Ytharia

Binary stellar system · Ytharia · Former home of the Alf people

The Homeworld

Ytharia (/ɪˈθɑːriə/) was the homeworld of the Alf and the historical, cultural, and political center of the Asterra System. The second of the system's seven primary planets, it was the only world in Asterra known to support complex native life. An ocean-dominated terrestrial world orbiting within the narrow habitable band of its cool primary star, Ytharia sustained a stable, temperate climate across geological time — the quiet precondition that allowed the Alf to emerge, endure, and eventually look outward to the rest of the system.

For the whole span of recorded Alf history, Ytharia was the fixed point around which civilization organized itself: the cradle of settlement, the seat of the Conclave Assembly, and the administrative and economic heart of the system. That era ended with the arrival of The Invaders — later understood as The Pursuers — whose incursion rendered the planet inhospitable and war-torn. Ytharia survives today only in record and memory, an origin point its people can name and map but no longer return to.

History

The history of Ytharia spans the full arc of Alf civilization, from the earliest organized societies to the loss of the planet itself. It is conventionally divided into broad periods, defined less by fixed dates than by the character of the age.

The Rime — before SR 0

The Rime is the earliest and longest period of Alf history, predating continuous record-keeping. It is named for the prolonged glacial conditions that characterized early Ytharia, which sustained a colder baseline climate than most worlds bearing complex life. The era is known primarily through archaeological evidence.

During the Rime, the Alf existed as small, scattered populations concentrated in the temperate coastal margins. Ytharia's deep oceans retained heat more effectively than its landmasses, making coastal and estuarine zones the only reliably habitable regions; the frozen interior and the high elevations of the Spine were largely uninhabitable. These conditions confined early populations to isolated pockets of habitable land separated by ice and open water, establishing the geographic basis for the cultural and linguistic diversity documented in later eras.

The era ended gradually as glacial conditions receded over many generations, expanding the habitable coastal zones and allowing early populations to grow and spread.

The Wending — SR 0 – 800

The Wending is the period during which the Alf transitioned from isolated subsistence populations to organized, expanding societies. It begins at SR 0, the conventional start of continuous record-keeping, though early records from this period are fragmentary and supplemented by archaeological evidence.

The era is defined by sustained territorial expansion. As glacial conditions continued to recede following the Rime, the habitable coastal margins widened and inland regions became accessible for the first time. Alf populations grew and spread along coastlines, into river valleys, and gradually toward the interior, establishing the three broad settlement patterns — coastal, riverine, and inland — that would characterize Alf society thereafter. River systems draining from the Spine were particularly significant, providing fresh water, transport routes, and arable land that supported the first permanent inland settlements.

The fragmented nature of Ytharia's landmasses, divided by open ocean and mountainous terrain, meant that populations continued to develop in relative isolation from one another. This reinforced the cultural and linguistic divergence established during the Rime, producing the distinct settlement groups documented in later periods. Contact between regions was limited and conducted primarily by sea, establishing maritime travel as the principal means of long-distance connection on Ytharia.

The period saw the emergence of early social organization beyond the family band, including the first permanent settlements, rudimentary infrastructure, and the specialization of labor. The preservation-oriented roles inherited from the Rime — those concerned with medicine, food security, construction, and the retention of knowledge — became formalized as distinct social functions during this era, laying the groundwork for the value systems of later Alf civilization.

The Wending concluded as expanding populations and consolidating settlements gave rise to the first organized states.

The Sundered Age — SR 800 – 1900

The Sundered Age is the longest documented period of organized Alf civilization, spanning roughly eleven centuries between the settlement-driven Wending and the technological expansion of the Reach. It is characterized by political fragmentation, the rise and fall of numerous independent states, and recurrent inter-state conflict, including the first two of the three major wars later known collectively as the Severances. The era takes its name from the divided condition of Ytharia during this period, when the planet was partitioned among many competing powers, few of which endured.

The early Sundered Age saw the first organized states emerge from the consolidated settlements of the Wending. These were initially small, regionally confined polities, constrained by the geographic divisions — ocean, mountain, and ice — that had shaped earlier Alf development. As populations grew and maritime capability improved, these states expanded into contact and competition with one another, producing the first organized warfare in Alf history.

The First Severance (c. SR 1150 – 1178) was the earliest conflict of sufficient scale to be counted among the Severances. It remained a regional war, confined largely to a single landmass and its surrounding waters, but it was unprecedented in its scope: the first instance of multiple states being drawn simultaneously into a single, sustained conflict rather than a series of isolated border wars. The First Severance established the pattern of bloc alignment — coalitions of states bound by alliance against a common rival — that would recur throughout later Alf history. Its conclusion was indecisive, ending in exhaustion and the collapse of several participant states rather than clear victory.

Through the middle Sundered Age, the cycle of expansion, collapse, and reorganization continued. Improvements in shipbuilding, navigation, and communication gradually extended the reach of individual powers, allowing conflicts to spread across greater distances and drawing previously isolated regions into contact. This connectivity, while enabling trade and exchange, also made wider warfare possible for the first time.

The Second Severance (c. SR 1600 – 1642) was the first planet-spanning war in Alf history. Unlike the regionally confined First Severance, it engulfed states across multiple landmasses, connected by the maritime networks that had developed over the preceding centuries. It was substantially more destructive than any prior conflict, and its effects were felt across the whole of inhabited Ytharia. The war accelerated the collapse of the smaller and older states, many of which were absorbed or destroyed during or immediately after the conflict; a significant portion of the "forgotten nations" of Alf history disappeared in this period. The Second Severance is generally regarded as the point at which the fragmented order of the early Sundered Age began to give way to consolidation around fewer, larger powers.

The protracted conflicts of the era had a lasting effect on Alf society. The generational experience of war, loss, and political impermanence reinforced the species' preservation-oriented values and its tendency to carry grief and obligation across long spans of time. Institutions concerned with continuity — record-keeping, medicine, engineering, and infrastructure — retained their high status as sources of stability amid recurrent upheaval. Military competition also drove significant, if uneven, advancement in technology and organization across the period.

By the late Sundered Age, the trend toward consolidation accelerated. Larger and more durable states absorbed or eliminated smaller powers, reducing the number of significant polities on Ytharia and laying the groundwork for the modern order. This consolidation, combined with accelerating technological development, marks the transition to the Reach, during which Alf civilization would extend beyond Ytharia itself.

The Reach — SR 1900 – 2600

The Reach is the era of accelerating technological and territorial expansion, during which Alf civilization extended beyond Ytharia for the first time. It takes its name from the outward movement that defined the period — first across the planet's last unconsolidated regions, then off its surface entirely and into the wider Asterra system.

The era opened with the consolidation begun in the late Sundered Age reaching maturity. The cycle of fragmentation that had defined Ytharia for over a millennium gave way to fewer, larger, and more durable powers, whose greater stability and resources enabled sustained industrial and scientific development. Mechanization, electrification, and large-scale manufacturing transformed Alf society from one organized around subsistence and survival into one capable of coordinated, long-term technological projects.

Maritime capability — long the backbone of inter-regional contact — was joined and eventually surpassed by new forms of transport and communication, knitting the planet's fragmented landmasses into a single connected sphere for the first time. The same period saw the Alf turn the preservation-oriented values inherited from earlier eras toward systematic inquiry, producing rapid advances in materials, energy, and engineering.

The defining achievement of the Reach was the move into space. The Alf established orbital infrastructure, settled the system's habitable margins, and built the network of stations, lunar bases, and mining operations that would define the Asterra system at its height. Keth's industrial nodes, the orbital stations of Ytharia and Orthis, and the lunar base on Elaris all date from this expansion. By the close of the Reach, the Alf were a spacefaring civilization, their presence extending from the inner system to the outer gas giants.

The Alf

Ytharia was the homeworld and sole point of origin of the Alf, a humanoid species of lighter build and longer limbs, adapted for endurance over raw strength. Their skin tones run to muted purples and cool grays, and their eyes — vivid reds, purples, blues, and greens — are adapted for the low light and reflective glare of an ocean world. With lifespans of 140 to 180 years, the Alf mature late and remain cognitively stable deep into old age.

Emotionally, the Alf are slow to surface but long-lasting: loyalty, grief, and a sense of responsibility persist for decades, internalized rather than openly expressed. This temperament, combined with a history of prolonged and costly conflict, gave Alf society its enduring character — cautious, preservation-minded, and oriented toward the long term.

Alf settlement on Ytharia was historically organized around three broad environments — coastal, river, and inland — each shaping the cultures that developed within it.

Geography

Ytharia was an ocean world, with roughly 72% of its surface covered by liquid water beneath a moisture-rich atmosphere. Its landmasses were concentrated in the southern hemisphere as a fragmented chain of regions and archipelagos rather than continuous continents, separated by open ocean and inland seas.

The principal regions included the Western Reach, a broken expanse of peninsulas and bays that was among the most densely populated areas of the planet; the Northern Coast, a compact landmass set apart by a channel; the Eastern Arm, a mountainous region tapering toward the northeast; the Southern Wilds of the central belt; and the scattered Southwest Isles. Running west-to-east across the central landmass was the great mountain range known as The Spine, whose peaks divided the interior and fed the river systems that supported inland settlement.

The largest body of water, the Shattered Sea, dominated the planet's populated hemisphere and served as the primary medium of trade, travel, and contact between otherwise isolated regions — a defining feature of a world where the sea connected as much as it divided.

Nations and Territories

At its height, Ytharia was divided among several major and minor powers.

Major Power	Government	Notes
Republic of Valdris	Democracy (corporate)
White Diamond Federation	Oligarchy
Holy Auravyn Crown	Monarchy

The Conclave

The Conclave Assembly was the shared diplomatic body of the major powers, convening on Ytharia's surface. Its presence reinforced the planet's role as the political center of gravity for the entire system, even as wealth and power remained unevenly distributed among its members. The Conclave served as the primary venue for negotiation, disclosure, and dispute between the dominant states, and its proceedings became increasingly fraught as the threat of the Invaders emerged.

Astronomical Features

Ytharia was orbited by two moons. The major moon, Elaris, governed the planet's primary tidal cycles and stabilized its axial tilt against long-term drift — a quiet but essential contributor to the climatic stability that allowed life to persist. The minor moon, Tirien, followed a more distant orbit locked in a 2:1 resonance with Elaris, completing one orbit for every two of the larger moon's. From Ytharia's surface, Tirien was frequently occluded by Elaris and visible only during specific alignments.

The resonance between the two moons produced a recurring alignment of Elaris and Tirien along a single sightline from Ytharia — a periodic syzygy known among the Alf as the Veiling. During this event the moons aligned to cast an unusually deep and prolonged eclipse, accompanied by extreme tidal swings along the coasts. The Veiling held significant cultural and folkloric weight, marking transitions in the traditional Alf calendar and appearing throughout the planet's mythologies.

Status

Ytharia is no longer habitable. Following the arrival of the Pursuers, the planet was rendered inhospitable and war-torn, stripped of the complex native life it had supported for geological ages. Its cities and infrastructure are abandoned, and no Alf population remains. It endures as the historical and cultural origin point of its people in record and memory only — a world the Alf can name, map, and mourn, but no longer return to.