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Personal Headcanons

Discussion in 'Starbound Discussion' started by Tyle, Jul 17, 2017.

  1. Exilyth

    Exilyth Scruffy Nerf-Herder

    The biggest colony being listed as only 19 people doesn't seem strange to you?
    15 mil people out there and they don't form larger cities?
     
    DraikNova likes this.
  2. Guest0241525

    Guest0241525 Guest

    It might seem weird, but there's no reason to doubt the census's genuineness. Perhaps its accuracy, if anything. It's entirely possible that the census was performed within a limited range from Earth. The universe is vast, it's next to impossible to explore it all, especially within a limited time frame.

    There was simply no need for another large settlement while Earth is pretty close, just one jump away... Just like there's no need to turn your little village into a city while there's already a city just 20 kilometers away.

    But the player character has ventured way further that that; following Earth's destruction our ship took us as far as it could, until it ran out of fuel. Who knows? While so far from home, going to Earth whenever you need to visit a city is no longer feasible - and so, settlement population would start getting denser, without anyone on Earth knowing anything about it.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jul 30, 2017
    oinkgamer likes this.
  3. FarionDragon

    FarionDragon Tentacle Wrangler

    A lot of people probably joined the occasus, as it promised them safety from the ruin.
     
  4. M_Sipher

    M_Sipher Oxygen Tank

    Part of the whole drive to colonize was resources. Finding and securing food and wealth (for good or ill). Larger colonies developed because travel was dangerous and long and there was safety in numbers. A wagon train would take 4~5 months to cross the USA.

    Now you can drive across the USA, coast-to-coast, in a comfy four days (I've done it several times). You can fly across it in a few hours. It really wasn't long ago those things were unthinkable.

    Earth as of game-event-time apparently had a global post-scarcity society, and interstellar travel was quick and easy. There's not really a NEED for new large-scale colonization with that. If you had everything you need at home but the time and resources to travel a lot, wouldn't you take jaunts to other states, countries? Planets? Then come home with souvenirs and stories?

    Which would mean lots of people scattered across the stars, small outposts supplied with stuff like Terramart shippers and teleporters, but not too many big colonies. Unlikely to be a Newer York.
     
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  5. Guest0241525

    Guest0241525 Guest

    Somewhat out of the left field again, but I've been thinking on how each race discovered FTL travel, and here's the timeline I came up with:
    • Humanity discovers Erchius in numerous moons of the Sol System. FTL travel becomes available
    • Expedition Corps are formed, with the ambition of exploring the universe, and finding other worlds with sentient life.
    • One of their ships crash-lands on the Floran homeworld, with the ship's crew struggling (and eventually failing) to survive. Their ship is then found and repaired by a local tribe's Greenfinger, which leads Florans to become space-worthy.
    • The first victims of the Florans is the civilization that used to live in what would become the Ceremonial Hunting Caverns. Following their victory, the place of their first hunt against another race becomes a sacred ground for the Florans.
    • By that time, a human ship has also found Avos. While Avians already had their Avolite technology, they were not aware of Erchius - the thought of any crystals surpassing the sacred Avolite crystals in usefulness would never occur to them. (Originally they thought Erchius was actually humanity's version of Avolite - they were pretty surprised to discover that humans do not worship it as a divine gift) Once they learned of its significance, they started working on combing their Avolite-powered tech with Erchius to explore other worlds as well.
    • Hylotl are eventually attacked by the Florans, who are particularly eager, encouraged by their previous success. Hylotl began building their underwater cities and retreated there for safety. They have launched extensive research into how Florans arrived on their planet, and they eventually got their answers once they found the cruiser that the Florans used to get there.
    • Miniknog gets in power, makes the Apex undergo VEP and eventually discovers Erchius as well, setting their sights on reconnaissance and expansion.
    • Self-aware Glitch either discover FTL travel out on their own if they're somehow able to gather all necessary resources, or are taken found and taken aboard by interplanetary crews that stumble upon Glitch settlements.
    To sum it up:
    • Humans discover FTL
    • Florans reverse-engineer FTL from Humans
    • Avians reverse-engineer FTL from Humans
    • Hylotl reverse-engineer FTL from Florans
    • Apex develop it on their own
    • Novakid figure something out on their own
    • Glitch are mostly found by the others
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 6, 2017
  6. not an eldritch beast

    not an eldritch beast Aquatic Astronaut

    One head cannon of mine is that a long time ago there there was a HUGE intergallatic war spanning thousand nay, millions of solar systems which is why there are iradiated planets with non-naturale structures and why there are those large abandon cities on planets.
     
  7. Photoloss

    Photoloss Industrial Terraformer

    Not sure whether it still applies but in the old lore Florans got their spaceship and/or FTL tech after an Avian ship crashed on them. Also the low total age of the Protectorate combined with a lack of references to previous Human colonisation efforts doesn't really fit your version. I'd say the Avians got all higher tech from Kluex (who/whatever that was) while the Apex, Humans and Hylotl had a proper space program of their own. Alternatively the Cultivator/Ancients might have operated a Mass Effect style network via their gateway tech and left the basics of FTL to all races in some fashion. Gateways powered up through "magic" would also explain how the Glitch spread far and wide even to inhospitable planets, as well as giving the Novakid a leg up before they found proper spaceships to be inspired by.
     
  8. Guest0241525

    Guest0241525 Guest

    Well, in short, it doesn't.
    All of these events take place before Protectorate was formed. Which would be some time after the Miniknog entry in my timeline, actually, with the events before spanning a few centuries. Also, not sure what you mean regarding colonisation...? All my timeline ever mentioned was exploration, and codexes dating back to the foundation of the Protectorate mention that humanity has already traveled far into space.
    So really, stop trying to make up stuff I never said and then claim I'm the one who made a mistake. :nuruneutral: I was particularly thorough with this and then you end up bringing up stuff that's either non-canon or a non-existing contradiction. I'd welcome feedback, but this kind of response is just a disappointment.
    Hylotl had to be attacked by Florans and Apex had to undergo VEP before FTL became commonplace for each - otherwise the Hylotl would've fled to other star systems instead of underwater, and the Miniknog wouldn't succeed in turning every living Apex.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 1, 2017
  9. Photoloss

    Photoloss Industrial Terraformer

    Willing to believe you but [citation needed].

    Sorry, since you mentioned a timeline I assumed earlier points on the list happened first. My issue with crediting (almost) everything to the Humans is that there are no references to any major colonisation effort even prior to the founding of the Protectorate. Traveled they have, but settled? Why would Humans be the ones to push development of FTL if they had no real urge to actually live out there?

    Ancients predating the six main races is more or less canon. Them having gateways capable of interstellar transport is very clearly canon, though we have no indication of actual motion-based FTL. We have no real evidence on either side but a lack of widely known Human colonies is something your theory needs to explain. Or even just science outposts, if humanity were the first to reach for the stars why hasn't all the basic "hut in the middle of nowhere" science been done yet?


    There was an explicit mention of the Hylotl losing their homeworld (might have been old lore though), but keep in mind the Floran needed FTL to even threaten the Hylotl. Thus they could also pursue them across the stars especially if the Hylotl never developed proper space warfare. The Miniknog required a fairly authoritarian government to pull off the VEP even on a single planet without anyone hiding in caves, subs or similar remote habitats. Doing the same on an interstellar scale would not necessarily be much more difficult, they just need to repeat the process on each planet after putting it on full lockdown. Anyway we both agree the Apex developed their own tech be it before or after the VEP (any timestamp on when that happened?)
     
  10. Guest0241525

    Guest0241525 Guest

    It's from an old 2013 pdf, all the lore was reworked since then and there are no other sources stating anything of the sort.
    Yeah, earlier points did happen first. There was no mention of the Protectorate though.
    Because they always had the desire to pioneer, discover and prosper. You bet trying to explore the entire universe is something they'd try to do, even if they just end up coming back home once they're done, back to Earth. Your mind keeps getting stuck on colonisation, while it's honestly irrelevant.

    There sure were some small colonies, mining outposts, research outposts, maybe some people out there opting to live on distant planets on their own. But why does that matter here, exactly? We're talking about FTL discovery, not about colonies. You're the only one talking about colonies. You should stop. They do not matter here.
    What do you think all the outposts on frozen planets are, and why are they mostly populated by humans?
    Well, yeah, gateways probably could've also played some role in that, I guess. That being said, I picture them as being relatively rare and difficult to find.
    I'd place it at 500-700 years before Earth's destruction, maybe? At least a few decades before the Protectorate, and at most two centuries. It's already somewhat stretching it, given the in-universe speculation for the Miniknog being in power is four to five centuries.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 2, 2017
  11. M_Sipher

    M_Sipher Oxygen Tank

    "Why would Humans be the ones to push development of FTL if they had no real urge to actually live out there?"

    Why go on vacation if you're only going to come back home?
     
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  12. Photoloss

    Photoloss Industrial Terraformer

    My point being those still exist. Why haven't Humans already exhausted all major avenues of research but instead seem to crowd around every miserable ball of ice in the galaxy?

    One on every garden world does not exactly qualify as "rare" and they all can link up to the Outpost to use as a central hub. Mainly for information exchange rather than physical transport since you'd have a massive bottleneck without direct planet-to-planet linking (which we have not seen any evidence for)

    That seems awfully short to me. Especially since the Miniknog would need near absolute power before initiating the VEP. At that rate the Protectorate would already be well established.

    Well I'll go on vacation every now and then but I won't attempt to sail the world or invent a freakin' jet plane just for the sake of tourism. If discovering FTL were simple enough to be viable as a recreational activity right after leaving the prototype stage any species with access to conventional rocketry would work it out by themselves.

    And just to be clear, I see no reason why Humans shouldn't be the first to luck out and happen to build a working FTL ship. However I also see no compelling evidence for other species reverse-engineering the Human invention instead of developing their own based on their gifts from the Cultivator, remnant Ancient tech or exchange amongst each other. The only way I see the Avian and Floran->Hylotl parts working is if Humans discovered FTL a long time ago (centuries before the Protectorate got involved with said species)
     
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  13. Guest0241525

    Guest0241525 Guest

    Well, that's the plan. I picture human discovery of FTL at least 1000 before Earth's destruction.
    Wait, what dates are we talking about now? Because 700 years prior was just the Apex discovering FTL, VEP would come decades earlier, and Ministry of Knowledge's formation even further back.
    Tech level doesn't matter as much as discovery of Erchius does. It's not just building a device, it's about reaching the moon, figuring out that the purple stuff found there is important, then figuring how to use it. There's no other known ways of controlled FTL travel.

    Ultimately I don't see Avians or Hylotl to be in such a rush to experiment and explore the universe, not as much as humans. Mostly due to their cultures - Hylotl used to be calm and peaceful people who didn't concern themselves with such matters until reality kicked in, and an Avian suggesting that a foreign purple crystal could be more useful than Avolite would cause much controversy. That's why they'd need an outside prompt - visitors coming from the stars.

    Then when it comes to Florans, humanity is noted for its recklessness - and what better ways to manifest it than irresponsibly losing one of your freighters to murderous savage plant people, and even worse, be the first ones to do so?
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 2, 2017
  14. DraikNova

    DraikNova Spaceman Spiff

    No other known methods that are practical enough to still be in use now that Erchius-based FTL is relatively commonly available. The existence of pre-erchius FTL is possible, and to me at least seems quite probable, if we assume things run as follows: the different sapient species develop various methods of FTL. As communication grows between them, the most efficient/practical of them, Erchius-based FTL, wins out.

    I also find the statements regarding the Hylotls having always been peaceful before dealing with the Florans rather questionable, given that those statements are made by Hylotl, and generally, people tend to not see themselves as aggressors, regardless of what the reality may be. I for one headcanon them as having been initially imperialistic, long before their conflict with the Florans, their peace being the result of not having encountered any other sapient species with which to war for a long time. I mean, there's got to be some explanation for why the bear sapients appear to be almost extinct. The Hylotl having wiped out their homeworld would go some way towards explaining it.
     
    Last edited: Aug 2, 2017
  15. The Purple Dragon

    The Purple Dragon Master Astronaut

    The ruin was once a friend of the cultivator and had the ability to spawn life and to spread that life to planets. That is why there is so much varied life around on almost all planets. (Thus it's teleportation abilities during the boss fight)
    However, the cultivator believed in quality over quantity, and he made the intelligent races (minus the novakids and glitches).
    The Ruin grew jealous of these intelligent races and began to destroy the planets that the Cultivator had built life on, and later all life as he saw it all would rather believe in a "Good God".
    Vaults were where the cultivator began storing all of the Ruins creations before death, but could not bear to lock them all away as they reminded it of the friend that was lost.

    The Cultivator then created his servants to gift the races with their artefacts.

    Kluex was sent to the Avians, and seeing them suffering, he taught them how to make power crystal.

    Another was sent to the Hylotls, and he preached to them of peace and tradition.

    One came to the Florans and the servant thought them beautiful and told them to continue to follow the ways of the natural world.

    Another servant saw the Apex and their love for science, and he sought to help advance them.

    One servant, upon seeing that the race he was to gift his to was doomed, created one of his own, the Glitches. His treasure helped them to learn, but only until the medieval age when it was to help them no further and they could not help themselves.

    The final servant was wisest and watched the Humans for some time. He saw evil and good in their hearts in equal measure, and waited for some time to find one who was worthy. He created a tool that would help this worthy one to build an empire that could fight the Ruin should it ever return. That man was the first Protector.
     
  16. Guest0241525

    Guest0241525 Guest

    Doesn't seem probable. Typically, moving faster than light is impossible. That's why there's no way you can just "develop various methods of FTL" with a snap of your fingers.

    There's no way Erchius would be the first pick, no way it would win out against anything that also makes FTL possible but doesn't make everyone die in mysterious circumstances. It's way more feasible to me that it's used despite the horrifying anomalies it causes, because there's no alternatives.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 2, 2017
  17. Photoloss

    Photoloss Industrial Terraformer

    Again, why so few relics of Human space exploration and why are they still setting up science outposts on random ice planets?

    The Miniknog can't be too old based on that codex but also not too young relative to Humanity's supposed discovery of FTL, otherwise the two species would have made contact much sooner and Humans would have started sticking their nose in Apex politics (spread "freedom" perhaps?)

    Gateways still allow FTL "travel", in fact there's a broader category of "portal" transport as displayed by the Ruin and alluded to by the staff ability. Avians already posess hover tech that does not seem to rely on atmospheric thrust so a basic space program is within reach. The Grounded being hounded out of their settlements by zealots would also have ample motivation. And the Hylotl cannot have been entirely peaceful as their culture clearly includes armours and swords, suspiciously neither of them reference the war with the Floran.

    You've already stated a major counterargument to your theory: the Ruin does not create life, it violently rips these creatures from their natural habitat in order to destroy you. No non-hostile creatures ever come out of that portal and Ruin spawn are notoriously fragile, suggesting the Ruin could not actually produce better minions and thus stole existing monsters.

    Erchius-fueled travel seems perfectly safe, it's mining the crystals (which don't seem to get used up during normal operation) that causes the incidents and the ghosts supposedly weren't around before the Ruin struck. Contrast that to the fact no one really understands the ancient gateways well enough to build more and the risks of portals (like getting stranded in the demon realm or the thing just snapping shut on you) and the odd mining accident doesn't seem that bad anymore, especially if you can pay someone else to go die for you.

    Generally I can't really comprehend the scope of the Starbound timeline. The Protectorate and the Miniknog are fairly recent while Kluex and the Ancients are supposedly, well, ancient, yet nothing important is confirmed to have happened in between. What exactly were the races up to between the Ruin being sealed and the formation of the Protectorate? Also even a thousand years is nowhere near long enough for all those underground ruins to accumulate like they did, you get houses with glass windows buried a quarter into the planet's crust!
     
  18. MysticMalevolence

    MysticMalevolence Oxygen Tank

    My other headcanon is that the protectorate actually supports an oligarcal regime, and believe in entrapping all races in their fold, and that the USCM was an opposing faction that sought bioweapons to combat the dominion of humanity.
    Not really, I just made that up now. But it sounds fun.
     
  19. FarionDragon

    FarionDragon Tentacle Wrangler

    Why are you all so focused on the humans having invented FTL?
    The hylotl own Lethia(or however you write it) and that is a source of a majority of erchious.

    So why shouldnt the Hylotl, who, remember the beta, send out missionaries of peace,
    have send a missionarie to earth, telling them about FTL.

    (And to all, who for some reason think the hylotl are evil, yes, they could have established lethia, just to make humanity need their services,
    by mining all the erchious)
     
  20. Guest0241525

    Guest0241525 Guest

    Because humans tend to possess a stronger drive to pioneer, to venture into the great unknown. That's my primary reason for this. Also, old lore's "missionaries" of the Hylotl sounded less like solid canon, and more like a handwaved excuse to get a lone Hylotl out to space. I generally happen to dislike acknowledging beta Hylotl lore, since it basically portrayed them as unlikeable butt monkeys who are made for stabbing and should just go extinct already.

    When it comes to Hylotl's possession of FTL, they evidently didn't acquire it until after the Floran invasion; otherwise most of them would've fled to other star systems, rather than beneath the oceans of their homeworld. Florans, on the other hand, had to get FTL from someone else before they could start such an invasion. And as I noted before, who's better for that than humans, who are noted for their recklessness?

    In many ways, I see the Floran invasion as a wake up call for the Hylotl, an event that opened their eyes to reality. Originally a race primarily focused on their art and literature, they suddenly discovered a need not only for strength to safeguard their continued existence, but also a need to expand beyond their home planet.

    I made an effort to ensure that everything on that timeline is deeply rooted in each race's history and culture.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 14, 2017
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