The Ashen Reach
The Ashen Reach is a broad region stretching along one of Ione’s geothermal fault belts. Warmth rises naturally from the ground and rivers of mineral-rich water collect in shallow inland seas. From orbit the Reach looks like pale, yellowish soil fractured by volcanic stone gashes, with clusters of habitation glowing around them at night.
Settlers have been drawn for centuries by the region’s habitability, supported by fertile soil, breathable air, and warm seasons. Enormous, ancient machines from a forgotten age regulate atmospheric pressure and temperature across most of the surface here, allowing habitation and movement in relative comfort.
The Reach’s settlements sprawl along transit corridors, with caravans and surface crawlers moving between the larger ones. This makes the region a natural waypoint for trade of goods and information, and news from off-planet or other regions arrives sifted through multiple hands.
Hooks
- Groups seeking to impose order opposed to groups maintaining freedom and adaptability
- Uncertainty over enigmatic technology
Hubs
Images
Image credit: “Endless row of craters”, Anne Schöpa, licensed by CC BY 3.0, modifications released under license, https://imaggeo.egu.eu/view/5212/.