Mawite Legend
INTRODUCTION
"The empire of the Builders is infinite and everlasting. None can stand against their might."
- - The Overseer
Gree. Kwa. Sharu. Zeffo. Rakata. Esh-Kha. Columi. Tens (or hundreds) of thousands of years before Jedi and Sith first clashed, species like these vied for control of the galaxy. They dominated vast swaths of known space with the aid of technology that remains unmatched even countless millennia later. These lost cultures could extend life beyond natural limits, bridge impossible distances in an instant, even consume the stars themselves.
Remnants of their technology, so powerful and advanced that it could withstand the ravages of time across hundreds of generations, still exist today. Some still work, though no one can quite figure out how, while others are just magnificent husks. Some are small, trinkets to be held in the hand or timeworn structures to be admired. But others… others are vast. Incomprehensibly vast. It is these that truly demonstrate the incredible power of the ancients.
OOC INFORMATION
"Kid, I've flown from one side of this galaxy to the other. I've seen a lot of strange stuff."
- - Han Solo
As the Age of the Underworld begins on Chaos, a number of important bans on Codex and Factory content have been lifted. No longer are Gree and Rakata tech forbidden, nor are hypergates. Additionally, the size limits on Unique stations have been abolished. For the Codex team, this raised the question: do Megastructures have a place in Star Wars? Should it be allowed for companies and factions to build ringworlds, dyson spheres, and the like?
After some lively discussion, the judges and admins landed on an answer of no.
Star Wars has a distinct vibe. It's not Star Trek or Stellaris or Babylon 5, it's Star Wars. Allowing everyone to build such titanic structures devalues iconic content like the Death Star, which is tiny by comparison. But a proud part of the Expanded Universe has always been powerful ancient aliens whose technology far exceeds what modern day powers are capable of. So there was an idea: what if allowed a small number of such megastructures as ancient relics?
That brings us to the Wondrous Ruins of the Past contest. Below you will find seven prompts, each of them a contest category. The winning entry (which should be high effort and high quality) in each category will be placed on the Chaos Galaxy Map as a unique megastructure relic, each marked with a custom map icon courtesy of Tefka. This is the community's chance to go big and wild. Flex your strangest creative muscles, and give us a wonder of the galaxy.
CONTEST RULES
- Writers may submit one entry per category.
- Only one submission per category will win.
- To enter, put (WRotP) in the title of your Location or Planet submission to the Codex.
- All entries must be submitted by 11:59 PM EST Wednesday, March 1st, 2022.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
- Banned Items in the Codex/Factory may not be used.
- Space Station locations do not need a canon or Factory submission.
- Submissions should not be Major Faction-affiliated, but may be in current Major Faction territory.
- Submissions should be "ancient" and "wondrous".
- These terms are open to interpretation by the writer.
VICTORY JUDGEMENT
- Only one submission per category will win.
- Codex Judges and the Codex Admin will vote on each Category's winner.
- Codex Judges may not vote on a Category they have submitted to.
- Tefka reserves the right to fuck this process at the last minute and name like 3 extra winners.
- PS. Runner-Ups will receive UC donations from the Vault, dependent on work contributed.
PROMPTS
The Seven Wonders of the Galaxy
The Seven Wonders of the Galaxy
Prompt 1: “A mysterious megastructure is discovered around a star.”
Could it be:
- A Rakatan Infinite Engine, overgrown until it surrounded its host star?
- A Gree dyson sphere, measuring the life cycle of the sun that powers it?
- An incredibly vast ring, with solar collectors on the inside powering outer mechanisms?
- The dead husk of an impossibly huge voidborne beast, coiled around the star?
- Something completely different?
Prompt 2: “The remnants of an ancient transport network drift in the far Unknown Regions.”
Could it be:
- A colossal Gree hypergate, abandoned when it drew terrifying void entities?
- A drifting Kwa Star Temple, moored to a chunk of planet destroyed by an Infinity Wave?
- A massive hyperspace cannon, built to deploy an ancient invasion fleet?
- A bizarre Netherworld rift, held open and (relatively) stable by unknown technology?
- Something completely different?
Prompt 3: “A colossal habitation complex, once teeming with life, is now left empty.”
Could it be:
- A spaceborne temple-city, derelict after a ritual mass suicide?
- A millenia-old corporate arcology that met with a grim fate?
- An artificial planet built by a now-vanished droid culture?
- The massive worldship used by the last refugees of a now-dead species?
- Something completely different?
Prompt 4: “A huge structure is built around the yawning mouth of a black hole.”
Could it be:
- A matter decompressor, extracting ultra-dense matter and building strange beacons?
- A half-finished superweapon intended to rip apart a planet with gravity waves?
- A colossal research station using the unique conditions to explore forbidden science?
- A massive ring built as a site of worship and sacrifice by an ancient death cult?
- Something completely different?
Prompt 5: “A gigantic archive holds lost knowledge from across the galaxy.”
Could it be:
- A huge tomb containing every member of a long-lost species, inscribed with their deeds?
- A ringworld used as a xeno-zoo, containing countless species from across the galaxy?
- A library inscribed onto the surface of a planet, each letter a colossal canyon?
- A worldcraft full of botanical samples from a thousand planets, now long overgrown?
- Something completely different?
Prompt 6: “Near a mysterious relic of a lost culture, reality itself breaks down.”
Could it be:
- The malfunctioning hyperdrive of a huge starship, making time flow unpredictably?
- The debris of an ancient disaster, surrounding an unstable rift to Otherspace?
- A bizarre defensive installation that pulses with unpredictable gravity currents?
- An experimental device designed to subtly alter the genetics of anyone who lands on it?
- Something completely different?
Prompt 7: “Out at the edge of the galaxy lies something that defies explanation.”
Could it be:
- A planet-sized egg, the fossilized spawn of an unthinkably vast creature?
- A nebula-like anomaly where space itself seems to ripple, as if breathing?
- An art installation built by a lost culture, literally carved out of the system’s planets?
- An arrangement of colossal chimes, which make strange vibrations on the solar wind?
- Something completely different?
ART ASSETS
All this lovely art comes courtesy of the talented
Srina Talon
!
Special thanks to
Srina Talon
and
Tefka
for their advice and support!
Additional thanks to
Malok
for template inspiration!
All this lovely art comes courtesy of the talented
Srina Talon
!
Special thanks to
Srina Talon
and
Tefka
for their advice and support!Additional thanks to
Malok
for template inspiration!
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