Points of Interest (POIs)

[KC_Render]

actually it would be a hard rocky dome cracked down the middle with crystals sticking down, until all of the upper crystals were mined, then it would be a huge ravine with very sharp pointy objects on the bottom.  Woe be to the miner that drops down the hole.

[HATEBRINGER]

Name of POI: The Black Flats

General Location: Eastern lands

This area was named after basalt sand covering almost entire region. Jagged basalt spires like gigant bones of ancient beast stick from this evershifing sand. Sandstorms and shifting sands are common in this area. Lucky adventurers might be able to find abandoned vehicle or mech uncovered by recent storm. Some of them might contain equipment that can still be repaired and used. Unlucky adventurer might end stuck in the sands itself. There are rumors about bandit group operating in area luring unaware pilots in to shifting sands then...

Aditional notes: This place would be a haven for light mech harrasing tactic. Lots of places to hide and heavy mech pilot would be at disadvantage due to slowing down efect of shifting sands areas.

[Impulsebooks]

Name of POI: The Crystal Forest

General Location: Within the Great Crater

Cause of formation: Volcanic activity caused by the comet's impact.

Odd Tid-bits of info: The Crystal Forest is a misnomer. Named for the region's superficial similarity to petrified trees found on Old Earth by its discoverer--Survey First Alexandra Kilrain. Scientists later learned the Crystal Forest was never organic in nature. The "trees" are natural crystal formations that formed when the comet interacted with the planet.

The crystals have many useful properties. Certain colours are used in communications systems, others are found in mining lasers and military grade grazers, lasers, and PPCs to focus the high energy streams used in those devices.

Perhaps the most exciting possibility is their use in FTL drives. Experiments and prototypes have so far yielded less than stellar results in this important field, but many researchers have high hopes for the future. It has been theorised that the reason for failure in FTL applications is the lack of enough high grade crystal--specifically the very rare Black Crystals found so far in only small amounts. Flawed black crystals are still found, but they are rarely very large and often have inclusions of green or red crystal.

Side Note: Survey First Kilrain later went on to pioneer the first use of Green Crystals in handheld geologic scanners. Before this time, the bulky scanners could only be deployed as a towed array behind a quad of trike.

Kilrain disappeared some forty years after her most noteworthy discovery. Her body was never found.

[HATEBRINGER]

Name of POI: T-zone
General Location: Genoma teritory

This place was selected to be heart of Genoma terraforming project. Soil from this area can be procesed and used in corporate bioindustrial facilities. It can also be used as a soil replacement in farming. Organic terraforming&soilprocessing stations are common in this area. Deep withing T-zone closer to Genoma capital you can find a T-Lab complex. Large industrial facility and terraforming R&D center.
Terraformer facilites were a common target for Seneka commando raids untill unexpected consequences started to grow in the area. Genoma used an artificial lifeform for soil processing. After terraformers destruction this rockeating fungus survived in harsh planet enviroment. Basicaly speeding up Genoma project. After soil prices incrased terraformers are raid target once more. This time riders simply steal processed soil causing minimal damage to facility. When traveling throu area you might see brightly colored land patches, wierd looking fungal colonies, even small insect like creatures. While it seems that Genoma project is most advanced it is limited to area where fungus can be grown.

Name of POI: Burning Valley
General Location: Lukron teritory

Lukron atmospheric processor is located in this volcanic area. Visibility is limited due to constant rain of ash. Magma flows soo close to surface here that ground is warm in touch. Underground tunnels are directing magma straight in to processor powerplant harnessing power of the planet itself. Entire complex is located behind natural choke point deep inside valley. It has one weak spot. Flow control stations located all over the valley. If someone is able to hack sufficient number of stations incrasing lava flow he would cause overheat and seriously damgaing processor powerplant

Name of POI: Evershine Mesa
General Location: Seneka Territory

Amount of sun reaching this mesa made it ideal spot for Seneka terraforming project. This place is a maze full of greenhouses (finished and in various stages of construction), pipelines, storage areas and support buildings. While greenhouses can be repaired and rebuild, plants can be recycled and cloned again facility has one weak spot. Tanks when destroyed it would be very difficult to reclaim lost water. Senekans placed aa sites and anti-missile defences all over the place but small strike team could be able to sneak in and destroy tanks before
land defence is able to respond.

[Deft]

Name of POI:The Jaharin Depot (grymwater)
General Location: somewhere in a canyon( I leave the rest to you)
Cause of formation: Erosion
Odd Tid-bits of info: A Small group of independent miners/ Moisture farmers banded together under Jip "Camel" Jiharin.
Together they searched for a place to call there own.


Is what they found.
After setting up into a harsh but, manageable life, they set up multiple mech repair bays that catered to all.
No matter what faction or group. The Depot developed its own security force under Camel Jiharin to regulate its
Neutral stance. For many years the peace held....Until Camel Jiharin became lax and bloated with corruption.
Selling parts and services to pirates and any other form of people that would like to stay under the eyes of the Corps view.
With many of his original settlers dead or already having left the degradation behind, Jiharin quickly started siding himself
with the Unsavory lot he now had as residents. Within months he had refitted the entire depot to suit these individuals.
With its own pirate militia in place the depot took on its roll as a safe haven for raiders and thieves.


Makers Notes: I started this as a settlement but with so many being out there already I shifted it into a POI.
 I envision the whole depot to be very secure( turrets, minefields, other forms of pain).
 Also Left off the rest of the canyons to show the innards of the depot. It should have a completely surrounding canyon
wall with the crack at the front being the only entrance that is large enough for mech size entry(except for air transports
and jump capable  mechs). I will try to flesh it out some more, just had some extra time.. enjoy!
Also this is an on-going project and will update it as I add the canyon and mech bay.

[Burninator]

POI Name: Dead Zone(s)

General Location: Randomly Dispursed Across Unexplored Planet Surface

Cause of Formation: Incredibly dense plates of rich metallic ore that have been heavily ionized due to tectonic friction created by the impact of the meteor that desimated the planet's surface.

Odd Tidbits: Nothing mechanized or electrically powered can function inside a "Dead Zone." Only archaic weapons, such as those that depend on small chemical ignition, and non-powered non-mechanized armor will work in dead zones. Dead zones can come in any variety of shapes and sizes. The yet to be identified, ore that makes up the planet's crust in a dead zone is infathomably dense and transfers heat and energy at a rate near the speed of light, making it an ideal ore for future development. However, since it creates an electromagnetic interference pattern that renders any mechanized excavation equipment inoperable and it is too hard and dense to be mined by archaic tools, it is currently unextractable. <---NOTE: Currently. The ore itself has the same color and sheen as Earth's platinum.


POI Name: The Sea of Tranquility

General Location: The furthest place from any currently settled area

Odd Tidbits: This is the largest "Dead Zone" on the planet, spanning an area of 10s of 1000s of square miles.   

[Wild_Card]

I watch WAY to much Trigun. 

POI Name: Ancient ruins

Location: Inside one of the major dormant volcanoes near the equator.

Info: Deep with in the cone of a Major volcano the lies ancient structural building  that seem to have at one point been some sort of power plant/city. Scientists have concluded that at a point when the volcano was still active, an ancient race would use the heat of the magma to produce energy. The structure at first glance has the impression of being capable of relocation. The sight has passages capable of allowing passage of even super mechs, and passages that barely accommodate a single human. However due to the location, getting mechs and supplies to the location is difficult. Flight capable mechs would have the easiest time of getting to the structure, but may be to weak to deal with the hazards.

Today the sight is contested over due to its ancient secrets. However so far nothing can be removed more then one mile from the sight due to what seems to be a self destruct built into every piece of technology. Scientist theorize this is how the ancient civilization kept their secrets to themselves. Thus any research that occurs must be done in the field, and this slows down the progress that can be made.

It is theorized that there is a master shutoff for the self destruct somewhere deep within the structures, but the still active security drones and mechs have made the search difficult and costly. Should this shutoff be found, then the current level of technology would shoot to new heights. It would also bring a huge bounty from all four corporations, as well as make it a major battleground. Rumor has it that a few people in the past have in fact found the switch, but did not release the lock due to the potential consequences. A few men and women even claim to have maps to the location, but so far no one has been able to verify the claims.

[Kellzz]

Name of POI: The Southern Lights

General Location: Magnetic South Pole

Cause of formation: Solar particles from flares mixing with the planet's Magnetic field causing a display of fantastic light. (Insert geeky science speak here)

Odd Tid-bits of info: Durring this phenomenon, certain mechs may experience an increase in electrical power due to the geomagnetic induced current. This can cause minor damage to total failure in Mechs made of conductive material. (Genomans pay attention!).

[Sturm Kintaro]

POI: Singing Rocks

Location: Unknown (?)

     As the legend goes: several million years ago, a highly advanced civilization called this planet home.  They came here to study the strange phenomenon of the Singing Rocks - A  network of caves nestled deep inside a canyon, invisible from any prying eyes.  The caves and surrounding region were full of rare metals and ores that created incredibly strong magnetic fields; it was these fields the un-named civilization came to study.  These magnetics make any form of sensors or radar (Passive/active/ladar or otherwise) impossible to use, making the area dangerous for any occupying or attacking force both.

     The fields themselves would morph and change with seeming irregularity, but allowed great breakthroughs in movement without needing any internal power source.  Sometimes, when the fields were aligned just right, the battling magnetic forces would cause the rocks to vibrate, and the harmonics made the caves "sing" with an eerie melody.  No one ever discovered what exactly happened to the civilization, but the legend ends with a flash of light over the area, as a "comet shoots into the sky, then vanishes, never to be seen again"... Perhaps with some patience and luck some vestiges of this technology still survive?

[TheWanderingJew]

Name of POI:
Liberation Army Rally Point

General Location:
located near the Tescan Range, an area contested by Zekcom and Lukron

Cause of formation: Geological events

Odd Tid-bits of info:
The Tescan Range, unlike in other barren areas, is dense with foliage. It has been reported as a frequent rally point for Liberation Army, an army of turncoats who were either became disillusioned with their former factions or those who choose to unaffiliate themselves. Any mech unit entered the said area disappear, mech and all.

[Deft]

Haven't been doing much lately but had this Idea thought I might put it down...

Name of POI: The Haei'rian Vents

General Location: Any volcanic region

Cause of formation: Volcanic venting of hydrofluoric fluoride and super heated steam from deep within the planets core causes
large clouds of vaporous death in a toxic mix of hydrofluoric and sulfuric fog rolling across the area.
 
Odd Tid-bits of info: Drawn by the need to utilize the local gases for industrial growth, companies and factions brave the dangers
of the local environment. Upon contact with moisture, including tissue, hydrogen fluoride immediately converts to hydrofluoric acid,
which is highly corrosive and toxic.  Hydrofluoric acid is used for fluorinating polymers, giving fluorocarbons, petroleum refining, glassmaking, aluminium manufacturing, titanium pickling, quartz purification, and metal finishing. It is also used to synthesize UF6, which is key to separating uranium isotopes.Hydrofluoric acid attacks many metal oxides thus making mech travel in the area sparse and treacherous.

I am working on a model in  the Google Sketch..if I get the time I'll update this with it.
 

[Agamemnon]

Thanks for all of the latest additions everyone, they all sound great. 

[Helphyre]

Check out my post at

http://www.forceofarms.com/msgbbs/index.php?topic=673.0

For some ideas.

Also it might be nice to put this post into the Settlements folder. This thread is basically the same thing and should probably go there.

Any way feel free to comment on my ideas at the thread above.

[Agamemnon]

Well not exactly, this portion of the POI's was meant to be specifically for areas within the game that a player upon coming upon might be recognizable. We wanted to include the community on ideas they thought might be kewl to see in the game, to have their little touch of creation in a world that will be their own. So these rock formations or abandoned mines or what not might be smaller pieces of the larger world.

The settlements, as a whole, I viewed as towns, settlements, villages, cities that may or may not be player created. Some may have already been started development work on say for instances a certain outpost that is listed somewhere in the settlements thread may wind its way up in the next WIP2 world that is currently in the works. However, later on in development, that outpost may fade from history, or it may become a fairly large sized metroplitan city, from the small shabby outpost.

I know some of them sorta cross the boundry here in POI's but that's where I try to call the seperation as much as possible. 

[Talamaeus]

PoI:
Razorback Mountains

CoF:
Seismic activity, violent clashing of tectonic plates

Loc:
The largest Fault-Line on K-9WD

Info:
The Razorback Mountain Range is an area that formed directly on a geographic fault-line between two plates that was approximately 550km long.  Due to constant, extremely high impact earthquakes, the two plates collided with such force that the rocks and soil rise nearly straight up, and the two plates became one super-plate.  These mountains are incredibly steep, and narrow.  When viewed directly from the side seem to resemble the spines on a mythic dragon's back.

These mountains are incredibly tall, and nearly reach the edge of space.  The composition seems to be of large deposits of soft metals such as gold, aluminum, copper, and other soft-metals, thus explaining how the plates' edges seemed to "bend" at a nearly 90 degree angle.  Due to the high levels of soft-metal deposits, there is a very high chance that this region could become a source of great conflict for the resources held here, as well as the demand for superconductors such as gold and copper.

These mountains, due to their high metallic composition, get extremely cold at night and hot during the day.  Storms are frequent do to the superconductors, and temperature fluctuations, also negatively impacting sensors and other critical systems on the lower mountains.  The mountains at the higher altitudes, which would be more difficult to reach from land than space, contain some other unknown alloys that may prove useful as time goes on.  Though this goes without saying, the upper peaks would require pressurized suits with an oxygen supply in order to exploit these resources.