron, leftover from the supernova. The atmosphere is comprised of 48% nitrogen, 29% argon, 21% oxygen, and 2% other gases including water vapor and 0.07% carbon dioxide. The planet has a single major satellite, the moon Orpheus, though several smaller bodies orbit the planet in regular stable patterns. The planets' surface is initially similar to Earth, being covered in roughly 63% water (as opposed to Earth's 70-71%), with the land being a mixture of mountains, plains, deserts and forests, and some jungle regions in the tropics. Both poles are home to substantial icecaps which lock up most of the planets' fresh water.
The practical implications of these differences are numerous, and range in importance from trivial to critical.
The biggest difference between Theia and the Earth is the atmosphere. Theia's atmosphere is much heavier than Earth's due to the high argon content, yet it is still completely compatible with the development of life, including human life. The biggest planetary change this heavier atmosphere implies is a slower and more stable weather pattern, with some areas having almost no weather changes at all. Therefore, some places are perennially sunny, while others are wracked by permanent storms. These stormy areas have recently been seen as a potentially limitless source of energy, and experimental storm powerplants are already operational. These sturdy facilities have
large towers that reach high into the roiling black skies to harness the electricity and winds for the betterment of mankind.
On a related note, the denser atmosphere has more friction when moving through itself, and wind generates much more static electricity than it does on Earth. As a result, lightning is extremely common, sometimes occurring even from blue skies in dry windy areas, and actual lightning storms can be incredibly intense. Forest fires on the planet are common, but due to their frequency, the forest floors in deciduous areas remain fairly clear of debris and scrub.
This denser atmosphere also makes flight, in both lighter and heavier-than-air ways, more easily attained. Lighter-than-air craft can be significantly heavier per volume than an Earth-bound counterpart and still displace enough atmosphere to be buoyant, while aircraft can carry heavier loads with less wing area, though the density of the air has thus far prevented heavier-than-air craft from economically reaching long ranges and high speeds.
The higher content of heavy metals has also shaped the planetary economy and iron, bauxite, copper, molybdenum, tungsten, lead and much more are all plentifully available. This abundance of metals has made development, both military and civilian, take off very quickly over the past hundred years as smelting and alloy-making processes have been invented.
The night sky is a beautiful sight to behold all over the planet, with the cosmos being perennially illuminated with pale
blues and
reds from the nebula surrounding the solar system.
