BARD PAPER: OPAL8681 | Home | Traveller | BARD | OPAL |
BARD PAPER: OPAL8681 | Home | Traveller | BARD | OPAL |
Hot and dry, Point Ay was not colonised until the 780s. The crust is completely locked up, and surface water is an expensive commodity. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, the world is home to some very massive flora lifeforms. Known as Scales, these are massive root colonies that mine, collect and store groundwater in their tissues, and the roots can reach cover huge areas. To prevent evaporation huge horizontal plates cover and follow the contour of the ground for tens to hundreds of square feet, usually wherever rootstocks reach. The plates are shed and replaced periodically, and new plates grow on top of the dead ones. The water resistant cuticles of the dead plates provide cool shelters for local flora, and layers upon layers will trap air and ground moisture in their folds, creating a "drought forest" where a variety of animals and other plants can survive. These forests are impassable to most ground vehicles and humans on foot, requiring the use of grav vehicles to get around the surface.
Despite this unusual ecosystem, the locals subsist mostly on offworld trade passing between Deneb and points located further along the Great Rift. Because of the local floresence, the downport and the main settlement is located on a hilltop. The population is largely employed in maintenance and brokerage jobs, helping facilitate the movement of cargo. A sizeable number work for the shipping lines, and several private merchant academies are present in the downport for local students interested in a career in space.