Engaul Excerpt
In the Free Guide, the entire description for the Inner World of Engaul is this:
“Engaul: The planet of Engaul never developed the spark for sapient life, but the lush foliage and abundant non-sapient life made it an ideal location to colonize as the other Inner Worlds began to develop consistent Step routes. Now it is flush with the bustle of civilization, and has become a haven for those individuals wanting to carve out their home and life by their own strong hands and hard work.”
In the Guidebook to the Ingressa it is two full pages.
From this page you can peruse the contents of Friday Finale: Engaul Excerpt with your web browser. The free PDF is still available in the store, but we know for some people having information available as an HTML page is more convenient.
Engaul Excerpt
From the Guidebook to the Ingressa
By Christopher “Gigz” Hantzmon
Editor:
Sean McNeil
Layout Design:
Rachelle Abellar, Tammy Vince Cruz
Graphic Design:
Drew Pocza
Royal Archivist Publishing Inc.
Creative Director: Mike McArtor
Managing Editor: Sean McNeil
Technical Lead: Rommel Degracia
Story Lead: Ann K. McArtor
Art Director: Dora Wang
Mana 0-1
Engaul is the last frontier of the Inner Worlds. Having never developed the spark for sapient life, Engaul is a massive planet full of flora and fauna, untouched by high intelligence for millions of years. Without emerging civilizations to interfere, it has developed some of the cleverest and most cunning predators and prey within the Inner Worlds, as well as unique ecologic niches. Despite it being an Inner World, only the hardiest of explorers, the most dedicated of biologists, the strongest of settlers bother with this rugged and wild planet. Unlike Sanctuary, which was already widely settled before its wildernesses reclaimed most of the planet, Engaul has yet to be fully explored.
Abundant, largely untapped resources lie in massive oil reserves; rich deposits of iron, lead, nickel, and other metals; as well as scarcely touched veins of precious metals and gems. The most sought natural resource of Engaul, though, was discovered not within its surface, but by examining its air.
Much like on Earth, the flora of Engaul produce breathable oxygen through reactions with carbon dioxide. Unlike the Earth, though, an entire class of hardy plants has been discovered that actually removes heavy metals and other toxins from the atmosphere at an incredible rate, then secretes them into impermeable, easily harvested appendages. Theoretically, the most noxious smelting plant imaginable could operate adjacent to a major urban center, and proper use of Engaul’s flora would render it completely harmless. Botanists throughout the Ingressa are clamoring for viable samples of the tough-to-transport plants, while megacorporations who have thus far been unable to match TDA’s presence on the Inner World trading hub draft plans to build massive factory-cities in Engaul’s jungles.
However, despite plenty of reasons to encourage the settling of this large world, it remains the least populated of the Inner Worlds. Its large size and highly active volcanism, combined with the inherent dangers of its all-too-clever wildlife, stem the tide of progress.
The major factions, as well as numerous other powerful independent nations and many ambitious corporations, claim parts of the planet with settlements of various sizes. The five largest belong to the Wàiguó Liánméng, Roma Exterra, the dwarven generation ship Etr Durena, Tennyson Delinoix Associates, and a joint effort between the Derinam Corps and Janus Syndicate. While the cities of Engaul can reach monumental size, they are still few in numbers, and vast tracks of wilderness lie between them. The reach of Engaul’s cities extend much further than do the besieged city-states of Sanctuary, but where civilization ends the wildernesses are quick to begin. Outlier farms and suburbs simply must deal with inquisitive creatures and clever predators that wander out of the wild lands into their borders. Even those who live in the hearts of Engaul’s metropolises occasionally hear about predators appearing on the streets.
Permanent roads and rail systems do exist between the cities, so they aren’t isolated like the city-states of Sanctuary, but without constant maintenance the wilds of Engaul quickly take over. In fact, many explorers, trappers, and prospectors who brave the wilds have found ruined cities, old roads, and other remnants of failed human settlements now consumed by the teeming jungles, forests, and swamps.
Major Urban Areas
Nearly a quarter of the planet’s total population lives within its five largest metropolises.
Finibus: The Derinam Corps at first felt no need to become involved on Engaul, but as the corps watched the other factions establish lucrative enterprises around the planet’s natural resources they grew concerned. It became apparent to the Derinam that they needed a presence on the planet as well, to ensure the frontier-like land did not devolve into anarchy and war.
Built as a joint venture between the Derinam and the Janus Syndicate, Finibus is located on a massive island near the tropical belt of Engaul. Its site originally chosen specifically to cause the least amount of disruption to the native species present, the city now spreads across the entire island. Home to an immense fishing fleet and serving as a popular tropical vacation spot, Finubus is a mostly self-sustaining city mainly requiring the import of hard metals, usually procured from the dwarves of Steinhavn.
A massive tower Spira Derinam dominates the center of the island and is the only Derinam-controlled outpost on the planet. From here, the Derinam use specially designed zeppelins carrying paratroop strike teams to patrol from high altitude, attempting to maintain at least some outward visibility of law and order beyond its island stronghold. While most of the factions begrudgingly agreed to recognize the Derinam as a neutral law-enforcement and peacekeeping faction organization, they are not welcome to involve themselves in the affairs of Moyeu.
Moyeu: Of the permanent settlements of significant size, the TDA-controlled Moyeu is by far both the largest and the roughest. The division between the haves and have-nots in Moyeu is incredibly pronounced, with over 80% of the city’s wealth located in the hands of seven corporate families: House Delinoix; the Tennysons; and the five Associates families of Fraser, Karnstein, Lê, Rouvroy, and Ruthven. The lower classes do not lead necessarily good lives, but the employees of TDA among them at least receive competitive pay and benefits.
The city itself is obviously divisible into wealthy and poor districts. The wealthy districts house government and financial institutions, along with artistic shops, entertainment industries, bath houses, salons, exclusive clubs (often made to look like the rugged bars of the poorer districts), and other places of distraction frequented by the bored and wealthy.
One such woman was Janine Rouvroy, heir to the TDA family of the same name. Not long ago, while casting about for suitable apparel to attend a costume party, the eminently eligible bachelorette settled on an outfit resembling the famous Wild West look of Earth’s United States, complete with gunfighter’s belt. The next party she attended was populated with dozens of imitators, and suddenly the look was the height of Moyeau fashion for the upper and lower class. TDA, naturally, caters extensively to this trend, with several lines of wide-brimmed hats, “cowboy” boots, and spurs; Janine, as the most recognizable icon of the movement, is currently one of TDA’s highest paid employees on Engaul. The city’s firearms manufacturers (of which there are several) also carry specially constructed premium lines that resemble old Western-style pistols and rifles while retaining advanced firearms technologies.
A more realistic interpretation of this theme exists in the poorer districts. Dirty streets and plain wooden buildings dominate the rest of the sprawling town, where drinking establishments are plentiful and more illicit houses seldom attempt to disguise their true nature. While the fashion trends of the wealthy trickled into the poorer side of Moyeu, the rough and lawless nature of the area is a more appropriate and historically accurate fit. This haven for thieves, crooks, and scoundrels does not detour the strong influx of colonists arriving every day trying to make names for themselves and land one of the highly prized jobs offered by the TDA. Of all the major cities on Engaul, Moyeu is by far the easiest to get passage to, the cheapest to start from, and the most dangerous to survive in.
Shimidorinohano (市緑の葉の, Shimi, or “City of Green Leaves”): First settled by industrious members of the Wàiguó Liánméng, Shimi—as it is more widely known—is the most beautiful city on all of Engaul. While other powers established mining towns, factory sites, and other places to inevitably funnel money and product back to their home worlds, the Wàiguó Liánméng instead built a place of regal beauty. Shimi technically serves the same purpose as the world’s other colonies, yet it was built slowly and in harmony with the surrounding environs.
With a population of only about 500,000 it is far from the largest of the major cities, yet is a far more popular tourist destination, and more importantly it allows many of the older customs of the Wàiguó Liánméng’s varied origins to take center stage. The city’s strict laws ensure a balance between financial viability for business investors and entrepreneurs, cultural enlightenment and enrichment for visiting citizens of Wàiguó Liánméng nations, and places of peaceful contemplation for tourists of many worlds.
Outside the city walls, lush farmlands extend for more than 20 kilometers, and the Wàiguó Liánméng encourages a steady growth in farming. To do this, it provides (at no cost) land, so long as the farmer can demonstrate an ability to raise a surplus of crops for at least three Engaul years. As long as a surplus is maintained and sold inside Shimi for at least seven years of the first ten, the land remains with the farmer; otherwise it reverts back to the city government. A farmer who maintains a surplus for ten years of the first fifteen takes full ownership of the land, which she may continue to work, sell, renovate, or leave to her descendents as she wishes.
Steinhavn: The dwarven city of Steinhavn appears relatively tiny compared to most other cities, mostly due to the vast network of underground districts and tunnels that honeycomb the mountain it was built on. Constructed next to a pristine glacier-fed mountain lake, the colonists that debarked from the Etr Durena colony ship quickly established a new home. The dwarves mine the untapped resources deep beneath the surface; refine it into gold bars, iron and steel ingots, and uncut gemstones; then either sell to the other cities or transport it off world through hired pergressors.
Most dwarves living in Steinhavn are descended from those who left the Etr Durena, with the exception being those colonists who arrived via pergressors. Non-dwarves are more uncommon than these “latecomers,” as the Etr Durena’s children cheerfully call them, although a thriving community of Cyclopes has sprung up in Steinhavn, drawn in great numbers by the tales of Engaul’s limitless resources. The Etr Durena plans to remain in orbit for roughly two more centuries before continuing its generational journey through the stars.
Vulcan’s Port: The Roma Exterra holdings on Engaul follow the seaside curve of Mortem Bay. Although settled to exploit the massive resources of Engaul’s oceans, it took an uncharacteristically long time before the industry could turn a profit. Few of Engaul’s predatory creatures fear humans, making even fishing a dangerous endeavor,and the Imperial Navy spent much of its efforts for many years in just keeping fishermen alive.
The navy and fishermen alike now use ships built in Vulcan’s Port from refined steel purchased from Steinhavn, allowing the city to churn a modest profit from the myriad edible indigenous creatures. Some of these creatures are marketed on the streets of Nova Roma as rare exotic delicacies, when in reality they are abundant and relatively easy to obtain on Engaul. Because of the difficulty in keeping these creatures fresh, pergressors and their freight-carrying passengers pocket a tidy sum Stepping filled ice chests from Engaul to several of the other Inner Worlds.
Royal Archivist Publishing, the archivist and inkspot logos, “History is written. Help create our future.” tagline, and Rule of Three Story System are all trademarks and property of Royal Archivist Publishing, Inc. ©2010-2011 Royal Archivist Publishing Inc. Engaul Excerpt and Guidebook to the Ingressa ©2011 Royal Archivist Publishing Inc. All rights reserved.
Huh… that sounded a lot better than what I originally wrote. :D Yay for making some of us look better than we are. :)
/g
Good editing is like adding the perfect spice at the perfect amount: it brings out the best flavor in something that is already quite tasty. ^_^