02-17-2017, 05:06 PM
Endless Dunes FAQ (updated 2-17-2017)
Q: “What’s the general layout of the place? What type of desert is it supposed to be?”
A: The area near the Nexus gate and Carrefore is almost nice. That region (roughly five square miles) is a savanna. There’s some grass, shrubs, and scrawny little trees, and the temperature is more mild. Carrefore is also the only place in the Dunes with rainfall, even if that’s only once or twice a year. Think of Tanzania or Kenya if you’d like a real-world comparison. Once you go beyond Carrefore, the rest of the verse is inhospitable desert. The majority of it sand n’ cactus desert (hence the name), but there are regions in the east where it resembles a rockier desert like that in Arizona.
Q: “Area by the gates?”
A: As mentioned in the previous question, there are areas of the Dunes that’s devoid of dunes. The largest of these borders the gate to the Ashen Steppes. The temperature here is also higher than the rest of the Dunes, given its proximity to the hottest place in the Omniverse. On the other side of the Dunes is the gate to Coruscant. While there’s a roadway connecting this gate to Carrefore and the Nexus gate, the area itself is nondescript. There’s an imperial watch tower, and beyond the gate is one of the most fortified security checkpoints in Coruscant. Have fun with that.
Q: “What’s it like out there in the Dunes? Outside the little pockets of civilization like Carrefore, TWNN, or Nippur?”
A: Kind of a shitty place. You got your roving psychopaths, you got your gangs of roving psychopaths, and you have an abundance of monsters lurking beneath the sand that want to murder you. Plus it’s hot and there’s no water for miles at a time.
Q: “What are the uncivilized residents of the Dunes like?”
A: Think of most apocalypse or wasteland tropes, and you’ll find that stuff out in the Dunes. ‘Psychos’ a la the Borderlands and maniacs from Mad Max are plentiful. There’s also some pretty normal-looking people out there who are still vicious and sadistic. You’ll find everything from wannabe gangbangers to nigh-unslayable cannibal maniacs. It’s a dog eat dog world out there in the wastes. Wander at your own risk.
Q: “Wildlife?”
A: In terms of monstrous inhabitants? All those terrible things you’d expect to find in a fantasy desert region. Giant sand worms, oversized scorpions, perhaps the wandering corpse of a dead pharaoh. Probably got golems and elementals out there in the harshest regions, as well. Perhaps the Empire left behind a few rogue things, who knows? Go find out. When it comes to normal animals, you have what you’d expect in a desert. Scorpions, lizards, camels, etc.
Q: “So, the Empire used to run this place?”
A: Correct. Much like the Pale Moors, the Dunes originally used to be a much nicer, more verdant place. The area around Carrefore is what the entire Dunes was like when Palpatine ‘discovered’ the place. There was also a vast wealth of natural resources like gold, diamonds, coal, and oil. Seven years ago, it is said you couldn’t travel more than 10 miles without running into some sort of extraction operation. Over a period of a few years, the Empire essentially strip-mined the entire place, leaving it the desolated, desert-ified landscape you see today.
Q: “I read somewhere that they left stuff behind, right?”
A: You’d be correct. There are plenty of Imperial mining stations, oil refineries, purifiers, and all sorts of facilities that lie abandoned out there in the Endless Dunes. Bear in mind that the Empire gradually and calmly withdrew from the region. These facilities have since been subjected to the desert and looters for a few years, so it’s not like you’d going to stumble upon elite Empire tech that’s been miraculously stashed somewhere. Mostly these places just acts a throwbacks to the past and to add more to the landscape, so don’t overthink it.
Q: “So they wrecked the whole place?”
A: For the most part. The deeper into the verse you go, you might find places that, although still desert, may perhaps have value. Adventurers often set off on deep expeditions into the Dunes to find such hidden troves of oil or precious stones.
Q: “There are other landmarks, right?”
A: Yes, of course. Obelisks, temples, pyramids—most of it is Egyptian/Sumerian in theme. While there’s no history of civilizations before Coruscant, the Endless Dunes (like a few other verses) contains many structures that appear to harken back to an older civilization. Was there a previous civilization, or are these ancient-seeming structures just another by-product of Omni’s vast imagination and limitless will? Either way, these ruins provide a draw for adventurers, archaeologists, and historians alike.
Q: “Can I get more about the lifestyle of people in the Dunes? Is everyone nuts?
A: Not everyone in the Endless Dunes is a raving lunatic or a criminalized sociopath. You’re bound to find nomadic tribes that get by without eating people’s skin off or melting them into guzzoline. Earlier it was mentioned that regions out in the Dunes have some resource value, so you might run into merchants transporting goods to Carrefore. Those opposed to the Empire or on its blacklist are forced to detour through the Ashen Steppes. The ‘placid’ natives and treasure-seekers usually keep to themselves.
Q: “Are there settlements beyond the established ones?””
A: The main settlements in the Endless Dunes are Carrefore and the Town with No Name. The Town With No Name has gradually become a more important waystation for interior traffic in the verse, given its central location in the verse and continued stability. Carrefore has likewise prospered and grown into a genuine imperial city. Travel into the interior of the Dunes from Carrefore and Corascant has grown more common as well, at least in the months since the Gold Cross has attempted to placate the discord in Nippur. Outside of these three cities, there are plenty of smaller settlements that come and go. Often tribes will settle down for a few months, creating a little tiny village, and then mobilize and head to a new location.
Q: “Wasn’t Nippur a faction base?”
A: Yes, it was, it belonged to Gilgamesh, and the stories of its creation, rise, and fall are there for you to read. Gilgamesh has been inactive for at least a year, if not longer, and the faction he created has been gone for nearly as long. Nippur was ransacked in a base assault, which has led to its current state (perpetual civil war and general malaise of its citizenry). If Gilgamesh returns, it’ll be there for him to claim, since the initial investment was his own OM. Currently, Nippur is treated like any larger settlement in the Omniverse due to its history and former influence. If Gilgamesh returns, it will resume its duties as his base, but in the absence of that, it is officially considered the city version of a Site NPC.
Q: “What’s the general layout of the place? What type of desert is it supposed to be?”
A: The area near the Nexus gate and Carrefore is almost nice. That region (roughly five square miles) is a savanna. There’s some grass, shrubs, and scrawny little trees, and the temperature is more mild. Carrefore is also the only place in the Dunes with rainfall, even if that’s only once or twice a year. Think of Tanzania or Kenya if you’d like a real-world comparison. Once you go beyond Carrefore, the rest of the verse is inhospitable desert. The majority of it sand n’ cactus desert (hence the name), but there are regions in the east where it resembles a rockier desert like that in Arizona.
Q: “Area by the gates?”
A: As mentioned in the previous question, there are areas of the Dunes that’s devoid of dunes. The largest of these borders the gate to the Ashen Steppes. The temperature here is also higher than the rest of the Dunes, given its proximity to the hottest place in the Omniverse. On the other side of the Dunes is the gate to Coruscant. While there’s a roadway connecting this gate to Carrefore and the Nexus gate, the area itself is nondescript. There’s an imperial watch tower, and beyond the gate is one of the most fortified security checkpoints in Coruscant. Have fun with that.
Q: “What’s it like out there in the Dunes? Outside the little pockets of civilization like Carrefore, TWNN, or Nippur?”
A: Kind of a shitty place. You got your roving psychopaths, you got your gangs of roving psychopaths, and you have an abundance of monsters lurking beneath the sand that want to murder you. Plus it’s hot and there’s no water for miles at a time.
Q: “What are the uncivilized residents of the Dunes like?”
A: Think of most apocalypse or wasteland tropes, and you’ll find that stuff out in the Dunes. ‘Psychos’ a la the Borderlands and maniacs from Mad Max are plentiful. There’s also some pretty normal-looking people out there who are still vicious and sadistic. You’ll find everything from wannabe gangbangers to nigh-unslayable cannibal maniacs. It’s a dog eat dog world out there in the wastes. Wander at your own risk.
Q: “Wildlife?”
A: In terms of monstrous inhabitants? All those terrible things you’d expect to find in a fantasy desert region. Giant sand worms, oversized scorpions, perhaps the wandering corpse of a dead pharaoh. Probably got golems and elementals out there in the harshest regions, as well. Perhaps the Empire left behind a few rogue things, who knows? Go find out. When it comes to normal animals, you have what you’d expect in a desert. Scorpions, lizards, camels, etc.
Q: “So, the Empire used to run this place?”
A: Correct. Much like the Pale Moors, the Dunes originally used to be a much nicer, more verdant place. The area around Carrefore is what the entire Dunes was like when Palpatine ‘discovered’ the place. There was also a vast wealth of natural resources like gold, diamonds, coal, and oil. Seven years ago, it is said you couldn’t travel more than 10 miles without running into some sort of extraction operation. Over a period of a few years, the Empire essentially strip-mined the entire place, leaving it the desolated, desert-ified landscape you see today.
Q: “I read somewhere that they left stuff behind, right?”
A: You’d be correct. There are plenty of Imperial mining stations, oil refineries, purifiers, and all sorts of facilities that lie abandoned out there in the Endless Dunes. Bear in mind that the Empire gradually and calmly withdrew from the region. These facilities have since been subjected to the desert and looters for a few years, so it’s not like you’d going to stumble upon elite Empire tech that’s been miraculously stashed somewhere. Mostly these places just acts a throwbacks to the past and to add more to the landscape, so don’t overthink it.
Q: “So they wrecked the whole place?”
A: For the most part. The deeper into the verse you go, you might find places that, although still desert, may perhaps have value. Adventurers often set off on deep expeditions into the Dunes to find such hidden troves of oil or precious stones.
Q: “There are other landmarks, right?”
A: Yes, of course. Obelisks, temples, pyramids—most of it is Egyptian/Sumerian in theme. While there’s no history of civilizations before Coruscant, the Endless Dunes (like a few other verses) contains many structures that appear to harken back to an older civilization. Was there a previous civilization, or are these ancient-seeming structures just another by-product of Omni’s vast imagination and limitless will? Either way, these ruins provide a draw for adventurers, archaeologists, and historians alike.
Q: “Can I get more about the lifestyle of people in the Dunes? Is everyone nuts?
A: Not everyone in the Endless Dunes is a raving lunatic or a criminalized sociopath. You’re bound to find nomadic tribes that get by without eating people’s skin off or melting them into guzzoline. Earlier it was mentioned that regions out in the Dunes have some resource value, so you might run into merchants transporting goods to Carrefore. Those opposed to the Empire or on its blacklist are forced to detour through the Ashen Steppes. The ‘placid’ natives and treasure-seekers usually keep to themselves.
Q: “Are there settlements beyond the established ones?””
A: The main settlements in the Endless Dunes are Carrefore and the Town with No Name. The Town With No Name has gradually become a more important waystation for interior traffic in the verse, given its central location in the verse and continued stability. Carrefore has likewise prospered and grown into a genuine imperial city. Travel into the interior of the Dunes from Carrefore and Corascant has grown more common as well, at least in the months since the Gold Cross has attempted to placate the discord in Nippur. Outside of these three cities, there are plenty of smaller settlements that come and go. Often tribes will settle down for a few months, creating a little tiny village, and then mobilize and head to a new location.
Q: “Wasn’t Nippur a faction base?”
A: Yes, it was, it belonged to Gilgamesh, and the stories of its creation, rise, and fall are there for you to read. Gilgamesh has been inactive for at least a year, if not longer, and the faction he created has been gone for nearly as long. Nippur was ransacked in a base assault, which has led to its current state (perpetual civil war and general malaise of its citizenry). If Gilgamesh returns, it’ll be there for him to claim, since the initial investment was his own OM. Currently, Nippur is treated like any larger settlement in the Omniverse due to its history and former influence. If Gilgamesh returns, it will resume its duties as his base, but in the absence of that, it is officially considered the city version of a Site NPC.