Jorune
| Jorune | |
|---|---|
| Universe | Skyrealms of Jorune |
| Planet type | Planet |
| First appearance | 1984 |
Jorune is the fictional planet used as a setting for the Skyrealms of Jorune role-playing game. The Skyrealms are the game's main setting - floating "islands" of earth levitated by mysterious crystals in the crust of an alien planet. The buildings, races, and bizarre creatures of Jorune were brought to life by the realistic artwork of illustrator Miles Teves.
Skyrealms of Jorune was based on a science-fantasy background (of the planetary romance subtype) created by Andrew Leker, initially for a high school writing assignment. The setting was somewhat comparable to the Barsoom of the John Carter novels of Edgar Rice Burroughs, in that it was a barbaric fantasy world populated by sword-wielding heroes who encountered strange alien beings and technologies. It also has elements of the intricate fantasy worlds of Jack Vance.
The game's setting was quite different from other role-playing games of the time. However it had some features in common with Tekumel. These included the idea of humans colonizing a distant planet and subsequently losing contact with the rest of humanity (a dimensional rift in Tekumel's case, civil war in Jorune's) leading to the regression of the colonists' society and war against the planet's native inhabitants.
The game's setting, the planet Jorune, was colonized by successive waves of inhabitants after the evolution of the native life forms ("Jorune creatures"), including the insectoid Cleash, the bizarre Thriddle, and the broadly humanoid Ramian, culminating in the invasion of the human race. By the time gameplay begins, the human race has evolved into three subspecies differentiated by size and facility with Isho (the magic-like energy of the setting): regular humans; the small, Isho-adept Muadra; and the large, Isho-resistant Boccord. Four additional PC races, the Blount, Crugar, Bronth, and Woffen, are bipedal, genetically engineered descendants of Earth animals (frogs, cougars, bears, and wolves, respectively).
Conflict and interaction between the various alien species on Jorune drove some of the drama of individual adventures, as did the exploration of the planet's surface, which was littered with powerful prehistoric artifacts originating variously with the initial human settlement (typically blaster weapons and other "advanced technology") or the Shanthas, the native sentient lifeform (typically instruments for Isho manipulation).
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