Venus

"We welcome you in peace, greet you in love, but we will send you home in a box with flowers if you bring ill will." ~Allessa Tevanek, Technocrat of Venus

The Planet of Love

Venus, often referred to as the "Planet of Love," embodies a paradoxical blend of tranquility and turmoil. Despite the perpetual threat of Waxies, savage mutants lurking in the shadows, the Venusian society values peace, love, and hedonism. Citizens indulge in chemical mood regulation, psychedelic explorations, and nanite-enhanced experiences, seeking blissful escapism from the harsh realities. This dichotomy is reflected in the planet's lush, verdant landscapes and vibrant cityscapes, where pleasure and leisure coexist with underground tunnels and hidden dangers.

Love and War

Venus' history is scarred by the Venutian-Psychic Dementia, which transforms individuals into cannibalistic killers, fueling an endless cycle of violence. The Technocrat of Venus must navigate this delicate balance, prepared for total war against the mutant threats while maintaining the planet's peaceful, hedonistic lifestyle. Allessa Tevanek, the current Technocrat, understands this duality firsthand, having survived a Waxy siege on her family farm and later serving in the Solar Defense Fleet. Her leadership seeks to protect Venusians from external threats while preserving the planet's cherished values of love, harmony, and self-expression.

Euphoria Economy

Venus' economy thrives under the dominance of Starlight Pharmaceuticals, which has cultivated a lucrative industry around recreational and medicinal chems, stims, and nanites. The Technocrat of Venus must expertly manage this euphoria-driven economy, balancing the needs of citizens and offworlders seeking blissful escapism with the demands of a planet beset by periodic Waxy swarms. Allessa Tevanek's experience in managing agricultural resources and her background in pharmaceuticals equip her to navigate this complex web, ensuring that Venus' pleasure-seeking society remains sustainable and prosperous, even as the Waxy threat lurks in the shadows.

Geography

Venus's Terraformed landscape features a world ocean with six small continents and numerous large islands. Each of these features used to be mountains on the surface, and as such slope to the shore ringed around a rocky peak. The geography and ecosystem were carefully constructed, maintaining a fairly homogeneous pleasant landscape.

Ecosystem

Like the landscape, the ecosystem is carefully constructed. Utilizing a thick ozone layer to fend off the sun's rays and Astarte Station maintains Venus's rotation and orbit with careful consideration. The result is a garden world paradise. The plants and animals are all proprietary designs by Starlight Pharmaceuticals, each cultivated for usefulness in their products and byproducts.

Localized Phenomena

The rains of Venus are watered down ammonium nitrate, which is extremely helpful for the soil and for extremists who may want to make explosives, but it is particularly unpleasant to get caught unsheltered in the rain.

Climate

There are a pair of glaciers at the poles, but they're relatively small. Most of Venus is an extremely temperate climate, carefully controlled by weather facilities and Astarte Station.

Fauna & Flora

Every plant, animal, and fungus has some use to Starlight Pharmaceuticals. The animals and plants have been allowed to grow wild on the extremely fertile soil, and the surface of the planet is teeming with a density and diversity of species comparable to tropical rainforest. Of particular note is the Beef Grub, an enormous, soft bodied insect that produces a purple silk popular both for Venusian fashion and for Venusian cuisine. Beef Grubs are harvested and processed into GREEF, a popular staple food typically sold in cans.

Tourism

Visitors come to Venus for business, but many more come for pleasure. They come for the breathtaking views, the tourist economy, and of course the chems and stims. Some come just to cause trouble and get a dose of a NeuroStim from the GRAV.