29 replies to this topic

[SandSpider2]

After many years of exploration, visiting as many places on the planet that I could, my work is finally done.

Unlike most of the worlds in The Terran Hyper-Republic, no formal naming conventions where put forward for Illal.  This  means that a lot of the naming of geographical features and locations was left up to those who explored them or live near them.

When you examine the atlas, you will see that there are a number of small lakes and islands that remain nameless for one reason or another.  These features are usually just referred to as, �that lake over there,� or �that island.�

As you can see, the majority of the land on Illal is made up of one giant continent that wraps it�s self around the planet. The name of this continent is Panmundi, which is Greek and Latin for 'all world.' 

Illal is divided into twenty one main regions of varying sizes and shapes.  Each region is coloured differently to make it easier to see.  

 

Below is a break down of the regions and what they contain.

 

21 Regions

28 Collonies

9 MPC's

 

Continent Name.

 

Panmundi

 

Seyhueria Region.
Home to Crion Solutions and Irescon Biotech.

Akashington Region
Home to Allersberg Colony

Chullun Region
Home to Novyy Mir Colony

Tiyobian Region

Sterg Region
Home to Tharter and Svarga Colonies

Arctus Region

Navok Region
Home to Prosk Industries, Magellon Aerospace and Ovek Mining Corp.
Also Sakkuru and Konseterkay Colonies.

Ashihan Region
Home to Paragon Foods.

Itarcia Region
Home of New Dublin, Gorove and Susarda Colonies

Sariatona Region
Home to Sentium Dynamics and Rygel Energy.  Also Josh's City Colony.

Tungus Region
Home to Prinos Colony

Callas Region

Lassau Region
Home to Ovek Mining Corp.  Also New Tiggs and Rio Nova Colonies.

Cragcliff Region
Home to Henarky Colony

Helvar Region

Namachi Region
Home to Shiota and Leonard's Legacy Colonies

Roughridge Region
Home to Ifllos and Prospekt City Colonies

Coveocia Region
Home to Dulanday Colony

Brosan Region
Home to Brosos and Kungala Colonies

Chygon Region
Home to Afrax and Logan's Colonies

Strayla Region
Home to Bradley's Hope Colony

Islands

 

Nautilus Island
Home to Nautilus Corp

Beosal
Home to Fenia Colony

Adosa
Home to Kajaikata Colony

Atlinis
Home to Aurora Colony

Pontovor
Home to Roanoke Colony



As with some of my other work, it is best viewed at it�s full size. To do this, you must  left click on the picture. This will take you to Photobucket. Next, click on the magnifier at the top right of the picture. The picture will now fill the screen. Next, right click on the picture and select, view image. Your pointer should turn into a magnifying glass with a plus symbol in it. Left click anywhere on the picture and you will see it full size.

Over the coming weeks and months, I will be giving more in-depth information about each region.

I have made this for anyone to use, including the Dev's if you would like too.

 

Legend:

 

Purple:  Region Names

Red:      Colony Names

Blue:     Corporate Names

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Seyhueria Region.

 

 

The Seyhueria Region was home to Crion Solutions and Irescon Biotech.

Before Crion built Kobalt, they built a complex on the mainland, named Vortrum. They used this as their base while Kobalt was under construction.

 

There is an island at the furthest north of the region which is now known as Island 51. It is believed to have been built as an �off the books� installation by Crion. Very little is known about the island as it has a highly advanced automatic defence system that activates if anything comes within thirty miles of it. It is suspected by some, that the rogues AI axes and drones that sometimes show themselves on the battlefield originate from this island.  

 

It was also rumoured that Crion was working on secret teleportation technology before the virus was released. These rumours were never confirmed.

 

Irescon Biotech is one of the nine MPC�s from the Illal Development Initiative. The company specializes in DNA manipulation and experimentation. The company took full advantage of the lack of regulations and oversight as it performed illegal experiments on Earth animals and humans, as well as indigenous Illal creatures and other alien life from other planets.

 

The complex was abandoned soon after the outbreak of the Hawken virus, but the test subjects were left behind. It has been said that the rats that first started to feed on the virus came from there.

 

There have been many sightings of strange creatures in the surrounding hills and valleys by Axe pilots. One of them told me that they look like things that shouldn�t exist.

 

 

Akashington Region

 

 

The Akashington region is largely made up of parallel mountains in between tracts of desert, as you can see in the photo below. The mountains used to be covered in low laying foliage, now they are covered with Giga Structure.

 

There is also the remains of the Allersberg Colony. Allersberg was a fairly ordinary, medium sized, independent colony that had a population of around three million people. It was mostly abandoned shortly after the outbreak of the Hawken virus.

 

 

The Chullun Region

 

The Chullun region was always quite barren. The only features of note are the fjords on the west coast and the Krodan Pillars. Two huge rocks sticking up out of the ground, similar to Ayers Rock in Australia, only bigger. These rocks are about two miles high and are sometimes used to navigate by.

 

Krodan Pillars before the virus.

 

Krodan Pillars now.

This region was also home to the city colony of Novyy Mir.

Novyy Mir

Novyy Mir ( which means New World, in Russian ) was the biggest independent colony on Illal.  For several decades it was also one of the most popular cities on Illal.  It had everything and people loved living there.

It wasn�t overcrowded and built up. It wasn�t full of overpriced, designer buildings that only the super rich could afford. It was just a well designed, open city where everyone was excepted for who they where. It didn�t matter if you were rich or poor.

Now the shell of the city is home to millions of rats and two of the largest Vitrolium processing plants on Illal.

 

 

Tiyobian Region

 

 

The Tiyobian region is mostly barren and cold. There are two notable features, one of which is an extinct volcano. The other feature is a very large cenote, see below.

 

 

A cenote is similar to a sink hole, but larger underground, than it�s opening. They are also usually filled with water. This cenote was formed from a collapsed volcano. It�s opening is about two hundred miles across but underground, it is roughly four hundred miles across and five miles deep. It dates back a couple of million years and has it�s own unique eco system and life forms.


Sterg Region

 

The Sterg region is known as the �lake region.�  this is because it has more lakes than any other region on Illal.  It used to be covered with farmland,  but has now been consumed by the virus.

Tharter

In the north of the region, are the remains of Tharter.  This colony was set up by Paragon Foods.  It was a large fishing colony that provided around fifty percent of all the sea food use by Paragon.  It was also home to over three million people.

Now, it is abandoned and has been taken over by the virus. Even the docks and the thousands of stranded fishing boats have been engulfed by it.  It casts an eerie sight for those who choose to venture close.  

Tharter still contains huge storage facilities which have been untouched by the virus. These vast warehouses are kept at minus forty degrees and hold millions of tonnes of food. it is thought that the extreme cold has prevented the virus from taking hold in these areas.

Food is now in short supply on Illal, so these facilities are constantly fought over by Sentium and Prosk.   

Svarga

In the east of this region are the remains of the Svarga colony.  Svarga was established as a place of learning by a group of artisans and scientists.  It was loosely based on the Earth city of Venice, with hundreds of inter linking canals instead of roads.  It was a beautiful city with a mixture of old and new architecture.

Svarga was also home to one of the largest library complexes in the UTA. Sounds boring, but knowledge is power.  

Because of the unique layout and design of this colony, with all it�s canals, the Hawken virus has found it difficult to assimilate large areas of the city.  

Sentium and Prosk still fight for control over some of these huge data complexes, which are home to the most critical scientific information available.  They both believe there maybe information about a potential cure for the virus hidden within one of these libraries.  Only time will tell.     

 

 

The Arctus Region

 

 

The Arctus region is one of the coldest places on Illal.  It is filled with mountains, glaciers and glacial valleys. Historically, this region always belonged to Prosk. They built hundreds of bunkers all over the region for security purposes.  

Shortly after the Crion incident occurred, a large deposit of Dyobium was found approximately one hundred and twenty kilometres away from Bunker 167. Dyobium is a non Earth element related to niobium but with some significant differences. It is a bluish, soft metal, that liquefies at temperatures above 0c. It�s an important element that is used in maglev vehicles, explosives and fusion generators.

Naturally, when Sentium found out about this deposit, they wanted it. This is why Bunker 167 is so important. Prosk uses it to defend their mining operation, while Sentium uses it to launch attacks on the mining operation that they want to capture and control.

In the north of this area, is the Blecturn Hole. This is a large sink hole about twenty five miles wide and two miles deep. It was formed roughly five thousand years ago when a large cavern collapsed. It is filled with many kinds of metals and other important elements and is fought over by Sentium and Prosk.

In the east of the area is the Teardrop cenote. This cenote is around five thousand years old and is roughly fifty miles long and thirty five miles wide. It is also about half a mile deep and the bottom of it is filled with water. There is a large vein of gold that runs around the inner north wall which has been mined my Prosk for several years.

 

Below is a typical view of the Arctus Region.

 

 

The Navok Region

 

The Navok region is one of the largest regions on Illal. Not only is it home to the largest mega city of Andromeda, it is also home to Magellon Aerospace,  Ovek Mining Corp and the colonies of Sakkuru and Konseterkay.

 

As we all know, Andromeda was built by Prosk Industries as it�s corporate head quarters on Illal.  It is so large that it takes up roughly the same space on Illal as north America and Canada combined.

 

The city is divided into twenty six districts of varying sizes. These are run in a similar way to the states of the USA. Each one of these districts houses many different parts of Prosks� company. It also houses it's millions of workers.

 

The twenty six districts are, starting from the North West and working along and down:
1 Tajan,  2 Turek,  3 Saytova,  4 Mosina,  5 Axfron,  6 Feoton,  7 Eulea,  8 Lukova,  
9 Itova,  10 Hetov,  11 Valev,  12 Eugen,  13 Andromeda,  14 Euguso,  15 Esium,  
16 Eshon,  17 Atlenova,  18 Unosev,  19 Eunova,  20 Navek,  21 Trenosev,  22 Trentik,  
23 Trenkon,  24 Trinova,  25 Obrenev,  26 Ganev.

 

On the eastern part of this  region, just south of the Esium District, is the head quarters of Magellon Aerospace.  Magellon was one of the nine MPC�s that took part in the IDI, (Illal Development Initiative).  They build all kinds of military flying vehicles, from small one man fighters to huge space fighter carriers and space stations.

 

Magellons� base on Illal is the size of a small country and contained housing for around two million workers. It also has three large manufacturing facilities, which were used for secret testing, similar to Area 51 on Earth. Magellon used the Illal base to experiment with a lot of new technologies, away from the prying eyes of the United Terran Authority.

 

When the quarantine of Illal was announced, Magellon, like the other MPC�s scrambled to get off the planet as fast as they could. In doing so, they left behind all sorts of tech that is still fought over by Prosk and Sentium.

 

Their base now stands in ruins, like a vast graveyard littered with half built ships and huge rusting hangers and factories and is regularly raided for parts for Axe�s, battleships and other things.

 

In the north east of Andromeda, in the Hetov Distcict, is the Hetov Megabeam.  Designed by Danev Chenk as an experiment in social housing. This is the largest construction on Illal and is clearly visible from orbit. It used to house ten million people.  It is 15 miles wide 500 miles long and is totally self contained.  It is viewed as a highly valuable strategic target, as it overlooks such a large area of the city.

 

Hetov Megabeam.

Wedged between the Navek and Trentik districts of Andromeda, is a large mine owned by the Ovek Mining Corporation. Ovek was another MPC that helped fund the IDI. Ovek specialise in extracting rare non Earth elements and minerals. They have two mines on Illal, this one and another in the Lassau region.  

 

This mine was used for extracting a mineral named Trinothysite, which has been found on several other planets in the Terran Hyper-Republic. It is used in fusion engines and EU collectors. It was abandoned when the quarantine was announced, but still holds thousands of tones of Trinothysite ore.

 

The mine is nearly five hundred miles across and has been partially engulfed by the Giga structure. However, the northern parts of the mine are still relatively untouched and are fought over by Sentium and Prosk.

In the south of the region, on the banks of the Scaenon sea, lay the two colonies of   Sakkuru and Konseterkay.

Sakkuru is a city which has been likened to a kind of Neo Tokyo. A built up, noisy, busy city full of bright lights and tall buildings. The architecture is more oriental looking than most of the other places on Illal, which leads to it�s own unique charm. Sakkuru is sparsely populated now, and is home to one of the most notorious Slider gangs on Illal, the Death Dragons.

 

(Sliders are fast maglev bikes that have been weaponized)

 

The Death Dragons are a gang who like to base themselves on the Triads of old Earth. They own the streets of Sakkuru. Not only do they use Sliders, but they also defend their city with an army of Axe�s that carry the unique paint job of the Death Dragon. Most of the Axe pilots are extremely well trained and show little fear in the face of Prosk or Sentium forces.

The colony of Konseterkay is completely different to it�s neighbour. This city is all about self sustainability. It is a peaceful place. The colony once boasted a population of six million, but now has only half of that number. Many of it�s people were taken during the Vitrolium war and forced to fight for Prosk. Now the people of Konseterkay have a complete mistrust of Prosk and many now side with Sentium.   
   

Edited by SandSpider2, 20 June 2016 - 07:33 AM.

[SandSpider2]

The Ashihan Region

 

 

The Ashihan Region

The Ashihan region is mainly known for three things, the Ashihan Forests, Redstone Training Facility and Paragon Foods.

As we all know, the Ashihan Forests are the last, semi natural environment left on Illal.  Most of the forests have been polluted by chemicals dumped in the lakes next to them, which has caused genetic mutations in some of the plant life. The forest takes up over five hundred square miles.

One of the indigenous creatures still living in the forests, is the notorious Illal drop bear.  These elusive, vicious and none to bright creatures, live high up in the canopy and plummet on their prey to either kill them or render them unconscious. The bears then drag off their victim to a secluded spot and feed.  They attack any animals and humans who wander into their territory, they have also been known to attack mechs in this way.

In the northeast of the region is the Redstone Training Facility. This huge, independent base, is responsible for training all the new recruits for both Sentium and Prosk. The base has large mock-ups of some of the most fought over locations on Illal and uses AI Axes for pilots to train against.  

To the north west of the forests, is the abandoned headquarters of Paragon Foods, one of the MPC�s that were part of the IDI.  They are the largest food manufacturers and distributors in the Terran Hyper-Republic. Their factory and distribution centre holds one hundred warehouses that still have thousands of containers of food supplies.  

One of Paragon�s best known products is the �Rezz Bar,� a kind of green chocolate bar made from all natural, one hundred percent alien ingredients. One of these small bars holds enough balanced nutrition to keep someone going for a whole day.  Tattered advertisements for this product can still be seen in many of the colonies, along with many other Paragon products.

The base is continually fought over, not just for the remaining food supplies, but also for parts from the factory complex that have been converted and used on Axes.

 

 

The Itarcia Region

 

 

This region was always owned by Prosk. Geographically, large portions of this area where under water for many millions of years and appear to have once formed a large inland sea, over a mile deep.  Parts of this region look quite similar to some of the more rugged parts of the old USA back on Earth.

Itarcia is a very barren, desert like region filled with crumbling plateaus, gorges, mesas and wide valleys.   

Prosk used to extract around seventy percent of it�s resources from this region so it wasn�t long before they discovered the deposit of Caverite. This, as we know, started off the unfortunate chain of events that lead Illal to where it is now.

Prosk never allowed the Ovek Mining Corp access to this region, as most of resources that where found there where easy to extract and didn�t need any specialised equipment.  This is one of the reasons why it took so long for Sentium to find out about the Caverite mine.

In the north west corner of the region is the small colony of New Dublin. This was the first mining colony built by Prosk in this region. As their mining operations grew two more colonies where built, Gorove in the north and Susarda, in the south east.

The three colonies were home to thousands of M4 Brommens mechs and still hold tonnes of spare parts, from chassis to engines. Naturally, all three of the colonies are fought over for these resources.

 

Below are some typical views of Itarcia.

 

 

 

 

 

The Sariatona Region

 

 

This region is dominated by the mega city HQ of Sentium Dynamics, named Titan. This city is roughly the size of Europe.

It is also home to Rygel Energy, one of the largest power corporations in the Terran Hyper-Republic and the colony of Josh�s City.

Titan is divided into thirty districts, each one the size of a small country, which are run in a similar way to the states of the old USA back on Earth.

 

The names for the districts are as follows, starting from the top left.

Uskington, Feokeaton, Austranda, Panarona, Bostein, Coavania, Aprella, Zensenta, Viricini, Utrington, Tyrunus, Eurona, Asona, Uxtharia, Selor, Araia, Tustar, Espar, Ilustros, Titan, Hutton, Lingate, Bestia, Astril, Estein, Valcrest, Aslista, Kariya, Obaron, and Afrax.

 

The layout and architecture of Titan is completely different to that of Andromeda. Titan is an open designer city built to showcase the work of the most outrageous and talented architects in the Terran Hyper-Republic.  There are many large open plazas, plus parks and recreation areas. In Asona and Lingate there are huge waterways and in other areas, there are buildings so big that they can be seen from orbit, while others apparently defy gravity.

 

Over on the right side of this region is Rygel Energy�s power station and manufacturing complex. Rygel is one of the MPC�s that funded the Illal Development Initiative. When it came to Illal, it helped set up the atmospheric processors, ( each one of these self contained unites has a Rygel fusion engine at its core ). It also set up power grids all over the planet and supplied all of the wind farms and solar technology to the smaller colonies.  

 
Now largely abandoned, it is kept running by a skeleton staff who were left behind when the  quarantine was introduced. The power station itself  holds over a thousand fusion generators plus many spare parts and redundancy systems. The manufacturing facility still holds thousands of machines and parts that are continuously fought over.

 

The remaining staff, not happy having their families exposed to all of the fighting that was going on around them, moved away. They set up their own colony further to the east of the region on the coast of Hughes Bay.  It was named Josh�s City, after the man who stepped in and took over after the original management left Illal, Chief Technical Manager Josh Sheridan.

 

The staff who keep Rygel working travel to the complex on a weekly rotation.

 

The colony is home to a growing number of people who are coming in from all over Illal.   



The Tungus Region

 

 

This region was owned by Sentium before the outbreak of the Hawken virus. It is dominated by The Rift.

The Rift is a fairly resent geological feature dating back just five thousand years.  It is two thousand miles long, four hundred miles wide and ten miles deep.   It�s formation marked a turning point in the history of Illal.  Before the rift was formed, Illal appears to have been a subtropical planet with a much thicker atmosphere and an abundance of life.  There have been many ancient ruins, including the pyramid in the Ashihan Forests, found all over the surface which points to a highly advanced human like population.

 

Unfortunately, all this seems to have changed with the formation of the rift.  It appears to have been a cataclysmic event of epic proportions.  Core samples from all over the surface indicate that billions of tonnes of material were ejected from it coating the planet in a layer of ash and debris several feel thick.  

 

At the same time as this, there is evidence of mass extinction on a global scale, with around 90% of life dying out within just a few decades, due to a complete shift in the composition of the atmosphere. The atmosphere went from being one that was similar to Earth, to a much thinner and more toxic one.

 

The deepest, widest part of the Rift is known as The Cauldron. This area is around ten miles deep and is usually shrouded in a thin layer of mist. It is a very warm, primordial looking place with hot springs, thermal vents and bizarrely shaped lava spines. The kind of landscape H.R.Giger would have imagined.

 

The Cauldron.

 

It is naturally filled with important resources and is constantly fought over.

 

In the south east of the region is the Traavol volcano which is still active and erupts several times a year. The ejector from this volcano is high in heavy metals and a rich cocktail of minerals. Because of this, the area is fought over by Prosk and Sentium.

The Callas Region

 

 

This is a very dry, rough, barren region with little vegetation. It is home to a couple of dangerous indigenous creatures.

The Teraklier is a large, six legged, fast moving, vampiric hunter that lives in many of the deserts of Illal. It has extremely good eyesight and sense of smell. They do not have traditional mouths that we are used too. Instead, they have two mandible tubes, one on each side of the head, which contain retractable spikes that they use to impale their prey on. After this, they suck out all of the bodily fluids. This is how they feed. They are similar in size to a rhinoceros and have even been known to attack Axes from time to time.

 

A Teraklier.

The other creatures that live in this area are known as Spitters.  These animals look similar to some of the two legged, carnivorous dinosaurs that used to roam Earth millions of years ago.  They are about twice the height of an average human and can run very fast.  These animals are omnivores and will eat anything.  They have an interesting defence mechanism. They have a pair of glands in the roof of their mouths that, when they feel threatened, spit out a highly toxic and corrosive sticky brown acid.  This fluid can kill a human in seconds and can also disable an axe just as quickly.    

There has been talk amongst Sentium and Prosk weapons developers of trying to catch Spitters so that the fluid they produce can be weaponized.  So far however, this has not happened.

 

A typical view of the Callas region.

 

Edited by SandSpider2, 20 June 2016 - 07:39 AM.

[SandSpider2]

The Lassau Region.

 

 

This region is home to the largest mine on Illal, owned by the Ovek Mining Corporation. Plus the two colonies of New Tiggs and Rio Nova.  There is also a huge waterfall that used to be a major tourist attraction.

The Ovek Hypervanium mine is a highly valuable resource.  Hypervanium is classed as a non Earth element, as it is not found anywhere in the Sol system.  It is a metal lighter than aluminium but stronger than titanium and is used in Axe construction.
The mine covers an area of 504,645 square Kilometres ( 194,845 square miles ) and is over three miles deep.

The city of New Tiggs is the second colony to be founded after the outbreak of the Hawken virus.  It is a well organised and efficient city with a large population. It gets it�s name from the capital of the planet New Texas in the Ooteeni system.

The other colony is Rio Nova, a huge holiday resort that used to bring in people from all over the Terran Hyper-Republic. It has now been largely abandoned. It has a beach of white sand that stretches for 8 kilometres ( 5 miles ) and has some amazing architecture similar to parts of Titan.

The last major feature of this region is Suria Falls. This stunning waterfall is 1.5 kilometres wide and 1.5 kilometres high ( that�s about 1 mile wide and 1 mile high ).

 

 

 

The Cragcliff Region.

 

 

This region is one of the most treacherous parts of Illal. It is dominated by deep valleys and high mountains. Many explorers have lost their lives in this area. Not many dare to venture here anymore.

This is one of the reasons why it was chosen to be the home of a group of escaped convicts. The colony of Henarky was founded just ten years after Illal was first settled.  

The story goes something like this.

A group of one hundred and fifty six of the most dangerous prisoners from all over Andromeda were to be transferred to a maximum security facility that had been specially built on Driker Island, to the north west of the mega city.  

No one knows exactly what happened, but some of these prisoners managed escape their restraints and over power the guards.  They took over the transport vehicle and were able to fly it to this region, at high speed and at a dangerously low level.   
It is said that one of these men or women new of a vast cave system that they had once found in this area and that is were they went.  

For months after, search teams were sent to this region to try and find them. Satellites were even tasked to the job. But nothing was ever found. From time to time after this, when prisoners would manage to escape, they would make their way to this region and simply disappear.

After the virus was released and the people with any power had gone, Henarky finally revealed itself to the rest of Illal. By this time, the colony had grow to nearly seven thousand strong.  The cave network is huge and goes deep underground. People have built an entire city inside it, complete with its own power supply and all the other amenities that you would expect to find.  Now this colony is home to many of the independent mercenaries who take jobs for anyone who will pay.     

 

A typical view of the Cragcliff region.

 

 

 

 

The Helvar Region

 

 

This region is one of opposites.  In the north, it is hot, really hot.  Think Death Valley kind of hot and you will be getting there. This part is so dry and arid that nothing lives here. If you get stranded in one of the deserts in this area, you won�t survive more than two days tops. Even if you are lucky enough to find one of the lakes that are dotted around, you won�t be able to drink from them.  Every lake in this place has more salt in it than the entire North Ocean, making them highly toxic.

In the middle part of this region is a group of mountains collectively known as The Death Mountains.  This area is hot at ground level but drops to  -20 c as you climb the mountains. There is also a phenomenon of very hot, high winds in this area that seem to come out of nowhere. This is known as the Devils Wind. It is so hot that it can literally roast someone alive, if they are not wearing protective clothing.  

Unfortunately, parts of this area are high in mineral deposits making it an extremely valuable place for both Sentium and Prosk. The two corporations have mines and bunkers scattered around this location and often clash over them.

The south of this region is in many ways, the complete opposite to the north. Although it is still arid and dry, it is also as cold as the north is hot. This area contains some of the coldest deserts on Illal.  All year long, this part is covered with a thick layer of permafrost which makes it very hard for anything to survive. The mountains at the farthest south are among the most dangerous on the planet. High winds howl through their jagged peaks, and at an average temperature of -40 c they can freeze a person to death in just a few minutes.

 

Typical view of Helvar North.

 

 

Typical view of Helvar South.

 

 

 

The Namachi Region

 

 

This region is dominated by the Namachi Swamplands which take up thousands of square miles. It is also home to the colonies of Shiota and Leonard�s Legacy.

This region is teaming with life of all sorts of shapes and sizes. There are some extremely dangerous, indigenous creatures that live in the swamplands and it is advised to take great caution when entering.  Many people have been lost in these swamps, never to be found. It has even swallowed up whole battalions of Axes.

As we all know, there is the wreck of a large military ship that crashed in the swamps several years ago. Although, according to the ships log, most of the crew survived the crash, none of them managed to make it out of the swamp. Some believe that the wreckage is haunted as there have been many strange sightings of apparitions in and around the area.

The swamps themselves are very eerie. There is a layer of low laying mist that covers large parts and strange creatures lurk under the surface.  Sightings of large hairy humanoid figures are common as well.

Shiota colony, to the east of the region, is controlled by Sentium. A large garrison of Sentium military are stationed there and most of the original colonists were kicked out a few years ago. Most of them moved to Leonard�s Legacy to the south, which is ironically, now controlled by Prosk.  The two corporations view the swamps as a treasure trove of natural resources.  

 

A typical view of the Namachi region.

 

The Roughridge Region

 

 

This area is similar in geography to the Cragcliff region but not quite so inhospitable.  It is home to Prospekt City in the south and the port of Ifllos in the north.

There is a large mountain range that stretches from the north of the region to the south, in a slight crescent shape.  This range only gets snow on it during winter.  At the top of this range in the north, is an area that contains half a dozen extinct volcanoes. Wedged between some of these volcanoes are fields of black cassiterite crystals that stand up to a hundred feet high. These areas are fought over by Sentium and Prosk, because cassiterite produces tin which still used in many things.

In the south west of the region is a colossal extinct volcano that is bigger than Olympus Mons on Mars. It is over 27 kilometres high (17 miles)  and is millions of years.

Prospekt City was set up after a sizeable gold deposit was discovered by a man named Mackenna. Wide veins of gold are visible on the surface and on the hills and in the lakes.  The area around the city has been mined extensively, but it has been calculated that only about half the gold has so far been removed. Naturally, both Prosk and Sentium want to control this city and the surrounding area.

The port of Ifllos is a mainland base for the Nautilus Corporation. Now abandoned, it contains manufacturing facilities and thousands of parts, including over eight  hundred deep sea mini subs that make perfect Axe bodies. There are over a dozen large container ships still docked, but some of them are now partially submerged.  

Both Sentium and Prosk want this port and fight over its control constantly.

 

 

 

The Strayla Region

 

 

In many ways, this region is similar to Australia back on Earth. This is where it gets its name from. It is home to the colony of Bradley�s Hope.

Strayla has some interesting creatures that were able to survive the mass extinction five thousand years ago. One of these is the Straylian Hoop Snake. These large and quite dangerous snake like creatures wait at the top of hills for animals, and people, to wander past. When they see something, they quickly raise their tails over their heads to form a hoop and propel themselves down the hill. They can roll at speeds of up to nearly fifty kilometres an hour (30 miles an hour). When they hit their target, they can easily knock them unconscious. Once they have subdued their prey, they usually eat them whole.

Strayla is best known for the huge reef in Iron Bay. This reef dwarfs the Great Barrier Reef back on Earth and has been studied for many years by The Nautilus Corp. The colony of Bradley�s Hope was first established as the southern base of operations for The Nautilus Corp, but soon became a large colony in its own right. It contains a large port with manufacturing facilities, dry docks, hundreds of ships, subs and other vehicles.

Sentium and Prosk both fight over the control of this colony as it is seen as an important resource.   


 

The Chygon Region

 

 

This region is home to the remains of the Efrax colony in the north and Logan�s colony in the south.  A large proportion of this region as now been engulfed by the Hawken virus. Luckily, the mountain ranges to the west have slowed the advance considerably.

Chygon is dominated by a large group of high mountain ranges to the west. These ranges were created by the collision of two tectonic plates billions of years ago. They are some of the highest mountains on Illal and make the Himalayas look like foot hills.  

Both Efrax and Logan�s colony were built by Paragon Foods as major fishing ports. Efrax was built to take advantage of the sea life in the Brosan Sea, while Logan�s colony was built as the main fishing port for the Noncardra Sea and the South Ocean.  Paragon used these resources, not only to help feed the population of Illal, but also exported millions of tonnes of this food all over the Terran Hyper Republic.

South west of Efrax is the remnants of a large impact crater that is millions of years old. Styria Basin, or the Titans Graveyard as it is now known, contains the remains of thousands of enormous dinosaur like creatures. They are all from the same species of giant six legged animals that grew up to two hundred metres long (656 feet).  The animals had three rows of large bony plates along the length of their bodies. One row ran along the back vertically, while the other two rows ran along the animals sides, horizontally. The plates are so big and so strong that they can easily support the weight of a C class Axe. These creatures died out in the mass extinction five thousand years ago.  The skeletons are now petrified and filled with a mix of minerals that for some reason appear to repel the Hawken virus.

Sentium and Prosk both want to control the Titans Graveyard in the hopes of finding a way to stop the virus.

 

Astril Mountains, Chygon region.

 

 

The Brosan Region

 

 

This region is home to Brosos and Kungala colonies.

When this region was first settled thirty years ago, after the atmosphere processing plants where set up, it was a lot different than it is now. Back then, this area was quite fertile and had savannah's and plains. Brosos was set up in the shadow of one of the terraforming hubs and became a large and vibrant colony. Unfortunately, know one knew what the effects of such a rapid change in the climate would do.

Because of its unique location on the planet, wedged between two oceans and the large, inland Brosos Sea, several thing happened. Over the next twenty years, the climate over this region started to warm up and dry out.  Crops started to fail and the land slowly turned to desert. Similar to what was seen on parts of Earth in the twenty first century, before we created the technology to reverse the effects.

Even before the Hawken virus was unleashed, people had started to leave Brosos. Many moved south to Kungala, as the effects of the climate change was not so severe there. Kungala was established ten years after Brosos as a trade hub for the region. It was very successful up to the time when the virus started. After that however, it took a beating from all the troubles in the area. A lot of the residents moved off world before the quarantine of the planet was enforced. This lead to a period of lawlessness until it was taken over by a large group of independent mercenaries who now use it as their base of operations.

Brosos is now one of the places where high amounts of Vitrolium is found, as it has a large rat infestation. It is constantly fought over by both Sentium and Prosk, plus independent mercenaries from Kungala.   

 

A typical view of the Brosan region.

 

    
The Coveocia Region

 

 

This region is home to the Dulanday colony.

Coveocia is the most northern part of the continent. Despite the effects of rapid climate change seen in the Brosan region to the south, very little has changed in this region.

Coveocia is an Arctic area. It is barren, rocky, filled with active glaciers and glacial valleys.  Not much grows here or lives here. The Dulanday colony was set up next to a terraforming hub as a research station by Prosk. It remained so until the scientists discovered large amounts of an unusual fungus like growth living in many of the rocks. After extensive experimentation it was found that this fungus made a very powerful explosive which Prosk used for mining purposes.   

In the next few years, Prosk expanded the research station into a fully functioning colony filled with processing and manufacturing facilities.  Unfortunately for Prosk, most people hated working there because of the cold and bleak conditions. As know one would volunteer to go there, It was used as a form of punishment for workers who didn�t do their jobs well or disobeyed their managers.

When the quarantine was introduced, the colony was abandoned, but the fungus still grows in the area. Sentium and Prosk battle over this colony for possession of this highly valuable resource every day.    

 

A typical view of the Coveocia region.

 

 

Edited by SandSpider2, 20 June 2016 - 07:44 AM.

[SandSpider2]

Not only are there colonies on the main continent, there are also five islands that are or were inhabited. Starting from the west of the atlas and working over to the east, the islands are as follows.

 

Atlinis Island

 

 

This island is home to the most northerly colony on Illal, the colony of Aurora. This colony was set up by Prosk as a base from which they could explore the North Pole, as the continent is rich in resources.  It has a large research facility, terraforming hub and a space port, plus many polar exploration mechs, some of which have now been turned into Axes. The colony gets its name from the fact that it is a great place to see Illal�s Aurora Borealis.  The island is cold all year round and is a rugged, mountainous place. 

 

 

The Adosa Islands

 

 

These islands are home to a large colony based around a Yeshy monastery named Kajaikata. It is home to several thousand Yeshy monks and around two hundred thousand followers.

Yeshy is a religion made up of Shaolin Buddhism combined with parts from several similar alien religions. Yeshy monks are masters of the Ta�ar martial art.

Ta�ar is a hybrid fighting style that incorporates Shaolin Kung Fu with several other Earth martial arts, plus a number of secret techniques from alien cultures.  

Yeshy monks are capable of performing seemingly impossible feats, such as levitation, mind reading and precognition. They also have no fear. This is because every Yeshy monk knows exactly how, when and where they are going to die.

Before the Crion incident, it was common knowledge that they had several monks working for them as bodyguards and as �security advisers.�

Yeshy monks also make excellent Axe pilots and are some of the most highly skilled and feared pilots on the battlefield.

There is a story that has been told for over a hundred years of a famous Yeshy monk who, single handedly, faced an army of three hundred men. After a battle that lasted for six and a half hours, only the monk walked away.

 

 

Pontovor Island

 

 

This island is home to the Roanoke Colony. Roanoke was the very first colony that was established on Illal. It houses the first terraforming hub and was used as the base that all the other MPC�s expanded from. All nine MPC�s had facilities in Roanoke and used them to survey the planet before deciding on the locations for their headquarters.

After the new bases for each MPC had been built, the colony was abandoned. It stands their now like a thirty year old ghost town. It is in many ways similar to the city of Chernobyl back on Earth, only with a space port.

Ironically, the still working terraforming hub has become a hotly disputed area lately, with both Sentium and Prosk fighting over it while they try to strip it for spare parts to help maintain their own hubs.  

 

 

Nautilus Island

 

 

This island was the main base of operations for the Nautilus Corporation on Illal. It is roughly the same size as Ireland and has a large city, its own space port, manufacturing facilities and a very large port. It also has its own terraforming hub which is still working today.

Nautilus Corp. is the largest marine exploration and research company in the Terran Hyper-Republic. It is also one of the MPC�s that helped fund the Illal Development Initiative.  It specialises in deep sea exploration, ocean floor mapping, acquisition and research. At its height it was home to over a million workers and their families. It was largely abandoned when the quarantine was announced.

Most of the ships and submersibles that Nautilus used on Illal were built here. There are hundreds of these vehicles just sitting in and around the port, slowly rotting away. The research facilities that were abandoned still hold many of the marine creatures that were captured for studding.

Sentium and Prosk have both set up bases on this island to take advantage of all the resources that were left behind. They fight constantly.
 

 

 

Beosal Island

 

 

This is the last of the five islands to contain a colony. Beosal is home to the colony of Fenia.

Fenia was founded by a group known as The Council for Human Independence (CHI). CHI is vehemently opposed to The United Terran Authority and hates everything it stands for. The group is funded by some very shady people who chose Illal to get as far from the grip of the UTA as possible.

They paid a lot of credits to get this island and have since turned part of it into a huge, sprawling, fortified compound. They have also amassed an enormous arsenal of weapons and ammunition to defend themselves with.

The compound is built on four levels, three of which are underground. It has been designed with large open hallways and spaces to allow mechs to be used for construction and maintenance. Although the compound is heavily fortified, both Prosk and Sentium have set up bases on the island to try and take it over. The stockpile of weapons is too big of a prize to not go after.       
 

Edited by SandSpider2, 23 September 2016 - 05:25 AM.

[SandSpider2]

Illal is the sixth planet in the Kepler 11 system and is where this struggle for survival takes place.
The Illal system is around 8 billion years old, (twice as old as Earth) and is about 2000 light years from Earth.

The Illal solar system was first surveyed in the middle of the twenty second century, during a time now known as The Great Expansion, by the deep space exploration ship, SNARK.

The discovery of the rare mineral Caverite in the system, secured it a special and important place at the time.

The first people to settle on Illal, found that the atmosphere was un-breathable. As a result, many large atmosphere processing plants were set up to terraform it. These continue to maintain the atmosphere today. They also found some ancient ruins scattered around that date back thousands of years, some of which go deep into the planet. At the moment, no one knows who built them.
 
Let us start with the star.

At the heart of the Illal system, is it's sun, Kepler-11. Kepler-11 is a sun like star, slightly larger than our Sun, in the constellation of Cygnus, located some 2,000 light years from Earth. Kepler-11 is a G-type star that is approximately 95% the mass of and 110% the radius of the Sun. It has a surface temperature of 5680c and is 8 billion years old, In comparison, the Sun is about 4.6 billion years old and has a surface temperature of 5778c
Below is a layout of the Illal system, to scale.
 

 

Below is a diagram to show size comparisons.

 

 

 
Below are some photographs of Illal taken from orbit.
 

 

 

 

 


In the image below, is the warm wet region that is an enormous swamp. This area is know as the Namachi Swamplands. It is a treacherous place where many Axes have been lost, sunk in the mire. 


In the image below, you can see the area south of both Prosk and Sentium that contain the Death Lakes. These lakes have been used for several decades by Prosk and Sentium as a dumping ground for all of their toxic waste. The chemicals pumped into the lakes have found there way into the ground water that feeds the Ashihan Forests, located next to the lakes, and has caused some interesting mutations in the plant life. 

 

 
As you can see, the surface of the planet has been extensively strip mined, with very few areas left untouched.
 
Some stats for you.

Illal
 
Sixth planet from star

Physics

Type: Standard iron/silicate
Radius: 6910.70 km (1.08 x earth)
Surface Area: 6.00 x 108 km2
Land Area: 1.86 x 108 km2 (1.25 x earth)
Mass: 6.61 x 1024 kg (1.11 x earth)
Density: 4.78 g/cm3 (0.87 x earth)
Composition: 34.3% iron, 26.4% oxygen, 18.0% sulphur, 14.1% silicon, 2.9% other metals, 4.4% other elements

Gravimetry

Gravity: 9.20 m/s2 (0.94 x earth)
Escape Velocity: 11.28 km/s

Rotation

Period: 23.75 hours

Hydrosphere

Water: 50 %
Ice: 15 %

Original Atmosphere

Type: Thin toxic
Pressure: 68.60 kPa (0.68 x earth)
Composition: 84.5% carbon dioxide, 15.5% argon, trace other gases

Climate

Type: Cool
Min Temp: 189 K (-83 �C)
Avg Temp: 293 K (20 �C)
Max Temp: 336 K (63 �C)

Civilization

Type: Colony

Original Population: 1.84 Billion
Current Population: 38.77 million

Distance from star 1.05au close to the middle of the habitable zone

Illal used to be a sub tropical planet covered in dense jungle and desert. Since it was colonised, it has been extensively strip mined. Now, a third of the surface is covered with the Giga Structure and It's atmosphere is just like that of the Earth. It is however, toxic in certain areas where the atmospheric possessors have stopped working because of the Hawken virus.

Many alien artefacts and some ruins have been unearthed during the colonization process. No one knows if these were put here by an indigenous population, or a former colony of some, as yet unknown, alien race.

Although Illal is slightly further from it's star than Earth is to the sun, it's average surface temperature is slightly higher, due to Kepler-11 being slightly larger than the sun. Illal has seasons similar to Earth. This is not because Illal is tilted on it's axis like the Earth. It is because Illal has a slightly elliptical orbit. This means that at certain times, Illal is closer to Kepler 11 and other times it is further away.

Even though Illal is approximately twice as old as Earth, there is still quite a lot of vulconism and tectonic activity.  This means earthquakes, active volcanoes, hot springs and other thermal features.
 
Fennon:
 

 

 
Illal has one moon named Fennon.  Fennon is a large moon, slightly smaller in size than Mars, with a similar gravity. It has a thin but breathable atmosphere and has been colonized. A large proportion of the evacuated population of Illal have relocated here. So far it remains virus free.

Fennon has one mega city called Kalisar. The UTA (United Terran Authority) has established a large military base and command and control centre on the outskirts of the city to coordinate the quarantine of Illal. The city is fed by a huge man made reservoir north of the city.  There are other, smaller settlements all over the moon. These however, are not visible from orbit.
The lights of Kalisar are visible at night from Illal.
 
Some stats for you.
 
Fennon:
Size: Diam 6779km  
Mass: 8.70 moons
Orbital Distance: 453604km
Orbital Cycle: 33.4 days
Length of Day: 19hr


 
 
 
The Textures For Illal.

 

Please note, these are very big illustrations ( 9600x4800 pix 7.87mb)

 

To view them full size, first left click on the picture. This will take you to Photobucket. Next, click on the magnifier at the top right of the picture. The picture will now fill the screen. Next, right click on the picture and select, view image. Your pointer should turn into a magnifying glass with a plus in it. Left click anywhere on the picture and you will see it full size.

I've posted these so that anyone can use them, including the Dev's if you would like too.

Texture Map Before Virus

Texture Map After Virus

Bump Map

Illuminations Map Before Virus

Illuminations Map After Virus

Specular Map

 

Edited by SandSpider2, 01 July 2016 - 09:04 AM.

[SandSpider2]

These next satellite images, taken before the outbreak of the Hawken virus, show the size and extent of the three mega cities on Illal.

First, the largest. Andromeda, home of Prosk Industries.

Andromeda was formed out of many smaller cites that eventually merged to form one massive mega city, roughly the size of North America and Canada combined.



Next, there is Titan, home of Sentium Dynamics. The second largest mega city on Illal.
A huge designer metropolis roughly the size of Europe, filled with massive buildings, lakes and parks.



Last but not least, there is Kobalt, Smallest of the three megacities. Home of Crion Solutions. A vast man made island roughly the size of Spain and Portugal put together. After the devastating accident in the Praxis Valley Typhus facility that set loose the HAWKEN Virus, Crion ceased to exist. Kobalt it is now a ruin, deserted but for a few, stubborn, former Crion engineers and their families taking refuge underground from a rapidly depleting atmosphere. Those few that choose to remain are protected by the KOBALT DEFENCE REGIMENT.

The atmosphere where the giga structure has taken over is thin and toxic to humans, since the atmospheric possessors became infected and stopped working.

 

 

 

 

The other planets:
 
Helos:
Closest planet to star
Size: Diam 24637km
Mass 4.30 Earths
Avg Temp 738 c
Orbital Year 10.3 days
Length of Day 58.6 days
Distance from star 13.6 million km

Helos is a large, actively volcanic world with a thin, toxic atmosphere. It is a rocky planet with an iron core. Several large deposits of Caverite can be found on this planet, but the harsh atmosphere makes it difficult and expensive to extract.
 

 

 
Konsu:
Second planet from star.
Size: Diam 39388 km
Mass 13.5 Earths
Avg Temp 656c
Orbital Year 12.9 days
Length of Day 12.4 days
Distance from Star 15.9m km

Konsu is classed as a medium gas giant mainly composed of hydrogen chloride, with an Iron core. It has no moons and has not been colonised.
 

 

Etal:
Third planet from star.
Size: Diam 42897km
Mass 6.10 Earths
Avg Temp 485c
Orbital Year 23.7 days
Length of day 17.2 hours
Distance from star 28.3m km

Etal is classed as a small gas giant. It is mainly composed of hydrogen and helium, with a rocky core. It has a small ring system and no moons.
 

 
 
 
Maeff:
Maeff (pronounced, May-ef)
Forth planet from star
Size: Diam 56530km
Mass 8.40 Earths
Avg Temp 411c
Orbital Year 32 days
Length of day 9.93 hours
Distance from Star 29m km

Maeff is a medium sized blue gas giant mainly composed of hydrogen, helium and methane. It has an extensive ring system and 14 moons.

Maeff's 14 moons. The moons are mainly composed of rock and ice. The inner most moon, named Foenus, has a thick atmosphere which is highly toxic. It has an average surface temp of 14c due to continuous volcanic activity caused by gravitational sheer. It has high concentrations of minerals. It has been colonized and is extensively mined. 

 

 

 

 
Kalec:
Fifth Planet from star
Size: Diam 32648km
Mass 2.30 Earths
Avg Temp 328c
Orbital Year 46.9 days
Length of day 1.03 day
Distance from Star 37.4m km

Kalec is a large rocky planet, similar in make up to Venus. It has a thick, corrosive atmosphere that is made up of mainly carbon dioxide and nitrogen. The planet is covered in a thick layer of cloud mainly composed of sulphuric acid.
 

Edited by SandSpider2, 01 July 2016 - 02:41 PM.

[Rainbow_Sheep]

Finally, it has returned.

 

also: first, get rekt skrubs

Edited by Rainbow Sheep, 13 August 2015 - 05:51 AM.

[CrimsonKaim]

Finally, it has returned.

 

 

 

second

 

 

Btw in what solar system was Illal located again?

Edited by FakeName, 13 August 2015 - 06:04 AM.

[Teljaxx the Unintentional]

Excellent work as always, MapSpider!

[eth0]

second

 

 

Btw in what solar system was Illal located again?

Illal is the 6th planet from Kepler-11.

[Hijinks_The_Turtle]

Amazing stuff Sandy!

[SandSpider2]

Thanks guys, most appreciated

[GeneralJWJ]

Hi, can you tell me the story behind this atlas? Is it purely your imagination or did you piece it together from other sources?

[SandSpider2]

Well I made textures for Illal first because there was no artwork for the planet. I made this post ( https://community.pl...nd-information/) way back in the original forums then put it back into this one.

 

Then I just thought of making an atlas so people would have more to go on for locations and other stuff.

[GeneralJWJ]

Amazing work! I was just asking cause it was so well put together I assumed it was from some official source I was unaware of, and I look closely at that kind of stuff lol. Keep at it then!

[Magnolia1038]

Brilliant! 

[SandSpider2]

Updated.

 

Added a breakdown of all regions and what they contain, as in colonies and MPC's

[Neraste]

This is marvelous! I think this will be useful for me.

[Badtings]

This is A M A Z I N G !!!

[SandSpider2]

Thanks for the compliments glad you like.

 

Updated.

 

Added info on the Chullun Region.

[SandSpider2]

Updated.

 

Added info about the Tiyobian Region.

[TalTallon]

This is absolutely incredible! Thanks OP

 

Also, if you use Imgur instead of Photobucket you can just click the image for full screen

[SandSpider2]

Thanks, will look into that

[SandSpider2]

Updated.

 

I have added information about the Sterg region to the original post. 

[SandSpider2]

Updated first post with info on the Arctus Region.

[SandSpider2]

Updated with info on Navok region.

[SandSpider2]

Updated with info about the Ashihan region, the Itarcia region and the Sariatona region.

[SandSpider2]

My vision of Illal is complete!

 

The atlas is finished and I have incorporated as much info as I could think of.  I have also included possible ideas and locations for new game maps into the atlas and included all the textures I have made for Illal.

 

I hope some of you might find a use for this work.

Edited by SandSpider2, 23 September 2016 - 05:18 AM.

[DingdongJR]

Holy hell this is awesome!

[SandSpider2]

Thank you, glad you like.