Coliar

Planet Type: Size G spherical air body   Astronomical type: JOVIAN SPHERE   Planet Size: G   Diameter*: 61300 miles   Circumference*: 192600 miles   Day length: 30 standard hours   Year length: 232 planetary days   Distance/Time To:   The Sun: 100 mln. miles   Wildspace system border: 3100 mln. miles   Escape time:   Satellites: AkAdi’s Eye (space station), Starwing Island (asteroid), The Isles of Endearment (asteroids), The Iron Flock (asteroids)   Environment class: Temperate   Population analysis: lizardfolk, aaracokra, dragons, Avian humanoids, reptiles, avian life   *length, diameter, and circumference are rounded to the nearest 100.   *maximum dimensions measured as a cylinder but actual body is irregularly proportioned  

Satellites

  AkAdi’s Eye (space station)   Starwing Island (asteroid)   The Isles of Endearment (asteroids)   The Iron Flock (asteroids)  

Notible Hazards

  Blinding Clouds   Floating Debris   Hurricanes   Incendiary Clouds   Tornadoes   Toxic Gas  

Notible Resources

 

Spelljammer Ports

 

Port 1

  Port Rating: A-E, A-best, *-void   Personnel 1-6   Supplies: 1-6   Spelljamming Facilities: 1-6   Landing: Air, Land, Water, Other  

Distance from

  The Sun 100 million miles 1 day travel Anadia 50-150 million miles 0.5-1.5 days travel Toril 100-300 million miles 1 -3 days travel Karpri 200-400 million miles 2-4 days travel Chandos 300-500 million miles 3-5 days travel Glyth 900-1100 million miles 9-11 days travel Garden 1,100-1,300 million miles 11-13 days travel H’catha 1,500-1,700 million miles 15-17 days travel Sphere 3,100 million miles 31 days travel   Realmspace Checkpoints Distance From Coliar* The Sun 100 million miles Anadia 50-150 million miles Toril 100-300 million miles Karpri 200-400 million miles Chandos 300-500 million miles Arcus Belt (Inner Edge) 550-750 million miles Arcus Belt (Outer Edge) 700-900 million miles Glyth 900-1,100 million miles Garden 1,100-1,300 million miles H’Catha 1,500-1,700 million miles Frigid Badlands (Inner Edge) 1,850-2,050 million miles Frigid Badlands (Outer Edge) 2,150-2,350 million miles Sphere Wall 3,100 million miles *rounded to the nearest million    

Trade

  The main export of Coliar was its air. However, air was a difficult commodity to sell because most spelljammer ships usually just stole what air they needed.   The aarakocra inhabitants also mined gems from the inner islands and exported them in exchange for weapons, which they used in their territorial disputes against the lizardfolk.   The lizardfolk, on the other hand, exported aarakocra meat and feathers, as well as gems, air, and water, in exchange for spelljamming technology, which they used to power ships that would carry their eggs to be hatched close to the Sun. In order to enforce the purchasing of air and water, lizardfolk ports charged an air tax to any ships that docked at them.   The dragon inhabitants mostly ignored ships, unless provoked.  

Notable Locations

  The two most popular ports of Coliar were Hisssta and Athanar.   At the center of the planet was a very large island, inhabited by the red dragon wyrm Firebrand Flametongue. Very few people were allowed to approach the central island without being attacked by the dragon.  

Notable NPC

 

Schlith Darkscale

  Occupation: Director, Jamm Services STR: 19 INT: 15 DEX: 10 CHA: 13 WIS: 14 CON: 17 Schlith Darkscale, a lizard man, has been the director of spelljamming services for over 10 years. Although widely known in both lizard man and aarakocra circles as the foremost ex¬pert in the field, he knows almost nothing about it. He thinks of spelljamming as “some sort of voodoo thing”. Nevertheless, he is the main contact for spacefarers searching for a little in¬formation, adventure, or a quaint bar or restau¬rant. If Schlith is not around, any lizard man can be bribed to divulge his whereabouts. He pur¬posely makes his location commonly known. Schlith is somewhat rude. His guttural lan¬guage leaves many searching for a towel or bath house, while his breath reeks of rancid milk and rotted fish. He is nonetheless a powerful entity in lizard man society. If one is considered a per¬sonal friend of his, anything can be gained with¬out hassle. Air tax can be bypassed and water can even be purchased at a more reasonable price. Knowledge of his relative importance has caused Schlith to become haughty and ex¬tremely picky about whom he befriends. He re¬alizes everyone wants something from him for nothing. Nowadays, he never accepts anyone who does not have a lawful good personality. He used to accept many other alignments, but he has found that the lawful good people never take advan¬tage of him, and they usually insist upon paying the full air tax. With friends like that, he does not feel used. His favorite saying is, “1 may be a lizard man, but I ain’t stupid.” Unfortunately, with his haughtiness and his insistence that only lawful good people are good enough for him, no one has befriended him in years. Even lawful good folk find him hard to deal with. He is missing several front fangs from bar¬room brawls and spelljammer joyrides that had him gritting his jaws in fear. He refuses to ride in these ships again, and in fact is afraid of speeds faster than his normal gait now.  

Arisai Heliwing

  Occupation: Manager of Trade STR: 12 INT: 18 DEX: 15 CHA: 16 WIS: 15 CON: 9 Arisai is powerful and vicious. Her lack of con-science makes her the exception of aarakocra females, because most are mild mannered, good individuals. It is rumored that she has had more than fifty of her adversaries killed through “accidents” merely because they questioned or opposed her will. She has remained unmarried since the un¬timely death of her husband, and in the last seven years, she has found it impossible to find a mate to replace him. This is due to the aarako- cran males’ fear of her wrath. Arisai has the ability to be very beautiful, but she insists upon being a vile excuse for a woman. Everything she does is meant only to in¬crease her wealth and power. She apparently lost her children in a squabble with her hus¬band’s family when they accused her of being an unfit mother. Unfortunately, they were correct. She is as abusive to her own kin as she is with ev¬eryone else. She owns two spelljamming docks, but the number of ships returning for a second trading mission is continually diminishing. Most trade is done by first-time dockers, who quickly find that they have made a grave error. Her dock hands rapidly remove merchandise from a ship, while conveniently losing the lading papers as well as the payment box. This delays a merchant for several months while the lost funds are tracked down. Ship crews are thus forced to pur¬chase the extra food and water that the ship doesn’t have, making them spend as much money as possible at her docks, while also in¬creasing the air usage tax on the ship. A crew’s only other alternative is to swallow their losses and escape while they still have any money left. Many a ship has been lost due to this, either by payment default or by battle. If a ship attacks the docks in an attempt to receive the monies owed them through trade, dragons within eye or earshot come to the aid of the dock. In recent history, ship hands have discussed their plight with dragons, and the stories have all been very similar. Eventually, Jarfange Buffeter will be brought into the mess to decide what should be done. Until this event happens, nothing is ex¬pected to change. Arisai has personally captured many ships, which she is currently stockpiling. Her ultimate plan for these ships is unknown. It is believed that she either plans to mount an attack on her hated enemies, the lizard men, or that she is readying the ships for an escape when aarakocra officials or Jarfange Buffeter come to solve the situation. Either way, she is a powerful and deadly force to be reckoned with. She has many followers, which follow both from fear and from awe.  

Firebrand Flametongue

  Occupation: Ex-mercenary STR: 19 INT: 18 DEX: 17 CHA: 18 WIS: 20 CON: 21 Firebrand Flametongue is an 1,100-year old red dragon who used to hire himself out as a mercenary when he personally couldn’t think of something destructive to do. His name once struck fear in every man’s heart, and is now one woven into Torilian legends. He is believed to have been killed by Elminster of Shadowdale, who never admits or denies the accusations. Firebrand actually resides on a floating land is¬land which lies in the core of the Coliar gravity well. In his aging years, he has found peace and contentment in solitude. In all the friends and enemies he had throughout his youth, there is only one man and one other dragon in whom he sees and respects. That man is none other than Elminster himself, while the dragon is Jarfange Buffeter. Centuries before found Elminster and Firebrand at odds, fighting on opposite sides. Their mutual longevity soon struck respect in them—or at least a hated respect. When Fire¬brand performed a rather tedious and almost fa¬tal job, he decided it was time to move toward retirement. He flew straight to the mage Elminster’s house in Shadowdale, Toril. After much talking, smoking of pipes, and negotiating, Elminster and Firebrand finally struck an agreement, sealed with spit. Elminster’s part of the bargain demanded that he find a place for Firebrand to live out the rest of his days in peace, and Fire¬brand in turn would no longer terrorize the fine people of Toril. Elminster then teleported Firebrand into the center of Coliar where he remains to this day. A few months thereafter, Elminster created his own hideout in Coliar. Here he can keep a con¬stant watch on his former enemy, and at the same time escape from the constant haggling of the people he knows and loves. Firebrand’s re¬tirement took place well over 300 years ago. Since that time, the two have become very close friends. An odd couple—a dragon with both red and copper dragon blood, and a very odd and very old human—but good friends nonetheless.    

Description

  Coliar is the second planet from the Sun, being located 100 million miles from it. It is a gas giant made up primarily of air. Within the planet's atmosphere, orbiting around its centre of mass, are hundreds and thousands of earthmotes. These earthmotes vary widely in size and elevation; many of them hosting their own ecosystems. It's believed that Coliar was once the battleground for a race of powerful avian creatures and a race of powerful reptilian creatures. All that remains of these creatures, though, is the footsoldiers of their war: the aarakocra and the lizardfolk, who carry on their progenitors' conflict.   Both races believe they've created a society that allows perfect freedom. The aarakocra live in a democracy with very few laws, which has allowed a small clique of powerful matriarchal merchant houses to rise to the top of society, holding a great deal of power. The lizardfolk live in a democracy with many laws, which theoretically prevents any one person or group from attaining too much wealth wealth or power, but also stifles and constrains its inhabitants in an ironclad bureaucracy.   The aarakocra and the lizardfolk inhabit the upper earthmotes of Coliar, with towers reaching out the planet's cloudy exterior; marking places where it's safe for spelljammer ships to land. Both sides are engaged in a war of economics and alliances; both hope to crush the other by spreading their idea of freedom across Realmspace. Also inhabiting Coliar are the dragons. By playing the aarakocra and the lizardfolk off against each other, they managed to take control of the lower earthmotes, which are said to be rich in gemstones. These dragons are neither particularly benevolent nor overly malevolent; are only concerned with the ongoing prosperity and comfort of them   Coliar, the second planet from the sun in Realmspace, is a spherical gas giant. Because of its close proximity to the Sun, the planet is quite warm. The temperature never falls below 75 de-grees except at the poles, where it can reach as low as 40 during the winter.   Inside the huge atmospheric envelope of this planet float hundreds of earth and water islands. Every 30 hours or so, they revolve around the central gravitational point of the planet, which creates day and night effects for the islands’ in-habitants. (Elminster’s Hideout is within this planet. See the chapter regarding Elminster for extended details on his resort sphere.)   One should not be deceived into believing that all of these islands levitate at the same alti¬tude. Each one floats about in its own orbit. Elminster’s Hideout, for example, floats about 100 miles above the central gravitational source of the planet, while most islands lie between 50 miles and 30,000 miles from the planet’s center. This phenomenon causes several “eclipses” every day for most of the islands, as higher ones pass before the Sun and cast their shadows onto the islands directly below them.  

Ports of Call

  Spelljamming ships can trade with the races of this planet at many locations. These ports can be seen from outside the plan¬et’s dense cloud bank. Strong, tall wooden structures pierce the top of the outermost clouds in various locations throughout the planet. If a spelljammer is careful, a slow de¬scent alongside these protrusions leads to dock¬ing facilities hundreds of miles down. Here, trading posts have been set up by aarakocra and lizard men. No matter which spaceport a trader chooses, the descent period takes 12 turns.   There are an even number of aarakocra and lizard men outposts on this planet. When receiv¬ing tradesmen, these races can be peaceful and accommodating, but they have difficulty ac-cepting completely rigged battle jammers— perhaps demanding that the ship depart immediately, under threat of Coliar dragon vengeance. In all, there are about 50 trading posts throughout the planet.  

Resources/Trade

  Coliar has little to trade with off planet cultures. The air they have is hard to sell because most ships just steal what they need. The aarakocra are known to sell gems that are said to dot the islands like sand. This myth however, is untrue; the aarakocra actually mine these baubles from inner islands where they pre¬fer to live.   In return for gems, these avian humanoids import weapons and smoke powder. The weap¬ons are used against the lizard men who are constantly trying to expand their territories. The aarakocra are also trying to increase their land claims as well, but they mask their quest as a holy war while viewing the lizard men as terrorists.   The lizard men, on the other hand, prefer to import spelljamming technology. They believe that placing their eggs on these ships and shoot¬ing them closer to the Sun guarantees superior attributes for their offspring—they rent these ships from other races for the same reason. For the use of these ships, they export aarakocra meat and feathers, gems, air, and water. They re¬alize that clean air and water is extremely vital to spelljammers, so any time a ship docks in their airspace, an air tax of five gold pieces is im¬posed. Water is abundant here, but is still sold for a high price.   The dragons and other avian life here do not show any interest in spelljammers, unless pro-voked. Dragons have been known to completely decimate ships which have panicked and at¬tacked them, but for the most part, the avian life ignore and avoid these flying ships.  

Government/Lifestyle

  The lizard men have achieved a primitive communistic govern¬ment on Coliar. They allow everyone to have a say in the happenings within their culture, but at the same time, they allow no one to collect great amounts of wealth. All wealth gained is evenly divided among everyone, thus keeping one liz¬ard man from dominating another.   All spelljamming docks are owned by the “government”, which in turn is owned by all. When spelljammers are purchased or rented, everyone is allowed to place eggs on these ships. Since there are load limits, there is a con¬stant waiting period. Everyone eventually has an equal chance at superior offspring.   The aarakocra have created a democratic government which they feel is most beneficial to their people. Whenever a new leader is to be chosen, all the citizens gather together and choose the five best candidates. Each candidate then explains to everyone, through a horn of voices, why she should be the one to lead her people. Once these five candidates have spo¬ken, the population votes. This process can take several Coliar days to perform, but once a leader has been chosen, she holds office for seven years.   The aarakocra have voted only females into government office for the last 1,200 years, be-lieving them to be more stable. Male aarakocra are known to fly into inexplicable fits of rage whenever they feel wronged, something the fe-males do not experience. Currently, there are over 100 separate aarakocra governments alive and well on Coliar, and all the important posts are manned by the females of the race. It is un-fortunate, but many bigoted males from off- planet do not accept this facet of aarakocra life.   The dragon communities are surprisingly peaceful among their own kind. There has not been a major dragon war during Coliar’s re¬corded history, although there have been skir¬mishes on occasion between rogue dragons and the rest of the population. These outsiders are dealt a quick and violent demise.   The dragons are mostly neutral, interested only in benefitting their individual family units. On occasion, a dragon turned evil shows up on the scene to terrorize the lizard men and aarako¬cra communities. Luckily, these are few and far between. The aarakocra have no natural protec¬tion against such attacks, making them easy tar¬gets. These evil dragons are usually eliminated by the other dragons.   The dragons’ relationship with the other two major life forms on Coliar is beneficial, and they do not wish to put it in jeopardy. The dragons do, on occasion, side with either the aarakocra or the lizard men in their squabbles, having a tendency to lean toward the side from which they can gain the most wealth and power.   The dragons sometimes are able to slip some of their own eggs onto the lizard boats headed for a closer proximity to the Sun, and they are able to gain much information regarding the other world’s dragons within the sphere from the aarakocra traders. This makes their contin¬ued good relationship with both groups very beneficial and important. If either are attacked by outsiders (mainly by ignorant or malevolent spelljammer crews), it is a near certainty that any dragon within earshot will show up within a few minutes to aid the defenders to the best of his ability.   All of the standard dragons can be found on Coliar, but their alignments are more neutral. For example, the Coliar black dragon has an alignment of neutral evil, as opposed to the chaotic evil of its off-world counterpart. This has created a completely unique relationship among the dragons on this planet, who tend to work together to guarantee their mutual wealth.   The younger dragons even care for the needs of the elder dragons, a phenomenon that all Col¬iar dragons are conditioned for since birth. These old dragons are commonly sought after for their insight and wisdom. They are the cor¬nerstone for every family unit. If a disagreement arises between two families, the oldest dragons of both families meet together at a neutral place to discuss possible solutions and alternatives to battle. It is these elders who make or break a war. Their role in everyday life is very important, guaranteeing their extended life because they feel needed. Dragons on Coliar are known to live twice as long as their off planet relatives.   Once a Coliar dragon has surpassed the great wyrm stage of life, which is usually about 1,400 years, the body becomes too fragile and decrepit to use. The joints stiffen, the senses fail, and the muscles, once strong enough to slay anything alive, asphyxiate and shrivel to mere tendons and fatty tissue. At that point, a dragon gains the ability to mentally shape air. The dragons use this ability to basically create a new body. One can choose to place his conscience into this creation, or use it as a remote body only. Once this choice has been made, it is irrevocable. As a remote body, the dragon can travel within the air dragon body to a distance no greater than 15,000 miles from the living husk of the original body. If the dragon chooses to al¬low his original form to die by transferring his mind and soul into the air dragon form, he can traverse anywhere in the universe. In the New Monsters section of this book, you can find other information regarding this unique stage of the Coliar dragon.   Another interesting aspect of Coliar dragons is that many interbreed, but these do not pro¬duce true mixtures. In the case of a black dragon mating with a blue dragon, for example, the re-sulting offspring is not deep purple. Instead, the baby dragon’s skin is covered with black and blue splotches. The colors never mix, because the mixed breed has the genes of both dragon kinds. The resulting dragon’s breath weapon is not a combination either. The randomness of genetics take over, making it either one or the other. The dragon does gain the immunities of both breath weapons, however, because his scales contain the properties of both parents.  

Prominent Land Features

  Coliar is a swirl¬ing mass of air with occasional cloud cover to obscure vision. The upper atmosphere is com¬pletely shrouded with a 100-mile thick cloud cover, which makes vision into the interior im¬possible by any visual means. Magical items such as the crystal ball, or scrying spells, can be used to visualize the interior. Once this exterior envelope is breached, normal vision is again possible.   Inside, the planet actually is nothing more than thousands of floating islands of land. Most of these land masses have a rough pyramidal shape—with the flat side up. There are a few pla-nar land masses that are several yards thick, showing there is some variety in the land island shapes. If you should ever fall off the side of one of these land islands, may the gods be with you as you fall to your death. Magic items or the in¬nate ability to fly are the only things that can save you.   These beautiful islands range in size from a mere five feet in diameter to well over 20 miles on a side. Each one of these is as unique as a snowflake. This makes it somewhat easier for spelljammers to find a specific location. Often, an aarakocra gives directions that pertains to the relative shapes of the floating islands and their positioning with other odd land islands. This type of directions, especially being in three dimensions, can be quite disconcerting to the first-time visitor to Coliar.   These land masses contain rivers, lakes, hills, grass, trees, caverns, and every other naturally occurring feature found on other planets. A very few of the uppermost islands contain extremely tall structures that pierce through the dense cloud cover of the planet, allowing them to be seen from wildspace. These structures are none other than the planet’s spelljamming docks, used by traders, mercenaries, and other spacfarers to contact and trade with the sentient life forms thriving on Coliar.   The land islands are basically split into three groups of ownership, with each group owning approximately the same number of islands. Most of the land masses are to this day uninhab¬ited or uncharted. The aarakocra and the lizard men both own approximately half of Coliar’s spelljamming docks, while the dragons, who for the most part are not voraciously interested in space travel, own none of them. They have, how¬ever, a standing agreement with both the lizard men and the aarakocra to allow them to use their spelljamming ships and docking facilities whenever they should need them.   In the center of the air mass floats a very large land island, home to one of the greatest dragon terrors to ever roam the known spheres. His name, synonymous with fear and destruction, is Firebrand Flametongue. Every animal, lizard man, and aarakocra living on this planet knows to stay away from this island, for Firebrand has taken great care to ensure his continued seclu¬sion. Large wooden signs on all four corners of his land state, “All ye who enter find naught but darkness.” He seriously means it. Of everyone that is known or unknown to Firebrand, there are only two people allowed to speak with him, or even get close to his jealously guarded land. These two are Jarfange Buffeter the air dragon and Elminster the Mage. Through the centuries, these three people have gained true respect and friendship with each other.   Also relatively close to the center of the planet is a spherical globe made from a bright shiny metallic substance. It is perfectly clean, and it tends to reflect all light striking it. This perfect sphere is the hideout of the Realms-fa- mous mage, Elminster. The globe, nearly 250 feet in diameter, exhibits a deep and constant hum that can rattle the teeth apart. This hum¬ming noise is a complete mystery to all who hear and see this confusing object. This globe slowly revolves around Firebrand Flame¬tongue’s island. Its spin causes a rainbow pat¬tern of light to reflect off its surface occasion¬ally, appearing to be solid. Many believe it to be impenetrable or a stupid hoax.   Rain falls periodically on Coliar. Usually any lightning strikes the highest islands, but occa-sionally a bolt stretches several thousand miles to hit the lower islands. This threat is the main reason the aarakocra choose to live on the lower islands. The lizard men exhibit no fear of light-ning, so they inhabit most of the upper islands.    

Coliar Island

   

Coliar port 1

   

Coliar port 2